Posts Tagged ‘foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com’

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Could Your Head EXPLODE?

August 31st, 2010

You won't BELIEVE what is happening to our healthy choices!

SOMETIMES Mother Connie is sure her head may explode!  Get a load of THIS:  There is an advertising campaign which takes baby carrots, packages them like junk foods-e.g. chips, cookies, etc-and trots them out to tempt children!

Oh, this is fraught with issues.  #1, it’s probably a clever concept and someone will likely be handsomely paid for thinking of it.

#2, I have serious issues with baby carrots.  Yes.  Baby carrots are NOT healthy, NOT nutritious and in some cases they are downright dangerous.

#3, is it kosher for people to appeal to kids in this way?  It makes me squeamish.

The reason why baby carrots are not good is that the clever food processing people take all the ugly, misshapen carrots and make them look perfect because after all, we eat with our eyes first.  Right?  Right.

The problem is that after they get them shaped just so, they dunk them in a vat of slush that purports to keep them sanitary.  That vat has CHLORINE in it in order to kill the bad guys that might be growing there.  Those carrots sit in that brine from the time they go in to the time you use the little critters.  Didn’t you ever notice how LONG those things keep and HOW SLIMY THEY ARE? Yuck!

The manufacturers can dress them up any way they like to sell more stuff.  But if you dress up a pig and put lipstick on it, IT IS STILL A PIG.

Does Mother Connie make herself clear, people?

Families who are managing their food dollars with the help of WIC or SNAP and an EBT,  need to have accurate information about the food they purchase.  For people who use Angel Food Ministries, for those who have items from a food pantry or use food commodities, these are important considerations.  If you have goods from a Farmer’s Market or are just plain frugal and you love food, especially comfort foods, you need to have good information about the food you and your loved ones consume!

Good food is good food.  It should be good FOR you, not just perfectly pretty.

If you have REAL carrots, with their imperfections and all, I want to share a prep tip with you.  And if you get your kids involved in shopping or growing or digging or cleaning the produce the chances of them EATING it are much, much greater.  Here’s what’s really good:

COOKED CARROTS

1 pound of real carrots, scrubbed, not peeled.  Do cut off the end pieces for your stock pot.

Cut the carrots the way you want them to look.  They can be grated, cut crosswise, chopped into chunks-however you like them.

Put them in a heavy saucepan and add some water and salt.  Bring them to a boil; reduce the heat to a simmer and allow them to cook till fork tender.

Drain them, add a spoonful of butter to them and let that melt.  Add 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar and a sprinkle of nutmeg.  These will smell divine, taste so elegant and those kids will beg for second helpings!

DON’T EAT THE BABY CARROTS, NO MATTER HOW THEY ARE PACKAGED!

Mother Connie

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Is It ALL About the Money?

August 31st, 2010

Everywhere you look, people are fighting for the money it takes to survive!

According to USA Today there is grim news.  According to an article that appeared yesterday-thanks to Sandra for bringing this to our attention-more than 40 million people are using an EBT card for SNAP to feed their families!

I can tell you for certain that there are also people who NEED this assistance but for whatever reasons they do not qualify for benefits.

People who have Medicare-50 million of us-may have those benefits but paying the bills not covered by Medicare can leave the food budget in a shambles.

Hopefully this page will help you to hone your survival skills, particularly if you  use public assistance OR NEED IT; if you use food commodities or visit a food pantry.  Mother Connie wonders seriously and aloud if the Soup Kitchens of the 1930s will soon reappear.

Someone asked me this question yesterday:  “Why do you wake up every day?”

People who need help with feeding their families propel me out of bed every day.  Scouring newspapers, cookbooks, newsletters, articles online and speaking with neighbors and friends to pick their brains in order to help families manage their food dollars and keep their dignity intact is my main push.

There are a great many factors at work in the world.  Politics, greed, fear, natural disasters and of course, the stinking economy.  It doesn’t matter WHY the issue exists; what matters is that people can feed their loved ones and be well!

Bringing you food ideas, recipes, tips and including you in our circle is critical to all of us.  We want to teach your children the best ways to create meals as well as memories.  We want to help you learn better and better ways of preparing foods in order that you can be well and happy and do it all within your means, no matter how meager.

We cannot do this alone.  We need one another in this Club.  We must have one anothers’ backs in order to bring out the best in everybody.

Today is the last day of the month.  If your house is anything like ours, your cupboard might be looking bare.  Your canisters may be low or empty.  The fridge sounds hollow; so does the freezer.  It is so easy to run out of food dollars before the end of the month.  I want to share a simple dish we turn to on EOM (end of the month) days:

Eggs with Zucchini

1 small onion, chopped

1 rib celery, chopped

Saute these in a bit of oil in a skillet until the veggies are “sweaty”.

Add 2 cups of peeled and grated zucchini.  Be sure to squeeze out excess moisture before you add the zukes to the other vegetables.

Let these hang out in the skillet until the zucchini is soft.

Add 1 cup of cooked rice, quinoa, oatmeal or barley

Stir well until everything is heated thoroughly.

Add 4 beaten eggs and cook on medium low heat until the eggs are cooked.

As soon as the eggs go into the skillet, season the whole shootin’ match with salt, pepper and curry powder (or whatever else your gang likes best!)  to taste.  It won’t take much of any of it.

If you have toast and jelly to go with this dish, you have a total meal and everyone will be too full for dessert!

Speaking of dessert, it’s apple season around here.  Find yourself a neighbor with an apple tree.  They are most likely to be happy to share the bounty.  If you HAVE an apple tree, please look for someone who could benefit from your harvest. You might even make some new friends under the apple tree!

This horrible economy and all our serious needs could really turn out to be a blessing in disguise, people, as we come together for a common cause and help one another in every way possible.

And, club members, if nobody has TOLD you yet today, please understand that you ARE loved and you ARE appreciated!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.


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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Smile! It’s Marilyn’s Cucumbers!

August 22nd, 2010


Marilyn knows and grows cucumbers so she sent her favorite salad recipe for us to share!

Marilyn describes herself as frugal.  That pretty much says it all for all of us who hang out in the Clubhouse.  We are all about getting all we can from EBT cards from SNAP and WIC.  We do all we can with food commodities and what comes from the food pantry.  If we have goods from the Farmers Market or Angel Food Ministries, we make that stretch as far as possible.  And then, some of us, like Marilyn, are frugal and want to be good stewards.

She sent her favorite recipe for cucumbers:

MARILYN’S CUCUMBER MARINADE

4 medium cucumbers, thinly sliced
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup cold water
2 tablespoons chopped dill
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper

Combine sliced cucumber with all other ingredients; cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours before serving.
Marinated cucumbers recipe serves 4 to 6

YUMMY, Marilyn!  Pretty similar to what we make at our house but with a bit of a twist.  It’s always fun to freshen the menu with new ideas and we appreciate your sharing!  Thanks so much!

We have  another great offering from our faithful contributor, Sandra.  She suggests this would be a perfect project for the weekend because it needs to simmer to marry the flavors.

SANDRA’S OLD COUNTRY SPAGHETTI GRAVY

3½ hours | 25 min prep | Yields about 24 cups of gravy.

4 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste

2 (28 ounce) can tomato puree

3 (28 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes

1 (35 ounce) can whole tomatoes in puree or water (crush by hand when adding to the pot)

4 cloves garlic, crushed (or substitute 2 tablespoons garlic powder)

½ cup onion, chopped

3 – 4 tablespoons good olive oil (it should smell fruity when heated)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon Kosher or other coarse salt

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

2 tablespoons dried basil

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes (optional)

½ cup parmesan cheese

1 cup dry red wine

5 cups water

In a large stockpot on low-med heat add olive oil and sauté onions for about 4 minutes, then add garlic powder and cook a moment longer. Then add remaining ingredients, being sure to mix everything very well. Cover and cook for 2½ hours. Taste and adjust seasonings, salt or sugar as desired.

So now we have the makings for a complete meal, except for dessert.  Maybe we’ll be too full for dessert?

Those of you who have entered your name and email address have received a series of cooking tips and we hope those have been helpful for you.  Occasionally, VERY occasionally, we send out messages that are germane to this site.  We never mean to intrude or overload your Inboxes.  We are tickled pink when new people join our gang!

We are also tickled pink to have comments and emails: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com will get your email to us.

If you are interested in health and wealth you might also like to see The Healthy and Wealthy You blog.  You might even like to look into having another stream of income or super dental care by clicking on some of the ads and links in this post.  No pressure; just great ideas to enhance your life if you like.

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Patty Came to Dinner?

August 21st, 2010

Guess who came to dinner? PATTY!

Mom always maintained that if you did not get to the grocery store you’d just have to make do in order to put a meal on the table.

Chef Shawn Bucher recommends that most meals consist of protein, sides and dessert.  He also puts a high priority on sauces.

Today I satisfied BOTH of those folks’ requirements and felt proud as punch in the process.

Mother Connie is not a fancy-schmancy cook; has no formal training and certainly is no high priced expert when it comes to the culinary world!

I made a meatless ‘meat’ patty!  Here’s how I did it:

MOTHER CONNIE’S PATTY

2 potatoes, scrubbed and quartered.  I had 1 white and 1 red tater.

1 small zucchini, peeled and cut to match the size of the cut potatoes.

I covered the potatoes and the zucchini with water, sprinkled them with salt.  I brought them to a boil and let them simmer til the vegetables were fork tender.

While those cooked, I chopped a small onion and set it aside.

I combined 3 small eggs, 2 slices of bread made into fine crumbs, the chopped onions and 1 teaspoon of curry powder.  I salted and peppered the mix, as well.

When the potatoes and zucchinis were cooked I drained and mashed them, skins and all, and added that combination to the eggs, crumbs, onions and seasonings.

I was eager to see if my combination would be fit to eat, so I took a page from Rachel Ray’s book and made a teeny sample sized patty to fry.  When it had browned on both sides I borrowed a hint from Anne Burrell, who is big on QC  or Quality Control-as in TASTE.

Well, let me tell you:  I thought it was MOREish, which means there may not be enough! grin

While the patties browned in hot olive oil I made a beshemel sauce.  That’s only a fancy word for white sauce.  I used 2 Tablespoons of melted butter, a slurry of 1 teaspoon of corn starch in water and stirred it all together.  Before it thickened I added about a cup or so of milk.  When it came together I salted and peppered it and added about a half a bag of frozen peas.  I flirted with the idea of adding spinach but the peas were more appealing to me.

You can see for yourself that it made for a pretty dish, spread all over a luncheon plate.  I had some beets-they had sat in a rice vinegar brine for most of the afternoon so I sliced them and used them as a garnish.

Next time I make these goodies, I’ll hope to have celery and corn on hand.  Oh, and beans.  Mashed beans could replace the potatoes and help to bind the vegetables together.  Carrots, cabbage-any combo of foods would work well with this method.  And the curry is just ONE of many ways to season things.  That’s where the creative cook can shine.

Fooey!  Even young children or picky husbands who don’t like anything but chicken nuggets will enjoy these yummies!

Oh.  About dessert.  I hate to admit it.  We had green gelatin.  Well, like Mom said, you have to use what you have in the house…I have no idea why we have gelatin in our house because it has no redeeming nutritive value.  It does LOOK cheery, though.

If you are users of Angel Food Ministries, visit a food pantry or use food commodities; if you have an EBT card for SNAP or WIC, we hope “Patty” will be YOUR new best friend forever!  This is also true if you have food from a Farmers Market or you are just thrifty and pinching your pennies to make your food budget last through the month.

Leave your comment on our doorstep or shoot us an email at foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com.  We ADORE hearing from you!

PS/We hope you have scoped out The Dinner Diva’s ideas, too! They are spectacular!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.


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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Tomato or TomAHto?

August 17th, 2010

The Normanator's Handiwork...is he a KEEPER or is he a KEEPER?

Whether you call them tomatoes or tomAHtoes; whether you eat them fresh or preserve them all luscious in jars that sparkle with their red goodness-it all means great eating year round.

So many tomatoes!  So little time!  So how can we present them to our families so they do not groan and complain, “Oh, no!  Not tomatoes AGAIN!”

Mom used to stuff tomatoes with tuna or chicken salad on little beds of lettuce.  We always thought that was the chi-chi poo-poo version and that must be what people ate who had servants.

SIDEBAR:  Most who find their way to this blog do not have servants!  We are the uber thrifty; we use EBT cards from public assistance like SNAP or WIC.  We might have food from a food pantry or we might use food commodities.  Farmers Markets coupons could get us some tomatoes.  We might even use Angel Food Ministries.  Servants are not an option.  END SIDEBAR.

My mom also made a brine for chopped tomatoes.  She would use vinegar, salt, pepper and a little sugar.  Sometimes there were cucumbers and/or onions swimming in a bowl of that.  She reused that brine, adding tomatoes as we ate them.  This was a summertime staple on the table for lunch and dinner.

My dad taught me how to love tomato sammies for breakfast.  He would slice some of Mom’s home made bread, lather it with butter and pile on slices of tomatoes from the garden.  This was comfort food for me as I was growing up.  Sometimes when I’m hungry and don’t know what I want, I still settle on tomato sammies!

Mom’s best friend, Helen, used to make a concoction using quartered tomatoes, garlic buds, onions and oil.  She would spread it out over a baking sheet, drizzle the oil over all of it and pop it into the oven.  When it came out, Helen would chop it up and pour it over cooked spaghetti noodles.  She toasted garlic bread for us, too.  We thought it was absolute luxury.  And so it was!

Myra, our landlady, used to treat us to fried green tomatoes.  As I recall, she dredged quarters of the green fruit in corn meal and fried them in oil.  I can still remember sitting at her kitchen table, watching her work, and having her present me with a plate full of the beauties.  Such delicious memories…

We eat breakfast at the ungodly hour of 1:30 AM.  One of our faves is to stir up a few eggs and add chopped tomatoes to the pan.  It makes for a flavorful and filling breakfast with lots of nourishment.  Better yet;  it is cost effective.

Call them tomatoes or call them tomAHtoes. They are delicious and nutritious whether they are fresh, cooked, canned or pickled. Even better than that, they are easy on the food budget!

What do YOU do with these beauties?  I can’t wait to hear from you!

We appreciate you!  Please consider yourselves hugged.  Now I’m going to enjoy a tomato the way you might enjoy an apple:  just with a shake of salt AND A NAPKIN TO CATCH THE JUICE DRIZZLES!

PS/There is a link below that will transport you to a website offering a healthy, cost effective way to clean your teeth.  Please check it out.  It’s important to save money any way we can and if we eat well and wisely and can keep our medical care costs low we have won TWICE!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post. Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated. Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline. Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Sheila Went to Idaho?

August 16th, 2010

Sheila was responsible for the famed "Ben Bowl" we received so joyously. Now Sheila has traveled to Canada. AND IDAHO.

Sheila is another of our faithful Food Stamps Cooking Club members.  She’s been vacationing and eating well and wisely in the process.

Always eager to lend a helping hand to our Club Members, Sheila has offered this recipe on a post card she picked up in, as you might expect, Idaho!  Mother Connie jumped all over this because of the great crop of taters The Normanator has produced in this year’s garden.  And, not surprisingly, has put HER spin on this tasty dish.

IDAHO BAKED POTATO SOUP 

*Mother Connie says this translates as “comfort food!”


2/3 cup butter

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

7 cups milk

4 large potatoes, baked, peeled and cubed-approx 4 cups

4 green onions, sliced

12 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

1 ¼ cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup sour cream

¾ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

In large soup kettle, melt butter.  Stir in flour; heat and stir until smooth.  Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until thickened.  Add potatoes and onions.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients; stir until cheese is melted.  Serve immediately.  Yield:  8 to 10 servings.

***Mother Connie, in her quest to be thrifty, used 3 cups of potatoes and 1 cup of shredded sautéed zucchini.  Also, not having green onions, white onions from the garden were substituted.

Remember the Foccacia bread recipe we shared recently?  The leftover bread we had was cut into cubes, drizzled with olive oil and parked in the oven to toast.  That made for lovely, yummy croutons and we felt as if we were attending a feast!  We had a salad with Swiss Chard and tomatoes from the oven.  What a great meal!

Thank you, Sheila.

Users of EBT cards provided by WIC or SNAP; Angel Food Ministries users; those who frequent food pantries or use food commodities can appreciate the value and cost effectiveness of this soup, even in warm weather.  If you garden, if you have taters and no meat you could make this sans bacon and have a very nourishing meal.  For those who watch their food budgets closely; for those who yearn for comfort food-this is a wonderful menu item.

Your cards and emails and comments are priceless to us.  Thank you SO MUCH for your participation in this effort to help folks stretch their food dollars.

Connie Baum
The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Does Sandra Have a License?

August 13th, 2010

Sandra bakes bread for a song...

Sandra, who is a regular contributing Food Stamps Cooking Club Member, really resonated with the post that went up about the growing use of public assistance for getting food and making those food dollars stretch.  She sent such delightful offerings that I’m wondering if she should procure a Blogger’s License?

Actually, I take that back.  Some Federal official will see it and think it is a wonderful idea for raising revenue.

Suffice it to say that Sandra has either thought this through very carefully or she has lived through a time which taught her a great many good lessons.  See what she sent us:

“Dear Mother Connie,

There’s no doubt that that money will be put back but we all still have to worry about those rising food costs especially when it comes to things like produce.  There are a lot of things we do to save money on the grocery bill.

1. Bake your own bread.  You can make bread for around 40 cents per loaf.  That’s much cheaper and healthier than store bought.

2. Eat pancakes, oatmeal, eggs, muffins, or French toast instead of boxed cereal.

3. Make your own pancake/waffle syrup.  There’s a great product called Mapleine on the market.  It comes in a blue and white box and is maple flavoring.  While the bottle costs around $3.50 per bottle, it takes only 1/2 tsp to make a pint of syrup.  It takes one cup water, 2 cups sugar, and 1/2 tsp Mapleine.  Much, much cheaper than store bought syrup.

4. Buy chips, treats, and cookies only for special occassions.  You can make your own treats much cheaper and healthier and with less packaging.

5. Don’t drink fruit juice.  While it seems economical, it really isn’t.  A serving of fruit is more satisfying to the appetite.

6. Eat meat only in very small portions.  You really don’t need a lot – just a few ounces per day fills your protein requirements especially if you eat eggs and dairy.

7. Eat more vegetarian meals.  Eggs, pasta, grains, etc can provide variety at a lower cost than can meat.

8. Don’t buy storebought mixes.  You can make your own more cheaply.

9. One of the biggest things we do is to follow the pantry principle.  We try to keep our pantries stocked with basic ingredients all the time so that we don’t run out of things and have to make extra trips to the store.

10. Make your own salad dressings.  This really can be cheaper and healthier and once you have a few basic ingredients, you can make different kinds.

11. Learn to like beans.  Seriously, beans are one of the most nutritious and frugal foods you can eat.  They store well too.

Mother Connie, I have a lot more ideas, but this is a very good start.  I hope this can help others.  :)

–Sandra

We were thrilled with that list.  But Sandra, ever the thoughtful Food Stamps Cooking Club member that she is, sent a follow up message, too:

Oh, a word about produce.  Learn to keep veggies and fruits that keep for a long time such as potatoes, carrots, cabbage, celery, and apples on hand for main use.  Then buy a few veggies or fruits that don’t keep as long.  Use those first and then rely on your staples.

Keep in mind that if you have bananas going bad and you aren’t ready to bake with them, you can freeze them and save for the smoothies or baking later.

If you are willing to go to farmer’s market or produce stands near closing time, you can often get reduced prices.”

–Sandra

Sandra, I baked some Foccacia bread this morning.  I eyed the pan of leftovers and pondered what great bread pudding that would make.  Now THAT will save us some moola…and I am known as the Bean Queen around here so you and I are pretty much on the same page! Why, we could be roommates.  Well, you know what I mean.  grin

If people use Angel Food Ministries,  food pantry food or food commodities; if they have an EBT card for WIC or SNAP they will most assuredly appreciate the worth of your thoughtful ideas, offered most generously.  You are a very wise woman, and we appreciate you very much.

We are delighted to hear from any of our Members. All emails can go to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com  and please leave your comments here.  We love those, too.

Our goal is to help you, because we care about your situation and we care about people-neighbors, people on the net-whoever we might assist.

Pass the word.  The series of cooking tips are fun and we don’t hammer you to death with messages till who laid the chunk.

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Low Cost Kale Salad?

August 8th, 2010

This text will be replaced by the player
Here is a wonderful tutorial I found on the internet because Renita, one of our faithful Club Members, brought it to my attention. It is part of the Natural News TV Network.   I was very pleased to find this because I am weary of creamed and sauteed kale.  I wanted something fresh and tasty and this certainly fills the bill.
While the Kale Salad is the star of this video, alongside the chef with a wonderful accent, I would like to draw your attention to the WATER UNIT at the left side of the video.  This is the kind of water unit our kids have in their group homes and it provides pure, clean, magnetized, energized water.  This is the kind of water that is beneficial to vibrant good health.  If you would like more information, shoot me an email: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com and I will cheerfully give you the persnickulars.
For users of Angel Food Ministries, food commodities or food pantries; anyone who has an EBT card from SNAP or WIC; those of you who are frugal, thrifty and looking to save money on your food budgets-this kale salad will really be a highly nutritious dollar saving menu item.  You might have to lay out some cash for the ingredients initially but having them on hand will open new vistas for food prep on a dime.
We LOVE LOVE LOVE getting your comments.  We have met some mighty fine folks because they took the time to leave their thoughts on this blog.  We met a coupla stinkers, too.  We might swipe an idea from one of our favorite bloggers:  she threatens to dip spammers in a vat of fish waste.  Twice.
We hope YOU love, love, love the things we bring you and the series of cooking tips you may sign up to receive.  In addition, we sometimes send out messages we think will be of value to you.
This blog is designed to help you stretch your food dollars and still be healthy.  We love people; we hope it shows.

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: SNAP Users Are UP?

August 5th, 2010
The numbers of people in need is growing!

The number of people in need of food assistance is growing!

According to Boston.com  the number of people who are receiving public assistance for their food requirements is staggering and growing!  This comes as no surprise to your humble blogger.  As one who is acutely and painfully aware of rising food costs and works with those in need, this brings a tear to Mother Connie’s eye.

According to the aforementioned website, 19% more people in the USA are using SNAP.  Some of those are first time users.

If you stay with the article long enough to read the comments you realize how these facts incite anger in people. It would seem to be reasonable that there should be outrage that this need EXISTS.  No.  People who commented COMPLAINED ABOUT THE BEHAVIOR OF THE RECIPIENTS!  Incredible!

To those insensitive commenters I would pose these questions:  “What about the behavior of greedy CEOs and stockholders?  Does that affect the price of food?  Has the fact that many American jobs have been shipped across the pond affect our ability to earn a living to feed our families?  As Americans, isn’t it our duty to help one another?  And what about all the VALUES we hear politicians brag about?  Don’t we value one another enough to see so everyone in this country is well nourished?   Shouldn’t each of us be responsible for his/her own behavior?”

So Food Stamps Cooking Club, hopefully, is a soft place for you to fall.  You have to eat, for heaven’s sake.  If you have children to feed it is imperative that you have help in doing so.

We love you unconditionally, dear visitor.  We want to help you learn how to stretch those food dollars as far as possible.  We understand you might be working long, thankless days for little pay and you are dog tired when you get home.  We hope to help you create meals and memories that will bond your family and help you along life’s way.

Here is an idea I pulled together yesterday that might be of help to you:

BEAN SOUP-AGAIN

Soak a package of beans overnight.  DO NOT SALT.  Drain and rinse the beans after they have soaked and cover them with cold water.  Set on medium heat, cover, bring to boil, and reduce the heat to a simmer.

In a saute` pan, put:

1  onion, chopped

2  carrots, chopped

3  ribs celery, chopped

After the vegetables are tender, add a pinch of red pepper flakes and add that mixture to the beans.  Taste occasionally to make sure you have great flavors.

If you have chicken broth, add some of that.  If not, no worries.

When the beans are tender, add salt and pepper to taste.

**For variety, add a package of thawed spinach after you have squeezed out the excess water.

***Another variation: Toss in 1/2  cup of toasted barley or 1/2  cup of rice.

This soup is very good when served with cornbread.  For dessert, if you provide a rice pudding, you have given your family  complete protein on a very tight budget!  You can stand back and be proud of yourself!

As for those complainers–they would complain about the price of a free dance!  Pay them no mind.  Now go hug your loved ones!

For users of SNAP, WIC, food pantries or food commodities, we invite you to sign up for our series of cooking tips and occasional messages.

If you are just frugal or thrifty, we extend the same invitation to you!

You are welcome to send your ideas and comments to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com or leave your message at the end of this post.

And please remember that you ARE loved and appreciated!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Pizza Pie by Sandra?

August 4th, 2010

Mama mia! Sandra has shared her pizza recipe! Preheat the oven and let's get rolling!

Food Stamps Cooking Club members are the most helpful bunch on the internet!  Sandra has graciously stepped up to share her pizza recipe; this was prompted by the post about tomatoes!  Thanks, Sandra!

SANDRA’S HOME MADE PIZZA RECIPE

Crust:
1  1/4 c. hot water
2  1/2 tsp yeast
1  T. sugar

Let yeast get foamy and then add 1  1/2 T. oil (I use olive), 1/2 tsp salt, and 3 cups flour (I use half wheat/half white).  Stir until it forms a ball.

Brush pan with melted butter or oil or spray with nonstick spray.  Roll out dough with rolling pin and then press into pan.  Prick dough all over with fork.

Bake at 400 for 10 minutes.  Take out of oven, add sauce, cheese and/or toppings.  Bake another 6-8 minutes.  Voila!  Tasty homemade pizza.

For the sauce I just use a can of tomato sauce to which I add salt, garlic powder, and Italian seasonings.  You could use spaghetti sauce if you have leftovers.

For toppings I usually do 1/2 pound of sausage or some pepperoni or pineapple.  But you could do anything you want!  :O)


Regarding her preference for peeled or non-peeled tomatoes, Sandra had this comment:  “I’m a non-peeler except for when I cook raw tomatoes into veggie fajitas – then I peel because the peeling gets bitter.”

Thanks so much, Sandra.  People who love pizza and use public assistance like SNAP or WIC or food pantry food; even food commodities or Angel Food Ministries food will appreciate this low cost make-at-home goodness!

SIDEBAR:  Have you SEEN the price of pre-made pizza rounds or store bought pizza?  HOLEY SMOKES!  It’s higher than a kite and now we learn that wheat prices will be rising AGAIN soon!  This recipe is going to help EVERYBODY and it will be fun to make!  END SIDEBAR.

Thank you so much to those who have directed their family and associates to the opt in box which gets you a series of cooking tips and occasional messages we think would be of interest to you.  We have a growing number of members and we are very pleased about that.

One thing we want to mention is that there is good kitchen help available from The Dinner Diva.  You might want to cruise by and scope that out.

If you are interested in adding another stream of income to your household you might find this link helpful: Automated Affiliate Formula.  It’s only an idea…just like window shopping, you don’t HAVE to make any purchases.  It’s just fun to know what’s out there that might help your family.

Let us know when you make Sandra’s Home Made Pizza and all the luscious toppings to used, won’t you please?  You are welcome to leave a comment on this blog or send your message to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com!  Thanks oodles!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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