A snowy February day makes us all long for spring and gardening season!
WE PREFACE THE MESSAGE ON THIS BLOG TO BRING YOU CRITICALLY IMPORTANT FOOD INFORMATION:
“For everyone who wants to keep up on how they slip aspartame into our foods, drugs, vaccines (yes, vaccines), OTC meds (especially child products), aspartame has a new name of AminoSweet. Since aspartame has gotten such a bad name (as it should), Ajinomoto has renamed this toxic chemical sweetener. Start double checking your labels.“
Thanks and kudos go out to Rachel Kincaid, who gave us the heads up. Thanks, also to Business Week and Shaun Weston from FoodBev.com for providing great information to help us consumers protect ourselves.
Now we return to the blog’s main message:
You Food Stamps Cooking Club members are to be commended for your quick response to any post that hits you like a brick.
There was a delightful message from Max and here is what Max offered us:
“Just a couple of my own tips, learned from experience, to help stretch food dollars even more when it comes to dried spices and herbs. I have found that the baking aisle is an excellent start to shopping for these products, but you can often find them additionally in the ethnic foods areas of many supermarkets, and other less-thought-of resources.
For many varieties of spices and herbs, those little red-capped bottles are kind of non-budget price, but if you go to a different aisle, you may find it more within your budget if you look under a different brand name, and sometimes in different packaging such as a cellophane packet.
I buy spices at the dollar store. I find some things such as dried dill weed, at Ikea, if you live near one, in a very large paper/foil packet (look in the marketplace among the kitchenwares). There is a large Asian supermarket near my home, I recently bought a large bottle of ground coriander for $1.69 there. They also have many other varieties as well, paprika, cumin, ginger, even lemongrass powder. Hispanic markets are another great source, as are Middle Eastern shops for even more variety.
One last thing: I have read that spices and herbs are past their prime when they no longer have a fragrance, but I find that if you can rub it in your hands and still have fragrance, it is still going to flavor your foods well.
I do think you should have specified whether you were talking about dill seed or dill weed; it’s the dill seeds that are used in pickling. But it’s the dried or fresh dill weed that “makes” the dishes you mentioned. I also sprinkle dried dill on the top of creamy tomato soup, and it goes into the pot when I make homemade chicken soup.
Can you tell I use lots of spices and herbs lol? I hate boring food. I have gourmet tastes on a food-stamp budget. Also, I simply do not have the budget to allow me to dine out as often as I’d like, so I try to recreate different tastes at home.”
See? Now THAT’S the kind of neighbor you wish you had if you do not live next door to Max! Can you just imagine the wonderful aromas that waft from that kitchen? Mmmmm…
For people who utilize SNAP or WIC funds; people who depend on food pantries and/or food commodities; for people who use Farmers Market Coupons and Angel Food Ministries; and for those who simply pinch pennies wherever possible to stretch their food budgets this is helpful information.
We are so happy and grateful to have the Maxes and the Sandras and the Rainys who are so faithful to share their kitchens and cooking ideas! KEEP them coming, kids! Here’s where to direct them: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com.
Are you something of a health nut? You might like to visit
The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post. When these links are clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated. Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online. Do business only with those you trust implicitly.
Cooking with SNAP? WIC? Would You Like to Spice Things Up?
Spice is the variety in life. No! No! Wait! That should read: “Variety is the spice of life! ”
In any case, how would you like to spice things up in your kitchen to make cooking-whether you avail yourself of food pantries, food commodities, SNAP, WIC or Angel Food Ministries-and give you new OOMPH when it comes to feeding your family?
An article caught my eye recently. They meant for me to go to their website and purchase their cookware. That may have been fine, but I have a kitchen filled with cookware, thank you very much.
The writer mentioned how cooking could be made to be fun, even if cooking is not your bailiwick.
Having cookware that is top quality would be ideal but we all know it’s not a perfect world. We can be grateful if we have lids to fit the pots we own! I remember my mom using odds and ends for lids. She even improvised once with the lid from her canner when she needed that size lid to cover a skillet full of fried chicken.
Along with pots and pans, the contented cook needs utensils. If your kitchen is not tricked out with every gadget sold, don’t despair. A really slick way to acquire necessary things on a skimpy budget might be yard sales, second hand stores, thrift shops and local charity centers. Sometimes neighbors are purging their kitchens of duplicates. It might pay to ASK around!
Some people don’t care to cook. Those folk may discover, to their delight, that cooking is a good way to learn, to teach the children about foods, math, family history and just hang out together. Getting the whole family involved in menus, food prep, shopping and sharing meals can go a long way in building strong family bonds.
It may be such a thing that you like to cook but are baking challenged. Or, vice versa.
SIDEBAR: This is your humble blogger’s experience speaking! END SIDEBAR.
In that case, you might enjoy sharing a meal with others. For instance, this very night we will share veggies and a dessert with a family who is proficient with preparing deer bologna! I can hardly wait til dinner time! Our dishes will be a great complement to one another and neither of us will have much to do in the way of preparation. Nor will we have blown our food budgets!
Another option is to find someone who knows how to make something you love to eat and learn how to make their specialty. We are blessed to have neighbors who came from Mexico and brought their traditional food ideas with them. It is so much fun to learn how to do new things, taste new dishes. Plus-we’ve made dear friends in the process!
Eating fast food, convenience foods and snack foods will most assuredly compromise your health and the well being of those you love most. By learning to prepare foods at home in every language you will improve the quality of your lives!
Now THAT is some spice worth adding!
Thank you to all the Club members who have written to thank us, who have contributed recipes, and who have added their comments on the posts. As a way of thanking everyone who has offered up their name and email we will be sending you a teeny little thank you gift. It’s still in the works but nearly ready to unveil. It will come to your email inbox. Our email inbox is here: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com .
We appreciate our Club members more than you know and we thank you for all your participation! All our partners love hearing from you, as well.
Write Where You Are
http://writewhereyouareblog.com
The 99 Cent Chef
http://the99centchef.blogspot.com
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