September 18, 2010

• Cooking from Scratch to Save Money

  One of the biggest ways I can stretch our income is to cook from scratch and cut expenses in my kitchen.  Thankfully, I enjoy cooking and baking so it’s not a drudgery.  I know there are women who don’t enjoy cooking and that would make it very challenging. I guess it just depends on where you want to spend your time. I see it as a trade-off… I can either spend time in my own home saving money in my kitchen or I can make money outside my home. Sometimes it comes down to those two choices.  I’ve been able to save enough money in my kitchen each month to equal a 20 hour part-time job at $10.00 an hour.

  I enjoy trying new recipes and find it’s one way to not get bored by cooking the same thing week after week.   I tried 2 new recipes this week but only one will be a keeper. A friend shared this recipe with me so I’m not sure who the original author was.  I did add 1/2 cup salsa for extra flavor. You could taste it before you add the salsa to see if you like it.

  Mexican Meatball Soup

  Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon cooking oil
  • 1 small red onion, chopped
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, seeds and ribs removed, chopped
  • 1 zucchini (about 1/2 pound), cut into 1/2 inch dice (remove seeds before dicing, chop seeds finely)
  • 1 chayote squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2 inch dice (I didn’t use this)
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons dried oregano, or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 quart canned low-sodium broth (beef or chicken)
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 1/2 cups canned diced tomatoes (one 15 ounce can)
  • 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
  • salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 cup fresh (cut from about 2 ears) or frozen corn kernels (I used 1 small can of corn)
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • (I added 1/2 cup salsa for an extra ‘pop’)

   

  Meatballs (I already had made frozen meatballs previously)

  • 1/2 pound lean ground beef, pork or turkey
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1/4 c. cooked rice OR dry bread crumbs (low carbers could leave this out or use low carb bread crumbs)
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, seeds and ribs removed, minced
  • 1 small can sliced olives, minced
  • 1 egg, beaten to mix

  Directions:

  1.  In a large pot, heat the oil over moderately low heat.  Add the onion and 1 of the chopped jalapenos and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.  Add the zucchini and chayote, 1 1/2 teaspoons of dried oregano, if using, and 1/4 teaspoon of cumin and cook, stirring, until the zucchini starts to soften, about 3 minutes.

  2.  Add the broth, water, tomatoes, tomato sauce, 1 1/4 teaspoons of the salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of the black pepper; bring to a simmer.  Simmer for 15 minutes.

  3.  Meatballs: In a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, olives, jalapeno, 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano or 1 tablespoon of the fresh oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, rice and the egg.  Shape the mixture into 24 meatballs, about 1 inch in diameter.

  4.  Add the meatballs and corn to the soup and simmer until the meatballs are just done, about 5-7 minutes.  Stir in the lime juice and the remaining 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, if using.

   

   

  • 1:14 am
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