Starting My Seeds




It's just about time for me to start my seeds. (Actually, I should have started my mom's impatiens seeds last week, but the Zen boys have been keeping me otherwise occupied) Until last year, I started my seeds in the basement. Since we've re-purposed the basement into a television, gaming, general recreation area for the Zen boys, a sewing crafting area for Zen mom, and a billiards table for Zen dad, I've lost my seeds starting area. I had these very large tables that my dad made when I was a kid - I think it was for my brother's 8th grade graduation party... and spread my seed starting trays in the vast expanse of our basement.

No more vast expanse. So what to do?

I wanted to include my grow lights, still be able to start lots of trays, and not spend a lot of money. What to do...

Browsing through my basement storage, I re-discovered a few tables that weren't being used for anything important. The little wheels in my head starting squeaking... and I came up with my new system!

As of now, I have not spent one dime on this new system as I had the tables, the grow lights, hooks and power strip. I used cup hooks on the bottom of the tables, stacked the tables as shown, and hooked on the grow lights. I figure I can have 8 flats if I leave it as it is... but if I purchase 1 new grow light (the hardware store has the lights for 8 dollars and the lights for 5 dollars), I can hang another light from the ceiling and have 12 flats!!

I checked out the prices for these manufactured growing light stands on-line, and they run anywhere from 200 to 300 dollars!! Mr. Zen was so glad to hear I have saved us two hundred and eighty seven dollars!! (300 minus 13 dollars for a new light)

Gotta get those impatiens started!!!

Laundry

Lately, I've been hanging our laundry in the basement. It's too cold to hang anything outside, and we don't have a proper outdoor clothesline... yet. I used to just hand a few things, mittens and hats, dresses, delicates, and a few other things that didn't like the dryer.

Years ago, when Mr. Zen and I first married, I hung EVERYTHING to dry. We lived in an apartment and the dryer cost 25 cents for 10 minutes and things never really dried completely in those old dryers. Out of neccessity, I hung our damp clothes around the apartment. After a while, I stopped feeding that old dryer my quarters and just hung everything right out of the washer.

It saved us tons of money, and being a poor nursing student, I really had a need for those quarters for other things. Our clothes seemed to last longer and looked nicer longer, so it made lots of sense.

When our first baby Zen was born, I learned to LOVE my dryer. That's when I started only hanging certain clothes instead of everything. It was so much easier to throw all those baby clothes in the dryer instead of hanging those little teeny, tiny baby socks on the line in the basement. Besides, I had a beautiful new baby who needed me more than the laundry did.

Now, both baby Zens are much bigger. Sad to say, but they don't need me like they used to... They still need me, but it's a much different type of need. Right now, they need me to show them how to hang laundry in the basement.

Fried Rice

Fried Rice



One of the cheapest meals I can make that my family LOVES is fried rice. This recipe can be altered and varied to suit your family's tastes and whatever you happen to have in your refrigerator. I use a leftovers often when I make fried rice, so it usually makes a second meal of last nights dinner.

I've shared this recipe (which I got from my Thai mother-in-law) with friends and usually they are surprised how easy it is to make!

Fried Rice

1 cup meat cooked and cut into small pieces -or
1 cup meat uncooked cut into small pieces
(I have used chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, crab, lobster, sausage, spam, and even hot dogs. My kids LOVE hot dog fried rice!!)
1/2 to 1 cup chopped veggies (I have used carrots, broccoli, sprouts, zucchini, tomatoes, green beans, celery, or cabbage)
2-3 cups cooked rice - leftover rice is best, but just cooked will do just fine
2 tbsp oil - I use olive oil, but you can use whatever oil you usually cook with
1/2 onion chopped small
2 garlic cloves chopped small
2-3 tbsp soy sauce
3-4 tbsp oyster sauce

In a large wok, heat oil over medium high to high heat. Add meat. If raw, cook thoroughly, if cooked heat through well. Stir well while cooking meat. Add onions, garlic and other vegetables (you don't have to add other vegetables if you don't have them- and don't add soft vegetables such as sprouts or tomato at this point).

Saute contents of wok until onions have become clear. When veggies are soft and onions are clear, add rice all at one time. Quickly add soy and oyster sauce and stir until sauces are incorporated into rice. (The rice will be a uniform brown color) Sometimes I add more soy or oyster sauce at this point.

Turn off heat when rice is brown and add soft veggies - tomatoes or sprouts. The heat of the fried rice will heat them through without disintegrating them. Sometimes, at this point, I might add some chopped basil if I have any... it adds a really nice flavor.

In the above picture, I made beef fried rice with broccoli and carrots. The beef was a leftover steak from last night and the veggies were leftover from a party we attended last night. The hostess sent most of us home with some sort of leftover bag. Gotta love hostesses like that!!

So, clean out your veggie drawer, use your leftovers, make some fried rice!!

First Cooking Class - Meatballs!!

Meatballs!!

Let me tell you why I decided to make meatballs tonight, besides the fact that the boys LOVE meatballs.

Yesterday, I was making my BIG trip to the grocery store. Which reminds me of something... one big important way to stay frugal is not to make, or make as few as possible, short trips to the store to pick up so and so for dinner. Those marketers know us better than we know ourselves, and when we go to the store for 1 or 2 things, we rarely come home with just those 1 or 2 things. We usually spend much more than we planned, picking up little extras along our trip.

The stores and their marketers know that we are easily distracted by fancy displays and the BIG NUMBERS that tell us what a deal is to be made. They have studies our human nature and capitalize on it. It's in their best interest... Is it wrong? Not really. It's the capitalist way.

It's in OUR best interest to learn their tricks and how to avoid falling into their traps. One way is to limit the amount of days you are actually IN a store. The more visits you make to a store, the more you will purchase, after all, how much could that little candy bar really add to my food budget? Oh, lookie.... Paper towels are on sale! I'm pretty sure we need some! Look at those nice steaks on display. Wow, I could really go for a steak tonight....

Is it always bad to make unplanned purchases? No, it's not. But only if you plan for your unplanned purchases... Huh???

As I was saying before I started my long tirade about the nasty marketers....

Yesterday, I was shopping and found a deal. I know it was a deal because I watch prices. That is the key to unplanned purchases. Know your products. Just like the marketers know us, we need to know what they are selling. I found a 10 pound chub of ground beef for 15 dollars. That makes it 1.50 per pound and I KNOW that this is a good deal. 10 pounds is a LOT of ground beef. It might seem overwhelming to lug home meat that weighs more than most newborns, but if you can adjust a little, it can work to your advantage.

In the past, I have opened the chub and divided it into smaller portions to be frozen, and that is a really good idea, but tonight I was in a cooking mood. I made several batches of meatballs, 3 meatloaves, and 4 single serving meatloaves. I figure that I can get at least 5 dinners from my 15 pounds of ground beef, depending on how much my teenage son will eat!!

So, that's about 3 dollars per dinner for the meat portion. Tonight, we cooked a box of angle hair pasta (1 dollar), 1 jar of spaghetti sauce ($1.50 on sale), and accompanied the pasta and meatballs with a bag of frozen green beans ($1.25). So, dinner for the 4 of us cost $6.25! I think that's pretty good!

It didn't take very long, and I only needed to heat the oven once, ultimately saving energy in the process!!!

Oh, and FYI, meatballs and meatloaf taste better if you use the cheapest ground beef available. Not ground chuck, not ground round, but ground beef. The fattier the better. Most of the fat drains off, and you are left with great flavor!

Meatball Recipe:
3 pounds ground beef
1 onion chopped fine
2 cloves garlic chopped fine
3 eggs
2 small cans mushrooms drained and chopped fine
1/3 cup bread crumbs
6 ritz or other buttery cracker crumbled
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl with your hands. There is no other way to get everything really mixed. You can wear gloves if you are a germaphobe.....

Once all ingredients are mixed, form meat mixture into balls about the size of a golfball. Place on cookie sheet with 1 inch sides about 1/2 inch apart. For 3 pounds, you might need 2 cookie sheets. Bake at 325 for 35-45 minutes or until internal thermometer reaches 160 degrees. Be careful when you pull out the cookie sheets. You will see that a lot of fat was rendered from these delicious morsels, and you don't want to burn yourself!

These freeze very well. After cooling, place in a freezer zipper type bag, remove as much air as possible, and place as flat as possible in the freezer. To reheat, defrost and place in microwave. Or, place frozen on sided cookie sheet and heat for 10-15 minutes at 325.

This mixture can be used to form a meatloaf as well. For a meatloaf, you can add 1 tsp of oregano or italian spice mix.

Enjoy!!!

For My Soon To Be Frugal Brother

My brother (according to my sister in law), is in need of some frugal tips for running their home. I have been trying to run our home frugally and simply while keeping a close eye on our impact on the environment for some time now. I will post some recipes for him, but I thought I would start with this.

Sales Cycles.

Stores have historically sold certain items on "sale" during specific times of the year. For instance, during the Christmas holiday, you will find baking items on sale. And it is always more expensive to purchase watermelon in February vs. July. I have acquired a list of what typically goes on sale during what time of the year. It helps to stock up on non-perishables when the prices are good, and enjoy perishables more when they are more affordable. This list is by no means complete, and I add and subtract as I shop, but it is a good place to start.

Here we go:

JANUARY
- chili
- ingredients for soups and stews
- organizers -this is when people start preparing taxes, so you will find folders, boxes, adding machines, file drawers and other tax related items on sale
- post-holiday sales
- White Sales
- weight loss equipment
- Christmas themed items, food, paper products, gifts

FEBRUARY
- many of the same food items as January
- candy and chocolates – Valentine’s Day
- housewares
- furniture

MARCH
- frozen food
- ham
- eggs (Easter)
- paper products
- cleaning supplies
- gardening supplies

APRIL
- spring clothing
- Jewish foods (noodles, flatbread and I usually find good deals on candles)
- eggs (Easter)
- ham (Easter)


MAY
- picnic supplies: hot dogs, hamburgers, condiments, paper products
- pop
- cleaning supplies
- bug repellants
- sunscreen


JUNE
- summer clothing
- home improvement supplies
- dairy products

JULY
- summer sports toys
- picnic foods:hot dogs, condiments
- pop
- farmers markets have great deals on veggies now
- popcicles

AUGUST
- White Sale:linens and towels for college bound
- patio furniture
- BBQ’s
- back to school supplies (this is the BEST time to purchase ANYTHING related to office products)
- cereal
- now is a great time to visit local farmer's markets for lots of veggie and fruit deals
- tomatoes and peppers are a good deal now

SEPTEMBER
- back to school supplies continue to be GREAT deals!
- gardening supplies – for fall cleanup and summer clearance
- apples are always a good deal in september, especially at the farmer's market or u-pick
- late Septmeber and thru October are great times to purchase pumpkins. Pureed pumpkins freezes easily and can be used in lots of yummy baked goods!
- squash can be a good deal in Sept/Oct

OCTOBER
- candy – Halloween deals abound!
- baking items
- Thanksgiving items start going on sale – turkey, stuffing, marshmallows, pudding, pumpkin pie filling
- this is a great time to purchase items to make your holiday table pretty: glass ware, tablecloths, napkins, and dishes are on sale now through after Christmas

NOVEMBER
- winter clothing
- blankets
- turkey, sweet potatoes
- baking supplies
- canned veggies
- canned soup

DECEMBER
- toys – of course… Christmas is coming!!
- canned foods
- baking goods
- various foods that are easy to serve at parties: good cheeses, frozen hors’ devours, wine and champagne, crackers, dips, chips


It’s always a good idea to check the prices of seasonal and holiday items AFTER or just before the season or holiday ends. You can get great deals on cookie dough, candy and gift items especially if they were specifically marketed for a holiday or season. For example, you can purchase ghostly shaped cookie dough at least ½ off in the beginning of November. Christmas candy is drastically reduced in January. Both of these items freeze well and if you don’t mind munching on a chocolate Christmas tree in March, you’ll save tons!!

I made this chicken satay for my son's 8th grade graduation party. I love the way the skewers stack ready to be grilled.

And I love chicken satay.....

Eating Asian the Frugal Way, Congee

Congee.
One way to incorporate frugal zen into your food bugdet, is to explore ethnic foods. If you have access to a farmer's market or an ethnic market like Asian or Mexican, you can often purchase cheap ingredients and make fantastic meals. Most of my ancestors come from Europe, but my husband was born in Bangkok, Thailand. It is really easy, almost imperative, that I add Asian dishes to our menus. My mother-in-law has taught me some really good dishes, but some of my favorites are the cheapest and easiet.

Congee is actually a Chinese name for this Asian common breakfast or dinner. It can be found at Dim Sum houses in China town here in Chicago. Most Thai's I know eat this for breakfast or a late night snack, but I love it for a quick, nutritious, filling dinner.

Rice. The most important part of a Congee Dinner. I either use left over rice or uncooked rice. Place rice in a saucepan and add way too much water. It will turn out soupy, and that is what you want. It's actually a rice porridge, but I don't like the way that sounds, so I use the Chinese name congee. If I have 2 cups cooked rice, I would add 2 cups water and heat to boiling. I might or might not add more water depending on the consistency desired. There is no right or wrong consistency, I like mine a little less soupy than my husband does. I usually cook it to the consistency that I like, and then add a little hot water to my husband's bowl when I serve it.

Accompaniments. Served with the congee are an assortment of protein and veggies. I usually make a three egg omlette cooked in olive oil. When I am preparing the eggs, I add a tsp of fish sauce, or nam pla, but if you don't have access to it, a little salt will do just fine.

Immediately after the omlette is finished cooking, I throw 1/4 to 1/2 cup roasted, salted peanuts into the omlette pan. I don't turn off the heat, and toss the peanuts around the pan for 1 or 2 minutes until they just start to brown and you can smell the peanuts cooking. As soon as the peanuts are browned, pour them into a bowl. Don't let them burn. BE CAREFULL!!! These are very hot.

I also serve some preserved asian vegetables. I get these little cans at my local asian market, but if you can't find them, parboiled green beans, cooked carrots, or another cooked vegetable would be just fine. Note: if you can't find pickled veggies, add a little soy sauce to the congee. The brine from the pickled veggies gives a nice salty flavor that you will otherwise miss.

Another thing we like to eat is dried shredded pork. It looks a little like dryer lint, but it is really good with congee. It is sweet and a little salty and after rehydrating in the congee has a nice tender chewiness to it.

To eat your congee, place small bits of egg, veggies, pork, and a few peanuts in the bowl. Some people like to mix, but I usually don't and add more as I go.

This is actually quite filling, and it is very inexpensive to serve. The little cans of veggies usually cost 75cents or less, the dried pork is about 2 dollars - and it will last a while, you won't eat it all in one meal, and the rice, eggs and peanuts are nominal.

Enjoy!!!