a modern way to eat by Anna Jones (review)

I was really excited to get my hands on Anna Jones' book a modern way to eat:  200+ satisfying vegetarian recipes (that will make you feel amazing).  I've been working on changing my own eating habits to include less meat, and I was looking forward to ideas and inspiration for more meatless meals.

This book is quite large - over 350 pages - and it has a fair number of photographs.  There is a lot here, but there are a few reasons that, ultimately, the book just didn't appeal to me.

I am annoyed that so many of the recipes start on the right-hand page and then continue onto the next page, requiring the cook to flip pages while cooking.  It feels like poor formatting to me.  A little bit of planning - switching a few things around here and there - would have fixed that.

Reading through the book, I get the sense that the author is 'being fancy', just a bit.  I will admit, I'm sensitive to (and annoyed by) recipes that call for things like 'three free-ranged, organic, pastured eggs', because frankly, I find it a bit snobbish.  I would rather see cookbook authors encouraging readers to cook with the best they can afford, then let it go.  An intro that discusses the quality of fresh, wholesome ingredients is a great idea, but it almost feels like a form of elitism when the author mentions 'organic, unwaxed lemons' every. single. time.

In the end, while I appreciate the opportunity to review the book for Blogging for Books, I didn't really find anything here that I'm excited to try.  I found I could not relate to the author and her lifestyle (lots of higher-end ingredients, for example), so in the end, I just wasn't that interested in cooking her food.  Sorry, Ms. Jones.

Dinner Menu for the Week

Well, I have a dinner plan for the week. It's vague in a few places, because I'm going to be checking to see what's on hand in the freezer. The freezer is really full right now, so things 'toward the top' have the best chance of landing on the table. It's a chest freezer, can you tell? We may have a change in plans late week, but I'd rather have something in mind, just in case.

S - taco salad w/meat (or lentils), cheese, tomatoes, chips, guacamole, salsa

M - barbecue turkey sliders, cole slaw, succotash

T - lasagna bake, asparagus, garden salad w/spinach&strawberries

W - bean burgers in pita, lettuce, tomato, cheese, carrot&raisin salad

R - burritos (meat/cheese or lentil/cheese), salsa, lettuce, tomato, calabacitas w/peppers added

F - waffle deliciousness of some sort - I have the book Will it Waffle waiting on the hold shelf at the library. Once I've seen it, I'll figure out what we want to try.

S - stir fry of meat, sauce, zucchini, peppers, onion, cabbage, carrots…. rice, kimchee, nori

I plan to make a batch of waffles too, and try putting some in the freezer to re-heat using the toaster (just like the ones we used to buy when I was a kid).  


Do you have a menu planned for the coming week?

Frugal Accomplishments, First Week of May

Just over a week ago, we celebrated my birthday.  Husband has helped me find and sign up for all the various birthday 'clubs' that merchants in our area have to offer, so I have a tidy stash of freebie coupons, mostly for meals and food items.  I have been picking things up on days we are in town and sharing them with my family.  It has made for some fun (and interesting!) treats and snacks.  Some of the items have been meals or parts of meals for us, so we've strayed a bit from our menu plan, but at very little or no cost.

I found some violets that were out in the middle of an area where we used to have some blueberries.  I moved the violets to the border around my tiny garden.

I have picked asparagus and chives from the garden.  I also keep nibbling at the mint, but I haven't really picked it yet, I just keep pulling off a leaf at a time, because it's yummy.  We are getting plenty of eggs as well.

Last summer we put in a gravel driveway, which left us with a place where we are trying to get grass started.  There was some grass growing in the driveway - isn't that how things happen sometimes? - and when we pulled it up, there were good roots on all the little bits of it, so we made little trenches and planted the 'driveway grass' in the area where we have recently seeded.  It might sound tedious, but it was really quite quick to do, and hopefully, the grasses we planted will take root and continue to grow.  They look really good, and I think they will make it just fine.

I continued my efforts scoring essays for Pearson and subbing at the library.  My total hours (for both) added up to almost 33 hours.  I did less scoring on my birthday, but the project also ended early, so I was not able to do more hours on the days after that.  I took two surveys for Pinecone Research, and I did a children's program at the library with my chickens.  The kids loved them!  Poppy pooped on the floor....one of the kids said I should name her 'Poopy' instead, har har.  I cleaned up the mess and all was well.

I enjoyed time with a friend, just visiting and laughing.

The lilacs are blooming, but it is very cold, wet and rainy here.  I ventured out and picked a few, shook off the water and put them in a mason jar on our kitchen table.  They smell heavenly!

I made Mother's Day cards for my mom and mother in-law.

We found some bargains at the grocery store, including flour tortillas that were free after sale and coupon, fresh spinach and leaf lettuces for .99, 2lb. bags of carrots for .99, 10 lb. bags of russet potatoes for .99 and honeydew melons for .98 each.  There are good produce prices nearly every week here - we just stock up on the best sales week to week and that helps us with variety.  There was a good sale on dry beans - .99/lb, so I got black beans, lentils and red lentils.

homemade chocolate strawberries - berries were 1.33/lb, dark chocolate chips were
.99/pkg. back at Christmas, and we added a bit of coconut oil.  So pretty - and tasty too!

I went to the bread outlet store this week, and for $10.50 I got 3 loaves of good (whole grain) bread, a loaf of caraway rye (my favorite!) 2 packages of English muffins, a package of dinner rolls, a package of whole grain sandwich thins and a package of sub sandwich rolls.  If you spend $10 or more, you get a free item from a special rack, so I stocked up and put everything in the freezer.  I have nearly completed my punch card, so I'll get 2 free loaves of bread soon too.

I received my next selection from Blogging for Books, and will have the review ready soon.

I received a $10 gift postcard from Kohls.  I love these!

I signed up for a free subscription to Weight Watchers magazine, and a while back (I forgot to tell you) Husband got me a free subscription to Martha Stewart Living.

We used the wood stove to keep the house warm....because we have had a crazy week of rain, hail and snow.  My dream is to get the flannel sheets off the beds by Independence Day!  Meanwhile, we've been covering flowers and the asparagus plants as needed.

I went to Goodwill on a day when I was in town for other things, and picked up three shirts for me for $9.  I was needing something lighter for spring and summer, and I'm happy with what I found.

On the local buy-sell-trade Facebook page, I posted that I was looking for a waffle iron that would make four toaster-size waffles.  I got one for $5.  It is in excellent condition.

My friend loaned me a magazine that has some recipes that I want to try soon.

Did you have a good week?  What sorts of things did you do to spend less, save more and make do?

(I'm still working on the menu, so I'll post it soon!)

This Week's Dinner Menu/Cooking Plans

Taffy is too tired to cook!  Me, I'm just kind of busy.

I am still scoring for Pearson and subbing at the library this week, plus we have several days that have other obligations as well, so our menu for the week is really simple.  I am trying a new recipe on Sunday (the chicken poppers) but it is a really simple one, and everything else for the week is quick to put together.  All the staple items and meats are from our pantry and freezer - we bought produce this week, and the asparagus is from our garden (yippee!).

S - 'chicken poppers', corn on the cob, all the different vegetable dishes that are lingering in the fridge, rice pudding bars
M - English muffin pizzas, vegetables (carrots, celery, cucumbers) with ranch dip, fruit salad
T - carryout fried chicken (free replacement because last time, they gave us the wrong item), green beans, garden salad, bananas
W - tuna salad sandwiches, vegetables (carrots, celery, cucumbers) with ranch dip, blue corn tortilla chips, pickles, sliced apples
R - spaghetti w/tomato sauce, mixed vegetable saute' (zucchini, onion, asparagus, carrots, mushrooms, pear crisp
F - taco salad, guacamole and salsa w/chips
S - leftovers/dinner out

I am still working to eat less meat and more vegetables, so I have a vegetable omelet or a whole grain muffin with some fresh fruit.  Daughter likes muffins or oatmeal, and we also have some quiche that can be warmed up for a quick breakfast.  I may steam some eggs for quick breakfasts and snacks.  We have cubed cheese on hand, lightly salted almonds, dried fruit and plenty of other quick, simple snack options.  Lunches are generally leftovers from supper, so I just skip the meat item.  I have some seasoned lentils I  made to provide protein and fiber for me.

That's about it for planning for me - what's on the menu for you this week?

April Grocery Stock-Ups and the Plan for May

The asparagus bed provides enough asparagus to eat it
1-2 times per week.

We started the month with $161.90, a little short of our $180 that we usually have for groceries, because we went over a bit in March.  We were fine, because we had all the things we'd stocked in March.  We did not do as much stocking up in April - there were fewer deals, and I think I even missed a few.  (I have been subbing at the library and scoring for Pearson, so I've been rather busy.)  I was going to get more of the dried figs we got several months ago from Costco, but they don't have them anymore, and one of the ladies at their service desk told me they have been 'deleted'.  I am sad about that - I really loved those figs!  Still, we are blessed with a variety of foods in our freezer and pantry.  Here are the items we added in April:

Crepes - made with eggs from our hens - peaches from our peach trees are in the sauce.

  7.92    8 lb. butter (Challenge and Land O' Lakes) from King Sooper
                     (between March and April, we have a lot of butter now!)
  2.25    3 (20 oz) cans Dole pineapple tidbits from King Sooper
  6.75    9 (15 oz) cans Dole mandarin oranges from King Sooper
             4 bottles of Kraft salad dressings from King Sooper, 3.96,
                                                                      but free with store credit
             2 pkg. Butterball turkey dinner sausage from King Sooper,
                                                               .98, but free with store credit
  4.99    1 lb. roasted almonds from Sprouts
  3.98    2 lb. mild cheddar cheese from Sprouts
  4.65    2+lb. monterey jack cheese from Sprouts
  2.12    1+ lb. colby jack cheese from Sprouts
  4.00    2 boxes Twinings tea from Safeway
  6.89    2 lb. Muenster cheese (sliced) from Costco
  8.89    two whole chickens from Walmart
  3.94    2 lb. bacon from Walmart

56.38    total spent stocking up in April

We ended April with $21.81 left, so we will start May with a little extra!  I did the math, and we spent approximately $19.50 a week on things like milk, produce, snacks and items that were planned for immediate use.

eggs, from our hens

For May, I can't say that I have a big 'plan'.  We have a lot of variety on hand when it comes to meat, plus I am trying to eat less meat and get more of my protein from plant sources.  Baked beans, pork & beans, bean w/bacon soup and canned fruit are all places where I will stock if there are good sales, though I expect better prices on some of those items when summer arrives.  I think we'll be buying nori (dried seaweed sheets) this month, and probably some shredded cheese toward the end of May.  Since we are in really good shape as far as the freezer and pantry are concerned, this may be a good month to stock up on popcorn from Sam's.  I know our Costco membership ends in a month or two, so there may be a couple of things we'll stock from there as well.  I am low on coconut oil, but my friend will get that for me when she goes back to the Midwest to visit family.  (The price she gets from the local Mennonite market is really good!)

We planted the tomato sets, and hope to harvest tomatoes beginning in June.

These pea plants will provide us with sugar snap peas...hopefully by the end of May.

What are you planning to replenish in your pantry?  What great deals have allowed you to stock up lately?

Frugal Accomplishments and Blessings as April Turns to May

beautiful flowers from a beautiful friend

The area where we installed our clothes lines used to be my herb garden.  I have moved herbs to the area that surrounds one of the fenced gardens, since the deer don't bother the herbs.  If the plant was large enough to split, I put some herbs into the flower bed as well.  That way I have 'backup', and can also choose to let the flower bed ones bloom for flower arrangements and/or seed.  I moved the rhubarb to the base of the two clothesline poles, and since I'll be watering those in, I planted a few morning glory seeds there as well, hoping that they will climb the clothesline poles and bloom - wouldn't that be sweet?  I did not move the mint, because it tends to take over, and even with the (nominal) foot traffic from hanging clothes, I think it will do fine where it has always been.

The pea plants are sprouting!

I put the seedlings out in the fresh air and sunshine a few times to help them adapt for when they get transplanted.  This really helps them and makes them more hardy.  The tomatoes go into little water huts called 'Wall-o-Water', and I have already put those in.  Before I planted them, I dug deeper and put in some crushed eggshells and some coffee grounds into the soil, which will help improve the soil for them.

Husband planted the tiny poplar trees that we started by rooting branches in water.  These tend to grow very quickly, and that is what we are needing right now.  Often, the start to die out or lose branches when they are 8-10 years old, so we are planting them as a 'fast solution', but we also planted Ponderosa Pines (we are alternating the two types of trees) that will fill in more slowly, but last much longer.  For planting we are using polymer crystals that we had on hand, plus some we got free at the household materials drop off site.  Our fertilizer is some we had on hand, plus rabbit droppings from our bunnies.  They make very good fertilizer.  The mulch we will use comes from a local site and is free with a canned food donation and/or you can pay $4 to have the end loader fill your truck with a huge scoop - a very good deal!

I planted flowers in the blue pot on the front porch.  Daughter got me the geranium for my birthday.  The marigolds, zinnias, pansies, alyssum and salvia are all seedlings we started from seed at home.

We found a few good grocery deals this week.  16 oz. sour cream w/chives was on markdown for .50, Butterball turkey dinner sausage (think smoked sausage) was .49 per package after sale and coupon, Kraft dressings were .99 each and Food Should Taste Good tortilla chips were .49/5.5oz bag after sale and coupon.  Milk was 1.99 a gallon, romaine lettuce was .99/head and actually, all of that ended up being free, since I got those items at King Sooper and had a $25 store credit from the prescription that Husband transferred.  The other deals this week included yellow mangoes 3/$1, .79/lb for tomatoes, bacon for $2/lb, and cucumbers for .48/ea.  I picked up some sliced cheese at Costco, too.  When the sales changed, we got pork shoulder roast for .89/lb after sale and additional discount, 6oz. Planter's trail mix for .77/ea., celery for .98/bunch, onions for .48/lb, zucchini for .98/lb, and tomatoes and jalapenos for .59/lb.  The store was out of avocadoes (3/$1) but the sale goes into next week, so I may still be able to get some.

crepes with spiced peach filling and drizzle , toasted almonds and maple syrup

I made extras of the various vegetables so I'd have leftovers for lunches the next day...and sometimes breakfast too.  I am trying to eat more vegetables and that is an easy way to make it happen.  I've been trying some new recipes that have more vegetables in them, plus still having vegetable sides.  My friend shared a layered salad and a bok choy dish that she had made as well.

I've stayed busy with subbing at the library some and scoring essays...just over 36 hours this past week, between the two.  I also took a couple of surveys for Pinecone Research.

We borrowed books and media from the library.

I did a little shopping on the local buy-sell-trade Facebook page.  I got this scale for $2.  It was dusty and needed to be readjusted, but it seems to weigh accurately - I'm really happy with it!  The lady I bought it from was also giving away some things - I got a box of 'garage stuff' - some scrapers, paint roller handles, a nice squeegee, etc.



sleepy puppy

I will post our dinner menu for the new week very soon.  (They are here.)It's been a busy week with Daughter's schooling, plus working, cooking, trying to keep up with the house, etc.  Did you have a good week?  What did you do to spend less, save more and make do?

This Week's Frugal Accomplishments and Blessings, Next Week's Menu

It has been a busy week,  but we found a few ways to spend less, save more and make do.  Here are the frugal accomplishments and blessings for this past week, along with next week's dinner menu.

I cut a lot of my indoor plants back to the base a few weeks back.
The jade plant is coming back very nicely.

We got carryout pizza last Saturday evening, and paid for almost all of it with gift cards Husband earned on Swagbucks.  The good news/bad news?  The pizzas we got were okay, just missing a few things.  Each.  They got the order 'spectacularly wrong'.  We called to let them know, and they gave us a credit to use next time.  I'm sure they'll get it right next time!  (Actually, we ended up getting a pizza this Friday, and it was perfect!)  We still have enough credit to get another pizza some time, too.

Meanwhile, we had fried chicken (carryout) the previous week.  Husband had picked it up on his way home from work, and I had made sides to go with.  When he got it home, it was spicy instead of regular.  I called and called, but no one picked up the phone until this Thursday.  The young man that I talked to said that they were sorry, to bring the receipt and they will give us the order, done properly.  We don't eat out a lot, so it's disappointing to get mistakes, but I am glad that both places are willing to fix it.

I continued with my part-time work efforts.  Between filling in at the library and scoring for Pearson, I worked just under 30 hours (I think it was 29.63 hours).  On my first paycheck of the season from Pearson I had a productivity award too - every little bit helps!

I shared some marinated three bean salad with a friend - we are sharing side dishes here and there to reduce waste and workload.  It's also a reason to get together and visit a bit - always a plus!

Daughter attended a library program and potted this succulent.  She gifted it to me - isn't she sweet?

I cut up a chicken this week - the breasts were grilled for the chicken Cesar salads, the drumsticks went into the Asian chicken and vegetables with bean thread noodle, and I used the frame to make stock.  I froze the wings for later (when I get enough, we can make Buffalo wings) as well as the thighs (they are good lots of ways, so when I have 4-6 I'll grill them or something) and I stripped the meat from the frame and froze it for future barbecue sandwiches.  We get quite a few meals from a single chicken!  I put two containers of stock in the freezer - I'll use one this coming week for the vegetable soup I plan to make.

I hung our laundry to dry on drying racks....and just today, we got the clothesline cables and got them put up, so I can hang clothes outdoors again as well.

Yay for clothes lines!
I'm planting rhubarb at the bases.

I completed my book review, so I was able to request a new title from Blogging for Books.

I picked a little asparagus.  I have radishes, lettuce and spinach sprouting.  The kale and chard seedlings I planted are growing too...all under a protective cover.  The peas are not protected, and are just peeking out of the ground.

We took Daughter to a free display - the Lego Americana Roadshow in a mall up near Denver.  It was a surprise, and she really enjoyed it!  We also stopped at the Lego store while we were up there.

The Roadshow was free to the public - the Lego store, not so much, hee hee.  We did have a really nice time, and she is using the Legos she bought along with a library book full of ideas for freestyle building.  Check out these riding ducks she made for Wyldstyle and Emmett!

There were some good grocery prices this week.  Colby-jack cheese was 1.99/lb, and apples and oranges were .48/lb.  I splurged on a small seedless watermelon too - at .25/lb, it cost 1.52!  Even though they weren't on sale, but I picked up corn tortillas this week.  They seem to keep in my fridge forever, so I buy the larger quantity package, since the price is lower.  I did not do much shopping this week.  Husband did take a prescription to King Sooper for transfer (we will get $25 store credit for that) and we picked up the freebies - a Lindor chocolate bar and Lipton sparkling tea.  Walgreens had a deal for a bag of crispy M&Ms - it was $2.99, but there was a $3 register reward with purchase, making it a break-even deal.  (I did read online that there were $1/1 coupons somewhere, but I didn't manage to find one.)

Freebies!  There were two Reese's pieces 'carrots',
but one got eaten before the photo was taken.

Kohl's sent me a $10 off post card.  We found Reese's Pieces (in carrot-shaped bags) and Godiva chocolates on clearance - we don't care that they are in Easter shapes - and got them free of charge.

We checked out books and media from the library.  I did a little reading each night before bed.

Tomato seedlings.

With subbing and scoring, I'm going to be pulling some dinners from the freezer this week, but I'll make some items fresh as well.  Here is the plan:

S - tamales w/enchilada sauce and cheese, calabacitas (a saute' of Mexican squash, onions and corn), sliced grapes

M - grilled cheese sandwiches, vegetable soup, sliced apples

T - Asian chicken salad (a complete meal!)

W - ham, cheese and asparagus crepes (we were supposed to have this last week, but had the do-over pizza instead), garden salad, mango

R - sesame-parmesan turkey cutlets, steamed rice, broccoli and carrots, pineapple

F - grilled steak, baked potatoes, mixed vegetable stir-fry, mango

S - savory strata with ham, cheese and vegetables (or maybe quiche - we'll see how it goes), garden salad, fruit salad

How was your week?  What did you do less to spend less, save more and make do?  Share your accomplishments in the comments! :)