Vegetarian Eats - Saving Money

Over here in South Africa, the one thing that is really cheap is produce. We go to a little produce store by our house weekly and stock up on tons of farm fresh vegetables and fruit. We can buy huge bags of avocados, potatoes, sweet potatoes, butternut, apples, bananas, naartjies (similar to clementines), etc - all for about 60-80 Rand, which is equivalent to about $9-$11. We can only buy what's in season. So too bad if I'm craving strawberries (I am) because those won't be out for another few months. But it's a great way of eating healthier and saving money. We've decided the last several weeks to go meatless in our groceries to save money even more. We aren't vegetarian but the last few weeks have shown us we could be. Ok, Andy would object to that - he still sneaks out every so often to the meat stand in Masi, the local township, where he can buy a ton of pork for about $3 and have them grill it for him.
Anyway, here are some of the simple meals we've made meatless:

• chili - just canned tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, tomato puree, canned red kidney beans, sugar, and a taco seasoning packet from the States. 
• vegetable and white bean chowder - I did a play on our white chicken chili, using potatoes instead of chicken, and using canned white beans, chicken stock (I get chicken bouillon cubes cheaply here and use them in just about everything), and adding butternut and frozen corn.
• pasta with veggies - this is a favorite we have been making awhile, and each week we adapt it. We just saute whatever veggies we have and serve over spaghetti. We serve it also with either shredded cheddar cheese or feta. Our favorite veggies to eat this way are mixed peppers, mushrooms, spinach, and baby marrow (mini zucchini). 
• baked veggies with sauce - my mom always baked veggies and served with a cheese roux. So I did the same but did a play on the roux by using an old packet of cream of chicken soup I had in my pantry. I served it over a mix of roasted potatoes, butternut, sweet potatoes, and carrots. It was delicious. I added in some leftover mac and cheese, and liked it with the sauce. It also encourages Norah to eat more veggies when mixed in with pasta and sauce.
• rice and veggies - just sauted a whole bunch of chopped veggies and cooked with rice and stock and curry 

Butternut Soup

Butternut Soup...so excellent!

Ingredients:

1-2 T olive oil
1 T butter
1 large chopped onion
1 large chopped peeled butternut (or sub pumpkin)
1 med chopped peeled potato
2 med chopped peeled apples
1 t curry powder
Pinch ginger
Pinch salt
Pinch turmeric
Pinch cinnamon
1/2 t sugar
3 c chicken stock
1/2 c milk
1 bay leaf

Directions:

Saute onion in oil/butter. Then add butternut, potato, apples, saute 2 min. Add spices, saute 2 more min. Add stock, milk, sugar, bay leaf, boil. Reduce heat, simmer 25 min. Remove from heat, cool to lukewarm. Remove bay leaf. Puree in blender. Return to pot and reheat. Serve with crusty bread and, optional whipped cream to garnish.

Chocolate Cake

Shortly after we came to South Africa was Norah's first birthday party. I wanted to make her a chocolate cake, and since cake mixes are expensive here, figured it would be better to make one myself. I hate dry cakes, so I googled, "moist chocolate cake." This is what came up, and we've made it several times since.
Best Moist Chocolate Cake :)

Ingredients:
2 c flour
2 c sugar
3/4 c cocoa powder
2 t baking soda
1 t salt
2 eggs
1 c buttermilk
11/2 t vanilla
1 c vegetable oil
1 c boiling water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 F or 150 C. This is a slow-bake recipe. Mix all ingredients. Pour into greased/floured 9x13 in square baking dish. Bake 1 hr (or 20 min for cupcakes).

Icing:
Andy always makes our icing. He just mixes with an electric mixer vanilla, butter, and icing sugar (powdered sugar) together till he gets the consistency he wants. Sometimes we add cocoa powder or  food coloring depending on what kind of icing we want.

Quick Biscuits

Quick, easy biscuits, scone consistency.

Ingredients:

1 to 1 1/2 c all purpose flour
2 t baking powder
1 t salt
5 T butter or margarine
2/3 c milk

220 C/ 428 F
Sift dry ingredients into bowl. Cut butter in to make crumbs. Make well in middle and pour in milk. Mix, divide into 9 sections. Put on greased, floured baking sheet. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

Pasta with Zucchini and Toasted Almonds

From Cooking Light. Delicious, healthy, fresh, and even the kids liked it.

Ingredients:

2 c cherry tomatoes, halved
1 t minced fresh thyme (or 1/3 of dried)
2 t lemon juice
3/4 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/4 t sugar
5 t olive oil, divided
linguine (9 oz)
1 1/2 t minced garlic
3 c chopped zucchini
3/4 - 1 c chicken stock
1 T dried sage and/or thyme OR mint
cheese - parmesan, feta, or other
3 T toasted slivered almonds

Directions:

Combine first 6 ingredients in bowl, toss with 2 t olive oil. Set aside.

Prepare linguine.

In skillet, saute garlic and then add zucchini in remaining olive oil. Cook zucchini about 3 minutes. Add stock, simmer. Then add in linguine, sage, remove from heat and add tomato mixture. Serve with cheese and toasted almonds.

Serves 4.

Linguine Alla Mediterranea

I adapted this recipe from a dish I had at a restaurant and loved.

Ingredients:

linguine
fresh basil
fresh rocket
feta cheese
kalamata olives
cherry tomatoes
olive oil
Italian herbs
salt and pepper

Cook linguine. In separate pan, saute the rest of the ingredients. When veggies are just cooked, toss with the linguine. Serve with garlic toast...yum!

Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

This is a recent favorite of ours.

Serves 6.


Ingredients

• 2  pounds  russet potatoes
• 2/3  cup  fat-free milk
• 3  tablespoons  butter
• 1/2  cup  buttermilk
• 1/3  cup  (1 1/2 ounces) grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Prick each potato several times with a fork. Place potatoes in the microwave, and cook at HIGH 16 minutes or until tender, turning after 8 minutes. Let stand 2 minutes. Cut each potato in half lengthwise; scoop out flesh with a large spoon, and transfer to a bowl.

2. Combine milk and butter in a microwave-safe bowl, and microwave at HIGH 2 minutes or until butter melts. Add milk mixture to potatoes; mash with a potato masher to desired consistency. Stir in buttermilk and remaining ingredients.