Poor and Hungry: Turkey Burgers and Lemon Mousse

There's something about a delicious burger that I have been craving lately.  And this was just perfect.  I had some onions and pimiento cheese around.. and 3/4 pound of lean chuck.  After having a get together and some left over dip and a little onion.. you'll spend just a few bucks for the fresh (grass-fed) ground beef and another few bucks when you buy day old sliced bread from Whole Foods.  I can never keep their bread long enough to use a whole loaf anyways, so this is perfect.

The trick for the onions is to carmelize them just right.. a tiny bit of butter and saute them on low/med for about 20 minutes.. get them nice and brown on the edges (and a little translucent in general). 

For the burgers -- Worcestershire sauce is absolutely essential.  A handful of breadcrumbs and an egg yolk will help it all bind together when you're using a pan. (rainy days have a downside..)

Then I found this amazing recipe from Serious Eats for a low-fat lemon mousse.  It was delicious, and with one cup of fat-free greek yogurt, it made 3 large servings.

Materials:

1 cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt (1 container)
1 lemon worth of lemon zest

1 large lemon's worth of juice (but it could have standed to have another half lemon worth)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup water
1 envelope (about 2 1/2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin -- whole foods sells 4 packets to a box
4 egg's worth of egg whites (large eggs)
Pinch of salt
3/4 cup sugar

Method:
- Mix yogurt, zest, juice, and extract in a small bowl. Whisk together and set aside.

- To a separate small bowl, add water. Sprinkle gelatin on top and set aside.

- Fill a medium saucepan halfway with water (this will make the bottom half of a double boiler). Boil over medium heat. In another bowl, add egg whites, salt, and sugar, stirring gently to combine. Once water is boiling, carefully lower the bowl with the egg whites and others into saucepan. Whisk gently until sugar is dissolved and eggs are near-scalding to the touch. Remove bowl from pan.

-Scrape gelatin water into egg mixture and whisk quickly and thoroughly to combine.

-Put the hot bowl into a bowl of ice water and whisk quickly. Once the mixture is cool to the touch, add yogurt mixture. Continue whipping a few more seconds, until it's all combined.


-Divide mixture among serving vessels and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes. Serve cold.. and they suggest berries which would have been an absolutely delicious addition.

Their final product (ours disappeared pretty quickly haha).  And there's no guilt (not that I ever have any) with this dessert.

Poor and Hungry: Turkey Burgers

I need money.  Lots of it.  I'm broke, and cannot survive off of Chef Boyardee and Tostino's pizzas alone (each are 10/$10 at Kroger, BTW).  So I decided to splurge a little, and make some turkey burgers!  You can get some organic/grass-fed hippie ground turkey for real cheap -- thus my inspiration.

So onto the food!  They're super simple, and really delicious.

Materials:

-1 yellow onion, chopped (or a handful of frozen chopped onion)

-Ground turkey (like a pound or so)

-Breadcrumbs (or if you have fresh bread and milk, soak the bread in that and use it)

-1 egg for binding

-Salt/pepper

-Worchester (sp?) sauce

-A dash of cayenne pepper for a kick

Method:

-Carmelize the onion by putting a pad of butter in the pan, melting it, then cooking the onion bits on medium heat until they start to become translucent.  (I'm not very patient sometimes.. so mine weren't quite carmelized all the way, but delicious nonetheless).

-Mix all other ingredients together, and forms some patties.  Cook on medium on each side until they look done (about 8 min or so total depending on the size of your patties).

-Then I took some good sharp cheddar and the "day after" bread from the Whole Foods bakery (so much cheaper that way), made an open face burger with the onions and cheese.. then popped them in the toaster to melt the cheese. 

Freakin delicious.  And way better than any hotpocket.

Poor and Hungry: Farmer's Sandwich

This is one of my favorite sandwiches to make.  It's inexpensive, simple, and perfect to take to work (and you don't need a fridge!).

It's the Farmer's Sandwich.  What I like to do, is head to Whole Foods, pick up their "day old" bread from the bakery (which ends up being less than $2 -- and sidebar, its a perfect way for a single girl who can't eat a loaf before it goes stale.. and I hate freezer bread.  It's still soft and delicious.).. then use what I have at home for the rest.

So simple, Farmer's Sandwich:
-Bread (usually with a thick crust -- think french bread or a big roll) cut down the middle
-Cheese -- sharp cheddar works great, but so does gouda, swiss, or a harder cheese (brie might be good.. but may get iffy later in the day without an icepack)
-Lettuce/spinach/arugala
-Granny Smith Apples Sliced

Wrap it up, and done. 

Poor and Hungry: Honey Bran Blueberry Muffins

I'm a sucker for blueberry muffins -- it reminds me of my childhood, and it's always been a comfort food of mine.  Moms taught me this trick when I was young that you can buy a huge bushel (basket?) of blueberries, fresh from the farmer's market/grocery store -- use them fresh for a while, and before they go bad, freeze them.  That way you get the benefit of fresh blueberries, and also get to use blueberries all year around.

I'm still using the blueberries I bought in season (summer) -- and last weekend I was having such a craving for some muffins!  Moms told me the simplest way to get a healthy and quick muffins is to use the Martha White mix, add some milk, blueberries, and in about 14 minutes you've got some stellar muffins.

..and she was right!

So Poor and Hungry presents Honey Bran Blueberry Muffins:

Follow the directions on the bag (which, btw cost less than $2), add a handful or two of frozen blueberries and cook for about 14 min or so.  I use silicone muffin "tins", which work great and are really easy to use.

And they were delicious.

Poor and Hungry: Light Pasta with Rosemary

This is so simple and delicious -- I'm going to have to make it more often!

I stopped by Whole Foods on my way home, and they actually had a quality Parmesan Reggiano on sale for a decent price (at least for this most time expensive cheese).  I love the saltiness of the cheese, and the distinct bite it gives a dish.

..and did I mention it's simple?  Yeah. it's that too.

Light Pasta with Rosemary
-Cook the pasta (above I used orecchiette -- organic, not wheat unfortunately)
-Drain it, and put the pasta back in the pot
-Grate the parmesan over top of the pasta -- as much as you like
-Let it melt, stir
-Add pepper and rosemary (and a pad of butter if it's the pasta isn't well coated)

and voilà!

A whole box of pasta lasted me 3 meals (and a snack) -- and it keeps pretty well so you don't have to eat it for every consecutive meal after you make it.  heyohhh!

More Tacos...

It's been can't stop, won't stop with tacos lately. I bought an avocado and it became just perfectly ripe on Tuesday. I was NOT going to make the same mistake again.

Guacamole is a snap with those packets you can buy at any grocery store for about $1. Adding some medium/hot salsa really gives it a nice kick too.

I used my leftover Balsamic chicken, added guac, salsa, spanish rice (when you're in a rush, the 90 seconds steam-in-a-pouch is perfect), roasted frozen corn, and some authentic Mexican tortillas.

Ridic delicious. Really quick. And the guac was amazing. (I have a soft spot for guac).

Tacos! (again..)

I cannot help how much I love tacos. Simple. Delicious. Healthy. And really cheap. What's not to love??

All these things you can buy in larger quantities.

Frozen pre-cut onions + peppers (perfect for single living!)
Salsa
1 egg/taco (or more like 1.5 if you're really hungry, which I usually am)
Cheese
Tortillas
Frozen Roasted Corn (from Trader Joe's. divine.)

Perfection for an easy meal for one.

Poor and Hungry Experiment with Chorizo

So this isn't a surprise to a lot of ya'll, but I am a meat-eater. Most of what I eat is beige. I'm trying to do better, but this week is not one of them. I'm poor and want something to fill my belly without being incredibly unhealthy.

What I came up with was straight out of freezer leftovers. I absolutely adore my little slowcooker, and Monday morning I was hit with some inspiration while trying to hunt down some waffles from the freezer. Here's what it was:

Materials:
-1 lb frozen chorizo -- bulk. from last years CSA (I miss all the fresh meat straight off the farm)
-a few handfuls of frozen sweet roasted corn (Trader Joe's has some banging version)
-a few handfuls of mexican cheese
-a cup and another quick pour of milk
-frozen onions chopped (in the frozen food section -- these are CHEAP and quick)
-salt/pepper as you like it

Method:
-warm up the CrockPot (warm food goes in a warm crockpot, cold foods in a cold one.. important!)
-brown the chorizo (defrost first in my case) and add to the pot
-saute the onions and add to the pot
-add the rest of it and cook on low for about 8 hours (or on high if you want it in about 3 or 4 hours)

What's great about it? Besides being meaty? It's a very versatile addition to different foods.


I could eat breakfast burritos for every meal. Eggs are cheap, and I adore salsa. Just add the chorizo dish to the eggs while you're cooking it (if you add it to the tacos separately, it gets messy. trust.), warm the tortillas, add salsa.. and voila!


It's also really to use as a meat sauce. In the morning, I cooked a good amount of (whole wheat) spaghetti, scoop a few spoonfuls of the chorizo on top in your take-to-work container and add a sloshing of pasta sauce (bonus for tomato chunks).. and you've got a quick and delicious lunch at work.

So far, I've had 2 breakfast burrito dinners and 2 meatsauce pasta lunches.. and I barely spent anything. Cheap. Delicious.

Conclusion? This dish is a winner. And I'm having burritos for dinner.. heyohhh.

Poor and Hungry.

This probably describes the majority of my friends at this stage in our lives. We want to eat healthy, we're broke, and we're always starving. Us in a nutshell when it comes to nourishment.

Earlier in the year, when it came to the days when I could barely afford to feed my dog, I'd stick to the basics. (I tend to be a little bourgeois when it comes to Coop -- Iam's organic is the way to go, even though my dad insists the Sam's Club (Costco, same thing) "Old Yeller" food is just fine. This coming from the man who used to buy his jeans at Sam's Club.. err.)

PB&J. Chef Boyardee. Cereal. Those were staples of breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The meals of a 10-year-old. Since the habits I get now are the majority of the ones I will keep for the rest of my life, I need to start eating like a grown-up. Even though I'm living off a research tech's paycheck (poor, thanks Duke).

Here's something even the hippies like S$ can try (no microwaving!):

Experiment: Turkey Tacos

These are a snap, and the majority of it you can buy in larger quantities and keep in the fridge. On my way home from work, I swung by Whole Foods and picked up some ground turkey (cheap!). Dark meat is more flavorful, but the white meat is a little leaner. It's all pretty lean to begin with, so I splurged on calories. If you're making a lot to eat as leftovers, try half dark and half white.

Then pick up the avocados and use them the SAME day. Here's my mistake below. I was so stoked for fresh guacamole, and then saw this: Gross. They rot so fast.

And onto the good stuff:
About 10 minutes before you begin, set the oven to warm and put some tortillas between 2 oven safe plates. This way, they'll warm without drying out. If they're stiff (as sometimes the whole foods ones are), add a sprinkle of water.

Brown the turkey, add some taco seasoning from the packet (99 cents -- and you don't have to use it all), and remove any of the grease from it once you're done.

Then, since I found out I love corn (I wasn't much of a veggie eater as a kid), I added a few handfuls of the frozen Trader Joe's roasted corn to the mix. Let that warm up, and then we're all done!

Assemble as you wish -- cheese, salsa, beans? Delicious. Easy. Cheap. Check to all.


And a good wine pairing:


What's the difference between a pink wine and a rose? Pink is a combo of red and white wines. Rose is a result of the process -- they keep the skins on the grapes (done in red wines) for only part of the wine making process, then they remove them in later steps (done in the beginning for white wines typically) producing the pink color. Who knew? (via the lesson I learned at whole foods.)