Empty the Pantry Challenge

Thank you to Andrea (aka MommyTime) for this awesome post. Andrea, you've inspired me!

Husband and I both love to cook. On our second date, I went to his house for dinner, and he made me a delicious Thai curry -- with sauce from scratch. We spent our years in graduate school cooking together, cooking for each other, having dinner parties, and generally enjoying food every chance we could get.

Fast forward 10 years, and we have two children, two full-time jobs, and far less time every day than we used to. We still love to cook, but on a daily basis, we tend to do what I think of as "cheater cooking." We'll throw rice in the rice cooker, chop up some chicken and veggies for a quick stir fry, and then pour on some delicious organic sauce from Trader Joe's. Or we'll rotisserie a chicken and just have steamed veggies on the side. On "ambitious" days, he'll make a big pot of Tortilla Soup, which involves mincing all the random bits of peppers, corn, onions, or other appropriate veggies we've got lying around, sauteeing some chicken, and tossing it all together with crushed tomatoes, water, spices, and (of course) tortilla bits. It's a very good soup, but hardly up to our previous standards of curried squash or whatever else we used to do that was more complicated.

Please understand, I'm not criticizing your cooking here, simply lamenting the falling off of our own creative outlet. We are both toss-and-taste cooks. Which means that although we like to read recipes a lot, when it comes time to cook, we do so by feel and taste more than by measurements (except when baking): we toss into the pot whatever seems right, simmer a while, taste, and adjust with more tosses.

What all of this has translated to lately is that we buy a lot of shortcut ingredients -- packages of Japanese curry sauce cubes, jars of Mojito Marinade, organic pasta sauce, bottles of plum chipotle dipping sauce, and so on. Ever on the lookout for things that will enable us to cook lots of different kinds of foods quickly, while not compromising our food standards (no hydrogenated oils, no high fructose corn syrup, no empty calories except as an occasional treat), we have a tendency to buy lots of interesting looking jars that slowly make their way to the back of the pantry or fridge as new jars full of interesting flavors get put up front.

So, our fridge and pantry (and freezer; we're always stocking up on promising cuts of meat / poultry / fish that are on sale) are full to bursting. It's annoying. They're so full we can't find anything, and then we just end up buying a fourth can of coconut milk -- and no one needs that much coconut milk with no specific plan to cook a single recipe that calls for coconut milk.

I know that the food organized among us recommend weekly meal plans to combat this wasteful purchasing. But toss-and-taste cooks, even ones who find it necessary to prepare an entire meal from scratch in under 20 minutes because the children are melting down before their very eyes, get all twitchy when you suggest making a weekly meal plan. It interferes with their cooking mojo, which depends on spontaneity. (Nevermind that the kids are eating eggs and tortillas for the second time this week because of lack of time to cook something more complex. The last shred of our former love-to-cook selves is contained in this illusion of spontaneity. Let us keep at least that.)

So, because we are also a bit controlling, and we both love a good bargain, I started an Empty-the-Pantry Challenge with myself. (Yes, I know you have to be pretty type A to enjoy a contest with yourself. Whatever. I'm an oldest child.) The best part of this challenge's design is that it fosters creative cooking while at the same time reducing the excessive grocery hoarding that plagues our cupboards. Here are the very simple rules:

(1) Grocery shopping happens only one day a week. (Previously, we'd stop by the store while out doing other errands at least three times a week. This led to a lot of impulse purchases.)

(2) The only items that may be purchased on grocery day are fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy products, and staples that have been emptied in the past week or won't make it till the following Monday (e.g. flour, soysauce, coffee). In all cases except staples, purchases should reflect quantities that can reasonably be eaten in a week. After all, it's not like we won't be back at the store next Monday.

(3) The purchase of any more sauces, marinades, simmer mixes, fabulous flavor bases or novelty ingredients (dates? a can of escargot? we have both in our pantry right now!) is completely forbidden until the ones we've got are used up, even if this takes until next January.

(4) The purchase of any more meat/poultry/fish of any kind is completely forbidden until every last shred of a given protein food currently in the freezer is gone. So, no buying hamburger if there's any other cut of beef in the freezer, even if the hamburger is gone.

(5) Meals will continue to be well-balanced.

Now: COOK!

It's amazing what has happened as a result. For six weeks, I bought not a single bit of meat, fish or poultry, not a single sauce. I cut our grocery bill in half every week. I can see the pantry shelves. And, we got creative again. It's become a fun challenge to see what I can rustle up using a box of corn muffin mix, black beans, one pork chop, and two huge ripe red peppers. (The answer? A cumin-spiced stew, that also contained onion, garlic, lime, and cilantro and tasted great with a side of cornbread.) Now that I've been doing this for a while, the grocery bill has climbed up a little, as I have to buy some meat and canned goods. To help avoid the impulse buys ("it's on sale, buy several!"), I'm trying hard to make the first grocery shop of the month be the one where I restock the freezer and canned goods; then all other shopping trips follow the rules above. This way, things don't languish in the freezer for months, and I don't overbuy every single week.

So, if your grocery bill is getting you down, or you're tired of those packages of unidentifyable meat that end up at the bottom of your freezer, or you have 8 packages of half-used pasta on your shelves (which we did at one point!), try this little challenge. You'll save on gas by not running constantly to the store; you'll save money by eating what you've already got; and you might even find yourself inspired to pull down a cookbook again in order to find a recipe that features some ingredient you forgot you ever had.

But don't say I didn't warn you if an unintended consequence of this is that you have to spend two hours scrubbing down the inside of your refrigerator once you can actually see it again. I'm not the one who let the apricot jam dribble down the back of the shelves behind 28 jars of pickled something and three half-eaten loaves of bread. Honest. I'm not.

Miss Maha's Spicy Mac and Cheese recipe

If I ran the world I would make Mac and Cheese the world's official food. I love it. I could eat it every day and not get sick of it. If there is anything in this world more lovely and perfect than the combination of noodles and cheese then I don't even want to know about it. Since I plan on taking over the world very soon you may want to start dusting off your old mac and cheese recipes so that you can appease your leader. When I do become leader Miss Maha will become my right hand man lady because of her mac and cheese recipe. Give it a try won't you?

Ingredients:
1 medium onion
1 1/4 T minced garlic
1/2 T basil
1 T pepper
1.5 T diced red chili peppers
3 T butter or margarine
1/8 cup flour
1.5 cups milk
1 can diced tomatoes (drained)
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 pound macaroni (thicker noodles are great for this)
1/2 cup pounded croutons
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped green onions

Directions:
In a large sauce pan, cook the onion, garlic, and chili peppers in butter. When soft, stir in flour. Cook for three minutes. Add milk and bring to a boil, stirring a lot. Stir in tomatoes. Simmer for two minutes. Add basil and pepper.

Boil noodles in separate pan. After draining, combine with the other mixture. Stir in cheddar cheese. Transfer everything to a baking dish. Add croutons, Parmesan, and onions on top. Bake for about 10-15 min at 375 F.

Cripes that looks good. So get on it people! Your leader demands it!

Salsa Chicken

This recipe was given to me by Nicole. I tried it out and it is awesome. I loooove crock pot recipes. Thanks Nicole for sharing this!

Ingredients:-boneless skinless chicken breast (depends on the # of people you want to feed or if you want to freeze for later)
-1 16oz jar of salsa for every 3 LARGE chicken breasts
-Rice (even minute rice works fine for this)
Optional:
-Shredded cheese
-any can of vegetables (usually black beans or corn go well)
-1 can of diced tomatoes with green chiles

Directions:-Throw all of the chicken into a crock pot on the high setting. It can even still be frozen; I don't care. It still works!
-Dump said salsa on top (about 1 16oz jar for every 3 pcs of chicken)
-Let cook until chicken is fairly done and can start to break into pieces....I generally use frozen chicken and start at noon and end at around 5:30 or 6:00.
-If you like it spicier, you can add the tomatoes with green chiles. It just adds to the flavor and makes more "salsa".
-Also, at this point you can add the additional vegetables if you choose to include them. They just need to heat through.
-Serve when chicken is able to shred thinly. Serve atop rice with shredded cheese.

Nicole says "So there you have it. SUPER easy, REALLY yummy (my husband will even eat it for lunch for a few days after we make it), and the little one will eat it too! The other thing we like to try is different kinds of salsa. Mango salsa is really good, too, and gives it a nice sweet flavor. I wouldn't recommend the extra vegetables with that, though."

Easy Garlic Tilapia

I have a confession. I'm intimidated by fish. I'll often leave pet stores sobbing in fear.

Oh wait. That's not what I meant (to confess). I mean I'm intimidate by cooking fish. I always overdo it because I'm scared that I'll under cook it and my whole family will die. I'm not over dramatic at all.

Thank goodness I came across this recipe for Easy Garlic Tilapia. I tweaked it a bit to work with what my family likes and I was really pleased with the results.

Ingredients:
4-6 tilapia fillets
2 tablespoons butter
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp ground mustard seed
dash pepper
dash salt
pinch dried dillweed or parsley

Directions:
In saucepan, combine butter, garlic, pepper, salt, dillweed, and mustard. Heat over medium heat until garlic has started to lightly brown. Remove from heat. Brush a little of the butter mixture in the bottom of a shallow baking dish (line baking dish with foil for easy clean up) then place tilapia fillets on the buttered area.

Brush top of each tilapia fillet with the seasoned butter mixture. (Or, if you're really daring pour the whole mixture over the top of the fish. That's what I do.) Bake at 350° for 12 to 15 minutes, until tilapia flakes easily with a fork.

It's so simple, you just can't go wrong. I'm sure this would work well with other kinds of fish too. The garlic mellows nicely and the mustard adds an interesting flavor. At my house this was a hit with all except the toddler who's not a fish fan. She often leaves pet stores sobbing in fear too.

Popcorn Salad

Ok, when you read this recipe you're going to think it sounds gross. All I can say is trust me. It's soooooo good. You might have to try it before you believe me but I promise that you won't be sorry. I first tried this when my aunt Sue brought it to a family get together. I took a little scoop just to be polite but before the meal was over I had taken seconds and thirds and maybe even fourths. But don't tell anyone that. I have my dainty image to maintain. Haha.

Ingredients:
10 slices bacon
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup diced celery
1 1/4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
1/4 cup shredded carrots
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
6 cups popped popcorn

Directions:
Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, celery, 1 cup of the cheese, 1/2 cup bacon, carrots and chives. Mix well. Add popcorn and stir to coat. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bacon and serve immediately.

A couple of notes -
This salad does not travel well. If you're taking it with you somewhere (like to a potluck) you're better off doing all the prep work and then assembling it whenever you get where you're going.
The original recipe I found called for one 8 ounce can of sliced water chestnuts. I left them out because they're gross. It also called for 3/4 cup mayo but I thought that was a little much.
Green onions could be substitute for the chives, that's very good too.

What's that you say? This all sounds good but you don't have any popcorn? Well, you're in luck! I'm giving popcorn away to two lucky winners right now! What are you waiting for?

Chocolate chip toffee shortbread bars

I had a recipe for shortbread cookies that I liked but I always hated the piddly step of rolling out each tiny little cookie. I eliminated that step and futzed with the recipe a bit to come up with this recipe for shortbread bars.

Ingredients:
1 cup softened butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup toffee chips or crushed toffee

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325.
Measure the butter, sugar, vanilla, flour and salt into large bowl. Work this all together until it forms a ball.
Add the chocolate chips and toffee chips. Work well into dough. Press dough evenly into a shallow baking pan. It will look about like this only you will have a nicer pan than I do.


Bake for 15-18 minutes, watching to make sure the edges don't burn.
Let cool for as long as you can possibly stand it and then cut into bars.

I wish I could show you what these look like when they're done but when I made last I cut up the pan and took them in to Jesse's office for him to share with his co-workers. Then I inhaled the two that I had left for myself. It wasn't until I was washing the last bite down with a cold glass of milk that I realized I never got a picture of the final product. I guess I'll just have to make them again sometime!

Chicken in Creamy Pan Sauce

This recipe was given to me by my aunt Doreen. Only, I call her Beany because that's what everyone calls her and I was about 14 before I realized that's not really her name. So without further ado I present:

Beany's Chicken in Creamy Pan Sauce

Ingredients:
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to about 1/2" thickness
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup oil
1 cup chicken broth
4 oz. cream cheese
1 small onion, sliced
1 cup chopped frozen spinach
1/2 pound muenster Cheese, cubed

Directions:
Heat oil in large skillet on medium heat. Dredge chicken in flour. Add the chicken and cook 5 to 6 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Remove chicken to separate plate, cover with foil to keep warm.
Cook onion in pan drippings until translucent. Add chicken broth, cream cheese, muenster cheese and spinach. Stir together until creamy. Return chicken to pan, turn over to coat both sides with sauce.
Enjoy!

When Beany gave me this recipe she added the note "Don't let the spinach scare you off." I think she is seriously underestimating your love of spinach. Or at least my love of spinach. Or maybe she thinks I'm iron deficient. I should explain her her that my pale skin is just the unfortunate result of living in Minnesota and not a need for more leafy greens.