Cook Once, Eat Lots---Pasta!

A few days ago my wonderful neighbor took the kids for us so my husband and I could go out on a date. She even fed them dinner! But despite the fact that I didn’t have to cook for my family, I still made a huge pot of spaghetti sauce. Why? I am due with our fourth child in about two-and-a-half weeks and am trying to fill my freezer with delicious, nutritious, and easy meals for after her arrival. My family loves pasta, and spaghetti sauce is easy to make in large quantities and freezes well.

When making spaghetti sauce, I don’t pay extra for lean ground beef. Because you brown the beef before you use it, a lot of the fat cooks out. I watch the grocery ads for great deals on 80% lean ground beef. I can occasionally find it for $1.67/lb. in a 10-lb. bag at Raley’s. Whoa, that’s a lot of beef! Yes it is! I take it home, pull out my kitchen scale, and freeze it in 1-lb. portions.

Speaking of freezing meat, that is one of my weaknesses. Sometimes I buy too much, knowing I can freeze it. I don’t have a food sealing system or even use zip-top bags when freezing meat. I’ve found that tightly wrapping it in plastic wrap and then foil works just as well and is a lot cheaper. Before sticking it in the freezer, I always write the type of meat, how much there is, and the date on each package.

On another note, this recipe calls for two celery ribs. Just as a point of clarification, a rib of celery is one piece, or stick of celery. A stalk of celery is a bunch of celery ribs and is how it is sold at the store.

Back to the spaghetti sauce, another great thing about this recipe is that you can turn leftover sauce into chili or minestrone. I’ll post those recipes another time.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 large onion

2 lbs. ground beef (or turkey)

75 oz. tomato sauce

12 oz. tomato paste

30 oz. canned diced tomatoes

2 celery ribs

1 green bell pepper

6 mushrooms

½ Tbsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

½ Tbsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. dried parsley

½ tsp. dried thyme

3 bay leaves

NOTE:  For sweeter, more tomatoey sauce, use less herbs. For more savory sauce, use more herbs.

Dice onion. Place in large stock pot (at least 5 qts.) with ground beef. Cook over medium heat until no pink remains in beef, stirring occasionally. Drain off fat. Return pot to stove over medium heat and stir in tomato sauce, tomato paste, and diced tomatoes. Chop celery, bell pepper, and mushrooms; mix into sauce. Add all seasonings and herbs; mix well. Turn heat to low and simmer 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally, until celery and pepper are tender. Remove bay leaves before serving. Serve over hot pasta. Freeze leftovers in usable portions in plastic containers or zip-top bags. Yields almost 5 qts. Total cost:  about $10. Unit cost:  about $2/qt.

Excuse Me, Where Can I Find the Toast?

My parents often joke about a single male friend of theirs who would to the grocery store and ask where the toast was. At the time, asking for toast in a grocery store was a pretty ridiculous request. How hard can it possibly be to stick a piece of bread in the toaster? However, this type of request is becoming less and less humorous, because it is becoming more of a reality. Today, stores are selling things that people would have laughed at 20 years ago: frozen peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (and they even removed the crust for us!), frozen grilled cheese, premixed pancake batter (not pancake mix, but batter, where all you have to do is shake and pour), frozen pancakes and waffles, frozen potatoes. Yes, I said frozen potatoes.

I think that the reason people use frozen potatoes is because they think washing, peeling, and cubing potatoes is a lot of work. Let me say that it really isn’t. If you need some convincing that it really is worth your time to prepare your own potatoes, let’s start by looking at some numbers. I went to the grocery store this afternoon and checked the price of frozen potatoes. The name brand was on sale for $3.69 for a 38 oz. bag (9.7 cents/oz.). The store brand was also on sale and was quite a bit cheaper than the name brand. It was “only” $2.50 for 32 ounces (7.8 cents/oz.). However, last week I bought a 10-lb bag of Russet potatoes for 97 cents – the price I typically pay for potatoes (0.6 cents/oz. – notice, that’s not 6 cents/oz., that’s o.6 cents/oz.). The store brand frozen potatoes cost 13 times as much as fresh potatoes, and the name brand frozen potatoes cost 16 times as much as fresh potatoes!!! That’s enough to make me stop and think before I throw the bag of frozen potatoes into my shopping cart!

Now, some of you may be thinking, “Yes. The 10-lb bag of potatoes may be a lot cheaper, but my time is more valuable than that.” Let me challenge you by telling you that it really doesn’t take very long to peel and cube potatoes, and cooking them takes about the same amount of time. It only took me 10 minutes, maximum, to prepare the potatoes for the recipe below.

If you’re not sure how to quickly cube potatoes, here is how I do it. Slice the potato lengthwise.

Your slices should look like this:With the potato slices stacked, slice into long, thin strips (like French fries). Turn the “French fries” a quarter turn and cube. Don't be discouraged if it does take a little longer the first couple of times. The more you do it, the easier it becomes, and the less time it will take you to do it.

Breakfast Potatoes
3 Russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1-2 Tbsp oil
¼ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. paprika
salt and pepper, to taste

Heat 1-2 tablespoons oil in a frying pan over medium to medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add potatoes. Make sure to stir the potatoes occasionally. You want to make sure they don’t burn, but you also want them to brown and get a bit crispy, so don’t stir them constantly. Once the potatoes are tender, remove from heat and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika, adjusting the amounts to suit your personal preference.

One of my favorite things to make with potatoes is breakfast burritos. They’re easy, tasty, and inexpensive.

Breakfast Burritos
1 batch breakfast potatoes
½ each green bell pepper and small onion, chopped and sautéed
3 eggs, scrambled (I like to add ½ to 1 tsp Montreal steak seasoning into my eggs)
¼ lb breakfast sausage, thoroughly cooked
Tortillas, warmed
Burrito toppings (cheddar cheese, sour cream, salsa, hot sauce, ketchup, etc.)

Place desired ingredients on tortilla and wrap into a burrito. Eat. I said it was easy!

On a different, yet related note, let me tell you that my favorite way to heat tortillas is on the stove. I used to wrap tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwave them, but my wonderful sister has enlightened me to a much better way to heat tortillas. Now I heat them in a skillet on the stove over medium to medium-high heat until they’re warm and soft. Try it sometime. I doubt you’ll ever go back to heating them in the microwave!

Ok, let’s get back to the breakfast burritos. Here’s the cost breakdown, give or take a few cents.

• Potatoes: $0.13
• Bell Pepper: $0.30
• Onion: $0.40
• Eggs: $0.30
• Sausage: $0.50
• Tortillas: $0.38
• Toppings (cheese, ketchup, hot sauce): $0.50

TOTAL: $2.51

For $2.51 (the cost of the potatoes alone, had I bought the frozen ones), my husband and I (and our toddler) were able to eat dinner, plus we have enough leftovers for both of us to have lunch tomorrow. That’s not a bad price for two meals for two adults! And for those of you wondering what to do with the other 8½ lbs of potatoes you now have sitting around your house, rest assured, there will be plenty of potato ideas coming your way!

My Spending Parameters--Rice is Cheap!

I would like to start this installment with some of my spending parameters. These are general guidelines to which I adhere probably about 90-95% of the time. There are times when I make exceptions, such as when I am cooking a special dinner, but they are simply that—exceptions. I never spend more than

$2/lb. for meat.
$1/lb. for produce.
$1/lb. for pasta, rice, or beans.
$2/box for cereal (normal sized boxes—about 9 oz. box of Cheerios—check unit cost for larger boxes).

How can I spend so little? I stay away from traditional grocery stores (e.g. Raley’s, Lucky, Safeway—Von’s for you southern California people) except when there is a great sale. I do most of my shopping at WinCo Foods. For those of you who aren’t familiar with WinCo, shame on you!! Yes, it’s a box store, you have to bag your own groceries, it has a concrete floor, and there is no Starbuck’s inside. But you can’t beat the prices, and they carry all the major national brands.

Speaking of which, I stay away from national brands for most items. Olives are olives regardless of the name on the can. There are some products that I do prefer the major brand, but I have at least tried the others first (peanut butter is one such product). Many store brands have a money-back guarantee so you don’t have to be afraid to try them. I have returned items that I did not think were of good quality for a full refund. There are many things that we actually prefer the off brand.

I always buy milk, eggs, bread, and bananas at Costco (or Sam’s Club if I’m with my mom when she goes). It costs $45/year to be a member, but the savings on the milk alone are well worth it. Not to mention how much we’re saving on diapering two babies (soon to be three) with Costco’s diapers. Oh, and the gas savings!!

I have a lot more shopping rules, but I will save those for future posts and move on to some recipes.

Since I don’t spend more than $1/lb. for rice, I never buy rice mixes—just plain, dry rice. I actually only pay about $. 47/lb. for white rice and $.53/lb. for brown rice at WinCo.

My dad is Japanese so I grew up eating a lot of white rice. Of the white rice varieties, I prefer medium-grain, then long-grain. Short-grain white rice has less starch so it does not make good sticky rice.

While it is possible to make rice on the stove, by far the best way to prepare it is using a rice cooker. The finished product has a better texture, you don’t have to watch it, and it won’t burn. Plus, you can steam vegetables in the rice cooker. Whether you cook rice in a rice cooker or on the stove, resist the temptation to remove the lid during cooking. The build-up of steam is essential to the cooking.

White Rice

1 c. white rice

2 c. water (slightly more or less depending on how sticky you want the rice to be)

Place rice and water in rice cooker; turn on. Fluff when done. On the stove:  Mix rice and water in 3 qt. saucepan and cover with lid. Bring water to boil, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until all water is absorbed, being careful not to burn the rice. Fluff rice.  Yields about 3 ½ c. cooked rice (1 ¼ lb.).  Total cost:  $0.18 (That’s only about $0.14/lb. for cooked white rice!)

My favorite (and healthier than white) is brown rice.

Brown Rice

1 c. brown rice

2 ¼ c. water (slightly more or less depending on preference)

1 Tbsp. butter

1 Tbsp. chicken bouillon

Place all ingredients in rice cooker; turn on. Stir well when done. On the stove:  Mix all ingredients in a 3 qt.  saucepan and cover with lid. Bring water to boil, reduce heat, and simmer 45 minutes, or until all water is absorbed, being careful not to burn the rice. Stir well when done.  Yields about 3 ½ c. cooked rice  (1 ¼ lb.).  Total cost:  $0.20 (That’s only about $0.16/lb. for cooked brown rice!)

Welcome!

Welcome to Near to Nothing! We are two stay-at-home moms who enjoy the challenge of cooking nutritious and tasty meals on a tight budget. We have been asked to share our kitchen "secrets" on numerous occasions and realized that these are skills people want to learn, but there really isn't a forum from which people can learn. Therefore Near to Nothing was born! We will not only be sharing how we prepare affordable meals, but we'll also be sharing recipes, time-saving tips, information on kitchen gadgets, food preparation tips, and so much more!

Based on different family preferences and needs, we each have our own approach to affordable cooking and hope that, between the two of us, you will be able to find a method that suits your family's needs. We are passionate about what we do, and we're excited to share it with you. Our hope is that you will benefit from our experiences and that you, too, will be able to enjoy preparing healthy, delicious, and affordable meals at home!