Lessons Learned

One year ago today I told you the guys and I were embarking on the Eat at Home project with the goal of cutting our restaurant bill by 66% from $3100 in 2009 to $1040 in 2010. I'm sorry to say we failed. However, we did cut the eating out down by 44% to a grand total of $1737. While we missed our mark by nearly $700, we learned quite a bit about our spending habits.

First, budgets are helpful only if you stick to them. Looking over the past year, during 31 of the 52 weeks we went over our $20 limit. There are several reasons for this including that fact that we did not budget any extra for vacations or travel, both of which occurred pretty regularly this year. We spent a week at the beach, a couple of weeks visiting my folks, and another week at an out-of-state funeral. Not to mention a couple of weekend trips Jeff and I took to get a little down time and reconnect. All of these events did a number on the budget. Thus we learned that we need to plan for trips just as we plan for everyday life. Another - probably much more important - reason we overshot our budget is because we didn't use cash. Jeff and I think that if we had put the $20 bill in an envelope every week and only paid for food out of said envelope we would have been more mindful of our spending. Instead, we used the debit card (as we usually do) which made it far easier to spend more than we intended. After all, if you only have a five dollar bill, it just makes sense that you can't stop at Mickey D's for dinner.

We also learned that the amount of money we spend on eating out is directly related to the variety of frozen foods we have at home. Last semester, my son had a guitar class two nights a week which meant that we had about a 30-minute window to eat dinner between the time Jeff and I came home from work and the time we had to leave. Thus, our choices were to hit the drive-through or put something in the oven/microwave. I learned this lesson within the first week and began purchasing a couple of family-sized frozen products for these nights. Since many of these (like chicken fingers or fish sticks) are better in the oven, I called my son as I walked to the car and asked him to start dinner. That way we circumvented fast food and still had time to eat together. In addition, there were many nights that Jeff and I were just tired and neither of us wished to cook. Again, frozen foods rescued us. Of course, when nothing looked particularly appealing in the freezer section, we ended up ordering pizza or Chinese take out.

Another important lesson I discovered is that I am overly ambitious in my dinner plans. When I make the menu each Saturday morning before going to the grocery store, I have the best intentions of cooking something wonderful every single night. Unfortunately, I just don't follow through. Generally I am more motivated early in the semester, but as the work days wane on, I become more and more frustrated with my job and come home feeling defeated. On those evenings I am interested in comfort - a cold martini, soft pajamas, a card game and television with the guys. I am not interested in chopping, stirring, and baking anything. Thus, we became much more lax in sticking to our budget the closer it came to the end of school, the end of summer, the end of the term, etc. In my defense, I have learned the wisdom of planning something simple like grilled steak and a baked potato in the microwave. Jeff is always willing to help, but doesn't know the recipe or process when I write "veggie risotto" on the menu. So, if I choose something that falls under the manly art of open flame cooking, he will happily take charge of the meal.

Finally, I have learned that while breakfast is important for all of us, it need not be a big production. When we started the project last January, I thought if I cooked a big breakfast each morning, that would satisfy everyone for the whole day. It didn't. Whether or not we have bacon, eggs, and toast for breakfast or oatmeal, or grilled cheese, or pbj, we all want something good for dinner. (Jeff and I usually take leftovers for lunch while the boy prefers an Arnold Palmer with a chicken sandwich from the cafeteria, so lunch is pretty much a non-event that is swallowed in a rush.) So, rather than putting a lot of effort into breakfast, I've learned that it is better to reserve that energy for dinner time. This doesn't mean anyone goes hungry, but it does mean we eat more ready-made, non-traditional, or pre-cooked breakfast foods.

Ultimately the year has been a success even though we didn't reach our goal because we did cut our spending by nearly half, we had many great eat-at-home meals, and I devoted some time to writing this blog on a regular basis. Hopefully, some good recipes and tips found their way from my kitchen to yours along with some discussions of the importance of food and family in all our lives.

This brings me to the $64,000 question. Should this blog continue another year? If so, should it remain as is - focused on food and budget - or should it morph into something completely different. I have received several intriguing suggestions along those lines including the day-to-day life of a teacher, living with (aka surviving as the parent of) a teenager, or answering the question "Where is the joy in America?" as recently posed by composer Dan Gawthrop. What do you think? Please leave me a response with your thoughts on the matter. Enquiring minds want to know!

Twice as Nice

To celebrate the 46th anniversary of my birth (yesterday), Jeff purchased a Cheesecake Factory Red Velvet Cheesecake. This decadent treat came frozen from Sam's Club, as a special purchase for the holidays. You might recall that this is the second such cake we've had in as many weeks, since my mom made one from scratch for Christmas.

Now, Mom put a lot of work into hers - perhaps too much. The frozen version is just as good, and (I would wager) easier than the one she put together. Let's start with her process, and you'll see what I mean. She made red velvet cake layers from a mix. Next, she made a thick, rich cheesecake from scratch, baking it in the same pan as the cake layers to ensure both were the same size. Finally, the two cakes were combined with a layer of cream cheese icing between and covering the top and outer edges. As you can imagine, this confection was rich, rich, rich.

The frozen version of this isn't as complicated, though. The red velvet cake on the bottom is about the height of a "normal" layer and a half. I think it was baked in taller pan with a little extra batter. The big difference, though, is in the cheesecake. The purchased one seems to be the no-bake variety like the ones that come in a box on the grocery store shelf. It is far softer than a homemade cheesecake and doesn't have the texture of one that has been through the oven. This layer of cheesecake was poured directly on top of the cooled red velvet layer and allowed to set. Next, only the outer edge (not the top) was covered in cream cheese icing before white chocolate shavings were pressed on.

Both versions of this cake are delicious, as evidenced by the fact that we scarfed down the one my mom made (along with a blackberry cobbler, I might add) and the purchased one is already half gone. In the long run, though, I think making one at home with a boxed cheesecake mix would be an excellent option that saves time, effort, and money.

A Duo of Treats

Today I had the pleasure of lunching at a little restaurant called Cafe Azul inside the Marriott at the Mesa Convention Center. This quiet little place provided an hour's respite from a teaching conference I attended. After surveying a menu peppered with such lovelies as grilled vegetable panini (featuring grilled eggplant, roasted red pepper, fresh mozarella and baby arugula with sun dried tomato pesto and fresh basil), turkey mufaletta (with warm slices of roasted turkey breast, Virginia baked ham, bacon, and provolone with fresh olive tapenade), and farm salad (containing romaine lettuce, smoked ham, sun dried blueberries, fresh strawberries, sunflower seeds, and asiago cheese with red pepper vinaigrette) I settled on the Azul Salad - specialty of the house.

This beauty arrived on a large white ceramic plate with curlicues on the edges. The field greens and baby arugula contained the deep greens of Smoky Mountain summers and dark purple-reds of Southern falls. I love these kinds of greens for their hint of tanginess and the peppery flavor that lingers on the tongue after each bite. These were especially good adorned with warm bacon, roasted pecans, blue cheese, red pear slices, and a pink grapefruit and honey vinaigrette dressing. Each bite's explosion of textures and flavors sang to my senses. I was even glad I ordered water with lime as a drink so nothing could interfere with my enjoyment of the salad.

Upon finishing every morsel on the plate, I continued with my day only to have another treat for dinner tonight. Recently Jeff picked out some stuffed chicken breasts at Sam's Club. These were frozen raw, so they required about 30 minutes in the oven, but were well worth the wait. (Especially since I just added some buttered rice to round out the meal, which made for a super easy and super tasty dinner.) The breaded chicken breasts contained cheddar, brie, and mozarella cheeses with cranberries and apples. (The box says "Barber Foods Premium Entrees Raw Stuffed Chicken Breasts: Creme Brie" if you're interested in some of your own.) The two pound package contained eight pieces of stuffed chicken, and I baked them all thinking we could refreeze the cooked leftovers and heat them in the microwave for a quick snack at a later date. However, these were so tasty only one breast remained to be stored in the fridge for tomorrow's lunch. (The boy ate three and - I'm sorry to admit - Jeff and I scarfed down two apiece!) As evidenced by how quickly these were devoured, I can safely say everyone will want to eat them again, and we'll be picking up more for our freezer. Not only did they make an excellent supper, with a couple of nice dishes and a glass of wine these could easily be an elegant dinner for two or a special occasion meal.

Food Chameleon

One of the most basic (and most satisfying) foods for a winter's night is homemade macaroni and cheese. This side dish, when doctored with some leftover meat (like ham, chicken or turkey) and a bag of frozen veggies, is elevated to full dinner status. At least, that's what I told the guys tonight when we had that very casserole for dinner. While I have several yummy treats on the week's menu, I especially chose comfort food for the first Monday of second semester.

January is the cruelest month for teachers because we rise in the darkness, step foot into a large, windowless building just as the sun peeks over the horizon, and emerge when the warming rays are waning in the western sky. Of course, as the days grow longer, this will change and sunlight will grace us both morning and evening, but for now it seems we lose nearly all of our daylight hours to working indoors. Thus, something cheery - the edible equivalent of a soft blanket and comfy slippers - has to adorn the dinner table these days, and what better than a basic casserole to warm a body inside and out?

I realize being in love with casseroles and plain old mac and cheese is probably strange, but since I grew up eating these thrifty, tasty concoctions I associate them with home and happiness. Of course, "plain" doesn't have to be a descriptor since this basic dish can be spiced up with all kinds of seasonings. For example, I favor chipotle sauce in my dish, especially with some crunchy veggies like broccoli and cauliflower. Other choices might include leftover shredded chicken, Asian veggies, and some soy sauce with garlic and ginger as a kicker. Consider changing the average cheddar cheese to something more Italian like Parmesan and mozzarella with a good dose of parsley and basil to boot. Another good addition is smoked Gouda with sugar snap peas. See, mac and cheese can be changed to suit any mood, which is another reason it is always an excellent choice for dinner.