Month: October 2019

Lunch

With some left over Pork Sirloin and a fresh Apple we made two Pork and Apple Sandwiches.

• The pork sirloin was about $10.00 and the final ⅓ works out at $1.67 per serve
• The Apple was 79c or 40c per serve
• Dave’s Killer Bread is 66c per serve.

Not a bad sandwich for $2.73 per serve, but we think an Apple and Cheddar sandwich would have been better.

Dinner

Tonight Foodie Greg decided we’d have Smoked Trout and Burrata “Cobb” Salad.

• The smoked trout is $3.49 per can and we used one can per serve
• The Burrata was $4.99 or $2.50 per serve
• Pastured Eggs are 51c per serve
• Organic Spinach was $1.99 and we used about ¼ or 25c per serve
• A bag of five Avocados was $5.99 and we shared one, or 60c per serve
• The Grape tomatoes cost $2.49 or 63c per serve
• Add 40c for Olive Oil and Balsamic Glaze.

This is an excellent salad with a good balance of smoke, acid and salt for $7.87 per serve.

Lunch

For lunch we removed the meat from the leg and thigh of the BBQ chicken and packed it, with the remaining corn mix, in a hot Panini Roll.

• The Panini Roll is 63c
• The Chicken is $1.75 per serve
• The Cream-less Creamed Corn has been accounted for.

This turned out really well for $2.38 per serve.

Dinner

For our Meatless Monday we grilled Eggplant and served it with a Peanut Satay Sauce and a Vietnamese Inspired Salad with Bean Sprout Noodles instead of Bean Sprouts.

• The Eggplant was $2.98 or $1.49 per serve
• The Bean Sprout Noodles add 45c per serve
• The Carrot was $1.69, but we used only 1/20th or about 5c per serve
• The Cucumber was 28c or 14c per serve
• Limes (for juice and zest) were 33c or 16c per serve
• The peanut butter was $1.99 and we used about 1/2,  or 50c a serve
• Add 50c for Marinade ingredients.

We prefer the Eggplant over a meat protein when having Peanut Satay sauce, so this is a favorite meal for $3.29 per serve.

Lunch

For lunch we picked up Heuvos Rancheros from from Viva La Fiesta for $9.31 per serve with tax and tip.

Dinner

Our meat box included a Pork Sirloin, which we Sous-vide for about four hours before frying it off. We served it with an Apple and Endive Salad

• The pork sirloin was about $10.00 and we served about 2/3 putting aside the rest for a sandwich or roll later, or $3.33 per serve
• The Apple was 79c or 40c per serve
• The Endive was $2.69 or $1.35 per serve
• Add 60c for seasoning and the rub.

The Pork turned out well and the salad was a perfect balance. A great meal for $5.68 per serve.

Lunch

Back to sandwiches we shared an Egg Salad Sandwich, and a Smoked Trout with Tzatziki Labné. They were both pretty good.

• Dave’s Killer Bread is 66c per serve
• We shared a $3.49 can of Smoked Trout, or $1.75 per serve
• The egg salad is $3.69 for 10 oz and we used 2 oz per serve, or 46c per serve
• Add 35c for Labné and capers.

Decent sandwiches for $3.22 per serve.

Dinner

We seared the Wild Caught Salmon so the skin was crispy. The corn cobs were boiled and the liquid mixed with the lightly cooked corn and blended. We picked some kale and sautéed it with garlic to wilt it.

• The salmon fillets were $8.13 for two or $4.07 per serve
• The Kale was from a plant we have
• The Corn was $1.58 or  79c per serve
• Add 50c per serve for Butter, shallot and Seasonings.

The Cream-less Creamed Corn was excellent. The Salmon perfectly cooked and the Kale tasty. A very good meal for $5.36 per serve.

Lunch

Since we had another Chicken Breast and some Kumatoes, we decided on Chicken Sandwiches.

• The Dave’s Killer Bread is 66c per serve
• The Chicken is $6.99 and we shared a breast or 88c per serve
  
• Five Kumato were $3.49 and we each had one, or 70c per serve
  
• Add 20c per serve for Garlic Spread.

Perhaps not as great as the Fresh Baguette, but still a great sandwich for $2.44 per serve.

Dinner

Foodie Greg had found some great New Zealand Lamb Loin Chops at Trader Joes and we served with Farrow Tabouleh.

• Lamb Chops were $15.17 or $7.59 per serve
• The farrow was $1.79 for the pack, but we shared ⅓ or 10c per serve
  
• Tomatoes were $3.49 for five but we shared one, or 35c per serve
  
• Mint was 50c, or 25c per serve
• Parsley was 33c or 16c per serve
• Add 30c for seasoning.

The Lamb Loin Chops cooked up great and the Farrow Tabouleh made a great side. An excellent meal for $8.75 per serve.

Lunch

A trip to Jons always results in a Fresh Baguette, hot-out-of-the-rotisserie Chicken, and some good tomatoes, usually Heirloom but today, Kumato.

• The Chicken is $6.99 and we shared a breast or 88c per serve
• The Tomato was 31c or 16c per serve
• The Baguette was $2.79, but we shared half for lunch, or 70c per serve
• Add 20c per serve for Garlic Spread.

A truly great combination, because of the quality of ingredients, for $1.94 per serve.

Dinner

Last month’s Keller Crafted meat box came with “Stir Fry Pork” so we tried this Cashew Chicken recipe, which makes four serves.

• The Pork is $10.84 or $2.71 per serve
• Sugar Snap peas were $3.49 or 88c per serve
• Mushrooms were $2.49 + $2.99, or $1.38 per serve
• We used about 1/4 of the $6.99 pack of Chili Lime Cashews, or $1.17 per serve
• Marinade ingredients and seasoning add another 80c per serve.

This was a truly, truly boring stir-fry. The pork was tender, but overall, it lacked flavor and was disappointing for $6.94 per serve.

Lunch

We heated the remaining Drunken Pork Stew and stuffed it in a hot Panini roll.

• The Panini Roll is 63c each
• The Drunken Pork Stew is $1.90 per serve.

It was very tasty for $2.53 per serve.

Dinner

For dinner we sliced and fried the remaining Red Wine and Mushroom Meatloaf and served with Cauliflower Gnocchi in Blue Cheese Sauce.

• The Meatloaf is $7.07 per serve
• The gnocchi was $2.69 or 67c per serve
  
• Blue cheese crumbles were $3.49 and we used half or 44c per serve
  
• Heavy cream is $3.29 per pint, but we used only ¼ or 21c per serve
  
• We added the remaining ⅓ of the Organic Asparagus for 87c per serve
  
• Add 15c for other ingredients .

The Cauliflower Gnocchi is very filling and ultimately we didn’t finish all the meatloaf. A generous and tasty meal for $9.41 per serve.

September means the IBC show in Amsterdam and this year the Foodies stayed a little longer in that city, so about half the meals this month were “out.”

The averages for this month:

• Lunch prepared at home $2.88 ($2.69 in August)
• Lunch eaten or purchased outside the home: $10.39 ($11.68)
• Dinner eaten at home: $5.65 ($6.08)
• Dinner eaten out: $26.50 ($11.10).

Our lunches at home average in a fairly narrow band and this month is only a few cents per serve up from last month.

We ate twenty seven meals prepared outside the home (mostly because we were traveling). Our most expensive meal for the month was de Kas at $63.84 per serve.

Our most expensive at home meal was the Rib Eye with Spinach, Almond, Blue Cheese and Pomegranate Seeds at $11.53 per serve, which surprisingly is the same as last month!

This month, lunches at home cost 28% of the cost of eating food prepared outside the home.

Had we purchased every lunch and prepared none it would have cost us $311.70 per person in September. We actually spent $48.09 for lunches at home plus $135.11 for lunches purchased or eaten out:  $183.20 in total.

Had we purchased every evening meal out and prepared none at home, it would have cost us $795.00 per person. We actually spent $90.33 for dinners at home and $318.05 for dinners out, or $408.38 in total.

This month’s savings from preparing most of our food at home is $515.12 and we had a lot more control over what we eat.

Over the month we prepared 13 different recipes for evening meals, but also ate some amazing food at de Kas, de Curtis, DOS, Jun and Sha-Jahan.