Dec 15: Chicken, Tomato & Swiss; Tom Kah Moo

Lunch

A pair of chicken, tomato and Swiss toasted sandwiches.

  • Sprouted rye bread is 32c per serve
  • Sliced chicken breast is $7.99 for 8 oz and we had 2 oz each or $2.00 per serve
  • Swiss slices are 12 for $3.99 or 34c per serve
  • Add 40c for butter and garlic spread.

A serviceable sandwich for $3.06 per serve.

Dinner

A return to another favorite: the pork version of Tom Kha Gai (chicken), Tom Kha Moo. The recipe makes four serves.

  • The ground pork came from our Keller Crafted meat delivery – 1 lb of ground pork cost $8.99 or $2.25 per serve
  • A can of coconut milk is $1.49 or 38c per serve
  • Two packs of mushrooms were 89c each, or 45c  per serve
  • Chicken broth is $2.49 or 63c per serve
  • Lemon grass was 12c or 3c per serve
  • Limes were 49c or 12c per serve
  • Add 5c per serve for the pepper on top
  • Add 25c for seasonings.

Dinner tonight might not look pretty but it tasted good for $4.16 per serve.

Dec 14: Steak & Stout Pie; Kegeree

Lunch

A gray day is always perfect pie weather so today we had Trader Joe’s Steak and Stout pies for $3.25 per serve.

Dinner

Although traditionally breakfast food, Kedgeree has been a favorite evening meal with us for a long time. The meal makes two very generous serves, or three with a bit more rice!

  • The smoked cod was $7.49  or $3.75 per serve
  • Four slices of bacon are $2.74 or $1.37 per serve
  • Tomatoes cost 86c or 43c per serve
  • Add 50c for milk, onion, curry powder and seasonings
  • Pastured eggs are 50c per serve
  • Add 33c for brown rice per serve.

Not quite standard as we had no curry powder and substituted garam marsala, but still delicious for $6.88 per serve.

Dec 13: Tuna & Swiss, Chicken Breast, Sun Dried Tomato and Swiss; Thin Cut Pork Chops with Apple Bacon Slaw

Lunch

Back to our regular round of toasted sandwiches. Today a Sweet and Spicy Tuna pouch with capers and Swiss, along with a chicken breast, sun dried tomato and Swiss. Both were good.

  • Sprouted rye bread is 32c per serve
  • The tuna was $1.99 or $1.00 per serve
  • Sliced chicken breast is $7.99 for 8 oz and we shared 2 oz or $1.00 per serve
  • Swiss slices are 12 for $3.99 or 34c per serve
  • Add 50c for butter, garlic spread and capers.

A pair of quite decent toasted sandwiches for $3.06 per serve.

Dinner

We had two “thin cut” pork chops in last month’s meat box, which really aren’t that thin. We did them in a frying pan indoors (because of the weather) and served with Apple Bacon Slaw using endive instead of cabbage.

  • The pork chops were $10.85 or $5.43 per serve
  • Four slices of bacon are $2.74 or $1.37 per serve
  • The cruciferous crunch was $2.69 or $1.34 per serve
  • The Envy apple was $1.29 or 65c per serve
  • Add 30c for apple cider vinegar and seasoning.

For $9.09 per serve we got perfectly cooked, tender and flavorsome pork chops, with a nearly perfect salad that balances salty, sweet and sour, with a hint of smokiness from the bacon.

Dec 12: Par Baked Roll Stuffed with Braised Lamb Shank; Dutch Mustard Soup

Lunch

We repeated yesterday’s lunch of reheated lamb shank a in a panini roll finished in the oven and smeared it with Trader Joe’s new Blue Cheese Mustard.

  • Panini roll is 63c
  • Half of a serve of lamb divided between two  is $2.40 per serve
  • Add 40c for the mustard.

A great lunch for $3.43 per serve.

Dinner

Cooler weather is an opportunity for soups, and one of our favorite soups is Dutch Mustard Soup, which is just onion, leak, cream and mustard, but totally delicious.

  • Bacon is $4.99 and we used 3 rashers, or 83c per serve
  • Yellow onions were $2.79 for 2 lb, or 23c per serve
  • The leeks were $2.99 and we used half or 75c per serve
  • Add 10c for butter
  • Garlic adds 5c per serve
  • Heavy cream adds 50c per serve
  • Mustard adds 25c per serve
  • Add 20c for the remaining seasoning.

This is a simple but great soup for $2.91 per serve, with a little left over.

Dec 11: Par Baked Roll Stuffed with Braised Lamb Shank; Rib Roast, Asparagus and French Onion “Dip”

Lunch

We heated half the remaining lamb shank and stuffed it in a panini roll finished in the oven and smeared it with Trader Joe’s new Blue Cheese Mustard. The new mustard is surprisingly good and worked perfectly with the lamb.

  • Panini roll is 63c
  • Half of a serve of lamb divided between two  is $2.40 per serve
  • Add 40c for the mustard.

A great lunch for $3.43 per serve.

Dinner

Time to repeat the prime rib meal from Saturday night, and use up some left over French onion soup. The prime rib was sliced thin (English cut) and reheated in the French onion soup.

The asparagus was reheated in the panini press, where it had been cooked. We served the French onion soup as a dip, which worked okay.

  • The prime rib as $39.09 but we’ll get five very (very) generous serves from that, or $7.81 per serve, which is double what you’d get in a steak house
  • Asparagus was $4.03 and we used the remaining half, or $1.00 per serve
  • A serve of the French onion soup is 76c for a half serve.

Reheating the beef in the soup was exactly the right path. We kept it low on the induction cooktop set to 140F so we did not overcook the beef. The French onion soup made an adequate dip. A good meal for $9.57 per serve.

 

Dec 10: Ham & Avocado; Kashmir Spinach and Yellow Dahl on Brown Rice

Lunch

Another ham sandwich variation, this time with avocado.

  • Ham is 22c for 2oz
  • Sprouted Rye bread is 32c
  • Two avocados were $1.98 but we shared one, or 50c per serve
  • Add 50c for butter and garlic spread.

A good sandwich for $1.44 per serve.

Dinner

For tonight’s Meatless Monday we went Indian: Kashmir Spinach and Yellow Dahl on Brown Rice.

  • Brown rice is 33c per serve
  • The yellow dahl was $1.99 or $1.00 per serve
  • The Kashmir Spinach was $3.99 or $2.00 per serve.

A decent meal for $3.33 per serve. It’s odd that the yellow dahl from Trader Joe’s is half the price of the Kashmir Spinach from a name brand purchased at Raph’s (Kroger).

Dec 9: Ham & Egg Salad Sandwich; Braised Lamb Shank with Cous-cous

Lunch

Although we froze half the baked ham, we’re still working through the remainder. Today ham and egg salad sandwiches.

  • Two slices of sprouted rye is 32c per serve
  • The egg salad is $3.69 for 10 oz and we used 2 oz per serve, or 92c per serve
  • We used about 2oz of ham on each sandwich or 22c
  • Add 50c for butter and garlic spread.

The sandwich worked extremely well for $1.96 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight we cooked an old favorite – Lamb Shanks with Dill and Juniper Berries – but with two twists. First we cooked it in a dutch oven in the oven, instead of pressure cooking it, and secondly we’re writing this up on behalf of Keller Crafted. We pay regular price for our meat box each month, but this month Keller Crafted included these lamb shanks in return for writing up the recipe.

  • Normally $28.77 for two enormous shanks, they yield at least three serves or $9.59 per generous serve
  • Add 10c per serve for onion and garlic
  • Add $1.00 or 33c per serve for chicken bone broth
  • Juniper berries add 13c per serve
  • Dill adds 5c per serve
  • The peas are 99c per pack, but we used half or 17c per serve
  • Add 20c for the lemon.

While the pressure cooker version is quicker, it loses almost no liquid so there’s no thickening of the sauce as there is with this version. There was so much meat on each lamb shank that neither of us could finish and together we put aside another full serve!

The meat melted in your mouth and no knife was needed. The flavor was definitely lamb rather than a stronger flavored mutton (older sheep). This was a really, really good meal for $10.75 (split three ways) or $15.38 per serve if two people finished the shanks!

Dec 8: Ham, Eggs & Roast Potato; Prime Rib with Horseradish Cream, Asparagus and Garlic Mushrooms

Lunch

With it being Saturday, lunch could take on a little more complexity: ham steak, fried onion and Roasted Potatoes with Peppers and Onions (Trader Joe’s).

  • The ham steak was 88c
  • A pastured egg is 50c
  • The frozen roast potatoes with peppers and onions was $2.99 or $1.50 per serve.

A great weekend lunch for $2.88 per serve.

Dinner

When we celebrate Foodie Philip’s birthday we typically go for prime rib, and this year was no exception. Served with grilled asparagus, roasted garlic butter mushrooms and a horseradish cream, this was definitely a great take on a steakhouse meal.

  • The prime rib as $39.09 but we’ll get five very (very) generous serves from that, or $7.81 per serve, which is double what you’d get in a steak house
  • Mushrooms were $2.99 or $1.50 each
  • Butter adds 50c per serve
  • Asparagus was $4.03 but we used only half, or $1.00 per serve
  • Add 65c per serve for sour cream and horseradish.

A meal worthy of the best steak house and, at $11.46 per serve, under a quarter of what we’d pay for the same meal in a steak house.

Dec 7: Ham and Swiss; Mauritian Prawn Curry

Lunch

With so much ham we were destined to have ham and Swiss toasted sandwiches for lunch.

  • The rye bread is 32c per serve
  • The ham is 11c per ounce or 22c per serve
  • Swiss slices are 12 for $3.99 or 34c per serve
  • Add 50c for mustard and butter.

A good sandwich for $1.38 per serve.

Dinner

For “fishy Friday” Foodie Greg tried a new recipe: Mauritian Prawn Curry, which was an interesting flavor variation, particularly being tomato based.

  • The shrimp was $7.99 for the pack, and we used half, or $2.00 per serve
  • Canned tomatoes are $1.29 or 65c per serve
  • Add 30c for ginger, garlic and onion
  • Add 75c for other seasonings.

This curry isn’t like the more familiar Indian styles, and was slightly odd to us, but quite tasty in it’s own way for $3.70 per serve.

Dec 6: Caramelized Onions & Gruyere Toastie; Baked Ham with Choucroute Garnie

Lunch

Caramelized onions and gruyere seemed like an elevated lunch choice, and it was very good indeed. Toasted until the gruyere was oozing it was a great balance with the sweetness of the onion.

  • The gruyere was $8.99 and we shared a quarter, or $1.13 per serve
  • The sprouted rye is 32c per serve
  • The caramelized onion is 20c per serve
  • Add 50c for butter and garlic spread.

Really good sandwich for $2.15 per serve.

Dinner

We were hoping our friend Cirina would make it back to the West Coast so we could celebrate Christmas together, but it didn’t happen and we needed time to use the leftovers, so tonight we baked our ham and served it with Choucroute Garni (without potatoes).

  • The ham was $15.76 for 10 lb of ham, and figuring 8oz for a serve and allowing for the bone, or 18 serves at 88c per serve, although tonight we had 1.5 serves each, or $1.32 per serve
  • For onion in the garni we used caramelized onion at 7c per serve
  • We picked up heirloom carrots in multiple colors for $2.49 or 83c per serve
  • Bubbies sauerkraut was $7.39 or $2.47 per serve
  • Add 30c for seasoning and mustard.

The pork turned out very well as did the choucroute, leading to a very enjoyable meal for $4.99 per serve.