Category: Uncategorized

Lunch

For lunch we revisited the Popeye’s chicken, but with a Spinach and Blue Cheese salad with bacon vinaigrette dressing.

• The chicken is $2.98 per serve with tax
• The salad was on special for $1.99 and we used half today (without the blue cheese or toasted quinoa) or 50c per serve.

Lunch today was $3.48 per serve.

Dinner

While Friday and Saturday nights are often days where we prepare a meal that requires longer prep times, but this Saturday night we decided on our goto easy meal: Vegetable Gyoza in a Ginger Miso Broth with a poached egg.

• The Miso Ginger broth was $1.99 or $1.00 per serve
• The gyoza were $3.99, or $2.00 per serve
• Add 20c for seasonings.
• A pastured egg is 50c.

As always, a good meal, on the table quickly, for $3.70 per serve.

Lunch

The Foodies returned to the Belmont Yacht Club where Foodie Greg had lunch with his parents last week. This older Registered Club is built out into the Lake and we were surrounded on thre sides with water

We both chose the Barrumundi Burger at Au$15.00 (US$11.40)

Dinner

We had seen pork belly at the new Warner’s Bay Aldi so picked up one suitable for three and decided to serve with choucroute. Unfortunately the German owned Aldi only has sauerkraut in October!

We found the necessary ingredients at another supermarket and prepared the meal over three hours.

• The pork belly was $12.50 or $4.17 per serve
• Carrots were 24c or 8c per serve
• A can of sauerkraut was $3.20 or $1.07 per serve
• Add 20c for onion and seasoning.

The Pork was beautifully tender while the skin had crispened up nicely for “crackling” and the choucroute a perfect complement, even though we forgot the potatoes! A good meal for Au$5.52 (US$4.19) per serve.

Lunch

While Foodie Philip repeated the Caesar Schnitzel Wrap of a couple of days ago – taking off one piece of Schnitzel for later – Foodie Greg’s hankering for an Aussie style burger was temporarily thwarted by the lack of a bun.

The suggestion was made, and accepted, that the burger be served as a Wrap. Foodie Greg thinks this unconventional approach is better because the Wrap is better bread than a typical hamburger bun.

Both meals were huge for $12.00 and $8.50 respectively, or an average of Au$10.43 (US$7.90).

Dinner

Mom suggested we cook Foodie Greg’s Split Pea Soup from the ham stock she’d made earlier in the week, but the lack of liquid smoke and a stick blender meant that the recipe would be compromised. Instead it was decided to cook a Ham and Fresh Corn Chowder.

This was a much more successful recipe than an earlier attempt that turned out to be too sweet to eat! The recipe made six serves so we will get two meals from it.

• The Ham stock had no cost
• Bacon cost $2.05 or 34c per serve
• Sweet corn on the cob was $2.50, or 42c per serve
• Celery was $3.00 but again we used only ⅓ or 17c per serve
• A carrot was 38c or 6c per serve
• Add 20c per serve for potatoes
• Add 15c per serve for spices.

This was a really tasty Chowder for Au$1.34 (US$1.02) per serve.

Lunch

Lunch found us in the local Village as Foodie Philip’s Mom like to go there daily. Today we chose the local Indian takeout and had Beef Vindaloo, Beef Madras and Lamb Korma, with fresh baked – as in while we were waiting – naan.

It was all really tasty for Au$10.90 for each curry serve, and we shared the $3.50 naan: Au$12 .65 (US$9.49)per serve.

Dinner

Because Lamb is more readily available in Australia, we chose some Lamb shoulder chops suitable for  Braised Lamb Shoulder Chops with Tomatoes, Rosemary, and Olives. We shopped with a real butcher shop, not the meat counter!

• The shoulder chops were very reasonably priced at $10.80 or $3.60 per serve
• A jar of olives was $3.00 but we only used half, or 67c per serve
• Tomatoes paste cost 90c or 30c per serve
• A jar of dried thyme was $2.49 but we used only a fraction (instead of Rosemary) or about 10c per serve
• Cherry tomatoes were $3.00 or $1.00 per serve
• A pack of celery was $3.00 but we used ⅓ or 33c per serve
• Carrots cost 95c, or 32c per serve
• Add 25c for onion and seasonings.

The dish turned out really well, with a lot of flavor for Au$6.57 (US$5.00) per serve.

Lunch

For lunch we went out with Foodie Phillip’s mother and some of her friends at a local coffee shop where Philip had a Beef and Mushroom pie, while Foodie Greg had a Spinach and Feta Quiche.

Our meal was paid for by mom.

Dinner

We found some pasture raised pork sirloin, with skin, at the supermarket and we’re going to pair it with an Apple and Endive salad, but the lack of available endive saw it become a Waldorf salad instead.

(Prices in Australian dollars, with a conversion at the end)

• The pork sirloin was $16.95 or $5.65 per serve
• A pack of celery was $3.00 and we used ⅔, or 67c per serve
• Pecan nuts (walnuts not available) were $4.41 or $1.47 per serve
• Two Modi apples were $1.87 or 62c per serve
• Add 30c for mayonnaise per serve.

The pork turned out perfectly, except we were unable to get the crisp “crackling” skin beloved by Australians. Otherwise a good meal for Au $8.71. (US $6.55)

Lunch

We’ve become fans of the smoked trout. Since avocado and a can of smoked trout provide enough for two sandwiches, it was two – delicious – sandwiches the same.

• Two slices of bread are 32c per serve
• The avocado was 50c or 25c per serve
• The smoked trout is $3.49 per can or $1.75 per serve
• Add 25c for butter.

The smoked trout on avocado is a great combination for $2.57 per serve.

Dinner

We had planned on split pea soup, but time got away with us, so a quick meal, on the table fast was called for. We had a pack of Trader Joe’s Roasted Potatoes with Peppers and Onion, which we prepared and topped with a fried egg (or two).

• The roast potato mix was $2.99 or $1.50 per serve
• The pastured eggs are 50c each: Greg had one, Philip two.

We felt the roast potato mix was disappointing. Prepared to instructions it was not at all crispy (although we could have gone longer) and it was almost entirely potato. Not terrible, but slightly disappointing for $2.00 per serve.