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 Lentils-Mediterranean Style

5/28/2016

 
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Mediterranean Lentils
​It really doesn’t get any simpler or cheaper than this meal. It’s also delicious and one of my Greek-Cypriot husband’s favorites from his childhood on the beautiful island of Cyprus.
 
While many people associate lots of meat with a Greek meal, nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to the actual day-to-day meals that most households in the Mediterranean eat. That daily menu is far more likely to contain beans, lentils, salad, and maybe some sardines than it is to contain lamb or any other meat.
 
Meat is only an occasional part of the menu, typically no more than 1--3x a week in most households I know. The impression to the contrary undoubtedly stems from the wonderful hospitality of that region of the world that has any host or hostess wanting to show their guests their Sunday best rather than the more mundane meals that they eat every day.
 
To give you an example, on our annual family visits to Cyprus, my dear mother-in-law, Aphrodite, would ask me each day what she should cook. 

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Black-Eyed Peas and Spicy Greens

5/19/2016

 
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Black-Eyed Peas and Greens
“This is really good. I didn’t think I’d like anything vegetarian, but I really do like this!” Those were my brother’s surprised words when I prepared this dish for a family gathering a while back.

​He’s right, of course. This meal is very tasty -- one of my personal favorites. And just as it did him, it might surprise others who are new to the idea of meatless meals to know that vegetarian does not mean tasteless or unsatisfying. It’s perfectly possible to be nutritious, healthy and delicious all at the same time. 
Black-Eye Peas and Spicy Greens
The spiciness of his recipe as written is probably what appealed to my brother. It's certainly one of the reasons my family likes it so much. But it can be made quite mild as well, or however the cook would like it to be.

​The heat is adjustable to personal tastes, and the medley of vegetables in the recipe lends plenty of flavor of their own.  
​
It can also be a very quick recipe to get on the table if you happen to have a batch of cooked rice on hand (because you planned and cooked extra from another meal earlier in the week that called for rice, such as Jamaican-Style Lentils).  

Using frozen greens, instead of fresh,  further reduces the prep and cook time. 

In fact, the only thing besides the rice that takes any time is the vegetable chopping. An experienced cook can get it done in about 10 minutes, but it will take a novice a bit longer.  


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Pasta With Tomato, Spinach and Feta

5/12/2016

 
Quick Pasta with Spinach and Feta Cheese
This is one of the quickest recipes in my repertoire. I first started cooking it when we lived in New York City, and my long commute and work hours meant I often did not get home before 7:30 pm.

​I wasn’t nearly as organized then as I am now, so I didn’t always plan ahead as well as I could and take the week’s schedule into consideration when deciding my menus, but this was one recipe I knew I could fall back on if I really ran into a time crunch.  It's fast and easy, and very tasty besides.

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Mediterranean Chicken (or Lamb) Stew

5/6/2016

 
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Mediterranean Chicken (or Lamb) Stew
This original recipe calls for lamb, but I know as well as anyone that lamb is hardly a budget food. Still, my husband is Greek, so we do splurge on it sometimes for special occasions.

And buying a pricey leg of lamb is actually one of the few instances where I deem it worthwhile to visit more than one grocery store in pursuit of a deal. Unlike the very small savings that such extra trips usually achieve, the price difference for a big ticket item like this can sometimes be $20-$30 or more.

That’s well worth the 2- mile drive across town for me.

The last time I bought a leg of lamb, it was for Easter, and I was able to get a boneless one for $2.50 per pound which is about as cheap as it ever gets here in my neck of the woods.

Definitely not an every-week food item for my frugal tastes, but a pretty darned good deal for a special occasion. By comparison, the other stores were charging $6-$9 per pound. 

​Since a leg of lamb can be as large as 10 pounds (and sometimes even more), that’s a lot of savings --- exactly the kind you can get when you use a little pre-planning and check the store flyers before you grocery shop.

I knew the roast was bigger than we would need for Easter dinner, so I cut it in half and prepared one half for the holiday, and one half for this meal.  Of course, I could have also frozen the unused portion to use on a later date.

I recommend using this approach for ALL large cuts of meat: buy the big, budget size, but apportion it immediately into meal sizes, label, and date the packages, and freeze the ones you don’t need for a different meal. 
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But this recipe doesn’t have to be reserved just for special occasions. It can also be a regular Sunday dinner type of meal, too, by substituting more budget friendly chicken for the lamb.

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    Hi, I'm Nancy, and I'm on a mission to help people eat and live well on a tight budget. In these uncertain times, it has never been more important to practice frugality. 

     In this section of the blog, I offer some meal plans and recipes, some old, some new, to help get you started on eating well for less than you think and keeping money in your bank account.

    I hope you find some of these recipes useful.  

    And thanks for visiting!

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