Let's just forget about the number, shall we? If you feel the number ($400) my family is using this month is too much, or too little... let the number go.
It's about spending less, because I felt there was room (for me) to spend less.
{Homemade tortillas.}
It's been a pretty good week over here.
A few thoughts and highlights from the last several days:
-
- Fruits and veggies are the bulk of our budget. They come before anything else.
- Raw dairy and pastured meat (the type we tend to buy in both categories) is expensive. $12 per gallon for milk and $25 for one modest size roasting chicken. My daughter feels better fortified by having a small amount of animal protein in her diet.
- Quality animal foods are the reason this budget would be difficult long term. If we purchased commercial/factory raised dairy and meat it could work, but we don't.
- Beans are an important piece to the budget puzzle. We normally eat lots of beans throughout the week, often daily. Now? Every single day. Highly nutritious , very affordable.
- Nicola made Sprouted Garbanzo Bean Burgers from Super Natural Cooking. I'm making those today. Super yum.
- Still eating big salads everyday with some sort of bean/grain protein added.
- Reconnecting with the importance of menu planning and being organized, I've been enjoying time spent on my recipe binder and filling out (long overdue) recipe cards. This little project alone has made the entire month feel fun and creative (really!).
Now, onto the recipes:
Yummy Pintos
-
- 2 cups dry pintos, soaked overnight and rinsed well
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 4-6 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 6-8 cups veggie broth (I use Frontier broth powder, Renee has a DIY recipe)
- 2 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. dried thyme
- 1-2 tsp. sea salt
- 1 Tbs. chili paste (I had this on hand)
- 2 Tbs. maple syrup or honey
- 2 tsp. worcestershire sauce (Annie's makes a great vegan one, I think it's better than regular.)
Directions:
1. In a large stock add pintos, onion, garlic, bay leaves, veggie broth, and bring to a boil. Skim off any foam that appears on the top of the water, at any point while the beans are cooking.
2. Turn the heat down to medium/high. Add the cumin and thyme. Maintain a gentle boil for the beans to cook. This should take anywhere from 1 - 1 1/2 hours. Just check for tenderness. Stir occasionally. Add water as/if necessary while cooking.
3. As the beans approach being done (still slightly uncooked) add the salt, chili paste, maple syrup, red pepper flakes, and worcestershire sauce. Turn the heat down a little to a simmer. Stir regularly. Slow cook until beans are tender and much of the liquid is absorbed. What liquid remains will begin to thicken.
4. Once the beans are tender and the broth reduces and thickens, check for flavor. Adjust seasoning to your liking if needed. Serve.
These freeze wonderfully!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bean, Kale, Rice & Sausage Soup
-
- 1/2 cup dry white navy beans, soaked overnight and rinsed
- 1/2 cup Jacob's Cattle Beans (Kidney beans would be fine), soaked overnight and rinsed
- 1/2 cup brown rice, soaked overnight and rinsed
- 1/2 pound venison sausage (Any sausage of your choosing is fine, and you could easily use 1/4 pound.)
- 6-8 cups vegetable or chicken broth/stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
- 1/2 bunch of kale, chopped (we like it chopped fairly small)
Directions:
This soup has a simple list of ingredients, but the flavor is rich and complex.
1. In a large stock pot, add the soaked beans, bay leaves and stock. Bring to a boil, turn heat down to medium high and cook for 45 minutes. Skim any foam off the top as the cook. Add the brown rice and continue to cook until the beans are tender. Add a little more water if necessary. Don't worry if the rice is not 100% cooked at this point.
2. Once the beans are cooked, carefully pour the beans, rice and liquid to a large bowl.
3. In the soup pot, saute the sausage until about 1/2 way cooked (using your spatula or a wooden spoon to break up the sausage really fine), add the onion and continue to saute until sausage is fully cooked and onion becomes tender. Add the garlic and saute for one more minute. Drain off fat, if there is any, and if that is your preference.
4. Carefully add the beans and rice back to the soup pot. Bring just to the boiling point then turn down to low and simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes.
5. Add the chopped kale and stir. Cover the pot again and simmer for another 5 minutes or so. Serve.
I don't serve this with cheese but some Italian cheese would be lovely on top.
As with most soups, a bit of resting time (with the heat off) helps to marry the flavors even further. I hope you enjoy this soup, it is a new favorite in our home. You could substitute a few slices of bacon for the sausage. Also, this could easily be made vegetarian but would lack the smokiness the sausage brings.
Money spent this week - $98.43
Bringing my total so far to - $329.30
Remaining budget - $70.70
{Veggies and Soba Noodles in a Cashew Cream Sauce - Vegan}
{An almost daily snack around here.}
It's getting a little close now... but I can do it.
Well, that is about it for today. Thanks to those of you who are joining in, and to those of you who are just visiting and cheering us on. Your kindness and encouragement are truly appreciated. How was your week?
Edited to add ~ I forgot to mention that Emily (my 13 year old daughter) has started asking, "Is this* in the budget?" when we are out shopping. (*Insert any sort of food or special shampoo a young teen might be interested in...) And she is perfectly okay with it if I say no, it isn't. The increased awareness around budgeting and finances is good for all of us.
