Jack and I are trying to cut corners & save money during these difficult times. We vowed to eat out only twice a month, eating at home for most of the time. I do a lot of freezer cooking and buy a lot of grains (couscous, pasta, quinoa, brown rices), chicken stock, whole-wheat bread, frozen veggies - particularly spinach and steamed brussel sprouts, meats are frozen lean ground beef, chicken breasts, and shrimp - uncooked with the tail on. All meats, breads, chicken broth & bulk pasta are bought from Costco. We put one of the extra loaf of breads in the freezer too. I always have shredded parmesan cheese. Canned tomato sauces (diced, stewed, whole, paste, and sauce) are a must in the pantry. I have a lot of ethnic spice mixtures also. Chappli kabob, tikka masala, etc... .
Items not bought in bulk, however, are fresh salad greens, cold cuts, cheese slices, for Jack's lunch sandwiches and our salads. And we are never without the holy trinity of Filipino cooking: garlic, tomatoes, and onions.
We don't ever buy processed food mixtures & packages. At least, we try not to. Oh wait...baking mixes...yes. :P
So frugal healthy cooking is possible.
Props to Costco though - for having organic foods, whole-wheat items, and frozen lean meats.
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This is a VERY easy recipe I did. First I made pasta with an easy marinara sauce (with 3-5 ingredients) for one night and served with salad & garlic bread.
The next evening, I made chicken parmigiana and used the leftover pasta for the side dish.
MARINARA SAUCE with Fresh Basil
Ingredients
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
8 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
One 35 ounce can Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), with their liquid
Salt
Crushed red pepper flakes
10 fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces
* 8 oz of spaghetti noodles (or half the regular package). I used to use whole-wheat pasta but as much as I know it was healthy...it just didn't have the same texture that we liked. So just buying organic and not whole-wheat spaghetti noodles.
Direction
1. Heat the oil in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add sliced garlic to the oil, and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Then add a pinch (or more, your heat preference) of red pepper flakes
2. Carefully slide tomatoes and their liquid into the oil. Bring to a boil, and season lightly with salt. Lower the heat so sauce is at a simmer, and cook, breaking up tomatoes with a whisk or spoon, until sauce is chunky and thick, about 20 minutes.
3. From the pot with the al-dente (almost cooked) spaghetti noodles, transfer immediately to the sauce in the pan. Don't drain pasta with cold water. Just transfer from pot to pan.
4. Toss pasta with the sauce as to finish the cooking process of the noodles.
5. Add the freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano to the sauce
6. Just before serving and plating, stir in the basil about 5 minutes. Taste sauce, and season with salt and red pepper if necessary
***Make sure you taste and add more seasoning to your liking. If you think it's too salty, a secret is add a slice of potato to absorb the excess of salt.
CHICKEN PARMIGIANA
I used two small chicken breasts for Jack & myself and baked them in a glass pie pan.
* Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees
Boneless chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins
Shredded parmesan cheese
Italian breadcrumbs (* I used Japanese PANKO breadcrumbs)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce (* I used half a can of diced tomatoes- what I had in my pantry)
1 egg, beaten
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
1. Mix together parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste
2. Season chicken with above mixture on both sides
3. Dip chicken into beaten egg, then in bread crumb or panko mixture. COAT WELL
4. Place chicken in a shallow baking dish (I used glass pie pan)
5. Spoon little of the spaghetti sauce or diced tomatoes on each chicken breast. (You can also place a thin layer of sauce on bottom of your baking dish).
6. Cover with foil and bake in oven for 30 minutes
7. Remove from oven and top each chicken with parmesan cheese, cover again with foil , place back in oven for another 10-15 minutes.
Serve with spaghetti. I served with leftover pasta with marinara sauce.
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