I feel like I cooked my brains out today. My day will sound like amateur hour to those who regularly do once a month cooking or feed large families, but man...I feel like I cooked up a storm today.

Bun 's and my frugal meal plan for the week necessitates a lot of stuff being homecooked or made from scratch, so I've been busy. So far today I've made...

2 small loaves of whole wheat bread
1 batch of potato salad
1 large loaf of white bread
1 batch of brownies (from a mix)

That doesn't look like a lot now that I write it down, but the bread was time-consuming. I have forgotten how much I love baking my own bread. I chose to do it this week because I had all the stuff in the house, rather than than having to purchase bread. Not to mention my bread is just better than the storebrand stuff we'd be able to afford on our budget this week.

I also have a batch of FiberOne apple cinnamon muffins to bake (from a mix that was in the pantry) but I think that will wait till tomorrow morning. I should also make and freeze a batch of pancakes (also from a mix stashed in the pantry).

On a separate note, when we did the inventory today I was amazed how much we had stashed away -- that $250 we spent at Costco a month ago is really doing the heavy lifting this week. By the time my big check comes on the 24th, the pantry and freezer should have been essentially cleaned out, which is a good thing -- nothing going to waste! As much as it sucks not to be able to just run out for something at the store, it sure does feel good to know we have enough in the house, with the little bit we spent today, to take us through the week.

( Meals for the week, for those interested. )

I got this basic recipe off of what_a_crock and then played around with it. It was absolutely fab, a bit Morroccan inspired, and a lovely meal for Brighid.

Lamb and Lentil Stew

1 lb of lamb stew meat, 1 inch pieces (we cubed up some boneless leg of lamb)
2-4 Tbsp olive oil
4 carrots, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 tsp herbs de Provence
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp (or so) curry powder
1/4 tsp (or so) cayenne pepper
1 cup of vegetable or chicken broth (you may need to add more as it cooks)
1 cup of brown or green lentils, rinsed
1 14-15 oz can of diced tomatoes with juice
2 cloves of garlic, minced

Brown the lamb in the olive oil in a hot skillet. Do this in several batches. Add more oil if you need. Put it in the crock pot as it finishes.

Cook the carrots, celery, and onion in the same skillet. (You do not need to drain the oil left from the lamb). Cook until the carrots soften, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic, herbs, bay leaf, curry, cayenne, and salt and pepper. Cook for about 1 additional minute. Then add broth and tomatoes and juice. Bring to a boil.

When the mixture boils, put in the crockpot with the lamb. Add the lentils and stir.

Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Check periodically to see if you need more broth.

Serve with rice, couscous, pitas or pita chips, or on its own. I served mine with pita chips and it was fabulous!

Enjoy!

My nearly world-famous Fall Harvest Punch recipe has been published at Associated Content!

Those of you who have attended my Samhain or Yule rituals have had some version of this -- it's the one with apple cider, Guiness, and spices.

I get paid per click at AC, so please feel free to check out the link and pass it on to those who might be interested!

My sweetie has a food blog over at anthro_eats where she does food reviews and discusses food and culture. It's nascent, but she's got some good stuff up there.

Here most recent addition is a video of her prepping a chicken recipe we invented. So if you're looking for a cheap, good chicken recipe, or if you're just curious what she and my kitchen look like, surf on over!

It's a broke week at the Stronghold, so I'm playing freezer and pantry Jenga and seeing what I can come up with. Fortunately, I have a lot of practice at what my father used to call "making meals out of empty cupboards," and last weekend The Girl's folks loaded us up with some groceries before we left Houston to return up here. So this is what I've got for the week, and I'm hoping that you culinary types can help me fill in the gaps. There is a small grocery fund to buy a few things, but insofar as it's possible, I'd like to work with what I have in the house.

( Time for dinner, now let's go eat! )

 Ok, one of my goals for this year was to get more creative with vegetables and vegetarian food. It's not been going so well.

And so, I do what any good blogger does, and turn to my flist.

I need suggestions for good vegetarian meals that a die hard meat eater will eat. I'm not looking to go 100% vegetarian, just looking to vary the vegetable content in my diet and to decrease the amount of meat, for health and financial reasons. I eat dairy and eggs, though vegan recipes are fine. I live with a pretty dedicated carnivore, but one who's willing to try different things.

I have one of the Moosewood cookbooks and a couple other vegetarian cookbooks I adore, but I'm getting tapped out on pasta dishes :)

Any suggestions --recipes, cookbooks, websites, LJ communities -- for vegetarian or flexitarian lifestyles are welcomed.

The Turkey of course!