Month: February 2022

Feb 27: Ramen with Jammy Egg

Lunch

Lunch was Pork Chili Verde Enchiladas from Viva La Fiesta for $17.00 per serve with tax and tip.

Dinner

A simple meal tonight of Ramen Noodles cooked in a tetra pack of Ramen Broth topped with a Jammy Egg. We used our spicy Shin Ramen without the flavor pack.

  • The Ramen is $1.63 per serve
  • The Ramen Broth was $1.79 at Aldi, or 90c per serve
  • Add 38c for a Pastured Egg.

The Broth was more flavorsome than was expected for the price and made a tasty and filling dish for $2.91 per serve.

Feb 26: Sous Vide and Seared Duck Breast on Black Rice with Endive Salad

Lunch

We enjoyed the Hummus Salad Ciabatta Roll so much that we repeated it today.

  • The Ciabatta Roll is 58c per serve
  • Add 35c for Hummus
  • Add 30c for Pickled Beetroot
  • Add 20c for Salad Greens.

A good sandwich for $1.43 per serve.

Dinner

Duck is always a favorite with the Foodies, so it was a welcome return to our sous vide Orange Duck, with Black Rice, and an Endive Almond Salad.

  • The Duck was $10.00 for two 5oz Breasts, or $5.00 per serve
  • Black Rice is 34c per serve
  • Two Endive were $3.99 or $1.00 per serve
  • Add 45c for Almonds
  • Add 50c for Oranges (for Zest and Juice).

With this recipe we don’t attempt to crispen the Duck Skin, as it burns easily from the Citrus Sugars, but we seared for a while to render out the luscious Duck Fat! The bitterness of the Endive was a perfect foil for the Duck. All round a very good meal for $7.28 per serve.

Feb 25: Chapli Kebab/Falafel

Lunch

We finished the Turkey, Bacon, Chipotle Meatloaf by heating it in the oven while we finished some par-baked Ciabatta Rolls, and then bought them together with some Chipotle Coleslaw.

  • We shared a $2.10 serve of Meatloaf, or $1.05 per serve
  • The Ciabatta Roll is 58c per serve
  • Add 30c for Coleslaw.

Always a tasty sandwich for $1.93 per serve.

Dinner

For dinner we picked up a Chapli Kebab for Foodie Philip and Falafel for Foodie Greg from Skewers Halal for $13.54 per serve with tax.

Feb 24: Smoked Trout Chowder

Lunch

Since we had some French Neufchatel (more like Camembert), we toasted it in a sandwich with Ham. Before serving we added Snow Pea Shoots for a very tasty sandwich.

  • Dave’s Killer Bread is 74c per serve
  • Breakfast Ham is 60c per serve
  • The Neufchatel adds $1.25 per serve
  • Snow Pea Shoot add 36c per serve.

The Neufchatel melted, which maximizes the slightly funky flavor, which is perfectly offset by the freshness of the Snow Pea Shoots and saltiness of the Ham. A very good sandwich for $2.95 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight we finished the Smoked Trout Chowder with Italian Bread Toast for $4.10 per serve.

Feb 23: Turkey, Bacon, Chipotle Meatloaf with Japanese Sweet Potato

Lunch

For lunch we tested some Yakisoba Bowls from Aldi. They were very ordinary for $2.54 per serve. The Shin Ramen are significantly cheaper and with a Soy/Butter coating, much more flavorsome.

Dinner

We repeated the Turkey, Bacon, Chipotle Meatloaf and paired it with a baked Japanese Sweet Potato topped with a Sour Cream and Onion Salt mix.

  • The Meatloaf is $3.13 per full serve, but we had a ⅔ serve, or $2.10 per serve
  • The Japanese Sweet Potato was $2.80 or $1.40 per serve
  • Sour Cream was $3.59 and we used about 1/10, or 18c per serve
  • Add 20c for Onion Salt.

The Japanese Sweet Potato is a lot less sweet than the usual Orange Sweet Potato common in the US. We prefer it because it is a lot less sweet, and blends with savory dishes better. It was a good complement to the Meatloaf to create a good meal for $3.88 per serve.

Feb 22: Beef Massaman Curry

Lunch

We sampled two different Chicken (Pot) Pies. Blake’s was a Pot Pie, while the Boomerang one was a pastry cased Pie, more like an Australian Meat Pie. The Blake’s Pie had more flavor and was our favorite. Not too bad for an average of $4.34 per serve.

Dinner

A very cold night made a warming Beef Massaman Curry welcome.

  • The Beef Stew Meat from Whole Foods for $6.29 or $3.15 per serve
  • The curry is $3.38 per can or $1.69 per serve
  • Coconut Cream is $2.29 per can or$1.15 per serve
  • Peanuts were $2.99 but we only used half, or 75c per serve
  • Potatoes add 34c per serve
  • Add 20c for other ingredients.

The Coconut Cream added a richness that we don’t get with Coconut Milk. One of the best versions we created for $7.28 per serve.

Feb 21: Turkey, Bacon, Chipotle Meatloaf with Spanish Rice and Coleslaw with Chipotle Dressing

Lunch

Being a cold Monday we shared an Imagine Tetra Pack of Creamy Portobello Soup for $1.71 per serve (on special), which we thought was very good.

Dinner

It was time to return to a favorite: Turkey, Bacon Chipotle Meatloaf with Spanish Rice and Coleslaw with Chipotle Dressing.

  • Ground turkey cost $6.39 or $1.60 per serve
  • Bacon was $5.99 and we used ⅓, or 50c per serve
  • A can of chipotle is $1.50 and we used half, or 38c per serve
  • Add 65c for onion, breadcrumbs and seasonings
  • Add 30c for Mayonnaise and Chipotle Hot Sauce for the Dressing
  • Add 40c for Coleslaw Mix
  • Add 84c for Rice and Seasoning.

We chose to only use one egg, so the texture was very light, tending toward a mousse texture. The Chipotle Coleslaw is a good match to amplify the Chipotle in the Meatloaf, while the Spanish Rice adds some bulk and seasoning. A decent meal for $4.67 per serve.

Feb 20: Roasted Vegetable Bistro Style Flatbread

Lunch

We used the last of the Mushroom and Red Wine Meatloaf cold in a Salad Sandwich.

  • A half-serve of the Mushroom and Red Wine Meatloaf is $1.11
  • The Ciabatta Roll is 58c per serve
  • Add 55c for Garlic Spread
  • Blue Cheese Crumbles add 30c per serve
  • Add 30c for Pickled Beetroot
  • Add 20c for Salad Greens.

Although we amped up the ‘funky’ we could have added more Blue Cheese Crumbles, but otherwise a very tasty sandwich, and surprisingly good cold, for $3.03 per serve.

Dinner

We had planned on preparing the Turkey Bacon Chipotle Meatloaf but ran out of time, so we reheated a Roasted Vegetable Bistro Style Flatbread from Aldi for $3.79 or $1.90 per serve.

We found it particularly bland and not particularly flavorsome, unlike other Flatbreads we’ve had from Aldi.

Feb 19: Spanish Mussels with Chorizo and Tomato-Wine Sauce

Lunch

We finished the Smokey Cheese and Pumpkin Slice/Cake at room temperature for $3.49 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight’s deliciousness was Spanish Mussels with Chorizo and Tomato-Wine Sauce, again without the Heavy Cream.

  • The pre-cooked Mussels were $2.29 or $1.15 per serve
  • Sherry adds 58c per serve
  • The Chorizo was $5.11 after all discounts and we used half, or $1.28 per serve
  • Add 85c for other ingredients
  • The Italian Bread is 29c per serve
  • The Garlic Spread adds 40c per serve.

A very tasty meal for $4.56 per serve.

Feb 18: Smoked Trout Chowder

Lunch

As we still had Smoked Salmon, we decided to make a Smoked Salmon Bagel.

  • The Brioche Bagel is 58c
  • The Smoked Salmon pieces were $1.38 per serve
  • Add 20c for Neufchatel
  • Add 60c for Cucumber, Semi-dried Tomatoes , Onion Sprouts & Capers.

An indulgent lunch for $2.76 per serve.

Dinner

It seemed like Smoked Trout Chowder would make a good ‘Fishy Friday.’

  • The Smoked Trout was $8.72 after all discounts, or $2.18 per serve
  • Potatoes add 34c per serve
  • Garlic and Scallions add 15c per serve
  • Chicken Bone Broth adds 50c per serve
  • Wine adds 13c per serve
  • Grass fed Half & Half is $3.79 per pint and we used ¼, or 24c per serve
  • Add 20c for other soup ingredients
  • Add 16c for a slice of Italian Bread Toast.

While it’s a fairly simple dish, there’s a lot of flavor payback for $4.10 per serve.