Feb 3: Hebrew Temptation; Roast Chicken Leg, Tomatillo Salsa with Southwest Chopped Salad

Lunch

We had Hebrew Temptation remaining for $3.14 per serve.

Dinner

We reheated our Roast Chicken Legs in the remaining Tomatillo Salsa – the sauce from last night’s Chili – and served with a Southwest Chopped Salad from Aldi.

  • The Chicken Leg is $2.00 per serve
  • The Tomatillo Salsa was paid for last night
  • The Southwest Chopped Salad kit from Aldi was $1.99 or $1.00 per serve.

A very tasty, and minimal effort, meal for $3.00 per serve.

Feb 2: BBQ Chicken Breast & Tomato on Baguette; Pork Chili Verde

Lunch

We made a pilgrimage to Jon’s and picked up a BBQ Chicken, Fresh Baguette and a Tomato, which makes one of our favorite sandwiches.

  • The Chicken was $7.99 or $1.00 per serve
  • The Heirloom Tomato was $3.24 and we used about half, or 81c per serve
  • The Baguette was $3.49  or 87c per serve
  • Add 60c for Garlic Spread.

We had to substitute another Tomato as the one we bought wasn’t yet ripe, but other wise a great sandwich for $3.28 per serve.

Dinner

Green Pork Chili is a perfect way to use the last “cubed pork” from our Keller Crafted meat box.

  • The ground pork was $8.35 or $4.18 per serve
  • Chicken broth is $1.99 or 50c per serve
  • The Tomatillo were 63c or 16c per serve
  • The Anaheim Chili was 40c or 10c per serve
  • Two Jalapeño Peppers were 26c or 7c per serve
  • Cilantro was 33c or 16c per serve
  • Add 75c per serve for other ingredients
  • Baguette add 87c per serve.

This was better than the quick Green Chili we’ve had before, but kind of expensive because of the Keller Crafted meat. Still a decent meal for $6.79 per serve.

Feb 1: Ham & Coleslaw, Ham & Tomato; 13 Bean Soup

Lunch

Two sandwiches to finish off our Leg Ham: one with the remaining Coleslaw from Mr Fish & Chips, the other with tomato.

  • The Dave’s Killer Break is 74c per serve
  • The Leg Ham was 5c
  • The Coleslaw is 56c per serve
  • Add 12c for Tomato
  • Add 10c for Mustard.

Both sandwiches were pretty good, for $1.57 per serve.

Dinner

We prepared another batch of soup from a 13 Bean Mix found at Whole Foods and a stock made this afternoon from the last Ham Bone.

  • The Ham Bone was free
  • Add 25c per serve for Bay Leaf, Carrot & Onion
  • The 13 Bean Mix was $5.49 and we used half, or 69c per serve.

The Ham Stock was very rich and contributed to a very tasty soup, for 94c per serve.

January 2021: Summary and Observations

Since we dropped (at least for the moment) our meat box delivery, the average evening meal cost has dropped about 20%, without appreciable drop in quality of meat.

This month we did four take out lunches and three take out dinners: Japanese Bento Box, Chapli Kebab Meal and The Country Deli Skirt Steak Dinner.

The averages for this month:

  • Lunch prepared at home $2.30 ($2.95 in December)
  • Lunch eaten or purchased outside the home: $8.67 ($9.48)
  • Dinner eaten at home: $4.56 ($5.81)
  • Dinner prepared in a restaurant $17.20 ($15.44)

Normally the monthly variations are small, but this month, evening meals are down about 20%, largely attributable to the move away from the Keller Crafted Meat Box.

Our most expensive meal of the month was the Bento Box and Ahi Tuna at $20.44 per serve.

This month, lunches at home cost 27% of the cost of eating lunches prepared outside the home. Our evening meals prepared in the home are 26% of the cost take-out meals.

Had we purchased every lunch and prepared none it would have cost us $268.77 per person in January. We actually spent $62.14 for lunches at home plus $34.56 for lunches purchased or eaten out:  $96.80 in total.

If every evening meal cost us the same as our one this month, it would be $533.20 We actually spent $130.45 for dinners at home and $51.61 for dinners out, or $182.06 in total.

We saved about $520 by mostly eating at home, and we have a lot more control over what we eat.

Jan 31: Bacon, Baked Beans on Toast topped with a Fried Egg; Rack of Lamb with Raspberry Feta Salad

Lunch

We reheated half the remains Baked Beans and covered a slice of Toast, then topped with Bacon and Fried Egg(s).

  • The Dave’s Killer Bread is 37c per serve
  • Pastured Eggs averaged 72c per serve
  • Bacon is $6.99 and we used about ⅓, or 58c per serve
  • A serve of Baked Beans is $1.54 but we shared, so 77c per serve.

A pretty decent and tasty lunch for $2.44 per serve.

Dinner

Although it hasn’t been four weeks, we returned to the sous vide Rack of Lamb, but served with a Raspberry Feta Salad.

  • For $22.13 we got 2.25 lbs of Rack of Lamb that we split into four 9oz (approx) serves for $5.53 per serve
  • Raspberries were $1.50 and we used ½ of the punnet, or 37c per serve
  • The Mixed Greens were $1.49 and we used half, or 38c each
  • Mint was from our garden
  • The French (Valbreso) Feta was $10.99 but we used 1/6 or 92c per serve
  • Add 15c for Dressing ingredients
  • Dolmas from Whole Foods were $3.41 (on special) or $1.70 per serve
  • Add 30c for Hummus.

We’ve got the Rack of Lamb down to a science, so it turns out perfectly every time. Served with a Raspberry Feta salad, it was a very tasty and enjoyable meal for $9.35 per serve.

Jan 30: Hebrew Temptation; Quick Moussaka

Lunch

Foodie Greg had baked a Hebrew Temptation, otherwise known as Smokey Cheese and Pumpkin Slice. I told the story of how it became known as Hebrew Temptation earlier and the recipe is there too. It makes four generous serves.

  • The bacon was $6.99 for 12 slices, and we used five, or 73c per serve
  • Five pastured eggs at 48c each is $2.40 or 60c per serve
  • A small bag of organic flour is $2.69 and we used about 1/3 or 23c per serve
  • A Butternut Squash was $2.99 and we used half, or about 75c per serve
  • The Smoked Gouda was $2.99 or 75c per serve.
  • An onion adds 8c per serve.

While it might seem odd to have cake for lunch, because this is indeed a savory cake, it is great cold and was a fulfilling lunch for $3.14 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight we finished the remaining Quick Moussaka, which reheated well and was even more tasty, for $5.41 per serve with Tabouli on the side.

Jan 29: Steak & Stout Pie; Smoked Trout Chowder

Lunch

On a cold day a warm meat pie fits the bill perfectly, so we heated two Trader Joe’s Steak and Stout Pies for $3.25 per serve.

Dinner

A new Fishy Friday recipe: Smoked Trout Chowder, which makes four serves.

  • The Smoked Trout was $7.49, or $1.88 per serve
  • Potatoes add 34c per serve
  • Garlic and Scallions add 15c per serve
  • Chicken Bone Broth adds 50c per serve
  • Wine adds 25c per serve
  • Half & Half is $1.49 per pint and we used ¼, or 10c per serve
  • Add 20c for other soup ingredients
  • The Naan Was $3.99 or $1.00 per serve.

Although it looked like it was a little thin, the soup was very tasty and filling for $4.42 per serve, with the Garlic Naan.

Jan 28: Apple & Delice de Bourgogne, Ham & Coleslaw; NY Strip Steak with Crash Hot Potatoes and Green Beans

Lunch

Today we mixed it up a little. One sandwich was the very tasty Apple & Delice de Bourgogne, while the other was Leg Ham & Coleslaw.

  • The Aldi Bread is 53c per serve
  • The Leg Ham adds 5c per serve
  • The Delice de Bourgogne was $5.38 and we shared ⅓ , or 45 per serve
  • Apple adds 10c per serve
  • The Coleslaw is 28c per serve.

Two very good sandwiches for $1.41 per serve.

Dinner

For tonight’s Steak Night we returned to our Grass Fed NY Strip Steak from Aldi, and served with Crash Hot Potatoes and blanched Green Beans.

  • Two Strip Steaks in a single pack were $16.29, and shared one for $4.07 per serve
  • Fingerling Potatoes were 68c per serve
  • Green Beans add 48c per serve.

The Steak was not quite as tender as dry aged beef, but was good and very flavorful. A good meal for $5.16 per serve.

Jan 27: Fried Scallops, Fries & Coleslaw; Quick Moussaka with Tabouli

Lunch

Our “once every three weeks” expedition to Simi Valley finishes with Fried Scallops from Mr Fish & Chips. This is a meal for one that we shared -adding extra Coleslaw – making it $5.19 with tax and tip.

Dinner

A new recipe for us: Martha Stewart’s Quick Moussaka. We will get four serves from this recipe.

  • Ground lamb was $5.99 or $1.50 per serve
  • The Eggplant was $1.39 or 35c per serve
  • The Tomatoes were $3.99 or $1.00 per serve
  • The Ricotta was $4.99 or $1.25 per serve
  • The French (Valbreso) Feta was $10.99 but we used 1/6 or 69c per serve
  • A Pastured Egg adds 12 per serve
  • Add 50c for the remaining ingredients.

An excellent meal, full of flavor, for $5.41 per serve. The Ricotta/Feta mix on top was better than any roux-based topping we’ve had in the past.

Jan 26: Chorizo, Bell Pepper & Smokey Cheddar; Baked Ham, Baked Beans and Fried Eggs

Lunch

We repeated the Chorizo, Bell Pepper & Smokey Cheddar toasted sandwich for $3.77 per serve.

Dinner

Taking advantage of our abundant leftovers, we fried a Ham Steak, heated some of the remaining Boston Baked Beans, topped with two Fried Eggs and served with fried Cherry Kumatos.

  • The Ham is about 10c per serve
  • The Boston Baked Beans are $2.83 per serve, but we had a small serve for $1.55 per serve
  • Two Pastured Eggs are 96c per serve
  • The Cherry Kumato are 28c per serve.

An excellent meal for $2.89 per serve.