The semiSerious Foodies

Lunch

Take a par baked panini roll and finish it in the oven. Then cover one side with garlic spread, add some sliced roast turkey breast and some good cheddar, and you have yourself a lunch!

• The panini roll is 63c
• The turkey is $3.49 and we shared ⅓ or 58c per serve
• The Old Crock cheddar was $5.45 or $1.02 per serve
  
• Add 20c for garlic spread.

We keep returning to this because it tastes so good and costs only $2.43 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight we tried a new recipe: Spanish-Style Meatloaf with 2 lbs of ground pork, which is slightly more than the recipe calls for. We decided not to adjust the other ingredients for a slightly meatier version. Although we skipped the cheese, we will get four serves from this meatloaf.

• The pork came from our Keller Crafted meat delivery – 1 lb of ground pork cost $8.31 or $4.16 per serve
• The potato was 73c or 18c per serve
• The green bell pepper was $1.49 or 38c per serve
  
• The orange bell pepper was $1.49 or 38c per serve
• Instead of white bread we used Panko breadcrumbs at $2.99 for 16oz and we used 8oz or 37c per serve
• An pastured egg is 51c or 13c per serve
• Add 30c per serve for paprika, onion, garlic, thyme and seasoning
• The Sweet Potato Halloumi Bake is $1.34 per serve.

The combination of smoked paprika and pork made this very reminiscent of dry chorizo, except with a much lighter texture. It paired well with the tray bake into a filling meal for $7.24 per serve.

Lunch

The Foodies decided to check out the new Whole Foods in Porter Ranch, and were received that the same Sushi provider made the move, so we picked up a Spicy Vegetarian Roll (in black rice) and a combo plate with miniature tuna and salmon rolls, with salmon and tuna sushi.

• The combo plate was $17.99 or $9.00 per serve
• The vegetarian roll was $7.99 or $4.00 per serve.

Lunch today was good for $13.00 per serve.

Dinner

For “Fishy Friday” this week Foodie Greg decided on a deconstructed Salade Niçoise, without the potato.

We picked up the fresh olives and tuna in a jar, because it hasn’t had the high pressure, high temperature treatment of the tuna that happens with canning. We dropped the potato because it doesn’t add a lot of flavor.

• The tuna was $9.29 or $4.65 per serve
• The olives were $4.95 or $2.48 per serve
• Pastured eggs are 51c each or 77c per serve
• Grape tomatoes cost $2.79 but we used ½ the packet, or 69c per serve
• The green beans $2.99 for the pack and we shared half, or 75c per serve
• Add 50c for dressing ingredients.

An excellent salad and the potatoes were not missed. The fresh olives had a lot more flavor and oil than canned or jared. We definitely preferred the texture of the tuna-in-a-jar over the canned equivalent. All up a good meal for $9.84 per serve.

Lunch

We still had a little baked ham so we stuffed that, along with Tomato and Swiss on a hot Panini Roll spread with Trader Joe’s Garlic Spread.

• The Panini Roll is 63c
• The ham is $1.02 per portion, but we only had a half serve left, or 25c per serve
• Swiss slices are 12 for $3.99 or 34c per serve
• Tomatoes add 30c per serve
• Add 20c for Garlic Spread.

A really enjoyable roll with a good balance of salty ham, garlic spread, a little acid from the tomato and some Swiss to add mouth feel and flavor, for $1.72 per serve.

Dinner

Being Thursday night, and having a NY Strip Steak from our meat delivery, it was obviously going to be a steak night! Because of the weather we seared it in the high tech wok after rendering out a lot of the fat into the pan.

While the steak was resting, the remnant beef fat was used to fry off some Bell Peppers, Garlic, Bok Choy and Cashews seasoned with Sesame Oil. We substituted Trader Joe’s Chili Lime Cashews, which added a delightful spice to the stir-fry.

• The steak was $19.97 or $9.99 per serve
• The Bell Peppers were $1.19 or 59c per serve
• Baby Boy Choy was $1.99 or $1.00 per serve
• The Chili Lime Cashews are $7.99 for the pack, but we used about ⅓ or $1.33 per serve
• Add 30c for Sesame Oil.

The non-stick, high tech wok meant we could get a very hot cooking surface so we a steak that had a perfect seared crust while remaining blué in the middle, exactly how we like it. The stir-fry was a tasty side dish, with the Chili Lime Cashews giving it a lot more flavor than the base recipe called for. A great meal for $13.21 per serve.

Lunch

Being a Sunday lunch, we put in a little more effort and did Giant Baked Beans, Fried Eggs and Bacon and a slice of toast.

• 1.5 eggs per serve (average) costs 77c per serve
• The bread is 16c
• Add 20c for butter
• The baked beans work out at $1.00 per serve
• Bacon was $4.99 for 16 slices and we had an average of 1.5 each, or 47c per serve.

A varied and tasty lunch for $2.53 per serve.

Dinner

A Sunday Pot Roast is almost a tradition, and since we had a 2 lb Chuck Roast in our meat box we decided to try a new recipe: Bruce Aidells’ Pot-Roasted Grass-Fed Beef Chuck with Winter Root Vegetables instead of the Pioneer Woman recipe we’ve used in the past.

• The roast was $20.48 or $5.12 per serve
• Bacon ends cost $4.99 for the container, but this recipe used about 1/4 of that, or 32c per serve
• Red wine adds $1.00 or 25c per serve
• Onions and garlic add 15c per serve
• Parsnips were $1.05 or 25c per serve
• Rutabaga were $1.47 or 37c per serve
• Carrots were $3.99 and we used half or $1.00 per serve.

This was a much more flavorsome pot roast than we’ve done before for $7.46 per serve.

Lunch

A rather cold day, and yet we didn’t feel like toasted sandwiches, so we finished some panini rolls and stuffed with avocado and ham. The addition of the garlic spread really completed the flavor profile.

• The par baked panini roll is 55c
• The avocado cost $4.29 for five and we shared one or 43c per serve
• The turkey is $3.49 and we shared ⅓ or 58c per serve.

The roll is a nice variation on a sandwich for $1.56 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight we tried a dry rub on our Lamb Loin Chops with Lavender, Rosemary and Garlic. These were left for an hour or so, then grilled to medium rare. While resting we grilled a halved blood orange to squeeze over the chops at the table.

We served with Farro Tabouleh, although weft out the parsley.

• Lamb Loin Chops were $14.71 or $7.37 per serve
• The Blood Oranges were $2.29 for six and we shared one, or 19c per serve
• Add 20c for Lavender and garlic with Rosemary coming from our bush
• The farro was $1.79 for the pack, but we shared ⅓ or 10c per serve
• Tomatoes were $3.49 for five but we shared one, or 35c per serve
• Mint came from our garden.

While the lavender isn’t a bad pairing, we felt it didn’t enhance the flavor of the Loin Chops, but otherwise an excellent meal for $8.21 per serve.

Lunch

We were on a plant buying trip in Moorpark so we stooped in at Cafe Firenzé for lunch where Foodie Philip had a Ham and Spring Onion Risotto while Foodie Greg had Seafood Rigatoni.

The meal quality is excellent with both Foodies really enjoying the meal. Cafe Firenzé is also great value with lunch coming in at $20.13 with tax and tip. That’s a little less than The Country Deli ends up being!

Dinner

Being “Fishy Friday” Foodie Greg picked up some Wild Caught Salmon Fillets and we cooked them in a foil pouch. (Reynolds non-stick foil doesn’t need the paper lining.) Tonight we served with most of the remaining asparagus.

• The salmon fillets were $6.27 for two or $3.14 per serve
• The asparagus was $2.59 but we used about half tonight, or 65c per serve
• Black rice adds 44c per serve
• Add 50c per serve for the cream fraîche, mustard and other ingredients.

Tonight we managed to cook the salmon absolutely perfectly, which was the topping on a great meal for $4.73 per serve.