GOURMET MEALS FOR $5 OR UNDER: MEAL 10 OF 25

STUFFED BELL PEPPERS
W/ A SIDE OF RUTABAGA SALAD

Total Cost: $4.86/serving

Total Preparation Time: 1 hr 30 min

All day, I planned on writing about fluoride and its real, as opposed to marketed, effects on health. My husband has been concerned about the topic for quite some time and even bought the state-of-the-art water filter that turns bilge into holly water. 

Webpage after webpage, references to fluorine, sodium fluoride and just fluoride flowed freely, assuring me of the ease of the upcoming writing process. But the more I went about my rather ordinary day, cleaning and drying the dishes, feeding and changing Marcus and collecting newly scattered toys, the less enthusiastic I felt about the task. 

Describing another dish, on the other hand, seemed less monumental of an undertaking and more appropriate, given that I already decided on what to cook and had the camera out and ready to capture the magic. No, not my iPhone 5 camera that I use for anything from photographing food to videotaping my son explore the contents of the recycle bin. That seems to have been lost forever after having been left in the bottom shelf of the shopping cart by an individual clearly under influence of so-called baby brain. One might also extrapolate that my forgetfulness resulted from the chaos that moving residences so often causes...

But I digress... Tonight, I baked stuffed peppers. Another dish that reminds me of home and my mom, since she made it fairly often. Originally, the stuffing was made of ground beef and/or pork and white rice, but I modified it to fit my health-conscious family's needs. 

MEASURE	WEIGHT (g)	INGREDIENT	COST PER PACKAGE ($)	TOTAL COST ($)	COST PER SERVING ($)
N/A	26	Leeks	2.98/bunch (400g)	0.19
½	82	Onion	1.97/3lb	0.12
2	7	Garlic, cloves	1.49/pack of 3 (115g)	0.09
2	155	Carrots	3.98/5lb	0.27
1 cup	54	White mushrooms	2.99/lb	0.36
1 cup	26	Baby kale	2.98/5oz	0.55
N/A	15	Dill	1.28/bunch (120g)	0.16
N/A	15	Curly parsley	0.97/bunch (120g)	0.12
N/A	330	Extra lean grnd beef	10.48/kg	3.46
½ cup	85	Organic quinoa	10.99/4lb	0.51
		Salt & spices		0.10
TOTAL				5.93*	2.97

*Makes 2 servings of 2 large stuffed peppers each

As always, I sauteed the vegetables and cooked quinoa separately, then mixed all with raw ground beef and added salt and spices to taste. Once in a homogeneous mass, the stuffing was ready to be packed into cored bell peppers. 

MEASURE	WEIGHT (g)	INGREDIENT	COST PER PACKAGE ($)	TOTAL COST ($)	COST PER SERVING ($)
4	N/A	Bell peppers	3.97/pack of 3	2.65
TOTAL				2.65*	1.33

Once ready, I placed the peppers in a pot, added a little bit of water on the bottom and threw all in the oven, pre-heated to 375°F ahead of time. While my peppers were baking- and they cook for 40-50 minutes- I made a fresh rutabaga salad. Taking the numbers from GOURMET MEALS FOR $5 OR UNDER: MEAL 8 OF 50, I had to add $0.57 to my total meal cost.

	TOTAL COST ($)	COST PER SERVING ($)
GRAND TOTAL	9.72	4.86

Another home-made dinner and another thank you from Jon. If nothing else goes right, a warm meal and a heart-felt thanks completes a chaotic day in a somewhat orderly fashion. Such is the beautiful power of cooking with love and whole food ingredients.