GOURMET MEALS FOR $5 OR UNDER: MEAL 11 OF 25

SPAGHETTI 
W/ MEATBALLS & TOMATO SAUCE

Total Cost: $2.37/serving

Total Preparation Time: 40 min

Looking around, I am forced to think of Wall-E. For the last three days, I like a robot with a special ability to compact idle items into neat cardboard cubes have been working tirelessly to prepare for the big move. And even though at work is another Wall-E porting stuffed containers out of the house and into the trailer, gobs of earthly possessions remain all around me, taking up a significant amount of 1,500 square feet of our living space.

So far, I maintained the sense of normalcy through cooking. Last night, however, was the last night I prepared dinner and have since packed away most of the kitchenware. Needless to say, life will remain free of tempting scents and hearty bites until Friday, when I will make a grand attempt to stock up on groceries, unpack the necessities and prepare a well-deserved home-cooked meal.

The freezer had to be cleaned out and it just happened to contain 20 frozen meatballs I prepared several days earlier. All I had to do was make some tomato sauce and cook noodles. As always, the cooking time can be reduced by using pre-made tomato sauce (if completely swamped, I like to use Classico Di Toscana Portobello Mushroom), but I chose to make my own by simply processing three large tomatoes, garlic and red pepper in a blender. 

MEASURE	WEIGHT (g)	INGREDIENT	COST PER PACKAGE ($)	TOTAL COST ($)	COST PER SERVING ($)
½	96	Onion	1.97/3lb	0.14
½	66	Green Bell pepper	3.97/pack of 3	0.66
½	66	Yellow Bell pepper	3.97/pack of 3	0.66
½	66	Red Bell pepper	3.97/pack of 3	0.66
2	8	Garlic, cloves	1.49/pack of 3 (115g)	0.10
N/A	166	White mushrooms	2.99/lb	1.09
N/A	55	Dill	1.28/bunch (120g)	0.59
3	324	Tomatoes	1.37/lb	0.98
TOTAL				3.90*	0.98

*Enough for 4 servings of spaghetti

Having defrosted in the fridge throughout the day, my meatballs were now ready to be cooked. Thrown in the frying pan on medium high with just a touch of grape seed oil, they started emitting the familiar aroma that never fails attracting the perpetually hungry pug... Ignoring the pleas, I busied myself chopping and slicing vegetables. Once ready, all went into the same pan with now browned meatballs for five more minutes of cooking. I poured the tomato paste and let everything simmer (covered with a lid) on low for 15 more minutes.

MEASURE	WEIGHT (g)	INGREDIENT	COST PER PACKAGE ($)	TOTAL COST ($)	COST PER SERVING ($)
N/A	250	Spaghetti	0.39/100g	0.98
20	N/A	Meatballs	3.90/17 meatballs	4.59
TOTAL				5.57*	1.39

*Makes 4 servings of 5 meatballs each

It took me exactly 15 minutes to cook and strain spaghetti, as well as chop some dill and add it to the pasta sauce just two minutes or so before I shut off the burner. Dinner is ready to be served!

	TOTAL COST ($)	COST PER SERVING ($)
GRAND TOTAL	9.47	2.37

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.