E-Co$t Debut

Nope, I didn't forget about the new E-Co$t feature of this site. Last week we spent $131 on groceries. We bought a lot of stuff and mostly it was food related. But amazingly enough, only a total of $74.44 was for food for dinner prep—and that includes the $14.99 for a 44-fluid ounce bottle of extra virgin olive oil. The organic baby spinach at $3.79 per 6-ounce "box" (evil plastic) was also a big chunk of the bill since we bought three of them (the spinach and the olive oil totaled $26.36). The other expensive items were non-dinner related (sparkling water, organic cereal bars, yogurt, and coffee beans). I have several ideas for cutting down those costs, which I'll post about eventually.

Here's the totals (approximate) for the meals for the Menu 5/31/08 to 6/6/08:

• Turkey meatloaf: $10.81 for loaf ($1.08 for each serving)
• Smashed potatoes: $3.15 ($0.52 for each serving)
• Lemon-herb roasted chicken: $10.55 for entire roast ($2.63 per serving; however, the carcass meat does get recycled into stock and other meals)
• Fri-ta-toe: $1.68 ($0.42 per serving)
• Chicken-Spinach Faux Casserole: $12.46 ($2.49 per serving)
• Prosciutto Pasta: $6.65 ($3.33 per serving)

I'll have to probably refine this feature of the blog as some of the costs can be misleading. For example, the chicken-spinach faux casserole: the total includes the costs associated with the first chicken meal (lemon-herb roasted chicken) from which the faux casserole is derived. So, it can be argued that the costs are more accurate this way, but for a true idea of how much we are actually spending, the cost for that initial chicken meal would have to be excluded (because I didn't really go out and buy more food). In other words, all the ingredients for the casserole (including those for making 2 servings of the lemon-herb chicken) totaled $12.46. But because I already paid for those 2 servings of lemon-herb roasted chicken ($2.63 x 2 = $5.27), the outlay for the second "left-over" meal was really $7.19 ($1.44 per serving). The same is true of the fri-ta-toe; the only new ingredients were red pepper, onion, olive oil, egg, and salt and pepper.

Chicken, Rice, Spinach, and a Shot of...

Tonight's dinner: chicken-spinach "casserole." That's right, a faux casserole. It's not baked, stewed, or cooked slowly. But like any traditional casserole, it's a good way to make a little chicken (and a lot of spinach) go a very long way. Because the chicken is from the roaster made earlier, this dish is made in the time it takes to cook the brown rice (about 45 minutes). And there's a bit of vodka thrown in too. I was tempted to freeze the leftovers but opted to relegate them to tomorrow's lunch instead.

Still no word from the fine folks at Hellmann's.

Chicken-Spinach Faux Casserole
Serves 4 to 6

1 cup uncooked brown rice
1.5 cups water
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
5 ounces baby spinach
1 small onion, chopped small
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 oz vodka
1/2 chicken breast (about 4.5 to 5 ounces)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons parmesean cheese

Directions
1. In a medium saucepan, combine water, chicken stock, and brown rice. Cook over medium-low flame for 45 minutes, covered.
2. Meanwhile, cut chicken into small bite-sized pieces.
3. Meanwhile, saute spinach, garlic, and onion in olive oil until translucent (about 10 minutes).
4. Deglaze pan with shot of vodka.
5. Lower heat and add spinach.
6. Let the spinach cook down, then add chicken.
7. Cook on medium-low heat until chicken is warmed.
8. Add salt and pepper, season to taste.
9. Mix in parmesean cheese and serve.

Nutrition Information per Serving
Calories: ; Carbohydrates: ; Protein: ; Fat: ; Cals./g:
*Points: