Wildly Affordable Organic: Eat Fabulous Food, Get Healthy, and Save the Planet--All on $5 a Day or Less

354 Pages·2011·3.49 MB·English

by  Linda Watson

Table of Contents

Title Page
Dedication

Part I - Discovering the Wildly Affordable Organic Life
Introduction - Why Cook for Good?
Immediate and Lasting Benefits
Making the Plans Work for You and Your Family
You Don’t Have to Do It All or All at Once
Chapter 1 - The Experiment
Inspiration: Michael Pollan and the Food Stamp Challenge
Baseline: Where Did We Start?
Getting Ready: The Rules
Adding a Job to the Mix
First Shopping Trip on a Tight Budget
The First Day Is the Worst
The Results: Saving Money Leads to Other Savings

Part II - Streamlining Life in the Kitchen
Chapter 2 - Planning Strategies
Using Basic Ingredients
Buy Mostly Certified Organic
The Scrimp or Splurge Twenty
Chapter 3 - Feed Your Freezer
Planned-Overs, Not Leftovers
Show Your Freezer the Seasons
Freeze Your Own Good Food, Not the Supermarket’s
Freeze for Quality Results
Find and Use What You’ve Frozen
Prepare for Busy Times
Chapter 4 - Shopping Strategies
Get a Better Deal in the Next Aisle
Watch the Unit Price, not Package Price
The Great Grated-Cheese Myth
Powdered Milk: Not So Thrifty Anymore
Shop with the Seasons at the Farmers’ Market
Find Great Deals at the Farmers’ Market
Score with Seasonal Specials at the Supermarket
Don’t Ship Cold Air
Don’t Ship Water
Buy Big, Pay Little
Grow Savings in Your Garden
Chapter 5 - Cooking Strategies
You Can Make It at Home!
Take Five
Cook Clean
All Hail the Kitchen Scale
You Bought It, So Cook It
Chapter 6 - Dining Strategies
Control Portions to Control Your Budget and Your Health
Make It Delicious at First Sight
Chapter 7 - Cleaning Strategies
Wash Reusable Grocery Bags
Keep a Clean Counter
Cook from Sweet to Savory and from Dry to Wet
Stop Washing Dedicated Tools
Use, Reuse, and Recycle

Part III - The Wildly Affordable Organic Plans
Chapter 8 - Get Ready for Wild Savings
Check Your Equipment and Supplies
Bargain Kitchenware
Put Your Kitchen in Order
Decide Where to Shop
Chapter 9 - Go Wild in Twenty Minutes a Day The Starter Plan
Cook It Forward
Cooking Plan: Twenty Minutes x Seven Days
Sample Menu for Week One: Twenty Minutes x Seven Days
Sample Menu for Week Two: Twenty Minutes x Seven Days
Sample Menu for Week Three: Twenty Minutes x Seven Days
Sample Pattern for Week C, Which Follows Weeks A and B
Chapter 10 - Seasonal Menus, Shopping Lists, and Cooking Plans
Go Organic for $5 a Day
Make the Calendar Work for Your Life
Eat All Month, Not Just the First Twenty-Eight Days
Start with a Good Breakfast
Drink Tea or Tap Water
Thrive with Good Nutrition
Chapter 11 - Winter
Winter Menus ($green / $thrifty)
Winter Cooking Plan
Chapter 12 - Spring
Spring Menus
Spring Cooking Plan
Chapter 13 - Summer
Summer Menus
Summer Cooking Plan
Chapter 14 - Fall
Fall Menus
Fall Cooking Plan

Part IV - Recipes
Chapter 15 - The Basics
Core Recipes
Ingredients
Temperatures
Weights and Measures
Chapter 16 - Breakfast
Two-for-One Apple-Streusel Coffee Cake
Better Blueberry Pancakes
Oatmeal for Breakfast Six Ways
Sweet Raisin Flatbread or Breakfast Focaccia
Yogurt
Notes
Chapter 17 - Beans, Beautiful Beans
A Few Benefits of Beans
What about Beans’ Other F Word?
The Unseen Bean: Soy
Basic Beans and Peas: Cooking Dried Legumes
Bean and Tomato Stew
Bean Burritos
Bean Salad with Fresh Corn, Peppers, and Tomatoes
Proud Black-Bean Burgers
Black Beans in Baked Winter Squash with Persian Tomato Sauce
Chickpea Stew on Couscous
Cuban Black Beans and Black Bean Soup
Hoppin’ John
Hummus
Red Bean Chili
Red Bean Chili Casserole with Corn Bread Topping
Lentil Stew with Spring Onions
Refried Beans
Soft Tacos with Refried Beans
Southwestern Bean Stew: Heirloom Beans with Tomatoes and Roasted
Corn
Spicy Black-Eyed Peas
Babe’s Split Pea Soup
Tortilla Stacks
Notes
Chapter 18 - Breads
The New, No-Knead Whisk Breads
Traditional Breads
Tips for Successful Bread Making
Good Whisk Bread
Whisk Sandwich Bread
Whisk Burger Buns
Garlic Toast
Good Burger Buns
Corn Bread
Pumpkin Bread
Tortillas
Notes
Chapter 19 - Eggs and Potatoes
Egg and Spring-Onion Burritos
Green Eggs Scramble
Swiss Chard Frittata
Hard-Boiled Eggs
Huevos Rancheros
Magic Quiche with Asparagus
Greek Potato Salad
Potato Peanut Curry
Potato Pudding
Notes
Chapter 20 - Pasta and Sauces
Noodles Cooked in Very Little Water
Good Tomato Sauce
Persian Tomato Sauce
Tomato Sauce with Bell Peppers and Onions
Tomato Sauce with Robust Greens and Onions
Tomato Sauce with Spring Onions
Tomato Sauce with Summer Squash
Noodles in Spicy Peanut Sauce with Seasonal Vegetables
Southern Summer Pesto
Parsley Pesto
Harvest Lasagna
Enchilada Sauce
Fresh and Easy Salsa
Chapter 21 - Pizza
Pizza: Putting It All Together
Whisk Pizza Dough
Pizza Sauce
Pizza Toppings by Season
Garlic Flatbread
Whisk Pizza Dough (page185)
Speedy Grilled Pizza
Notes
Chapter 22 - Something from Nothing
Broth Jar
Stoup
Notes
Chapter 23 - Vegetables and Side Dishes
Green Salad
Vinaigrette
Classic Cabbage Slaw
Zlaw (Zucchini Slaw)
Rice
Nutty Rice Salad
Glazed Carrots
Green Beans and Marinated Green Beans
Skillet Asparagus
Tasty Tahini Greens
Roasted Vegetables
Oven Fries
Roasted Apples
Bright Popcorn
Notes
Chapter 24 - Desserts
Chocolate Pudding
Vanilla Pudding
Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies
Peanut Butter Cookies
Cocoa Cookies
Strawberry Ice Cream
Peach Ice Cream Supreme
Feel-Good Peach Cobbler
Baked Pears with Cinnamon Yogurt Sauce
Chocolate Pumpkin Snack Cake
Chocolate Upside-Down Cake
Ginger-Glazed Carrot Cake
Strawberry Shortcake