v is for vent

Okay, look at this book. Take a minute and really digest what you see. Really, take your time. I'll wait.

Okay, now read this:

Editorial Reviews

Review
"A feast, a voyage, and a marvel." (Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love )

"Laugh-out-loud funny." (Boston Globe )

"Powell writes like a culinary Chris Rock - profane, honest, and very funny." (Seattle Times )

"A really good book." (Washington Post Book World )

Product Description
Julie & Julia, the bestselling memoir that's "irresistible....A kind of Bridget Jones meets The French Chef" (Philadelphia Inquirer), is now a major motion picture. Julie Powell, nearing thirty and trapped in a dead-end secretarial job, resolves to reclaim her life by cooking in the span of a single year, every one of the 524 recipes in Julia Child's legendary Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Her unexpected reward: not just a newfound respect for calves' livers and aspic, but a new life-lived with gusto. The film is written and directed by Nora Ephron and stars Amy Adams as Julie and Meryl Streep as Julia.

Okay, now how much do you want to read this book?

Because you are spending your time here I would assume you have an interest in cooking. That means that it's possible you might see this book and read the reviews and want to pick it up at the book store. And it is that possibility that has prompted this post.

I saw a preview of the afore-mentioned movie this month and was immediately interested in the idea. I picked up Julia Child's My Life in France the next time I was at the book store and enjoyed it. I liked her writing and the topic and she has a personality that can't help but bring life to the story. Besides, my dad loves Paris, so I enjoyed her almost blind affection for all things French. About half way through Julia Child's book I decided I was going to read Julie Powell's when I was done. I didn't really think twice about it and picked it up at the bookstore last weekend.

I began reading on Saturday night and soon realized that a powerful black pen was a neccesary companion whenever I opened those covers. I was blacking out bad language on just about every page. Now, I realize that I probably have a much lower tolerance for profanity than most people, but this was a little ridiculous. I think she has an unhealthy obsession with the f-word. Maybe I should have known then, but I am some kind of naive and I assumed that was going to be the worst of it. Oh, no.

So, after ripping out a whole chapter that catalogs her introduction and subsequent addiction to an inappropriate book she found in her parents house when she was eleven (eleven!), I was a little more wary. But I still didn't want to call it quits. I wanted to hear about her cooking experiences and how it changed her. I guess I was assuming that she changed in the ways I wanted her to; i.e., it inspired her to clean up her language and get her mind out of the gutter!

Ripping a few more pages out (and wondering why because I'm surely not keeping this for anyone else to read!) I began to resign myself to the idea of not finishing the book. But I didn't want to miss her life-changing experiences and her respect and admiration and gratitude for Julia Child! I was torn.

Then I read it. Her ridiculous account of a detailed conversation with her friend about her affair with a married co-worker. That was it. With a heavy heart, I tried one last thing. I read through the accounts from Paul and Julia Child's life that she had novelized. Somehow these had escaped the influence of her vocabulary and moral depravity and were much more in the tone of Julia Child's own book. Then I turned to the last chapter, hoping against hope to find a new and different Julie Powell writing. It was a discussion of her reaction to the news of Julia Child's death, which I thought might be a good occasion for her to demonstrate a respect for more sacred things, like life. No such luck. More foul language and a flippant attitude toward mortality. I was crushed. I threw the book into the garbage and turned my back on it forever. I even threw it in my bathroom trash, just to show that I was never going to fish it back out again. (Bathroom trash cans gross me out. Ew.)

And that is a faithful account of my dealings with Julie Powell's book.

Now, back to the exercise at the beginning of this post. How many of you would expect to read the f-word at least once in each chapter, accompanied by some other choice jewels of expression of the four-letter variety, of course, when looking at that cover? And how many of you would expect to hear detailed accounts of scandalous affairs and other such adventures in immorality? And how many of you would find those things marvelous? The reviews on the cover of my book included the word "delightful", which now boggles my mind.

I am either way out of touch with what is marvelous and delightful in the world today, which is a distinct possibility, or they are selling this thing as something it just isn't. So, that's my whole point. Don't get sucked in. If you want to read it and can withstand the kind of moral decripitude that it contains, go for it. I just think you ought to know what your getting into. I wish I had. So sad. An adventure in cooking is interesting enough on its own, if it's written well. It doesn't need that kind of gaudy and gross ornamentation! Anyway, I'd better quit while I'm ahead. Thanks for letting me vent.

Oh, and read Julia Child's book if you get a chance. I thought it was genuinely delightful, although she does think that all politically conservative people are brainwashed and close-minded. Maybe I just proved her right...

u is for utensils

uten·sil

Pronunciation:

\yu̇-ˈten(t)-səl, ˈyü-ˌ\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle English, vessels for domestic use, from Middle French utensile, from Latin utensilia, from neuter plural ofutensilis useful, from uti to use

Date:

14th century

1 : an implement, instrument, or vessel used in a household and especially a kitchen2 : a useful tool or implement

Oh, yes. I struggled for a while with what to write for u, but I'm convinced this is a good idea. We are going to talk about utensils. What are your favorite kitchen tools? I have a few. Let's share...

1. The Magic Bullet: I think I've mentioned this one before. I use it for smoothies, ice cream shakes, pasta sauce, baby food, zucchini soup, and guacamole. I love that everything fits nicely into the dishwasher. It's a good buy. BJ got mine at Target.

2. Mini Rubber Spatulas: I got mine at Williams Sonoma and they are a lovely yellow. Yellow always reminds me of my mom, so I love it. These are especially helpful with soup cans, blenders, and even scraping off my kitchen aid attachments. I use mine a lot.

3. Kitchen Aid: I got mine from BJ's aunt and uncle when we got married. It was a very generous gift, which is something his family is very good at. That mixer actually stopped working one lovely evening in 2005 when Caleb was helping me cook. He dropped a measuring cup in there and it got stuck and the mixer stopped mixing. I could never get it to start up again after that. It may just be Houston, but I couldn't find anyone in the area who would fix it. So we decided there were two options: we could starve or we could spend $200 on a new one. Yes, sadly, I am very attached to my mixer. I grew up watching my mom use hers constantly. That's just how you cook in my mind. So, we bought a nice new one and now I have two bowls and two of each of the attachments, which is very convenient. I use mine to make everything from pancakes to cookies to bread. I love love love it.

4. Pizza Stone: My dad bought me a pizza stone in February when he came to visit for a couple days. He loves kitchen stores and book stores, so BJ and I love to go shopping with him. I had made pizza off and on before, but with this new appliance specifically for that purpose, I figured I'd better institute a pizza night and start practicing. Now I make pizza every Friday and any other day I can fit it in. I love it. I have "invented" a couple new topping combinations and I love to experiment. I made cookies on it once and they were nice and soft on top and crisp on the bottom. Good texture. I used mine for a big fruit pizza too and that was fun. I want one more stone so I can make two pizzas without having to shift from stone to cooling rack. It's on my wish list. Dad got mine at Sur La Table.

5. Mini-muffin Tin: This was another gift from Dad and I have used it a couple times with great success. The kids loved eating the mini-muffins and I could get the normal 12 muffins plus the 12 mini-muffins out of a regular sized batch. This also came from Sur La Table.

6. IKEA dishes: Obviously from IKEA, these come in six different colors, including the essential (at our house, at least) pink and orange. We have the plates, cups, and bowls. We've never invested in the forks and spoons because we already have a good supply of kidsy ones. These are great size for kid portions and they fit well in the dishwasher and our crowded dish cupboards. I love the bright colors and the kids love to use them.

7. Little cutting boards: These come in fruit and vegetable shapes and colors and they are very convenient. BJ and the kids got me some for mothers day one year and I use them daily, usually more than once. They fit nicely in the dishwasher and it's easy to keep track of what you cut on which board. I have a green pepper, an orange pepper, a red apple, and a yellow lemon. These are from Target.

8. Pyrex with lids: I have bowls of three different sizes, which are wonderful for storing or serving. I love that I can prepare fruit or dip or something ahead of time and keep it covered in the fridge without using a ton of plastic wrap or transferring it to a nicer looking dish for serving. I am all about simplicity, especially in dishwashing or other forms of cleaning. I also have three 7"x5"x1.5" casserole dishes and a 2.75 Quart casserole dish with lids. Those are really nice for making things ahead or doubling a recipe and freezing one for later. For example, I prepare my cheese enchiladas early in the day in those dishes and then store them, covered, in the fridge until I'm ready to cook them. Then I pull them out when I preheat the oven so the pyrex is closer to room temperature when it goes in the hot oven. These are handy for me since our dinner time is very rushed with picking up BJ, meetings, and aiming for a decent bedtime. I don't know where we picked these up, but I'm pretty sure they're easy to find at a Target or Walmart or Kohls.

Well, these are a few of my favorite convenience utensils. What do you love to use in your kitchen?

t is for tortillas

I first tried making my own tortillas a couple years ago when I was pregnant with William. It was springtime, which doesn't last very long here in Houston, and I would let the kids play in the backyard while I made dinner. I opened the kitchen window above the sink and listened to them enjoy the cool weather and I rolled and rolled and rolled and rolled tortillas all night long. Well, that's what it felt like anyway. The first recipe I ever used made 24 tortillas, so that was quite the undertaking in one night. This recipe, which I use often, makes only 8 tortillas and is softer and tastier. I made them last night and we enjoyed tacos. I love making tacos because my kids eat it up and ask for more. Some of my skinnier kids actually get some nutrition! It's a comforting sight.

Whole Wheat Tortillas

1 cup white flour

1 cup wheat flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 cup canola oil

2/3 cup water

Combine flours, baking powder, salt.

Stir in oil and water all at once, using mixer or fork to toss quickly.

When it's all moistened, knead a few times.

Form 8 balls of dough.

Roll dough on floured surface until 7 inches or larger in diameter. Use even strokes that don't reach to the edge, turning over frequently.

Place tortilla in an ungreased, frying pan preheated on medium-high heat.

Cook 30-40 seconds on one side, turn over and cook 30-40 seconds on the other side.

Repeat with each ball of dough.

Stack tortillas on a plate as they are cooked and cover with a clean dish towel to keep soft.

s is for salt water taffy

Okay, Natalie, this one is for you. You asked for a "tried and true" recipe and I had never made it before, so I thought I ought to try. I collected a recipe and gave it a whirl. Here is the recipe:

Salt Water Taffy Recipe

Makes about one pound.

• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup light Corn Syrup
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons margarine or butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Use a square pan: 8X8X2.

Mix sugar, corn syrup, water, cornstarch, butter and salt in a 2 quart saucepan. Heat to boiling and stir continuously.

Then, cook, without stirring, to 256 degrees using a candy thermometer (hard ball). Remove from heat and add vanilla. Pour into pan.

When the taffy is cool enough to handle, pull it until it is satiny, light in color and stiff. Pull the taffy into long strips about 1/2inch wide. Cut the strip into pieces with a scissor.

Finally wrap the pieces individually in plastic or waxed paper to hold its shape.

I have now made this three times and every time it tasted good. It's a very basic recipe and I'm sure you could try adding flavorings and colorings as you want. It will probably taste great. If you can get it to be the proper consistency, that is. I have not made candy on my own before and my first three attempts were not pretty. They were, as I said, tasty enough, but not pretty. The first time I didn't bother to test the candy thermometer and when it said "hard ball" the candy was actually at hard crack. So I tried again, using the cold water test to be safer, but it was still a bit too hard. And, after I wrapped it all it stuck to the wax paper. Then, today, I thought I'd try one last time. I was inspired by Julia Child (it's a long story) and I went for it. I guess I heated it to soft ball this time, because it was just too sticky to work with. So, good luck with your efforts and let me know what tricks and tips you have. I may never make it again or I may be brave and figure it out. I hope it goes better for you than for me!

r is for rolls

My Grandma Page used to make rolls for every Sunday dinner (as far as I remember). They were always rolled up, browned, and buttered to perfection every time. I remember watching her pull a large metal bowl out of her fridge that was overflowing with dough. The puffy contents were topped with an inverted plate that was now stuck to the cold dough. She'd take it out, punch it down and proceed to create her Sunday dinner masterpiece. I loved those rolls.

Dinner rolls are some of my favorite things to make. They are fairly simple and can be really pretty, I think. I'm weird about the way my food looks. I use the Lion House recipe and it works well every time. I've heard a lot of people complain about their bread and rolls not rising correctly here, but I don't have problems with mine. I don't know what's different about making them here because this is the place I've done most of my baking. I'm sure it differs a little depending on humidity and temperature and stuff. But this one recipe is from Utah and works well here, so good luck!

Lion House Dinner Rolls

2 cups warm water
2/3 cup nonfat dry milk
2 Tbsp. dry yeast
¼ cup sugar
2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup butter, shortening, or margarine
1 egg
5 to 5 ½ cups all-purpose flour, or bread flour

In large bowl or electric mixer, combine water and milk powder; stir until milk dissolves. Add yeast, then sugar, salt, butter, egg, and 2 cups of flour. Mix on low speed until ingredients are wet, then for 2 minutes at medium speed. Add about ½ cup flour at a time and mix again until dough is soft, but not sticky. (The entire amount of flour may not be necessary.)

Scrape dough off sides of bowl and pour one Tbsp. oil all around sides of bowl. Turn dough over in bowl so it is covered with oil. (This helps prevent dough from drying out.) Cover with plastic and allow to rise in warm place until double in size. Sprinkle cutting board or counter with flour and place dough on floured board. Roll out and cut rolls into desired shape and size. Place on greased or parchment lined baking pans. Let rise in warm place until rolls are double in size (about 1-1 ½ hours).

Bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until browned. Brush with melted butter while hot.

q is for questions

Well, since I can't think of anything too interesting to post under q, I'll answer any questions anybody has. This means I will read your questions and research until I find the answer, since I don't know enough about anything on my own. It can be about anything from cooking to American history to kids to rocket science. Ask away...

And, since you asked a little while ago and I remembered to look today, the bread crumbs at our walmart are right next to the flour on the lowest shelf. Who knows if that's where you can find them where you're shopping, but I hope it helps!

And, I tried that chicken curry and will be posting the super-easy recipe I used soon. My kids really liked it.

p is for pesto

A couple of years ago my mom gave out jars of dried basil and a recipe for pesto sauce for Christmas. We've been making it often ever since. I've tried a few different things with it over the years and it's always been good. Our most recent version is a lazy-man's pesto pasta. I found (and got free with coupons--hooray!) an Italian pesto dressing from Kraft, so we use that along with some fun additions. Here's all it takes: the dressing; pasta (whatever shape you like); feta; cooked and cut up chicken; and fresh tomatoes, sliced. You just cook up the pasta, drain it, toss it with the dressing, and add the other stuff as you like it.

o is for oatmeal

I have a couple of oatmeal eaters at my house. Kate (almost 4) and Will (2) ask for oatmeal probably three times a week, more if I don't have cereal. I also have sent BJ to work with a collection of oatmeal packets to keep him from starving since he leaves too early in the morning for breakfast. I have bought the premade ones and I've made up my own in good old ziplock baggies. For my kiddos I do the following:

1. Pour about 1 cup oatmeal in a microwave-safe bowl and add about 2/3 cup water.

2. Microwave on high for 1 1/2-2 minutes.

3. Add a dash of salt, a 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, 1 Tbsp. brown sugar, and 2-3 ice cubes.

4. Stir and pour into individual serving dishes.

My kids eat it up and it's an easy way to use food storage. Since it's about $2 for a #10 can of oatmeal, which holds about 16 cups of oatmeal, I figure it costs less than a quarter to make those two kids breakfast. And it's healthier than most everything else they want to eat.

n is for naan

Well, I did it. I found a recipe and I tested it today. I would say it was a hit! It wasn't too involved and, although we are saving it for dinner tonight, I made two flatbread pizzas with it for lunch. Kate, who never eats lunch, gobbled it up and asked for more. It made for a fast, easy, tasty lunch. I think I may make this every couple weeks so I have some on hand. Thanks for asking for this one, Abby!

Naan (From Betty Crocker's New International Cookbook)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup plain yogurt

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup milk

vegetable oil

poppy seeds

Mix all ingredients except milk, oil, and poppy seeds. Stir in enough milk to make a soft dough. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth, about five minutes. Place in greased bowl; turn greased side up. Cover; let rest in warm place 3 hours.

Divide dough into 6 or 8 equal parts. Flatten each part on lightly floured surface, rolling about 1/4 inch thick. Brush with oil; sprinkle with poppy seed.

Place 2 cookie sheets in oven ; heat to 450. Remove cookie sheets from oven and place breads on hot cookie sheets. Bake until firm, about 6-8 minutes.

Joey took over the "lightly floured surface" after I was done rolling and had a ball. She was singing and chatting and just making pictures in the flour. She also enjoyed "painting" the oil onto the bread. It's a good one to have little helpers on.

m is for menu

I am totally fickle with my menu strategy. I'll come up with an elaborate idea and even write it all out on my calendar and make shopping lists and everything. Then I usually give it up and start a new plan before the week is out. I'm horrible! So, of course I have a new strategy I am implementing right now. In an effort to face my weaknesses and work with them, it's a loose program. I've instituted theme nights as follows: Monday is breakfast for dinner, Tuesday is a rice dish, Wednesday is soup, Thursday is Mexican, Friday is pizza (my favorite!), Saturday is a pasta dish, Sunday is meat. I like the chance to look at a schedule when my mind goes blank, but I also feel like I can do something else if there's something I really want to make/eat.

By the way, I got two suggestions for new recipes to try: naan bread and curry. I'm going to make them tonight and let you know how it goes. Thanks for the input! Keep it coming...

Another side note: my husband was out of town yesterday. It was just a one day trip, over-night, and he's back in town (but at work) now. I'm such a baby about it. I couldn't bring myself to make real dinner, so we had pancakes and smoothies. I had just a smoothie. It was surprisingly filling. Why don't I do that more often? Oh, right, I love to eat.

l is for lemon chicken

This recipe is so easy and really good. It's a great one to serve to little kiddos. We just have it with rice and a vegetable and dinner is done. This recipe is from my Taste of Home cookbook.

Baked Lemon Chicken

3 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 garlic clove
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (about 1 1/2 lbs.)

In a shallow dish, combine the butter, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper. Place bread crumbs in another dish.
Dip chicken in butter mixture, then coat with crumbs. Place in a greased 13x9x2 in. baking dish. Drizzle with the remaining butter mixture.
Bake, uncovered at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until juices run clear.

k is for kate

Katerade is our little sassy-pants. She is a regular visitor to the kitchen. She loves to drink milk and eat snacks, but she's not a huge fan of meals. She likes it simple, preferring meat and potatoes to a casserole. No mixing of flavors for Kate. Kate has a sweet tooth that doesn't quit. Luckily, there are too many of us sharing the treats for her to eat too many on her own. I think she'd eat a whole pan of brownies by herself if I'd let her.

Kate says that her favorite food is little pizza and her favorite thing to do in the kitchen is make little pizza. That makes sense. She also says that she would like our kitchen if it were painted purple. Purple is her favorite color.

Kate likes to sing and dance wherever she goes. The other day while we were picking blueberries she voluntarily walked over to her little brother and grabbed his hand. She helped him walk over to the bushes we were picking from and explained everything we were doing. It was pretty fun to watch the little mom at work. She'll be a great mom someday and, hopefully, a better cook than me!

j is for joey

Joey is having a birthday soon and she will be 5. Can you believe it? I can't. She gets to go to kindergarten in only two months time. I'm not sure I can take it. I think she's a little unsure as well, so I have to keep my apprehension to myself.

Joey is a big help in the kitchen. She loves to help me make just about anything and she is our very best eater as well. She doesn't mind trying new things and cleans her plate without any parental nagging on a regular basis. Actually, she does most things like that. She's our best voluntary cleaner and she's our most accomplished potty-trainee. I guess you hope for that by age five, but it's nice to have it without so much hassle. Joey doesn't even fuss every time I brush her hair. I don't give her enough credit for being such a joy.

Joey sees food like most other things in her life: as an opportunity. She is constantly creating mounds of bread crumbs, streams of water, and whatever else her artsy little mind sees fit. She is so messy, but it's fun to watch her create as she eats. She enjoys every minute.

i is for ideas

So... I am in the mood to try something new. Is there anything anyone wants a good recipe for? Is there anything you want me to try out? I'm offering to be your test kitchen.

Here are a few of my recent experiments.

h is for hootenannies

Hootenannies

Heat oven to 425.

Melt 2 Tbsp. butter in 9x11 Pyrex cake pan in oven.

Mix well in blender:

6 eggs

1 cup milk

1 cup flour

1 tsp salt

Pour ingredients into hot pyrex pan and cook for 20 minutes. It will rise in the oven and fall when removed.

Serve with fresh fruit and cream, jam and powdered sugar, or syrup.

We grew up with hootenannies for dinner every once in a while. I'm not really sure why they are called that. My kids call them puffy pancakes. It's a really simple, quick, easy, light dinner. Even the clean up is easy. This recipe also comes from Grandma Doxey.

We had these with fresh strawberries, blueberries, frozen raspberries, bananas, and yogurt for dinner the other night. Everyone ate it and loved it. BJ even said that if we have more dinners like that I might turn him into a fruit-lover. It just feels good to eat fresh food in the summer, don't you think?

g is for granola

I went to visit my mom in March this year in Moscow. Every morning for breakfast I had a bowl of granola and yogurt. It didn't take long before I was addicted, so I began pricing it here once I got back. It's so expensive! I was sad to see how much it was because I couldn't feel good about spending that kind of money when there are so many cheaper breakfast alternatives. In May we had an enrichment meeting and one of the mini-classes was on using your food storage. I had gone on a home-made kick before and just let it fizzle, but this class inspired me to try again. I looked for some granola recipes online and found some that looked pretty good. Most of them are more complicated than I would like, especially since more ingredients means more money to be spent on it. Then I found this simple recipe in my Taste of Home cook book. I have made it several times and it's really good with yogurt and berries. Caleb likes it with milk. The only thing I had to buy for it was wheat germ, since I already had all the other ingredients. I found a 12 oz. bottle of wheat germ at Walmart for about $4, which is about how much a small box of granola costs. So instead of about 12 servings for $4, you get about 12 cups of homemade granola for the same price. And I just found a 20 oz. jar of wheat germ at HEB for $5 this week. That'll make two batches and cut the cost almost in half. It's so easy to make, although it does require a couple hours at home. Here are the specifics:

Toasted Granola

Ingredients:

• 2-1/4 cups packed brown sugar
• 2/3 cup water
• 6 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 jar (12 ounces) toasted wheat germ
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

In a large saucepan, bring brown sugar and water to a boil. Cook and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat; set aside. In a large bowl, combine the oats, wheat germ, flour and salt. Stir oil and vanilla into sugar mixture; pour over oat mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to two greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans. Bake at 250° for 1-3/4 to 2 hours or until dry and lightly browned, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool completely on wire racks. Store in an airtight container. Yield: 11-1/2 cups.

f is for frugal

In posts on this topic I will try to keep it short and sweet. If I don't you will all be scared off by my ocd financial issues. I love to get a good deal. I do not like to buy things I don't need. I spend hours planning and making lists for my menu and grocery store trips. Seriously, hours. And you thought having kids required some kind of time commitment. Oh no. Not when there are ads to be checked and coupons to be cut and lists to be made and scratched through and made again! But, I digress...

I have been using coupons for about 3 years and I have been shopping the ads since I got married, so 7 years (wow!). We used to live on $25 a week for food in college. Even after we had Caleb. I have fluctuated between $10/week to $100/week since we got a job and moved to the real world. Alas, our real world is just Houston, where our cost of living is minuscule. I don't know how the rest of you survive.

Are you ready? I'm about to share some seriously personal information. Relax, it's just about our food budget. But I am such a private person that this feels like some serious baring of my soul. Here goes nothing... Our current number is $50 a week for food. Phew! I did it. Try it, it's liberating to do something you normally wouldn't do (as long as your not compromising standards, hurting feelings, or rooting for the Lakers). Wow, again I digress.

So, we feed seven people on that amount and it works out okay. We're healthy and happy and probably still eat too much. I went shopping yesterday and got three boxes of cereal, two boxes of pop tarts (nutritious, I know), two bottles of bbq sauce, six boxes of microwave popcorn, four packages of hot dogs (turkey dogs, actually), and apple juice for under $15. That's four dinners and at least a week of breakfast in the bag. I wish all my shopping trips were like that, or better!

Our newest strategy is using cash for our variable expenses. For us that means the food and misc. categories in our budget. We take out the cash for it at the beginning of the month and use that until it's gone and that's it. We can't buy any more food after that $200 is gone. We live on rice or oatmeal or beans. Sounds fool-proof, huh? Well, we actually start today, so I'll let you know how it goes. Let's hope you don't see an "o is for overdrawn" post anytime soon!