Copyright Notice -- The Penny Orchid -- "Thrift with Flair"

All materials not otherwise designated are Copyright 2004 Deborah Michelle Sanders, whether they precede or follow this notice. Linking and reproduction allowed only with the consent by email of the author. The address is deborahmichelle@earthlink.net . Thank you!

Deal of the Month; Common Cents; Something from Almost Nothing

DEAL OF THE MONTH: The finest loss-leaders in the San Francisco Bay Area are generally found at the drugstore chain, Rite-Aid. Groceries of all types are routinely (on a rotating schedule) sold at half-price. Today, "Berry Burst Cheerios" were on sale for 2 for $5. Typically, the only kind of cold cereal I would buy is Nutty Nuggets/Grape Nuts, which give best nutritional value (barley plus whole wheat) by weight. Surely, I would not buy cereal that includes the fruit that I can much more cheaply add to the breakfast. HOWEVER, lo! and behold! each box bears a coupon, "Free One Quart Any Flavor 8th Continent Soymilk OR Save $2.75 when you buy One Half Gallon." By taking these 2 coupons to my market that doubles coupons (up to $1, giving me $3.75 off the cost of each half-gallon), I will get essentially a gallon of the product for free. (Also, I must admit that the Berry Burst Cheerios do indeed taste great.)

COMMON CENTS: This is all about that chore that all of us have to go through who have to wash some clothing by hand. It covers (1) preparing liquid soap for a fraction of the cost of the manufactured type, (2) how to agitate the clothing to get it really clean, & (3) how much rinsing is needed. I assume that you have some kind of clothes line or drying rack.

To prepare liquid soap for a song, you need to dry out all the slivers of soap that your household provides. I keep a small plate on a bathroom shelf to hold the slivers. Once thoroughly dry, I move them to a bag. (Large slabs of soap don't seem worth grating. Rather, I let them dry out on the plate and then swop one for the gooey soap in the soap dish.) When I need more liquid soap, I grate a few ounces of the thoroughly dry soap. I measure it, add 3 times the amount of water as of soap to the mix, & blend the combo in the blender. Then I pour it into an old detergent bottle. I ensure that the bottle is not more than 3/4 full. Every time I want to use the liquid soap, I fill the bottle to the top with water, & shake thoroughly. Then I pour into the basin that I intend to wash the clothes in all of the water from the bottle plus some 5-6 globs of slurry (something between a liquid and a solid). I add a little hot water, & with my hand, homogenize the solution. I put lukewarm water in the basin & add the clothes to be washed. I set a timer for 15 minutes (you'll be hearing all about the wonders of timers in future issues.). At the end of that time, I'm ready to agitate the clothes.

I use a "sink plunger" or "sink plumber's helper," obviously scrupulously clean & reserved for the purpose of washing clothes, as an agitator. Ask in the hardware store for a sink plunger; it is about one-half the size of a toilet plunger. (It is important to keep this sink plunger wrapped & sitting far away from the toilet plunger, to avoid pathos.) I plunge 20-30 times, depending how many clothes are in the basin.

Then, I spill out the water from the basin, & pour in cold water. So little actual soap has permeated the clothing that (with the exception of wool), it is not necessary to rinse each item individually. I wring the clothing gently and then set it out to dry.

SOMETHING FROM ALMOST NOTHING:

Here is a “Dijon” (with broccoli) dish for all of you baked macaroni-&-cheese fans out there. I prepare it with mild Cheddar cheese (as being the least expensive Cheddar), but you can use a sharper Cheddar, or, on the other end of the price range, American cheese.

MACARONI AND CHEESE DIJON:

1 lb broccoli (this is generally ½ of a bunch) – pare away any black spots, & slice stems thinly; prepare small florets
½ lb of cheese, grated (this is 2 cups of grated cheese – be sure to grate it yourself for big savings!)
8 oz elbow macaroni
1 medium onion or ½ large onion, minced (you can save ½ of a large onion, cut into big pieces, in a canning jar in the produce bin)
½ c bread crumbs (pull a slice of fresh bread [including the crust] into pieces, & whirl in a blender)
4 T canola oil, divided in half (2 T each)
2 T all-purpose flour
1 c soymilk or dairy milk

You’ll need a Dutch oven for this dish. This is a 4-quart or larger pot that can go from stovetop to oven ware. You’ll also need a small skillet (to sauté the bread crumbs in).

Saute the bread crumbs in 2 T of oil in the small skillet.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare boiling water (rapid) in the Dutch oven.

Place the broccoli and the macaroni together in the Dutch oven. Cook according to macaroni package directions. When ready, drain the macaroni/broccoli combo in a colander.

Place in the Dutch oven the other 2 T of oil, together with the flour. Stir constantly while flour browns. Gradually stir in the milk. Add cheese gradually, continuing to stir.

Place crumbs atop.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until top of casserole is lightly browned.

Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Makes 5 servings..

Yours in thrift, Deb

Deb introduces your best guide to thrift

Hi! The old print version of THE PENNY ORCHID -- "Thrift with Flair" is now available as a blog. (Its ISSN is 1522-9831, and its registered trademark, which includes a logo, will run through 2009 without further application.) You will find here, once a week, a recipe ("Something From Almost Nothing") that uses seasonal produce for rock-bottom priced-meals. You will also find a short essay, which could be on "Health Is Wealth," "Well Worth It (a review of a book or product)," "Common Cents (general ideas on thrift," or "Pro Bono (the law & you. Deb is an inactive attorney.)" You will find THE PENNY ORCHID to be published most Thursdays, except in the case of Thanksgiving or another secular or a Jewish holiday.

Here's your first "Something From Almost Nothing," & it's luscious.

Chicken and Tomato Saute with Potato

2 T canola oil

1/2 pound baked potato, sliced thickly

1/2 large or 1 medium onion, chopped

3 medium tomatoes, cut in half and sliced (use the juice, too)

1 c shredded chicken

heaping 1/2 tsp sage

1 scant tsp salt

freshly-ground black pepper

Place all in a large skillet. Mix thoroughly. Cook 8 minutes over high heat, covered. Then reduce heat to low, & cook for another 15 minutes. Serves 3 as an entree.

COPYRIGHT Deborah Michelle Sanders 2004

COMMON CENTS: Sorting Your Chicken Into One-Cup Portions for Freezing:

You can either roast or poach your chicken. By poaching, you are making chicken soup in the first place. The chicken will be moister, but less flavorsome. I prefer roasting chicken, & then making soup with the frames of a couple or three roasted chickens. In either event, set aside some time once the chicken has cooled (in the fridge -- you don't want to inoculate a bacteria culture!) to pull the chicken off the bones & apportion it out. Place 2 plastic bags at one side of your work, to stick your hands into should a child or the telephone need your attention. Use the biggest bowl that you have to place the chicken into. Take another large bowl and throw chicken fat and bones into it -- grist for that soup if you have roasted the chicken. Shred the chicken in the large bowl as you work. It is fine to take breaks from this work -- it is repetitive stress motion and can be injurious. Take a 2-cup glass measure and fill it to the 1-cup line. Each time that you have filled a cup, pour the chicken into a freezer container. I like the plastic cubes that cost $2 for five cubes and hold 2 cups each. They are much less trouble to keep clean than washing & drying plastic bags. (But some people prefer the latter since with the air siphoned out -- use a straw at one edge -- they take up less room in the freezer.) Every time you have filled 3 containers, put them in the fridge for food safety. When you are all done, count the number of packages & prepare labels ("chicken, 1 cup, [date]."

All of my recipes that include chicken call for 1 cup of shredded chicken so you will find plenty of uses for these portions.

COPYRIGHT Deborah Michelle Sanders 2004

A SPECIAL "HEALTH IS WEALTH" NOTICE:

The British Broadcasting Company recently published a surprising finding. It is NOT good or safe to rinse poultry before cooking it. Germs are killed in the process of cooking. But, if you wash the chicken before putting it in the pot, you are spraying pathogens all over your sink.

It's important, of course, to carefully wash any cutting board and knife or scissors that you have used to prepare the poultry.

All of this is true when you prepare any form of meat.

This information came from the British Food and Drink Federation and the British Food Standards Agency.

COPYRIGHT Deborah Michelle Sanders 2004

Yours in thrift, until next time, Deb