Of great May buys & Spring Veggie Chowder
Jews tell a tale of a peasant who had dreamt that he could find great treasure under a bridge in a town far away. He dropped everything, & traveled to that town, & sought that bridge, & began to dig underneath its banks. A watchman appeared, & asked him what he was doing. “I dreamt that there is treasure under this bridge, so I came from my town.” The watchman replied, “You can’t believe dreams. Why, if I believed my dreams, I would journey to your town, & dig up under the floor of your hovel.” The peasant returned to his home in passion, dug up his floor, & found the treasure.
HELPFUL HINTS:
Potatoes should be kept in a separate cupboard than onions. They need to be stored in an opaque bag, though – just like onions. On the other hand, potatoes don’t need to be separated from each other –onions do. The way I handle onions is to place them in a cloth bag, with the bag twisted shut & tied above each onion. (I use rubber bands between each pair of onions.) They last much longer that way. And, so do the potatoes when kept by themselves in an opaque bag.
The best way to avoid getting clogged drains in the bathroom is to avoid getting hair in. When shampooing hair in the shower, remove stray hairs from your hands, & transfer them to the shower wall. After your shower, a simple wipe with a tissue will pick up all the hairs. (I economize by using a square of toilet paper.) Similarly, wipe out the vanity bowl after you brush or comb your hair.
When you plant seed in your garden, do not fertilize for several weeks, or you are just throwing away good compost, manure, or commercial fertilizer. The seeds contain nutrients, & there are not yet enough plant roots to fix the nitrogen in the plant food.
If your life situation changes drastically, such as having to deal with being laid off without sufficient savings &/or unemployment insurance, you may well find it appropriate to relocate from suburbia to either the city or the country – suburbia is the most expensive place to live.
You can find the best recipes for thrift in any older cookbook, published before, say, 1975. While I have a number of these, my favorite is the GOOD HOUSEKEEPING COOKBOOK of 1973. A specialized cookbook that I enjoy is the 1971 COMPLETE AMERICAN-JEWISH COOKBOOK. Going back to the time of widespread immigration to the Midwest, any edition of the SETTLEMENT COOKBOOK gives over 3,000 ideas – even though most of them require some basic cooking knowledge to follow. (The edition that I own is the last one published, to the best of my knowledge. THE NEW SETTLEMENT COOK BOOK – THE WAY TO A MAN’S HEART, 1954 edition, is the book that I have. The first edition was published in 1901 in Milwaukee, WI.)
GREAT BUYS FOR MAY:
Groceries:
Artichokes
Asparagus
Corn
Peas
Tomatoes
Grapefruit
Plums
Strawberries
Mexican-themed foods for Cinco de Mayo
Other great deals:
Costume jewelry (but a thrift store is cheaper any old month for this.)
Handbags (ditto)
Outdoor furniture (OK, here’s something that one rarely finds at a thrift store.)
Silver (If you don’t care about having items match, you can find great buys on silver at a thrift store.)
Dry-cleaning of linens (Bed coverings & draperies)
RECIPE:
There are a few more days of Passover, so here is another recipe suitable for the holiday. By the way, as with the preceding Passover recipes in the last 3 issues, you need only substitute flour for matzo meal to have a year-round dish. Also, if you prefer, you can use green beans in place of the spinach year-round.
Spring Veggie Chowder:
2 T butter
1 large onion, minced
In a Dutch oven, saute until the onion is lightly browned.
10 oz frozen, defrosted chopped spinach, or 1-1/2 lbs. fresh spinach, trimmed & chopped, OR (not during Passover) 1 lb green beans in 2” pieces (fresh or frozen)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes or cayenne
6 medium zucchini or summer squash, sliced in 1” pieces
1 large Russet potato, diced (no need to peel it)
29 oz can of tomatoes, chopped in the can with kitchen scissors, UNDRAINED
Add to pot. Stir thoroughly. Reduce heat & cover. Cook for 30 minutes.
MEANWHILE:
3 c skim milk, scalded in a separate pot until you see small bubbles forming (then take the pot off the flame)
2 T butter
½ c matzo meal
Remove ¾ c of the milk to a quart Pyrex measuring cup or bowl. Add butter & matzo meal. Stir with a whisk until completely smooth.
Pour the remaining 2-1/4 c of scalded milk into the Dutch oven. Mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk-matzo meal mixture, & stir thoroughly again. Cover again. (Maintain the heat on low.) Simmer for 10 minutes.
1 bunch fresh parsley, minced with kitchen scissors
Add parsley & stir. Serve to 7.
HELPFUL HINTS:
Potatoes should be kept in a separate cupboard than onions. They need to be stored in an opaque bag, though – just like onions. On the other hand, potatoes don’t need to be separated from each other –onions do. The way I handle onions is to place them in a cloth bag, with the bag twisted shut & tied above each onion. (I use rubber bands between each pair of onions.) They last much longer that way. And, so do the potatoes when kept by themselves in an opaque bag.
The best way to avoid getting clogged drains in the bathroom is to avoid getting hair in. When shampooing hair in the shower, remove stray hairs from your hands, & transfer them to the shower wall. After your shower, a simple wipe with a tissue will pick up all the hairs. (I economize by using a square of toilet paper.) Similarly, wipe out the vanity bowl after you brush or comb your hair.
When you plant seed in your garden, do not fertilize for several weeks, or you are just throwing away good compost, manure, or commercial fertilizer. The seeds contain nutrients, & there are not yet enough plant roots to fix the nitrogen in the plant food.
If your life situation changes drastically, such as having to deal with being laid off without sufficient savings &/or unemployment insurance, you may well find it appropriate to relocate from suburbia to either the city or the country – suburbia is the most expensive place to live.
You can find the best recipes for thrift in any older cookbook, published before, say, 1975. While I have a number of these, my favorite is the GOOD HOUSEKEEPING COOKBOOK of 1973. A specialized cookbook that I enjoy is the 1971 COMPLETE AMERICAN-JEWISH COOKBOOK. Going back to the time of widespread immigration to the Midwest, any edition of the SETTLEMENT COOKBOOK gives over 3,000 ideas – even though most of them require some basic cooking knowledge to follow. (The edition that I own is the last one published, to the best of my knowledge. THE NEW SETTLEMENT COOK BOOK – THE WAY TO A MAN’S HEART, 1954 edition, is the book that I have. The first edition was published in 1901 in Milwaukee, WI.)
GREAT BUYS FOR MAY:
Groceries:
Artichokes
Asparagus
Corn
Peas
Tomatoes
Grapefruit
Plums
Strawberries
Mexican-themed foods for Cinco de Mayo
Other great deals:
Costume jewelry (but a thrift store is cheaper any old month for this.)
Handbags (ditto)
Outdoor furniture (OK, here’s something that one rarely finds at a thrift store.)
Silver (If you don’t care about having items match, you can find great buys on silver at a thrift store.)
Dry-cleaning of linens (Bed coverings & draperies)
RECIPE:
There are a few more days of Passover, so here is another recipe suitable for the holiday. By the way, as with the preceding Passover recipes in the last 3 issues, you need only substitute flour for matzo meal to have a year-round dish. Also, if you prefer, you can use green beans in place of the spinach year-round.
Spring Veggie Chowder:
2 T butter
1 large onion, minced
In a Dutch oven, saute until the onion is lightly browned.
10 oz frozen, defrosted chopped spinach, or 1-1/2 lbs. fresh spinach, trimmed & chopped, OR (not during Passover) 1 lb green beans in 2” pieces (fresh or frozen)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes or cayenne
6 medium zucchini or summer squash, sliced in 1” pieces
1 large Russet potato, diced (no need to peel it)
29 oz can of tomatoes, chopped in the can with kitchen scissors, UNDRAINED
Add to pot. Stir thoroughly. Reduce heat & cover. Cook for 30 minutes.
MEANWHILE:
3 c skim milk, scalded in a separate pot until you see small bubbles forming (then take the pot off the flame)
2 T butter
½ c matzo meal
Remove ¾ c of the milk to a quart Pyrex measuring cup or bowl. Add butter & matzo meal. Stir with a whisk until completely smooth.
Pour the remaining 2-1/4 c of scalded milk into the Dutch oven. Mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk-matzo meal mixture, & stir thoroughly again. Cover again. (Maintain the heat on low.) Simmer for 10 minutes.
1 bunch fresh parsley, minced with kitchen scissors
Add parsley & stir. Serve to 7.
posted by THE PENNY ORCHID -- "Thrift with Flair" at 1:25 PM
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