So what have I accomplished since my last blog post (yikes, that was too long ago)? More things than I can possibly list. Let’s just stick with the highlights: I visited New York and spent time with friends there while also experiencing a lot of the culinary bounty that NYC has to offer. I also got to attend the US Open tennis tournament, which was AWESOME. In fact, I enjoyed my NY visit so much that I’ll be going again in May...in addition to Sweden, Scotland, and Iceland.
Another major accomplishment was the completion of my culinary certification, which had taken somewhere pretty close to nine months (I know, all the mothers reading this are like, “Pffft, he should see what I did in nine months.” When I’ve got the certificate and my chef’s jacket, I’ll be sure to get a picture on here. I also bowled an 800 series for the first time ever. I’ve bowled a perfect 300 game before, but an 800 series is so much more difficult to obtain because it requires three nearly perfect games in succession during a league competition. It’s such a big honor and rarity that the United States Bowling Congress give you a commemorative ring.
There have been many personal goals set for the new year, one of which is to make this blog a weekly priority. I’ve got a long list of ideas that are building blocks for what I hope will become something many of you anticipate reading/watching every week as we go forward. Suggestions from readers and friends have helped me greatly and are always appreciated. That being said, I’m looking forward to providing everyone with many more posts that center around delicious, healthy food; promotion of an active lifestyle intermingled with proper fitness and nutrition; and doing all of this with a cost-conscious slant. If you ever have an idea for a post, share it with me. I encourage feedback and want you to be spending your time reading something that you feel adds value to your life.
Now that we have covered where we’re going in 2017 with this blog, I suppose now is as good a time as any to unveil the new Fiscally Fit Foodie logo. This was designed by the talented (and extremely patient) Natalie Minnott, owner of Nat Nat Designs. Thanks for your work on this and for putting up with my requests. So without further ado, I present to you the new logo (which you’ll soon see everywhere on my site) for Fiscally Fit Foodie!
Another major accomplishment was the completion of my culinary certification, which had taken somewhere pretty close to nine months (I know, all the mothers reading this are like, “Pffft, he should see what I did in nine months.” When I’ve got the certificate and my chef’s jacket, I’ll be sure to get a picture on here. I also bowled an 800 series for the first time ever. I’ve bowled a perfect 300 game before, but an 800 series is so much more difficult to obtain because it requires three nearly perfect games in succession during a league competition. It’s such a big honor and rarity that the United States Bowling Congress give you a commemorative ring.
There have been many personal goals set for the new year, one of which is to make this blog a weekly priority. I’ve got a long list of ideas that are building blocks for what I hope will become something many of you anticipate reading/watching every week as we go forward. Suggestions from readers and friends have helped me greatly and are always appreciated. That being said, I’m looking forward to providing everyone with many more posts that center around delicious, healthy food; promotion of an active lifestyle intermingled with proper fitness and nutrition; and doing all of this with a cost-conscious slant. If you ever have an idea for a post, share it with me. I encourage feedback and want you to be spending your time reading something that you feel adds value to your life.
Now that we have covered where we’re going in 2017 with this blog, I suppose now is as good a time as any to unveil the new Fiscally Fit Foodie logo. This was designed by the talented (and extremely patient) Natalie Minnott, owner of Nat Nat Designs. Thanks for your work on this and for putting up with my requests. So without further ado, I present to you the new logo (which you’ll soon see everywhere on my site) for Fiscally Fit Foodie!
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And there you have it, ladies and gentlemen. It took a few months to come to fruition (because I was difficult), but don’t you think it was worth the wait? Luckily for you, you won’t have to wait so long for the next post. I’ve got to recharge my camera (because it makes me look like I know what I’m doing when I make food), reinstall some video software (yes, scary), and update some of the information on the site...but prepare for a spectacular 2017 for the Fiscally Fit Foodie blog. I’m looking forward to sharing it with you all!
Brown rice and white rice are nutritionally pretty similar, although brown rice comes in slightly ahead in what it offers without enhancement assistance. White rice is basically brown rice with a couple/three layers removed and then companies tend to “enrich” these grains to put back some of the nutrients that were lost. So you’re not experiencing a large fall-off in nutrition if you prefer white rice over brown, but it requires a proactive approach from growers/sellers to get there. People often say brown rice is not their favorite thing because it’s bland or dry, but I guarantee you this Cuban mojo-style rice will not lack for flavor and the black bean juice that the rice soaks up ensures that your end product will be anything but dry.
My normal process for creating a dish is to let the seasons and ingredients on hand dictate the final product. Well, that, and the belief that whatever I make should be relatively healthy and taste good, of course. Unfortunately, I was down to the last of my CSA box ingredients and had a can of black beans, a big Costco container of brown rice, an onion, some garlic, cilantro, an orange, and my normal array of spices. Mojo is a (primarily Cuban) mixture of garlic, onion, spices, and orange/citrus...so that struck me as the way to go with this.
Rice is easy when you’ve got a rice cooker (imagine that, right?). You measure out the rice, cover it with water, and turn it on until it says it’s done. Note: Any purchases made through my Amazon links will benefit me with a small percentage of the sales...and I appreciate if you purchase Amazon items through my links since it benefits me and doesn’t cost you extra. Thanks!
Rice is easy when you’ve got a rice cooker (imagine that, right?). You measure out the rice, cover it with water, and turn it on until it says it’s done. Note: Any purchases made through my Amazon links will benefit me with a small percentage of the sales...and I appreciate if you purchase Amazon items through my links since it benefits me and doesn’t cost you extra. Thanks!
Anyhow, rice cookers were really a wonderful invention, and this is the one I use:
In the meantime, I took the black beans and added onions, garlic, cumin, chili powder, a touch of white and black pepper, the juice of an orange, and some minced jalapeno (also from my CSA box).
After the rice was done cooking, I combined the black beans and the rice in the black bean pot so that the rice would soak up the bean goodness. This is actually a trick I learned from a five-time consecutive James Beard Award Finalist chef (Hugo Ortega, who has a cool back story I won’t get into now) who cooks authentic Mexican dishes. In other words, this wasn’t a purely Cuban-inspired dish.
I cut some corn off the cob and sauteed it in some olive oil and spritzed it with the juice of a lime. This, along with a generous helping of cilantro (which you can add at your discretion, as people tend to either love or hate this...or are genetically predisposed to hating it) were tossed in and I added a touch of chicken stock to loosen the mixture up just a bit before serving. As you recall, we’re trying to avoid that dry rice phenomenon. Salt and pepper to taste at the very end before serving.
As you can probably surmise, this dish packs tons of flavor and goes well with just about any sort of fresh seafood or other protein. I served mine with vegetable kabobs – squash, zucchini, mushrooms, grilled cherry tomatoes, and bell peppers. If you already have some cooked rice, this shouldn’t take you more than about 10-12 minutes to make from start to finish, and it will feed quite a few hungry mouths. In my case, it feeds 1-2 hungry mouths for 2-3 meals. That’s a lot of mouths and math. Just figure on about 6-8 servings total and you should be in pretty good shape. I hope you enjoy it – I know I did!
You can click here for the printable recipe PDF or you can go to my recipe page for this recipe and many more that are equally as awesome. You may have noticed there is a way to search for recipes based on ingredients or type (on the right hand side of the recipe page). As more and more recipes are added this should become a pretty nice list of go-to dishes for you. The ability to search by ingredient will also allow you to find something you’ve got on hand and turn it into something I’ve made in my blog posts/recipes.
Mushroom risotto is one of my favorites and mushrooms go so well with corn, so I brainstormed and came up with a charred sweet corn risotto with marinated portabella mushrooms and herbed goat cheese...and a crispy bread crumb/herb topping. And yes, it’s relatively healthy – pretty exciting, huh? What, you are scared of “charred” corn? You shouldn’t be.
Charring is not difficult to accomplish and note that it is NOT the same as burning your corn. You are using the natural sugars in the corn and effectively caramelizing them to create a slightly smoky and deeper corn flavor. Simply grill your ears of corn over high heat, flipping them a quarter turn every two minutes or so. Let them cool off a little before cutting the kernels off the cob to avoid charring your fingers as well...ha! Set them aside and get some chicken stock (or veggie stock....or seafood stock...) heating up on medium heat.
You want to use warm stock because if you add cold/lukewarm stock to your risotto as you go, you’re constantly bringing down the temperature of the rice and it’ll take much longer to cook. As far as rice goes, you’ll want to use a short grain variety such as arborio which is pretty easy to find and won’t break the bank. The idea behind risotto is that you’re constantly stirring it and releasing the starches from the rice so that it has a certain “creaminess” that gives it a luxurious mouth feel. As mentioned before, restaurants use a lot of cheese and butter to achieve this, but it’s totally not necessary.
It’s nice to have a little textural difference when you’ve got something that’s creamy, right? The charred corn will accomplish that to some extent, but I thought it’d be nice to step that up one more notch with some herbed bread crumbs. Panko bread crumbs, regular bread crumbs, fresh herbs, and a little salt/pepper...toasted in a small amount of olive oil for a minute or two and there you have it...crunchy texture awesomeness.
You want to use warm stock because if you add cold/lukewarm stock to your risotto as you go, you’re constantly bringing down the temperature of the rice and it’ll take much longer to cook. As far as rice goes, you’ll want to use a short grain variety such as arborio which is pretty easy to find and won’t break the bank. The idea behind risotto is that you’re constantly stirring it and releasing the starches from the rice so that it has a certain “creaminess” that gives it a luxurious mouth feel. As mentioned before, restaurants use a lot of cheese and butter to achieve this, but it’s totally not necessary.
It’s nice to have a little textural difference when you’ve got something that’s creamy, right? The charred corn will accomplish that to some extent, but I thought it’d be nice to step that up one more notch with some herbed bread crumbs. Panko bread crumbs, regular bread crumbs, fresh herbs, and a little salt/pepper...toasted in a small amount of olive oil for a minute or two and there you have it...crunchy texture awesomeness.
For the portabella mushrooms, just scoop out the gills with a spoon. They come out easily and leave a bit of space that you can fill with crab, breading, or whatever you’d like. Stick them in a plastic bag or vacuum seal them with 3-4 minced cloves of garlic, ¼ c balsamic or red wine vinegar, 1 tbsp olive oil, and a tablespoon or two of fresh parsley. 20 minutes is plenty of time since mushrooms soak up flavor like nobody’s business. I’d say an hour tops for this, as the vinegar could overpower the mushroom if they soak for too long.
You’re stirring the rice, ladling in stock as it evaporates from the risotto, and the mushrooms are marinating. Bread crumbs are ready. Life is good. Take a deep breath and decide if you want to add some herbed goat cheese to the equation. I did this and decided this particular time that I was going for it. Take some of the herbs you used for the bread crumbs (I used oregano/thyme/parsley) and chop them up finely...mix them into some plain goat cheese and you’re done. Herbed goat cheese! Fancy.
The mushrooms can be grilled in about 2-3 minutes once they’re removed from the marinade. It might be a little longer if you elect to use the indoor grill pan (3-5 minutes or so). The risotto rice is ready when you take a bite and like the texture. Everyone is different. Italians and myself tend to prefer a more al dente (slight chew to the rice) preparation as opposed to most Americans who tend to like their rice cooked a bit more thoroughly (read: mushy). Also, because you’re spending the entire time adding liquid slowly, this is when you want to taste for seasoning. When the rice is done to your liking, turn the heat off, stir in the parmesan cheese, and add salt/pepper in whatever amount suits you.
Serve it up with your mushrooms, which may or may not be filled with herbed goat cheese, depending on your preference...and sprinkle the prepared bread crumbs on top. It’s a wonderful summer dish which should be different with every bite. None of that boring textured risotto stuff for us.
The risotto recipe can be printed by clicking here or you can visit the recipe page here (where there is also a printable version available). Recipes for the portabella mushrooms, bread crumbs, and goat cheese are below.
There are a few notes that I’d like to make about risotto, just because I’m a little concerned that some of you may avoid making this because you’re maybe a bit intimidated by risotto or the thought of making it yourself. So yeah, I’m looking to quell those irrational fears.
For those of you who aren’t scurrrred, go forth and enjoy!
Notes for risotto:
1. Use a short grain rice such as arborio.
2. Onions can be used instead of shallots. White wine can be used instead of dry vermouth. Serranos can be replaced with jalapenos or you can omit the peppers entirely if you want to eliminate the Texas twist.
3. Err on the side of not enough liquid. Add a small ladleful of stock every time the liquid is almost completely evaporated. Make sure you are ladling in warm stock, not cold or room temperature.
4. Stir constantly, as that releases the starches and makes your risotto “creamier.”
5. Season at the end of cooking. Doing so too early could result in an inedibly salty risotto since you are constantly adding liquid and the risotto is soaking up flavor the entire time it’s cooking.
6. Everyone has different preferences on rice doneness. Test a grain after about 30 minutes of cooking and thereafter about every 2-3 minutes until it’s where you like it.
7. Don’t be scared...this isn’t rocket science and it’s a pretty impressive dish, especially if you’re serving it to someone who doesn’t eat risotto often (or ever).
Portabella Mushrooms
Remove gills from two portabella mushroom caps. Marinate in zip lock (or vacuum sealed plastic bag) with 1/4 cup of balsamic or red wine vinegar, 3-4 cloves of minced garlic, and a tablespoon of fresh chopped parsley. Grill for 3-5 minutes.
Herbed Bread Crumbs
Take 1 tbsp each of bread crumbs and Panko bread crumbs, mix with 1 tsp fresh minced herbs (such as oregano/thyme/parsley) and a sprinkling of salt/pepper. Toast in 1 tsp olive oil for 1-2 minutes until golden.
Herbed Goat Cheese
Simply mix 1 tbsp plain goat cheese with 1/2 tsp fresh minced herbs (such as oregano/thyme/parsley).
Split the goat cheese between the two portabella mushrooms (on the side where you scooped out the gills) and put on top of the risotto. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs to finish the dish. This is all optional and will make this a meal rather than a side dish. In that case, it will serve two people instead of four.
Obtaining local tomatoes from a farmer’s market or CSA box (which is where I got these from) will lead to the discovery that while the grocery store offers a somewhat decent tomato, there is a far more amazing world of tomato-ey possibilities out there. Excited yet? You should be.
Sure, you could just take some tomatoes and top them with salt, pepper, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar...and maybe some herbs...and some feta or fresh mozzarella. You know, something kind of simple, like this:
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you want to really bring out the flavor in a preparation like this, put the salt on the cut up tomatoes first and let it sit for 5-10 minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients. The salt pulls the moisture out of the tomato, which effectively concentrates the flavor and makes a great tomato an out of this world tomato.
That preparation is all fine and good, and honestly a lot of my consumption of tomatoes is in the form of a tomato salad of some variety. It’s difficult to beat it in terms of simplicity and overall flavor, but if you had to have just one tomato recipe that was the most versatile and delicious, it would have to be a chunky tomato sauce. It can go on just about anything (eggplant, pasta, okra, green beans, squash, etc) and is an extremely healthy sauce as well. Spaghetti squash really isn’t in its prime season, but I was sort of craving it and there were some small ones at the farmer's market, so that’s what I decided to pair the sauce with this time.
The best idea for roasting the squash is to turn the oven up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and while it’s heating up, cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle the cut side with olive oil, salt, and pepper and place it cut side up on a sheet pan. It seems like most people add water to a pan and put the squash face down, but you’re sacrificing texture by steaming the thing instead of actually roasting it. Not only that, but roasting it this way is faster. Anyhow, prep the sauce ingredients as the oven continues to heat up and by the time your squash is headed into the oven you should have put a dent into all that prep work.
There are a few tricks that can make your life easier. Garlic and onions are often two of the most time-consuming prep ingredients for people, but I’ve got you covered. Check out these videos (one of which includes a helpful kitchen hack which will especially be helpful if you’re doubling this recipe). Enjoy the garlic video world premiere and ignore the nonsense in the middle...I was trying to make sure it was well shaken, not stirred.
If you don’t like skins on your tomatoes, there’s also a kitchen hack for that. Boil some water, cut an “X” shape in the skin of each tomato, and toss them in for about 30 seconds. Remove them to an ice water bath and the skin should easily come off the tomato. I happen to like the skins on my tomatoes, so I skip that step. Seed removal is also optional...again, that doesn’t bother me, but if it bothers you then you can slice around the sides. Now that I’ve talked about this so much, I guess there should probably be a video demonstrating it, huh? (Stay tuned)
There’s also a trick for fresh herbs which involves removing them from the stems easily by pulling down the stem in the opposite direction from which the leaves are growing. Once they’re off the stems, chopping them up finely can be done quite easily using the methods in my knife skills video (watch the last thirty seconds for the fine-chopped herb method).
Anyhow, cut everything up really quickly and toss it all into a saucepan. Red pepper flakes for heat, lemon juice/balsamic vinegar for boosted acidity, herbs for a boost of flavor, garlic/onions for depth of awesomeness (yes, that’s a thing), and olive oil to mellow the whole thing out. No way this can be bad, right? Bring the mixture to a boil and then turn it down to medium or slightly lower heat, cover, and let it do its thing (with an occasional stir) until the squash has cooked for about 35 minutes in the oven.
Give the tomato sauce one last taste to see if it needs more salt/pepper/heat/acid and then start divying it up between the spaghetti squash shells. It should fill them up pretty well.
If you are so inclined, grab a microplane or fine grater of some sort and top the mixture with a very small amount of cheese. Take it easy on that, but give it a little snowing of cheese across the top and put it back in the oven (still on 450) for another 12-15 minutes. This is an easy service and clean-up dish which is contained within the spaghetti squash shell. As mentioned, this sauce can be served with various other accompaniments, so if you’re not a fan of spaghetti squash or have trouble finding it in the store (you shouldn’t), there are plenty of things the sauce will go well with.
What you end up with is an extremely herbaceous, zesty (as spicy as you want, really), and slightly chunky sauce that would likely taste good on a shoe. DISCLAIMER: Do NOT put this sauce on a shoe and eat it...it WILL taste good, but spaghetti squash is a much better delivery method. Although each half of the spaghetti squash is meant to feed one person as a meal, you may want to serve this as a side paired with a piece of grilled meat, in which case this would actually serve about four people fairly easily.
Click here for the printable recipe or visit the recipe page (which also has a printable recipe and a link back to this blog post). Enjoy!
Let’s be honest though. What percentage of the time do you opt for the eating out over the eating in? Probably more often than you’d like to admit. Convenience? Sure, it’s convenient...but at what cost? What are they actually putting in your food when you eat out? Even if it’s “healthy,” chances are you have no idea. Let’s discuss the implications of your decision.
Monetary Cost
In my financial advising meetings, the most commonly underestimated expense is the one associated with eating out. It’s also one of the first budgetary items that is reduced when people are wanting to save money. Why? Because when you go to a restaurant, you’re not just paying a mark-up that is typically THREE times what the food cost is, you are also paying applicable sales tax (that’s 8.25% here in Texas) and you’re tipping 15-20%’ish. If you buy a dessert or alcoholic beverage, now you’re starting to really hit your wallet hard. How about an example with numbers?
You order an eight ounce pork chop with green beans and roasted new potatoes. That's relatively healthy, but let’s say the cost is $15 at a restaurant. You order an iced tea for $2. You’re taxed 8.25% and you leave a 20% tip on the total bill with food and tax included. Your total cost for one meal is just over $22.00. Instead, you could make my pork chop with cherry sauce and the green beans with new potatoes and hazelnuts at a cost of approximately $3 for the pork chop/cherries and approximately $2 for the green beans and potatoes. You can make a whole pot of high quality tea for 50 cents or less.
In my financial advising meetings, the most commonly underestimated expense is the one associated with eating out. It’s also one of the first budgetary items that is reduced when people are wanting to save money. Why? Because when you go to a restaurant, you’re not just paying a mark-up that is typically THREE times what the food cost is, you are also paying applicable sales tax (that’s 8.25% here in Texas) and you’re tipping 15-20%’ish. If you buy a dessert or alcoholic beverage, now you’re starting to really hit your wallet hard. How about an example with numbers?
You order an eight ounce pork chop with green beans and roasted new potatoes. That's relatively healthy, but let’s say the cost is $15 at a restaurant. You order an iced tea for $2. You’re taxed 8.25% and you leave a 20% tip on the total bill with food and tax included. Your total cost for one meal is just over $22.00. Instead, you could make my pork chop with cherry sauce and the green beans with new potatoes and hazelnuts at a cost of approximately $3 for the pork chop/cherries and approximately $2 for the green beans and potatoes. You can make a whole pot of high quality tea for 50 cents or less.
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Your total cost of this gourmet at-home meal is just over $5 per person instead of $22 per person at the restaurant. In other words, you could serve your entire family of four for less than you can serve one person at a restaurant AND you know exactly what’s going into it.
It’s also important to note that in most states there is no tax on edible groceries. There are some exceptions for processed food items, but fresh produce/meat/etcetera isn’t taxed (at least here in Texas). So you’re already paying the standard THREE TIMES the food cost PLUS an obligatory 8.25% sales tax PLUS a 15-20% convenience charge for service. Or you can just pay the price of the ingredients without any tax and pocket the rest.
Health Cost
As time goes on, it becomes a habit to hit your favorite place once, twice, or maybe three times a month (or once/twice/thrice a week, if you’re really stuck on it). Do you know exactly what’s in what you’re eating? I would venture a guess that you don’t. Think of it this way – the restaurant’s goal is to get you to come back as a repeat customer, and they’re willing to put any addictive ingredient necessary into the food to make you crave it and come back for more. Butter, sugar, salt, cream, and cheese...do they taste good? Oh yeah, of course. Problem is that you have no control over how much of each is going into your body and you’re well aware of the fact that the restaurant isn’t too awful concerned about that particular aspect. Again, they want to create a craving and, consequently, a repeat customer. Many restaurants are doing so at the expense of your health.
Most chain-type restaurants have their nutrition facts listed on their website or you can find them on My Fitness Pal (this is what I use for nutrition facts on my recipes on this website). Check out the ones that you frequent regularly and determine if maybe it’d be advisable to cut back on the number of visits you make each month for the sake of your health.
Conclusion
Eating out is expensive...when it comes to your wallet and to your health. If you’ve been wanting to cut spending or drop a few pounds, consider taking a closer look at the number of restaurant visits you make per month, how much you spend per trip, and the nutritional value of the common items you’re ordering. That could be the culprit and what is standing between you and your sound physical and fiscal health.
Additional Notes
1. I love eating out and have had to cut back on it because of the above reasons. Sometimes there is no other option (you’re traveling, it’s late, or you’re literally overloaded and don’t have time to mess with cooking/cleaning up), but try to choose the healthy option if you have to do this often.
2. Some ways to eat healthier at a restaurant: choose salads with vinaigrettes instead of creamy dressings, stick with lean proteins (chicken breast/turkey/pork chop/fish/seafood), ask for olive oil instead of butter, avoid items with excessive amounts of cheese, order vegetables that are grilled or steamed, limit your bread intake, stay away from fried items (yes, a fried vegetable is bad for you), and skip the dessert.
3. If you’re eating healthily at home most of the time, working out consistently, and you’re using a restaurant visit as an occasional “cheat” meal, then I’d actually encourage this if it makes sense within your budget. Don’t perceive this as the Fiscally Fit Foodie giving the go-ahead to eat out whenever you feel like it, but once in a while is fine if you can afford it.
4. If possible, when eating out, do a little research on the sourcing of the restaurant...or ask them on site where their product is sourced from. Local produce, meats, and other ingredients are likely fresher, higher quality (road less traveled, literally), and you’re also supporting the local community.
5. Lunches are often overlooked. You may be spending $10-$12 (or more) on a lunch every day and think nothing of it. A grilled chicken salad with a vinaigrette is healthy, but if you’re paying $12 a day for it and you’re doing it five days a week...$60/week or over $3000/year on your lunches...scary. This may not be a lot for you, so obviously it’s situational, but it is something to keep in mind when you’re planning your lunches for the week.
]]>It’s also important to note that in most states there is no tax on edible groceries. There are some exceptions for processed food items, but fresh produce/meat/etcetera isn’t taxed (at least here in Texas). So you’re already paying the standard THREE TIMES the food cost PLUS an obligatory 8.25% sales tax PLUS a 15-20% convenience charge for service. Or you can just pay the price of the ingredients without any tax and pocket the rest.
Health Cost
As time goes on, it becomes a habit to hit your favorite place once, twice, or maybe three times a month (or once/twice/thrice a week, if you’re really stuck on it). Do you know exactly what’s in what you’re eating? I would venture a guess that you don’t. Think of it this way – the restaurant’s goal is to get you to come back as a repeat customer, and they’re willing to put any addictive ingredient necessary into the food to make you crave it and come back for more. Butter, sugar, salt, cream, and cheese...do they taste good? Oh yeah, of course. Problem is that you have no control over how much of each is going into your body and you’re well aware of the fact that the restaurant isn’t too awful concerned about that particular aspect. Again, they want to create a craving and, consequently, a repeat customer. Many restaurants are doing so at the expense of your health.
Most chain-type restaurants have their nutrition facts listed on their website or you can find them on My Fitness Pal (this is what I use for nutrition facts on my recipes on this website). Check out the ones that you frequent regularly and determine if maybe it’d be advisable to cut back on the number of visits you make each month for the sake of your health.
Conclusion
Eating out is expensive...when it comes to your wallet and to your health. If you’ve been wanting to cut spending or drop a few pounds, consider taking a closer look at the number of restaurant visits you make per month, how much you spend per trip, and the nutritional value of the common items you’re ordering. That could be the culprit and what is standing between you and your sound physical and fiscal health.
Additional Notes
1. I love eating out and have had to cut back on it because of the above reasons. Sometimes there is no other option (you’re traveling, it’s late, or you’re literally overloaded and don’t have time to mess with cooking/cleaning up), but try to choose the healthy option if you have to do this often.
2. Some ways to eat healthier at a restaurant: choose salads with vinaigrettes instead of creamy dressings, stick with lean proteins (chicken breast/turkey/pork chop/fish/seafood), ask for olive oil instead of butter, avoid items with excessive amounts of cheese, order vegetables that are grilled or steamed, limit your bread intake, stay away from fried items (yes, a fried vegetable is bad for you), and skip the dessert.
3. If you’re eating healthily at home most of the time, working out consistently, and you’re using a restaurant visit as an occasional “cheat” meal, then I’d actually encourage this if it makes sense within your budget. Don’t perceive this as the Fiscally Fit Foodie giving the go-ahead to eat out whenever you feel like it, but once in a while is fine if you can afford it.
4. If possible, when eating out, do a little research on the sourcing of the restaurant...or ask them on site where their product is sourced from. Local produce, meats, and other ingredients are likely fresher, higher quality (road less traveled, literally), and you’re also supporting the local community.
5. Lunches are often overlooked. You may be spending $10-$12 (or more) on a lunch every day and think nothing of it. A grilled chicken salad with a vinaigrette is healthy, but if you’re paying $12 a day for it and you’re doing it five days a week...$60/week or over $3000/year on your lunches...scary. This may not be a lot for you, so obviously it’s situational, but it is something to keep in mind when you’re planning your lunches for the week.
The figs on my tree have been ripening in my fridge for 2-3 days and, as you can see, they’re just about perfect. Very soft, but not so much that they’ve gone overboard (not mushy).
Naturally, honey and figs are a wonderful pairing. I probably could have just stopped there and been fine. But that would be too easy...I decided it needed a little sophistication and an unexpected pop of flavor. Drinking a chai tea earlier in the week gave me the idea of adding cardamom to the equation.
Cardamom is a wonderfully floral spice that is most often used in Indian cuisine. Chai tea, Indian rice pudding, and many savory Indian dishes contain this ingredient. The green pods (there are brown/black as well) are the optimal cardamom pods for culinary purposes, so stick with those if given the choice.
The outer shell (referred to as the husks) of the cardamom are thin and edible, although if you’re trying to grind them straight up, you will encounter issues with the grinder not breaking them down thoroughly. That being the case, it is best to toast the cardamom in the pods and then grind them slightly with a mortar and pestle prior to tossing them in to be completely ground up. So take your green cardamom pods, toss them into a skillet/pan for about a minute or two until they’re slightly brownish on the edges...shaking the pan occasionally to make sure they’re toasted on all sides. Then toss them into a mortar and grind them with the pestle. You should end up with something that looks very similar to this:
As you can see, it is a lot different looking than the original green pods. That’s because all the magic is hiding inside the pod and you’ve now released the goodness. Toss the green shells, being sure to remove the brown seeds/inside part of the cardamom. Toss all of this into a food processor with the honey and figs and a touch of water and give it a whir. That goes into a sauce pan (same one you used to toast the cardamom is fine) and is combined with lemon juice and is cooked for about 5-6 minutes on medium heat. You’re looking for a “jam” consistency. Watery will not work...something a little gel-like is perfect. Give it a taste to see if you need more honey. Wow, that’s good, huh?
You’ve just made something insanely good that took about 10 minutes combined. Not bad, huh? Serve with crackers, cheese (careful!), on wheat toast, or you know...on just about anything you want to taste better. Click here for the printable recipe or you can go to the recipe page for an online version of it (there’s a printable version linked on that page if you change your mind too). Enjoy this while the figs are in season!
Yep, that's my fig tree - it seems to love this Texas summer heat!
So what do you do with 150 figs in a short period of time? Well, you eat some as-is, of course. You also can dehydrate some for later, grill them, candy them, make a sauce, or make FIG JAM (I’ll give you this little gem in the next post). 2014 was the first year when I got a significant yield from my tree, and I decided to invent a dish that is much more outside-the-box...
My goal was to create something a little more worthy of a tree that fought back from what I thought was certain death. I had just bought half of a grass fed cow from a local farmer and had a beautiful looking chuck roast, so pairing the figs seemed like a great idea.
Grass-fed beef is far leaner than the grain-fed variety. It is also significantly lower in cholesterol and contains about five times the Omega 3s. It also has about twice as much conjugated linoleic acid as grain-fed beef. I’ve already spoken with my grass-fed beef provider at A Better Way Beef and will be doing a blog post all about grass fed beef sometime in the near future. I’m planning on doing an interview with him, so we’ll talk more about the benefits/difference between grass-fed and grain-fed beef in that post. But for now, back to the topic at hand...FIGS.
Ah yes, beautiful, aren’t they? Most people have only had figs in Fig Newtons...and that’s not an accurate representation of what they’ve got to offer flavorwise. Anyhow, I determined that adding a few aromatics and flavor-boosting ingredients to my creation would be ideal. Enter dried guajillo chilies, garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, cloves, cinnamon, and dried cherries.
Because of its lean nature, grass-fed beef is ideally cooked at a low temperature for a long period of time, so I opted for a simple Crock Pot cooking/braising approach. Any good braise requires liquid that covers the meat, so I added beef stock, red wine, balsamic vinegar, and the pureed figs.
All of this is cooked on high in the slow cooker for about three hours, and then for another 7-8 hours on low. At this point the beef should be incredibly tender and any bones in the roast should just slide right out. I remove the 2-3 little bones and any excess fat (there shouldn’t be much, especially if you use grass-fed beef).
Strain the remaining braising liquid through cheesecloth or a sieve and you’ll have a smooth liquid. Add the beef to this liquid and I typically put all of it in the fridge overnight. This gives an added depth of flavor to the beef. You can also skim any additional fat off the top easier after it’s been cooled and the fat rises to the top (at this point it should be extremely minimal).
Add the beef to a saucepan on medium/high heat and cook the beef/liquid for approximately 10 minutes. You are reducing the liquid and concentrating the wonderful flavors you’ve taken all this time to incorporate. When the liquid is slightly viscous, you can turn off the heat, taste for salt/pepper content (add if needed), and serve with your choice of roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes, or my personal favorite, mashed sweet potatoes with caramelized onions.
Click here for the printable PDF version of this fig-braised beef roast or click here to go to the recipe page! This is a crowd-pleasing dish and is something special to serve your nearest and dearest ones once a year when figs are abundant. The greatest thing about it is the sit-it-and-forget-it aspect that goes along with slow cooking in a Crock Pot. Enjoy!
Notes for figs:
1. Once they are picked from the tree, they have a really short shelf life if not refrigerated (1-2 days, tops).
2. Refrigerate the figs to extend their shelf life for up to 5 days.
3. If you have extra figs and don’t know what to do with them, make preserves/jam (I will give you a post on a delicious jam I created within the next couple of days).
4. Dehydrating the figs is also a great way to preserve them if you have too many (as if!).
5. Figs are ripe when they are slightly soft to the touch...the softer they are, the more ripe they are (and sweeter as well). If they’ve gone past soft to mushy, then you’re probably going to have to toss them. You’ll notice a discoloration of the interior when this occurs.
It’s a good idea to have some hot water, a paper towel, and a towel readily available. For the most part that covers the primary cleaning of all of these, but every so often you neglect the cookware or burn something and have it stick (eek!) and something more drastic is required. Don’t worry, this is fixable. Well, the pan part of that equation is fixable anyhow. You might want to consider starting over on that burnt food, however!
Cleaning Non-Stick Cookware
This is by far the easiest cookware to clean. NEVER spray non-stick spray on this surface as it will leave sticky residue. It’s already got a non-stick coating, so adding non-stick spray to it is not helpful. As the name indicates, there isn’t really much that sticks to it, so clean-up requires minimal effort. While the pan is still hot, run it under warm water, add a touch of soap, and wipe it out with the soft side of a sponge to avoid scratching the surface while removing whatever residue may remain. In rare instances when something will not come off of this surface, mix a quarter cup of distilled white vinegar with a half cup of water and repeat with the soft side of your sponge. DO NOT put this in the dishwasher.
Remember that non-stick surfaces can easily be scratched and these pans do not last indefinitely, so being gentle with them is a necessity for longevity. And by longevity I’m talking about 4-5 years of use if you get a high quality one and are lucky. Silicone, plastic, or wood utensils are best for these.
Cleaning Stainless Steel Cookware
This is a non-porous surface that can be cleaned between uses with soap, water, and the rough side of a sponge. There shouldn’t be much residual grime on the cookware if you do this after every use. Occasionally you will get some discoloration on the bottom of the pan (burnt-on food and normal discoloration). The tougher solution for this is Bar Keeper’s Friend, which will remove the brown discoloration on the pan. Wash by hand if possible, even though most stainless steel cookware is dishwasher safe. Watch the video for the full breakdown of how to clean a piece of stainless steel cookware:
This is by far the easiest cookware to clean. NEVER spray non-stick spray on this surface as it will leave sticky residue. It’s already got a non-stick coating, so adding non-stick spray to it is not helpful. As the name indicates, there isn’t really much that sticks to it, so clean-up requires minimal effort. While the pan is still hot, run it under warm water, add a touch of soap, and wipe it out with the soft side of a sponge to avoid scratching the surface while removing whatever residue may remain. In rare instances when something will not come off of this surface, mix a quarter cup of distilled white vinegar with a half cup of water and repeat with the soft side of your sponge. DO NOT put this in the dishwasher.
Remember that non-stick surfaces can easily be scratched and these pans do not last indefinitely, so being gentle with them is a necessity for longevity. And by longevity I’m talking about 4-5 years of use if you get a high quality one and are lucky. Silicone, plastic, or wood utensils are best for these.
Cleaning Stainless Steel Cookware
This is a non-porous surface that can be cleaned between uses with soap, water, and the rough side of a sponge. There shouldn’t be much residual grime on the cookware if you do this after every use. Occasionally you will get some discoloration on the bottom of the pan (burnt-on food and normal discoloration). The tougher solution for this is Bar Keeper’s Friend, which will remove the brown discoloration on the pan. Wash by hand if possible, even though most stainless steel cookware is dishwasher safe. Watch the video for the full breakdown of how to clean a piece of stainless steel cookware:
Cleaning Cast Iron Cookware
This is a porous surface, so try to avoid using soap when you clean it. DO NOT put this in the dishwasher. As soon as you’re done cooking with it, wipe out as much residue as you can with a paper towel that has been dipped in warm water. Put the cast iron back on the burner for another couple minutes to make sure all the water has been evaporated as any residual water will cause rust on the pan. If you’ve still got a bit of residue, try adding some salt to the bottom of the cast iron pan with a touch of water and see if the grittiness helps to remove that layer of dirt. If all else fails you can use a sponge, but use the soft side if you can. At this point you’ve either neglected the pan, it’s old, or both. Once you’ve wiped out the cast iron pan completely, “season” it with a layer of oil to create a barrier between the porous surface and everything else. If you’re still not sure about this procedure, check out this video:
As you can see, cookware isn’t difficult to clean if you keep up with it regularly between uses. If you happen to encounter the occasional burnt-on mess or natural discoloration occurs there are ways to save the cookware without tossing it, so no need to fear. Enjoy your cookware and keep it clean. Now you know how!
Note: I will receive a small percentage of the sale of anything through the following link – Bar Keeper’s Friend for cleaning up stainless steel cookware (as seen in the video).
We discussed some approaches we could take, and I determined we should can some, turn some into preserves, and pickle some of them. Did you say “ew, pickled peaches?” Probably because you associate the word “pickled” with salty things (like, say....pickles), right? In reality, pickling is simply something that has been soaked in vinegar with spices of some variety added. For our purposes the spice was sugar, not salt. Trust me, there’s nothing “ew” about that.
After a little discussion, deliberation, and divvying up of tasks...we determined how we were going to approach the preservation of all 40 pounds of these juicy behemoths. It would require blanching/skinning the peaches first, lots of lemon juice (squeezed on the peaches to preserve their integrity, both in texture and color), a pressure cooker and bread maker for the canning and preserves, respectively, lots of jars (which my friends brought with them), and some dedication to the task at hand. All of the equipment we used is outlined below. You know, just in case you ever want to follow in our footsteps.
Naturally, our first course of action after devising our plan of attack was to leave the house to go get Indian food. Whoops. Anyway, while at the store stocking up on lemons, I had a crazy idea pop into my head – how about we make some mango-mint-peach preserves in addition to the traditional ones? There wasn’t too much resistance, so we grabbed everything and headed back to my house to carry out our master plan for the peach extravaganza.
We began by scoring the peaches (put an X into the skin with a knife) and blanching them (cooked at a high heat and then removed with a spider directly to cold water) for about a minute each. There was a bowl for the peach skins and pits, and you can see from the pictures that this is a slightly messy process. Luckily, my assistants had the situation under control.
After a little discussion, deliberation, and divvying up of tasks...we determined how we were going to approach the preservation of all 40 pounds of these juicy behemoths. It would require blanching/skinning the peaches first, lots of lemon juice (squeezed on the peaches to preserve their integrity, both in texture and color), a pressure cooker and bread maker for the canning and preserves, respectively, lots of jars (which my friends brought with them), and some dedication to the task at hand. All of the equipment we used is outlined below. You know, just in case you ever want to follow in our footsteps.
Naturally, our first course of action after devising our plan of attack was to leave the house to go get Indian food. Whoops. Anyway, while at the store stocking up on lemons, I had a crazy idea pop into my head – how about we make some mango-mint-peach preserves in addition to the traditional ones? There wasn’t too much resistance, so we grabbed everything and headed back to my house to carry out our master plan for the peach extravaganza.
We began by scoring the peaches (put an X into the skin with a knife) and blanching them (cooked at a high heat and then removed with a spider directly to cold water) for about a minute each. There was a bowl for the peach skins and pits, and you can see from the pictures that this is a slightly messy process. Luckily, my assistants had the situation under control.
After they were completely peeled and pitted, we cut them up into eighths, placed them in a non-reactive roasting pan, and squeezed lemon juice over them to keep them from oxidizing/turning brown.
What was I doing while they were cutting all of these up? Supervising, of course. Well, that and further detailing a plan for how we were going to process all of the peaches in a timely/effective manner. Here’s what I came up with:
1. Peach preserves (regular) – mix peaches with pectin, sugar, lemon juice – pulse in food processor and let sit for 30 minutes, then put in bread maker on the jam cycle for another 1 hour and 20 minutes.
2. Pickled peaches – with a rough ratio of 3-4 parts sugar, 1 part water, and 1 part vinegar...the base for these was rather simple. The liquid was cooked for about 3-4 minutes so that the sugar could be dissolved in it. Added to each jar: 1 star anise pod, a cinnamon stick, and peaches studded with 1-2 cloves per slice.
3. Canned peaches – syrup made with 6 cups of water and 1 cup of sugar. Could use more sugar for a sweeter syrup, or could go straight fruit juice as well.
4. Peach/mango/mint preserves – same as regular preserves, but partial replacement of peaches with one regular sized mango and an addition of 3-4 tablespoons of chopped fresh mint.
Getting the first batch of peach preserves going (since this was going to take the longest by far) was priority, so we whirred up the preserve mixture and got the bread maker working for us. After about an hour and a half, here’s what we ended up with:
We did a double batch in an attempt to save time and obviously double our yield, so it could have used another 20-30 minutes on low heat, stirring occasionally...to obtain a thicker texture. Do keep in mind if you’re making this that it will become slightly more gellified at refrigerated temperatures. You can also adjust the sugar content to your liking (we went on the less sweet side of things), or use an alternate form of sweetener. I think next time we do this, that will be our approach. Agave nectar or Stevia would most likely work pretty well with any of the methods we experimented with.
Anyhow, after the preserves were going we started on the pickled peaches. Michael did a spectacular job of studding the peaches with 1-2 cloves per slice (do not eat the cloves...you’ll regret it). The flavor they bring to the party is incredible and well worth a little extra time to do this.
We put the clove-studded peaches in a jar with a cinnamon stick and star anise pod and simply poured the cooled down pickling liquid over them before we sealed them up in the pressure cooker (aim for about 20 minutes at 10-12 PSI for sealing the jars).
We then turned our attention to the regular canned peaches. There are many ways to do this, depending on your taste. You can use fruit juice, water, alter the sugar content, or use an alternate sweetener. We made a syrup that was about 3:1 on the water to sugar ratio, with a couple tablespoons of vinegar added to prevent discoloration of the jars during canning.
At this point the first batch of preserves were about done and we’d already pulsed together some fresh mango, peach, pectin, sugar, and mint in a mini food processor and let it sit for about half an hour.
Another hour and some change in the bread maker while we sealed the pickled peaches and regular canned peaches and then we sealed those up too.
If you wanted to make preserves without a bread maker (which does the work for you), it’s simply a matter of putting the mixture on the stove and cooking at a low temperature for about an hour and a half until everything has become jam-like (whatever consistency you prefer).
So the final yield was:
1. 7 jars of pickled peaches
2. 6 jars of regular canned peaches
3. 4 small jars of peach preserves
4. 3 small jars of peach/mango/mint preserves
Notes about peaches and this preservation process :
1. When choosing a peach for preservation, you want it to be mostly firm so that through the canning process it maintains its integrity.
2. Always use lemon juice/citric acid as you’re cutting up the peaches to cover all sides and prevent browning/oxidation.
3. A peach will not get any sweeter once it’s been removed from the tree, but it will continue to get softer. So if you get a hard peach at a store, don’t expect as much inherent sweetness.
4. Pack the peaches tightly in the pickled peach jars especially, as the pickling process will cause the peaches to shrink a little bit and they’ll float to the top.
5. A pressure cooker can be used for canning. Make sure there is at least 3 inches of water in the bottom of the pressure cooker and that the jars are elevated (on a rack) so that they don’t crack.
6. To seal the jars properly, about 20 minutes at a PSI of 10-12 is ideal.
7. Use a couple tablespoons of vinegar in the canned peach juice/syrup to prevent discoloration of jars.
All of the methods and ratios we used are listed above, and sugar (or sugar substitute) preferences will vary greatly, so taste as you go and adjust to your liking. That’s code speak for there won’t be any recipes listed here, but if you want to recreate any of these things, you have the recipes within the blog (or you can message me if you need tips on anything). Enjoy peach season!
When you think of a sweet something-or-other with cherries, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Close your eyes and visualize it. What did you see? Oh, you were thinking about just plopping them in your mouth and eating them, huh? Nah, you want to do something more creative than that. How about pairing them with some chocolate? Perhaps some vanilla, cinnamon, or almonds? Well, I’ve created a recipe with some version of all of these things which can function as a dessert OR a breakfast. Excited yet? Keep on reading!
I know we’ve already covered this in a previous post, but for those new to the blog or who maybe missed that post, please watch this short kitchen hack for cherries. It’s well worth the minute and a half of watch time for a recipe like this that requires a couple cups of cherries!
See, that was easy! So I was sitting in my infamous round chair trying to come up with a combination of ingredients to complement the fresh cherries I’d just purchased and (note: I’ll receive a small percentage of compensation for anything purchased through links in this post) referenced my favorite book, The Flavor Bible, for a reminder on what else might go well with the cherries. After tons of deliberation, I controlled my urge to use every single ingredient that went well with cherries and came up with a plan of attack!
Pancakes. Of course that was what my mind came up with first. Not just any pancakes, however. Dark chocolate cherry pancakes with a cherry balsamic sauce. Now it was all a matter of constructing the batter, something to go on top of it, and making it all fit within the confines of a Fiscally Fit Foodie recipe. Piece of cake...piece of pancake. So for the batter: organic/unbleached wheat flour, skim milk, clover honey, a couple farm fresh eggs, a little coconut oil, some vanilla and almond extract, a pinch of salt, baking powder, cinnamon powder, and 100% cacao - Dutch processed dark chocolate cocoa powder. Mix it all together and add a few cherry pieces and you get this glossy, magical mixture of goodness...
There is an air of decadence that oozes from this stuff, but you’ll be surprised to know that it’s relatively tame as far as indulgences go, it’s got no added sugar (just honey), and the dark chocolate (VERY high cacao content) cocoa powder gives it a unique and slightly bitter quality that pairs nicely with the honey and cherries. The cherry balsamic sauce is made with chopped up and crushed fresh cherries that are still in their juices and combined with water, honey, and balsamic vinegar to create a bit of depth of flavor to go along with that mild sweetness.
You’ve assembled the pancake batter and the sauce, and now it’s all about the pancake creation. Get a non-stick skillet and heat it on medium heat for a minute or two to bring it up to temperature (no oil). Scoop a couple half cups of batter out of your batter bowl and dump them into your skillet, spaced about an inch apart if you can. Cook on the first side for about 3-4 minutes or until the top side looks just about like this:
Once you see a few bubbles and the bottom is set with a nice crust, flip it over with a non-metal utensil (metal will scratch your non-stick pan) and cook for 15-30 more seconds. You want to cook it just enough so it’s set completely, but you don’t want to overcook it and sacrifice the fluffy texture that makes these so wonderful.
Remove to a plate and serve them up! Top with the reserved balsamic cherry pieces, some pistachio or almond pieces, maybe a coconut milk drizzle (or regular fat free half and half), and...if you’re going all out and this is more of a dessert presentation...a small sprinkle of confectioner’s sugar for looks. How’s this?
This is a great way to start or end the day! How often can you say that about something you made? Click here to view the recipe or click here for the printable PDF version of the recipe. Enjoy!