Spend Smart. Eat Smart.

I like baked apples, but when it’s just for me, I don’t want to heat the oven up. Our featured recipe this month, Hurry Up Baked Apples, uses the microwave to do the baking. These are great as a dessert, snack, or for breakfast.

Stacie noticed this recipe on our website and commented, “I stumbled across your website when looking for healthy, easy to freeze recipes for my family and now I’m hooked on this site! I made this recipe for my 1year-old twins and they loved it! I only did two apples. They got one half and I ate the other. The second apple I saved for their snack at daycare. So easy, so good, and smells great!”

Hurry Up Baked Apples

Serves: 4 Serving Size: 1 apple half

Ingredients:

• 2 medium-size tart apples (Granny Smith, Braeburn, Cortland, Jonathan, Fuji)
• 1 teaspoon white or brown packed sugar
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons oatmeal
• 2 tablespoons (total) raisins, sweetened dried cranberries, chopped walnuts or other nuts
• 1 (6-ounce) container low-fat vanilla yogurt

Directions:

1. Cut apples in half lengthwise. Use spoon to remove cores and hollow out a space 1 inch or more deep. Arrange apple halves, cut sides up, in microwavable dish. Cut thin slices off bottoms to keep from tipping.
2. Combine sugar, cinnamon, oatmeal, raisins, and nuts. Fill each apple half.
3. Cover with plastic wrap. Fold back one edge ¼ inch to vent steam.
4. Microwave 3 to 3 ½ minutes, or until apples can be cut easily. Take from microwave. Let sit a few minutes.

Spoon yogurt over the top.

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Tailgating is as American as apple pie, but unless you want some time on the sidelines, take care when planning a party in a parking lot. Last year I cringed a few times as I observed food sitting out 3-4 hours before a football game started and then the same food was brought out again after the game for snacking!

Here are a few tips on what to serve and how to keep your next tailgate safe…

What to Serve

The safest foods are prepackaged such as sandwiches or cookies, or other  items in food-grade plastic bags or film wrap. This minimizes the number of people who handle the food. Dry foods or those high in sugar are also usually safe. These might include breads, rolls, cakes (without cream filling), fresh fruits and vegetables, cookies, and crackers.

Be cautious with high-protein foods like meat, milk, lunch meat, hot dogs, vegetables, and salads. Dishes with potatoes or rice, custards, puddings, cream pies, gravies, and stuffing are safer served at home.

Here’s a sample menu with recipes from our Spend Smart. Eat Smart. collection:

• Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Chips
• Black Bean Dip with tortilla chips
• Individual Sandwiches, Wraps or Grilled Burgers
• Summer Bounty Salad
• Trail mix
• Apples, Grapes, Bananas
• Cookies

Cooler Tips

• Foods cooked ahead of time need to be cooked far enough in advance that they have time to thoroughly chill in the refrigerator before you leave home.
• Use an insulated cooler with sufficient ice or ice packs to keep the food at 40°F.
• Pack food from the refrigerator right into the cooler.
• Use a separate cooler for drinks so the one containing perishable food won’t be constantly opened and closed.
• Keep the cooler in the air-conditioned car on the way to the game and then in the shade and don’t open the lid too often.
• If you bring hot, take-out food, fried chicken or barbecued beef, pizza, or burgers, eat it within two hours of purchase.

Keep it Clean

Washing hands is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of disease-causing bacteria. Port-a-pots and eating are a bad combination.

• Hands should be washed with soap after using the restroom and water before handling food.
• A hand washing site can be set up at any tailgate party by placing water in a beverage container.
• If you have electricity you could heat water in a coffee pot or put a pan with water on the grill to heat.
• Be sure to bring soap and paper towels.

Serving Grilled Food

Serve hot, grilled foods immediately. Do not partially grill extra hamburgers to use later. Once you begin cooking hamburgers by any method, cook them until completely done to assure that bacteria are destroyed. Ground meat should be cooked to 160°F so using a thermometer is important. Put cooked food on clean plates and don’t reuse plates that were used to hold raw meat or poultry.

If some of your guests will come later, leave their portions in the cooler until they arrive and then grill them. Perishable foods should be eaten within two hours, or one hour if the outside temperature is above 90°F. Remember to keep cold foods cold (below 40°F) and hot foods hot (over 140°F).

Leftovers

Plan realistically so you don’t have lots of leftovers.

• Place leftover foods in the cooler soon after grilling or serving.
• Any food left outside for more than 2 hours (or one hour if the temperature if over 90°F) should be discarded.
• If there is still ice in the cooler when you get home, the leftovers are okay to eat.

What are you planning to serve at your next tailgate? How will you transport food to the game?

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Ramen Noodle Skillet was a hit with my kids when they were in school and it still is one of my favorite recipes.  I think the noodles were the attraction for them. I like it because you can use just about any vegetable that you have in your garden or vegetable drawer, only one pan gets dirty, and you can have the meal on the table in 15 minutes.

Meat is the more expensive part of meals in the US.  The bad news is that the money people are saving because of the gas price drop in recent weeks is likely to be offset by increased prices in beef, pork, and chicken.  USDA is predicting meat prices to increase 3.5 percent to 4.5 percent in 2012.

The Ramen Noodle Skillet recipe can help you stretch your meat dollar.  If you have leftover chicken, pork chop, or roast, you can store them in the freezer instead of letting them dry out in the refrigerator.  When you have about 2 cups, thaw, for Ramen Noodle Skillet and you have another meal without additional meat expense.

Ramen Noodle Skillet

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons vegetable or olive oil
• 1 cup onion, chopped (about 1 medium onion)
• 1 carrot, chopped or sliced into small pieces
• 2 cups frozen broccoli stir-fry vegetable mixture, thawed
• 2 cups cooked meat or poultry cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 cup water
• 1 (3-ounce) package beef-flavored instant ramen noodles, broken into pieces

Directions:

• Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion and carrots and sauté until soft (about 5 minutes).
• Thaw the broccoli mixture in the microwave and drain.
• Add the broccoli and cooked meat to the skillet. Stir and heat (about 1-2 minutes).
• Add the noodle seasonings to the water and stir into the pan.
• Break apart the ramen noodles. Add to the skillet when the water simmers. Stir to moisten the noodles. Cover the skillet and cook until done (about 2 minutes).
• Serve immediately.

Cooking Tips:

• Use cooked meat and vegetables from other meals.
• Substitute 1 pound of ground beef or turkey to yield two cups of meat.
• Rinse cooked, crumbled ground beef with hot tap water to reduce fat by 50 percent.

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Check Out a Sneak Peek Inside

Need a holiday gift or an addition to a personal cookbook collection? We have a new cookbook, Healthy & Homemade, that is a great resource for any family.  Individual copies sell for $5 at the ISU Extension online store.

The cookbook  is a collection from the SpentSmart.EatSmart website.  It is designed for families who have limited time and want to stretch their food dollars. Eighty recipes are featured in the spiral bound collection; color photos are included for many of the recipes.  The cookbook includes a glossary of cooking terms, abbreviations and measurements, a list of substitutions, tips and options for each recipe, nutrition labels and meal ideas. There is a category for each section of the meal:  main dish, appetizer, salad, side dish, dessert and snacks.

I’m excited about the cookbook.  Reviewers were impressed with the helpful tips, menus and extras that were added to make each recipe simple to prepare.

Here are some other gift ideas related to cooking or food.

• Versatile ideas from you kitchen that make cooking at home faster, easier, or cheaper.
• Recipes from SpendSmart that make good gifts are Crispy Granola and Corn Chip Chili Mix.
• Gift ideas from of your time and talent
• More “food mix in a jar” recipes in the NDSU Extension publication “Mix It Up to Expand Your Gift-giving Dollar”.  It includes printable recipe cards to attach to the gifts.  Or check out University of Nebraska – Lincoln’s “Cook It Quick“ December newsletter featuring, “Mix it Up to Expand your Holidays Gift-Giving Dollar Food Mixes in a Jar” for more recipes.

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Are you having guests over for dinner on Thanksgiving?  Dreading the extra stress, expense and calories? Here are some helpful ideas.

Do not go overboard with variety. You do not have to have everyone’s favorite holiday food at one meal.  Do you serve mashed potatoes, stuffing, and sweet potatoes?   Do you serve two meats?  Think about eliminating some of the options.  With more variety, the more ingredients you will have to buy and store, the more serving and leftover dishes there will be and the more everyone will eat.

Take guests up on their offer to bring something. Be ready with a list of dishes you can have guests bring.   Some of your guests would love to show off their cooking skills with a salad or dessert.  Others with less time or ability could be asked to bring a dozen rolls from the bakery, a purchased dessert, or some type of beverage.

Simplify your recipes.  Every dish does not have to be fancy.  I love fresh or frozen green beans with a touch of olive oil more than green bean casserole.   I would rather have our Holiday Fruit Salad than a salad with a little fruit and lots of whipped topping or sweetened condensed milk.  I also love our Guiltless Pumpkin Pie.

Use some convenience foods. Homemade stuffing will cost less, especially if you save bread crusts or buy your bread at the day old store.   However, boxed stuffing is often on sale around the holidays and adding sautéed onions, celery and peppers is always a good substitute.

Know how many people are attending dinner. This is important so you do not end up making too much food and spending extra money. Make only as much as you need for the people that are attending unless you are deliberately planning for leftovers.  Here’s a planning guide to get you started

A couple of years ago we planned a dinner using these tips from Healthy Holiday Dinner for 8, including the recipes and shopping list.  The cost might be a little more than $30 now, but this holiday meal will not break your budget, make you fat or stressed out.

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When you are looking for an easy, low cost, nutritious recipe, I hope you browse our SpendSmart.Eat Smart recipe site.  If you cannot find what you are looking for consider trying these three sites: foodhero.com, healthyliving.tamu.edu and http://www.quickhealthyrecipes.msstate.edu/index.php.  They are all sponsored by other land-grant universities, whose purpose like ISU Extension, is to turn university research into learning opportunities.

The Food Hero site from Oregon State University Extension provides fast and affordable recipes along with fun tips.  If you sign up for a free membership, you can save your favorite recipes, tailor them for the number of people in your family, and create a custom shopping list.  You can also watch before and after videos of a family who is challenged to include more fruits and vegetables into their family meals.

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This month’s featured recipe is Peanut Butter Pita Pockets.

This is a great food to take to the park, on a bike ride or just for a backyard picnic.  The pita pockets are great for holding in sweet juicy fruit, but whole wheat bread could be substituted to save a trip to the store or a few pennies.

This very simple recipe will be best with ripe fruit.   Fruit is plentiful in the market right now, but it is not all ripe.  Apricots, bananas, cantaloupe, kiwi, mangoes, nectarines, peaches, pears, plantains and plums continue to ripen at room temperature after they’re picked. To speed their ripening, put them in a loosely closed brown paper bag. Plastic bags don’t work for ripening. Once fully ripened, fruits may be stored in the refrigerator to lengthen their storage time.  Though the outside skin of a refrigerated banana will turn dark brown, the inside will remain light-colored.

Consider teaching your kids or grandkids to make this recipes.  Let them choose a new fruit to try.

Peanut Butter Pita Pockets

Ingredients

• 2 apples, pears, bananas, peaches, or mangoes
• 2 medium whole wheat pita pockets
• 1/4 cup chunky peanut butter

 Instructions

1. Wash and slice fruit.
2. Cut pitas in half to make 4 pockets.
3. Warm each pita half in the microwave for about 10 seconds to make them more flexible.
4. Carefully open each pocket and spread about 1 tablespoon of peanut butter on the inside walls of each pita half. You may need to warm the peanut butter in the microwave for a few seconds, especially if it has been in the refrigerator.
5. Fill each pocket with sliced fruit. Serve at room temperature.

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I’m ready for some sunshine and warm weather so I can work and play outside.  This means that meals have to be extra quick and easy.  Vegetable Fried Rice is one of my “Go To” recipes.  It’s super easy, costs about $.70 a serving, very versatile and I almost always have everything I need.

The recipe calls for thawed frozen vegetables.  But if you have fresh vegetables on hand they will work great.  Just cut them in to small pieces and cook them with the onions and garlic until they are tender.  Then add the rice and soy sauce.  The eggs in this dish provide the protein, but If you have some left over grilled meat you can substitute it for the eggs.

Soy sauce is high in sodium.  Brands do vary, but a tablespoon is around 900 mg.  I buy only low-sodium soy sauce now and use it sparingly because it is still around 600 mg a tablespoon.  To lower the sodium in regular soy sauce just dilute it half and half with water.

A glass of milk and a piece of fruit and you’ve got all the food groups.

Vegetable Fried Rice

Ingredients

• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (about 1/2 onion)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 3 cups cooked brown rice (instant or regular)
• 2 cups frozen vegetables, thawed
• 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
• Pepper (optional)

Instructions

1. Spray a deep 12-inch skillet with cooking oil spray and place over medium heat.
2. Pour the lightly beaten eggs into the skillet; cook without stirring until eggs are completely cooked, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the eggs to a plate and cut into strips; set aside.
3. Return the skillet to the burner and add the oil. Heat to medium high and add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened.
4. Stir in the rice, vegetables, and soy sauce. Heat through, stirring occasionally.
5. Add the egg strips and heat through. Sprinkle with pepper, if desired, before serving.

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Everybody is extra busy during May.  It’s the beginning of outdoor sports such as soccer, softball, and baseball.  Spring celebrations abound such as graduations and Mother’s Day, plus it’s time to get the vegetable and flower gardens going.  Whatever the reason, it seems no one wants to be in the kitchen.

Our featured recipe this month starts with a package of macaroni and cheese.   Add in cooked beef, pork or chicken (beans for a vegetarian meal) plus some vegetables and you have a filling meal that takes 10 minutes to make and costs just $0.82 per serving.  This meal will be simpler if the next time you cook meat and vegetables, you prepare extra.  Then all you have to do is cook the macaroni and stir everything together.

Meat and Veggie Mac

Ingredients

• 1 7 1/4 ounce package macaroni & cheese mix
• 1 16-ounce package frozen mixed vegetables
• 1 1/2 cups chopped cooked beef, pork, or chicken
• 1/4 cup nonfat milk
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic or onion powder

Instructions

1. Cook macaroni in large saucepan as directed on package. After about 5 minutes, add the frozen vegetables and continue cooking until macaroni is tenderand vegetables are cooked; drain.
2. Return macaroni and vegetables to the pan. Add the meat.
3. Stir the cheese sauce mix, milk, and garlic or onion powder together. Stir into macaroni mixture. (Omit the butter/margarine recommended on the package).
4. Cook over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes or until heated through, stirring occasionally.

   

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April’s featured recipe is one of my favorites.  It’s easy, versatile, and very tasty.  I serve Anyday Picnic Salad on top of romaine as a salad, or on whole wheat bread as a sandwich. You can use apples and grapes as the fruit, or try strawberries, melon or pineapple.  Once when I was out of celery, I used radishes to give it a little crunch.

Lots of recipes call for a cup or two of cooked chicken.  You can buy strips of grilled chicken in the refrigerator case, canned chicken, whole chicken, chicken parts, etc.  Cooking whole chicken or leg quarters and separating the meat from the bones and skin is probably the least expensive, but it does take a little time and mess.  For a big money and time saver, buy chicken breasts when they are on sale (today at central Iowa Fareway stores $1.79 a pound), grill or cook them in a little water on the stove, then cool and freeze in 2 cup portions.

Anyday Picnic Salad

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups diced cooked chicken
• 1 apple, cored and diced
• 1/3 cup chopped celery (about 1 stalk)
• 1/3 cup light ranch dressing or creamy salad dressing
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
• Optional: Use 1 cup halved seedless grapes instead of an apple

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl combine chicken, apple, and celery. Add dressing and pepper and stir to coat. Stir in pecans or walnuts, if desired.
2. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Serve on a lettuce leaf, spread on bread or tortillas or a sandwich, or spoon into a halved tomato or cucumber.

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