Fall is when many of us start to slow down, and at the same time get a hankering for foods that warm us up on a crisp and chilly day while filling the kitchen with wonderful, comforting aromas.
If it’s easy to prepare, even better. And when said meal doesn’t cost a proverbial arm and leg? That’s a definite win in these economic times, when chasing down bargains in your local grocery store or farmers market has become both a sport and a necessary evil.
In this week’s Dinner on a Budget, the goal is once again to create a filling three-course meal for two — hopefully with some tasty leftovers for lunch the next day — for around $15, or what I paid for a glass of wine at the airport while waiting for a flight recently.
Cooking to the season, we decided to build the meal around a classic fall dish: a small-batch pot of beef and bean chili.
Ground beef, like everything else, has gone up in price the last few years but it’s still among your more affordable proteins. Usually you can find it for about $5.99 a pound, which isn’t too bad considering a 16-ounce package can easily be stretched into four servings with the equally budget-friendly addition of canned tomatoes and beans.
Chili is the perfect dish for economical cooks because it’s so user-friendly (seriously, it’s pretty tough to make a bad pot of chili) and versatile, lending itself all different kinds of vegetables and proteins.
While ours is made with a can of fire-roasted tomatoes, chopped green pepper and red kidney beans along with the requisite garlic and onions, you can throw in anything you might happen to have sitting on a pantry shelf or tucked into your fridge’s vegetable cooler — think lentils, canned corn, squash, celery and even sweet potatoes.
It tends to taste even better the next day, once the flavors have really melded, and leftovers can be used as a topping not just on hot dogs or french fries but also enchiladas, tacos and baked potatoes. You also can bulk up a bowl of mac ‘n cheese with a few generous spoonfuls.
I tend to have a heavy hand with chili powder and cumin, which adds a nutty, smoky flavor, but that’s the beauty of chili. You can tame it by dialing down the spices, or crank it up to five-alarm level by adding a sprinkle or two of cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes and/or chipotle in adobo sauce.
The accompanying baked dessert — individual chocolate cakes made in 5-ounce ramekins and painted with a sweet coffee glaze — was almost ridiculously cheap and easy to pull together. One of the main ingredients, cocoa powder, costs only about 8 cents per tablespoon. And because the recipe makes just two servings, you don’t need a lot of sugar, flour or confectioners’ sugar (all pantry staples) either.
The most expensive ingredient, in fact, is a single egg yolk that cost 29 cents. Plus, chocolate cake is just plain delicious, especially if you eat it warm and use coffee for the frosting.
What was most surprising and also a bit of a challenge when pricing out this week’s recipes was working fresh fruit and veggies into the menu. A single, baseball-sized apple will still put you back at least $1 these days at most grocery stores, and onions — a workhorse kitchen staple for many home cooks — are nearly as expensive, especially if a recipe calls for more-delicate red onions.
Small packages of salad greens also tend to be pricey since you’re not getting the same economies of scale as when you purchase a family-sized container. The 5-ounce package of spinach I used with a green apple and a red onion I already had in my refrigerator crisper cost $2.99 on sale, or almost double the cost per ounce of a 16-ounce container priced at $5.99 (37 cents per ounce).
The takeaway: If you have room in your fridge and like to plan meals a couple days in advance, it’s probably always better to spend a little more on a bigger box or package to save yourself some money in the long run.
The total tally for the chili dinner, using some ingredients already on hand, a half-can of beans and store-brand tomatoes instead of the fancy organic name brand I really wanted: $15.05, or just a nickel over.
Insist on rounding out the meal with some carbs? If you add a box of Jiffy corn muffin mix to your shopping list, you’ll add another buck to the cost of dinner, which you can offset by using a little less ground beef or opting to go bean-free.
Spinach and Apple Salad
This simple salad is adaptable for every taste. I added slices of green apple and also threw in some of the raisins I always have in my fridge, but you could also add sliced pear or go a little sweeter with dried cranberries. Or, top the salad with toasted nuts or homemade croutons made with stale bread and Italian seasonings — whatever you’ve got in your pantry.
INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
5 ounces fresh spinach
1 apple, such as Honeycrisp, thinly sliced
1/4 red or sweet onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup raisins or craisins
DIRECTIONS
In a medium bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, garlic and Dijon mustard until completely incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl. Add dressing, toss to combine and serve immediately.
Serves 2.
— Gretchen McKay, Post-Gazette
Small-Batch Chili
Chili can either be moderately spicy or very spicy, so add chili powder to your liking. I sometimes will also stir in a couple of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce for extra heat.
If you have some shredded cheddar in the fridge, throw that on top with the chopped onions for a cheesy finish. Grated Parmesan also works for a flavor boost. Leftovers can be served for lunch the next day, or use to top hot dogs, spoon with rice into hallowed-out bell pepper halves or stir into mac ‘n cheese to make chili mac.
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons neutral oil
1/2 yellow onion, diced (about 1/2 cup), plus more to serve
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 green pepper, diced (about 1/2 cup)
1 pound ground beef
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1/2 15 1/2 -ounce can pinto or red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
2 heaping tablespoons chili powder, or more to taste
1 tablespoon ground cumin, or to taste
Dash cider vinegar, optional
DIRECTIONS
Add oil to a large sauce pot set over medium heat. When it sizzles, add chopped onion, garlic and green pepper, and cook, stirring constantly, until veggies are tender, about 2 minutes.
Add ground beef and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as you go, until meat is well browned.
Stir in kidney beans and fire-roasted tomatoes; if you prefer a thinner consistency, you can add 1/2 can of water. Season to taste with chili powder, cumin and salt and black pepper. I always like to add a dash of cider vinegar for an extra kick, too, but that’s optional.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for at least 30 minutes. When ready to serve, spoon into warmed bowls and top with diced onion.
Makes 4 servings.
— Gretchen McKay, Post-Gazette
Chocolate Cake for Two
Dessert for just two is easy when you bake it in a ramekin. This gooey chocolate cake with a hint of coffee flavor is the perfect example. It stirs together in seconds and only take about 20 minutes to bake.
Add less coffee to the confectioners’ sugar for a thicker icing and more for a thinner glaze.
INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 (heaping) tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons neutral oil
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon warm coffee
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 (heaping) tablespoon cocoa powder
Milk (or leftover coffee), as needed, to make a glaze
DIRECTIONS
Spray 2 4-inch (6-ounce) ramekins well with cooking spray, and set them on a mini baking sheet. (I used butter to grease the ramekins.)
Preheat the oven to 350.
In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and pinch of salt. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolk, milk, oil, vanilla and coffee (or water).
Add dry ingredients in two batches to wet ingredients, and stir gently to combine.
Divide the mixture between the two ramekins.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool.
While the cakes cool, make the frosting: whisk together all ingredients, adding more coffee or milk to thin it out to a pourable consistency. Drizzle or spread on top of cakes and serve.
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