Bread Machine French Bread Hot Dog Buns

Hot Dogs seem to go with Fourth of July like apples go with pie. We had hot dogs for lunch, and though we didn't break out the grill (we're saving that for tonight), they were a delicious treat with these homemade buns.

Bread Machine French Bread Hot Dog Buns
1 1/4 cups warm water
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tbsp. active dry yeast

Place ingredients in bread pan of bread machine in order recommended by manufacturer. Set machine to dough cycle, or remove after first rise.

Place dough on lightly floured surface. Divide into 12 pieces. Shape each piece into a hot dog shape (or whatever shape you want. We did some as regular dinner rolls). Place on greased baking sheet, cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size.

Bake at 400 degrees 15 to 20 minutes or until done.

Slice through horizontally almost all the way (just like packaged buns) and serve with hot dogs and condiments.

My Garden

A commenter requested a post about my vegetable garden. I'll accommodate, but I think it might be a bit of a disappointment. We do have a garden, and some of our plants look like they might survive the summer, but it's nothing like how I wish it was. Here are some pictures.

First are the bean plants. These appear to be doing pretty well. We discovered yesterday that we have a few beans growing, and they should be ready to harvest soon. Hopefully.

After the beans is the row of onions. What we didn't realize when we planted was that this row is right under the overhang, and when it rains it all drips right onto this row. Result: lots of weeds and tiny onions. Jeff just weeded this morning, and found a small handful of green onions. Here's the onion bed, and the only onions we've been able to find and harvest.









Next are the peas. The plants are doing well, and we have some flowers on them that should shortly become pea pods.

Here's our carrots and beets. They never ended up doing anything, and all that's left is two slightly raised beds enshrining the memory of what might have been. *moment of silence*

Next up are the tomatoes. We have six tomato plants. Five of them are scrawny and ugly, and not growing any tomatoes at all. Here's the one tomato plant that is producing anything - one green split little tomato.

The crowning jewel of our garden is the squash plant. We have high hopes for this baby. We've got a few little squashes growing, and one in particular is looking quite promising.


Here are my herbs. They all died.

Keep in mind that this is our first time growing our own garden. Neither of us have much experience with being responsible for our own garden. My family has had gardens growing up, but I was never really responsible for much more than weeding. We have a lot to learn. As it is, I think this year our garden was more for learning experience than anything else. Any vegetables we may happen to harvest are sort of an added bonus. In the meantime, we just try to shop smart and purchase the cheapest produce we can.

Peach Sorbet

This is the easiest frozen dessert I've ever made. It was so refreshing and perfect for a hot evening. All you have to do is freeze a can of fruit and then process it in the food processor. So easy!

Peach Sorbet
1 large can peaches in heavy syrup
You could also try other fruits, like pineapple or fruit cocktail

Open the can of peaches. Pour into a large, flat freezer-safe container. Freeze until solid.

When you're ready to make your sorbet, take the fruit out of the freezer and let it sit out for 10 minutes to soften a little. Break up into chunks, and put chunks in food processor. Process until it is creamy and looks like this:


All done!

I think next time I might freeze some sugar and a pinch of salt in with the fruit, to enhance the flavors a bit, or maybe some lemon juice to make it more tart. And I definitely want to try this with pineapple!

Chili - A Good Cheap Meal

Dried beans are a valuable food to like when you're on a budget. They're one of the cheapest sources of protein there is, and they are highly nutritious. They work well in so many dishes, they're low-calorie, and they just plain taste good!



This chili is an example of the way we usually eat, when I'm not off trying fun new recipes. We use the foods we have readily available (usually leftovers in the fridge) and throw something together that is quick, healthy, nutritious, and inexpensive.


Tonight, Jeff did precisely that. He cooked up about 1/4 pound ground beef and 1/2 cup onion. When they were cooked and drained, he added a can of diced tomatoes, some canned carrots from the fridge (about 1/4 cup), some leftover pinto beans (about 3/4 cup), 1/4 cup water, and then seasoned it up. He used salt, pepper, minced garlic, chili powder, barbecue sauce, and the secret ingredient: apricot jam (about 2 tbsp, just enough to add a tiny touch of sweetness). He cooked all this on medium low for a good long time (about 25 minutes). We served it with some home-canned jalapenos from last summer. We added these on the side because the kids would definitely have not eaten this if they were mixed in!


This was a great way for us to use up some leftovers (carrots and beans), and enjoy a deliciously cheap meal at the same time. Hooray for a delicious budget food - dry beans!

About 4 servings
200 calories per serving

Maple Breakfast Cake

We were up kind of early (for me) this morning, so I decided we had time for one of those fancier breakfasts where you actually put more work into it than pulling out a box of cereal and a carton of milk. Enter the Internet, where there are millions of recipes at my fingertips, and I can just pick and choose. I googled "breakfast cake" and came up with a whole lot of ideas, ranging from the typical coffee cake with cinnamon crumb topping to fruit-and-cream-cheese masterpieces. One in particular caught my eye, because it looked like a loaf of bread, but was described as tasting like a pancake. So I chose to make Maple Breakfast Cake from everybody likes sandwiches.


Maple Breakfast Cake
2 1/2 c flour
1/2 t baking soda
2 t baking powder
1 t salt
2 T butter, melted (or vegetable oil)
3/4 c maple syrup
1 c milk
1/4 t vanilla
Recipe also calls for walnuts, but I don't have any. Frugal recipe tip: if you don't have an ingredient, pretend it's not in the recipe!

1. Mix together flour, soda, baking powder and salt and set aside.

2. In a smaller bowl combine and blend remaining ingredients. Stir liquid ingredients into dry.

3. Spread batter in a greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes.


As this was baking this morning, it smelled so heavenly! The maple really makes the cake.

As we were eating, Zaylee suddenly blurted out, "Mommy, it's my hand!" I wasn't sure what she meant until she carefully placed her hand on her piece of bread. Sure enough, it was her hand!

Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies

I have a fondness for lemon poppy seed pound cake. The delicate citrus flavor of the lemon and the tiny nutty crunch of the poppy seeds go really well together. But pound cake is a pretty big project, and I rarely have the motivation to make it. Not to mention all the calories (there's a reason it's called pound cake!). So when I found a recipe for lemon poppy seed cookies I decided to give them a try. I'm so glad I did! They have the same great lemon flavor and poppy seed crunch, but in a light and crispy cookie. These are quite good, and I'm sure I'll make them again sometime!

Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 egg, room temperature
1 1/2 tsp. lemon extract or zest (I'm not sure, but you might be able to substitute a tablespoon of lemon juice here, but you might not get the same lemony flavor)
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
Pinch salt
1 tbsp. poppy seeds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Add egg and lemon extract and beat an additional 30 seconds.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Slowly sift into the butter mixture and stir just until combined. Fold in poppy seeds.

Drop dough by tablespoons onto well-greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Let sit a minute or two on the cookie sheet to solidify, then remove to wire rack to finish cooling.

After my first batch, I realized that the cookies weren't spreading as much as I thought they would, and were rather rounded. Nothing wrong with that - they still tasted great! However, I wanted them to be a bit flatter (they look more delicate and get crispier that way) so I pressed a fork onto the cookies in the same criss-cross pattern you typically use for peanut butter cookies. They turned out beautifully.


Makes 3 dozen cookies
53 calories per cookie

Fugal Fridays - Fruit Infused!

This is a new blogging event that I'm going to try to participate in on a regular basis. You can find it at Fugal Fridays. The rules are simple: prepare a meal for four costing under $10 (commonly used condiments don't count). Well, hey - I can do that! I mean, we spend around $30 a week on groceries for the four of us, so a ten-dollar meal is no biggie.

I'm a tad bit late in posting this - it was supposed to be posted by this morning at the latest. But it was a really good meal, so I'll post it anyway.

I list the cost of ingredients assuming you buy the cheapest available - I buy store brand of everything!

The meal I chose to prepare features two special, fruit-infused dishes that are very delicious, and very inexpensive.

The Spread:
Ginger-Fruit Crockpot Chicken
Pasta Salad with Orange Vinaigrette
Rice
Ginger-Fruit Gravy


Ginger-Fruit Crockpot Chicken
This was a delicious main course, and very inexpensive. Our grocery store sells chicken leg quarters in a 10-lb. bag for $5 - that's 50 cents per pound. The marinade consisted pretty much of common items with negligible cost. Of course, you could just go out and buy a marinade - but this was very easy and quick to mix up, and costs next to nothing!

1/4 cup pineapple juice - $0.15
2 tbsp. apricot jam - free (home canned)
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. ginger
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup water
2 chicken leg quarters (1 lb. total) - $0.50

Prep: Combine all ingredients in quart-sized freezer bag and freeze until ready to use.

To cook: The morning before you want to actually eat this, cut the bag away from the frozen chicken and marinade and plunk the whole thing into your crockpot. Add about 1/4 to 1/2 cup water. Cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 4-6 hours, until chicken is done (juices run clear when you poke the thickest part of the thigh).

Pasta Salad with Orange Vinaigrette
6 oz. macaroni - $0.65
1 tbsp. olive oil - $0.17
2 eggs - $0.34
1/4 cup orange juice - $0.08
2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp. mustard
2 tsp. honey
1/8 tsp. pepper
Several large lettuce leaves - free (from garden)

Cook pasta according to package directions, until al dente. Drain, and rinse with cold water. Toss with olive oil. Cover and place in refrigerator.

Bring eggs to a boil, then turn off heat. Cover and let sit for 20 minutes. Rinse in cold water. Peel and chop eggs, and add them to the pasta. Return to fridge while you make the vinaigrette.

Combine orange juice, vinegar, mustard, honey, and pepper in a container with tight-fitting lid. Shake vigorously to mix. Pour over pasta and eggs. Return to refrigerator and chill until ready to serve.

Just before serving, cut up lettuce and add to the salad.

Rice
1 cup long-grain rice - $0.60
2 cups water

Cook according to directions on rice package.

Ginger-Fruit Gravy
Sauce from chicken
1 tbsp. corn starch

Pour sauce from crockpot (after cooking the chicken) into a saucepan. Bring to a boil on the stove. Spoon about 1/4 cup into a small bowl. Whisk in corn starch, then pour back into the saucepan, stirring constantly. Heat until thickened. Serve over rice.

There you have it: an entire meal for four, costing a grand total of $2.49 plus an insignificant amount for condiments and spices. Am I good or what?!