Top 10 Links of the Week: 2/26/10 – 3/4/10

Great googly moogly, it’s been a big week here at the castle. (Yes, we live in a castle. The internet connection’s a little spotty, but the gruel is fantastic.) Thank you times infinity to both Lifehacker and BoingBoing, and to readers both old and new. It’s been wonderful.

And with that, the links!

1) Money Saving Mom
How I Plan My Freezer Cooking Day + Free Planning Worksheets!
31 Days to a Better Grocery Budget: Stop Making Excuses and Commit to Change
Crystal is on a massive roll this week, and listing all the stellar posts would take up about half this countdown. These two are just the first parts of ongoing series, which can be found all over her site. Get over there and start saving gazillions.

2) Get Rich Slowly: A Cautionary Tale
Oh no he di’int! Guest poster Maria spills the tale of her ex-boyfriend, an emotional and financial leech. The story is simultaneously shocking and relatable, not least because it illustrates the difficulty of maintaining economic objectivity in relationships. A great read, though some of the thread commentary might make you choke on your orange.

3) Stonesoup: Tips for Kitchen Glory – How to Get Rave Reviews for Your Cooking
In its own way, prepping a tasty meal can be a lot like standup comedy. It’s a skill (writing/cooking) with a valuable outcome (laughs/food) for which you receive recognition (clapping/burps). In this neat little post, Jules tells us how to increase the kudos.

4) Consumerist: Restaurant Bans Customer for Not Tipping Enough
Long story short: regular customer with a history of stiffing servers is charged an out-of-nowhere mandatory 18% gratuity on her party of three. She complains, and next time she shows, the restaurant refuses to seat her unless she coughs up an 18% tip. On one hand, tipping is voluntary. On the other hand, if you can’t tip, you shouldn’t eat out in the first place. (Edited because I got my facts wrong. Thanks, Krista and Anon.)

5) New York Times: Don’t Tell the Kids
Full disclosure: I had a bunny burrito once, and it was delicious. So this article on the re-emergence of rabbits as versatile, delicious, recession-ready meat made me salivate a little. Sorry, Bugs.

6) The Kitchn: How-to Tutorials Galore Home Hacks Roundup
The Kitchn comps their multitude of February posts on basic culinary skillz. As always, it’s thorough, informative, useful, and accompanied by a beautiful picture of an otherwise messy task.

7) The Atlantic: Europe to Antioxidants – Take a Hike
This one’s a bit dense, but essentially: you know how food manufacturers label their products with stuff like “A great source of ANTIOXIDANTS!” or “We shot this full of ANTIOXIDANTS, even though we’re not really sure what they do outside of foods in which they naturally occur!” European regulators aren’t standing for it. Tres bien! Molto buono! Sehr gut! However you say "very good" in Swedish!

8) Grist: Study suggests Junk Food Taxes May Beat Healthy Food Subsidies
Fascinating. In a recent study, psychologists created their own grocery store and told a bunch of moms to buy food for a week. They discovered two things:

1. When they lowered the cost of healthy food (simulating a subsidy), the mothers bought a little more of it, but spent the savings on junk food.
2. When they raised the prices of junk food (simulating a tax), the same women cut back on junk and bought significantly more healthy food.

It means (for the purposes of this single study) that taxing junk is more effective than subsidizing the good stuff. Hunh.

9) New York Times: Bridezillas on a Diet
Around 70% of brides-to-be try to drop weight before the big day, and about a third use dangerous methods (pills, fasts, etc.). Not good. But more importantly, can we drop the term “bridezilla” already, since it’s now being used as a code word for “engaged woman who expresses a preference about something”? Yeah, some ladies morph into buttercream-crazed harpies, but most of us are happy to be having a big honkin’ party. It’s reductive, man. (Does saying that make me a bridezilla?)

10) Weight Watchers: The Most Flavorful Cheeses
Fellow OPs, you have a friend in cheeses. Sweet/savory piece via Words to Eat By’s own Debbie Koenig.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

AV Club: Taste Test - Durian
Denizens of The Onion try the world’s stinkiest fruit and document their reactions. My favorite: “It looks like a bunch of baby aliens inside. I keep expecting them to turn over and say ‘mama.’”

Food Politics: Research Alert - Childhood Obesity and How to Fix it
Marion Nestle: compiling relevant articles about a significant political initiative, so you don’t have to.

Chicago Tribune: New charge on dinner tab is in bad taste
Some San Francisco eateries are adding surcharges to bills, claiming they’re for the waitstaff’s health insurance. It's kind of like the IRS taxing you, "for our kids education."

New York Times: The Claim – To Cut Calories, Eat Slowly
Grandma was right. Again. In fact, the only thing she was ever wrong about was this newfangled rock & roll.

NY Daily News: Rich Icelandic couple sued by former tenants for installing 'ugly' Ikea kitchen
Unrevealed in the article: the rich couple’s names are Tyler Durden and Marla Singer.

Slashfood: Does Cooking Make us Human?
Ha! Suck it, monkeys!

AND ALSO

“This Too Shall Pass” by OK Go
This is all over the interwebs, and deservedly so. MAKE Magazine Syyn Labs designed a complex, delightful, four-minute Rube Goldberg contraption for OK Go’s latest video, which appears to be filmed in one take. Mind blowing.



(Photos courtesy of Make Friends with Food.)

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Veggie Might: Re-creating Comfort Food (Dal and Rice with Ginger)

Written by the fabulous Leigh, Veggie Might is a weekly Thursday column about all things Vegetarian.

When World Curry Tour ’09 began, I was confused by “curry” and have since tried to educate myself. I came across this passage in Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors by Lizzie Collingham: “In Bengal, the meals of the poor are made up of a rice, little dal flavored with salt, chilies, and a few spices…”

Immediately, I was transported back to the late 1990s when I was a waitron for the woman with little regard for vegetarians. Then, all of the bussers and a couple of the baristas at the restaurant were from Bangladesh. During the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, they would break their daylong fast at 6:00 pm by spreading out a comfort food banquet, courtesy of their wives and mothers.

And every night, they would share their bounty with the rest of us. Mohammad and Akbar, in particular, took joy in sharing their native cuisines. I always felt guilty taking their food after they’d gone all day without eating, but they reassured me (and it was quite evident) that there was plenty.

One dish stood out to me: a thick and comforting yellow split pea porridge with a zing of ginger and a flash of heat. At the time, I was not well versed in Indian or Southeast Asian cuisine. This flavor combination was new to me and I wanted more.

I begged Akbar for his wife, Shipa’s, recipe, thinking he would need to ask her and get back to me. To my surprise, he rattled it off like he’d been making it his whole life.

“It’s easy,” he said. “You just take 6 cups of water, 1 cup dal, 1 cup of rice—must be basmati—an onion, a head of garlic, ginger…”

I wrote furiously on my waiter’s notepad, excited to be getting an authentic Bengali recipe. Mohammed piped up that he’d get me the chick pea fritter recipe too. I gave him an enthusiastic nod while I scribbled.

“How much ginger?” I asked Akbar.

“This much,” he said, indicating about a 4-inch piece.

“Okay, go ahead,” I panted, ready for more.

“And 6 green, finger chilies,” he said, holding up his pinky. I laughed. “That’s it. Just put it all in a pot with the water and salt, let it boil, and stir it until the rice is done.”

“That’s it?” I asked skeptically. I didn’t know what questions to ask at the time. Just getting the ingredients seemed to be enough.

“That’s it,” he beamed.

That wasn’t quite it. At least for me, who was unaccustomed to working with these flavors. Trying to recreate someone else’s comfort food is almost always fraught with error.

On my first attempt, I ignored Akkie’s admonition to use basmati rice, instead using regular brown rice to make it “healthier.” To say it came out like paste is an insult to glue. Not only that, I also realized that something got lost between the instructional translation and my mediocre culinary skills.

Over the years, I’ve attempted the dish a couple more times, but it’s never been as good as I remember. Then on Sunday the light bulb came on, after dreaming about this dish for 10 years, the scrap from my waiter’s notebook long gone.

I knew exactly what to do: cook the onions, garlic, and spices in the pot before adding the water, dal, and BASMATI. It’s still a one-pot dish, but with a 1,000 times more flavor. It tasted exactly as I remembered. Akkie, and dare I say, Shipa, who I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting, would be proud. Plus, my charming dinner guest loved it.

Notes:

• Yellow split peas are similar to split pigeon peas, also called toor dal at the Indian market. For this attempt, I used toor dal because that’s what I had on hand.
• I also used brown basmati rice, maintaining the spirit of the dish and increasing the health benefit/fiber content.
• Freeze your ginger root in advance for easy grating. Thanks again, C for the tip!
• I stopped by the restaurant today to ask Akbar’s permission to use his family’s recipe. He gave his approval, but says I did it wrong. Apparently, I really was supposed to put everything in the pot and boil the crap out of it while stirring madly. I’ll give it another try that way and post the results in the comments. In the meantime, the method below works like a dream…a delicious, spicy, gingery, this-could-replace-any-number-of-my-childhood-comfort-foods dream.

~~~~
If you like this recipe, you may like

• Pindi Chana
• Magical Cabbage
• Palak Paneer

~~~~

Shipa’s Dal and Rice with Ginger and Green Chilies
Serves 4–5

1 cup yellow split peas (or toor dal)
1 cup brown basmati rice
1 tbsp canola oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
6–8 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
5–6 green chilies, finely chopped (small, pinky-finger-sized; use few for a milder dish)
4” x 1” knob ginger, grated (about 3–4 tbsp)
6 cups water
salt to taste

1) Heat oil in a stock pot or large saucepan.

2) Add the onion and sauté until soft.

3) One at a time, add garlic, chilies, and ginger, cooking for a minute or two between each addition.

4) When the onions are clear(ish) and fragrant, add the water, dal, and rice.

5) Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and cover.

6) Cook for 40 minutes or until dal and rice is tender and water is absorbed. Stir occasionally to avoid scorching.

7) Allow to cool for a few minutes if you can wait that long. I couldn’t. The aroma is irresistible and I have the burnt tongue to prove it.

Approximate Calories, Fat, Fiber, and Price per Serving
Serves 4: 410.4 calories, 5.5g fat, 10.5g fiber, $.60
Serves 5: 328.3 calories, 4.4g fat, 8.4g fiber, $.48

Calculations
1 cup toor dal: 703 calories, 3g fat, 31g fiber, $.62
1 cup brown basmati rice: 685 calories, 5 g fat, 6g fiber, $.70
1 tbsp canola oil: 120 calories, 14g fat, $.08
1 large yellow onion: 60 calories, 0g fat, 3g fiber, $.75
8 cloves garlic: 33.6 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, $.10
6 green chilies: 18 calories, 0g fat, 1g fiber, $.07
1 4” knob ginger: 22 calories, 0g fat, 1g fiber, $.06
salt: negligible calories, fat, fiber, $.02
Totals: 1641.6 calories, 22g fat, 42g fiber, $2.40
Per serving (totals/4): 410.4 calories, 5.5g fat, 10.5g fiber, $.60
(totals/5): 328.3 calories, 4.4g fat, 8.4g fiber, $.48

The $25 Food Project Finale: Recipes, Conclusions, and an Exit Interview

Our Project has come to an end. The Husband-Elect, a six-foot, 205-pound man in his mid-30s, has been successfully fed for a week on $25. Needless to say, we are celebrating with beer.

Thanks to everyone who wrote throughout with suggestions (especially wosnes and CJ). Your ideas were super helpful, especially during a mid-week culinary rut, when my sinuses threatened to take over the world.

Included below is a breakdown of the week: the final numbers, an analysis of what worked and what didn’t, the Husband-Elect’s exit interview, and recipes made over the last seven days. I’d love to hear what you think and what you would have done differently.

In the meantime…

THE NUMBERS

Final cost total: $24.99
Daily cost average: $3.57
Daily calorie average: 2631 calories
Daily fat average: 86.7 g fat
Daily fiber average: 38.4 g fiber
Daily average prep time: About 48 minutes per day, total

The fat and fiber are a little higher than recommended, and the calorie intake means he’ll probably lose some weight over the course of a year. I’m satisfied, though still kicking myself for not including protein. Maybe next time.

About the prep time: staying within a strict budget means you gotta cook at home. For me, 48 minutes a day is worth it. Your mileage may vary, and that’s okay.


THE THREE MOST UNEXPECTED FINDINGS

1) Husband-Elect was always full at the end of the day (sometimes egregiously so). I never thought he would go hungry, but I figured the budget restrictions would mean some deprivation. It wasn’t so.

2) Including produce was tougher than expected. Stating the obvious: when your budget is this limited, fruit and vegetables are expensive, at least compared to a box of pasta. Since produce isn’t very calorie dense, serving it and still hitting that daily 2600-calorie number was rough. We managed, but with effort.

3) How much the average adult male eats compared to the average adult female. Honestly? It was eye opening. At 5’ 9”, I am not a small woman, but the comparative amount of calories, fat, protein, and fiber he required blew me away.

About that last part: I have a newfound, monstrous respect for those of you who feed athletes, teenage boys, larger guys, and anyone who requires a lot of calories in general. I shudder to think what this project would have been like using my mountainous younger brother, who makes The Rock look like Steve Buscemi.


WHAT WORKED OUT

• Starting with a big chunk of meat and stretching it as far as it would go. I used a 3.5-lb pork shoulder over and over: in tacos, on top of egg noodles, as a breakfast side, in a peanut sauce, etc. It always felt significant, even when it was only a few ounces.
• Making a big pot of chili at the beginning of the week. Dense, nutritious, and filling, the veggie-and-bean dish became the basis for a lot of lunches. I only wish I had used it in more creative ways.
• Coupons, shopping from the circular, and unexpected discounts. I found fantastic bargains on potatoes, canned tomatoes, dried egg noodles, and organic salad greens. Staying flexible with the plan and keeping an eye out for bargains was vital.
• Big, healthy breakfasts. They kept Husband-Elect sated for a good chunk of the day, and I didn’t have to scramble to make up the calories later.
• Baking. Ain’t nothing wrong with a few homemade cookies, which are usually cheaper and always better tasting than store bought.
• Starches. Potatoes, pasta, rice, oatmeal – some not terribly healthy, others outrageously so. But they filled him up for little cost, and it helped.
• Fruit. Especially bananas. Versatile, cheap, nutritious, portable, readily available. We always have a big bowl, and now I know why.
• Peanut butter. How did people live before peanut butter? Thank you, George Washington Carver or Mr. Jif or whomever.

WHAT DIDN’T WORK OUT

• Using too few generics. Tiny flavor differences, huge price differences. Buying house brand foods would have halved the cost of some dishes.
• Not allowing for more snacking and grazing. I mentioned this a few days ago, but it’s tough to avoid eating when the urge strikes, whether you’re on a budgetary diet or an actual diet.
• Low-fat foods. I buy skim milk and 2% cheese, because he can’t tell the difference and I prefer them for myself. When you’re trying to pack in so many calories, these are not helpful. It made me wonder how households manage when one person is trying to lose weight, while the other is eating normally.
• Canned beans. I should have bought dried. They would have gone much further.
• Coffee. It’s not terribly expensive, but it has no real nutritional value, either. Two cups on Sunday almost killed my budget.

EXIT INTERVIEW WITH THE HUSBAND-ELECT

How do you feel?
I feel well fed, but I think I was somewhat overfed. During the experiment I felt like dinner was too much, and by the time I got home from work I wanted less more often. With a full breakfast and healthy lunch followed by a hearty dinner, my stomach was bloated each night.

Do you feel like you ate too little, just enough, or too much?
I think I ate a little too much. Again, dinner every night was an enormous meal after being filled for much of the day. Fantastic food, but I think I could have had less each night, maybe a smaller dinner with a little healthy snack later. I’m not much of a dessert person, and although it was a nice treat, I wouldn’t want a dessert every night for a week ever again.

What was the best part about the week?
I think when you got linked to by Boing Boing and Lifehacker. Also peanut butter spread on banana bread. Yes I know I’m contradicting my previous dessert statement, but something like that glorious combo is a magical rare treat, not something to toss in to fill out a calorie count. And when I say magical, I mean at least a third level cleric healing spell magical.

What was the worst part about the week?
The worst was being told I could have bacon on Saturday and Sunday then having that dream ripped away and replaced by something not bacon.

Has it changed any of your opinions on money and food?
It certainly has. It’s reminded me that it’s nice to have some cash to treat oneself, and I’m grateful that I can afford a dinner out and a beer sometimes, because I missed them. On the other hand, I’ve always enjoyed a home cooked meal, and this past week I got plenty of them. I also appreciate that YOU love these things so much, so I can enjoy it with you, and stuff my face. Thanks!

What are you going to eat tomorrow?
Pizza and beer and nachos and lobster and ostrich. In a slurry. Or maybe sushi. With a salad.

Do you like the shirt I’m wearing?
It’s ok. I think you’re much cuter in the plaid blue and white number your sister gave you.


RECIPES

These are the foods that got us through the week. Some aren’t terribly healthy, but all are inexpensive and tasty as heck.

Banana Ice Cream with Peanut Butter
Brown Gravy
Easy Vegetarian Bean Chili
Gingersnap Oatmeal
Light Banana Bread
Maple Morning Polenta
Pancakes
Peanut Sauce
Roasted Chickpeas
Slow Cooked Puerto Rican Pork
Snickerdoodles
Traditional Mashed Potatoes
White Bean Dip

A grocery list is forthcoming.


RELATED POSTS

In case you want more details, these posts document every step of the experiment. It's a good thing we own several calculators.

The $25 Food Project: One Man, Seven Days, 21 Meals
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Ask the Internet: $25 Grocery List from Scratch?

In the meantime, readers, I’d love to hear what you have to say. The comment section awaits!

~~~
If you like this article, you might also like:

• The Argument for Spending More on Food
• The Case for Frozen Food
• Spend Less, Eat Healthier: The Five Most Important Things You Can Do

The $25 Food Project: Day 7

I’m attempting to feed my 6-foot, 205-pound fiancé for one week for $25. This is our story.

Folks, we’re done. Wrapped. Fini. If this experiment was The Beatles, today is Let it Be. (Or Abbey Road, depending on what country you occupy.) We’re mostly pretty triumphant, and came in a penny under the $25, which I will now frame and hang in the shower.

There’s a ton coming tomorrow - conclusions, a shopping list, an exit interview – so we’re gonna cut straight to the numbers and a few notes tonight. Hope they’re informative, and we’ll see y’all soon!

DAY 7 TOTALS: 2575 calories, 98.3 g fat, 43 g fiber, $3.72
GRAND PRICE TOTAL: $24.99

BREAKFAST
2 servings Maple Morning Polenta: 516 calories, 9.2 g fat, 8.2 g fiber, $0.63
1 banana: 121 calories, 0.4 g fat, 3.5 g fiber, $0.23
TOTALS: 637 calories, 9.6 g fat, 11.7 g fiber, $0.86
PREP TIME: 10 minutes

LUNCH
1 serving Traditional Mashed Potatoes (skim milk): 250 calories, 9 g fat, 3.7 g fiber, $0.17
1/2 serving Easy Vegetarian Bean Chili: 122 calories, 3.3 g fat, 4.6 g fiber, $0.35
2/3 cup mixed baby greens: 5 calories, 0 g fat, 1 g fiber, $0.20
1/2 tablespoon olive oil: 60 calories, 6.7 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.06
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar: 0 calories, 0 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.01
2 ounces chicken breast: 62 calories, 6.8 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.21
3 Snickerdoodles: 450 calories, 20.4 g fat, 1.5 g fiber, $0.30
TOTALS: 949 calories, 46.2 g fat, 10.8 g fiber, $1.30
PREP TIME: Made most of it during breakfast, plus 5 minutes

DINNER
3 jumbo eggs: 287 calories, 19.3 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.63
1 medium potato (5,7 oz): 157 calories, 0.2 g fat, 3.7 g fiber, $0.11
1 tablespoon veggie oil: 124 calories, 14 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.09
1/3 onion, minced: 15 calories, 0 g fat, 0.5 g fiber, $0.10
1/2 cup spinach: 15 calories, 0 g fat, 0.5 g fiber, $0.10
1 banana: 121 calories, 0.4 g fat, 3.5 g fiber, $0.23
TOTAL: 719 calories, 33.9 g fat, 8.2 g fiber, $1.26
PREP TIME: About 30 minutes

DESSERT
2 servings Roasted Chickpeas: 270 calories, 8.6 g fat, 12.3 g fiber, $0.30
TOTALS: 270 calories, 8.6 g fat, 12.3 g fiber, $0.30
PREP TIME: 35 minutes, mostly roasting

NOTES

• Dinner was a spinach frittata, home fries, and a banana. I loves me some frittatas because they’re easy and look good. Which is also how I like my men. (HAHAHAHA sorry.)
• He’s a big fan of breakfast in general, but the Maple Morning Polenta was a real hit with the Husband-Elect. I don’t know if it’s the taste or his love affair with corn products, but I’ll take it.
• I finally kicked the Chili tonight. Henceforth, it will be called Infinity Chili.

Ask the Internet: $25 Grocery List From Scratch?

This week’s question is related to the $25 Food Project, and I’ve thought about quite a lot over the last coupla days.

Q: You have $25 to feed yourself for a full week. You’re starting from scratch, with nothing in your pantry, freezer, or refrigerator. What do you purchase?

A: My answers would have been different last Tuesday. But here goes, based on prices from a popular online grocery site:

• Eggs - $2.19 (1 dozen)
• Frozen string beans - $1.25 (1 lb)
• Frozen broccoli - $1.25 (1 lb)
• Red grapes - $1.98 (2 lbs)
• Peanut Butter - $2 (16 oz)
• Grape jelly – $1.50 (32 oz)
• Whole wheat bread - $1.50 (18 oz)
• Oatmeal - $3.69 (42 oz)
• Thin spaghetti - $0.77 (1 lb)
• Long grain white rice - $1.99 (32 oz)
• Canned Tomatoes - $1.20 (28 oz)
• Dried navy beans - $1.00 (1 lb)
• Salt - $0.59
• Pepper - $1.49
• Vegetable oil - $2.50 (48 oz)
• 1 mini York Peppermint patty - $0.10 at the register

TOTAL: $25

I figure I can deal with a lack of variety the first week, since I wouldn’t have to buy so many staples (oatmeal, oil, rice) the following week. That extra money would probably go towards onions, flour, sugar, and maybe some kind of meat (if there was anything left over).

What about you, readers? Do you agree with the list? What would you add? What would you leave out? If you’re making your own list, there’s no need to list prices – we trust you.

Want to ask the interweb a question? Post one in the comment section, or write to Cheaphealthygood@gmail.com. Then, tune in next Tuesday for an answer/several answers from the good people of the World Wide Net.

The $25 Food Project: Day 6

I’m attempting to feed my 6-foot, 205-pound fiancé for one week for $25. This is our story.

First, hi there, folks from BoingBoing! Welcome to Cheap Healthy Good. Hope you like the food.

Second, it’s the FINAL COUNTDOWN, ladies and gentlemen. Day 6 has come and gone, and we’re in cruise control here at the compound. We even have an extra $0.16 left for tomorrow. To the layman, $0.16 sounds like a piddling. In terms of this experiment, we may as well have been handed a lobster. (Um, not really.)

The Husband-Elect, “feels I’ve eaten a lot in the last week. And if I was to keep up these kinds of meals at regular intervals, I would have to exercise to avoid gaining weight. Also, all this peanut butter makes me feel like Mr. Ed – like a horse being forced to look like he’s talking? You know what I mean? That’s what I’m saying.” Deep.

With that, today’s numbers!

DAY 5 TOTALS: 2620 calories, 85.1 g fat, 38.2 g fiber, $3.54
GRAND PRICE TOTAL (SO FAR): $21.27

BREAKFAST
1 1/2 servings Gingersnap Oatmeal: 395 calories, 4.8 g fat, 6.8 g fiber, $0.63
1 banana: 121 calories, 0.4 g fat, 3.5 g fiber, $0.23
TOTALS: 516 calories, 5.2 g fat, 10.3 g fiber, $0.86
PREP TIME: 10 minutes

LUNCH
1/2 serving Easy Vegetarian Bean Chili: 122 calories, 3.3 g fat, 4.6 g fiber, $0.35
1 cup brown rice: 219 calories, 1.5 g fat, 3.5 g fiber, $0.15
1 orange: 62 calories, 0.1 g fat, 3.1 g fiber, $0.25
3 Snickerdoodles: 450 calories, 20.4 g fat, 1.5 g fiber, $0.30
TOTALS: 853 calories, 25.3 g fat, 12.7 g fiber, $1.05
PREP TIME: Made it while cooking breakfast

DINNER
5-oz chicken breast: 156 calories, 1.7 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.53
2 servings Traditional Mashed Potatoes (skim milk): 500 calories, 17.9 g fat, 7.4 g fiber, $0.35
5 ounces roasted carrots: 58 calories, 0.3 g fat, 4 g fiber $0.30
1/2 tablespoon olive oil: 60 calories, 6.7 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.06
1 serving All Recipes Brown Gravy: 90 calories, 8.7 g fat, 0.1 g fiber, $0.06
TOTALS: 864 calories, 35.3 g fat, 11.5 g fiber, $1.30
PREP TIME: 50 minutes - by a long shot, the longest prep period this week

DESSERT
2 tablespoons peanut butter: 190 calories, 16 g fat, 2 g fiber, $0.13
1 piece Light Banana Bread: 197 calories, 3.3 g fat, ~1.7 g fiber, $0.20
TOTALS: 387 calories, 19.3 g fat, 3.7 g fiber, $0.33

NOTES

• Today marks the first time I’ve ever made gravy for a non-Thanksgiving occasion. It was way easier than I thought it would be, probably because there wasn’t a 16-pound bird competing for my attention.
• I tried the banana bread/peanut butter combo today. Then I died, went to heaven, found it was lacking banana bread, and came back to Earth.
• Up top is a picture of our Rancor. On Christmas, he wears a hat.

On an Easy White Bean Dip Recipe and Being Late to the Party

Today on Serious Eats, it’s Niçoise Pasta Salad. If you’re craving a little bit of summer, you will love this like a loving lover.

The Onion’s AV Club recently asked its writers about art they discovered too late – stuff that could have been life-changing at 17, but meant zilch at 27. A few contributors mentioned video games and Star Wars. Another, Harry Potter. One woman claimed Bob Dylan did nothing for her, having been subjected to so many bad impressions before hearing the actual thing.

It was kind of a bummer, honestly. (A life without Star Wars is a life without joy.) But it got me thinking about things I waited too long to try, and how that timeframe affected my appreciation for them.

Let’s see. Emo music is definitely one. What I might have found romantic and charmingly melancholy at 20 sounded like self-indulgent whining at 25. Same goes for everything on Cartoon Network. In 2000, it could have been revelatory. In 2010, I just want Tim & Eric to get to the point already.

The big tuna: I read On the Road when I was 27, about ten years after I should have. It came highly recommended, and the prose was all it was cracked up to be – weird and gorgeous, evocative and elusive.

The problem came with the message. Instead of, “Let’s hop in a Chevy, ditch this town, and fill our time with freedom, just like Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarity!” I thought, “What irresponsible jags, leaving their families and responsibilities for such silliness. Those beatniks need some damn jobs.” Harsh, man. Harsh.

The experience made me happy I caught One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest my sophomore year of college, and Catcher in the Rye in 9th grade. They’ll always be two of my favorite novels, probably because all teenagers relate to alienation. Sometimes I wonder if I would find them foolish now, if I had just picked them up for the first time. How sad.

It’s such a relief, then, that the opposite happened with food and cooking. They meant nothing to me as a kid; they were means to an end. The less time they took, the better. But age has made me appreciate vegetables and cast iron pans, spices and the pleasures of a good roast chicken.

There’s no easy way to segue into a White Bean Dip here, so I’ll just awkwardly cut to the chase: this recipe is tasty, fantastically easy, and dang addictive. It’s barely even cooking, actually – more like alchemy. Just a few ingredients thrown together to create manna.

That aside, what about you, readers? What did you discover too late? How do they differ from the things you found later, but appreciated immediately? What do you look forward to getting into? It's all about possibilities, isn't it? And if something doesn't connect, that's okay. But what a thrill when it does.

~~~
If you like this recipe, you might also appreciate:

• Baba Ghanouj
• Lemony Hummus
• Roasted Eggplant Spread

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White Bean Dip
Makes 6 servings of 1/4 cup each.
Adapted from Ellie Krieger.
(This is actually a picture of CHG's hummus, because ... uh, technical malfunction? They look pretty much the same, though.)

1 19-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 clove garlic
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus more as needed
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a food processor. Puree. Taste and see if you like the results. If not, add more of what’s missing. Serve.

Approximate Calories, Fat, Fiber, and Price Per Serving
115 calories, 4.5 g fat, 4 g fiber, $0.28

Calculations
1 19-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained: 440 calories, 0 g fat, 24 g fiber, $0.99
1 clove garlic: 4 calories, 0.1 g fat, 0.1 g fiber, $0.05
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil: 239 calories, 27 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.23
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice: 8 calories, 0 g fat, 0.1 g fiber, $0.40
Kosher salt: negligible calories, fat, and fiber, $0.01
Freshly ground black pepper: negligible calories, fat, and fiber, $0.01
TOTAL: 691 calories, 27.1 g fat, 24.2 g fiber, $1.69
PER SERVING (TOTAL/6): 115 calories, 4.5 g fat, 4 g fiber, $0.28