Cheap Cookin'

Ok, so I know most people buy the pie pumpkins for eating uses, and the large ones for carving. I like to buy the large ones for eating, though. My store has them for $3.88, which is such a bargain for what you get out of it. I just want to give a Reader's Digest on pumpkin, because I've already waxed poetic about pumpkin today in my blog.

I get the big one, then I cut in half lengthwise. Heat the oven to 375F. While the oven is heating, I scoop out the innards of each half, throw it in a big bowl and add water to the bowl to cover. Then I cut each half pumpkin into 3 long slices (lengthwise again), and each of those slices gets cut in half, for a total of 12 slices. Then I roast, half a pumpkin at a time, for about an hour or until fork tender. 

While it's cooking, I separate the seeds from the stringy bits of the innards and throw the seeds in a colander. I measured out the stringy bits, and I got a full 4 cups of them. I realise most people throw this part away, but that seems too wasteful to me, particularly during our lovely economic crash. So I stick the 4 cups in a saucepan, and I measure the water that was in the pumpkin innards bowl (3 cups), and add that to the innards as well as:

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground clove
1/4 heaping teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 heaping teaspoon each: ground ginger, cinnamon, bergamot (or regular orange) peel, ground allspice
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar

and let it cook down into pumpkin butter (after an hour, I used the immersion blender to puree the stringy bits). It winds up making about 1.5 cups, out of something that'd normally be thrown away, or composted at best. Then I make pumpkin mash from the roasted pulp. After I make the mash, I put half a pumpkin's worth of puree in a cheese cloth-lined colander, which is then placed in a huge bowl. It took a total of 2 hours to drain the pumpkin (still allowing enough juice to remain in the pumpkin for it to not get too dry) and I got about a litre of pumpkin juice. It's delicious, even w/o added sugar or whatever. I figure since most recipes require you drain the pumpkin a bit, why not do it all at once and get something better from it?

And then of course roast the seeds.

So, how do you guys minimize your pumpkin waste? Also, does anyone use the skin/peel for anything? Right now, that's my only source of pumpkin waste and I'd love to find a way to use that too!

One of my favorite family skills is cooking. I'm not too keen on everyday cooking, especially just for two people; but I love communal cooking whether stocking up or for feasts. For me, the kitchen is a central part of several holidays including Thanksgiving and Yule.

Some tips for communal cooking:

Learn what people's favorite foods are and what things they can't or won't eat. Make sure there will be enough of the "right" things for everybody to enjoy.

Set and maintain family traditions in terms of recipes or foods that are served on special occasions. People look forward to them and enjoy the continuity.

Shopping for ingredients can be part of the fun, especially if you have access to a farmer's market, butcher, or other special resources.

Organization matters! Communal cooking is more fun and effective when everyone understands who is in charge, who's responsible for what, and the overall plan.

If you're cooking with a recipe, read it before you start, and keep it handy for reference as you work.

If you're cooking based on intuition, be consistent: one person in charge of each dish (which can be the same person throughout, or different people).

Make sure that folks understand how to cook using the method in play. Some folks cook with recipes, some by intuition, and a few can do both. But those are all still learned skills, and not everybody gets the chance to learn them growing up. Do you have friends, dates, in-laws, or other people in your kitchen who didn't grow up with your family? If so, encourage them to participate and, if they don't have the same skill set, offer to teach them yours or find something they can contribute with theirs.

Teach children (of all genders) to help in the kitchen. If you expect to have kids underfoot, get a cookbook with kid-friendly recipes.

Learn to talk and work at the same time. If you're handling sharp or hot things, concentrate on safety; but many cooking tasks are time-consuming without being risky. If you're shucking corn, shelling peas, kneading bread, etc. then do it together and chat while you work.

Cook some things that take a long time. Baking pies and simmering crock pots are ideal. A house that smells like homemade food, for hours, is a house full of love.

Encourage feedback. It helps you learn people's tastes, choose dishes to repeat, and make the cooks feel appreciated.

People who can't (or don't want to) cook can help by setting the table, washing dishes, etc. Everyone should pitch in somehow.

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What are some of your experiences with communal cooking?

I can't remember if I posted about this, or if anyone else did, but I didn't see it in my brief glance around the community. So forgive me if it's a repeat.

Sometimes we like to drink soda, but we don't like the associated price tag. So I have just been making my own. I make an assortment of syrups from the "trash" of my cooking, and then mix it with club soda (which we pay $0.79 for a 3-litre bottle).

You start by making a simple syrup base (1:1 sugar:water, brought to a boil and allowed to boil for another minute). Then you can do it two ways, once the simple syrup is made. One is to simmer the additive in the syrup for a while, such as with orange peels or lemon peels (to make candied peel at the same time, thereby further reducing waste). The other is just to remove the syrup from heat and let it infuse for a while (I go 30 minutes to 4 hours). Then I strain it into a jar and keep it in the fridge. In most cases, it only costs you the sugar, really, since you're using the bits of fruits you'd normally throw away anyway.

Some examples:

Apple syrup: I use just the cores and peels and infuse for an hour

Ginger syrup: Peel the ginger with a spoon (reduces lost flesh), then slice thinly. Simmer the ginger in the syrup for 30 minutes, then remove from heat and let infuse for 4 hours. I mainly use this syrup for when we're sick. Don't throw the ginger away! Roll it in sugar and put it on a baking sheet. Bake on the very lowest heat your oven can do until it's completely dried (like dehydrating anything in your oven, really). Voila, crystallised ginger, AND syrup!

7-up syrup: equal parts lime and lemon peel, simmer in syrup for 15 minutes then allow to infuse for an hour. If you removed the pith first, roll the peel in sugar and dry for candied peel!

Orange soda: Same as the 7-up, but just orange

Kumquat soda: Cut the kumquats in half, simmer as above w/ the other citrus, but you can do this for even longer if you'd like. Then let it infuse as above. This results in glacee kumquats which I've discovered a disturbing fondness for. This is my boyfriend's favourite of the sodas.

Honeydew: After I cut the melon, I always find there's a decent amount of flesh remaining on the peel. So I cut the peel into pieces and make the syrup. Except I do actually throw the peel away (I suppose you could eat it?)

Mint: Just do infusion; this is one of my favourites

Spruce tips: I once saw a recipe posted for this with spruce tips. I haven't made it, but only because I live in Houston now. This would work fine with pine tips as well. If you grew up chewing on tips, this is a lovely way to preserve that seasonal treat to have year round.

Strawberry: I just use the tops when I cut them off, and I don't actually bother to take the leaves off. Just infuse on this one.

Pineapple: Use the core; simmer then infuse.

Kiwi: Using the peels that have bits of flesh remaining on them.

Etc. I also keep basic simple syrup around for mixing iced teas and the like.

Often I make spaghetti sauce without meat because I like to make meatballs to add fresh when it's served. However, my partner Doug requested a meat sauce, so I devised this. He thinks it's the best spaghetti sauce I've made so far. Yes, folks, there's one secret of good cooking: take requests!

( Let's eat! )

I've been making spaghetti sauce and it occurred to me that yellow tomatoes would make an interesting variation. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that not only are there yellow beefsteak (round) tomatoes, there are also yellow sauce (oblong) tomatoes. I bought some of both yesterday and made spaghetti sauce today. It turned out pretty well. Cost of ingredients for this recipe: about $8. Yield: about 6 cups, which I divided into two containers. That's two meals, each of which will serve 4-5 people.





Ingredients:
About 2 lbs. Yellow Roma tomatoes
About 1 lb. yellow beefsteak tomatoes
1 small (about 8”) yellow summer squash
1 sweet yellow onion
1 teaspoon lemon thyme
1 teaspoon sweet marjoram
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Generous sprinkling of Muntok white pepper
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar


Directions:

Set a large pot of water to boil; it will need to reach a rolling boil to scald the tomatoes. Set a large pot of cold water beside it.

Scrub the squash. Dice it and put the bits in a bowl for later use.

Peel the onion. Dice it and put the bits in a bowl for later use.

Wash the Yellow Roma tomatoes. Cut the ends off. Carefully cut a line down one side. Dunk them, 3-6 at a time, in boiling water for 30 seconds. Transfer them to cold water. Pull the skins off. Put the peeled tomatoes in a bowl. Dice the peeled tomatoes – they’ll pretty much turn to slush – and scrape the results into a bowl.

Pour the Yellow Roma tomato slush into the crock pot and turn it on Low. Add the diced squash and the diced onion. Stir together, then cover the crock.

Repeat the same process of scalding and dicing with the yellow beefsteak tomatoes. Add them to the crock pot, and stir.

Add the lemon thyme, the sweet marjoram, and the sea salt. Stir. Grind white pepper over the surface of the sauce. Stir. Cover and ignore for a while.

Every half-hour or so, stir the sauce. It will eventually cook down and thicken. Watch for the onion to become translucent and the squash to soften. The tomatoes should turn to thick liquid with a few solid bits. The color should be golden yellow to pale orange. Add the cornstarch, honey, and light brown sugar as the sauce thickens, until it has the desired texture and flavor.


Notes:

Yellow Roma is a type of “sauce” tomato. These tomatoes are long and narrow, intended to cook down to a nice paste or sauce. They are related to the more familiar Red Roma type.

DO NOT use ordinary canned tomato paste in this recipe! It’s made from the standard Red Roma type tomatoes, and will make the spaghetti sauce darker.

The other kind of tomato is often called a “beefsteak” or “slicing” tomato. They are round with firm flesh. Yellow tomatoes tend to be milder and sweeter than red tomatoes. Pretty much any variety of round yellow tomato will work for this part of the recipe; use what you can find.

If the sauce is too juicy, here are some options for thickening: 1) Turn to High and leave the lid off so the sauce will cook down more; check it every ten minutes or so. 2) Add a little more cornstarch.

If the sauce is too tangy, add more sweetener. This sauce benefits most from a light, golden-flavored sweetener. Wildflower, basswood, or any other very pale yellow honey is ideal. Clover or mixed-flower honey (the most commonly available ones) is medium to dark gold; it might work, but be careful. Anything darker is too dark. Light brown sugar works; dark brown sugar is too dark. White sugar may work; just add it slowly and taste often, because it’s super sweet. Light corn syrup would probably work, if you like its flavor; I don’t.

If the flavors sound good to you, but you don’t like a chunky sauce, then you can either: 1) puree the vegetables in a blender before combining them, 2) mash the cooked sauce, or 3) put the cooked sauce through a strainer.

This sauce is good when topped by Parmesan cheese.

We still don't have our new refrigerator, to replace the one lost to Ike, so we've been eating a lot of denser foods that I don't feel utterly uncomfortable leaving in an unheated oven overnight. This was originally intended to be a dinner, but it wound up working beautifully as breakfast. It's quite dense, so it kept us full for some time. I usually wait to buy canned stewed tomatoes until they're 2/dollar or thereabout, so this meal cost right around 75 cents for the entire thing. It serves 2 hungry people or 4 moderately hungry.

1/2 cup cargamanto beans (pintos are a fine substitute)
1/2 teaspoon italian spices
1 tablespoon dried onion
1/8 teaspoon: dill weed, garlic powder, dried minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon salt
1 cube chicken bouillon

1 can stewed tomatoes
1/2 cup brown rice
salt and pepper to taste
1/2-1 cup water

Soak the beans overnight. Add to them the remainder of the first group of ingredients, and cook until the beans are at their desired level of softness. Then add the salt and bouillon. Cook over medium heat 10 more minutes. Add remaining ingredients and cook 2 hours more. Serves 2-4.

When you shop at a farmer's market or roadside stand, ask if they have "seconds" for sale at a lower price. "Seconds" are fruits/vegetables that are slightly damaged but still usable for canning, juicing, or other purposes where appearance is not important.

Yesterday I bought a whole bunch of tomatoes for half price that way. Since I'm making spaghetti sauce, it doesn't matter if the tomatoes are oddly shaped, lightly bruised, or bug-nibbled on one end. I can cut off the bad part and still come out way ahead. So instead of having to choose between options, I was able to buy enough for two batches of sauce: one with yellow romas and yellow beefsteaks, and one with red romas, red beefsteaks, and black plum tomatoes.

Here's a list of foods that originated in the Americas. Many of these will be available locally in season, thus less expensive than imported foods.

The pears are getting ripe. I collected a bucketful today. My partner Doug helped me peel them and chunk them up. I sprinkled them with sugar and lemon juice. They are now simmering in a very large pot, with some apple cider and a few tablespoonfuls of shredded ginger root. The whole house smells like cider and pears. Murrr. After they are soft, I'll put them in plastic containers and freeze for later use in pies and such.

This isn't really a recipe. This is, "Wow, there are a lot of ripe pears. I should do something with them." But it smells good so far!

I can't remember, I may have posted on this topic before.

I'm cooking a pot of beans tonight and it just made me think that you might find something interesting in the way I cook them.

I absolutely love dried beans. I like many kinds of beans (and dislike a few), but the beans I'm thinking of are pinto beans. The beans that Goya labels as Roman beans are close enough, as well.

Here's what I do--these are not the package instructions.

Bring water to boil in a big pot. Big enough that 3 or 4 inches of water will cover the beans.

Meanwhile, rinse the beans and look through them for any rocks. You used to find a lot, now I find very, very few, but it doesn't hurt.

When the water is boiling, add the beans.

Bring the water back to the boil.

Let the beans boil for 5 or 10 minutes (there is a toxin in beans that needs high heat to break down.)

Then turn down the heat to a simmer.

Now, be thinking of the flavors you'd like to add. The first group of flavors are those with no salt and no acid. In this group, I usually add these things: onions, celery, green or red peppers, dried chili peppers, fresh garlic, black pepper, and bay leaves. I might add some oregano and cumin, if I feel like it. Sometimes I put some carrots. Whatever sounds good. DON'T add salt. DON'T add tomatoes.

At this point, prepare those things (chop the onions, mince the garlic and so on). Put those in a bowl or keep them on the cutting board.

When the beans are getting tender, after 30 minutes to 45 minutes, add these seasonings. You can also add unsalted meat here, if you like. Tonight, I put in some fresh pork neck bones. Totally optional. DON'T add ham here.

Keep simmering, with water above the beans. You may need to add some more water. That's fine. You want the beans a little soupy.

Test a bean every now and then. You can blow on one; the skin will crack open if the bean is getting tender. But the only real test is to taste it. You and only you know just how tender you like your beans. Cook them to that point.

Now, after the beans are as tender as you like, add flavors that include salt. This might include chili powder, salt, cured ham, cured pork chops, smoked neck bones, bacon drippings, sausage, Worcestershire sauce, whatever seems like it would taste good in this pot of beans.

Let that simmer for 5 or 10 minutes (meat should be already cooked, of course.)

Then add flavors that include acid. For me, that's usually a can of diced tomatoes. It could be fresh tomatoes. It could be another acid vegetable.

Just let that simmer until canned tomatoes are hot and raw tomatoes are tender to your taste.

Last, add flavors that don't benefit from cooking. Sometimes I add some liquid smoke here. Cilantro leaves also go here, if you like them. You could add some more raw onion.

Serve in a bowl with cornbread or rice and you've got a GREAT meal!

(Naturally, you don't use all those flavors, just the ones that appeal.

And you can go a whole different direction with some sage, cooked chicken, and liquid smoke. Or cabbage, paprika, and diced potato, with Polish sausage as the meat.

I think the texture of beans cooked like this is far superior to soaked beans. I also think the flavor is better.

Note: if you add salty or acid ingredients before the beans are completely tender, they will never get as tender and the skins may be tough.

Last night we made meatloaf with roasted carrots, new potatoes and homemade biscuits.

( Warning: picture heavy )

I know I went a little crazy with pics in this post, but we had so much fun doing this I really wanted to share the whole process. :)

Here's a list of 20 things you can do with a 6-oz can of tuna.

I only ever cook for 2. I need meal suggestions and items I can use to serve 4 people for about week.
I usually only spend $30 a week on groceries for the 2 of us!
So far I figured on spaghetti, tuna casserole, stuffed cabbage, pogash? and I was going to buy a bag of potatoes. I can't even think of what else to get!
Besides tomatoes, cabbage and baking supplies I have nothing else on hand.

Edited because I thought of a couple more things I could make...

The reason behind the name I gave this recipe is because it isn't for the faint of heart! (Dark chocolate lovers and those not worried about the condition of their arteries, however, will rejoice.)

4 large eggs (!)
2 sticks butter, melted (!!)
1 cup plain granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1¼ cups cocoa (I used Hershey's Special Dark cocoa)
½ cup flour
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 300°F. Butter and flour an 8-inch square baking pan. (To save myself the hassle, I just spray all my baking dishes with Baker's Joy.) Sift the flour and cocoa into a large bowl, then add both sugars and the salt. Stir gently to combine. In another bowl, use a whisk or electric mixer to beat the eggs until fluffy and light yellow. Add the eggs, melted butter, and vanilla to the dry ingredients and again, stir gently to combine. If you used dark cocoa powder, the batter will look almost black, like molten chocolate. (It tastes pretty darned good in batter form, too. :-9 )

Pour the batter into your pan and bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack and resist cutting into the brownies until almost cool, or they will stick to the bottom of the pan. The final result will be somewhere in between chewy and fudgy, very dense, and with a rich, dark chocolate flavor.

Ingredients:
1 frozen pie crust, thawed
4 Ginger Gold apples
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger root
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup quick rolled oats
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger
1/4 teaspoon allspice
2 tablespoons crystallized ginger chips
5 tablespoons butter

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Peel the ginger root. Grate it (or mince it in a food processor) and measure 1 tablespoon. Extra ginger can be frozen for later use.

Slice the apples and remove the cores. Put the apple slices in a large glass bowl. Pour 1 tablespoon of lemon juice over the apple slices and toss to coat evenly. Add 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger root. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger and 1/3 cup white sugar over the apple slices. Toss to coat evenly.

In a medium-size bowl, combine 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 cup quick rolled oats, and 1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar. Mix thoroughly. Add 1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger, 1/4 teaspoon allspice, and 2 tablespoons crystallized ginger chips. Mix thoroughly. Slice 5 tablespoons of butter into pats and add them to the bowl. Use a butter cutter to combine dry ingredients with butter, until loose and crumbly.

Put the apple slices into the pie crust. Scrape the bowl to get all the sugar and spices onto the apples. Gently arrange the apple slices so they lie flat. Spoon the crumble topping over the apples, covering them completely.

Bake the pie at 350ºF for 20 minutes. Then take it out and check for doneness. Poke a fork into the center; the pie is done when the apples are tender but not mushy. Also check the edges of the crust; they should be golden brown. If it’s not done yet, return to the oven for another 5-10 minutes and check it again. Adding a pie shield during the later stage will help prevent burned crust.

Notes:
Yes, I cheated a bit and used a premade frozen pie crust. This would probably be better with a homemade crust. I was just too busy for that today.

Ginger Gold is an early-season dessert apple that ripens in late August to early September. These apples have yellow skin and crisp white flesh. They really do taste of ginger – a bright, high note of spice soaring above the overall apple flavor. Because they are dessert apples rather than real cooking apples, be careful not to overcook them or the flavor and texture will melt away.

Could you use some other type of apple in this recipe? Sure, but it wouldn’t have quite the same spritely taste. This is truly a seasonal treat, because Ginger Gold isn’t a “keeper” variety; it’s only available a few weeks out of the year. Savor it accordingly.

The filling and crumble topping are designed to have a nice flavor contrast. Notice the use of white sugar, lemon juice, and fresh ginger in the filling vs. brown sugar, crystallized ginger, and allspice in the topping. The powdered ginger helps unify the flavors.

If you can’t find crystallized ginger chips – Ginger People is an excellent brand – then you can substitute regular crystallized ginger chunks minced finely.

I wound up cooking my pie 20 minutes, then 10 minutes with a foil pie shield, then another 3 minutes with the shield off. Total time = 33 minutes.

The flavor turned out exactly as I hoped: bright and sweet and sprightly. The texture was almost perfect: apples tender but not mushy, and the pie held together well, but oozed juice into the bottom of the pan. Next time I’ll try adding a bit of unflavored gelatin or tapioca to thicken it just a smidge.

Ingredients:
2 pounds of pork steaks, thawed
1/4 teaspoon Muntok white peppercorns
1/4 teaspoon Madagascar green peppercorns
1/4 teaspoon Hawaiian red salt
1/4 teaspoon clove powder
1/2 teaspoon dried lemon thyme
1/4 cup apple butter
1/4 cup apple cider
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
Granny Smith apples (4 small or 2 large)
1 small sweet onion
1 can chicken broth
1 canful apple cider
pinch Hawaiian red salt to taste
ground Muntok white pepper to taste

Directions:
In a mortar, combine 1/4 teaspoon Muntok white peppercorns, 1/4 teaspoon Madagascar green peppercorns, and 1/4 teaspoon Hawaiian red salt. Crush together. Add 1/4 teaspoon clove powder and 1/2 teaspoon dried lemon thyme. Stir.

Pour the spice mixture into a small bowl. Add 1/4 cup apple butter, 1/4 cup apple cider, and 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar. Mix thoroughly. This marinade should be thick enough to cling to a pastry brush but not too pasty; adjust proportions if necessary.

Use the pastry brush to coat both sides of each pork steak. Stack the steaks in a shallow container. Pour any remaining marinade over the top of the steaks. Put the lid on the container and allow to marinate in the refrigerator overnight.

Slice the apples and remove the cores. Put the apple slices in a large bowl. Peel the onion. Slice it and separate the slices into sections. Mix together the pieces of apple and onion.

Remove the pork steaks from the refrigerator. Put one pork steak in the bottom of the crock pot. Put a double-handful of apple and onion slices over the pork steak. Continue layering until you run out of ingredients. Pour the can of chicken broth into the bottom of the crock pot. Fill the same can with apple cider and pour that in too. Sprinkle a pinch of Hawaiian red salt over the contents of the crock pot. Grind a bit of Muntok white pepper over everything.

Turn crock pot on “Low,” cover, and cook for four or more hours. After the apple and onion slices start to soften and release their juices, use a spoon to stir them around some and scoop the broth over the pork steaks. The dish is done when the apple and onion slices are soft, and the pork steaks come apart easily.

Notes:
Pork steak is a cheap cut of pork. It benefits from long, slow cooking. The marinade helps make it tender and the broth keeps it moist. My package had three steaks in it, so I put one on the bottom of the crock pot, then a layer of apple/onion, one steak in the middle, the rest of the apple/onion, and the last steak on top.

Granny Smith is a popular type of cooking apple. These apples have bright green skin and crisp white flesh. They are sour, but they hold their shape and flavor well even when cooked for a long time. Usually they are huge – up to softball size – but this time I could only find little ones. You could substitute some other variety of cooking apple. Use what you have.

Fancy types of salt and pepper add to the character of a dish. Muntok white pepper has a mellow, mild flavor and Madagascar green pepper has a fresh spicy flavor with fruity notes. Hawaiian red salt has iron-rich clay added to it, which gives a subtle yet rich earth-metallic note to meat. It is especially favored for use with pork.

Red wine vinegar has a dark fruity flavor. Apple cider vinegar would also work well in this recipe; I just didn’t have any.

In the end, this dish came out quite well, savory and tangy and a little sweet. The pork steaks are tender, though not quite as much as when they’re made with mango marinade: the apple-marinated steaks will cut with a fork along the grain, but to cut across the grain takes a table knife.

This recipe is courtesy of ladyqkat:

I got this from a friend and haven't tried it yet, but it sounds like it might work. This is so cool - and good! Someone is an evil genius!! Chocolate is our friend.

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

1 coffee mug
4 T flour (that's plain, not self-rising)
4 T sugar
2 T baking cocoa
1 egg
3 T milk
3 T oil
3 T chocolate chips (optional)
some nuts (optional)
Small splash of vanilla

Add dry ingredients to mug and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips and vanilla and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes on high. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed.

Allow to cool a little and tip out onto a plate if desired. EAT! (This can serve 2 if you want to share.)

And why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world?

Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night!!

suricattus has posted a tasty-sounding recipe for chicken-bacon stew.

In other news, I'm working on a batch of pork steaks with apples today. If that turns out well, recipe will follow.

A friend brought us some tomatoes, so we made spaghetti sauce today. We printed out some recipes to use for inspiration, but the result was pretty freeform. It went like this:

Sort out the tomatoes, setting aside the grape, cherry, and round ones for salsa later. Pile up the Roma and Pear types, amounting to a medium-sized bowl full. Cut the ends off. Dunk tomatoes in boiling water for 30 seconds and then in cold water to remove the skins. (This actually worked. It doesn't always.) Coarsely chop tomatoes and put them in the crock pot on "low." Add one large can of tomato paste.

Dice one sweet onion. Crush two cloves of garlic. Mince some fresh thyme and a generous amount of fresh oregano. (Fail to find sweet marjoram either in the garden or in the spice cabinet.) Sprinkle in a little dried parsley flakes and some dried sweet basil. Add a little sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir into crock pot. Cover and cook for a while, stirring occasionally.

Taste sauce. Decide it is way too sour, and add a generous chunk of light brown sugar. Forget about sauce for a couple of hours until friend shows up and raves about how good the house smells. Stir sauce and ignore for another hour or two.

Sample sauce and be pleasantly surprised by how sweet and thick it's gotten. Look for small freezer containers. Find none. Give up and pour sauce into large tupperware to stash in refrigerator until small freezer containers are available.

The ultimate in cheap cooking and renewable energy is solar cooking, which uses the sun's heat to cook food. You can make your own solar oven, or buy a commercial model.