The Frugal Foodie Cookbook (26 page)
¼ cup sweetened condensed milk
3 tablespoons cinnamon, plus extra for topping
2 tablespoons nutmeg
4 tablespoons butter (½ stick), melted
Powdered sugar, for topping
For batter, whisk ingredients together in large bowl until smooth. Heat large nonstick pan to medium-high heat. Using ½ cup dry measuring utensil, scoop batter into pan. Move pan in circular motion so crepe assumes circular shape. Once top of crepe is no longer liquid (about 30 seconds), turn over with spatula; cook another 15 seconds, until light brown. Make crepes in advance and set aside. Stack with paper towels in between so they don’t stick together. Preheat oven to 350°F. For filling, combine all ingredients in large bowl; use mixer on medium speed to whip until fluffy. Spoon 2 tablespoons filling onto each crepe; roll up. Place in very lightly greased baking pan; bake 20 minutes. Sprinkle with cinnamon and powdered sugar and serve warm.
Red Wine-Poached Pears
price
$12
servings
4
price per serving
$3
A
lthough we encounter poached pears often at guest’s homes during the holiday season, we can’t help but love to make them at home as well. The warm cinnamon-infused wine lends the pears an irresistible aroma and flavor we crave on cold nights.
1 bottle red wine
Juice of 1 lemon
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
4 medium firm Bartlett pears, peeled, halved, and cored
Combine wine, lemon juice, sugar, and cinnamon in large pot; bring to boil. Add pear halves; reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook 15–20 minutes, until pears are soft. Remove pears with slotted spoon; set aside to cool. Bring sauce back to boil; reduce by ½, cooking about 10 minutes. Allow sauce to cool; pour over pears. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream, or cool pears 1 hour in refrigerator before serving.
Vanilla Flan
price
$12
servings
6
price per serving
$2
T
his recipe is a culinary magic trick. The finished product is extremely impressive, but the process is simple beyond belief. We recommend caramelizing the sugar until it is a deep, dark brown for a sauce that infuses the entire dessert with a deliciously rich and complex flavor.
½ cup sugar
12 extra-large egg yolks
2 (12-ounce) cans evaporated milk
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 375°F. In small saucepan, melt sugar over medium heat until crystals dissolve and sugar caramelizes to deep brown color. Divide caramelized sugar equally between 2 (8") loaf pans. In large bowl, whisk together yolks, evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Divide mixture equally over caramelized sugar. Cover each pan tightly with foil; place into large baking pan filled with 1" water. Bake 1 hour, or until knife comes out clean. Allow to cool in refrigerator at least 1 hour before serving.
PART III: DESSERTS
DRiNKS
Bloody Mary
price
$4
servings
1
price per serving
$4
S
ince this book features so many tasty brunch dishes, we would be disappointed if we couldn’t present a beverage to accompany them. This version of the Bloody Mary is heavy on spice and vegetables, but you tone down the seasoning for a milder version.
1 cup tomato juice
Juice of ½ lemon
Dash celery salt
4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon fresh basil, chopped
1 ounce vodka
¼ teaspoon horseradish
Dash ground black pepper
Dash Tabasco sauce
Celery stalk (for garnish)
Combine all ingredients except celery stalk in shaker; shake vigorously 30 seconds. Pour over ice into highball glass. Garnish with celery stalk and serve.
Spiked Shirley Temple
price
$2
servings
1
price per serving
$2
T
hese adult-version Shirley Temples are frivolous, girly, and utterly delicious. We love that they’re hot pink and garnished with a cherry, and we serve them as a staple beverage at many of our parties.
½ ounce grenadine
2 ounces vodka
4 ounces lemon-lime soda
Maraschino cherry for garnish
In a highball glass, combine grenadine and vodka. Fill glass with ice; top off with lemon-lime soda. Garnish with cherry.
Fruity Smoothies
price
$18
servings
4
price per serving
$4.50
T
hese smoothies are low-cal but have enough sweetness for a satisfying dessert. Making smoothies is more art than science, so don’t worry about exact measurements.
2 cups frozen strawberries
1 banana, sliced
1 cup pineapple, kiwi, or frozen blueberries
5 ice cubes
1 cup vanilla yogurt
½ cup orange juice
3 tablespoons honey
Put fruit, ice, and yogurt in blender; pour in juice until it comes about half way up fruit mixture. Add honey; blend until smooth.
Fancy Homemade Hot Cocoa
price
$8
servings
4
price per serving
$2
T
his recipe is as easy as microwaving a mug of water and hot cocoa mix, but it tastes infinitely better. Instead of drinking hot water filled with grainy chocolate bits, you’ll be sipping a smooth concoction of warm, thick chocolate, sweetened to your taste. You can even experiment with different types of chocolate or adding other flavorings and liqueurs like almond or hazelnut.
2 cups milk
3 ounces bitter chocolate, chopped, plus a bit extra for shavings
cup sugar, or more, to taste
Whipped cream
Heat milk on low heat on stove. When sufficiently hot, add chopped chocolate; stir into milk. Stir in sugar; remove from heat. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.
Grownup Hot Chocolate
price
$10
servings
2
price per serving
$5
O
ne of our first dates was over this hot chocolate. Alex had come into a bottle of brandy, and as college sophomores, we couldn’t think of better use for the stuff than turning it into hot chocolate. Simmering the chocolate and alcohol together allows the flavors to gently meld together and results in a grownup treat with darker, more complex flavors than your average hot chocolate.
4 ounces dark chocolate (about ½ cup chopped)
2 cups milk
½ cup sugar
1 ounce coffee liqueur
1 ounce brandy
Whipped cream (optional)
In small bowl, melt chocolate in microwave or over a double boiler. In small saucepan, combine milk and sugar; bring to gentle simmer. Add melted chocolate; whisk until fully incorporated. Add coffee liqueur and brandy. Serve warm with whipped cream.
Mint Limeade Spritzer
price
$9
servings
6
price per serving
$1.50
D
uring the one summer we spent in the sweltering Philadelphia heat, we would make this refreshing limeade every weekend and have a tall glass after arriving home from work every day. The prospect of this sweetly cooling drink kept us going on even the hottest days.
2 cups water
1¾ cups sugar
1 cup fresh lime juice
6 cups club soda
Mint (for garnish)
Combine water, sugar, and mint in small saucepan; bring to boil. Cook until sugar dissolves, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; cool in refrigerator 10 minutes. Strain out mint solids through fine sieve. Combine mint syrup and lime juice in pitcher with ice; mix well. Add club soda immediately before serving; pour into tall glasses. Garnish with fresh mint.
Warm Bourbon Apple Cider
price
$16
servings
8
price per serving
$2
W
e always buy too much apple cider during the fall and have to make this drink for friends to finish it all. It’s a cozy drink for cool fall evenings, and the orange adds an exotic hint of citrus that makes the beverage simply irresistible.
1 tablespoon cloves
1 orange
½ gallon apple cider
¼ cup mulling spices
1 cup bourbon
Stick cloves into orange skin. In large pot, combine apple cider, mulling spices, and clove-studded orange. Gently simmer on medium-low heat 15–20 minutes, until cider is aromatic. Strain out mulling spices and orange. Add bourbon. Pour into mugs and serve warm.
Acknowledgments
It is not possible to express the depth and sincerity of our gratitude toward everyone who helped us write this book. Our families and friends not only encouraged and supported us, but they assumed the enormous responsibility of helping to edit and test 200 recipes. This book would be filled with empty and poorly edited pages if not for their generous ideas, techniques, tips, and inspiration. We are extremely lucky to have such wonderful people in our lives, and we are filled with appreciation and admiration for their efforts.
Firstly, a million thanks go to our meticulous recipe testers for their culinary wisdom and helpful suggestions: Maria, Whitney, Jess, Zai, Sue, Emma, Lilian, Kate, Traci, Liz H., Jon and Katie, Jamie, Melissa, Liz W., Ellen, Patty, the Clarke family, Annette, the Leaman family, Joanne, and Betsy. We are additionally so thankful to everyone who shared family recipes with us and whose brilliant dishes inspired our own: Karen, Jeff, Diane, Rob, Cara, Paula, Amy, Dave, Hannah, Jared and Adina, Cristina, DD, Anita, the Yepes family, and the Campbell family.
We are forever indebted to all of our former roommates, who have not only tolerated our never-ending messes but also often cleaned them up. Sitting down to dinner with you is the reason we love to cook. Thank you to Jacqui, Corissa, Andrew, Ryan, Sadie, Hailey, Steve, and Matt. Danny: You were with us the day we wrote our first blog post and the day we finished this book; the journey would have been way less fun without you.
In addition to those listed above, we are so happy to have friends who have been beyond kind and supportive throughout this process. We owe our sanity to Lara, Mara, mamaflig., KLAWES, section 19 at CLS, David, and Matty.
An extremely heartfelt thanks to Pilar, who plucked our blog from the obscurity of the Internet and convinced us we could become authors. There is no doubt this book would not exist without her. Thanks also to Chelsea, Wendy, and Adams Media, whose belief in this idea has both surprised and motivated us.
A super special thanks goes to Lizzie for her editing, and to Michael, Jonathan, and Phil.
Finally, we thank our parents. As if they hadn’t done enough for this book by teaching us to cook, giving us free reign of their kitchens, testing our dishes, funding countless meals, and sharing all of their recipes, they also edited every single page of it. Their aid, support, and love have been more than invaluable. We are the luckiest kids on the planet to have you, and, as you know, this book is yours in more ways than one.