Vegetable Minestrone Soup

Tomorrow is payday and the fridge and pantry are looking a little bare, so tonight I'm making another version of veggie soup (my first version is a roasted veggie soup that I need to post a recipe for). I spent some time in the garden this morning thinning out the carrots and Swiss chard so the carrots have more space to grow bigger as we are coming into spring and the Swiss chard can focus it's energy on new growth since I recently transplanted them. I also had some tomatoes, turnips, and jalapeno left over from the Fort Smith farmer's market. In the freezer I had a quart of white beans I cooked earlier in the winter, and in the pantry there were a couple cans of chickpeas. It all comes together to make an incredibly yummy soup!!! The ingredients are completely flexible based on what you have on hand. In some research, Minestrone traditionally has a bean based broth and contains whatever vegetables are in season.

Ingredients:

Onion, diced
Garlic, minced
Carrots, diced
Turnips, diced
Jalapeno, diced
Tomatoes, diced
Swiss Chard, chopped if needed
White Beans, previously cooked and frozen
Chickpeas, canned, drained and rinsed
Salt and Pepper to taste
Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base
Oregano
Basil
Parsley
Olive Oil
Water

Heat olive oil, onion and garlic in a stock pot with a pinch of salt and pepper. Once fragrant and starting to turn clear, add carrots, jalapeno and turnips. Cook for a few minutes more to help enhance flavors. Then add remaining ingredients, enough water to cover and season to taste. Bring to a soft boil, reduce heat and simmer for at least half an hour.

Frugal Thrifty Green

A friend and I have started a joint blog that I thought I'd mention here. Frugal Thrifty Green is a place where we are going to share inexpensive recipes, money saving ideas, ways of doing things cheaper in a more environmentally sustainable manner, etc.

The co-author, Amanda, is a friend that I've known since 2006 when we met after trading a book at PaperBackSwap.com. It's a coincidence that Tony and I ended up moving an hour from where she lives. She's been such a blessing helping us out by letting us come over to do laundry, get water, and just being a great friend that helps keep me sane during all the chaos of living in a new place. Plus she knows a lot of great places to eat and shop.

It's awesome to have someone with the same values yet different perspectives so we can bounce ideas off each other and think of new ways to do things. I'm really excited to see where things go.

Living Without Plumbing

Tony and I are coming up on a month in the new house and we still don't have plumbing yet. We're hoping to get the bathtub and toilet installed in the next few weeks as long as finances cooperate, and I'll have to hold out on the vanity I want for a little bit longer. Until then I thought I'd share how we're getting by without indoor plumbing. If you had told me four weeks ago that we would be getting by comfortably without plumbing I would have told you that you're crazy. Oh! Here's an updated photo of the house.

Each day we fill up a 5-gallon water container that has a spigot at Tony's work or a friend's house. We have 3 of these containers that we rotate through. We have it set up on a bathroom sink/counter that was given to us by Tony's mother and step-father that had been salvaged from an office building that was torn down. Why am I not planning to use this counter top in this house? It's because of space. We plan to put in shelves or cabinets on either side of the vanity since the bathroom is so small so we have a place to store linens. This counter top we are going to save for another small house we plan to build in future years. The sink drains into a 5 gallon bucket that we saved from adhesive we used to adhere the OSB on the floor to the insulated panels they are set on. We use this water for ornamental plants. For dishes, I have a wash basin that I use and that water is generally safe enough to water my herbs and tomatoes.

For showers, I found a camping solar shower for $6-7 at Walmart. We fill it with 2-3 gallons of water each morning and let it heat up during the day then take showers just after dark before we head off to bed. Our house is located down the side of a mountain in a secluded area so there is very little chance of anyone seeing us. They'd have to hike down or drive down the hill and we'd know they are coming. Tony also built a platform for us to stand on while we shower.

When we started building the house back in October 2010 on the weekends, we simply trekked off into the woods to take care of our "business". Now that we've moved, we use a bucket we purchased at Cabela's years ago for when our house in Texas had septic problems. We use a corn husk based cat litter that is biodegradable and compost that waste with waste from the cat box that once it's broken down I'll use as fertilizer for my ornamentals.

The only thing I'm not really able to do at home efficiently is laundry, so every Tuesday I make the hour drive to Fort Smith, AR and do laundry at a friend's home. Once we have the plumbing set up, then we will haul water at first from the local rural water company or a neighbor that we'll purchase water from. I bought several 300 gallon water storage units earlier this year that we'll store the water in. Later this summer we'll set up a captured rainwater system so we don't need to haul water except in times of drought.

Getting by without the indoor plumbing and learning to conserve water has been a blessing. Once we have the captured rainwater system set up I'm confident we will get by comfortably again and not have to stress over water. I love the idea of knowing we will have little impact on the water tables and help preserve that water.

Shopping Tips

A conversation I had with my mom this morning got me thinking about making a blog post on questions I ask myself when I'm shopping to keep from over buying. Hopefully they can help when you are on a budget or just looking for ways to help save more money.

First, I maintain a list on a dry erase board that I update in between shopping trips, plan all the meals in advance, and anything not on my list (and even some stuff on the list) get asked these questions:

1. Do I need you? If no, then I ask why do I want you? I put it away and in two weeks when I'm in the store again and I'm still thinking of the item and know exactly how it will benefit me then I will purchase it if it is within my budget.

2. Do I need you anytime in the next two weeks? If the answer is no and it's regular price, it goes back on the shelf and remains on my shopping list until next time. If it's an incredible bargain and it is something I truly need in the next month, then I will purchase it.

3. Is there a way I can get you cheaper? For example, if I see a book I want I make a note of it and order it off PBS. If it is food, can I make it from scratch with what I already have on hand? For home decor, is there a way I can make it? You get the idea.

4. Are you something I will still want in two weeks? The trick here is not to answer the question and just put it back. I had carried the same purse for the past four years and earlier this year saw an olive green oversized boho bag at Walmart that I fell in love with. I knew it would be perfect to keep a small knitting or crochet project in as well as all my personal items. Weeks went by and I couldn't get this bad out of my mind, so I went ahead and bought it and have never regretted it. Anything else I have forgotten about by my next shopping trip. (This is just a further illustration of a response to question 1).

5. Are you on my list? Why did I pick you up? Sometimes I'll just carry items around the store with me until I am ready to leave and once I realize how much I am already spending or that I don't need it, I'll make a final lap around the store to put things back (It's a great way to fit in some extra walking too). In a way it helps to get past the impulse urge by picking it up and putting it in the shopping cart, but the trick is not to let it leave the store with you.

6. Is purchasing you going to put me over my budget? This goes for items I put on my shopping list as well as impulse items. Sometimes I think I would like a new pair of cleaning gloves or a bag of chocolate, and once I have the things I know I need and have them added up, then I examine the less crucial items to determine whether they really need to be purchased or not. There is nothing more stressful to me than going over budget and knowing I'll be dipping into what I could be saving.

Super Easy Faux Hickory Smoked Pulled Pork

So most of us don't have a BBQ Pit or are pit masters. But after watching several BBQ cookoffs on Food Network and the Travel Channel this summer when I spotted a pork butt (shoulder roast) at the meat market for only $.99 a pound this week I couldn't pass it up. When I got it home I had to figure out how to cook the thing. I've had lots of luck making pulled beef in my crock pot and last week I successfully roasted a chicken in the crock, so I knew that would be my vessel of choice again. However, I really didn't want to add any water to the roast, and since I roasted the chicken last week without water I figured I would do a little experiment and put the pork butt in dry and see how it turned out. I have to say it is perfect! Now I've never been a big pork fan but this is really good. Here's how I did it:

I sprinkled on some liquid hickory smoke, seasoned the pork butt (isn't that just fun to say?) with sea salt, fresh ground pepper, garlic powder and onion powder (it's the base seasoning mix hubby and I use for all our meat cooking), and cooked on each side in a skillet until browned (this is to add flavor). When all the side were browned I put the pork butt in an oiled crockpot (olive oil spray), added a little more liquid hickory smoke for good measure, and cooked for 10 hours overnight on low.

When I woke up (waking up to check on food is always a good start to the day!) I tried picking up the pork butt with a pair of tongs and it just fell apart, so I tried picking up the bone with the tongs and the meat fell clean off the bone (this was a great treat for my black lab mix, Geordi, although it occurred to me after I gave him the bone that it would have been an excellent way to season some pinto beans when I make refried beans from the crock pot). So I shredded the meat with a fork and tongs and as soon as hubby is done working on the car I'm going to mix part of the meat with some BBQ sauce (haven't attempted making this homemade yet, so I buy various Texas brands when we're out at restaurants) for pulled pork sandwiches. The remainder of the meat I plan on making my tomatillo sauce (much like salsa), tossing the meat with it, then serving it with chipotle mashed potatoes (one of my hubby's faves).

So have no fear and give this method a try. I may have to try the same method with a rump roast or brisket just to see what happens. I suspect the rump roast may be a little drier in the end and the fat in the brisket will make this a perfect cooking method. Generally I use a little water with my rump roast then drain before making pulled beef sandwiches, tacos, or empanadas. Each meat (beef, pork, even chicken) would also be great in a posole (soup made of meat and hominy).

A great frugal tip is to look for these cuts of meat when they are on sale: beef rump roast (a good price where I am is $2.19/lb which is comparable to ground beef) and pork butt (shoulder) (good price is $.99/lb). I can easily get 3 meals out of each and sometimes stretch them further. Whole chickens are also inexpensive and I'll blog about how to make it when I try it again within the next week.

The Versitile Rump Roast

So I slow cooked a rump roast today in a few cups of water and seasoned w/salt, pepper and garlic powder. When trying to decide how to serve it, I decided to shred it and simmer it in a pot with a couple cans of diced green chilies, a diced onion, some diced garlic cloves, and I seasoned it with oregano and cumin. It is so yummy!!! There is easily enough meat for 3 meals for my hubby and I, so tonight I made shredded beef burritos w/refried beans and Monterrey Jack cheese, tomorrow I'll make empanadas using pre-made pie crust and Monterrey Jack cheese, then for the 3rd day I'm thinking of adding a can or two of hominy and some beef broth for a yummy posole.