So Busy!

So, the end of Lent is drawing near (meaning lots of services in the next week), I have started a new writing-from-home job (does it make me a freelance writer if I'm getting paid for it?), and life is full! So I don't have time to post an entire menu at the moment, but I thought I'd direct you to some great recipes I'm using this week from RealSimple.com to tide you over.

• Shrimp and Pasta Puttanesca
  
• Risotto with Edamame, Lemon Zest, and Tarragon (substitue broth or white grape juice and a splash of vinegar for the wine, soy cheese for the parm, and I'm using brown rice in place of the Arborio... I know... a lot of substitutions....)
• Shrimp Cakes with Carrot Slaw
  

Dinner Menu Plan: Apr 3 - Apr 9

My method of listing the necessities first this week worked, and I only had to remove a couple of items from my list to stay within my $70 budget (especially impressive, I think, because I have to buy laundry detergent this week). After that, I looked at a few very cheap recipes, and then brainstormed recipe ideas from some of the cheapest ingredients that I could think of: beans and potatoes. Here are the results:

• Thurs: Lubia bi Zeit (Lebanese Tomato and Green Bean Casserole) with Lebanese Rice and hummus and pita
• Fri: Chili con "Carne" (fake ground beef) with corn bread and salad/carrot sticks
  
• Sat: Salmon Stuffed Butternut Squash with brown rice and sauteed broccoli rounds (that's the stems... peel first)
  
• Sun - Brunch: muffins or pancakes with fruit salad
• Sun - Dinner: Mexican Rice and Beans with salad and carrot sticks
• Mon: Jody's Potato Salad (with chunks of tofu replacing the egg and for added protein) with a veggie tray and bread and margarine
• Tues: Garden Vegetable Soup with bread and salad
• Wed: Soup, Salad, and Bread (again?) after church service
  

Oil Cleans!

So, totally by accident, I discovered that oil (mine was canola) will take sticky oil-dust-grime off of surfaces. If your kitchen is spotless, you will not have this problem. Mine is not, and my tea kettle is usually coated in aforementioned stickiness. Plain soap does next to nothing to this substance.

I went to wipe off a splatter of oil from my kettle (see, I'm trying to reform my cleaning ways by paying attention to spills and wiping them up promptly), and the oil took with it the layers of previously-splattered-oil-covered-in-dust goo. Maybe this is a common-knowledge cleaning trick, but I was certainly unaware. After I buy some more oil and have some I can spare from the needs of cooking, I'm going to do this on purpose to the rest of the kettle!