I love me some food network, I really do, which is why it makes me so sick that I can't afford to make any, no seriously, any, of the recipes on the shows I like.
I suppose to be fair I should mention that the shows I watch aren't the "hey, stretch a dollar tighter than my most recent Botox treatment!" editions. In the 'recipes are given' category, though, they range from Paula Deen (lard adds flavor!) to Ina Garten (I have substituted sex in my marriage for food, but thankfully, that marriage provides a Hamptons life!), with a solid dose of Alton Brown (science!) in between.
It's not that any of the recipes are particularly expensive (except for Ina's), and yet...I can't afford to make them.
Involves a bottle of cheap red wine? I can't afford to buy the ones I drink, certainly can't dump one over a chicken. Need a spice not already in your drawer? HellOOOO, those cost like $4.50 each. Fresh herbs, fruits, or vegetables involved? Oh hell no.
Isn't cooking at home supposed to be more affordable than going out? For $5.50 I can buy the most amazing burrito I've ever eaten, just a few blocks from my house. For $6.99 I can buy some ground turkey to start making burritos for dinner, or if I'm feeling frugal, I can maybe pick up weird chicken bits for $1.99/lb., but since they're mostly bone and gristle, I'll need at least $4 or $5 worth to get going for me and the boy, or me and at least one leftovers-based meal. You know what else goes in burritos? Cheese ($2.50/block when on sale), sour cream ($1.99/container), beans ($1/can) spices (expensive), lettuce ($2ish/head), salsa (if you buy the cheap kind, you might get it for $2.50/jar) and rice, and don't even get me GOING on guacomole...
Okay, okay, if I make these things, there may be leftovers, not enough to make a whole second meal with, but of the piecemeal variety.
You know what's worse than not being able to afford the food you buy? Watching it go bad in your fridge.
And so I eat velveeta (I swear it's non-perishable) on saltines, and sh*tloads of fried eggs, and maybe occasionally indulge in a bologna sandwich (when I'm feeling extravagant, that is...)...and I drool at my TV.
-Posted by Jilly
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
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Ah yes! This is a road I know all too well. Have you ever tried to buy vanilla???? A tiny bottle of the real thing can cost over $10 easy and I'm morally opposed to using the synthetic kind. All my baking is shamelessly vanilla-free for this very reason.
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