Pocketmint

Tag: cooking

1. Eating cheaply and well: learn to be an improv cook

   26 February 2013

   I’ve waxed philosophical in recent articles, so I thought it was time to offer up something practical. Today I’m going to help you eat surprisingly well on just three to four dollars per day. First, a few numbers to establish my grocery thrift credibility: The USDA estimates monthly costs for food at different spending levels. […]

2. Urban homestead failure still a frugal success

   20 July 2012

   If, as I do, one reads many books and blogs espousing a culture of frugality and anti-consumerism, one will quickly and repeatedly cross paths with the cousin community of urban homesteaders and do-it-yourselfers. I am seduced by the whole idea of urban homesteading, for reasons of both ethics and aesthetics. But I fear I am […]

3. Feed a crowd for forty bucks

   9 December 2011

   The calculations are complete. Total cost per person for our Thanksgiving meal (one generous serving each of six dishes and two desserts): $3.50. Note that I didn’t skimp on quality of ingredients — I used such expensive items as pine nuts, heavy cream, whole vanilla beans, and real maple syrup. I also did nothing different […]

4. On shrimp, or how to balance ethics and thrift

   19 November 2011

   Pocketmint now spans three and a half years, and while there are certain posts I would write the same today, other things in my life have changed over that time. I think this personal evolution is often meaningful, so periodically I’ll be highlighting something I said in the past and updating it with my current […]

5. Frugal feasting

   8 November 2011

   Thanksgiving is my very favorite holiday. I hear that some people have odd Thanksgiving customs like ‘watching football’ or ‘shopping’, but for us it’s pretty much an entire holiday about cooking and eating. These are two of my favorite things, so I’m happy. This week I’ve started poking around recipe sites looking for menu-planning inspiration. […]

6. Supper club: an alternative to potlucks and dinner parties

   15 January 2010

   This entry started out as a comment to Kris’ potluck post on Get Rich Slowly, but it soon became too long for a mere comment, so I moved it over here. In addition to being frugal-minded, I’m also an unabashed foodie. When I was lucky enough to have three friends nearby who also liked to […]

7. Save those crusts: a yummy use for your extra bread bits

   11 December 2009

   For the past few months, my newfound love for easy homemade bread got sidelined by my difficulties with excema. Even easy bread sort of requires being able to use both hands. So it was back to the Costco multigrain loaves for sandwiches and toast. It’s always pained my frugal soul that a certain amount of […]

8. One more for the ‘no-knead’ bread revolution

   1 July 2009

   I love fresh homemade bread. Once, in my early twenties, I made a loaf by hand. I had picked up the classic Tassajara Bread Book from a remainder table, and one afternoon I went at it for several hours, kneading and punching away. It made a glorious loaf which we happily devoured straight out of […]