Okra Middle Eastern Style (p. 327)

I've actually been trying to track down okra for this recipe for about a month -- all the local stores had run out and couldn't tell me when more might come in. Finally, walking through Harris Teeter the other day I came across some and bought it up.

I've never cooked with okra before. Before trying this recipe, I think the only way I've ever eaten it is fried.

Okra kind of oozes something sticky out of it, which is a little gross, and means that you have to be very careful when trimming the ends -- just cut a little off!

The okra is lightly sauteed in olive oil and then removed from the heat.

The same olive oil is again used to cook onion, tomato, and garlic into a sauce -- then add the okra back in along with boiling water. Cook until most of the water has evaporated and then top with salt and pepper.

This was okay, but it mostly just tasted like onion and tomato -- the okra itself doesn't seem to have a whole lot of flavor, at least not in this preparation.

okra -- $1.76

tomato -- $.81

onion -- $.46 (half left)

Total Cost of Okra Middle Eastern Style: $3.03

($1.51 per serving)

Torta di Polenta Gialla (p. 454)

Also known as Cornmeal Cake, or, the best Mediterranean cake we've had so far. Seriously, this is super delicious. Probably because it's full of butter and and sugar, just like a real cake!

The base of the cake is butter, sugar, vanilla, and egg yolks all together. Stir in freshly squeezed orange juice and finely ground nuts - the recipe calls for almonds but I only had walnuts on hand. Alternate between mixing in whipped egg whites and the dry ingredients -- flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and some corn starch.

Bake for about 30 minutes and serve!

This was delicious. It's sweet and soft and has a nice little crunch from the nuts. I loved it, Matt loved it, and my coworkers loved it.

Best of all, I had all the ingredients!

Total Cost of Torta di Polenta Gialla: Free!

White Bean, Collard Greens, and Yellow Squash Soup (p. 138)

I made this soup the other night. The recipe actually calls for cavolo nero, or black cabbage, but that's kind of hard to come by, so I used collard greens instead.

I soaked the white beans over night with garlic and a bay leaf, and then cooked them in their soaking liquid when I was ready to make the soup. The beans took about 40 minutes to cook, at which point I took them off the heat and discarded the bay leaf.

The rest of the soup comes together quickly -- sauté onions until starting to brown and then add them to simmering chicken stock (or veggie, if you want it to be a vegetarian soup.) Do the same with squash -- I had butternut left over from a recipe last week.

Cut the greens into thin strips and add them into the soup, along with salt and pepper, leaving to cook for about 15 minutes until the greens are tender.

Add the beans and their water in with the rest of the soup and bring it back to a simmer. Serve with a little cheese on top!

This has a lot of greens in it. Maybe too many, for me. It's okay, but definitely not something I'd make again.

collard greens -- $1.99

yellow onion -- $1.03

Total Cost of White Bean, Collard Greens, and Yellow Squash Soup: $3.02

($.78 per serving)