Recipe: Wheat Berry Salad with Cucumber, Peas, and Mint

I bought a bag of wheat berries in a Chinatown supermarket for $1 a while ago and have been wondering what to do with it for quite some time.

Cucumbers are on sale this time of year and I bought 3 for $1 along with a box of frozen peas for 99¢. With my mint growing profusely in the herb garden, I decided to put the ingredients all together and invented this light Summer salad. Peas, cucumber, and mint seem to go together quite nicely.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup wheat berries
• 1 large cucumber (diced) if it has a waxy coating, peel it first!
• 10 oz. box of frozen peas (thawed)
• 1/4 cup fresh mint (chopped)
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp lemon juice

Directions

1. Rinse the wheat berries and put into a pot with enough water to cover by 2 inches.
2. Bring to a boil and cook uncovered for an hour.
3. Drain the wheat berries and allow to cool.
4. All all ingredients into a large bowl and toss. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve.

Recipe: Pasta with Broccoli Rabe and Sausage

Pasta is on sale this week for 80¢ a box at my local supermarket. Italian Turkey Sausage is on sale for $2.99. Broccoli Rabe is $2.99 per pound. I already have extra virgin olive oil and garlic in my pantry so I decided to buy all these ingredients to make this popular Italian dish for about $7.

Orecchiette (Italian for "ear") is the pasta shape that is normally used for this dish. I substituted Medium Shells which is similar.

Ingredients

• 1 large bunch of broccoli rabe (stems trimmed off and rinsed)
• 1 pound of Medium Shell pasta
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound Italian sausage (hot or sweet, the taste is up to you) cut into bite sized pieces
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup reserved broccoli rabe water
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add a handful of salt and bring back to boil.
2. Add the broccoli rabe and cook for a minute. Remove from water with tongs and allow to cool and drain in a colander.
3. Bring the water back to a boil.
4. Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium heat and cook the sausage until browned, about 12 minutes.
5. Add the chopped garlic and saute for a minute more.
6. Add the drained broccoli rabe and toss to coat everything in the flavored oil.
7. Add 1 cup reserved broccoli rabe water and salt and pepper to taste.
8. Meanwhile, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente (about 10 minutes)
9. Drain pasta and return to the pot.
10. Add the broccoli rabe and sausage sauce to the pasta and toss.
11. Transfer everything to a serving plate and sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top.

Recipe: Simple Pasta Salad

It's been a REALLY hot Summer so far and one does not want to cook in such weather.

I came up with this recipe using grocery items I saw on sale at the local supermarket this week.

These are the prices for the America's Choice brand which I find just as good as national brands.

Frozen boxed vegetables (10 oz.) are on sale for 99¢ each.

16 oz. box of dried pasta is 80¢

8 oz. block of cheese is $1.50

16 oz. bottle of salad dressing $1.50

Ingredients

• Half of a 16 oz. box of shaped pasta such as Rotini, Rotelle, (or your favorite shape)
• 10 oz. box of frozen mixed vegetables
• 4 oz. of sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 cup salad dressing (Italian, Caesar, Balsamic, Ranch, or your favorite)

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil and follow pasta manufacturer's direction on cooking the pasta shape of your choice.
2. While pasta is cooking, dice up the block of cheese into 1/4" cubes.
3. Add the box of frozen vegetables a few minutes before pasta is ready.
4. When pasta is done, drain the pasta and vegetables. Add to a large bowl.
5. Add the salad dressing and toss to coat. You want to cool down the pasta before adding the cheese.
6. Add the cheese and toss again.
7. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Hello Summer! What do you think of my outfit?

If you want to save money on clothing, this is the time to buy your Summer pieces that you need. The stores are already ordering and stocking the floors with Fall and "Back To School" outfits and need the floor space. This means that the clothes that you would normally wear now are marked down or on sale so that they can get rid of it and make space.

Buy classic shapes and colors and you can wear these items every Summer and save money knowing that you have a full wardrobe. Buy the swimsuits on sale now. Outfits and pieces that are Fashion Fads are in today and out tomorrow so you are best to avoid these if you want to save money.

Happy Independence Day Weekend!

If you check the supermarket circulars, you'll notice that many traditional BBQ ingredients are on sale right now for the holiday weekend. Watermelon, hot dogs, hamburgers, buns, corn, BBQ sauces...

This is the perfect time to buy and stock up if you can for the week. Buns and meat freeze nicely so you can always have an impromptu BBQ and know that you saved money having bought all the ingredients on sale. When purchasing groceries, always remember to look for the expiration date (or in some cases, the manufacturing date). Purchase the one that will have the the longest shelf life for instance, I just bought a half gallon carton of Florida's Natural for $2.50 and chose the one with the exp date of September 2011 over August. Same for the Bacon Bits I just bought on sale that expires in 2013.