Day 5: $$$$4.02$

Well if the day had gone as hoped I could have done it but I failed. Didn't use up all my food and indulged to much.

- buy 1 get 1 free with my friend from out of town so -1.75 donut coffee combo
-coffee refill -0.25
-popcorn at movies shared 4 people -1.25
- sandwich buy 1 get 1, free shared 2 people -2.50
- lots of water and free beer samples later

Verdict $5.75 only had $4.02 left.
Owe my friend $1.72 plus freebies are a "no, no"....
My friend is from Oregon so she's doing that tax exempt thing w/ purchases.

My ending SOAP BOX ponder,

Similar to fasting, detoxing, Lent, or many other varieties of abstaining try to reset your brain to except less as being more. Hopefully humbling someone to have a deeper understanding of what it is to do without.
Or it can backfire and just make you binge, being blindly driven to over indulge.
I did something in between. After midnight I went to Dicks Burgers bought a hamburger w/ my friend and a few more for people, to give out while on the walk home. I know in numbers my hamburgers will not fix the world but at least some didn't go to bed w/ an empty tummy. I used to do this every payday when I first moved to Seattle (it was the Portlander in me I would say). I will never be a Saint but little bits of kindness, expressions of Humanity toward one another is needed. Now I try to help w/ a bus ticket or power bars I keep in my purse. But this still just helps 1. United Way and other programs can change the future, laws, change lives, PREVENT the Need for Need. This is a good thing to be a part of and keep on EVERYONE's RADAR.
Thank You for challenging us.

Good Hunting in your future. Share your Bounty. Help Prevent the Need for Need.

Some of us need to offer free classes on low budget cooking. :)


LOVE

Day 4: The Wrenching of the Challenge

Scene opens.
Bright sunshine day blazes through the window.

/Dark ominous music/

So unexpected my friend comes to town.

/ light happy music plays with morning sun/
(I flash back to the days endeavors)

Breakfast
quick instant coffee w/ cookie again :)

Lunch

Rest of Oxtail and rice.

/inner monolog starts & dreamy music/

"wow, I could possibly get by w/out buying anything today. I had good breakfast/ lunch leftovers. I still have eggs, meat broth, pasta, udon noodles from Asian instant soup plus most of the spicy packets it came w/,dozen of unbaked cookies, 1 Asian pear, 3 green onions left, and instant coffee. I could do it!"

/dreamy music comes on w/ harps/


"I could make some egg drop soup, w/ cold pear pasta salad and bake up some of the cookies. Or, steam eggs w/ flavor packet of dehydrated veggies, pan fry cooked pasta w/ oil packet and Oxtail broth. Could try to make Asian Casserole w/ noodle, flavor packets, Asian pear, eggs, water..."

/dreamy music gets cut off abruptly and metal guitar riff cuts in/

(enter stage left) The Friend
(I haven't seen in long time)

/sounds of rain with slow violin/

Snacks (w/ talks of long drive)
Cup of happy hour chowder 2.00
and beer 2.00
--------4$

/sad violin play with sound of rain/
(rest of day stuck on fast forward as dollars float out of my money pouch)

5 people shared large popcorn at movies and I sneaky in water bottle.. Aprox. 1.50

Dinner w/ friends
(the nite moves on in cut up slow scenes fast motion at Italian bar)
/violin plays on with weird floating laughter/

Shared pasta dish w/ salad. Happy hour. So 1/2 of 5 bucks is 2.50. 1/2 glass wine 2.50
($$$float out of my purse again$$$)
/cha-ching sound/
-------------------------10.50 today :(

Leaves 4.02 for tomorrow :(

/saddest music plays as scene fades to black/

(talking straight at camera)
"So anyone want to buy 1/2 box pasta 1/2 dozen eggs or dozen unbaked cookies, instant coffee, udon noodles, spicy packets, Asian pear? Anyone?? Anyone???!!!"
(shaking the camera as I yell last "Anyone")

/tears falls as sounds of rain fades/
/sound bite with Homer Simpson says "D-oh"/

And Scene.

Day 3:Md's, Tiredness and cooking again

Today will be Short and Tasty.

Too tired last nite to go out for a brewsky. I slept most the day. Set up another MD visit for Friday and had my S.O. drive me to the grocery store. Too tired to walk to the ID for food.

I think I found a theme to my food gathering. I go to one store a day. So Day 1= QFC, Day 2= Grocery Outlet, Day 3= Uwajimaya.


Breakfast
Instant Coffee and cookies :)


Lunch
Left over Crustless Quiche.

(didn't look really pretty but tasty)

I modified the recipe using squash, green onion and a couple left over broccoli , No oil used, No cheese.

Dinner
Cooking Korean Oxtail Soup
(best pic's and recipe that is similar I could find)

Using below ingredients and the spicy packet from the instant soup to flavor.
Many of the soups at the Asian market have about 3 packets inside if you know which ones to buy. The packets: (1) Dehydrated tofu, Seaweed &Veggies (2) Spices(careful lots of salt) (3) Sesame seed oil packet. Then w/ an egg based noodle.

To cook Oxtail it's best to boil once for 1 hour. Then dump and clean oxtail under warm water. This cleans the meat, cooks off blood and the fat. Then bring oxtail to boil again and keep at rolling boil for 3-4 hrs. Covered. 1/2 pound in about 4-5 cups water. Let it reduce to 3 cups. Then last hour add 1" rounds of Korean or Daikon radish, 1/2 the spicy packet from instant soup. Serve the boiling soup over bok choy cut in half and rest of green onion minced as garnish over the top.
Makes about 2 servings. Ate w/ some rice. (Saved 1/2 cup broth for later cooking)
If you want to make it almost fat free you boil then cool it overnight in frig. then next day take off the top layer of fat. You can use the rendered fat for cooking/flavor to eggs, rice, fried rice, and other stir fry.
I usually just give it to my dog. It helps his coat (I add the salt later).
My mom triple boils it. Final boil lasts overnight w/ about 5lbs of oxtail. No fat is left and a opaque white soup is left that is liquid gold for joints d/t the cartilage (is made totally absorbable). 

• -baby bok choy 0.79
• -ready made rice 1.29
• -Oxtail 1/2 lb. 2.31
• -instant Soup(spicy) 0.95
• -almost 1lb. of Korean radish 1.16

                                                        --------6.50. +++++++0.50

Oxtail Soup

Good Hunting...

Day 2: The Dish

Asian Pear, Blueberry w/ cottage cheese

Took the moisture out of some of the Cottage cheese and cleaned fruit w/ warm water and fruit cleaner. Since pears not organic the best to do is clean off potential pesticides. Pesticide is suppose to stay on when it rains so to truly attempt to clean some of the fruit use warmish water. Fruit cleaners are use in other countries and I use this when needed too. Berries tend to soak up the most pesticide so I found small organic sample less than a cup but enough taste. The pears where not as tasty as some organic ones I buy. So I can see why people that can't get organic may not get a worthwhile sample of the flavor or even want to waste money on dull unflavored food even if it's nutrient rich. I ate the other pear w/ salt for a snack. I have one more and putting in a brown bag to see if it can ripen or if it just gets mealy.

I am cooking a Crustless Quiche w/ out milk or cheese so we'll see how that works out.

Oh it's midnight. I am going out for a $1 beer nite at the local pub. Hope I don't spent all my 7$ for today.

Happy Hunting.

Day 2: Hunting @ Grocery Outlet

(: Nutritional data if you click it :)
-eggs(local)1.49
-3 asian pears(fresh) 1.50
-instant coffee w/ flavoring 0.47
-green onion(fresh) 0.50
-yellow Squash(fresh) 0.50
-u-bake all natural cookies 0.99
-blue berries(organic) 1.50

-----6.95++++0.05

So what to do w/ it....

So I will go home and bake 1/2 the cookies (2 dozen are in it) and have some coffee. Share the cookies w/ S.O. and friends.
Probably make a small fruit salad over the 1/2 cup cottage cheese I have left from yesterday and make steamed egg bowls for dinner or take some of the left over pasta and make boiled eggs then w/ zucchini green onion try to make a pasta salad. We'll see!!

MD visits OH MY...

Oh to fallow up w/ the supplement. It was a "NO GO" so I did not buy the supplements w/ my 2 bucks.

The MD today's visit w/ my CBC. I should stay on my supplements so that's, that.

Luckily I enjoy Water. I weaned myself off needing coffee daily while I was home sick w/ a cold. Tomorrow I may look for Tea.





...Good Hunting

Day 1: Culinary Pic(k)s

More Hunting:

• 1bag of fresh stir fry medley w/ carrots, broccoli and snow peas 1.99
• small side of onion chopped from Dick's drive through 0.05 x2 = 0.11(tax)

So total spent ----6.98 left ++0.02

Spicy Veggie Penne 


Breakfast
The am meal/snack has been cottage cheese. I like it w/ pepper or plain. It has plenty of salt. 


Lunch

Spicy Soup

• 1/2 jar of sauce
• 1/2 cup cottage cheese
• 1/2 bag of veggie medley
• 1 cup of water
• Salt/pepper to taste

Put all of above in blender and liquify. Heat medium high on stove. Add noodles if you want.

Ate most of it but it could serve 2 if served w/ bread or 1/2 sandwich.

Dinner

Spicy Veggie Penne

• 1/2 jar of sauce
• 1/8 cup of cottage cheese heated w/ sauce
• small side of chopped onion
• 1/ 2 bag of veggie medley
• Pepper to taste
• 1/8 cup of cottage cheese w/ moisture squeezed out

Heat fry pan to medium. Boil about 3 cups of water.

Fry onions until opaque and then  add sauce and cottage cheese.

Heat and stir until cottage cheese is melted into sauce and heated.

Into boiling water cook penne until dente add pepper to taste.

Either nuke the veggies for 2 min. to steam or steam using the left over boiled water from noodles if you have one of  those steam baskets that sit above the water.

Serve noodles w/ veggies and sauce w/ the dry cottage cheese and pepper for topping. 

Serves 2-3. 
My S.O. Shared this with me. and the Pooch ate the leftover sauce.