Pine nuts are too expensive. They’ve always been too expensive, and it’s even worse with the post-lockdown inflation. Fear not– a substitute has emerged. Roasted pepitas are available at most supermarkets for almost a third of the price, and they’re tasty in many other applications when your pesto is ready. 

I use this version on everything from pasta to pizza, from sandwiches to salads. 

Check out the recipe below!

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It was super cold the first week of February in Northeast Wisconsin, and all I wanted was a good bowl of soup. I had plenty of individual servings in my freezer, but I had potato soup on my mind. This recipe utilizes one of the hacks I learned from a pinterest recipe ages ago on the stovetop instead of the crock pot: save money and skip the cartons of whole milk and heavy cream by buying a block of cream cheese instead!

​The mirepoix that went through the food processor brings additional flavor and fiber to the soup without adding too much cost. Feel free to substitute water for chicken stock. Buying all of the ingredients aside from pantry staples such as olive oil, you can make this soup for less than 10 dollars and have veggies for more uses afterward!

​I used bouillon cubes to create my stock, but homemade stock will always be better.

Football season is halfway through, and that means that we’re going to need appetizers for the folks getting together to root for the Packers in this trying time. I’ve put together a spiced Spinach and Artichoke Dip that requires minimal effort on the part of the host. Mix, toss it in the oven, and profit!

​This recipe can be doubled or even tripled depending on the football party you’re throwing, and we are working on other recipes to utilize leftovers if you over prepare. Have no fear, this dip can go places. If you make too much for the party, you can twist it into a variety of different dishes. Stay tuned to our instagram and tiktok to see what we do with it!

The last Christmas I shared with my ex-husband’s family, I took charge of making dinner for us. His sister had missed out on Thanksgiving due to catching COVID, so Christmas dinner was a Thanksgiving dinner. This turkey and Sage gravy was born from that day and a happy accident of adding more sage than I thought I needed to the gravy itself.

The key ingredient to this gravy is rubbed sage, which is in fact different than a traditional dried herb. The process to make it creates a fluffier texture in the herb itself, and some of that property seemed to transfer to the gravy itself. The best version of this recipe utilizes the drippings from your turkey, but if straining off the liquid from the bottom of your pan sounds like a chore, box stock will work just fine.

Notes:

• Most commercial turkeys come with the neck inside the carcass. You can use this to make a small pot of stock on the back burner while you work on the rest of dinner. This can supplement your gravy if the drippings are not bountiful enough for a gravy. You can also use boxed stock. Most grocery stores are carrying turkey stock specifically during this season.
  
• This gravy comes together quickly at the end of the meal. I recommend waiting as long as you can to make it.
  

If, like me, you’re alone in your home right now, this recipe freezes well. Use a souper cube to freeze leftovers or allow the soup to cool before scooping into quart sized bags. Squeeze out the air, seal, and freeze. I often find I can eat a quart of the frozen soup in a day on my own, and by doing that with this recipe, I enjoyed over six meals with it by myself.

This recipe is a base for using whatever you have in your fridge that simply needs to go. Greens like spinach or kale can also be added to make sure it gets a second chance as well. No white beans? Kidney beans or black beans will be fine. No fresh tomato? A can of diced tomatoes will render a similar amount of liquid as the large fresh diced tomato.

I also keep bouillon on hand to make some chicken broth for whenever I don’t have any homemade stock around. In these first few weeks alone, it’s been especially useful. I don’t eat enough meat to have the bones around for a good stock as often as I used to when feeding two people instead of one.

How do you make your vegetable soup? Share your own tips and tricks below!

It's football season-- and keeping with the promise of new content, we're going to aim for one game time recipe each week until football season is over. To ring in the new segment, here is our first quick snack: Fried Cheese Curds!

Serve alongside a cup of ranch and a cold beer to pray for a better Packers game next week.

Meat is expensive. A pound of ground beef for a good meat sauce can be hard to justify in the current economy, especially if you’re cooking alone. Worry not– the Eating Normal Budget Sauce is here. The Italian Sausage cuts out the need for additional herbs, allowing you to focus your budget on core ingredients. Serve with long or short pasta.

What sauce you don’t use will freeze well for up to 2 months. We recommend freezing in individual portions. The sauce costs about 10 bucks to feed 4-6 people.

A common substitution in restaurant crab cakes looking to serve vegan and vegetarian options is the Lion’s Mane Mushroom. We received one in our random box delivery from Produce with Purpose and decided to develop our own recipe to restart our market meals segment ahead of the Farmer’s Market Season. All fresh products in this recipe are from our friends over at PwP, but that is going to start to change as we have more access to local growers.

We will diligently record which vendors help us make these meals then– but until then, consider making these delicious Mock Crab Cakes with locally grown mushrooms!

The texture of the shredded Lion's Mane combined with panko breadcrumbs and egg matches exactly that of some of the best crab cakes I had while living in Delaware, and it will inevitably much cheaper than trying to source high quality lump crab from the Upper Midwest. Several Green Bay mushroom vendors during market season supply Lion's Mane Mushrooms if you're curious to try it for yourself once market season starts, or you can order from our friends at Produce with Purpose.

​Just look at that mix. You'd never know!

Looking for a recipe to start your day? Look no farther than these Breakfast Potato Pancakes that can be made with ingredients you likely already have at home. These potato pancakes are based on a common latke preparation, and they make for a hearty meal!

I'm not going to waste your time with a bunch of forward nonsense. Expand to see the printable recipe card!