July 10, 2011

Breakfast
Strawberry Blue Concrete
serves 2 ~ $1.45 per serving

 3 bananas, sliced and frozen ($.60)
1 1/2 cups strawberries, frozen ($1.69)
1/2 cup blueberries, frozen ($.60)
stevia and/or agave, to taste

 A “concrete” is a very thick shake … thick enough to have to eat it with a spoon. This is also a great way to use produce that was frozen while in season and is great on a really warm morning.

In a food processor fitted with an “S” blade, process the frozen bananas until creamy. Add water as needed until the mixture is a thick, soft serve ice cream consistency. Add about half the frozen strawberries and process again until smooth. Add a couple droppers of stevia and/or agave, until you like the level of sweetness. You may not need any sweetener at all if you use very ripe bananas.

Spoon out and set aside about half the mixture. Then, add more frozen strawberries to what remains, and process again until smooth. Spoon out and set aside about half of this mixture, as well. Finally, add the frozen blueberries to what is left and process again until smooth.

Layer the different mixtures in a glass. And don’t forget a spoon!

Lunch
Melon Salad
serves 2 ~ $2.88 per serving

10 ounces arugula or mixed baby lettuces ($1.90)
1 cup watermelon, sliced into thin chunks ($1.00)
 1 cup cantaloupe, sliced into thin chunks ($1.30)
1 medium onion, sliced thinly ($.25)
2 tablespoons olive oil ($.20)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar ($.20)
2 tablespoons agave ($.40)
about 1/4 cup chopped walnuts ($.50) 

This is light and perfect on a hot summer day.

Toss the lettuce with the watermelon, cantaloupe, and onion. Whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and agave and dress both salads. Top with chopped walnuts.

4 small zucchini, peeled and sliced ($1.80)
2 tablespoons olive oil ($.20)
1/4 cup tahini ($.50)
juice from one lemon ($.50)
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 scant teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
2 tomatoes, sliced ($2.00)
1 small onion, sliced thinly ($.20)
chopped olives ($.1.00)
salt to taste
red pepper flakes

Hummus on tomatoes is one of my favorite meals, but I usually used cooked chickpea hummus because I was never happy with the raw, zucchini hummus. I found that sweating the zucchini can make all the difference and make a thicker, creamier, more hummusy hummus.

Peel and slice the zucchini. Place the zucchini in a lidded container and add two tablespoons lemon juice, two tablespoons olive oil, and about a teaspoon of salt. The salt will help draw some of the water out of the zucchini. Shake the container every so often, and let sit for about an hour. Drain the liquid and rinse off excess salt.

In a food processor fitted with an “S” blade, process the zucchini and lemon juice until smooth. Add the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, and curry powder and process again until very smooth. Taste test and adjust for salt and seasonings.

Slice a tomato into 4 or 5 slices. Layer the hummus in between the tomato slices and top with sliced onions and chopped olives. Finish is off with a sprinkle of red pepper flakes and a small drizzle of hot pepper oil.