Mmmmmm Moussaka

12 servings
Total cost: NY $ 21.26
Cost per serving: NY $1.77

It’s the time of year when you don’t mind having the oven on for hours, and having an all day kitchen project to occupy your time saves you from having to venture out into the frostbitten world.* Yet its also the beginning of January, a time when it seems almost everyone I know--and I think this says something about the ages and accompanying plunging metabolic rates of my intimates--is pledging themselves to a new diet, a new gym routine, or just “eating better” in general. Hmm, how to harmonize these two seemingly disparate impulses? Enter this moussaka.


A moussaka is something like a Greek version of lasagna, but with thin layers of eggplant instead of pasta. Hey, what’s that? It uses vegetables in place of white carbs? Eureka! A traditional moussaka recipe will call for lots of egg yolks and ground meats; this rendition eases up on both, making it kinder to both your wallet and your waistline. Don’t worry though, it still takes positively ages to make, and requires having the oven cranked on for most of it. (Well, if your oven is anything like the crappy one in our rental apartment that, though tiny, still takes almost an hour to preheat and steadfastly refuses to admit that temperatures between 425 and 325 exist, thus requiring constant toggling back and forth between temps to even approximate a steady 350 or 400 degree temperature. But I digress.) Accordingly, I submit to you that this moussaka, which will fill your kitchen with heady warming aromas and satisfy your cravings for stick to your ribs foodstuffs, is the perfect recipe for deepest January.


Ingredients

• 4 eggplants (NY $7.68)
• Salt (staple)
• 5 tbsps olive oil (staple)
• 3 cloves garlic (NY $0.29 for one head)
• 1 large onion (NY $1.16)
• 1 pound ground lamb (NY $5.99)
• 1 tsp oregano (staple)
• ½ tsp cinnamon (staple)
• ½ tsp all spice (staple)
• 1/3 cup minced fresh parsley (NY $1.16 for one bunch)
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce (staple)
• 2 tbsps tomato paste (staple)
• 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (NY $1.19)
• 4 tbsps butter (NY $0.51)
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour (NY $0.10)
• 2 ½ cups milk (staple, we used 1%)
• ½ tsp nutmeg (staple)
• Salt (staple)
• White Pepper (staple)
• 1 egg (NY $0.15)
• 1 egg yolk (NY $0.15)
• 8 oz. feta cheese (NY $2.88)
• 3 tbsps parmesan cheese (staple)

Directions

I’ll tell you upfront that this is going to take awhile: you’ll want to start well in advance of when you actually anticipate eating. Slice the eggplant lengthwise into 1/8 in to ¼ in thick slices, making sure to maintain even thickness. Salt and let stand about 45 minutes, then rinse. Tossing the slices into a colander works well for this. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350.


Pat eggplant slices dry, brush lightly with olive oil, and lay on baking sheets. Bake, in batches if need be, about 30 minutes. If your eggplant slices, despite your best efforts, end up varying in size, cook ones of about the same thickness at the same time, so you can remove them sooner or give them a bit more time depending on whether they’re thinner or thicker. Remove from baking sheets and set aside to cool. Just pile them up on a plate or in a deep bowl.


While eggplants are in the oven, cook the meat sauce layer. Mince the garlic and finely chop the onion, and cook in 1 tbsp of olive oil until fragrant and slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add lamb and cook until no longer pink, about 5 minutes longer. Stir in oregano, cinnamon, all spice, parsley, Worcestershire, tomato paste and diced tomatoes. Cook uncovered until liquid has reduced by about 2/3rds, about 15 minutes. Cover and set aside while you prepare the next layer.


To prepare the béchamel layer, put milk in a small pot to warm. Melt butter in a larger pot, then add the flour, stirring vigorously, until well combined. Toast over low heat, stirring continuously, for about a minute. Remove the pot containing the butter/flour mixture from heat. Slowing add in the warmed milk, whisking to combine. You’ll get a bit of a work-out here (go ahead, count it towards that exercise resolution goal) as you need to whisk vigorously, and the béchamel is going to start to thicken up and fight back. Stay strong and have at it, you don’t want to let any lumps develop. Once you’ve got your thickened, smooth white sauce, whisk in the egg and egg yolk. Step back and admire the sunny lemony color of your completed béchamel.

And now for the assembly! (Some time will have passed at this point, and your kitchen should be nice and toasty warm at this point. Then again, so will you.) You can enlist a helper at this point if you feel like sharing the fun. If your idea of a helper needs to be opened with a corkscrew, I, for one, won’t judge. And if you own a dog, you’ll probably find that you have at least one volunteer poking curiously around the kitchen trying to find out where all the meaty-milky-eggy-eggplanty smells are coming from. Apparently, dogs dig eggplant. Who knew?


In a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish, lay down a layer of eggplant, just like you would if you were making a lasagna. Spoon some of the lamb mixture on top, followed by a layer of the béchamel. Crumble some of the feta on top of the béchamel, then grate about a tablespoon of parmesan across the top. Repeat! Once you get to the top of the dish, put down a deep layer of meat sauce, lay eggplant slices a top, then end with a thick layer of béchamel topped with the cheeses.

Bake, uncovered, until lightly browned on top, about 1 hour. Put your feet up while you wait, sip some of your “helper” if you like, and let someone else tackle the dishes. Once the moussaka comes out of the oven, let sit about 20 minutes before cutting and serving. Then, if you’re actually eating before 10 pm, pat yourself on the back.**

* Particularly if you have a LBUH to make the grocery shopping excursions for you. Heh heh.

** Or, have someone else do it for you, and make that “pat” into a “rub”. That was a lot of knifing and whisking!


Nutritional Info
Amount Per Serving

Calories 365.3	Vitamin A 17.7 %	Iron 11.4 %
Total Fat 24.5 g	Vitamin B-12 25.1 %	Magnesium 11.9 %
Cholesterol 93.1 mg	Vitamin B-6 16.7 %	Manganese 17.2 %
Sodium 2,734.4 mg	Vitamin C 16.5 %	Niacin 20.0 %
Potassium 638.1 mg	Vitamin D 7.5 %	Phosphorus 24.6 %
Total Carbohydrate 23.0 g	Vitamin E 5.8 %	Riboflavin 27.2 %
Fiber 5.9 g	Calcium 21.5 %	Selenium 23.7 %
Sugars 4.6 g	Copper 8.9 %	Thiamin 15.2 %
Protein 15.0 g	Folate 16.8 %	Zinc 16.8 %

Recipe and Nutritional Information after the jump

Macaroni and Cheese with Tomatoes

Total price: NY $13.04/16.83
Price per serving: NY $1.30/1.69


Macaroni and cheese is arguably both the ultimate comfort food* and the ultimate budget food besides. You wouldn’t know it lately, however, as in recent years expensive “gourmet” versions have become trendy, chock full of eighteen kinds of expensive imported cheeses, loaded with pancetta, crimini mushrooms, and frizzled leeks, and even mounded with truffles.

This recipe gets back to what I consider to be the basics. When I was a kid, my mother always put a few tomato slices on top of her macaroni and cheese, which otherwise came straight out of the red-checkered Better Homes & Gardens cookbook. We always elbowed and jockeyed for the tomatoes, inspiring one memorable meal-time squabble that you already know the gist of if you've ever seen the “That caviar is a GARNISH!” scene in “You’ve Got Mail!” Are these tomatoes are good as caviar? You be the judge!


This version dramatically ups the quantity of tomatoes in my mother’s dish for two reasons: (1) increasing the fiber, vitamin, antioxidant, etc etc blah blah content of the dish and (2) decreasing fighting at the dinner table.

This recipe also deviates from tradition in one notable aspect by subbing out some of the cheese for chicken stock. The result is easier on both your wallet and your arteries, but is still creamy, cheesy and deeeeeeeelicious.


Ingredients

• 8 tomatoes (NY $4.77)
• 1 pound elbow macaroni (NY $1.49)
• 8 oz. extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated (NY $4.79)
• 2 cups chicken stock (NY $1.39)
• ½ cup parmesan cheese, freshy grated (staple or NY $2.80 for 5 oz)
• 2 cups milk, whatever kind you keep on hand (NY $0.60)
• 2 tbsps Parsley (staple or NY $0.99 for a bunch)
• Dash of Nutmeg (staple)
• Dash of Cayenne pepper (staple)
• 5 tbsps flour (staple)
  
• 1 ½ tsps. dried thyme (staple)**
• Salt (staple)
• Pepper (staple)
• 2 tbsps olive oil (staple)
• 2 tbsps butter (staple)
• Optional: breadcrumbs (staple)
  

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice tomatoes about ¼ inch thick. Spread tomatoes in a single layer on baking sheets. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with 1 tsp. dried thyme, salt to taste and chopped fresh parsley. Grind black pepper over. Bake until tomatoes have softened, approx. 20 minutes. Remove, but do not turn off oven.

In a pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until just on the crunchy side of al dente, approx. 5 minutes (or per package directions). Drain in a colander, and run under cold water to stop cooking. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour into ½ cup chicken stock.


Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in nutmeg, cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, and additional salt to taste. Pour in milk and remaining chicken stock.

Whisk in flour mixture, and bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and bring to a simmer. Continue cooking approx. 8 minutes, whisking frequently.

Add cheese and cook, stirring with spoon, until cheese has melted.

Turn off burner, pour macaroni into pot, and stir to combine.


Line bottom of a 9 x 13 glass dish with a single layer of cooked, sliced tomatoes. Scoop up any loose juices on the sheets and pour those in the dish too. Pour macaroni mixture over. Top with another layer of tomatoes. If using, sprinkle breadcrumbs across top to your taste.

Bake until bubbly*** and golden brown, approx. 30 minutes. Serve immediately.



Adapted from Martha Stewart Living

* And can’t we all use some comfort these days? The LBUH recently had what we thought was a good lead on a job. He met a cool woman at a networking event who was hiring, and seemed very impressed by him. She told him to call her on a certain day to set up a time for him to come in and meet some other people and discuss what kinds of things he could do for her company. He called her as requested and asked if she still had time to meet that week. The response? “Sure, I’ve got pretty much unlimited time to meet this week, because *I* just got laid off.” Just in case you’ve been living under a rock: its hard out there these days. And apparently even the uber-wealthy are asking for mac and cheese these days.

** This is also delicious with fresh thyme if you have some on hand.

***Don’t you just love that instruction? I’m tempted to use it in all my posts. Hmmm, maybe I will in the future . . . (Okay, FINE I’ll leave it out of any future fro yo recipes. Happy now? Party pooper.)

Nutrition Facts

Approximate values per serving

Calories 257.4	Protein 10.8 g	Magnesium 7.5 %
Total Fat 14.1 g	Vitamin A 19.9 %	Manganese 13.3 %
Saturated Fat 7.1 g	Vitamin B-12 3.5 %	Niacin 11.7 %
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.9 g	Vitamin B-6 7.3 %	Pantothenic Acid 4.1 %
Monounsaturated Fat 5.2 g	Vitamin C 18.2 %	Phosphorus 19.2 %
Cholesterol 32.2 mg	Vitamin D 1.1 %	Riboflavin 13.7 %
Sodium 254.3 mg	Vitamin E 4.3 %	Selenium 24.0 %
Potassium 314.4 mg	Calcium 18.9 %	Thiamin 13.1 %
Total Carbohydrate 22.5 g	Copper 8.1 %	Zinc 8.0 %
Dietary Fiber 1.8 g	Folate 16.4 %
Sugars 1.1 g	Iron 8.6 %

Recipe and Nutritional Information after the jump

Shrimp Enchiladas Verde Casserole

8 servings
Total price: NY $ 25.87 (with leftover cheese and cilantro*)
Price per serving: NY $3.23


Seafood is admittedly pricey, but given how ridiculously healthy and delicious it is, we’re not willing to give it up until after the recession is over. But maybe that’s not as far away as it once
seemed? Just maybe? (Now’s when you nod your head and say “Yes, undoubtedly!”) As much fun as this site has been, it would be even better to be rendered obsolete. Back to seafood: one way to keep the price manageable is to use it as just a small part of a larger dish. This recipe does just that, and is truly idiot-simple besides. As easy as an old-school casserole—dump in a can of this, scatter over a pack of that—but blessedly devoid of cream of lima bean soup. Posting this sooner than anticipated as its one of the Lovely But Unemployed Husband’s favorites and, as you may have heard, its hard out there in the job market. (For the moment at least! Soon to end maybe! See above!)


Ingredients

• 1 pound peeled cooked shrimp (NY $9.20**)
• 1 10 oz package frozen corn (NY $1.39)
• 2 4 oz cans chopped green chiles, undrained (NY $3.78)
• 2 10 oz cans green enchilada sauce (or green salsa) (NY $3.98)
• 12 6-inch corn tortillas (NY $ 1.49)
• 1 15 oz can nonfat refried beans (NY $1.99)
• 1 cup reduced-fat shredded cheese (Mexican blend, Montery Jack,
• Cheddar or the like) (NY $5.19 for 8 oz.)
• 2/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro (NY $1.50 for 1 bunch***)
• Cooking spray (staple)
• Optional: 1 lime (NY $0.33)

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Coat a 9 x 13 inch baking dish withcooking spray. Remove tails from shrimp**** and dice. Combine shrimp, defrosted corn, 1/3 cup cilantro, chiles with their juice and ½ cup of the enchilada sauce in medium bowl.

Spread 1/3 cup enchilada sauce in prepared baking dish. Next put down an overlapping layer of 6 of the corn tortillas. Spread refried beans evenly over tortillas, top with shrimp mixture. Cover with another overlapping layer of remaining tortillas. Pour remaining tortilla sauce over the top. Cover with foil.

Bake until bubbly at the sides (approx. 20 minutes). Remove foil and sprinkle cheese over top. Continue baking, uncovered, until cheese melts (approx. 5 minutes). Sprinkle remaining cilantro over top (or serve on the side), and let stand (approx. 5 minutes). If desired, serve with lime wedges to squirt over the top.

Adapted from Eating Well

* To store leftover cilantro, I trim the bottom of the stems, and pop the bunch into a glass of clean water (like an herbal bouquet). Either keep this on the counter if you plan to use quickly, or put a plastic bag over the top, afix with a rubber band (so basically, your cilantro is wearing a shower cap), then pop the whole works into the refrigerator.

** We found that, surprisingly, shrimp was the same price per pound whether fresh or frozen, raw or cooked. We went with fresh, pre-cooked, but shop around and go with whatever is cheapest. If frozen, defrost before combining with the corn, etc. If raw is cheapest, cook before combining with corn mixture.

*** If you’ve figured out how to grow a pot of cilantro in your apartment, you have my congratulations! We’ve never managed to make that trick work. If you’ve done it, please share your secrets below!

**** If you’re lazy, or just don’t like playing with shrimp tails (like me), you can just take your knife and lop them off. You’ll waste some shrimp that way, however, so better to get the shrimp to come out of their shells. LBUH will either coax(he’s a good coaxer) the shrimp out of the shell by pinching the bottom or will slice the shell off by running a knife horizontally down one side of the shrimp.


Nutrition Facts
Approximate values per serving

Calories: 285.0	Vitamin A: 40.6 %	Iron: 15.3 %
Total Fat: 4.2 g	Vitamin B-12: 15.4 %	Magnesium: 15.3 %
Cholesterol: 114.0 mg	Vitamin B-6: 12.2 %	Manganese: 10.2 %
Sodium: 1,041.6 m	Vitamin C: 20.0 %	Niacin: 13.8 %
Potassium: 318.4 mg	Vitamin D: 0.0 %	Phosphorus: 30.6 %
Total Carbohydrate: 40.1 g	Vitamin E: 1.9 %	Riboflavin: 7.0 %
Fiber: 8.1 g	Calcium: 13.4 %	Selenium: 39.1 %
Sugars: 2.7 g	Copper: 9.6 %	Thiamin: 6.5 %
Protein: 23.1 g	Folate: 7.0 %	Zinc: 13.0 %

Recipe and Nutritional Information after the jump