The $40 Foodie

I mentioned the other day how SSG is working on saving some money.  One of the areas where I realized I was spending A LOT of money unconsciously was eating out.  To top it off, I was wasting the food I did buy at the grocery store by letting it go bad in the fridge and eventually throwing it away.  Oopsie.

I don't know why this is.  I tend to prefer food that is fresh and seasonal but most of all simple.  I have a very short attention span when it comes to ingredients and chances are if it has more than five main ingredients and spices I don't currently have in my spice rack, I turn the page.  Simple, seasonal food has been surprisingly inexpensive to work with and I don't know why I haven't done this before!

Anyhoo, my new challenge is to spend $40 on groceries for myself for the week.  That started out being essentially 5 dinners (Sunday - Thursday) where I'd make two servings and take the leftovers to lunch the next day.  But it's amazing how much food $40 buys and because I'm also trying to limit my waste I find I've started eating at home on the weekends and now when I go out it's for a great beer or cocktail instead of an expensive dinner.

Some recipes have bombed, others have been so so, but a few have stuck out and this is one of them.

I had polished off my burger, from the April 2008 issue of Costal Living and was licking my fingers before I realized I hadn't even taken a shot.  Most of the ingredients I had on hand--some wilting parsley, a lemon rolling around the crisper drawer, half and half for my morning coffee instead of heavy cream and onion powder pinch hitting for the shallot.  I only had to pick up the can of salmon and some buns at the grocery store (and confession I used toasted sourdough english muffins because they were on sale for $1.29!).  They were good the next day for lunch and even made the boys at work moan when I pulled it out of my bag in the yuppieteria.

Salmon Burgers

1 (14.75 oz) can salmon drained and flaked

1 egg lightly beaten

1/4 cup heavy cream

2T finely chopped shallot

1 garlic clove minced

1/4 minced red bell pepper

1t dried Italian seasoning

1/4 dried crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 t ground black pepper

1t lemon zest

1/4 c Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (I used plan and added 1t Italian seasoning in addition to the teaspoon listed above)

1/4 t garlic salt

1/2 T chopped Italian parsley

1T canola oil

4 whole wheat buns 

Lettuce & Tomato

Combine salmon and next 12 ingredients in a bowl.  Mix well.  Form mixture into 4 equal patties about 1/2 inch thick.  

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add patties and cook 5 minutes on each side.  Top bottom halves of buns with salmon burgers, garnish with mayo, lettuce and tomato or favorite toppings and cover with bun tops.

Makes 4 servings