I own the Rock Cafe on Route 66 and wrote Dollars to Donuts. Let's get it all done and have some fun!
The stories keep coming in from across the country — people are trying my recipes and really enjoying them!
Thanks for your support and keep spreading the word!
To give back to the community a little bit, I’m giving away 2 copies of Dollars to Donuts.
Let me know what you’re packing in your kid’s school lunch boxes. My son Paul reminded me that he could use the microwave to heat stuff up, so I’m on the lookout for some fresh ideas. Help!
When you need to cook dinner on a shoestring budget, look no further than your pantry. It can be a treasure trove of fast, budget-friendly options if you stock it with the essentials, and even when there’s nothing in the fridge, I just know I can count on what’s there to pull dinner together in a snap — and for a penny.
Pantry dishes are easy to make because they rely on everyday ingredients as a starting point. Inexpensive building blocks such as flour, rice, beans, and even canned tuna become your kitchen superheroes: Just when you find yourself scratching your head wondering what to make for dinner, they swoop in at the nick of time to help you get food on the table no matter what you have in the fridge.
There are other ways the pantry can save you money, too. When my kids bring friends over after school, the first thing they do is open the cupboards and scrounge around for snacks. Nine times out of ten I’ll hear their friends complain “there’s nothing to eat in here!” because I don’t keep chips, candy, and other “snack” foods in the house. Besides being unhealthy, these foods are extremely expensive. Fortunately, my kids love to prove their friends wrong by showing them there are all kinds of things to eat—they just have to add heat.
Welcome to My D2D. There’s nothing I love more than chatting with customers as I dish up meals at the Rock. I learn so much and get so many great ideas from them and I’m hoping this blog creates the same kinds of conversations – so if you have the time, leave a comment and let me know how I’m doing.
Here’s a quick rundown of what you’ll find here.
MenuMaker
Every Friday, I’ll post a new menu plan for the week, right here on the page called MenuMaker. And on the following Thursday, I’ll sum up the week’s worth of recipes and tips, and start thinking about a whole new week.
Recipes
I’ll post a dinner recipe every day, keeping my grocery budget down to $100 a week or less for a family of four, which you’ll see from the icons at the top of each recipe.
Note that at the bottom of each recipe there’s a cost for the whole recipe, followed by the per-person cost. Of course this will change depending on what’s on sale where you shop, but it’s a good guideline to follow.
In addition to recipe cost, we’re further defining every recipe by how it can make your life easier. Alongside the recipe, you’ll often find an icon—here’s what they mean:
Besides reading about the recipes in the blog, you can also browse through the whole collection if you click on the Recipes tab at the top of the page.
Features
If you visit the blog every day, you’ll always find something new at the top of the page. From recipes to tips to other info I find helpful, like what to keep in your pantry or how growing your own vegetables and herbs saves money. You can read all these articles under the Features tab at the top of the page.
Tips
I couldn’t do it all without a few tricks up my sleeve! You can bet that I’ll tell you about my tricks and tips as often as I think of them. You can read all my tips under the Tips tab at the top of the page.
Tags
Whether it’s a tip, a feature, or a recipe, every post on this blog will be tagged. You can see those tags if you scroll down to the bottom of the post and look at the first line of orange links. The tags tell you what’s in each post. So if you want to check out other “chicken” recipes that are “freezable” and “kid friendly,” the tags are a great place to look. Easy does it!
Tags are also located in the right sidebar of every page on the blog (in the Tags box). The bigger the text, the more posts you’ll find with that tag.
Thanks for listening. Hope to hear from you soon.
My D2D Roadmap
Welcome to My D2D. There’s nothing I love more than chatting with customers as I dish up meals at the Rock. I learn so much and get so many great ideas from them and I’m hoping this blog creates the same kinds of conversations – so if you have the time, leave a comment and let me know how I’m doing.
Here’s a quick rundown of what you’ll find here.
MenuMaker
Every Friday, I’ll post a new menu plan for the week, right here on the page called MenuMaker. And on the following Thursday, I’ll sum up the week’s worth of recipes and tips, and start thinking about a whole new week.
Recipes
I’ll post a dinner recipe every day, keeping my grocery budget down to $100 a week or less for a family of four, which you’ll see from the icons at the top of each recipe.
Along the side, note that it serves four. And at the bottom there’s a cost for the whole recipe, followed by the per-person cost.
Here’s what the four red graphics tell you about a recipe:
· The arrow means that you can prepare this recipe in advance (just heat or reheat whenever you’re ready).
· The smiley face means that it’s especially kid-friendly. They like to eat it, and if you ask, they’ll probably jump at the chance to help you cook it!
· The clock means that it’s quick and easy to prepare.
· And the snowflake means that it’s freezer-friendly – it’ll freeze well, defrost well, and live to feed you and your family another day.
You can browse through all the recipes if you click on the Recipes tab at the top of the page.
Features
If you visit the blog every day, you’ll always find something new – for instance, what to keep in your pantry, how to use your freezer, or how growing your own vegetables and herbs saves money. You can read all these articles under the Features tab at the top of the page.
Tips
Sometimes I’m cooking or thinking about cooking, and I’ll realize I’ve got a neat trick for doing some everyday activity. I’ll tell you about my tricks and tips as often as I think of them – but I’m shooting for a few times a week. You can read all my tips under the Tips tab at the top of the page.
Tags
Whether it’s a tip, a feature, or a recipe, every post on this blog will be tagged. You can see those tags if you scroll down to the bottom of the post and look at the first line of orange links.
The tags tell you what’s in each post. If it’s a freezable recipe, it will be tagged “freezable.” If you’re interested in finding more freezer-friendly recipes, just click on the “freezable” tag, and you’ll get a list of all the posts tagged “freezable.” Easy does it!
Tags are also located in the right sidebar of every page on the blog (in the Tags box). The bigger the text, the more posts have that tag.
If you’ve read this far, you’ll be the first to hear about the contest to have your very own recipe featured at the Rock Cafe! Stay tuned for details.
Thanks for listening. Hope to hear from you soon.
Cooking and shopping in bulk saves money, period, end of story. That’s why when I see a deal on a pork shoulder or family packs of ground beef, I pounce, knowing that the $10 or $15 I’m investing today is going to give me three or four meals down the pike.
Cooking big today, whether it’s a slow-roasted pork shoulder or a baked ham, means I’ve already cooked (and paid for) my main-dish protein for another day. When I serve up Chicken and Dumplings or Chicken Udon Soup —both of which are the delectable spinoffs of an original roast chicken meal—I get the rush of feeling I’ve gotten something for nothing. Having some cooked meat or a prepped dish stashed away in the freezer is really like finding a hidden treasure.
These main courses offer up brand-new meals to serve later in the week or stash in the freezer. Cook the Big Bang on day 1, then relay the leftovers into a whole series of main-dish spinoffs. Having an extra freezer in the house comes in handy for this kind of cooking, not just for stashing the leftovers, but also for stocking up when good deals hit your markets on turkeys or roasts.
This brings us back to the “free meals a day” concept. Whether you’re storing an uncooked roast, portioned cooked meat, or a completely prepped dish, you will already have covered the bulk of that meal’s cost. Just add a few veggies, herbs, or sides and you have a real meal deal.
Your everyday pantry is more than just what is in your cupboards. I consider my long-term perishables, such as pickles, eggs, and citrus fruits, to be pantry items too. Just because they need to be refrigerated (or even frozen) doesn’t mean they’re any less essential. They last a few weeks (or longer), so there’s really no point in not keeping them in the house.
With these essentials at your fingertips, you can always cook something up. It’s a pretty big list, so I’m not suggesting that you go out and buy everything all at once. But if you decide to try some of the recipes on this website or in the book, you’ll build your pantry and before you know it, you’ll have everything on the list!
Just a reminder: Don’t be afraid to make substitutions. So a recipe calls for currants and all you have are raisins. Sub them in. Same goes for beans, oils, and vinegars—nine times out of ten, compliments will come your way.
Beans, bread, flours, grains, pastas
All-purpose flour
Bread** (burger buns, sandwich bread, sliced baguette, or country bread)
Bread crumbs (dried, panko, or fresh**)
Brown lentils
Canned and dried beans (pinto, black, cannellini, and/or chickpeas)
Cornmeal
Crackers (graham, saltines, or wheat crackers)
Leaveners and thickeners (baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch)
Noodles and pasta (egg, no-boil lasagna, orzo, rotini, or spaghetti)
Oats (old fashioned and quick)
Rice (basmati, brown, or long-grain white)
Tortillas*
Quick flavor add-ins
Capers*
Chili sauce or hot sauce
Garlic
Ketchup*
Mustard* (Dijon, grainy, or yellow)
Olives*
Pickles* (cornichon, dill, or relish)
Soy sauce
Dried fruits, nuts, and sweeteners
Chocolate chips
Dried fruit (apples, apricots, cranberries, currants, figs, or raisins)
Nuts and seeds (almonds, peanuts, pecans, sesame seeds, or walnuts)
Peanut butter
Sugar (corn syrup, dark or light brown, granulated white, honey, maple syrup)
Dairy and eggs
Butter*
Cheese (Cheddar* or Monterey Jack*, Parmesan*)
Citrus* (lemons or limes)
Dried buttermilk powder*
Dried milk powder
Eggs*
Mayonnaise*
Milk*
Canned goods
Low-sodium chicken broth
Tomatoes (diced, paste)
Tuna
Herbs, oils, spices, vinegars
Dried spices and spice blends: basil, bay leaves, black peppercorns, cayenne, chili powder, ground ginger, herbes de Provence, oregano, red-pepper flakes, sweet paprika, turmeric)
Oil (vegetable oil such as canola or corn, extra-virgin or pure olive)
Salt (kosher and table)
Vinegar (balsamic, cider, red wine vinegar, rice, or white wine)
* refrigerator item
** freezer item
Dollars to Donuts is about minimizing the drama of deciding what’s for dinner, feeding your family while having fun, getting the most bang for your buck, and using time-saving strategies so you can get out of the kitchen faster.
