(no subject)

[rivka]

I just reserved my third Let's Dish session for next Saturday morning. I'll be making:

- Asian BBQ pork wraps (we've had this one before, and it was fabulous)
- "Dressed to grill" sirloin packets (marinated beef and veggies in a foil packet for the grill)
- Garlic chicken prosciutto pasta
- Japanese miso-glazed salmon and veggies
- Skewerless chicken satay with cous cous
- Smoked Gouda-stuffed horseradish burgers (topped with tomato remoulade, onna bun)
- Southwestern grilled pork chops with veggie topper (marinated pork topped with black beans, sweet corn, and red peppers)
- Tequila lime shrimp with rice

I feel a bit silly about this, because I could be cooking our meals from scratch. Alex is no longer so demanding that cooking is out of the question, and Michael can either cook simple meals himself or take over evening babycare while I cook. I have been cooking more lately, especially easy things like pasta or a roast or chicken cooked on the Foreman grill. But I really, really like having a freezer full of easy meals for tired nights. At about $10 per meal, it's not the most frugal thing we could be doing. But it's healthier than takeout, and it's nice to have a change from pizza-or-chinese.

Comments

[stevendj.livejournal.com]

Everyone should set aside a reasonable amount of money for luxuries, which by definition are non-frugal things that make you feel better. Premade meals are an inexpensive luxury with a substantial feel-good payoff, which makes them a very sensible choice.

[tammylc.livejournal.com]

I think the only reason I've been able to handle this parenting thing with some comfort is because I live in cohousing and only have to manage dinner on my own twice a week.

There are books and website out there for "freezer cooking" - doing what you're doing, but at home. Take a whole day and prep and cook up a bunch of food ahead. That might be something to investigate as Alex gets older, if you like the convenience but not the cost.

I think your Let's Dish thing is great. Is the $10 a meal per person, or for both you and Michael?

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Is the $10 a meal per person, or for both you and Michael?

It's for both of us. They plan the meals to serve 6, and I divide them in two at preparation. Usually the half-portion is about right for both of us together, although sometimes there are leftovers. I assume that "serves 6" means "taking into account child-sized appetites."

It's $155 for 8 "meals for 6," which works out to 16 meals for two or three at $10 each.

I'm really looking forward to Alex being old enough to help make dinner, but of course that's years away.

[tammylc.livejournal.com]

I think $10 for two people to eat dinner is a great deal! That's about what it costs Eric and I through our common meal program (sometimes more, sometimes less) and we're spending way less money on food than we used to.

[tea-dragon.livejournal.com]

"I'm really looking forward to Alex being old enough to help make dinner, but of course that's years away."

Depending on how you define "helping"! ;) Two year olds love to "help", though it's much easier to cook without them.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I have fond memories of standing on a kitchen chair to help my mother bake. She didn't have kids help make dinner, but from the time that we could stand on a chair, we could dump measuring cups she'd filled into the mixing bowl or roll balls of cookie dough in colored sugar. By the time I was five or six I was learning how to measure various ingredients accurately and how to run the electric mixer. By the time I was nine or ten, I could make brownies or a boxed cake mix all by myself.

[tea-dragon.livejournal.com]

Me too! As a result I like to bake much more than I like to cook. My oldest daughter is now four and a half, and likes to help dump things in, but she REALLY likes to stir, and that can get a bit messy. I have a memory of accidentally running a spatula through my mom's electric mixer, so it will be a while before I let her use that.

[eeyorerin]

My mom still calls me her "little sous-chef." I loved cooking with her (she specifically included me because her mother didn't, and she regretted that), and we still cook together at holidays. Plus I left her house being able to feed myself and others, and I'm very glad of that.