Gourmet Food on a Budget
Tabbouleh salad
Tabbouleh salad is made from bulgar, parsley, tomato, mint, and onion dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. It has a wonderful bright taste and it’s great with barbecue or anything else you can think of.
Red lentil soup is one of my favorite soups. This one is a little spicy and great with freshly baked crusty bread slathered with freshly made butter. It makes quite a bit of soup so you can have leftovers for lunch or freeze some for another time.
Dutch oven red cabbage is a great winter side dish, perfect for richer meats like pork, duck, and goose. Cabbage is a very healthy vegetable, tasty and inexpensive.
These balsamic caramelized onions go very well with the Roasted Duck with Raspberry Sauce, as well as on burgers, with cheese, on toast, just about anywhere – they are sweet and tart at the same time.
Caramel Sweet Potato Casserole is a little different than the one you usually see at the holiday table. Is it sweet? You betcha! But it’s more interesting because it has caramel, pineapple, and cashews – marshmallows are optional.
Green Beans with Toasted Garlic Almonds will make you forget about that green bean casserole you have been bemoaning for years. This has excellent flavor and is easy to make any time.
This Spicy Cranberry Sauce is very easy to make and will delight your guests. It’s very tasty with the seasonings of the season and goes very well with whatever you serve. Freshly grated nutmeg, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and allspice combine to make a great side dish for your meal.
A long time ago, when Trader Joe’s was close to me, I tried a sample of their Roasted Vegetables in Balsamic Butter Sauce with a dollop of creme fraiche. I loved it. Ever since then, when I would visit the store, I would always get a few bags to put in my freezer. But, you know, sometimes you’re at the store, not Trader Joe’s, and you really want those vegetables with no time to go and get them. That’s when you get the stuff you need and make your own. Now, I’m going to share with you my take on these wonderful roasted vegetables with balsamic butter sauce.
These black bean tostadas can make a great appetizer on small tortillas, or make a spread for a whole meal. We like them for a light meal in the heat of summer. You can add meat if you want.
You might have seen my post back from 2011 when I used canned black beans to make this tostada. Well, now that the Instant Pot is available, you can make your own beans in under an hour with the flavorings you want, and none of the stuff you don’t want.
