National Composting Day - Video

In the acting world, you shy away from performing with children and animals. Why? because there is nothing worse than being upstaged by cuteness.

 In The 99 Cent Chef's latest video you'll see what I mean by watching birds and squirrels upstage the Anthropomorphic Chef.

My neighbor feeds the birds and squirrels every morning. So I got the idea to set out some seeds and have them do the work of making an opening title sequence for me. Only a nut would let squirrels and birds do the typography for my videos...well, I'm that Chintzy Nut.

And my front yard critters will work for 99-cent peanuts and birdseed.

 For the final video scene, it's a squirrel feeding frenzy when The Doctor Doolittle of chefs scatters lettuce in the most unique way for the tree-dwelling rodents.

It's all in the wrist if you want to compost like The 99 Cent Chef. With shovel in hand, the Chintzy Composter shows you a simple method that reduces the garbage you throw away by about half - so that means fewer trips to the dumpster. Plus, if you have a small garden you will never have to buy potting soil again. Just scroll to the end of this post for my Composting Video.

There are many techniques for Composting. Just Google the word and you'll see what I mean. It really just depends on how much you want to deal with. You can start a giant compost pile with everything from veggie table scraps to lawn trimmings, and even newsprint and paper. I live in the city, so composting is best not seen or smelt!

In my household of two, I've come up with an easy-to-do method. Every day my wife and I collect the veggie and fruit scraps, coffee grounds, and eggshells into a small container with a top. I live in a condo complex with a lot of land per unit and there is an outdoor common area in the corner that is not used. So every 2 to 4 days I take my full compost bin and bury the scraps in a 4 by 4-foot square area. Nobody complains and some of my neighbors offer encouragement and even compliments.

With a minimal amount of compost area to work with, I find it's just enough. I bury my small scrap amounts, and a couple of days later dig a new hole. If you roughly chop up the scraps with the shovel and mix in a little dirt, the decomposition is complete in less than 2 weeks.

So by the time I've filled my 4 food square, it's ready for a new round of veggie scraps. (You'll see black nutrient-rich-looking compost clumps as you work your way around). It takes a month or so until the compost is ready for my garden -- just in time for Fall and Spring planting.

A quick gardening note: composting veggies with seeds, like cucumbers, squash, and tomatoes, means you will get sprouting seedlings popping out all over. I'll prune out most of them as they come up, but I like to keep a few plants just to see how they do. Every year I get some type of squash plant that yields a bouquet of edible squash blossoms -- just type "squash blossoms" into the "Enter Ingredient or Recipe Keyword(s)" search window located at the top right side of this page to see all the recipes I use them for.

The trick is to keep the compost area clean and odorless. Instead of a smelly compost pile, I bury mine. Now, that means I can't compost everything, but it's good enough for Big City living.

So, check out my Composting with The 99 Cent Chef video below. As I mentioned earlier, "It's all in the wrist," and I don't just mean how you handle a shovel, as you will see during the video's outrageous ending.

Composting, Squirrels, and the 99 Cent Chef - VIDEO

 Play it here, video runs 3 minutes, 17 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

And 99 thanks to Bob McGuinness, and Amy for shooting the Chef.

Cherry Season - Recipes & Reviews

Cherries season 🍒 is back at 99 cents per pound right about now! They are my fave fruit and I like them plain or .... well, just read on to see what I do with a cheap$kate bag of Cherries.

Just last week I got delicious Cherries for 1.99c per pound at Superior Grocers, my local Latin market. Cherries always first show up there on sale.

My love affair with Cherries really heated up when I began to visit relatives in Central California and remember getting fresh Cherries from an orchard tree. While Washington produces the most Cherries, California is in a tight race with Oregon for second place. 

You can read the health benefits of fresh Cherries here. I find they are less perishable than strawberries when refrigerated.

The only hindrance to consuming a Cherry is the easily discarded stem and stubbornly buried center seed. Cherries are large enough to slice around the seed, twist and separate, then pry out the seed. It's easy enough to slice around the seed, too.

If you have a metal straw, push it through the opposite end of the stem, and out pops the seed. (You can use a plastic straw as shown in my GIF below, but it will start to buckle after a few cherries.)

The easiest and quickest Cherry Recipe is to just add a few slices to your favorite plain (or mildly flavored) yummy yogurt. 

It's an early morning light breakfast or on a warm afternoon a cool snack for relaxing on the patio. My video below shows how I do it:

Cherries & Yogurt Recipe

I like pancakes in the morning, especially on weekends. I use a generic pancake mix from my 99c only Store and Dollar Tree, and I always add a little fresh fruit, especially cherries. 

You can mix the sliced cherries in the pancake batter or sprinkle on a hot pan first then pour on the batter.

Cherry Pancake Recipe

Cherries are featured in desserts the most. I once found small 4-ounce cartons of Cherry Garcia ice cream by Ben & Jerry's at my local Dollar Tree.

My Mom has a Cherry Pie to die for. She used to bake 'em up when we were kids, and she makes a mean one even now.

There's nothing better than the smell of a baking fruit pie in the oven and watching the crust brown through the oven window.

And my brother from another daddy, the Swamp Chef, crawled out of the bayou to get Mom to show us how she does it!

This is a 2 crust pie and she uses cherries from the can, that's the old-school way. Of course, I know where to find canned Cherries the cheapest, from the Dollar Tree, of course!

So pull up an extra chair and invite the whole family to watch Mom and the Swamp Chef show you a homemade Cherry Pie Recipe video...oh, boy!

I have a Gay Wedding Cupcake recipe that is part documentary. When Los Angeles allowed same-sex couples to marry for the first time, I was there to celebrate and offer the happy couples a tasty cupcake with a cherry on top. Click here to see my blog post and video of the historic day.

I crave Cherry flavor for sweet Craisins from my local Dollar Tree. I haven't seen it this year...yet.

Craisins are dried cranberries, and they're very similar to grape raisins. And real Cherry juice is used, plus cane sugar for a bit too much sweetness. I can eat them by the handful or just add them to breakfast cereal or hot oatmeal.

And finally, I'm still a fan of sickly-sweet Chocolate Covered Cherries. There is something so pleasing, almost magical, combining a Maraschino Cherry and creme in a shell of chocolate.

And I can still find 5-count boxes for the right price at my local  99c only Store and Dollar Tree.

So if you are wondering how they rate on my Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best? Just check out my video review right here.

Enjoy Cherry Season the 99 Cent Chef way!

The Color Purple - Eggplant Recipes & The Jacaranda Tree

Emblematic of L.A. is its grand boulevards lined with palm trees. This month a purple upstart enters the scene -- the blossoming Jacaranda Tree. Stand under its branches at full bloom and the perfume is overwhelming.

May is the month that launches millions of blossoms carpeting large swaths of sidewalk; drive along 6th Street near LACMA and it's blue for blocks. 

To keep the purple theme going I add cooked Purple Eggplant to a Hummus recipe. I used to find roasted eggplant in oil at my local 99c only Store.

But you can roast or saute a fresh eggplant, too. Just click here to see how I do it. Leave on the purple skin to add color.

My Sister, Denise, visited this cheap$kate brother and showed me her purplish Eggplant Veggie Burger Recipe.

Of course, we started with an ingredient shopping spree at my local 99c only Store. Click here to check out her recipe details.

For a soothing and creamy vegan dip go with my version of Baba GanoushBaba Ganoush. Of course, it's made with purple Eggplant. Get out the gluten-free, organic, multi-grain, low-sodium crackers for this one.

Eggplant Parmesan is a cheesy mess of deliciousness. I coat slices of eggplant in breadcrumbs and bake it with tomato sauce and cheese. My cheap$kate riff on an Italian Classic dish is here.

My Stuffed Eggplant recipe will float your boat. It's a purple shell loaded with ground meat, sauteed veggies, and, of course, cheese.  More yummy photos and tasty text are here.

My Purple Hummus recipe is made with easy-to-get ingredients including canned garbanzo beans, lemon juice, olive oil, and ground cumin. 

I use sesame seeds instead of hard-to-find tahini, which is similar to peanut butter, just blander. If you can't find sesame seeds or tahini, it's okay to use a tablespoon of creamy peanut butter.

It all comes together easily in a blender or food processor, just blend until creamy.

I like to serve Eggplant Hummus with triangles of pita bread. You can use a favorite cracker or fresh chopped veggies like celery, broccoli, or carrots.

So watch my meditative recipe video below. To get things started I give you a tour of some favorite jacaranda trees and blossom sightings in Los Angeles, then the recipe follows.

Eggplant Hummus & Jacaranda Blossoms - Video

Play it here. The video runs 2 minutes, 24 seconds.

To view or embed video from YouTube click here.

Ingredients

• 1 small jar marinated grilled eggplant - Okay to use fresh baked or sauteed eggplant.
• 1 can garbanzo beans - 16 ounces, drained.
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds - or 2 tablespoons of tahini. Okay to substitute with 1 tablespoon of creamy peanut butter.
• 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons chopped garlic - fresh or from the jar.
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice - fresh or concentrated from a 99-cent plastic lemon.
• Pita bread slices - or favorite sliced raw veggies.

Directions
Drain a can of garbanzo beans.

Add all ingredients (including oil from marinated eggplant) to a blender or food processor and blend for 20 to 30 seconds until hummus is creamy.

Serve with sliced pita bread triangles and/or fresh chopped veggies (carrots, celery, red/yellow bell pepper, etc.) 99c only Stores also sell roasted red bell pepper in a jar, so try that sometime instead of eggplant.

If your local 99-cent or dollar store is out of bottled roasted veggies make a plain one with the above-mentioned ingredients and the addition of a 1/4 cup of the 99-cent olive oil blend.

Hindsight
I use sesame seeds in this Hummus recipe. Usually, a paste called tahini is used, if you can find it then use it - about a tablespoon or two. Tahani tastes like bland peanut butter, so if you can't find sesame seeds or tahini then add a teaspoon of peanut butter.

I also have a recipe for Baba Gnoush that uses roasted eggplant. Just click here if you want to use fresh roasted eggplant, or if you can't find cheap marinated eggplant in oil. One eggplant should be plenty for this recipe. Eggplants are sometimes sold large-sized, but they shrink a lot when baked or sauteed. Below are Japanese Eggplants which are smaller than a regular Eggplant.

Swamp Chili - Chef Matt Video Recipe

Get out of the way Swamp Chef, this next recipe packs a whole lotta flavor. Chef Matt's easy & quick Beef Chili with Beans is worth coming out of the swamp for. 

Along with the Cajun Trinity of onion, bell pepper, and celery, plus ground beef, the other ingredients come from the can. Spices are strictly dried and easy to get.

Click on any photo to see larger.

Instead of a precut Trinity, it's easy enough to buy the veggies cheaper and chop them yourself, you may save a buck or so.

You can bring this recipe to that table in about half an hour! This is how he does it easily after a shift of cooking at a restaurant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Although this Beef Chili cooks quicker than the chomp of a bayou alligator it has a deep chili flavor. Don't take my word for it, just stay until the end of the recipe video where the family give their own testimonials - take it from Mom, Miles, Zak, Mrs 99 Cent Chef (Linda), and the Swamp Chef himself.

Mrs. 99 Cent Chef & Mom

Ground beef is the most expensive ingredient. You can use lighter ground turkey that is on sale, too. 

Most of the flavor comes from canned chili beans, chili powder, and dried Italian herbs.

He adds Louisiana Hot Sauce of course, but you can keep it mild for the youngsters and leave it out, just make sure to have a bottle on the table for heat-loving adults and teenagers.

Chef Matt & Swamp Chef pick up Louisiana Hot Sauce.

Now, some prefer their Beef Chili without beans, I guess you could leave out the beans but I would give this version a try, especially topped with sour cream, shredded cheese, and chopped green onion.

Tomato is the base and Chef Matt uses two 28-ounce cans of crushed tomatoes. Of course, with most of Chef Matt's recipes, he throws in a 10-ounce can of Ro-Tel which has tomato plus chopped green chiles.

Chili Beans come from the can as well. I still get all the canned ingredients cheaply.

Once the ground beef and fresh veggies are cooked for a few minutes, the rest of the ingredients are poured in or sprinkled on and simmered for 20 minutes, that's it.

Check out Chef Matt's latest budget recipe of Beef Chili with Beans that I know your family will enjoy, just like mine and the Swamp Chef's!

Chef Matt's Swamp Beef Chili with Beans - VIDEO     Play it here, video runs 7 minutes, 52 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients

• Ground Beef - 2 pounds. Okay to use ground poultry for a lighter Swamp Chili
• 1 Onion - chopped.
• 1 Bell Pepper - chopped.
• 1 Celery Stalk - chopped.
• Garlic - 1 tablespoon chopped.
• Crushed Tomatoes - Two 28-ounce cans. Okay to use tomato sauce.
• Ro Tel - 10-ounce can, optional. Ro Tel is chopped tomato with green chiles.
• Chili Beans - 2 cans 16 ounces each.  Chef Matt likes the brand called Bushes Chili Beans which are Pinto Beans in a Mild Chili Sauce. Any favorite cheap brand is fine, even plain Pinto Beans.
• Dried Italian Seasonings - 2 teaspoons. Okay to use any favorite herbs.
• Onion Powder - 1 tablespoon.
• Chili Powder - 2 tablespoons. Paprika Powder is a good substitute as the flavors are similar.
• Salt - 2 tablespoons. That's too much for me, but Chef Matt likes his salt. Okay to use half the amount or less.
• Louisiana Hot Sauce - about 5 dashes or a teaspoon. Optional. Okay to use any favorite hot sauce.

*Extra Toppings include shredded cheese, sour cream, and chopped green onions. I also like chopped yellow onions and sliced black olives.

Directions

In a large pot over medium heat, saute ground beef for about 5 minutes. Break apart into small pieces. Okay to drain and remove some of the rendered fat. (Ground Turkey or Chicken is lean so there's no fat to drain.)

Add chopped veggies and garlic to a pot of ground beef. Saute a couple of minutes.

Add 2 cans of crushed or chopped tomatoes and a can of Ro Tel (optional).

Add 2 cans of Chili Beans. You can use almost any favorite canned beans since Chef Matt adds extra Chili Powder.

Sprinkle on dried Italian seasoning, onion powder, chili powder, salt, and hot sauce.

Okay to reduce or eliminate salt amount, as I find using canned ingredients adds plenty of salt to my taste. When adding hot sauce start with half the amount, taste, and adjust to your heat tolerance.

Mix well, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes. This is the kind of recipe you can keep at a low temperature as long as you like, add a little water if it cooks down too much.

When Beef Chili with Beans is done serve with a selection of toppings. I like shredded cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, and sliced black olives.