Top 9 Recipes of 2015

As far as year end lists go, this is one you can really sink your teeth into. And all of my top picks are deliciously cheap to make. Just click on any recipe name to see the original 2015 blogpost, or play any embedded video below. The ranking order is random and not by delectability, so go ahead and dig in!

First up is an oldie but goody, creamy Fettuccine Alfredo. While I first published this recipe in 2010, it has proved to be one of my most popular. So in 2015 I brought it back as a stop motion animated video. Enjoy.



I changed how I make omelets this year. 99 thank to local French born celebrity chef Ludo Lefebvre. You may now him from the NBC cooking show The Taste. My second Top 9 Recipe is for a Cheese Omelette made in the French manner.

 American-style is to brown the outside and cook the eggs until solid all the way through, while Ludo's way is more slow and gentle, finishing with a moist interior. Basically a slow scramble until you gently roll the eggs into an omelet shape like this:

Here's my arty animated version of Chef Ludo's French-style Cheese Omelette.



I've never got why recipes call for pounding meat into a thin wafer that's fried, baked or sauteed into dry shoe leather. I guess it's tradition at work. Well, for my third Top 9 Recipe I turn the tables and toss out that tainted technique. Here's how I do Chicken Parmesan in Marinara Sauce.

Just put on some Dean Martin tunes, grab a bottle of Chiante, and give this Italian crunchy-coated classic a spin:



We are in the shivering days of winter and for my forth Top 9 Recipe you will want to rustle up a bowl of bubbling Green Split Pea Soup with Ham. My version is comfort food for the soul. So put on a slow-cooking pot of it to get your kitchen toasty and aromatic.

I don't know about you, but I'm starting some today.

For years end it's a party! My fifth Top 9 Recipe will get the ball rolling for any gathering: Bacon Wrapped Brussels Sprouts.

It really is my cutest video recipe for the year. To make this appealing appetizer a little more light, I show you a turkey bacon version, too. Roasted porcine wrapped mini-cabbages are a flavor-bomb powerful enough to wage war on the most embedded taste buds.



I seldom cook with beef because it's just too darn expensive. But I made an exception with my sixth Top 9 Recipe of Pasta alla Genovese. This cut of cow is the right price for about $2 per pound, called beef shank - not too bad. It's one tough cut of beef that I wrestle into tenderness by slow braising it for hours in white wine with a pot full of sliced onion.

While you need patience waiting for this Italian classic, your reward is a deeply beef flavored pasta sauce any Italian grandmother would approve of.



I make the seventh Top 9 Recipe more often than any other: Mexican Chicken Tinga.

This recipe is a 2fer. You can scoop it onto a plate of rice or just stuff it into a taco or burrito. Plus it's so cheap and easy to make, with very few ingredients to deal with, just a couple of canned items, onion, garlic and chicken. It's crock pot cuisine that freezes well -- I pack it into a container for office lunches. When you try it, I think it will be a favorite for you too.



Loco Moco, a Hawaiian bred entree, is my eighth Top 9 Recipe. If you are a calorie counter then scroll on, but if you break your fast from time to time then cheat with this decedent breakfast of sticky rice, a fat ground beef patty, gravy, and it's all topped with fried eggs - now that's a mouthful.

This recipe came about after a vacation trip last summer to the tropical island of Ohau, Hawaii. I spied locals, shirtless and in swimming trunks (possibly surfers on a late breakfast carb-loading break,) carrying piled plates to their tables. It looked like too much, but I eventually gave it a go and boy was it good. Substitute a low-fat ground chicken or turkey patty if it makes you feel better.



Finally my ninth Top 9 Recipe is my cheapest yet, a Black Pepper Stir Fry with chicken and celery. One of the least expensive veggies is a head of celery. I always end up throwing away a few stalks, so I decided to make a recipe before that happens next time, and this is the result of my fugalness.

Although I never eat at Panda Express, that doesn't mean I can't ripoff a recipe from there. I usually get mine from cheaper restaurant takeout stations in Chinatown for a lot less than what Panda Express charges. Just click here to see how fast and easy you can make it.

It has been a fruitfully abundant year of recipes here at the Cheap$kate Chateau. I did the heavy lifting for you, so now all you have to do is pick a recipe link and save yourself some hard earned cash by trying out any of the above.

And make sure to keep checking in here from time to time, while my tastes are cheap, my recipe flavors are top shelf!

Pasta alla Genovese (onion & beef pasta sauce) - Video Recipe

My Pasta alla Genovese is an exquisite masterpiece of a meal that Italian renaissance painter, Caravaggio, could have featured in his shadowy, luscious paintings.

Well, this Culinary Artist has made a video which is suitably framed in your computer monitor.

The ingredients are humble, just beef, onion, carrot, celery and a little white wine. And the recipe is easy to do.

This rich pasta dish takes a lot of time cooking, kind of like a pot of beans. But, it's worth it. Just put it on after lunch and 3 or 4 hours later, it's ready. It only needs a stir every once in a while.

And you may shed a few tears chopping a dozen onions because it takes about 4 pounds worth. I sliced 8 cheap yellow onions for my recipe. It doesn't take too long to do it since the onions are only roughly sliced. They will soften, shrink, and cook down to a thick pasta sauce.

Onions are the cheapest veggie. Usually priced way below 99 cents per pound, and yellow onions are often on sale for 3 to 7 pounds per dollar. You can use any type of onion you like.

Click on any photo to see larger.

Traditionally the protein part of Pasta alla Genovese is made with beef, veal, pork, or a combination of these meats. Pork is a cheap way to go, but for this version I went over budget, but not by too much. And, enough pasta sauce is made for 4-6 servings (or more,) so it still cheap, at around a buck per serving (depending on the price of beef at your neighborhood grocery.)

I used the cheapest cut of beef I could find -  beef shank on sale at my local Latin market for around two dollars per pound. Beef shank is a tough cut of meat, that's why it's a bargain. But if you cook it for a couple of hours it gets fall-apart tender. And if you want to keep it cheaper, then try combining pork and beef.

For beef at $1.87 per pound, you have to by the whole shank. This cut of beef freezes well for stews, or a hearty beef chili.

For this cheap$kate recipe it takes 2 slices of these bad boys. I splurged and purchased a package at $2.29 per pound, for $3.16. I got about 5 servings with pasta - that's still an excellent deal.

I like beef shank because there is a wide bone in the center that's filled with buttery marrow. Make sure to scoop it out to eat when done - that's the cook's reward.

You could even do a version with cheap chicken leg quarters or cheap cuts of pork like the shoulder. Nobody will complain, it's really all about the sweet flavor of slow cooked onion. If you have tried French Onion Soup then you know what I mean (my own cheapie French Onion Soup version is a click away, here.)

Overall it's simple to do, nothing fancy, and with very few ingredients to deal with. You can easily feed the whole family with my cheap$kate entree. It even tastes better the next day, and it also freezes well, to pack for work lunches. (For reheating I would use a divided container, so you can take out the pasta before it overcooks - the meat and onion sauce takes longer to heat up.)

So check out my recipe video below for Pasta alla Genovese. Your guests, or family, will be impressed with this luscious, Italian edible masterpiece.

Pasta alla Genovese - VIDEO

Play it here, video runs 3 minutes, 16 seconds.

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

Ingredients (4-6 servings)

• 1 to 2 pounds beef - I used a package with 2 beef shanks (about a pound and a half.) Beef chuck blade steak is cheap too. Some recipes call for a mix of pork and beef - that right there make this recipe even cheaper. You could even go for the cheapest way by using chicken leg and thighs.
• 4 pounds of onions - or about 8 whole onions, roughly sliced. Red, white or yellow onion. I used cheap yellow onions.
• 1 whole carrot - chopped. Okay to use shredded carrot from the package (about a cup.) For baby carrots, just roughly chop the equivelent of a whole carrot.
• 1 stalk of celery - chopped.
• 3/4 cup white wine - optional, okay to use red wine. If you leave out wine then add water, or a favorite broth, instead.
• 1 bay leaf - optional.
• Tablespoon of oil - for sauteing beef and veggies.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Pasta -  usually a penne or large tube pasta is used. Although, you can use any favorite you have on hand.
• Parmesan - dried or fresh when serving.

Directions
I used 2 beef shanks (about a pound and a half.) Slice beef into large cubes. It will eventually shrink and break apart. Trim any excess fat, although I like me some fat, so don't discard it all, that's extra flavor.

In your largest pot add a tablespoon of oil over a medium heat. Add the cubed beef and saute for about 5 to 8 minutes to brown, at least, one side. This will give the sauce a rich, dark hue. Stir beef when brown.

While beef cooks, slice carrot (discarding ends) and celery. You can use celery leaves, too.

Next add the chopped carrot and celery to browned beef. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for a couple of minutes.

Click on any photo to see larger.

Pour in white wine, water or a favorite broth. Mix beef and veggies well, scrapping the pot bottom to free up the tasty beef brown bits. Add a bay leaf, optional.

Slice off onion ends, divide the onion, and  peel off the papery skin.Rough slice the onion halves. Don't worry about how thin; the onions will shrink and cook down after 2 hours.

Now time to bring it all together. Fill up the pot with sliced onions and cover the pot. Keep the heat at a medium/low heat as onions cook down.

*If your pot cannot hold all the chopped onion, let the onions sweat and cook down for about half an hour. This will give you room to add the rest of the chopped onions.

Now you can mix all the pot ingredients. Cover the pot and just keep simmering the meat and onion on low, for about 2-3 hours, until all the onion is reduced. Time will vary, depending how much onion you use. Stir ingredients every half hour or so.

You will notice how much liquid the onions give off, about 2 cups worth.

(This Italian sauce can be cooked for hours, covered and at a low simmer - anywhere from 3 to 6 hours. Just check to make sure the liquid doesn't cook away. Add half a cup of favorite broth, or water, as needed.)

Finally, uncover and continue cooking until the sauce is reduced by half, about another 30 minutes (if needed.) Stir occasionally. You want to end up with a sauce that's mainly caramelized onion and meat. It's up to you how thick or thin you like the pasta sauce. Add more broth or water if the liquid cooks down too much.

When the sauce is done you can make your favorite pasta. Just keep the sauce warm until the pasta is ready. Serve with dried or fresh parmesan. Heck, this Pasta alla Genovese is good enough without parmesan cheese.

Hindsight
Some recipes call for adding 1/2 cup of milk and a tablespoon of tomato paste. I like these additions, too.

You want to cook the onions until they are caramelized and starting to break down, at least 3 to 4 hours. It's like cooking dried beans, you can keep the sauce covered and low simmering most of the day if you like (and have the patience.) Just check to make sure sauce doesn't dry out - add a little water or broth as needed.

You can add more or less meat. It's up to you and your budget.

Freeze the leftovers - it microwaves fine.