Bastille Day - French Cuisine Recipes

I'm a Francophile. I like movies by Jean-Luc Godard, ye-ye pop music by Serge Gainsbourg, and pommes frites, or French Fries. So man the barricades and check out my cheapSkate revolutionary recipes on Bastille Day.

There is more to French cuisine than French Fries, of course, and this Chef de Cuisine d'Internet has tossed Molotov cocktail recipes on Bastille Day. So keep scrolling for scrumptious videos and food photography, which I hope inspires you to try a recipe or two. Follow this rebel rousing cheap$kate as I storm the ivory tower of haute cuisine!  And click on any recipe name to go to my blog post for all the riotous recipe instructions.

This French holiday is celebrated as the turning point of the French Revolution on July 14, 1789. Hey, this sounds like a fine excuse to celebrate French cuisine to me! So I'll start with one of my favorite ones, a hearty Cassoulet casserole.

One of my early L.A. jobs in the Biz was as a videotape editor. Lunch was often in a neighborhood restaurant run by a charming French couple. My favorite dish was a comforting plate of Cassoulet. It reminded me of a rustic home-cooked all-in-one dish: a bean casserole version of Mom's Cajun rice dish, Jambalaya.

A classic Cassoulet is made with confit duck legs, sausage, and white beans. I've yet to find duck for 99c or less a pound, but cheap chicken leg quarters from a local Latin market do fine; as for sausage, any local favorite you find on sale is fine.

A French mirepoix of guillotined veggies includes onion, garlic, bell pepper, carrot, and celery. They will sweeten this stew with slow-cooking on the stovetop and finish with baking in the oven to crisp poultry skin while thickening the rich sauce.

In the fall and winter months, I make a Cassoulet every few weeks, and there are always leftovers to enjoy and share.

My next Francophile recipe really does use the cheapest veggie, onions. French Onion Soup uses half a dozen roughly sliced onions that are cooked down until caramelized to a sweet brown hue.

 I get them from my local Latin market, often 2 pounds for a dollar. Go ahead and use the least expensive white or yellow onions.

French Onion Soup comes together with red wine (cheap is okay,) a fave broth, butter, and a little flour to thicken it. A pretty simple recipe, but oh so delish, especially when it's finished off and topped with cheese and a slice of crusty bread.

My favorite fries are double-fried French Fries, and that's a tasty mouthful. Soggy fries were the norm until McDonald's came on the scene and changed forever the way Americans look at French Fries.

It's all about the crunchy outside and fluffy inside. And anyone can do it if you follow my method in the video below. But you have to go to the end of the video for my French Fry tutorial, as the first part is a British-style Fish & Chips recipe.



You would think a world-famous French chef would do French Fries right? Wrong -- I reviewed Chef Ludo Lefebvre's Fried Chicken Truck.

You can get French Fries with his fried chicken. Maybe it was an off day, but the fries were limp and soggy. I'm willing to try again when I run across the truck. Maybe they are great, just not when I was there. So check out my entertaining Cheap$kate Dining Review for French Chef Ludo's Fried Chicken and French Fries Truck to see for yourself.



But Chef Ludo  Lefebvre did turn my head around with his French Cheese Omelet. Man, is it tender and so gooood. The French method is to whip eggs first, then lightly and continuously scramble them with a little butter until almost done, with the eggs still slightly moist. You finish by adding cheese and gently folding the egg into an omelet shape.

My omelet experience is with middle-American diner-style, where the eggs are solid and a bit dry. Now I make my omelets the French way, and you can too if you follow my recipe video below.



I grew up watching Julia Child cooking French food on her PBS cooking show. And she literally wrote the book on French cooking called "Mastering the Art of French Cooking."

Her personality was larger than life, and I had to do a video in her honor after she passed away. My recipe homage is a bit silly, but it is done with heart. Check out my version of Julia Child's Crepes Suzette -- done by her nephew, Julian Child!

Beef Bourguignon is a classic French stew, at least until the Cheap$kate Cuisinier gets hold of the recipe. Beef is too expensive, but pork is the right price, so I turned the recipe into a Pork Bourguignon.

All the other classic ingredients are included, like mushrooms, onions, tomato paste, and of course, cheap red wine. To get that rich beefy flavor, I include beef stock.

I didn't know there was a French-style Yogurt, so when I saw Oui by Yoplait at my local 99c only Store (the photo below is from a few years ago), I had to try it. Boy, is it creamy and flavorful. Some buy this brand just for the cool jar.

I like to add fresh fruit to plain yogurt. I find that pre-mixed yogurt with fruit is loaded with sugar and way too sweet for me. Below is how I do it.

So, do click on any recipe name to see my original blog post recipe, and dig in!

Vive la France and Bon Appétit!

Grilled Hatch Chile Sausages - Video Recipe

I like Sausages grilled, especially when I get them on sale at my local Ralphs Grocers. 

Raw Pork Sausage links come up cheap the most, usually raw Bratwurst and Italian, but when Hatch Green Chile Sausage showed up for half price in the bargain bin section of the meat department I got a couple packages. That's less than a dollar per link!

They freeze fine so I get them when they are sale-priced and on the verge of expiring. I place them in the freezer when I get home.

Chopped Hatch Green Chiles are mixed with ground pork. When cooked the Hatch Chile flavor is mild, not spicy at all. 

Dollar Tree deal of Chrispy Hatch Chiles              

Ralphs Grocers also sells pork Italian Sausage. The cooked texture is roughly ground and quite tasty, I especially enjoy Bratwurst. 

I have a Gas Grill. I find the cooking is easier to control over medium to low heat. These raw pork sausages take about 7 to 10 minutes in total. Your cooking time may vary depending on your grill fire. 

I will slice into a done sausage to check for clear juices and no pink flesh. Internal temperature should be about 160 to 170 degrees if you use a meat thermometer.

I serve the grilled Hatch Green Chile Sausage with mustard. Okay to use any favorite type including plain yellow, spicy brown, or Dijon. Slice open a bread roll and make a Sausage Sandwich, too. Add any favorite Sausage Sandwich toppings like pickle relish.

If you can find Sausages on the cheap or on sale like I do, then invite over friends for a Sausage Grilling Party and get them to supply free cold beverages.

Grilled Hatch Green Chile Sausage Recipe - VIDEO            Play it here, video runs 1 minute, 50 seconds.

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

 Ingredients

• Hatch Green Chile Sausages - I bought a package on sale. The sausages are raw pork links, so they need to be cooked until done and the juices run clear.
• Salt & Pepper to taste - okay to use any favorite seasoned salt and marinade including BBQ Sauce.
• Mustard - I serve my Grilled Sausages with mustard. Use any favorite including plain yellow, spicy brown, and Dijon.

Directions

Cook Sausages any favorite way. I like a Gas Grill for easy control and cleanup. It's okay to saute or broil Sausages on a regular stove.

Season Sausages with salt and pepper. Okay to use a favorite seasoned salt and marinade like BBQ sauce.

Over medium heat grill Sausages until done, about 7 to 10 minutes depending on the heat. 

Ready to eat when juices run clear and internal heat is about 160 to 170 degrees if you use a meat thermometer. Slice into a Sausage to make sure it is done - no pink juices.

I like my Grilled Hatch Green Chile Sausage with mustard. Okay to serve in a bread roll or hot dog bun for a Sausage Sandwich. Add any favorite sandwich toppings.

🌹Mother's Day Recipe Videos - 90 Years Old 💖

I owe it all to Mom, at least where I get my cooking chops (and any good sense I have). Just check out our cooking videos below to see what I mean. She grew up in Texas on the Gulf Coast, in a small shrimping and fishing town called Port O'Connor. There, I learned to love seafood.

Her father was a shrimp boat captain, so we had all the fresh-caught seafood Big Daddy would bring home, including shrimp that fell off the big boat's conveyor belt while unloading his catch. 

                                                    Port O'Connor Slideshow

Shrimp season was short, but crab and oyster season soon followed. And you could always cast a line into the warm Gulf waters and marshes for bountiful fishing.

Big Daddy & Big Mama

Mom stopped cooking a few years ago, so all the following recipes are what she used to cook for us back in the day. 

The following recipe comes from her parents' kitchen: Shrimp and Rice. It uses locally caught shrimp, cheap canned tomato paste, and rice. We always had creamy pinto beans and flour tortillas to scoop up all the deliciousness. Our family seldom had steak as it was too expensive, but we had all the Gulf seafood we could eat. Looking back, I didn't realize how good we had it !

Mom's Shrimp & Rice - VIDEO

Mom had movie-star looks (like a young Elizabeth Taylor) and smarts, and a scholarship to college if she wanted it, but had no encouragement from her parents.

So after high school graduation, she was soon married, and I arrived on the scene, followed by my brother and sister.

Billy, Berry, and Brenda

My Dad was in the military, so we moved around. Mom and us kids eventually settled back in Port O'Connor after a divorce. Dad was quite a character and the life of the party, but he was also a little too profligate in the alcohol consumption department.

Billy Doyle Robinson

Mom went back to work as a waitress, so I learned how to literally pinch pennies when she poured handfuls of customer tips on the kitchen table for us kids to separate and count.

Mom got back on her feet and found love again with this shuffleboard-playing fellow below, Ken.

After a couple of years, Mom married Ken, and a final sister was born (catch up with youngest sister Denise's Eggplant Recipe, video here).

We moved to neighboring Louisiana the year I enrolled in Junior High School. There, she picked up a whole other way of cooking, Cajun-style.

My high school daze was spent in Gonzales, Louisiana, the self-professed Jambalaya Capital of the World. So you know this town is serious about chow. Click here to see a culinary video tour of some local Cajun cuisine at the weekend Flea Market, including Crawfish Pie, Boudin Balls, and, of course, Jambalaya.

And here's our first video we made together in my Los Angeles kitchen - and my late wife, Amy, even makes an appearance at the very end of the video. You'll get a kick out of Mom rockin' the cast-iron kettle. I make her Cajun Jambalaya more than any other recipe - it's simply delicious.

Jambalaya - Recipe Video

Here is a link to her Jambalaya recipe with text and yummy photos.

Mom was always popular with my high school buddies, especially during lunch or dinner time. She brought her Tex-Mex Enchiladas to Cajun Country, and my Louisiana friend Marvin ate them up!

Me, Marvin & Dennis

During a recent Louisiana visit, I had him over when I filmed Mom making Tex-Mex Enchiladas. Marvin liked the Enchiladas so much, he had a flashback to our high school daze.

Make sure to watch my wacky recipe video to the end, that's when our flashback hijinx really gets smoking (wink, nudge).

Mom's Chili Cheese Enchiladas - Recipe Video

Mom takes a star turn with her next video recipe, her popular Chicken and Sausage Gumbo.

It's a traditional Southern dish, and it's cheap, too. Just chicken, sausage, and the Cajun veggie trinity of bell pepper, celery, and onion. What gives Gumbo its unique taste is a dark brown roux, which is flour cooked in oil until chocolate brown.

Just check out the video below - Mom will take you through the steps. And, as an added bonus, my oldest sister Brenda makes a nagging appearance a few minutes in.

Gumbo - Recipe Video

Click here to read all about making Mom's homemade Gumbo, from roux to rice!

My Mom's Cajun Potato Salad is the perfect side to her Gumbo and Jambalaya. When she visited me in Los Angeles, I got her to do it on camera. I couldn't help but give her a hard time about the recipe. I called it Cajun Mashed Potatoes, and she called it Cajun Potato Salad - well, I guess you'll have to watch the video below to see who wins that argument!

Mom's Cajun Potato Salad - Recipe Video

I satiate my sweet tooth during visits with Mom. And the best of her pastry delights are Mini-Pecan Pies. If I couldn't make it for the Christmas holiday, then she would send a shoe-box-sized package with a dozen of these tasty pies.

Mom attracts a kitchen full of hungry relatives when these pies come hot out of the oven. And it's a miracle they were done right because this Chef de Shutterbug was shoving a camera in her face (and a hot oven) during the whole procedure. We butted heads a few times, but fortunately, it all turned out fine.

I even came up with a way to dodge the high prices for pecans, so check out the video below to learn my budget secrets.

Mini-Pecan Pie - Recipe Video

And click here to see Mom's Mini-Pecan Pies recipe with text and tasty photos.

Mom has lived half her life in Gonzales, Louisiana. She is a big local sports fan, and you can always find her following her teams, the New Orleans Saints football, and recently the Pelicans basketball. I've learned not to touch the third rail sports rivalry, L.A. Lakers and Rams, West Coast vs the South...well, sometimes we have a good-natured spat!

One of my visits there fell on Christmas, and she pulled out all the stops with a huge holiday spread that included Pumpkin Pie. I got her on video making it, and it turned out perfect, as you will see below.

The recipe is a traditional one made with simple ingredients. The pumpkin came from a can, but the crust was handmade with wheat flour, based on her beloved, late sister-in-law, Cindy's recipe.

Pumpkin Pie - Recipe Video 

All the easy-to-follow steps are written out here, and with delish photos, too.

Now, Mom is no angel -- hey, who is? Recently, my brother from another daddy, the Swamp Chef, showed up with his Spanish moss beard.

Me, Mom, & the Swamp Chef

When I asked Mom, "Who's the Swamp Chef's daddy?" Her reply was: "That's a very good question!" I guess Mom will spill the beans one day, until then, check out the video below for a dessert good enough to cajole the Swamp Chef out of the bayou!

Cherry Pie - Recipe Video

Happy Mother's Day to all of you lovely ladies, and especially to my Mom - I love you!

National Pizza Day - Recipes & Reviews

Hallelujah, it's National Pizza Day! Heck, every day should be National Pizza Day. Check out my pizza celebration below with quick and easy Pizza Recipes, and a couple reviews of frozen Pizzas -- go ahead, dig in!

Pizza for breakfast? Yeah! Or if you are a late breakfast eater like I am, then this goes down deliciously mid-morning after a second cup of joe. So check out my video recipe below for a Quick Pizza with Egg to see how fast it all comes together.

Quick Pizza with Egg - VIDEO

Play it here, video runs 1 minute, 24 seconds.

I'm surprised egg is not used more often on fast-food pizza. Like the first slice into a Mexican Huevos Rancheros where the runny egg mixes with salsa and refried beans, or a Southern breakfast of sunny-side-up eggs with biscuits and gravy, it's all about mixing in a creamy egg yolk. And you have it all with a hot pizza right out of the oven.

It's a rich eating experience hitting all the right savory pleasure points with egg yolk, melty cheese, and pungent basil with tomato sauce.

Using pre-cooked pizza crust speeds up getting your meal to the table on time. Lately, I get precooked pizza crust cheaply at the Dollar Tree store a couple blocks away. While not the best pizza crust I've tried, the added toppings help make up for any dough deficiencies. If you find tasty pre-cooked pizza dough, do leave a comment and tell us all about it.

The trick to using a precooked pizza crust is to not overcook it, or it will dry out like a cracker. I cook my Pizza with Egg for about 10 minutes at 400 degrees in a preheated oven. As soon as the whites of the egg are solid and cooked, and the egg yolk is still runny, I immediately remove the pizza. Of course, be careful taking that first hot bite!

You could use fresh pizza dough from the deli case too, just back time it, that is, if it takes 20 minutes to cook the dough, then top the pizza with an egg during the last 10 minutes of baking.

If you can't find individual pizza crusts then slice a whole pizza crust to the size you like and work with that. It's easy enough to use the other half later, that is if you can stand the wait. Or make a whole regular-size pizza and add 2 or 3 eggs to the toppings.

I find many types of tomato sauce at dollar stores. Everything from portabella mushroom to meat-flavored, and chunky eggplant to just plain tomato sauce. There are even jars of "Pizza Sauce."

Get what you like in the can or jar, although I find a jar of tomato sauce easier to refrigerate and spoon from.

If you have a couple of cans of plain tomato sauce it's easy enough to make an Easy Homemade Marinara Sauce that does double-duty as a Pizza Sauce and Pasta Sauce. My recipe video below is easy to follow.

I kicked my Quick Pizza with Egg up a notch with fresh leaves of basil. I like to have a basil plant on my windowsill to pull leaves off. They go great in a Thai-style Basil and Chicken Stir Fry (my recipe is a click away here) and mixed into any favorite spaghetti dish.

You only need a few leaves as they are much more pungent than dried basil. But it's okay to sprinkle on a favorite Italian dried herb into any pizza tomato sauce you use.

I like Anchovies on my pizza, how about you? When I buy a frozen pizza, I drape a few on top. The deal is not to add too many as the tiny salty fillets can overpower the other toppings. Small tins of Anchovies (sometimes with Capers) are still a decent deal. My quickie Pizza with Anchovies is below.

Canned Anchovies once opened will keep covered in the refrigerator for a month since they are cooked and salted for a long reservation. And small single-serving Pizzas are the perfect price and size for a couple of Anchovies. 

When I visit New York City to hang with my wife's friends and relatives I always hit up local cheap Pizza joints. On a snowy day, nothing is better than a hot pizza slice.

Ralphs, my local grocery chain, has a great "Monday Only" special - Pizzas for $6 and they are loaded. I like all the different toppings. And they are so large I have to take them out of the cardboard box to fit my freezer!

Mozzarella and Parmesan are the preferred cheeses for pizza toppings and I get small containers from the Dollar Tree stores. Can you use other cheeses for pizza toppings? All you have to do is try and see for yourself.

I also find dried parmesan in a shaker container but it's not as good as dried wedges you find in a typical grocery deli case.

Eggs aren't as cheap as they used to be, especially if you use cage and are hormone-free. I used to get a dozen, but now I'm lucky to find a dozen for $5.

Top the pizza an egg if you like. I like my egg yolks runny, but you can cook it a few minutes more, until similar to a soft-boiled texture.

And what's great about making your own mini-pizza is you can add as much cheese and tomato sauce as you like (or can afford).

Tangy tomato sauce with pungent fresh basil leaves and melty cheese is the perfect platform for a fried egg. And it's so easy to do if you use packaged single serving sizes of pizza crust that are precooked like I do. Or if you have a leftover slice then break an egg over it, and heat the slice in a toaster oven.

Give my latest cheap$kate recipe a try, I know you will like it -- ciao and buon appetite!

You can make a traditional pizza too with this pre-cooked pizza crust. How about a Black Olive and Sausage Pizza?

All the ingredients are super cheap from Dollar Tree, everything from a can of olives to ground breakfast pork.

While breakfast pork is not Italian, you can make it pretty close by mixing in a teaspoon of dried Italian herbs, again easily found at Dollar Tree.

I find enough Dollar Tree ingredients to make 4 individual pizzas with canned tomato sauce, breakfast sausage or pepperoni, and plenty of olives. The most expensive ingredient is cheese.

What's nice is being able to add as much sauce, olives, cheese, and sausage as I wanted on each pizza.

I find that many budget premade individual pizzas lacking, mainly they are skimpy with meat and cheese. Using fresh pork sausage is so much tastier and I can crumble it into any size I like.

I use a pre-cooked crust, so the baking time is only about 10 minutes at 400 degrees, just enough time to heat all the ingredients and melt the cheese -- that's it!

My first seafood-topped pizza was from a small side-street restaurant during a Rome, Italy vacation. Some may blanch when served calamari, clams, and shrimp on a pizza, but how can you resist when it's paired with melted mozzarella and artichoke hearts? Read my recipe post from a decade ago below for my Pita Pizzas. Some ingredient prices have changed, but the flavors remain as delicious.

I simplify things by using a can of chopped clams. One can is enough for three small individual pita pizzas. Small Pita Bread rounds work quite well as a cooked pizza bread substitute.

These budget pizzas are easy to make and are perfect for a party or as a late-night cramming snack for all you overextended, financially strapped college students. All you need is a dorm buddy with a toaster oven!

Ingredients (for 3 pita pizzas)

• 3 pita bread rounds or small individual pizza crusts
• 1 can minced or chopped clams (6.5 oz.)
• 1 package shredded mozzarella (4 oz.)
• 3 tbsp. dried parmesan cheese 
• 1 small 8 oz. can of tomato sauce or your favorite pasta sauce.
• 1 small jar of marinated artichoke hearts (6oz.) in oil or water, drained.
• 3 tablespoons olive oil blend
• 1 teaspoon dried herbs including - parsley, oregano, and sage (a pinch per pizza)

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Layout 3 pita rounds and top each with 3 tbsp. of tomato sauce and a small pinch of dried herbs, then cover with a layer of mozzarella cheese.

 Drain artichoke heart and minced clams; evenly distribute over pita pizzas and add a sprinkle of dried parmesan cheese. Finish with a drizzle (about a tablespoon) of olive oil.

 Bake for about 10 minutes -- cheese will melt, while the pita edge becomes crisp and just starts to brown.

And don't forget to mix it up with different toppings for a party. Just set out a plate of pepperoni, cheese, cooked sausage, tomato sauce, olives, and any other favorites.

Time for a few Pizza Deal of the Day reviews. These reviews are from my past blog posts, so they may or may not still be around. Many of those Pizzas are adequate, and some are even quite tasty, that is if you sprinkle on some extra mozzarella!

When you think of Oprah Winfrey, pizza does not come immediately to mind. Well, she's jumped on the celebrity food product bandwagon. She has a line of frozen pizzas and I got one at my local 99c only Store. Don't know how it ended up there but I'm not complaining. 

It's a full-sized large pizza with a thick crust and loaded with pepperoni. So how does it rate on my Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best? Just check out my video below to get all the tasty details!

Unfortunately, this Deal of the Day is bleh. I mean it's not bad, just mediocre. And that goes for both Atkins Stone Fired Pepperoni and Cheese Pizza.

I know it's hard to find a tasty frozen pizza for a buck. One day I'll find what I'm looking for, just not yet.

In general, I like Atkins frozen meals that show up in my local  99c only Store's frozen case, like this one a click away, here.  

I first tried the Stone-Fired Pepperoni Pizza. This one had 3 slices of pepperoni, not the four slices shown on the box cover - better supervision is needed at the Atkins pizza plant.

The main problem was the lack of tomato sauce and the lack of cheese. I guess to keep the price down they cut the cheese when adding pepperoni. I don't need a lot of tomato sauce, but this single serving had the tiniest smear. You would think since cans of tomato sauce are so cheap that they would ladle it on.

I thought the pepperoni slices were fine. Thin but spicy and pungent just like pepperoni should be. 

And the cheese was flavorful with mozzarella and parmesan. Like I said earlier, it could have been used more. 

And finally, the pizza crust is medium thick and blistered. I prefer thin, but the dough is tasty enough -- Chicago and New York-style crusts have nothing to worry about here. 

So on the 99 Cent Chef's Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give Atkins Stone Fired Pepperoni Pizza a 4!

So on to the next Deal of the Day, Atkins Stone Fired Cheese Pizza. 

Now, this is more like it. This pizza has plenty of melty, gooey cheese, just the way I like it! It still has too little sauce, but the cheese amount almost makes up for it. 

While not the most flavorful mozzarella and parmesan, it's fine.  I think an extra shaving or two of parmesan cheese would do the trick.

And it has the same crust. I tried frying this frozen pizza on a George Forman-like grill for a better crust, but due to the thick dough it still did not crisp up enough, before the cheese started melting all over the place, and the too little tomato sauce almost evaporated away.

The ingredient list is too long for both pizzas, but that could be preservatives in the pepperoni and cheeses.

 Click on any photo to see larger.

So on the 99 Cent Chef's Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give Atkins Stone Fired Cheese Pizza a 6 ! It's a little better than bleh.

While I shouldn't complain too much about single-serving pizzas for a buck, I would recommend the Cheese Pizza over the Pepperoni.

Welcome to the real Hunger Games, with a battle royale between 2 pizza purveyors, Geno's and Celeste. In my latest Deal of the Day, it's mini pizzas going mano-a-mano and the winner gets the Chintzy Award for Best Cheap Pie. This is a cuisine made for dorm room keg parties and minimum-wage workday lunches.

I picked up each single-serving pie from the frozen deli case at this 99c only Store for 99.99 cents (or $1.) The pizzas are the perfect size for lunchtime appetites. I got the same toppings of cheese, pepperoni, and sausage on both. Normally I like a pizza hot from the oven, but for this meal showdown, I am going with the quicker microwave preparation. -- following the box directions.

Celeste
There is more tomato sauce and chunkier meat topping -- so you can really taste the Italian sausage and pepperoni. -- Celeste is a winner in the meat category. Also, larger lashings of mozzarella cheese make individual bites varied, as the ingredients are larger but spread out more. And the tomato sauce, while plain, binds all the flavors together. There is a silver crisping plate included

Jeno's
Italian herbs shine through in the tomato sauce. But the meat toppings are hard to discern, due to the small sizes. While Jeno's has a uniform flavor profile as all the parts are almost blended together in a pleasing way.

Funny, but Jeno's did not have a silver microwave crisper, so I used Celeste's.

I'm sure both single-serving pizzas would benefit from oven baking, but at my job (and most dorm rooms) there is only a microwave oven. So this is a test in real-world conditions. In both cases, the crust is a little mushy as expected, but they share a pleasing yeasty dough flavor.

Both pies are the same size and thickness. Jeno's looks like it has more toppings, but looks are deceiving. So on a scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give the Chintzy Award to Celeste, with a 6 rating. I preferred the chunkier sausage topping and larger treads of cheese. I also liked the simple tomato sauce flavor.

While Jeno's is the loser, I give them higher marks for a more intense overall Italian herb flavor. And I would buy both again for a cheapie lunch. But I am always on the lookout for a better single-serving chintzy pizza. If you know of one, then do leave a comment about it and I'll look for it.

Every year I seem to find new Pizza to try from supermarket frozen cases. I still come up with original Pizza recipes so do check back here.