Belt-Tightening: 6 Cheap and Easy Recipes for the Festive Season

Modern day austerity can never compare with “belt-tightening” during WWII. It’s like comparing apples and oranges.

Earlier this month, British newspaper The Guardian published an article about Eleni Nikolaidou, a Greek school teacher who compiled recipes and survival tips from newspaper clippings from the 1940s.

Her book captures the essence of what many countries, including the Unites States, went through during the war years. “This may be a bit extreme, but we are all facing tough times,” says Athens-based chef and TV show host FT Bletsas.

But can austerity and the festive season go together? Bletsas definitely thinks so. He takes credit for popularizing a philosophy he calls “economy cooking.”

“We’ve done this during the whole history of mankind,”Bletsas says. “So, I think we can still do it. The idea is to educate people about how they can actually shop well, store the food so that it doesn’t go bad and cook it in some smart way.”

The proof in the pudding is in sharing the recipe, right? So I asked him to tell me about some of his favorite festive season recipes that are good for the pallet and easy on the wallet. These are his top picks.
Whole Wheat Breakfast with Yogurt

You can store whole wheat for a long time. You could also buy it in bulk to save money. It is nutritious, full of fiber, vitamin B and proteins.

Preparation: Soak the wheat into water for 2 hours. Then boil it for 15 minutes. Mix it with cinnamon, nuts, raisins, toss in some pieces of apple, add honey and serve on top of Greek Yogurt.

Wheat and Nut Dessert

Call this a dessert or a whole wheat kernels breakfast. It is cheaper than processed cereals available in the market. If you add some nuts it becomes protein-rich. Honey is a good sweetener but you can use whatever is available – fruit juice is a good option.

Ingredients: 1 cup whole wheat, 6 red apples, 10 chestnuts, ½ cup walnuts, ½ cup raisins, ½ tablespoon honey, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon salt, ½ glass fresh orange juice, ½ glass pomegranate juice.

Preparation: Soak the wheat in water for 2-3 hours. Put this in a pan and boil for 20 minutes. Drain the wheat, place it back in the pan and leave it aside. Boil the chestnuts in water for 30 minutes and drain them. You can also bake them in the oven. When they are cold, remove the skin. If they are cooked enough it is easy to remove the skin manually. Cut the apples in half, remove the core and scoop out the flesh with a spoon. Place the apple pieces in a bowl and leave the empty halves aside. Sprinkle some lemon juice on the halves and the pieces to prevent browning. Peel the chestnuts, cut them in four and place them in the bowl. Add some walnut pieces. Add raisins, fruit juice, honey, cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Mix everything together and place it in the pan with the wheat. Mix again and cook on low to medium heat for 15 minutes, until the apples soften and the juices are gone. You can alter the recipe according to what you have available in terms of nuts, dried fruit and fruit juice.

Quick Apple Dessert

This has to be one of the simplest baked apple recipes. It is a clever way to utilize your surplus apples and stale bread. It takes less than five minutes to mix everything. And then all you need to do is put the tray in the oven.

Ingredients: 4 red apples, 4 slices stale brown bread slices, ¼ cup melted butter, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon and ½ cup water.

Preparation: Preheat the oven. Clean and chop the apples into cubes. Stir apples, bread crumbs, butter and sugar in a medium deep pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and pour some water into the mixture. Bake for 30 minutes at 200 degrees and serve warm with yogurt or ice cream.

Oatmeal Cookies

Oats are very cheap if you buy in bulk. They’re highly nutritious with plenty of fiber, protein and vitamins. They also contain complex carbohydrates that give lasting energy. Oats are an ideal way to add thickness and nutrients to soups, juices and smoothies. You can also use oats as a base for your breakfast cereal mix. You can also use them in baking recipes, such as cakes, cookies, scones and bread. Make these biscuits on weekend and you can keep munching till the end of the year.

Ingredients: 1 packet of butter or sesame oil (8½ ounces), 1 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons honey, 2 eggs, 1 cup wholemeal flour, 4 cups rolled oats, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon powdered ginger, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 cup dark chocolate chips.

Preparation: Preheat the oven and leave eggs and butter outside the fridge. Pour the butter and sugar in a bowl. Mix the two till you get a creamy paste. Add honey and eggs into the mixture and keep stirring. In another bowl mix all the other dry ingredients, and then throw them gradually inside the cream mix. Stir until you get a uniform thick mixture. Use a spoon to place equal amounts of the mixture in a tray with wax paper. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 180 degrees, until you get a golden color. When ready, let them cool and serve immediately or store in a well-sealed box. You could also store the biscuits in the refrigerator.

Banana Ice Cream

This one is nutritious, delicious and contains no added sugar. It is a smart way to use ripe bananas that you can buy cheaply in many groceries stores. If you want to make dairy-free ice cream instead of milk you can use fruit juice or milk substitute made of almonds, rice or soy.

Ingredients: 4 ripe bananas (peeled, cut, and frozen), 1 cup cold milk, 1 cup raw cashew nuts (soaked for 30 minutes in water), ¼ teaspoon vanilla powder, ¼ cup dark chocolate chips

Preparation: If you have lots of ripe bananas, peel them, cut them into small pieces and place them in a plastic food container that you can put in the freezer. Within three hours they are frozen and you can use them in this recipe. Frozen bananas can be added in smoothies, cakes, biscuits and many other recipes. They last in the freezer of about two to three weeks.

Leave the frozen bananas outside the freezer for 3 minutes and place it in the food processor. Add the milk (or juice), vanilla powder and the soaked cashew nuts and mix them until they become a smooth cream. Place the cream in a bowl and add the chocolate chips. Mix with a spoon and place it in the freezer for 20 minutes before you eat it. If you want to keep it for longer, place it in the refrigerator.

Source:http://www.theworld.org/2011/12/belt-tightening-6-cheap-and-easy-recipes-for-the-festive-season/