Buffalo Cauliflower ‘Wings’

Did you know today is allegedly the 50th anniversary of the creation of Buffalo Wings? Neither did I until I was skimming through The Gothamist and came across an article to celebrate the occasion. I knew it was a sign that I needed to post on Thrifty Foodies. I’ve been sitting on this recipe since the super bowl and have made it multiple times.  As a mostly vegetarian household we can’t have traditional buffalo chicken wings. In my food journey I’m amazed that there are so many different ways to cook veggies beyond roasting them. Often I find that I need to remind myself of this because I’ll usually roast, season, and call it a day. Here’s a vegetarian take on Buffalo Chicken Wings which prove that a little bit of preparation can turn something that’s supposed to be unhealthy into an absolutely fantastic and healthy treat. I found a variation of this on the PETA website but have edited it to my needs. I’ve was so pleased with the satisfying crunch that accompanied my faux buffalo wings.

Buffalo Cauliflower ‘Wings’

1 head of cauliflower
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
3 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp poultry seasonings
1 tsp crushed red pepper

1.5 cups Panco bread crumbs

Separate cauliflower into small pieces. Whisk together spices, flour, and milk. It will be the consistency of pancake batter. Pour panco in a separate bowl.

Dip cauliflower pieces in batter, roll in breadcrumbs, then place pieces evenly spaced onto a baking sheet. Repeat with each piece of cauliflower. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and toss pieces in buffalo sauce. Bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until golden brown.

Serve with ranch or blue cheese dressing!

Enjoy
-Charlie

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cups

Y’all it’s almost October! I love October the most. It’s the perfect time of year for seasonal ingredients, tasty treats, and PUMPKIN. I’ve been holding off on posting pumpkin spiced anything until we got closer to Halloween but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been cooking up my fall favorites. In Fact- some of Thrifty Foodies most popular posts are pumpkin themed. Pumpkin Hummus and DIY Starbucks knock off pumpkin spice syrup anyone??

Anyways, as many of you know I started full time in the wardrobe department of the Metropolitan Opera this season. We just started performances this week but what people don’t realize is that we are still in rehearsals every morning. After getting home late the last thing I want to think about is breakfast or snacks for the the next day. I adapted this recipe using leftover ingredients from my granola bars to make something healthy and quick to grab for my on-the-go mornings.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cups
1 can of pumpkin
1 egg
1 very ripe banana
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups rolled oats
¼ cup flaxseed meal
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 tsp pumpkin pie spices
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup chopped raw almonds
Chocolate chips, candied ginger, and brown sugar for topping

In a large mixing bowl mash the ripe banana with a wooden spoon. Add egg, canned pumpkin, vanilla, and milk. Whisk together until the mixture is consistent. In a separate bowl stir together oats, flaxseed, baking powder, salt, pumpkin spices, sugar, and almonds. Pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients and stir together until everything is evenly coated. Ration out the mixture into a cupcake pan lined with paper cups. I used an ice cream scoop and managed to get 21 full cups. Top each cup with a sprinkle of brown sugar, chocolate chips, or candied ginger. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

I found that they tasted better after they had cooled fully and didn’t stick too much to the baking liners. I’m excited to grab one of these on the way to work in the morning this week. Enjoy!
-Charlie

Chewy Banana Granola Bars

There is a granola bar thief in our midst!?

At least that’s what I was thinking as I reached into the box to find only one bar remaining. My mind was blown on how an apartment of three people could go through a giant Costco sized box of granola bars within a few days. Upon investigation it was the visiting hungry boyfriend, long workdays, and needing quick snacks on the go that caused our supply to dwindle so quickly.  Needless to say, we had a granola bar problem and needed a thrifty way to fix it. In NYC a 6 pack box of Nature Valley granola bars can put you back close to six dollars. Sure they’re tasty, but they are also not that great for you.  Putting on my Martha Stewart hat, I set out to find my perfect recipe for a healthy granola bar that I could make in bulk to satisfy my snacking needs.  I found a great resource list of 20 granola bar recipes on another food blog that gave me insight on different versions and what they entailed. The first thing I noticed in the recipes were all of the frou frou crazy weird ingredients. Let me tell you a thrifty secret for all of those crazy healthy add ins- the whole foods bulk bins. All of my flax, chia, nut, oat needs are for sale by the pound relatively cheap because I wouldn’t be buying a whole pound(sometimes only $0.25 worth of an ingredient). After combining several recipes I think I hit the nail on the head with a filling healthy chewy granola bar.

Chewy Banana Granola Bars

1 very ripe banana, mashed

1/4 cup applesauce(I used cinnamon) 

2 tbs honey

1 heaping tbs peanut butter

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg white

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbs brown sugar

2 cups rolled oats

2 tbs flax seeds

1 tsp chia seeds

1 tbs nutritional yeast (you can leave this out, but I figured ‘why not ‘since it was hanging out)

2 tbs shredded unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup raw nut mix(i used almonds, walnuts, and cashews)

 

Preheat the oven for 350 degrees and spray a square baking dish with non stick baking spray. In a large bowl mix together banana, applesauce, egg white, honey, peanut butter, vanilla extract, cinnamon, salt, and brown sugar. The mixture will still be a little clumpy. The important thing is to have a very ripe banana- almost to the point of becoming mush- because it fills in for the oil of the recipe.  In a smaller bowl combine the rolled oats, flax seeds, chia seeds, nutritional yeast, coconut, and nuts. Slowly stir dry mixture into the wet mixture. It will be tough to stir and similar to mixing up rice crispy treats. Give it a good couple of minutes to make sure everything gets coated.  Press mixture into the baking dish and cook for 35 minutes.  Let cool completely before slicing into bars. 

 

Enjoy!

~Charlie

The Thrifty Holiday Party: Crockpot (Adult) Hot Chocolate

Who doesn’t love some alcoholic hot chocolate? We set up an adult hot cocoa bar at our party this year and it was such a great idea. Check out this easy to prepare recipe for hot chocolate in the crockpot that will keep the party going without much effort on your end of things!

Crockpot Hot Chocolate

6 cups nonfat milk

1.5 cups nonfat half and half

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp cinnamon

2 cups of milk chocolate chips

Stir together milk, half and half, condensed milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and chocolate chips. Add into a 6-quart crock-pot and cook covered on low for 1-2 hours stirring occasionally. We served this at our holiday party and just left the crock-pot on the warm setting throughout the party and let our guests make their own adult hot chocolate. Consider having Peppermint Schnapps, Baileys, Cake Vodka, or Marshmallow Vodka on hand to spice things up.

The Thrifty Holiday Party: Rosemary White Bean Dip

Hello friends! We had such a great response with the multiple Thanksgiving posts that we’re going to post a bunch of Holiday-centric posts to gear you up for the onslaught of christmas gatherings. I’ve been taste testing and figuring out the perfect dishes to keep your party guests happy and full! What’s a holiday party without a delicious dip accompanying your food? We made this rosemary bean dip for our holiday party this year and it was a perfect new spin on a classic bean dip. It had the texture of hummus with an herby taste. Try serving it with warm pita chips or even placing the dip in a small crockpot and serving warmed.

Rosemary White Bean Dip

1 can of your choice of white beans, drained and rinsed

1 clove of garlic, minced

½ a lemon’s juice and zest

2 tsp dried rosemary

1 tbs olive oil

½ tsp kosher salt

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender. Puree until smooth, adding more olive oil or lemon juice if you would like a smoother consistency.

Enjoy!

~Charlie

Thrifty Tip: ‘Trader Joes’ Guacamole

Anyone that’s been to a Trader Joes has probably noticed that cute guacamole kit that they sell. It’s a little ridiculous how much they charge for ingredients that are much cheaper if bought on their own. My friend Hannah brought this to my attention at a margarita party a few weeks ago when she made her version of the guacamole kit. You see, Hannah has bought the kit so many times that she memorized what it contained and simply started to buy things separately. Be sure to pick ripe avocados by testing that they’re a little squishy and you’ll have tasty fresh guacamole with the perfect consistency.

Guacamole
1/2 onion (diced)
1/2 jalapeño(diced)
2 ripe avocados(insides cut into cubes)
2 limes
2 cloves garlic(diced)
1 plum tomato(diced)
Kosher salt to taste
Fresh cilantro(if you have any)

Combine diced onion, jalapeño, avocados, garlic, cilantro, and tomato in a bowl. Squeeze lime juice over ingredients. With a fork begin to incorporate everything together using a mashing motion until you get the consistency you’re looking for. I’m a big fan of a chunky almost salsa consistency for my guacamole. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!
-Charlie