Best Deals on Meals Around Town

I already posted about the meals I think are way too overpriced for the food you get.  And I promised to post about the ones that I think are worth it.  So this is me keeping that promise.  Do note that I’m leaving out fast food as options, since we all know how cheap they are from the start.

Best bang for your buck in my book:

**Shucks – This seafood stop has amazing prices and delicious food.  Everything is under $20.  So far my top pick is their grilled shrimp, which can be paired nicely with the green bean risotto (a half order is $8.95!).  Jake absolutely adores their Ahi Tuna Steak, which comes in at a reasonable $13.95.  That’s some seriously fresh and delicious seafood for an amazing price, folks!  The same outfit (Absolutely Fresh) owns a brunch bistro as well, which I find to be incredibly overpriced for the options.  Seriously, I can get Ahi Tuna Steak for $13.95 but several egg entrees at Bailey’s will cost me $9.95!  Crazy.  Either Shucks is an even more incredible deal or they’re just raking it in at Bailey’s.  So definitely go for Shucks.

http://absolutelyfresh.com/

**Tropics  -  My top Omaha pick for the best value in burgers around.  For $4 you can get a fresh burger and fries with loads of topping options.  And several more (and interesting) topping options are just $1 more (each).  Exchange the regular fries for sweet potato fries for $1 as well.  I just love sweet potato fries.  Much better than other chain burger joints that gouge you from the get-go.

http://tropicsomaha.com/

**LaMesa – I can get a chicken enchilada, side of rice, salsa & chips for under $5 (when ordering to-go; I don’t cheat the server a tip when I eat in!).  And, yes, you still get free chips & salsa when you order to-go.  Can’t beat it!

http://www.la-mesa.com/

**Sushi Half-Price Happy Hours at Hiro, Blue, etc – Sushi is expensive!  So the best way to get your raw fish fix (or cooked, for that matter) is to go when it’s half off and with a group to share that large boat platter filled to overflowing with the scrumptious big bites of deliciousness.  (Can you tell I love it & haven’t had enough of it lately?!)  There are several places around town that offer this kind of half price happy hour, but my favorite will probably always be Hiro.  It’s the first place I tried sushi, the first place we discovered we both LOVED it (not too common for Jake & I), and so far, makes the best sushi I’ve tried.  Other places have been “fine” but nothing compares to Hiro as of yet.  I did recently go to Baby Blue with some friends & their selection of half price options at happy hour is abundant, so that’s nice.  But I still think Hiro’s sushi is best. with Blue in 2^nd place.   http://www.hirosushiomaha.com/index.html

Appetizers – Hot & Steamy

Some appetizers need a little heat to have them at their best.  These are always the trickiest treats for me to figure out how to serve.  Sometimes keeping them hot in a crockpot for serving works well.  Other times it’s just bet to wait right until the time to serve to actually finish making them and then get ‘em while they’re hot!

Mini Ham Puffs

2.5 oz finely chopped ham or turkey (I buy already diced ham)

2 T finely chopped onion (I use dried onion flakes)
½ C shredded Swiss cheese

1 egg

1 T snipped fresh parsley (I use dried parsley, a little less than 1 T)

1 ½ tsp Dijon mustard

1/8 tsp black pepper

8 oz pkg refrigerated crescent roll dough

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly spray a mini-muffin pan.  Mix together ham, onion, cheese, egg, parsley, mustard & pepper.  Unroll crescent dough & press into one large rectangle.  Cut dough into 24 squares using a pizza cutter.  Press one square of dough into each muffin cup (works really well with a lightly floured mini-tart shaper, if you have one).  Fill each muffin cup with a scant scoop of ham mixture (a small cookie scoop works well).  Make 12-14 minutes or til puffs are light golden brown.  Remove from pan & serve immediately.

Hot Spinach & Artichoke Dip

6 oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained & coarsely chopped

1 pkg (9-11 oz) frozen creamed spinach, thawed

¼ C mayo (I may use Miracle Whip for an extra zip)

¼ C sour cream

1 small garlic clove, pressed or minced

½ C finely shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix artichokes, spinach, mayo, sour cream, garlic & cheese.  Spool into a small baking dish.  Bake 20-25 min or til heated through.  Serve with toasted bread, tortilla or pita chips.

Cristin’s Spinach Artichoke Dip

8 oz cream cheese

2 C parmesan cheese

½ can artichoke hearts, chopped

2 C frozen chopped spinach, thawed

Garlic salt, to taste

Pepper

Melt cream cheese in medium pan over med/low heat.  Add other ingredients 1 at a time, stirring after each addition until the mixture is well blended & cheese is melted.  Serve with tortilla chips or crackers. (Thank you, Cristin Dunn!)

Bacon-wrapped Little Smokies

16 oz pkg Little Smokies (I use the turkey ones)

1 lb. bacon (do not use the pre-cooked kind)

1 C brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cut bacon into thirds & wrap each strip around a little sausage.  Secure with a toothpick.  Arrange on a baking sheet and sprinkle liberally with brown sugar.  Bake until bacon is crisp and brown sugar is melted into a glaze sauce, about 20-30 min.  Serve immediately, drizzling glaze over sausages.

**Note: the pre-cooked bacon does not give off enough fat to turn the brown sugar into a glaze.  I would also question if turkey bacon would work for the same reason.  A co-worker once used the Splenda brown sugar, though, and that tasted fine.

Appetizers – Cool & Creamy

I love a good chilled appetizer.  There’s something so fresh and crisp about them!  Whether it be a dip or a canapé, I’m in.  Here are some of my top picks for appetizers on the cold side.

Easy Party Slices (aka Cucumber Sandwiches)

1 pkg cocktail sliced bread

1 medium cucumber, thinly sliced (peeled, if desired)

8 oz cream cheese, softened

½ C mayo

.7 oz pkg dry Italian salad dressing mix

Dried dill weed

Combine cream cheese, mayo & salad dressing mix.  Mix well.  Spread small amount of mixture on each bread slice.  Top with a cucumber slice.  Sprinkle dried dill weed on top.

Mexicorn Dip

1 C Miracle Whip

1 C sour cream

2 cans Mexicorn, drained

1 can Rotel tomatoes, drained

2 C shredded cheddar cheese

Combine all ingredients & chill in fridge for a couple hours.  The longer the chill time, the more the flavors will blend.  (And the hotter the dip will become due to the tomatoes.)  Serve with crackers or tortilla chips.

Cool Spinach Dip

10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed & squeezed dry

16 oz sour cream

1 C mayo

1 pkg Knorr vegetable recipe mix

8 oz can water chestnuts, drained & chopped

Combine all ingredients and chill about 2 hrs.  Serve with crackers or bread cubes.  (Makes a great bread bowl appetizer, for those that like such things.)

Lemon Pepper Crab (or Shrimp) Canapes

1 pkg cocktail sliced bread or canapé French bread

8 oz imitation crab meat, coarsely chopped (or salad shrimp)

8 oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained & chopped

¼ C grated carrot

1 lemon

1 green onion, thinly sliced

1/3 C mayo

½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper (I think I usually use regular pepper)

1 medium cucumber, scored & sliced

Zest lemon to measure 1 T zest; juice lemon to measure 1 T juice.  Add carrot, green onion, mayo, pepper, crab meat & water chestnuts to juice & zest.  Mix well.  Top each bread slice with a cucumber slice.  Scoop crab mixture evenly over cucumber slices (I use a small cookie scoop).  Garnish with parsley, if desired.

Black Bean Corn Salsa

1 can black beans, rinsed & drained

1 can corn, drained

1 avocado, diced

1 small red onion, diced

Combine all ingredients.  Serve with tortilla chips.

Fruit Dip

8 oz sweet-flavored cream cheese, softened (I like strawberry, but honey nut or other fruit flavors would be good too)

1 jar marshmallow crème

Combine cream cheese & marshmallow crème until smooth.  Serve with fruit or graham crackers. 

And as mentioned previously, I do love a good veggie pizza, but I’m much too lazy to make it!  All that dicing of veggies is too much work for me.  So feel free to do the work for me, friends!

Appetizers: Crockpot Hot!

I’m an appetizer lover.  Sometimes I go to restaurants and order just an appetizer for my meal.  Either it’s that good, or I’m in the mood for greasy & yummy, or I know I’ll never get it as just an appetizer because that’s a budget buster most days.  So here is the first in a 3-part series on the appetizers I love.  These are the ones that are incredibly simple, yet crowd pleasing at the same time.  Oh, how I love my crockpot.  And the disposable liners they make now for them!

Mini Hot Dogs ‘n’ Meatballs – This is a male crowd pleaser for sure!

36 frozen cooked Italian meatballs (1/2 oz each)

16 oz pkg little smokies (I like the new turkey ones – can’t tell a difference!)

3.5 oz sliced pepperoni (again, I go with turkey)

26 oz meatless spaghetti sauce

18 oz BBQ sauce

12 oz chili sauce

In 5-qt crockpot, combine all ingredients.  Cover & cook on low for 3 hrs or til heated through.  Serve with toothpicks (or forks).

Little Smokies

2 16 oz. pkgs little smokies

1 bottle BBQ sauce

Heat in crockpot & serve.  (My mom always did a mixture of grape jelly & chili sauce, which sounds super weird but basically just turns out to be mostly a BBQ sauce.  So I just go straight to the BBQ sauce!)

Chili Cheese Dip

2 cans Hormel chili without beans

1 lb. Velveeta cheese, cut into cubes

Tortilla chips

Combine chili and cheese in crockpot; cook on high, stirring regularly until cheese melts.  Doesn’t take long.  Keep warm to serve.  Serve with tortilla chips.

Queso Cheese Dip

2 cans Rotel diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained

1 lb. Velveeta cheese, cubed

Tortilla chips

Combine tomatoes & cheese in crockpot; cook on high, stirring regularly until cheese melts.  Doesn’t take long.  Keep warm to serve.  Serve with tortilla chips.  (This can also be done easily in the microwave.)

And here’s a new one I’m dying to try at the next opportunity:

Glazed Kielbasa

3 lbs. fully cooked Kielbasa or Polish sausage, cut into 1-inch chunks (Hillshire Farms has a good low fat Polish sausage I use regularly)

½ C packed brown sugar

1 ½ C ginger ale

Place sausage in 3-qt crockpot; sprinkle with brown sugar.  Pour ginger ale over the top.  Cover & cook on low for 4-5 hrs or until heated through.  Serve with a slotted spoon.

Overpriced Meal Deals

Like any good foodie, I love eating out.  And like any good budgeter, I like getting a good (or great) deal.  There are several places that I find to be overpriced for what you get, however.  Some of these places I may have mentioned previously in posts as yummy places to eat, and that hasn’t changed.  But I do think you might find a better bang for your buck elsewhere.

Red Robin – Don’t get me wrong, I really like the food.  But it’s burgers & fries, people!  I shouldn’t be expected to pay at least $10 for such fare!!  I know they work hard at giving me different gourmet options, but I can go to Tropics for a $4 burger where lots of the same toppings are free and several are just a buck more.  And, yes, they have bottomless fries.  But have you ever found it as difficult as I have to actually get the server back to your table with more said fries?  I just don’t think this place is always worth the pretty penny you have to shell out to eat there.  Since we’ve buttoned down the hatches on our budget, I’m becoming more choosy in how I spend my money and what I want to get for that spending.  And Red Robin ain’t it.

Mimi’s Café – Again, good food.  But their prices are steep for breakfast entrees and the like.  Chicken and fruit is almost $10?  I did get a buy one, get one free entrée coupon when I signed up for their email club, which made it somewhat more affordable.  But I still won’t make Mimi’s top of the list.

LePeep – I do love a good brunch, and this place has good brunch options.  But not uber-fantastic brunch options, which is what you’d expect from the prices listed.  For the cost, I would think they could stuff a bit more stuffing into my Stuffed French Toast!  Or smother it in fresh strawberries.  Or load up on the potato hashbrowns on the side, instead of sprinkling a few measly nuggets next to my omelet.  Breakfast food is cheap to make, people, so they’re getting a steep markup on what they’re offering.  Maybe I’ll just make it myself at home instead.

Perkins, Country Kitchen, Etc. – These kinds of restaurants are fewer and farther between these days for a reason:  they don’t offer premium product for the premium price they charge.  Sure, you usually get plenty of food, but it’s not really great food.  And their breakfasts are definitely better than lunch or dinner options, which are usually just reheated, deep fried & gravy smothered.  I can get that from a good frozen dinner at the store.  So why pay more for the cheesy “country” atmosphere and (usually) lazy service?  I’ll skip these venues as much as possible.

There are several restaurants that I do think are worth the money.  Some I’ve already touted.  Some will come later, so keep checking back! 

Sandwiches I’ll Eat

Now, if you thought I wouldn’t like sandwiches because I don’t like bread, you’d be right.  With a very few exceptions.  And even these sandwiches will never be my very top pick of cuisine, though some are pretty great.

In no particular order:

-#4, Turkey Tom at Jimmy John’s (with BBQ chips & a Cherry Coke)

            This sandwich is perfect as it is.  It’s the original for a reason, folks.  I get it with everything on the menu (turkey, sprouts, mayo, tomatoes, lettuce).  I do not add the cheese they always ask if you want to add but again, isn’t on the listed menu for this sandwich.  Since the Turkey Tom comes with sprouts I was so very, very sad for a couple months last year when they wouldn’t serve sprouts due to a recent sprout salmonella contamination.  So sad.  Anyway, I always ask them to cut the sandwich in half since for easier eating, but they only get that request right about half the time.  I like Jimmy John’s for their chewy bread, which is almost hallowed out in the middle & stuffed to the max with delightful ingredients.  That’s how bread should be!

http://www.jimmyjohns.com/menu/menu.aspx

-The Smith Special at Back Alley Deli, Grinnell, IA

            Basically this sandwich is a Danforth, which has roast beef, pickles (which I always discard), tomato, onion, lettuce, Swiss cheese (I think) and normally comes with mayo.  But the Smith clan (that’s my maiden name for those who don’t know) prefer it brushed with the oil & vinegar herb mix instead of mayo.  SO tasty!  The bread they use comes from a local bakery.  And the toppings are usually pretty dense.  My mouth is watering just thinking about it.  This local find is hidden away in the back of a store.  It used to be a magazine shop but I think it’s something different now.  In any case, it’s worth the sometimes long wait & the price (not uber expensive, but not cheap either).  But it’s always been a special treat for our family.

-Californian Sandwich Melt at The Flying Star Café in Albuquerque, NM

            From the menu:  “Marinated, grilled crimini mushrooms, Swiss, avocado, tomatoes, caramelized onions & ranch dressing on grilled sourdough.”  Need I say more?  AMAZING.  I’m so sad this is apparently a New Mexico only restaurant chain.  It’s similar in menu options to a Panera Bread, but so, so much better.  This sandwich was served with homemade BBQ chips to top it off.  I ordered this sandwich early into my week of grant writing training in Albuquerque this past February.  And the fellow trainee I went with was a local, so she’d been to this restaurant before but never ordered this sandwich.  When I got it, we were both drooling.  And it tasted even better than it looked.  So, so good.  She was a little disappointed with her choice at that point.  And I thought I might go back to get it again before I left but I didn’t.  Major bummer.  And did you note that there wasn’t even any meat?!  Cuz I’m not a vegetarian but I would get this again and again and again.  Probably a good thing I don’t live there, actually.

http://www.flyingstarcafe.com/sandwiches.html

“Change Your Life” Utensils

There are regular, everyday utensils like a good rubber spatula and a wooden mixing spoon.  And then there are utensils that rock your world and change how you’ve always done a particular cooking step.  The following is a list of utensils that have had an actual impact on me.  They may not fall into the “essential” category, for you could get by without them.  But you don’t want to have to.  They are ‘change your life’ fantastic!

- Pampered Chef’s Mix ‘N Chop – this utensil is perfect for chopping up hamburger, ground  turkey & Italian sausage.  Other utensils may work for such a project, but nothing is as easy or works as well!

Website Description:  A Pampered Chef® exclusive! Unique, beveled pinwheel blades efficiently chop and crumble foods for even cooking and seasoning. Its high-quality nylon design follows the curves of your cookware and won't scratch the surface. A soft grip and thumb rest help you comfortably grasp the handle and chop more easily. Heat-resistant to 428°F. 11". Dishwasher-safe.

 -Pampered Chef’s Small Spreader – works perfectly to smoothly frost cakes & cupcakes, without any lines or bumps that come from knives & other spreaders. 

Website Description: A shorter offset blade gives you the perfect control needed to frost cupcakes. Its ergonomic handle is easy on your hand. 3 1/2" stainless steel blade. Dishwasher-safe.

-Eggsact Egg Timer (or similar brand) – this tool took me from the mess & uncertainty of hard-boiling eggs to a pro!  Not to mention the ease of knowing about soft & medium-boiled eggs now too. 

Website Description:  It's so simple, you'll wonder why it wasn't invented sooner!  This Eggsact Egg Timer takes the guesswork out of boiling eggs. Whether you want your eggs soft, medium or hard boiled, simply place this egg-shaped timer in a pan with your eggs and watch as the timer changes color as the eggs cook. Equipped with an internal sensor that reacts to heat, you can actually boil your eggs to the perfect stage every time. No more wondering when your eggs are done because the timer heats up along with the eggs tells you exactly how done your eggs are. Features: Changes color as the eggs cook (from red to purple) Internal sensor reacts to heat 3 stages include soft, medium and hard boiled Works with any number of eggs.

-Pampered Chef’s Core & More – to be honest, I don’t really have this tool!  I have an earlier version that is just the Corer part.  And that’s the part I really recommend, but this new version comes with an added bonus, which I think sounds good too.  The Corer is great for de-stemming strawberries and taking out the core of a tomato.  You no longer have to cut off half the strawberry to just take off the stem, or do the time-consuming work of wedging a knife down around the core/stem in a circular motion.  It’s such a quick, one-step, no-mess process with the Corer!

Website Description:  Remove stems, seeds and cores from vegetables and fruits with the stainless steel corer. Make melon balls and create veggie boats with the double-sided scoop. Corer end includes an ergonomic handle and protective storage cover. Dishwasher-safe.