Apr. 22, 2009
Frugal success and frugal flops from food co-op purchases - pancake mix muffins
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We occasionally purchase groceries from a food co-op. Because you don't get to choose the items in the food box, sometimes there are things that build up in the pantry or have to be given away. Since I have a daughter with a severe peanut allergy, there is always something that must be given away that contains or was manufactured in close proximity to peanut. When I've calculated the cost of the food we can use vs what we give away, I've always found that we still save a lot by purchasing through the co-op. I've done the math, and for $25, we still end up with about twice as much in value even after deducting the items that we don't use. Once we had 4 large cans of menudo without hominy. My husband is Mexican and grew up eating menudo, but he prefers when I make this spicy soup with tender pieces of pork instead of tripe. I've tasted tripe and even sliced pig ears in menudo and pozole so its not like I'm unwilling to try something different. (I've even tried fried grasshoppers - Hey, it was good enough for John the Baptist, right?) So no offense intended, but I would not choose to eat the remnants of an animal again unless we were in much more desperate times. Thankfully, we were able to give the soup to a relative so it didn't go to waste. I wish the same could be said for the gourmet Mozzarella/Prosciutto rolls that sat in the fridge for 2 months before I finally tossed them. I hate to waste food, but the strong basil flavor was so overly pungent and infused the entire cheese roll. It would probably be an ingredient Rachael Ray could do something with, but it just wasn't kid fare and the grown ups here weren't likin' it either. Well, along the way I've collected 4 large boxes of Jiffy Buttermilk Pancake Mix. I made pancakes with them once, but everyone decided that our regular recipe was much better. I wanted to make muffins today, but I was out of baking soda and baking powder. So, today I tried using the pancake mix to make pumpkin muffins. The results were not spectacular as the muffins were very dense. However, I'd call it a frugal success - 4 out 5 kids liked them. Pumpkin muffins with pancake mix (makes 24 muffins) 4 cups Jiffy Buttermilk Pancake Mix 1 cup sugar 1/2 cube of melted butter 2 eggs 2 cups canned pumpkin 1 cup water 1 cup Raisins Pumpkin pie spice (cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon) Preheat oven to 425. Mix together as you would with muffins (mix wet and dry ingredients separately and then combine). Pour into greased muffin tray or into paper muffin cups. Bake for 20 minutes or until done. Serve with honey-butter or cream cheese. |
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