Roommate Living: Your Food, Kitchen, and Sanity

Since freshman year of college, I’ve had approximately 15,000 roommates. Some are still my best friends, favorite people, and life partners. Others smoked crazy things too late at night. One remains the only unrelated adult I’ve ever yelled at. (Surprise! It was over the dishes.)Whether you’re fresh out of university or shacking up with your significant other for the first time, living with other people has multitudinous benefits. It can save everyone involved a ton of cash. It can be a social opportunity, cultural experience, and culinary education. It can keep you from being plain lonely.But if you’re not careful, it can also be a terrifying descent into a cohabitational hell, in which anger and discomfort become facts of everyday life. Living...

Read more »

Posted in: Organization

CHG Best of March 2010

It’s been our BME (Best. Month. Evah.) here at CHG (Cheap Healthy Good), both in terms of traffic (over 450,000 pageviews!) and comments (whee!). Thank you, sweet readers, both old school and new wave. Here’s hoping we can keep the streak alive. (Crap! I mentioned the streak! Somewhere, Joe DiMaggio is tut-tutting me all classy-like.) One more article coming tomorrow, and then it’s on to April.MARCH RECIPESBanana Oatmeal MuffinsBroccoli with Roasted Red PeppersChickpea CutletsCurried Apples and Acorn SquashDal with Rice and GingerRice PuddingSalsa Couscous Chicken OR Moroccan ChickenVegetarian ChiliWhite Bean DipMARCH ARTICLESRemember when we fed the Husband-Elect for $25 that one week? Thems was good times. There’s even a clip of our Early...

Read more »

Ask the Internet: Food Funny?

Today’s question is a spinoff of yesterday’s post, and could be a nice diversion on this rainy, April showers kind of day:Q: What is your favorite food-related comedy?A: For about a year here on CHG, we had Favorites of the Week, which usually included a song, sketch, or piece of standup based on food. It was super fun to compile, and often yielded genius like: Jim Gaffigan on BaconMonty Python’s “Spam”Readers, what’s your favorite food comedy? Is it standup, sketch, or improv? Maybe a song? Or a simple quote? If you have a link, please include! (Extra points for Vimeo and Youtube URLs, as Canadians can’t see Hulu. It’s kind of like their Snuffleupagus.)Want to ask the interweb a question? Post one in the comment section, or write to Cheaphealthygood@gmail.com. Then, tune in next Tuesday for...

Read more »

Posted in: Ask the Internet

Broccoli with Roasted Red Peppers, Plus: How to Roast a Pepper

Today on Serious Eats: Orange-Cranberry Muffins. Say goodbye to winter citrus with these super easy, seriously portable healthy breakfast treats.As a dedicated frugalist and aficionado of tree-like vegetables, I’m forever in search of ways to enliven broccoli. There are fewer cheaper, more nutritious foods in the produce aisle, and honestly, it’s tough to pretend you’re a forest giant with blueberries.Here's one way to jazz it up:And you can stir fry it, sure. And broccoli goes pretty well in pasta. But otherwise, if you don’t dig the Cruciferae smothered in cheese or doused in lemon, you’re kinda out of luck. Enter Broccoli with Roasted Red Peppers. A buttery, sweet twist on a usually staid side dish, the recipe takes about ten minutes if...

Read more »

Posted in: 15 Minutes or Less,Sides,Vegetarian

Top 10 Links of the Week: 3/19/10 – 3/25/10

Sweet readers! It’s the links! Better late than never, I guess. 1) The Story of Stuff: The Story of Bottled WaterEnthralling, informative, mostly-animated video on the evolution of and waste created by the bottled water boom. You could apply this to almost every processed food, but it’s particularly fascinating in H2O’s case. Ignoring advertising is half the bottle battle. (Thanks to BoingBoing for the link.)2) Zen Habits: How to Master the Art of Mindful EatingGuest post from stonesoup’s Jules on thinking about what you eat, a key strategy in keeping yourself satisfied. If you’ve ever plowed through a whole carton of sesame noodles without taking a breath (*cough* me *cough*), you know it’s tougher than it sounds. 3) Slashfood: The Cost of Sharing EntreesSplitting a plate: chintzy cost-cutting...

Read more »

Posted in: Links

A Pair of Announcements

Sweet readers! The links are coming a little later today, but first: Leigh and I wrote an opinion piece for CNN. It's here: Want Healthy Kids? Learn How to Cook. In related news, Husband-Elect and I will be appearing tomorrow morning on CBS' The Early Show to discuss the $25 Food Project. We are super excited, and currently in desperate search of things to wear.See you back here in a few hours.~~~In the meantime, hello everyone from CNN! If you’re visiting the blog for the first time, welcome! We’re so happy to have you. Bathroom’s on the left. If you’re a longtime reader, we love you! We’re not kidding. It's a little scary.To get an idea of what CHG is all about, our FAQ and mission statement are good places to begin. To go a little deeper, these six posts give a pretty solid overview of...

Read more »

Posted in: About Cheap Healthy Good

Veggie Might: I Want to Be Tofu Butcher

Written by the fabulous Leigh, Veggie Might is a weekly Thursday column about all things Vegetarian.Last night there was a vegetarian quorum in my living room: two lacto/ovo vegetarians, one vegan, and one omnivore (who had once been a vegetarian). We voted a moratorium on the question, “So, will you ever eat meat again?” BA mentioned she was coming up on her 17-year vegan anniversary and that people still asked her that question. We all nodded in sympathy. “They may as well ask if I’d ever eat wood.”Well, according to the trend piece Flesh Mob in the New York Press, it’s not such a crazy question. Apparently, the bacon craze and conscious carnivorism has vegetarians abandoning their previously held convictions and signing up for butchering...

Read more »

Posted in: Veggie Might

The Junk Food Tax: Reader Ideas, Opinions, and Solutions

Last week, we discussed the prospect of a Junk Food Tax, a hypothetical federal tariff that would be placed on ostensibly unhealthy edibles like soda, pizza, and more. Ideally, it would curb obesity and prompt buyers toward making healthier grocery choices. Probably, it would make a lot of people angry.I asked readers their opinions of the potential tax. Responses were voluminous, wonderfully thoughtful, and chock full of good points. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many were vehemently opposed to a junk levy. Of around 40 commenters, only eight were firmly in support, though many had reservations. Those favoring the tax did so mainly for two main reasons:1) It would help regulate national health care expenses. Rip: High sodium and sugar junk food diets cost the US FAR more than smoking or alcohol,...

Read more »

Posted in: Buying Food,Do-Gooding

Green Kitchen: Chickpea Cutlets and Non-Meat Proteins

Green Kitchen is a bi-weekly column about nutritious, inexpensive, and ethical food and cooking. It's penned by the lovely Jaime Green.When it comes to humanely raised food, meat is a big question. If you've seen Food, Inc. (which Kris has written about before) or read Fast Food Nation or The Omnivore's Dilemma, you're familiar with the cruelties of the industrial livestock industry. The animals suffer, the workers are mistreated, food safety is a joke, the health value of the meat plummets, and the negative environmental repercussions are epic. But okay, farmers market meat is usually humanely raised on small-scale farms that are a bajillion times better than factory farms. Sadly, it’s also hella pricey, and this website is not called...

Read more »

Posted in: Green Kitchen,Mains,Vegan,Vegetarian

Ask the Internet: CSA Reviews, Ideas, and Experiences?

This week’s question comes from Canadian reader Kathleen. She asks:Q: I am in the process of signing up for my first CSA share and was struck by the lack of discussions about CSAs on the internet - except for farm websites, and CSA networks for farmers. I'm new to the whole eat-local scene, not mega-rich by any stretch of the imagination, and am wondering what kind of risk I am taking investing in one farm for all my veg for this coming season. Generally, I'm just wondering if you had any thoughts, ideas, reviews, cautionary tales, etc., on community supported agriculture.A: Thanks for writing, Kathleen! Though I’ve never joined a CSA, our own Leigh was part of one in 2008. That summer, she created a lot of her recipes based on its bounty,...

Read more »

Posted in: Ask the Internet

CHG Hall of Shame, Part III: Return of the Breadi

Today on Serious Eats: Moroccan-Style Chickpea Soup. I give it three snaps up in Z formation.Every few months, instead of highlighting a newly beloved edible, we at CHG will compile a list of dishes that totally bombed. Sometimes the recipes themselves are bad, but mostly, it’s my own fault, since I’m semi-literate and terrible at improvising. Seriously, there’s a French Onion Soup at the bottom of this post that didn’t just make me doubt my own skills, but the existence of god.The reasons for the Hall of Shame pieces are threefold:This way, you know we don’t post everything we make. Dishes can’t just be cheap and healthy. They have to taste like actual food. That people would eat. Without accompanying upchuck.Bad food is funny.I forgot reason...

Read more »

Posted in: Cooking

Top 10 Links of the Week: 3/12/10 – 3/18/10

Lots of excellent links this week, many dealing with weird imbalances in food subsidies and how they affect health nationwide. Which? Incidentally? I think we’re at a tipping point here. Media’s covering the subsidy issue more and more, and man-on-the-street awareness is slowly setting in. If the blogosphere is any indication, some substantial change will soon be in order, methinks.But first … the links!1) Zen Habits: The Simple Way to Stick to a Meal PlanA soothing, calm approach to eating, highlighting the benefits of incremental dietary changes. Incidentally, I love this blog. It makes me want to listen to Sade and sip chai.2) Salon: Hipsters on Food StampsThis controversial piece has been making the rounds this week. Essentially, highly...

Read more »

Posted in: Links

Veggie Might: Vegan Rice Pudding or What Took Me So Long?

Penned by the effervescent Leigh, Veggie Might is a weekly Thursday column about the wide world of Vegetarianism. Also, RIP Alex Chilton.It’s an established fact, as long-time CHG readers know, that I’m a picky dessert eater. I have a long list of dislikes and flat-out hates that make me annoying when my girlfriends want to share tiramisu or strawberry shortcake.My youth was spent turning up my nose at many of my grandmother’s and mother’s homemade offerings that didn’t involve chocolate chips or gelatin. I don’t recall if anyone ever offered me rice pudding, but I’m sure I would have refused the grainy white goop. The thing is I have no memory of it being a staple in my family’s dessert/snacktime repertoire.Rice pudding has come lately to...

Read more »

Posted in: Desserts and Snacks,Vegan,Vegetarian,Veggie Might

A Junk Food Tax: Reasonable Public Health Measure or Evidence of a Nanny State?

By now, you might have heard about the “junk food tax” or “fat tax.” No doubt, you’ve read a few articles and thought, “This is a wonderful idea!” or “Man, what are these people smoking?” At a potluck this past weekend, a few friends debated the notion, and reactions seemed to mirror those sentiments.If you haven’t heard of the junk food tax, the idea is this: to help curb obesity, the government would add a tariff on to unhealthy foods, such as soda and pizza. While no concrete legislation has been passed (as far as I’m aware), the specter of the tax has ignited some debate. Will it really help our weight problems? Is it fair to tax people who can’t afford healthy food? Aren’t we capable of choosing what we eat? Where would it end?I’m of two minds on this.When I consider the overall health...

Read more »

Posted in: Health

A Quick and Dirty Guide to Lighter, Cheaper Drinks

Sweet readers, this originally appeared in July 2008, but I waned to re-post for St. Patrick's Day. There'll be a new one up later today. And also! A special note to Weight Watchers: A 12-ounce bottle of Guinness (not a can) is only two points! Drink up.Top o’ the mornin’ to ye, my fellow Irish, part-Irish, and Irish-on-March-17th-only. I raise a pint of Guinness to you, since today, of all days, today calls for a drink. Alas, alcohol is expensive, and certain beverages come with calorie counts you’d expect only from a Double Whopper. So, how can one quaff without ending up as nutritionally and financially bankrupt as 70s-era Meat Loaf? Read on…CUTTING CALORIESFor starters, to chop your caloric intake, avoid these 13 drinks:(Note: all serving...

Read more »

Posted in: Buying Food,Frugality,Health

Guest Recipe Post: Vegetarian Chili On the Fly

Katrina del Mar is a photographer, filmmaker, and 20-minute cooking specialist.We’re hungry. There’s nothing to eat. What are we gonna do?Five of us are upstate at a friend’s country house. One of us is a gluten-free vegetarian, and another is off sugar. I like to eat whole grains and real food, but I’m not a total snob. Oh, and the other people would be happy with a grilled American cheese on white bread with a donut for dessert.We blew a bunch of money on lift tickets. We want to save money.I go to the cupboard and I find a bag of brown rice; it’s almost empty. So, I dig further and find some lentils, some dried split peas, and some millet. Some taco shells. I find a can of black beans, another can of refried beans, a tiny can of tomato paste....

Read more »

Posted in: Chili,Mains,Vegetarian