On another blog, I ran across this article from the New York Times. Now, granted, it is the Times, and I understand that yes, there are people that live very differently than I do. People have different incomes, and different priorities. But I was a bit put out to say the least. An excerpt:
I HALF expected tuna casserole. That’s not to say I don’t attribute extraordinary culinary prowess to my colleagues and dear friends...But less than $8.50 a person for a full dinner? I didn’t see how this budget allowed for much strutting, not even from home cooks as gifted and resourceful as these two kitchen goddesses.
So. I don't like tuna casserole, but I don't feel it needs to be (metaphorically) thrown back in my face. And what does a "full dinner" mean? And am I showing my ignorance by asking that question? I would imagine it might include hors d'oeurves, salad or soup, and dinner, maybe dessert. And $8.50 per person for dinner? Read on:
Both Kim and Julia realized that the best way to disguise a limit and leave guests feeling pampered was to present a long sequence of treats. At both dinners there were more than three courses, if you counted canapés, and the diversity obscured the absence of any great
luxury at the center of the meal.
The only was for me to "disguise a limit" would be if I wore a bag over my head and shopped midnight, away from those discerning eyes that would be averted in horror at my coupon envelope, the shocking display of me reading labels and comparing prices, or the ultimate affrontry of bulk shopping. Apparently, it's also very important to keep up appearances, by leading people to believe that I live a champagne and caviar lifestyle and hiding any evidence to the contrary.
I guess my bulk chicken breasts and off-brand cereal give me away.
The carnitas was Kim’s answer to the central budget-meal challenge: what to do about the meat. Kim cooked, seasoned and served her pork in a way that rendered the quality of the low-cost cut almost irrelevant.
The carnitas was Kim’s answer to the central budget-meal challenge: what to do about the meat. Kim cooked, seasoned and served her pork in a way that rendered the quality of the low-cost cut almost irrelevant.
"Low-cost cut". That describes my meat, my haircuts, my clothing, my whole life. I guarantee you if you come to my house and I don't have to address you as "Your Highness" or "Mr. President" you're probably getting a budget cut of something. Or, maybe I'd really go bargain basement and serve a pasta. Heaven forbid.
I love (metaphorically speaking) this writer's "budget-meal challenge", though. Let me tell you what a challenge is, and it won't be serving a meal for $8.50. On a rough estimate my family eats 15 meals per day (5 people x 3 meals). Over a month that equates to 450 meals in a month. My grocery bill is about $800 per month. That works out to a whoppingly extravagent $1.77 per person per meal. SUCK ON THAT, FOOD SNOB. On that budget, I manage to serve tacos, fajitas, fettucini, spaghetti, homemade pizza, fantastic parmesan breaded chicken, Cantonese pork tenderloin, and Swedish meatballs. I somehow manage to get vegetables and fruit on the table, as well as cereal, bagels, and muffins every morning. I can even make taco soup, something that everyone raves about and asks to have the recipe. AND, get this--I'm not a great cook! Yet somehow my children don't have rickets, or scurvey, or kwashiakor.
I love (metaphorically speaking) this writer's "budget-meal challenge", though. Let me tell you what a challenge is, and it won't be serving a meal for $8.50. On a rough estimate my family eats 15 meals per day (5 people x 3 meals). Over a month that equates to 450 meals in a month. My grocery bill is about $800 per month. That works out to a whoppingly extravagent $1.77 per person per meal. SUCK ON THAT, FOOD SNOB. On that budget, I manage to serve tacos, fajitas, fettucini, spaghetti, homemade pizza, fantastic parmesan breaded chicken, Cantonese pork tenderloin, and Swedish meatballs. I somehow manage to get vegetables and fruit on the table, as well as cereal, bagels, and muffins every morning. I can even make taco soup, something that everyone raves about and asks to have the recipe. AND, get this--I'm not a great cook! Yet somehow my children don't have rickets, or scurvey, or kwashiakor.
They don't know truffle oil from motor oil. They express a preference for neon-colored macaroni and cheese. They seem more drawn to iceberg lettuce and chicken nuggets than arugala and ceviche.
I just didn't care for the snarky amazement. I would bet it's a lot more than half of the people when we talk about the "other half." What about all of you? What's your budget for your family size when it comes to food? Am I the only one who takes lower cuts of meat? Am I the only one who is just now realizing that I never thought of it as a "lower" cut but as "affordable dinner"?
2 comments:
Great post! I love it!
We are big taco soup fans here. We do a lot of pasta. Two (sometimes three) of my children now eat more than their parents do, so I've become a big fan of my enormous crock pot. I've been off the wagon on my budget lately, so I don't know how much we're spending per month on food. We only go out to eat with the kids 2-3 times per month now because they eat so durn much!
hee hee, we eat 'low cost' as well. I think its become such a habit that if we did have a lot of money our diet wouldn't change much. If I'm in the States I notice the portion sizes of everything are 2 or 3 times bigger then here. That's got to make a difference in the budget. I think Americans eat a lot more meat(not my friends but in general)which is more expensive and not so healthy. Maybe that's why the Times article was interesting because comparatively speaking, portion size is small and there is a low amount of meat which Americans may find interesting.
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