Slopply Joe's (or Sloppy Joe's)

Today's Recipe: "Slopply Joe's". Pulled this one from an old tin recipe box we picked up at a sale or auction years back.

1/4 pound ground beef
1 medium onion
1/4 can tomato soup

Dice and brown onion in a skillet. Add ground beef, break up with fork and brown. Add soup, cook until thick.

With a mere 1/4 lb. of ground beef, I'm not exactly sure how many people this was supposed to feed. (Click picture for full size image) – Dan Taylor

Dan Taylor is the editor of The Hungover Gourmet. He grew up on Sloppy Joe's, but not like this or that other bullshit North Jersey kind.

Food Stamp Use on the Rise and a Memory of The Dirty Bird

Given the current economic state I suppose it should not come as a surprise that a record number of Americans are now using food stamps... roughly 32 million of us, a number that's up 700,000 people in a month.

Thankfully, I've never had to give food stamps much thought. I've always made a fairly decent wage – enough at least to keep me in groceries, beer and trashy movies plus a roof over my head – and learned to cook from a woman who could stretch a food dollar like nobody's business.

While standing in line at Attman's Deli yesterday I noticed a sign taped to the beverage cooler that stated (and I'm paraphrasing): "Food stamps cannot be used to purchase hot food. They can only be used to purchase cold food." For whatever reason seeing that sign jogged loose one food stamp memory that always seems to stick in my head.

It happened back when I was living in Pittsburgh. The area featured a local grocery store chain called Giant Eagle which was referred to by almost everybody I knew as "The Dirty Bird," and the nickname was sadly appropriate. Stores seemed to vary wildly in cleanliness, quality, merchandise and odor depending upon where each one was located. The one in Squirrel Hill was pretty nice, fairly clean and a somewhat pleasant shopping experience. Those on the North Side or over near the college campuses? Not so much.

I'd stopped in a Dirty Bird on the North Side to pick up some things for dinner and ended up in the checkout line behind a woman whose hand-held basket was brimming with a delightful array of goodies... nice cheese, some freshly baked bread, steaks, a large container of shrimp and a couple lobster tails.

Things got interesting when it was her turn to check out and she attempted to pay for her purchases with food stamps. The clerk informed her that the stamps could only be used for certain items, and that shrimp and lobster were not on the Food Stamp Friendly list.

What followed was an intriguing exercise in love vs (food) lust. The clerk tallied the non-stampable items and let the woman know the cost. Unable to come up with the necessary cash from the money she had in her purse she decided to – wait for it – dip into the bail money she was going to use to spring her boyfriend from the clink.

Seemingly unmoved she shrugged her shoulders and as the clerk bagged her steaks, shrimp, bread, lobster and cheese lamented that he was going to miss a good dinner and would be fine to spend another night in lock-up.

So much for love.

And while we might not all be heading towards the food stamp line, it never hurts to have a few ideas on hand about how to eat well on a limited budget:

• Healthy Food on an Unhealthy Budget – Get Rich Slowly
• Cheap Recipes: Good Food on a Budget – UKTV
• Less is More: Shoestring Budget Gourmet – Food Network
• Grilled PB&J Plus Others – Accidental Epicure

If you have any other good budget gourmet recipes or sites to share please do so in the comments section!

Slow Oven-Cooked Ribs

I returned home from a recent Costco excursion and realized that between our bulk meat purchases (Costco pork chops are the best!), cornucopia of Omaha Steaks boxes and various other frozen goodies we needed to do some shopping in our freezer for a couple weeks and take a break from doing big grocery store trips.

We actually stuck to the plan and had four or five meals from the freezer this week, including a hearty and delicious Vegetable Soup from Home Bistro, our fave Pork Chops with Country Gravy, and some Chicken Breast Cutlets with Pasta.

Since I'd also picked up some frozen pork barbecue at Costco I asked Chris to be on the lookout for an inexpensive slab of ribs when she was at the store yesterday. Mission accomplished and she found nearly 2.5 lbs. of pork spareribs for less than $6... and while I love Andy Nelson's in Cockeysville, the same ribs would be at least $15.

So, with the rains finally out of the region but a cold, stiff wind in its place I decided that it was unlikely I'd be able to do my usual outdoor rib recipe and opted instead for a Slow Oven Cooked inside recipe. I've just pre-heated the oven though the ribs were given a good rubdown with Head Country Championship Seasoning a couple hours ago.

UPDATE: The ribs turned out pretty damn good if I do say so myself. The aroma of slow cooking pork filled the house and Chris even commented that when she pulled into our garage she could smell the deliciousness while she was still in the car.

The top photo is the Head Country-rubbed ribs before they were covered with foil and placed in the oven. The middle photo shows the steamy slabs as they looked out of the cooking pan while I was draining the grease. After a liberal dousing with Head Country BBQ Sauce they went back in the oven – uncovered – for another 30 minutes or so. The result is the third photo. And, hey, the frozen BBQ wasn't bad either! I think I paid about $8 for two containers (one of which is still in the freezer), so $12 for a huge BBQ meal for two (I added a couple bucks for the slaw mix) isn't bad at all!

RECESSION GOURMET: Mom's Tuna Mac Salad

In typical THG fashion once I started obsessing about the Tuna Macaroni Salad my Mom used to make I had to have some. So, on Saturday afternoon I set about boiling pasta, cutting and chopping veggies and eggs, wondering if: a) I'd come close to what Mom used to make; and, b) the dish would be as good as I remembered.

The recipe is simple enough that I could work away and watch the great one-two (or should that be "two-one"?) double shot of PREDATOR 2 and PREDATOR on TNT. I was careful not to cut myself while chopping and watching because, like Jesse The Body, "I ain't got time to bleed."

While waxing nostalgic for lets-blow-some-crap-up big-budget 80s action films I set about boiling water and cooking one pound of San Giorgio Elbow Macaroni. Speaking of which, has anybody else noticed the change in the San Giorgio package design? I couldn't figure out what was wrong until I looked in the pantry and brought out a box of the old, bold red and blue box.

Frankly, I'm not a fan, but like Chris said, "That's how marketing people get to keep their jobs."

Anyway, once the pasta was cooked to package directions I rinsed it under cold water to stop it from cooking any further and drained it. I transferred the pasta to a large mixing bowl and added splash of olive oil to keep it from sticking together while I let it chill in the fridge.

I then chopped (small, but not too small):

• three stalks of celery
• half an onion
• four hard-boiled eggs

Once the pasta was sufficiently cooled I added the above ingredients and mixed thoroughly, then opened, drained and added six cans of Chicken of the Sea Chunk Light Tuna in Water and blended again.

From there it was a matter of adding mayo, salt and pepper. My sister mentioned in her comments to my original post that Mom added sugar and I have a nagging suspicion that another secret ingredient may have been pickle juice, but I decided to quit while I was ahead.

Chris added the mayo and seasonings. Keep in mind that the salad will dry out a little in the fridge so you want to make sure you add enough mayo to keep it moist for the duration. At first it might look you've put in too much but in the past I've made the mistake of not putting in enough mayo at the outset and the whole salad gets dry and clumpy.

I'm pleased to report that the end result was a definite success and comes close to what I remember Mom making. The sight of a big ol' container of Tuna Mac Salad has been a comforting site, indeed.

REVIEW: Oscar Meyer Premium Bun Length Hot Dogs

A couple months ago I reported on the latest in the ongoing hot dog wars and linked to an article that mentioned Kraft's reformulation of the hot dog recipe for their industry-leading Oscar-Meyer franks. While not as bold a move as, say, taking the damn cheese off the Double Cheeseburger, a reformulation for the first time in two decades is certainly newsworthy.

While grocery shopping this morning I was scanning the shelves for some good buys and spotted a 2 for $5 sale on packages of the Oscar-Meyer Premium Bun Length Beef Franks (which surprisingly ranked 15th in a recent hot dog taste test). With the package proclaiming the "Better Flavor!" I'd heard so much about I decided to give 'em a try.

As I've mentioned before, I've never been a huge fan of franks from Oscar-Meyer or Ballpark. My tastes generally lean towards Hebrew National (where I favor the Reduced Fat or 97% Fat Free blends) or, if I'm going all in, Nathan's with their spicy, meaty flavor. (Not surprisingly, these two both brands placed in the top 5 in the aforementioned taste test.)

I boiled some water and prepared my hot dogs in the preferred fashion (boil water, pop the dogs in, cover and cook for 5 minutes), then topped them with nothing more than Nathan's mustard as they nestled in an Arnold Premium Hot Dog Roll (also on sale... how thrifty of me).

Guess what? I couldn't tell you what an Oscar-Meyer Frank used to taste like, but if this is the new forulation I have to admit that I'm a fan. The all beef, no filler frank has a slightly spicy flavor not unlike Nathan's and there's a subtle smoky flavor that had me clamoring for more. Actually, that might've been the salt.

Unfortunately, they also pack a full 15 grams of fat per frank so after wolfing two down while feeding my daughter I'm a little sleepy. But that's the price you pay for a good old fashioned full fat frank.

RECESSION GOURMET FACTS: Oscar-Meyer Premium Bun Length Beef Franks ($2.50 for pkg of 8), Arnold Premium Hot Dog Rolls ($2 for pkg of 8), Nathan's Hot Dog Mustard (in the fridge).

RECESSION GOURMET: Starbucks to Reward Repeat Customers

In an effort to get you coming and going, Starbucks is rewarding their morning customers with $2 grande iced drinks when they return with a receipt after 2 PM the same day. That's a 50% discount in some cases.

The promotion, originally offered in select markets, is going nationwide until, you guessed it, September 2.

Tired of Same Old Shrimp Salad? Try This New Spin on an Old Fave.

I'm susceptible to food ruts. I admit it but at least I'm self-aware. In an effort to get out of my tendency to rework the classics, so to speak, I've been trying to work some new recipes into the mix.

Such was the case the other night when I made this Summer Shrimp Salad Sandwich for dinner. I cut back on the amounts used since I was just making it for the two of us, but I still picked up a full pound of shrimp and steamed about half of them in Old Bay, water and white vinegar so we could have some peel 'n' eat on the side.

RECESSION GOURMET STATS: Dinner for two for about $15.00
Shrimp: $7.34, Bread: $3.29, Arugala: $2.00 (only used about half... I'll have the rest for lunch today), Chorizo was in the pantry but I don't recall what I paid for it. Garlic, oil, vinegar, mustard, chips on the side and seasonings from the pantry.

RECESSION GOURMET: Free Slurpees Today!

It's July 11th or, in other words, 7/11. To celebrate this annual marketing confluence, participating 7-11 outlets will be giving away free Slurpees today. Special birthday cups will also be available while supplies last.