The best copy-cat recipe I've ever made: Hot and Sour Soup

My husband and I love Chinese food! We eat it several times a month. The problem is, it can get expensive, and you have no idea what is in the foods you eat, unless you make it yourself. It's been my goal for a while now, to try and recreate our favorite soup, Hot and Sour soup, so we can have it without the extra salt, and cost on our wallets. Here is how I did it:

• 1 Container of sliced mushrooms

• 2 tablespoons sesame oil

• 1 clove garlic and the same amount fresh ginger-both grated

• As much Ground white pepper as you want-it helps add some heat but not spice, I used a grinder and did about a teaspoons worth

• 1 Large container low sodium chicken broth

• 1 Shaved carrot or Julianned

• Half glass jar of seasoned bamboo shoots or just plain if you don't want spicy

• Half cup of white vinegar

• Half block firm tofu sliced into thin rectangles

• Chopped whites of 5 scallions and greens to garnish

• 1 table spoon chili paste

• About a quarter cup of low sodium soy sauce

• Corn starch slury (2 tablespoons of corn starch thoroughly mixed in cold water)

• 1 egg beaten

This recipe serves at least 4 people.

In a hot pot (or Wok) add your sesame oil and drop in the mushrooms. Sauté for 2 minutes or until broken down, add in the tofu, scallions, carrots, bamboo shoots and sauté. Add the grated ginger and garlic and continue to stir. Now fill the pot with your liquids and bring to a boil, you can always add more vinegar if its not sour enough. Season with the pepper, the more heat you want, the more you add. Once boiling, stir in your corn starch slury, keep stirring so it doesn't clump. Now bring to another boil. Once rolling, kill the heat and stir in a circular motion. Pour your egg in a steady stream and continue to stir in a circle, it will make thin ribbons of cooked egg. Finish with the chili paste, based upon how spicy you want it.

Here is the finished product:

Enjoy!

Hmart-An Asian Themed Food Market Dream

I was recently talking with a classmate of mine, who took this blogging class with me over the summer. We were talking about our blogging experience over a Thanksgiving catered dinner by our school. As we got into conversation, we started talking about different foods we ate and places we shopped. I had mentioned how much I loved Hmart in Hartsdale, NY because of their wide variety of Asian foods, condiments, and products. I really think I convinced her to give it a try so I thought I'd share why I love Hmart so much in a blog post!

Reasons to shop Hmart:

• Produce: The produce is always fresh, affordable and inviting. They carry many items that you can't find in regular food stores like Bok Choy, Chinese Eggplant, and large bags of Bean Sprouts.
• The hot bar: Yum... If you're in a pinch and need a quick meal, the hot bar is the place to hit. They feature many common foods like fried rice, dumplings, and teriyaki chicken. You serve yourself, weight it and pay up front. I often grab a few dumplings as a snack and then browse some of the packaged food that they've setup to go already. (the salads with orange ginger dressing rock!) 
• Seafood selection: Have you ever been to a fish market? Well I haven't but I imagine this is what one looks like. The seafood selection at Hmart is outrageous. There are so many varieties of fish to choose from. They even have big tubs of shrimp to self scoop.
• Condiment aisles: There has to be at least 2000 different Asian products available for purchase. I love to cook Asian inspired food so this is the exact thing I need. There are all different sauces to choose from like Oyster Sauce, Korean BBQ flavors, and spicy chili pastes.
• The bakery: There's a bakery in there? not just a regular bakery county, but some awesomely fresh french pastries. 
• The cafe: Inside the store is a mini eatery. You can leave your shopping cart to the side, order up some tasty bowls of soup or sushi and indulge without even leaving the store! 

My list could go on but it's something you've really just got to experience on your own! When you're in the area, stop over to Hmart in Hartsdale for some awesome food finds! 

Dole chopped salad kits-practically a meal in a bag

I've been buying these salad kits for months now, so I thought it fitting to share with you my favorite, easy, go to lunch that is tasty and best of all, inexpensive!

Dole chopped salad kits come in a variety of flavors. The ones I've tried consist of: 

Bacon blu

BBQ ranch

Sunflower crunch

Asian mix

Chipotle cheddar

What I love about these bags is that they are almost a full meal. You basically only need to add some extra protein. 

In the bag comes a plentiful serving of chopped cabbage, lettuce, kale and scallions. Then there is usually a baggy of ingredients matching the flavor, like crumbled bacon, sunflower seeds, cheese, or taco strips and fried onion. Along with those goodies you get a generous packet of delicious dressing that compliments the meal; there is always more then needed! 

With the entire bag usually coming in under 600 calories, you really can't beat it. You'll have less calories if you use less dressing and toppings too! 

I can usually find these bags on sale from $2-$2.50, which is a great price for lunch. If you throw in some cold-cuts, beans, or grilled chicken, your whole lunch can be easily under $5. It's satisfying and filling and it tastes great, so I encourage you to pick up a bag the next time they're on sale! 

Real noodles without the calories

A few posts back I wrote about using a spiralizer to make mock noodles using zucchini or carrots. Today i'd like to share with you a product I discovered about a year ago, that is the closest thing to noodles that I've ever had. They are about 40 calories a bag and completely gluten free.

House Foods makes a product called Shirataki noodles. They are noodles made out of tofu, and they are AMAZING! They come in several different forms like angel hair, fettuccini, spaghetti and small bites for soup. They are sold in individual serving size bags surrounded by liquids for preserving and maintaining shape. Generally, you can find these in the produce section where cold packaged items are. You can also find them in specialty stores like H-Mart where a lot of unique finds are featured.

Check out this pic for details straight from their site:

These noodles require very little preparation. If I'm using them as a straight up noodle, I boil them for a few minutes to warm and tenderize. If I'm cooking with them, as I do with a Pad Thai  dish, I just drain them and toss them right in. You can also microwave them if needed. 

The bags run anywhere from $.99 to $2.99 depending on the store you buy them at. I suggest you wait for them to go on sale and then purchase a bunch. 

These noodles are a great nutritious, low calorie substitute for traditional pasta, which will leave you feeling full and satisfied each meal! 

How to food shop like you mean it!

In order to make all of the tasty meals I've featured in past posts, you probably should purchase the food and ingredients first. Food shopping can be a simple task if you're running in for milk and eggs. If you aspire to be a serious food shopper, there are many things you need to take into consideration before you plan a big excursion. In this post I want to share with you my personal experiences and some great tips to ensure you have a successful shopping trip each time you visit!

I have to be honest, I am in the food store at least three times a week, it's like my home away from home. I usually do a large shopping session on Sunday and then I stop in several times during the week because I either forgot something or I want to pick up more of something that is on sale. In order to cut down on the amount of times I revisit, I try my very best to carefully plan out my large shopping trip on the weekend so I have just about everything I need for the week. 

To achieve the best results, one should prepare and organize before leaving the house. The first thing you should do is pick the store you are going to shop at. In my area, we have three different food stores to choose from: Shoprite, Stop & Shop, and Aldi. Each of these stores have different sale dates so the most important thing is to know what day of the week sales start and end. From there, you then look at each flyer (I get mine in the newspaper, but you can always look online) to see what items are on sale and decide which day is best to shop for what you want.

Years ago, I always made sure that I had pen and paper on hand to start a shopping list. Nowadays I make use of digital shopping list apps for ease of use and convenience. Usually I look at what is on sale and then derive my weekly meal plan based on what I find. That way, I usually only buy what is on sale and use what I have at home to complement it. If something I need for a meal is not on sale, I add those items to my list as extras, but I'm extra mindful when shopping for them. Prices are often higher than if purchased on sale so I make sure to check all prices and make sure its really an item I need so I can stay in my budget. As a tip, make sure you put every item you plan on buying onto your shopping list; if you don't, you'll surely forget something. 

The next thing I do after looking at the flyers is check for coupons; I clip from the newspaper and print from online. I have several coupon sites that I visit. My top three are:

1. Coupons.com

2. redplum

3. SmartSource 

These three sites give the best coupons for items that are usually popular in your location. If you're new to couponing, I suggest you check out one of my favorite blogs, Living Rich With Coupons. At this site, which I also check weekly, the blogger gives amazing tips for shopping with coupons as well an extremely useful coupon match-up, where she links what coupons go with what sales and where they can be found. She also offers a coupon database with every coupon out there. This is extremely helpful when you want to buy items that are not on sale because you can usually find a coupon through her site. Any way to save money is a great thing to look into, especially when you're on a budget! 

Check out this video for some couponing advice from Cindy at Living Rich With Coupons:

Once I have my coupons and shopping list prepared, it's time to hit the store! When I am doing a big shopping, I am in the zone. I try to focus on what I am looking for and I usually go down each aisle so I don't miss anything or have to go back and fourth. I usually keep my shopping list visible at all times, and I cross off, or mark on my phone, each item I've added to my cart. This really helps to keep me on track. If I stop singing along to the music and focus, I can make it out of there in under an hour with at least $75 dollars of groceries. That to me would be considered a good shopping trip. 

When you're shopping, here are some tips to remember:

• Smell your food. Produce should smell fresh; meat should smell clean and odorless. You can even smell different body products so you don't waste and only buy what you like.
• Shop for your frozen and cold items last so they stay cool for your ride home. 
• Group items on your shopping list based by category so you can knock out a set of items in each aisle.
• Try to not impulse buy, you'll end up with more items then you planned on. Stick to your list!
• Double-check your prices while shopping and while on line, sometimes the sale signs are outdated or misplaced.
• Know what you want to spend on an item, if something is too expensive you can find alternatives or find it at another store on sale.
• Keep like items together in your cart for ease of bagging and unpacking at home.
• Get your coupons ready before you get to the register and match them up with the items you have in your cart so you don't miss a savings.
• Don't get overwhelmed when paying; check your prices as the items are being rung up. 
• Accept help or ask someone to bag for you so you can focus on your coupons and prices. 
• Do not be afraid to ask for a price check, usually the customer is right!

The greatest gift of all is feeding your family and knowing you shopped for them. I get on such a high after a great food shopping trip because I know I worked hard to get the hand picked products that look the best and all for a great deal. Preparing and cooking food for my family is an absolute joy, I hope you too can enjoy the experience from start to finish. Your family will love you for it, I promise!