Lebanese for Less at Neomonde

If the sound of rich creamy hummus, smoky baba ghanoush, or flaky honey sweetened layers of phyllo dough gets you salivary glands going, then you could head over to Sitti in downtown Raleigh, and fork out a substantial sum for a delicious Lebanese meal with a great ambiance.  However, if you are on my kind of budget and would prefer to enjoy the same quality of Lebanese goodness for less, then your destination should be Neomonde.  Neomonde is a sister restaurant of Sitti, with the same quality-albeit more casual -cuisine for a far lower price.  Neomonde is a Lebanese bakery, small scale grocery and casual cafe where you can order falafels, wraps, kabobs, shawarmas, and of course an array of delicious baked goods, to satiate that craving for Middle Eastern goodies without emptying your wallet. (Although to be fair, you may be tempted to drop every cent you have on a giant take-home box of baklava.) My favorite picks are the beef and lamb shawarma, the amazing herbed chicken salad, and their incomparable hummus.  I will say that their tabouli is not my favorite, and that the kabobs can run a little bland if not accompanied with a dipping sauce, but overall there is far more here worth trying than I can say. Neomonde also boasts an excellent selection for vegetarians.  I'm thrilled that Neomonde now has three locations with one in Morrisville and two in Raleigh.  I'm fortunate enough that their new North Raleigh location right off of Strickland is near me!  If your looking for something healthy and reasonably priced, Neomonde is a great option, so check it out.

Rotisserie Chicken..a Carnivore's Way to Stretch Their Meat Money

Being low on the finances, I don't typically purchase or consume a lot of meat.  Meat can be outrageously expensive, especially if you refuse to eat it in the form of a nugget or any other pre-fab ground with additives version. For those meat lovers among you, the easiest way to stretch your grocery dollars while getting your carnivore on is by purchasing and re-purposing rotisserie chickens.  This week I literally went to a pawn store to sell a couple of unused items in order to secure my grocery shopping money, so I need to make this stock of groceries really stretch.   Rotisserie chickens are a great way to do it. 

Night number one you can enjoy the bird in it's pure and simplest  form with some potatoes and veggies.  In a time pinch I LOVE the Alexia brand frozen red potato, mushroom, green bean and onion blend that comes with a packet of thyme infused olive oil. (You can find it at the Fresh Market.) I don't know how they manage to keep it from tasting frozen, but the chopped herbs certainly don't hurt.

If there are just one or two in your household you should have a considerable amount of leftover meat that can be gleaned from the bones.  I generally whip up a chicken salad with my leftovers plus dried fruit, apples, red onion, celery and walnuts, but the possibilities are endless.  Use the leftover bones and nasty bits to make a chicken stock and then strain all those tidbits out before adding fresh chopped veggies, noodles and of course leftover chicken for a soup.  You can even freeze your homemade chicken stock in ice cube trays if you would rather use it later. The rule of thumb for leftovers generally states that you should amp up both the spice/ seasoning quotient and the moisture.  Adding leftover chicken to an Indian or Thai simmer sauce with whatever veggies you may have around and you have another easy meal solution that satisfies both of these requirements.  Otherwise shred up and season leftover chicken for tacos, quesadillas and salads, or heat it up in some buffalo sauce to put on a hoagie roll with some ranch dressing and cheese.  The more ambitious of you can roast your own chickens. Stuff the cavity with a lemon and an onion.  Rub over and under the skin with some butter and fresh chopped herbs and garlic.  Then enjoy all those versatile leftovers!