A trip out to "La Farm"

I've heard some great feedback on La Farm, a french bakery in Cary and was thrilled to try it out recently.
After all there is little I love more in this world than some perfectly baked bread, and I just might be willing to drive out to Cary, NC to get it.  If I had one meal I had to eat everyday for the rest of my life it would be quite simply: fresh baked bread, a good salad, good cheese, and wine.  Simple, but good enough to live on for the rest of my days.  They would however have to throw in some lactose pills with that order... 

In any case, back at "La Farm" I was able to indulge on the cheap by ordering a cappucino and a heavenly almond croissant.  Would I have loved to have indulged in a Croque madam or slice of the quiche de jour? Absolutely, but I am the "under financed" foodie after all.  Surprisingly enough, the quarter million calories of the almond croissant managed to keep me full till lunch.  It was worth every single calorie by the way...with just the right ratio of rich buttery croissant to sweet almond paste filling, and the prerequisite toasted almond slices garnishing the top.  My taste buds were immediately transported back to Paris, no easy feat. I was in such rapture eating my flaky confection that I'm afraid I made a miserable conversational companion.

An almond croissant at La Farm ran me under three dollars, success! Until I spotted their bags of homemade granola...than I had a lapse in thriftiness.  The granola there is NOT CHEAP, and while it will definitely not be a regularly scheduled purchase, for an occasional splurge, it's amazing.  The granola is light and crisp, bursting with the flavors of honey, sesame and almonds.  I don't necessarily think the French would approve of the plastic plate my croissant was served on, but I don't think they would argue with the quality of baked goods themselves, and that's truly saying something.

Put it in a Quesadilla!

A favorite weeknight go-to for an easy dinner is a quesadilla stuffed with whatever veggies and cheese I have around.
A bag of shredded Mexican blend cheese and a package of tortillas are both stables in my kitchen, as the possibilities are endless and always easy.  My favorite quesadilla combo is black beans, roasted corn, onion, and sweet potato (some of the cheapest ingredients a struggling foodie can buy,) all covered with the prerequisite cheese and toasted in a buttered skillet. Fortunate these particular cheap eats taste amazing together.  Get creative with whatever leftover vegetables or meat you have around.  Some leftover chicken?  Slice it up and stick it in there!  The bottom of your bag of baby spinach? Add it!  Use what's in season as your cue, as it's generally not only fresh, but on sale. In the summer make sauteed zucchini, onion and tomato quesadillas. In the fall, use chunks of butternut squash or pumpkin. If you want to make sure you always have some quesadilla ingredients handy for those dinner emergencies (because if you're like me a lean cuisine just won't do,) stock up on cans of black beans, and a bag of frozen roasted corn, and frozen grilled peppers and onions.  I know...frozen vegetables?  Even I will admit they sometimes have their place (for quick soups and quesadilla fillings for instance.) I highly recommend Trader Joe's roasted corn and grilled  tri-colored pepper and onion blend for these purposes. When using something frozen, be sure to supplement it with fresh ingredients whenever possible to add more textural interest and fresh flavors.

Sunday Brunch

I love going out for brunch on Sundays, but try to resist the temptation since a delicious brunch is so easy and inexpensive to make at home!  You probably already have most of the ingredients lying around in your kitchen anyway.  Eggs, bread, milk, syrup, cinnamon, cheese, etc.  I pick what to make based on whatever I have in the fridge. This morning I made vanilla french toast with strawberries.  Some of my other favorite brunch-at-home suggestions, that you would easily pay ten bucks for out at a restaurant, are:  almond crusted french toast with raspberry sauce, made dredging your french toast in an egg wash and then in sliced almonds, and throwing some fresh or frozen berries in a blender with a tiny amount of water and sugar to make a topping; Stuffed french toast with cream cheese, powdered sugar and almond extract layered between two sliced of french toast and covered with berries; heuvos rancheros, ground chorizo sauteed with hash browns and onions (from your freezer or fresh) and topped with a fried egg, some salsa verde, and sour cream; Or a savory breakfast scramble with sweet potato pieces, scallions, egg, and bacon or sausage crumbles.  It will cost you much less to make any of these delights at home, and bonus...you can even stay in your PJs!

Relishing Relish in Raleigh

I've recently moved into a new place, which immediately warrants checking out the new restaurants in my part of town.  After scoping out the options, I was immensely pleased to find that Relish, a modern southern fare establishment, was in my neck of the woods.  After scoping out the menu on-line to make sure that the price tag fit my pocketbook, I made the trip last night.

The menu looked exciting.  With appetizers like barbecue nachos, pimento cheese fritters with pepper jelly, and fried avocado with jalapeno ranch dressing I was ecstatic. There were sections for a variety of grilled cheese sandwiches and a wide array of macaroni and cheese skillets, burgers (stroganoff burger anyone?) and some amazing sounding desserts.  The menu was definitely heavy on the sandwiches, but that would probably explain why their prices fit my wallet.  To save money I skipped out on the appetizers, but I did get a free little appetizer by tasting a couple of the homemade salsas and pimento cheese being sampled in the gift shop.  Sampling is pretty amazing when you're broke...and even when you aren't.  The pimento cheese was outstanding...and with my Yankee heritage I've never really considered myself one for certain southern staples, like pimento cheese.  You could tell it was the real deal.

I always order water to drink in restaurants, it's a financially disabled person's best strategy to help keep down the tab.  What most restaurants charge for drinks (especially if it's alcohol) will hike up your check considerably. When possible it's best to meet up at a friend's house for drinks before going out.

Regrettably I was made a fairly boring choice of entree... I had a the Reuben, which was good, but nothing terribly exciting.  Just your standard Reuben, although accompanied by freshly made potato chips (ask for the side of jalapeno ranch for those!)

My date ordered the Alfredo mac and cheese skillet, which was a hefty portion and looked delish.
I didn't see a whole lot of blackened chicken in there though...  It tasted great (you know I had a to do a taste swap,) but I'm glad I didn't order it.  My stomach couldn't have handled the giant mountain of cheese that went into it.  I have never in my life seen so much cheese on anything minus maybe a Chicago deep dish pizza.

I highly recommend the tomato basil bisque...creamy and delicious with the perfect complement of garlic croutons on top.  A great side to one of their many grilled cheese sandwich options.  The pimento cheese and fried green tomato sandwich gets my vote.
The true highlight of the meal was the dessert.  I don't usually order desserts to save money, but they sounded so good that I shared one. We shared a banana pudding served in a mason jar with whipped topping, creamy dreamy vanilla pudding (sorry Mr. Cosby this wasn't any of that Jello pudding crud) and CARMELIZED bananas with brown sugar and butter.  If it had been socially acceptable I would have licked the jar.  As it was I scraped out every small bit I could salvage.  By far the BEST banana pudding I've ever had in my life.

The wannabe "Euro-chic" decor doesn't fit the southern comfort food menu at all, and is a little dated but not entirely upleasant.
First restaurant in my new part of town looking good...good prices and amazing desserts.

The Origins of the Underfinanced Foodie...

I love food, but then who doesn't?  We all need it to live. My love of food is something more akin to an obsession, a passion, a way of life. Unfortunately, thoughts of food consume an overly large portion of my mental space. Not just any food will do however, it's got to be the good stuff...generally not found in the canned, frozen, or drive through varieties.

Although taking such an interest in food is already generally inadvisable for maintaining any semblance of a healthy physique, my passion is further undermined by the balance of my bank account. Food, especially really good food, doesn't come cheaply.  There in lies the inspiration for this blog.

As an overeducated but underemployed twenty-something, I try to find economical ways to eat well.  Sometimes I fail and spend a killing, and sometimes I make a trip to Five Guys. I'll be sharing the recipes, websites, stores, local restaurants, and other delicious strategies I employ to get the best eats for my buck.