#mageskitchen

The Stuff:

Muffins:

3-4 ripe bananas. The more spots the better, but trim off bad spots, if there are any. That's why 4 is better.

2 large eggs

1 3/4c self-rising flour

3/4c sugar

1 1/2tsp vanilla extract

1c walnuts (optional)

1/2c butter, melted

2tbs milk

1/2-1 tsp of cinnamon, up to you as to how much you put into it.

Topping:

1 packet of plain oatmeal

1/4c brown sugar

1tbs melted butter

1tbs flour

1/2tsp cinnamon

What to Make:

Preheat your oven to 375*F.

Mash your bananas in a large bowl, add your eggs, milk, and butter.

Add the rest of the ingredients.

Mix the topping in a separate bowl.

Spray your muffin pan.

Put the batter in, put the crumble on top, and then bake for about 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

+9XP

The Stuff:

2 Chicken breasts, cut into 3-4 chunks each

About 1/2 stick of butter, maybe more, up to you

Salt

Garlic powder

A sleeve of Ritz. No, seriously.

2 eggs, whisked

A little thyme on top if you're feeling fancy, but you don't need it and we're here to make this affordable, not fancy.

How to Make the Stuff:

Pre-heat oven to 350*F

Trim and cut up your chicken

Whisk your eggs in one bowl

In another bowl, mix a crushed sleeve of Ritz crackers with a healthy shake or two of garlic powder and salt. Just do it to taste.

Dip the chicken into the egg, roll in the crackers, lay them out on a greased baking sheet.

Put a pat of butter on top of each. Yes. A pat. I never said that this was a healthy meal.

Bake about 35-40 minutes, or until it's done inside

Enjoy your cheap thrills. Bonus points if you already have everything stashed in your kitchen.

The stuff:

2 cans of diced tomatoes with chilis in it.

1 lb of ground beef or turkey. Brown it and then strain the fat.

1 large white onion, diced.

1 bell pepper, doesn’t matter the color, but I used green today.

2-ish cloves of minced garlic. If you buy the jar stuff like I do, then ½ tsp=a clove. It’s on the side of the lid usually if you forget.

3 cans of whatever beans you want. Most recently, I used black beans, low-sodium kidney beans (bc my mom can’t have too much salt), and then I actually used black-eyed peas because I didn’t realize we were out of anything else but it worked out great. I put them all in a colander and then ran them through the water to rinse off the goop that’s in the cans with them.

1 sm can of tomato paste

1 sm can of water, using the tomato paste can bc that’s how we roll here in Lazy Town

1 tbs of olive oil

Seasoning recipe is below.

To Do:

So, brown your meat, strain it.

In a separate small pan/pot, caramelize your onions and peppers. Use about a tablespoon of olive oil and those two cloves I mentioned. Cook them until they’re starting to go a bit clear and your kitchen reeks of garlic and onions.

In a big pot, pour in your strained/rinsed beans, diced tomatoes, paste, and water, stir it up, then add the meat and stir again.

Add your onions and peppers when the peppers start to get a little soft.

Salt to taste

Add the seasoning to taste

Boom. Done. Hardy and healthy meal that’ll last you a few days.

I found several recipes for chili mix and liked this one the best, although I didn’t have/use all of the ingredients (onion powder and thyme).

Seasoning Mix:

2 Tbs of chili powder

2 tsps of garlic powder

2 tsps of cumin

2 tsps of oregano

1 tsp of paprika

1 tsp of onion powder. This is optional since you have actual onions in it. Honestly, it’s up to you if you want it in there or not. I chose not to and it turned out great anyway.

1. Blanch it.

Rinse the veggies and then pour them into a large pot filled with super-salty water. Boil it for a few minutes (depends on the vegetable as to how long), then strain the water and IMMEDIATELY dump veggies into a bowl/pot of ice-cold water to keep them from cooking further.

2. Season it.

Anything from salt to sugar to bouillon cubes/veggie stock can help add a little flavor to the food to hide the metallic taste.

3. Brighten it.

Lemon or lime juice after you’ve cooked it to enhance the flavor and bring out the food’s taste rather than the artificial flavoring.

Each vegetable should be approached differently, and you don’t have to do this to ONLY canned veggies, of course, but these are just ways to try and get passed the metal taste (tasting metal is also one reason I don't drink soda, even if it comes from tap or a glass bottle; it's all gross to me and makes me sick). For example, I would simply rinse canned beans rather than blanch them if I plan to use them in chili. Why? Because I'm going with option 2; there’s enough seasoning that it doesn’t matter. If I’m making fresh brussel sprouts, I will blanch them which cooks them too. You get the idea.

Obviously, some people can still taste the difference, but for a home cook, it’s a nice way to trick your mother-in-law into believing that you’re a fresh-food believer.