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When I woke up Monday, I had but one thing on my mind: pumpkin pancakes. With leftover canned organic pumpkin puree from Trader Joe’s calling from my fridge, I knew I had to put it to use. What better way than a warm, fluffy pancake?

With the pumpkin added and the accompanying spices, these delicious babies have an aroma that reminds me of Thanksgiving day, my happy childhood and good friends, all rolled up into one. And while you probably won’t taste the banana, it adds both a nutritional boost and a delicate sweetness that is enhanced with the brown sugar. But don’t dare eat these plain. These pancakes are best drizzled with cold maple syrup and spotted with a dot of butter.

I wasn’t sure how the kids, or Shawn for that matter, would react when I served up these pumpkin pancakes. But it’s a testament to their taste that both Will and Paige finished their pancake (they typically will eat just one) and clamored for more. What about Shawn? He really liked them too, and called them a pancake-version of my pumpkin cookies.

Got leftover pumpkin from the pumpkin cookies? Try these. They are quick, easy and — as Will says — DEEEEEE-Licious.

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Shawn just caught on that every Monday we’ve been eating dinner for just $7. And he was kind of dreading tonight’s meal as a result. I certainly don’t blame him. It is breathtaking to think about putting a full meal on the table for four people for just $7. Your mind jumps eight steps down the line, making all kinds of assumptions about what can be made for that small sum. Fresh? Nah, can’t be. Tasty? No way. When I think cheap meals, I think of Hamburger Helper, ramen noodles and frozen dinners — the $1 ones I used to eat.

But if I have learned one thing since Cate and I launched The $7 Dinner Challenge, it’s that eating cheap doesn’t have to mean eating poorly. Sure, if you never paid attention to sales or coupons or store discount cards, you would end up paying more for food. But the thing is that those small things — the $0.35 cent  coupons, sale meat and all — really add up in the long and short run.

This week, chicken is on sale at a local grocery story for just $1.49 a pound for a bulk package. (So yes, while I do know that this is the third time chicken has been my star protein for the challenge, I am using it again. Good thing all of these recipes were different.) When you see huge sales like this, you simply have to stock up. And I do know that for a person living on a shoestring, spending $6 for a bulk package of chicken can be scary. I’ve been there. But really you are saving loads in the long run.

Another important way to save money on your groceries is to clip coupons. I’ve gotten in the habit of picking up the New York Daily News and the New York Post on Sundays. Each cost $1, and save me loads with the coupons inside (the two papers have different advertisement packages). Many grocery stores also double coupons that are under $1 at checkout, so you save even more that way.

And are you planning ahead? You should be. Careful, thoughtful meal planning will help you devise recipes within a budget.

So, what did I make for The $7 Dinner Challenge this week? Read the rest of this entry…

It’s been quite a while since I last baked. Baking takes precision, measuring, several bowls … all excesses that I just haven’t had time for recently. I’ve been working hard on writing, taking care of my children all the while. Life, it just keeps moving no matter how much you wish it would slow down for at least a little while. I have fantasies of sitting down and reading a book at night. Or watching a show without my fingers tap-tapping on the keyboard at the same time.

But today, I decided to push all that other stuff aside and just bake. Given that it’s nearly Halloween, I thought it would be fitting to make some tasty Iced Pumpkin Cookies. These cake-like pumpkin cookies are just lightly sweet, something that is enhanced by the sweet vanilla icing drizzled onto them.

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“Hey, Will, are you hungry?”

“Hungry? Yes, I hungry. What am I going to eat?”

“How about Monkey Breakfast?”

“Monkey Breakfast! Yes! I eat Monkey Breakfast!”

K, so truth be told, I didn’t really know what Monkey Breakfast was before I started making it. It just came to me as I was racking my brain for something new, different, exciting, innovative . . . that’s not too much to ask is it?

As anyone with kids can tell you, sometimes all it takes is a fun name and a different twist on things to get kids excited about eating breakfast.

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I was leafing through the November issue of Martha Stewart Living the other morning when I saw a recipe for baked artichoke hearts. It sounded interesting, and as luck would have it, I’d just purchased some frozen artichoke hearts and they were aching to be used.

At first, the plan was to serve this to the kids and I with dinner. But the recipe takes an eon to cook, so I ended up having this by myself after the kids went to bed. And I am kind of glad I did — It was absolutely delicious. The vinaigrette really makes this dish. I’d be tempted to make and use more than the recipe calls for — but it is very, very good as is. Read the rest of this entry…

Last week, I planned and primped and prepared for The $7 Dinner Challenge. Blood, sweat and tears went into that menu. Okay, maybe not blood, but you get the idea. This week? Everything pretty much fell into my lap. Seriously. And I didn’t even think about how inexpensive a meal this was until Cate mentioned that it would fit the bill.

As it would have it, there is a great sale at Shop Rite this week: boneless, skinless chicken is just $1.99 a pack. It’s the bulk package so stock up and separate it to freeze. A FoodSaver is good for chores like this, unless of course yours is broken like mine.

So, anyway, I created this whole dinner for about $6.87. Go me.

Full disclosure: For dessert, I copped out and used a box of Strawberry Gelatin from Jell-O. But it was for a good cause: Jell-O is donating $250,000 or more to Susan G. Komen For the Cure to benefit researchers who are searching for a cure for breast cancer. That is something that I am willing to support.

Menu:

10-Minute Salsa Chicken with Avocado Cream and Rice

Think Pink Strawberry Jello Read the rest of this entry…

Of course I knew it was a school day for Will the other day, but I felt like there was still plenty of time before the rush and routine of getting ready to go. I was sitting on the couch, Will on my lap, watching something forgettable when it struck me: It was nearing noon and he needed to eat lunch and be out the door. Paige was still napping peacefully. I just didn’t realize we were running late until we were.

So off to the kitchen I went. Read the rest of this entry…

I have a confession. Some days, I just don’t feel like cooking. I know, I know, it’s hard to believe. I love to cook, and love to write about cooking. I love feeding people good food and showing others that you needn’t have a degree from a high and mighty culinary school to make a delicious, delightful meal. But after a long day, it can be hard to gather the energy and desire to really cook a full dinner. Sometimes, I just don’t feel like chopping any vegetables or trimming any beef. Sometimes the idea of sifting together dry ingredients is akin to having a cavity filled.

Haven’t we all been there sometime?

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