Fitty Cent Recipes

Banana Bread of Courage

juice of one lemon

3 ripe overripe bananas

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup margarine or butter or vegetable oil (whatever is cheapest)

1 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup rolled oats or just more flour (oats are nice but kind of expensive)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

optional a.k.a. expensive:

one cup dates,

or one cup chopped nuts.
or one cup peanut butter, mixed with butter and sugar mixture

preheat oven to 375 degrees

grease loaf pans

mash bananas and mix with lemon juice until smooth

cream margerine and sugar, add banana mix, stir well

in separate bowl, stir together dry ingredients. when all else is ready, add dry to wet ingredients.

Quickly turn stiff dough into loaf pans. Bake 30--45 minutes. to test for doneness, insert knife into loaf. if knife comes out clean, bread is done.

Makes: 1 loaf -or- 12 muffins

4x this recipe, 12 muffins and 5 small loaves



Tassahara Yeast Bread

-Make Sponge
start with biggest bowl, 5 cups lukewarm water (test on wrist, a little warmer than body temp like baby's milk)
add 2 Tablespoons yeast (or about 2 packages) stir until yeast dissolves
add 1/2 - 3/4 cup sweetener
add 2 cups milk
add 7-9 cups whole wheat flour
mix thoroughly, cover bowl with damp cloth, leave in warm place to rise overnight, punch down, remix in morning,

add:
2 and 1/2 tablespoons salt
1/2-1 cup oil
6-8 cups flour, or until dough is good. good dough sticks to itself more than the bowl, can be cut with a knife.

form loaves, leave room to rise in whatever pan you place the loaves in. good to have your loaf pans oiled, if first use. (never wash loaf pans with soap, don't wash away good grease!)
you don't need loaf pans. Cookie sheets or anything made of metal will work. just keep it greased, and leave room for expansion.

place loaves in pans, cover with damp cloth, let rise 1 hour
bake at 350 degrees 1 hour or so. when crust is hard and bottom brown, bread is done.
let cool for 5 minutes before you cut.
makes 6-8 small loaves.
cool to add some rye flour if you can find it cheap, or white or whatever you have. After you have made bread once you will remember the right consistency and adjust the amount of flour you use accordingly.

MORE TO COME...

The Fitty Cent Plan

Rule #1) Buy foods that cost fifty cents a pound or less.

Examples:
carrots, potatoes, onions, chicken gizzards, cabbage, bananas, flour in bulk, rice in bulk, beans in bulk, sugar in bulk, cornmeal in bulk, whatever fruits or vegetables are in season. shop wholesale, small business if possible. milk fits in the plan if you count "a pint is a pound the world around", milk is best when transformed into yogurt, most nutritious, helps everything digest well and wards off sickness.

Dishes to Cook:
stir fry, bread, banana bread, sauerkraut, kombucha, yogurt, soup, apple sauce, tomato sauce(if in season), etc. Recipes to be added.

Rule is meant to be Broken:
you will need cooking oil, you will need yeast, you will want spices, buy in bulk, share with friends.

Ways to avoid Spending Money:
Social gatherings that don't involve overpriced alcohol or food prepared by somebody who is working for money. Invite friends over for dinner, brunch, lunch, breakfast, tea, midnight snack, etc. Avoid guilty feeling when friends are coming over and you've only spent 6 or 7 dollars to prepare. Slap yourself if need be, Your Worth is not your Money!

Treat Yourself:
find cheap restaurant in town where you can eat decadently for under three dollars. bring water or tea when you go out. make cookies sometimes. dumpster dive.

The Story:
I was injured at work and collecting worker's compensation enough for rent and a little more. my brother and room mate was recently returned to the city, in credit card debt and jobless. we had a brow furrowed discussion one night of our finances and the tension made our dinner sit none too nice. the next day we independently came to the conclusion that if we spent only 50 cents a pound on all our food, we could conceivably live on $1.50 per day, not including rent and utilities of course. and so the Fitty Cent plan was born, and we listened to "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" that night. It was glorious.

Recommended For:
people who have a job, don't want to work so much, and need to put money away.



My brother and I found this plan to be very useful when getting out of a sticky financial situation, but became hooked on it when we realized we could use money for other things. My recommendation for anyone interested in using this plan is to give it a month. your memory of meat or cheese or strawberries or tofu or whatever it is you love to eat will fade, and you'll look forward to the next pay check in the bank, and the next plate of stir fried potatoes and onions.