I love wine. And I love cider. Beer? Not so much... Although some of the micro-wheat-beers have proven enjoyable over the last few years. Well, since my budget has been lean, I've been trying to minimize what I am spending on alcohol without eliminating it.
I can sip on two ciders all night, but I will drink more than half a bottle of wine. I wondered why my alcohol intake was so much higher with the wine. Then I realized that volume is the key. A bottle of wine is approximately 25 ounces of liquid. If I drink 2/3 of a bottle of wine, I've drunk about 16 ounces of liquid. Two ciders is 24 ounces of liquid. Ah Ha! Now it's all making sense.
And when I look at the cost...well, let's calculate an $8 bottle of wine. 2/3 bottle of wine = $5 A six pack of Strongbow (one of my faves) is $8, so 2 ciders is $2.60.
And look at the math?!?!
2 ciders = 24 oz of liquid + approx 283 calories + 7 carbs + 5% alcohol + $2.60
2/3 bottle of wine = 16 oz of liquid + approx 400 calories + 12 carbs + 13.5% alcohol + $5
Oh yeah, and did I mention that hard cider is gluten-free? So, obviously hard cider is a better choice for me all the way around. Still, if you calculate the cost of drinking 12 ciders a week, it's about $16 a week, or $64 a month, which is a measurable chunk. So I had come across a post awhile back talking about it being fairly inexpensive and easy to brew hard cider. Hmmm -- that's interesting.
I came across this blog post on a blog called The Paupered Chef. And their follow-up post indicated success with brewing a Strongbow-like cider. So, off I went to Wine Craft for supplies to brew two gallons of hard cider.
- 1 packet of lager yeast = $5 (enough for 5 gallons of cider)
- 2 rubber stopper airlocks = $2.50
- 2 #6 rubber stoppers = $1.85
Luckily, Whole Foods was in the shopping center next to Wine Craft, so I popped in for 2 gallons of organic cider in glass bottles. $7 each
Put them together in less than 5 minutes and now just have to be patient. The airlocks and stoppers can be reused, so I'm not going to count them into my costs. A gallon is a little over 10 12-ounce ciders at a total price of $8. That's about $0.80 per cider or $1.60 a night (for two). The other thing that I like is that I sometimes don't want a full 24-0unces of cider. Sometimes 16 ounces would hit the spot, so it may turn out to be less waste. If they turn out decent, then I will expand my operation so I can have some ready and some brewing at all times.
Stay tuned...
I originally found a recipe for Mediterranean Chicken Salad on Epicurious. My modified version eliminated the orzo pasta and substituted sun-dried tomatoes for fresh. There's really only one way I like fresh tomatoes and that's with mozzarella and basil. The texture of fresh tomatoes is always iffy for me and it's so difficult to get one that actually has some flavor that I use sun-dried tomatoes in almost everything. This summer I plan to invest in a food dehydrator and make my own, but for now I buy them in bulk.
This is super-fast and easy if you have already-cooked chicken.
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons tarragon vinegar (for strict Paleo, substitute more lemon juice for the vinegar)
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 cups diced cooked chicken
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 6-ounce jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pitted Kalamata olives
1/3 cup dried currants
1 1/2 tablespoons drained capers
In a mixing bowl, combine the chicken, tarragon, sun-dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives, currants, and capers.
Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, and dijon mustard. Pour over the chicken mix and stir.
Good on Day 1. Delicious on Day 2.
Continue reading about Paleo-ish Mediterranean Chicken Salad
This is to DIE for!! If you want to be strictly paleo, I guess you could substitute red wine for the Guinness. For me, it is close enough for horseshoes and hand grenades.
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 pound (or so) beef, cut into bite sized pieces
1 onion coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon coconut or almond flour
1 large bottle or can of Guinness (or other dark stout)
beef stock (have at least two cups of home made or a large can of store bought beef broth)
Seasoning - a couple of tablespoons of chopped rosemary and thyme, a dash of oregano is also nice
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf
4 parsnips
2 large turnips
4 carrots (cut into bite sized pieces)
Directions:
Heat the oil in a large pot.
Add the beef and brown well, on low/medium heat. Add the onions and saute until tender, about five minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Sprinkle in the flour and stir. Add the Guinness and enough beef stock to cover the meat.
Add the seasoning, bring to a boil, reduce to low and cover and simmer until the meat is tender. About 2 hours on LOW. Check about 3/4 way through and add a little more broth or Guinness if needed to keep the meat well braised.
Add the vegetables and just enough additional beef stock to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until they are tender, about 20-60 minutes depending on how big of pieces you cut.
Remove Bay leaf. Garnish with fresh parsley (optional) and serve.