9. The frugal couple considers wine, part 1

Ash Wednesday--the day we're going to start our Lenten Experiment of eating on a food-stamp budget--is less than two weeks away, and every trip to a grocery store has become a consciousness-raising experience.

If I really had only $12 a day to spend on food for two adults, would I have spent $3.49 on four small avocados? $2.99 for a box of blackberries? $2.49 for a bag of wild arugula? $3.49 for two organic zucchini?

Well, maybe. It would probably depend on what else was on the menu. The large russet potato for $1.17 wasn't bad. The $0.30 sweet potato was a steal. The pound of dried lentils cost only $1.15, and it lasted much longer than I expected--or even wanted.

Wine, however--even cheap(ish) wine--suddenly looks like a major budgetary commitment. A bottle of wine contains about five servings, so let's say our frugal couple is following AMA guidelines and making a bottle last two days. Total food budget for two people for two days: $24. Cost of La Loggia Barbera d'Alba at Trader Joe's (quite nice), $6.99: 29% of food budget. Oh dear.

Food stamps can't be used for alcohol, of course, so our frugal couple would have to buy wine out of the rest of their income. So let's see how much income they'd be able to spend if they qualified for the full food-stamp benefit in Illinois--which, by the way, is only $323 a month, or $11 a day, not the generous $12 a day we're allowing for this experiment (because the USDA thinks the frugal couple actually need more than $323 a month to eat healthfully).

Using this calculator, I described the pair as elderly (which, according to the government, means 60 or older--never mind that this hypothetical couple is still too young for Medicare), with a monthly rent of $500, taxes and insurance of $100, and medical expenses of $50.

In order to receive the full $323 benefit, the most our frugal couple can earn is $698 a month. Before taxes.

Do the math: after the listed expenses, the frugal couple has $48 to spend on transportation, clothing, utilities not included in the rent, telephone, household furnishings, supplementary food...

Looks like there's no three-buck Chuck for them. Not even on Valentine's Day.

I'm glad it isn't Ash Wednesday yet for us. I'm sad to think that it's always Ash Wednesday for so many people.
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World Hunger Map (U.N. World Food Programme)
Hunger in the United States (Bread for the World)

10. The frugal couple considers wine, part 2

So, I'm asking myself, can I do the Lenten Experiment and still buy wine?

• Maybe, since really poor people--even in America, even with food stamps--can't afford wine, I shouldn't buy any either.
• Maybe I should allow myself to buy some wine if I can manage to include it in the $6/day per person food budget (and still eat a balanced diet, of course).
• Maybe this experiment is about food, not wine--it's not about housing or clothing or medical care either, and I'm not cutting back on any of those--and I should buy wine if I feel like it.

A British friend commented, "At least we with more disposable income can buy fairly traded wine to give a better deal for the growers." A great idea, especially in Europe where a selection of such wines has been available in many supermarkets for at least five years.

It's considerably harder to do in the U.S., though the headline of a recent story in the Boston Herald proclaimed: Fair Trade Wine Now Available in US Stores. The stores in question are Whole Foods, Publix, Target, and Sam's Clubs, and each chain is said to carry one or two fair-trade wines. When I searched the wine racks at the local Whole Foods this afternoon, however, I didn't find any.

Why does wine need to be fairly traded, Mr Neff asked. Aren't California growers treating their staff kindly?

Probably "fair trade" doesn't apply to domestic wines: the label is usually applied to wines coming from South Africa, Chile, and Argentina. According to the Boston Herald article,

A Fair Trade Certified product means TransFair has determined that farmers got fair prices, workers got decent wages and the product was produced in an environmentally responsible manner.
Importers and retailers pay a premium - the wine premium is 10 cents per bottle - that is earmarked for community improvement, such as a new water system or educational scholarships.

Fair trade wine generally costs between $10 and $12 a bottle, a bit steep for the thrifty food plan. But noble.

I'm thinking I'll probably buy some wine during Lent, maybe for Sundays or for when we have guests. Potential guests, be warned: it will be inexpensive. I hope you'll enjoy it anyway. I've polled some knowledgeable friends and now have a short list of pretty good wines for $5.99 or less. I'll post the list soon. I'd welcome your recommendations!

11. The frugal couple considers wine, part 3

I asked some of my oenophilic friends to suggest drinkable wines that cost $5.99 or less. One friend responded, "I don't think you can get wine for $5.99 that you would really enjoy drinking. I'm not being snobbish, it's just that things have gotten so expensive that my favorite cheap wines now cost real money."

Another friend referred me to this depressing little article, now three years old, about cheap wines from Trader Joe's, in which the author spent $43.23 on 12 bottles of wines and invited 12 friends to a tasting party. Apart from "the evening's surprise, ... Portugal's sparkling-white Espiral ($3.99)"--"one sip of the soft, subtle effervescence was enough to convert a soda- and carbonation-hating panelist"--most wines drew dismal if hilarious comments. For example,

Bull's Blood, aka Hungary's Egri Bikaver ($3.99). Dark red, with a peppery, wet-skunk finish, the Bull's Blood smells like the crabapple tree in grandma's backyard, one panelist offered. Others were less charitable. Real bull's blood is probably nicer. This is like bull's blood boiled with piss and vinegar.

I refuse to be intimidated. If a meal without wine is like a day without sunshine, most of us would have to slog through a lot of foggy, gloomy meals if we refused to buy cheap wine. I'm looking for enjoyable house wines, not nectar of the gods. I like the attitude of Ron from Illinois: "I must admit you are challenging my wine snobbery by asking for recommendations under $6. But I can do this."

Yes we can!

I'll post some recommendations today, and more as they come in. Please let me know your favorites, and I'll post them too.

1. "Think Spain," advises Dennis from Maryland. Roger from Illinois suggests going to Binny's web site and looking for Vinos Sin Ley, especially M4 Bullas ($5.99). According to Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, "The name Vinos Sin-Ley means 'wines without laws.' ... These cuvees are produced by an array of serious winemakers who wish to have their own personal projects apart from those of their employers and to not be bound by the various D.O. regulations." Roger adds, "This Spanish label has not been around very long but has produced many inexpensive--$6 - $12--bottles that are very tasty and often highly rated. The best values are often snatched up quickly and more likely to be found on the vendor's web site. Worth seeking."

2. "Try Caputo's," says Ken from Illinois. Billing itself as a cheese market, it also carries an interesting range of imported groceries, fresh baked goods, and wines at astounding prices. He swears he found a Fattoria Poggiopiano Chianti Classico 2001, which usually sells for $15.99 or more, for only $4.99 or $5.99, as well as a Rosade Furlane Colli Orientali del Friuli Pinot Grigio, hard to find in the U.S. at any price but running about £10 in the U.K., for perhaps a dollar more. "Caputo's is home to several more superbly priced, decent drinks, including a reasonable Dolcetto and a Rosso di Toscana," Ken writes.

3. Go for reliable cheap labels, many friends suggest. Some recommendations:

• Trader Joe's Charles Schwab Chardonnay, $2.99 ("has won some decent awards")
• Trader Joe's French Market Sauvignon Blanc, $4.99 ("slightly citrussy")
• Trader Joe's Honey Moon Viognier, $5.99 ("goes well with Asian food")
• Napa River Chardonnay, $5.99 ("quite good")
• Jacob's Creek Chardonnay, $5.99 if you know where to look
• Yellow Tail varietals, $4.99 - $5.99 ("uniformly drinkable")

4. Drink more whites. At the grocery store as in restaurants, white wines often cost less than reds for comparable quality. But if you want reds, you can always...

5. Watch for bargains... Trader Joe claims not to have sales, but they occasionally buy a winery's last few cases and sell the bottles for amazing prices. Or they promote something quirky like Oreana's Question Mark (pictured above), a spicy blend of syrah and cabernet sauvignon that belies its $5.99 price tag.

6. ... especially online. This morning I ordered six bottles of Roger's recommended Vinos Sin Ley M4 Bullas from Binny's website. It should be available for pickup tomorrow, no shipping charge. Binny's posts weekly specials, and this week one of our favorites, Gnarly Head Zinfandel, is $7.99 instead of the usual $8.99. Sam's Wine is featuring wines under $10.

7. Get a handsome carafe, like this one from Crate and Barrel ($19.95). Serve your favorite cheap house wine along with your favorite comfort food (pasta! stew! pizza!), and enjoy.

De gustibus non est disputandum.

13. The frugal couple considers wine, part 4

Yesterday I went to Binny's and picked up the 2006 Vinos Sin Ley M4 Bullas that Roger recommended. Usual price, $11.99 to $15.99. Binny's sale price: $5.99. Not a beginner's wine--one blogger describes it as "a dark, bitter, catalonian anarchist"--but one with enough guts to stand up to red meat yet enough complexity to be enjoyed on its own.

Moral: It is possible to get a good house wine for $5.99 or less if you--or your friends--know where to find the bargains.

If, however, you are looking for something in the $6.99 to $9.99 range, here are a few suggestions from Estelle, LeAnn, Ron, and me. Note: Wine prices can vary by several dollars from store to store, and you may have to try several sources to find the under-$10 price. We're from the Chicago suburbs, but since these stores are chains, I'm assuming you can find similar deals just about everywhere in the U.S.

Whites
Clos du Bois Chardonnay, Costco
Clean Slate Riesling, Binny's, Sam's Wines
Monkey Bay Sauvignon Blanc, Binny's (now on sale for $8.99)

Reds
Folie à Deux "Menage à Trois" blend, SavWay, Binny's, Target
Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet Sauvignon, Binny's (now on sale for $7.99)
Rex Goliath Cabernet Sauvignon, Binny's, Sam's Wines
Alamos Malbec, Fresh Market, Binny's, Sam's Wines
Tin Roof Merlot, Whole Foods, Sam's Wines
Bogle Petite Syrah, Costco, Fresh Market
Gnarly Head Zinfandel, Binny's, Sam's Wines

For the Wall Street Journal's wine writers, a budget wine's price ranges from $10 to $16, more or less. (Wall Street, it will be remembered, is in New York, where only 13.9% of metro area housing is affordable--up from 5.1% two years ago. Perhaps we define "budget" differently in Chicago.) If you're looking for wines in that price range, check out "Buying Wine on a Dime" by David Kesmodel, along with "Budget Wines," an annotated list of 25 under-$16 wines recommended by five experts.

The garage door just went up, and the dogs ran downstairs. Sounds like it's time to stop typing and start tasting.

19. Panna cotta

Panna cotta makes a quick and inexpensive dessert for Sundays in Lent.

Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

--Nehemiah 8:10, totally out of context, but nice anyway

We had panna cotta last night, after dinner with friends. I adapted a recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, Patricia Wells' Trattoria. A nice thing about this dessert, besides its excellent flavor, is that you can make it the day ahead. These proportions serve four.



1. Butter four 4-oz (1/2 c) custard cups or ramekins.

2. Mix together and allow to dissolve (it takes two or three minutes):

• one package unflavored gelatin
• 2 Tbs half & half
• 1 tsp flavoring extract (you can use just vanilla extract, or you can combine vanilla with almond extract; I used 1/4 tsp almond with 3/4 tsp vanilla)

3. Bring to boil over moderate heat, stirring frequently

• 1 pint (2 c) less 2 Tbs (which you just used for the gelatin) half and half
• 1/2 c confectioner's (powdered) sugar

4. Remove cream and sugar mixture from heat. Whisk in cream and gelatin mixture until smooth. Pour through fine-meshed strainer.

5. Pour mixture into custard cups or ramekins. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for several hours or up to a day.

You can serve the panna cotta in the cups, but I like to upend each onto a dessert plate and serve with berries. To get them out of the cups, set them in a little hot water for a few seconds and, if necessary, run a sharp knife around the edge to loosen.

The picture above left is from Wikimedia Commons. It looks a lot like our panna cotta, but was made with Greek yogurt instead of half and half. Sounds like an idea worth trying.

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Yesterday's fare (for us and two guests)
Peanuts, cashews, carrot sticks
Lasagna made with 1 lb chopped mushrooms, lots of garlic, 1/2 lb smoked turkey sausage, 2 diced zucchini, a few sun-dried tomatoes, 1 jar Trader Joe marinara sauce, about 12 oz part-skim ricotta cheese, one egg, minced dried parsley and basil, fresh-ground black pepper, a bunch of parmesan, and of course lasagna noodles
Salad made with arugula (cheap at Trader Joe's!), avocado, grape tomatoes, 1/2 orange bell pepper, a few button mushrooms; dressing of olive oil and balsamic vinegar
French bread made with 3 c white bread flour and 1/2 c corn meal (I use Bittman's recipe in How to Cook Everything)
Wine: Rex Goliath chardonnay, Gnarly Head zinfandel
Panna cotta with blackberries, decaf coffee

20. Couscous salad and turkey legs

Last night we ate leftovers. They were good, but you don't want to read about them. Instead I'll tell you what Janet and Ken are up to. (I want them to move in with me and take over my kitchen.)

Report on our frugal meals
Saturday: couscous salad, one of our favorites. We used the cooked couscous left over from the chicken leg meal, and added chopped cuke, tomato, celery, onion, sweet pepper, lots of chopped Italian parsley, a little mint, and sautéed cubed chicken. (Jewel had a packet of 8 chicken tenderloins for less per lb. than any of the other chicken. I think they’re cheap because the tendon has to be removed).

For the salad dressing, Ken makes a socko blend of lemon juice, olive oil, and garlic. We really enjoy main dish salads with a lot of raw ingredients. Do you know Raw, Charlie Trotter’s cookbook featuring uncooked main dishes? Oh, and to finish this meal, since we're such copycats, Ken made chocolate panna cotta. We drank a Yellow Tail Riesling (shared 1/2 of a $10.99 1 ½ litre jug). It’s hard to figure out the cost of a meal like this, since it was composed of so many bits and pieces, but I know it was frugal.

Sunday night we indulged in our favorite red meat: turkey legs, oven roasted with aromatics. There are many bones, which I sometimes remove, serving the meat in the thickened pan juices, but last night we just used a bone plate. The two plump legs were plenty to eat and cost $4.00. We had boiled potatoes and sweet peas as accompaniment, Yellow Tail Shiraz Cabernet (same jug deal as the Riesling) to drink, more panna cotta for dessert.

Thanks for the inspiration, J and K! I'm now heading downstairs to see what further inspiration I can find in my refrigerator.

25. A fairly frugal feast with friends

This morning we met our frugal friends Janet and Ken at Caputo's Cheese Market in Melrose Park, just north of the intersection of North Avenue and 15th Avenue, in an industrial building bearing a huge "Wisconsin Cheese" sign. It's a great place not only for cheese (much of it made locally) but also for wine, pasta, deli meats, Italian canned goods, pastries ... all at very reasonable and sometimes unbelievably low prices.

Our plan was to buy whatever inspired us at the cheese market, then go to Caputo's Fresh Market in Elmwood Park for equally inspirational produce. If you click on the link, you'll understand how this could turn into an ecstatic experience. Baby Brussels sprouts at 79 cents a pound! Avocados at 79 cents each! A good-sized handful of fresh asparagus for 60 cents! Plum tomatoes at 49 cents a pound! Seven limes for a dollar!

Eventually we tore ourselves away and drove to Janet and Ken's condo in Chicago. There we sliced and diced and chopped and stirred and baked and boiled and poured and sipped, and this is what we came up with:

• Baguette rounds topped with caponata di melanzane (ready-made in a tin)
• Salad of baby spring lettuces, sliced pear, feta cheese, walnuts, and green onion
• Orrechiete with fava beans, ricotta, and shredded mint (we used canned beans, not fresh; you can see our actual concoction above)
• Assorted cheeses (Siciliano with walnuts, Eiffel Tower triple-cream, Fontinella, Cheddar, Gruyère)
• Individual ricotta cheesecakes, made spontaneously and with ingredients at hand. This time we added a little diced candied orange peel, a few chopped walnuts, and lemon zest (see picture below; you will notice that we couldn't wait to take that first bite)

It was a feast, but a fairly frugal one. All ingredients were wonderfully priced, and plenty of food was left over for future meals. We had wine with dinner, and that pushed us beyond our daily budget. Still, when you can buy a Chianti classico that usually costs between $15 and $20 for only $5.99, it seems sinful to pass it by. So we didn't.




Yesterday's fare
Fish tacos without the tortillas. Trader Joe's gave out samples of fish sticks a few days ago, and they were really quite nice. Such a classic choice for a Friday in Lent! Serve them on a bed of sautéed onion, red and green bell peppers, and garlic, surrounded by baby spinach leaves lightly sautéed in olive oil, top them with crumbled queso fresco and diced tomato, and there's no need to feel penitential.

42. Lent with Charlie Trotter

A funny thing happened back in 1981-82 when mortgage interest rates were 18% and inflation was rampant and we changed to lower-paying jobs and we ended up accidentally owning two houses. On a budget so tight that if I found a dollar I rushed out and bought potatoes, I began dreaming about dressing like Princess Diana.

With only a week to go in our Lenten Experiment, and with the automobile industry crashing and burning and unemployment soaring, I'm having a similar kind of dream. It's Friday afternoon, and I want to go out to dinner. Not to Adelle's or Pad Thai etc or Cafe Galicia, though I love them and can't afford them on this regime anyway.

No. I want to go to Charlie Trotter's.

In my dream, Mr Neff will have the Grand Menu and I will have the Vegetable Menu, or vice versa. We might as well share and taste everything. In addition, we will each order the Wine Accompaniment. The website avoids telling me how much this is all going to cost, but from readers' comments scattered across the internet, I gather that it will be at least $600, tip and tax included. In other words, more than my entire Lenten Experiment budget.

Maybe I can save money by borrowing one of Princess Diana's old dresses...