Sanctuary on a Shoestring- Company Girl Coffee 4-18-09

Today, we're chattin' about making our home a Sanctuary (click on the coffee cup above to head over to Home Sanctuary) by living on a shoestring.

One of my favorite things to do is bless my husband with a date night that won't break the bank.

Think about it. When you go out on a date, or just even out to eat, together, it costs around $10 a person, once you've bought your meal and a coke to drink. Or more. Usually more.

And then there's the sitter to hire to take care of the children while you are out. For us, 5 children x $4-5 an hour x 3 hours....WHOA, MOMMA! It's great money for the sitter, that's for sure, but hard to justify doing on a regular basis. Now some families swap sitting with other families, trading actual hours spent in kind. That's a great deal, but at this point, we don't live very near many other families we can trade with. And we do have some adult friends who are willing to sit with our kids for an evening once in a while. For that, we are truly thankful!

So, for us to have some time alone on a date, I plan for it within my grocery budget. I cook for us at home. Feed the children early and head them to bed at normal time, calm and relaxed. The kids get something fun for dinner, like chicken strips with fun (homemade) dipping sauces or homemade pizza and brownies for dessert. Then as hubby is tucking them in, I get to cooking for us.

When making up our weekly menu, I add a "date meal" to the list. I keep the total cost under $10, often just over $5. Think about it again. You're feeding two people. It doesn't have to be expensive, but the simple ingredients can be dressed up to really fill out what would be an expensive meal if you bought it out.

The last date night, I made pork tenderloin with risotto florentine and baby asparagus and iced tea to drink. I'd intended to top it off with a cheesecake, but forgot to get that done earlier in the day, so it got skipped. And that was fine, because we were absolutely full. I'll break that down, now. It was actually one of the most expensive meals in total that I'd made in a long time, but there were leftovers for hubby's lunch the next day, so technically, that takes some of the cost off, for the specific date meal.

The pork tenderloin was an unseasoned one, bought at the commissary. It was just under $7. I don't remember the actual weight of this cut. I seasoned it with spices in my cupboard, browned it a bit in my cast iron pan in some olive oil and garlic, then set it on a roasting rack in the oven for 20 minutes to finish cooking. Lovely, and perfectly cooked.

The risotto florentine was probably the biggest splurge, as I bought a box of it, with seasoning packet. I could have bought a package of arborio rice at the German store and seasoned it up, but I didn't make it to that store, so bought this mix. It was wonderful, but arborio rice is on my list when I next go, to cut costs in the future. It had tiny-chopped spinach, garlic, and mushrooms, and cooked up easily as the pork finished in the oven. Cost: $2.95.

The baby asparagus was in a package that I'd bought the week before, with intention of using for another purpose, but didn't get that done, so carried it over. They were small, pencil-thick stems of sweet asparagus, and thanks to my friend L, I knew just what to do with them. I lightly sauteed them in a little bit of olive oil, so that the green brightened up a bit, but they weren't mushy, then sprinkled with salt, pepper, and a little bit of lemon zest. Cost: $3.00 (was on sale the week before)

The cheesecake would have been made in a small, glass, pie plate that I have, enough to equal two normal slices of pie. I think that this came from my Nano's house. I've had it for so long, I couldn't tell you for sure. The cheesecake would have been 1 block of cream cheese, 1 egg, a touch of vanilla, and maybe 2 or 3 Tablespoons of sugar. Blend that up in the food processor and pour into a crust made of crumbs of the last of the ginger cookies in the little pan. Cost: $.69 for the cream cheese block, the rest from the fridge or pantry.

Altogether, this added up to $13.00, as served. Hubby had 1/3 of the tenderloin and about a cup of risotto leftover for the next day. I've still got the stuff for the cheesecake left, and will do that another time. It was a very "fancy" meal, and we enjoyed watching a TV show on the computer and were just simply able to relax after a busy-busy week.

Another cheap meal we've done has been steaks, homefried potatoes, and salad. Or personal pan pizzas and Caprese Salad. You don't need expensive cuts of meat, and don't need huge portions. I can buy thick-ish cut shoulder steaks (for a little over $1.50 a pound), marinate them for a bit and cook, and you'd never know they were cheap cuts. Potatoes, and the supplies for pizzas come from the fridge and pantry. The Caprese Salad is cheaply made with good tomatoes, fresh mozzarella balls from the German store (about 59 euro cents = 80 US cents each) and some black olives and basil, with good olive oil that I keep on hand. All of this can fit within my grocery budget without straining it.

What creative cheap date meals can YOU come up with?