Friday, October 30, 2009 - Items on Sale at Giant

Here are some deals you can find at Giant this week:

New York Strip Steak - $4.99 per lb
Whole Boneless Pork Loin - $1.99 per lb
Green or White Asparagus - $1.77 per lb
Whole Roasting Chicken - $0.99 per lb
Barlett or Anjou Pearks - $1.89 per lb
Cauliflower - $2.99 each

Please check http://www.giantfood.com/ to see the specials at your local Giant Supermarket.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009 - Sale at Safeway

It surprises me when people tell me that they never tasted a Honey Crisp apple. Its just such a good apple. I had my first taste of a Honey Crisp about four years ago while visiting my best friend Caroline when she was studying at Northwestern University. She made all these great plans for us. We went to see a play, we ate at all her favorite restaurants, and she even drove us out to an orchard to go apple picking. Both of us were raised in California and there is not a whole lot of apple picking opportunities in California. We ran around grabbing all the apples we could find. Caroline looked and looked but she couldn't find any Honey Crisp apples. I didn't understand her obsession over these apples until she stopped by a grocery store on the way home and bought me some. I took a bite. It was slightly tart, sweet, and so juicy. I'm now in love with this apple. I just can't get enough of them. Farmers markets are selling them for about $2.49 per lb. Safeway has them on sale for $1.49 per lb (the one in Adams Morgan is selling them for $0.99 per lb.)

Here are some other deals you can find at Safeway this week:

Boneless Pork Loin - $1.69 per lb
Top Sirloin Steak - $2.99 per lb
93% Ground Beef - $2.49 per lb
Tomatoes on the Vine - $1.49 per lb
Pineapples - $1.99 each
Whole Chicken - $1.49 per lb
2-litre bottles of Coke Products - $0.88 each (must buy four)
Barrilla Pasta Sauce - $1.99 per jar
Barlett Pears - $1.49 per lb
Italian Zuchinni and Yellow Squash - $1.29 per lb
5-lb bag of Russett potatoes - $2.99
Pomegranates - $3 each

Please note that each Safeway location is different. Please check Safeway.com to see your local specials.

DC Food Bloggers Spooktacular Bake Sale - Halloween Day

My parents never baked. My dad roasted chickens, simmered soups, and made some mean barbeque but baking rarely happened at my house. So when there was a bake sale at school, I would rummage through my backpack (or my parents' bureau) for some spare quarters or dimes. I remember biting into a moist, sweet cupcake and loving every bite. These bake sales let me taste what it was like to be American. (I mean this in all seriousness.)

So when Adventures in Shaw asked me to join her and Arugula Files in running a bake sale to benefit Martha's Table, I was all in. I love doing work for charities but also, this would give me a good reason to make the treats that made me feel so good as a child. On my list so far are rice krispies treats, brownies, spice cupcakes and caramel apples.

Please come out and support us. We will be at the 14th and U Street Farmers market on Halloween day from 9am to 1pm. If you would like to donate some baked goods, please email me at thriftydccook@gmail.com

Friday, October 16, 2009 - Items on Sale at Giant

This would be a great week to try making pulled pork or a carnitas recipe. Pork Shoulder Picnic is $1.29 a lb. One of my favorite crock pot dishes is to cover a pork shoulder with taco seasoning, throw it in a crock pot, add water until its 1/4 full, add onions, slices of jalapenos, and cook for 8 hours on low. Take out the pork, using a fork, pull it apart into shreds of meat, and add the meat back into the crock pot so it absorbs the juice. Heat up some tortillas, fill it with meat, and top with cilantro and diced onions. I like a dollop of sour cream on my tacos. Enjoy.

Here are the deals you can find at Giant this week:

Turkey Breast - $0.99 per lb
Iceberg Lettuce - $0.88 each
Gala Apples - $0.88 per lb
All Purpose Potatoes - $2 per 5 lb bag
Barilla Pasta - $1 per box

Please check http://www.giantfood.com/ to see the specials at your local Giant Supermarket.

Grand Re-Opening! Safeway on Columbia Road

Looks like the Safeway on Columbia Road (in Adams Morgan) is having a Grand Re-Opening. If you happen to stop by, let me know how the place looks. Here are some deals you can find at Safeway this week:

Ribeye Steak - $3.99 per lb
Assorted Pork Loin Chops - $1.49 per lb
Whole Chicken - $0.99 per lb
Tangerines - 4 for $1
Red Grapes - $0.99 per lb
Lucerne Milk - $1.99 per gallon
Iceberg Lettuce - $0.99 each
Raspberries - 2 containers for $3
Jimmy Dean Sausage - Buy one Get one
Pineapple - $2.99 each
Asparagus - $2.99 per lb
Italian and Yellow Squash - $1.29 per lb

Please note that each Safeway location is different. Please check Safeway.com to see your local specials.

Restaurant Supply Store Deals

Did I mention that I like to get good deals on food? Did I also mention that I like to get good deals on kitchen tools? So naturally, while on vacation in New York, I found myself in the aisles of a restaurant supply store in the lower east side. I know they exist in DC, but there is just something about New York that just makes me want to spend money. So at the WIN Restaurant Supply store, these are the items I picked up:



Lately, my friends and I have had a lot of big dinner parties and the one thing that I would really like to correct is our use of disposable plates and utensils. It really bothers me that we 1) spend money on these things each time we have a party 2) that it all goes in the trash at the end of the night. To solve this, I want to start a "party supply box" with utensils and plates that we can easily transport to each others houses when other people are hosting. I found these forks for 50 cents a piece. I'm looking for a good deal on some Correlle dishes since they are durable and easy to store.


This is probably my favorite item that I purchased this weekend. Its a "scum skimmer." At least, that is my name for it. Its a tool that you can use to skim to scum that floats to the top of your stock/broth when cooking soups. Its great because you remove the oil and junk that floats to the top and end up with clear, delicious stock or broth. I got this one for $2.55.

While cooking some fried chicken with Jenny, her thermometer was broken. I decided to replace her broken one with an industrial grade one because I hope she will fry chicken with me again and because I am not the most gentle person with tools. I don't plan to break her second thermometer. This one was picked up for $6.50


Paula Deen is known for her use of butter but what I always remember about her cooking is her "house seasoning" which is salt, pepper, and garlic salt. I've used it pretty frequently in recipes so I've decided to create a little container for it. I got this for $1.14.

So this was not purchased at the restaurant supply store. This was purchased at Crate and Barrell for $10. It was so pretty and felt so durable that I had to have it. This picture doesn't do it justice.

Friday, October 9, 2009 - Items on Sale at Giant

About two weeks ago, I started to see deals on squash for about $0.99 a lb. I thought that was a great deal until today. Giant has Acorn and Butternut Squash for $0.59 a lb. Recipe sites and food blogs have lots of squash recipes I've been wanting to try out. Here are some recipes to consider:

Acorn Squash Quesadillas
Acorn Squash with Chili-Lime Vinagrette
Roasted Butternut Squash
Lasanga of Roasted Butternut Squash

Here are some other deals that can be found at Giant:

Boneless Chicken Breast - $1.99 per lb
Eggs - $1.99 per carton of 18
Red Seedless Grapes - $0.99 per lb
Acorn or Butternut Squash - $.59 per lb

Please check http://www.giantfood.com/ to see the specials at your local Giant Supermarket.

Dear Kind Representative of the White House

This week, my friend Shannon sent me an email to tell me that her husband, Dan, will be performing at the White House and asked me if I wanted to come along and get a tour of the White House Garden. WHAT? REALLY? I was so excited and felt so special to be invited. I felt like I got the Golden ticket. I even sent a message via Twitter boasting about my luck. Well, turns out that the tour is open to the public and that I would only get a glimpse of the Kitchen Garden. (yes...i felt a little foolish.) I'm still very excited about going on the garden tour but really, I want to see the Kitchen Garden. Tonight at a DC Food Blogger happy hour, I started to mention my idea of sending a request to the White House for a DC Food Blogger tour. Turns out that food bloggers like this idea. I checked the White House Kitchen Garden Tour website and filled out an application. (They are only giving tours to local schools but I filled out the application anyways.)

School Name: Thrifty DC Cook
School Address: www.thriftydccook.com
Principal Name: Sylvie "Real Last Name"
Phone Number: "Real Phone Number"
Principal Contact Info (Email): thriftydccook@gmail.com
Principal Contact Address: "Real Home Address"

Do you have a vegetable garden or a healthy eating program at your school? If so, please describe it in 250 words or less (Here is what I wrote)

Kind Representative of the White House, I am a local DC food blogger and just came from a DC Food Blogging event. The local food bloggers of DC would love to come and visit the White House Kitchen Garden. We are fans of food, we are fans locally produced food, and I believe that many of us would love to spread the word about the White House garden. Please contact me so that we can make arrangements for a tour. With much kindness, Sylvie (Thrifty DC Cook).

I am fully aware that this is a long shot but can you imagine how excited I would be if this works? (silently praying...please let this happen.)

Really, if anyone who knows anyone from the White House is reading this, can you help us Food Bloggers out?

Wednesday, October 7, 2009 - Sale at Safeway

Reading through food blogs and talking to my friends, I'm finding that everything is about pot roast, beef stew, and root vegetables. These are signs of autumn to me. Its time to pull out the crock pot from storage and start making some hearty soups. Safeway has Boneless Beef Chuck Pot Roast on sale for a $1.99 a lb this week. Here are some delicious recipes where this cut of beef could be of use:

Crock Pot Pot Roast
Parker's Beef Stew

Triple "B" Stew

Pot Roast
Company Pot Roast
Tyler's Texas Chili

Here are this week's Safeway specials:

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast or Thighs - $1.68 per lb

Boneless Beef Chuck Roast - $1.99 per lb

(I am interrupting this list of deals because I thought it might be important to share this New York Times article about ground beef. This article (and watching Food Inc) has convinced me that its time to start grinding my own meat. Unfortunately, I don't have a Kitchen Aid with a meat grinder attachment but Adventures in Shaw sent me this article about grinding meat in a food processor. Using brisket or chuck are good cuts because they tend to have a bit of fat in them which is GREAT for tasty burgers. Ok...on with the deals)

Top Sirloin Steak - $3.99 per lb

Beef Eye Round Roast - $2.99 per lb (great to use to make Pho)

Asparagus - $1.99 per lb

Whole Boneless Pork Tenderloin - $2.99 per lb

Pears - $1.49 per lb

Broccoli - $1.49 per lb

Yams - $0.99 per lb (this is a sure sign that is it Fall)

Please note that each Safeway location is different. Please check Safeway.com to see your local specials.

Apple Recipes

This past weekend, I had several conversations with good friends who went apple picking. If I didn't already have prior plans, I most definitely would have hitched a ride with them to an orchard. In addition to hearing about all the fun they had on their apple picking adventure, I heard one common question: "What am I going to do with all these apples?" For my friends who went apple picking or for those who find themselves picking up the totes of apples at the grocery store (they are $0.88 per lb at Giant), here are some tasty looking recipes:

Whole Wheat Apple Muffins

Apple Ricotta Pancakes

Apple Bread

Cabbage, Apple, Walnut Salad

Apple Chutney

Apple Dumplings

Tarte Tatin

Friday, October 2, 2009 - Items on Sale at Harris Teeter

Big reason to go to Harris Teeter this week...Fryer Chicken for $0.57 a lb. Let me tell you that I have learned that buying "fryer" chicken makes a BIG difference when you are frying chicken. Yeah. I learned the hard way.

Here are some other deals at Harris Teeter this week:

Chuck Tender Roast - $2.99 per lb
Organic Chicken (thighs, wings, drumsticks) - $2.49 a lb
Cremini Mushrooms - $2.50 per package
White or Green Asparagus - $2.99 per lb
Variety of Apples - $0.99 per lb
Red Grapes - $0.99 per lb
Valencia Oranges - 5 for $3
Yellow or White Onions - $0.79 per lb
Sour Cream - $1.29 per 16 oz

Please note that each Harris Teeter location may have different specials than listed above. Check out the weekly specials at a location near you here. Also, you can have weekly specials from Harris Teeter sent directly to your email box by signing up for their E-VIC service.

Friday, October 2, 2009 - Items on Sale at Giant

Here are this week's Giant deals:

Porterhouse or T-Bone Steaks - $4.99 per lb
Center Cut Pork Chops - $2.99 per lb
Whole Chicken - $0.99 per lb
Progresso Vegetable Soup - $1 per can
Sweet Red Peppers - $1 per lb
Del Monte Vegetables - $1 per can
Chicken Wings - $1.99 (football season = buffalo wings!!!)
Hagen Dazs Ice Cream - $2.50 per pint

Please check http://www.giantfood.com/ to see the specials at your local Giant Supermarket.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009 - Sale at Safeway

This week was all about good news for my family. First, my cousin Stephanie got engaged to a great guy named Ron. Then my cousin Loan announced that she and her husband Carter are expecting their first child next spring! 2010 most certainly will be year filled with family parties which means...good food!!!

Here are this week's Safeway specials:

Pork Shoulder Country Style Ribs - $0.88 per lb
T-Bone Steak - $4.99 per lb
Whole Chicken - $0.79 per lb
Jumbo Crab Clusters - $4.88 per lb
Safeway Cranberry Cocktail - $1.99 per 64oz
Lucerne Milk - $2.99 per gallon
Navel Oranges - $1 each
Asparagus (White or Green) - $2.99 per lb
Spaghetti Squash - $0.99 per lb
Green Acorn Squash - $0.99 per lb
Butternut Squash - $0.99 per lb
Broccoli Crowns - $1.49 per lb

Please note that each Safeway location is different. Please check Safeway.com to see your local specials.