Bet that caught your eye, huh? You’re probably wondering what poop and mud have got to do with snacks…But I’m not gonna divulge anything about my poopy little adventure just yet…I’m leaving it to the end when all’s been said and done so that your appetites aren’t ruined just yet, because I’m excited to share some tasty meals I’ve had!

But here’s a hint: it’s got to do with black beans, which I also incorporated to Tuesday’s lunch. I still had about 1 cup of dried black beans left from last time, so the night before yesterday, I soaked them in water and then cooked them up in the morning.

Now I’m well aware that it’s the recession times and people are trying to be as frugal as possible, so here’s a great tip to save some bucks: It’s so much cheaper to buy beans dried rather than canned. I paid SGD$1.05 (US$0.69) for a packet of about 2 cups dried black beans, which produced almost 4 cups worth of cooked beans. Compare it to the SGD$3.45 (US$2.25) that I have to pay for a 2 cups cooked worth of canned beans! I understand that canned beans seem so much more convenient, but it actually barely takes any time and effort to cook dried beans. Just soak overnight, throw them into a pot, and cook and simmer until done!

Anyway, it was really hot and humid yesterday, and I was hankering for a nice, cool salad. I haven’t had salad in ages, because it’s just not the ideal weight-gainer’s food (too much volume for too little calories), and I’ve been trying to break the habit of just ordering salads in restaurants. Plus, the price of good salad ingredients here in Singapore (NOT ice-burg lettuce) is ridiculous.

But I really, really craved a nice crunchy salad, and the idea of cooking up a hot meal in the sweltering weather did not appeal to me at all. So I decided to load up on the more calorific stuff, go light on the less dense stuff like raw veggies, and pile on some good dressing.

Here are the ingredients that went into my awesome yet simple salad:

• ~1/2 cup black beans
• ~1 cup chopped roasted winter squash
• 1 small tomato
• 1 small red onion
• a few ice-burg lettuce
• homemade blue-cheese dressing

The blue-cheese dressing was a spontaneous thing that I just created by mixing things together and tasting as I went: yogurt, almond milk, vinegar, ~ 2 tablespoons of blue cheese, ~1 tablespoon of cucumber-garlic cheese spread, sweetener, black pepper. Sorry, I don’t have the exact measurements; this was entirely out of whim.

All mixed together:

Mmm. I will never, ever understand how anyone can detest salads. I think people are just turned off by the fact that it is a “dieter’s meal” and thus they are not supposed to like it. But seriously, with all the different combinations of flavors and textures, the coolness and crispness of fresh raw vegetables, and the brilliant variety of bright colors, salads are definitely one happy meal for me.

If yesterday’s lunch was cool and refreshing, today’s lunch was the exact opposite. The crazy, unpredictable weather suddenly dropped a few degrees today, and the sky has been cloudy, moody, and occasionally drizzly. So this time, I was in the mood for some heat.

I decided to use up my remaining chicken breast for a good chicken curry. There were also a whole bunch of tomatoes in the fridge which have been sitting there for a suspiciously long time, so I decided to use those up too. I did a bit of research online, and found the perfect recipe for tomato-chicken curry at tigerfish’s blog. I followed the direction, but made a few changes to the ingredients. These are the ingredients that went into my adapted version. The ones highlighted are the ones I changed:

• about 5 oz chicken breast, cubed
• 1 big juicy tomato, chopped
• 1 small chopped onion, chopped
• 1 fat clove garlic, minced
• about 1/3 cup coconut milk
• about 1/4 cup tomato sauce
• 2 tsp curry powder
• sprinkle of garam marsala
• some brown sugar
• black pepper & salt

I paired my tomato-chicken curry with some garlicky greens and a baked blue potato:

Just look at the colors! Green, red, orange, blue!

And…a bit of pink left from the juices from the red spinach!

I admit it. I pay twice the amount for this blue potato than I would pay for regular potatoes just for the lovely color. But apparently these blue potatoes carry extra antioxidants (like blueberries), so the bigger bucks are worth it!

It took me just 15 minutes to prepare this entire meal from scratch. No wonder people have chicken for dinner all the time! It’s fast, easy, versatile, and simple!

Tastes incredible, too! I put in a bit more curry powder than others would, so you might find this a bit spicy, but this was actually pretty mild for me.

But the sauce was still so freaking delicious, with the burst tomato juices, the complex spice of the curry powder, the sweetness from the onions, the kick from the garam marsala, the balance of acid and sweetness between the sugar and the tomato sauce. YUM!

I liked this so much, I whipped up another double portion of this for Liwen and Wengang (the lovely couple who’re housing me), so they can also share the joy of a nice delicious curry! For you vegetarians, I suggest using potatoes and tofu or tempeh to substitute the chicken.

Okay, now the moment we have all been waiting for…what about that poop, eh? Well, here’s lovely picture of the bowl of poop I enjoyed for my snack this afternoon:

Hahahahahahahaha! I’ll bet you’re all going,“EEEEEEEEEEEWWWWW!!!”

But hear me out! It’s not what you think.

This disgusting-looking concoction is actually another variation of my black bean/pumpkin pancake. I blended together:

• 3/4 cup black beans
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 2 tbsp cocoa
• drop of vanilla
• drop of coconut extract
• cinnamon
• pinch of salt

The result was this really creamy, rich, bittersweet, chocolaty paste. Once I got over its poopy appearance, I was moaning with pleasure in every bite. I even licked the bowl clean, it was that good. Against my better judgment, just for the sake of hilarious fun, I’m calling this creation: Poop-in-poop-out. Because of all the fabulous fiber from the beans and pumpkin, a healthy bowl of this is sure to release any constipation!

…………Don’t stare at me like that! I just like a little poop joke here and then. Seriously, give this concoction a try, and you’ll be joining me in a joyful poopy dance.

So, here’s to a delicious, poopilicious day, everyone! I bid you adieu with today’s question of the day: Has the recession forced you to make some cuts on food costs? What do you do and how?

Related posts:

1. Broke and Happy
2. I wanna thank my mama, my papa…
3. The Sweet and the Salty
4. Last meal before “Execution Day”
5. Dine out fresh, dine in leftovers

Tagged as: beans, cheese, chicken, chocolate, curry, lunch, potatoes, pumpkin, salad, tomato