Eats on the Cheaps

September 25, 2013

The streak of cold pasta, sandwiches, and costly morning coffee has come to a end. I would even say that our quality of life has been enhanced with the addition of one little magical box. About two months ago we thought it would be smart to look into a travel cooking device that could at least boil water for coffee because it was one of our most costly indulgences. When traveling for an extended period of time the two largest expenses are food and accommodation. Since we are living in the Kangoo we figured out how to cut back one of these. We were hopeful that the cook box would make it easier to cook our own meals instead of eating out 3 meals a day. Even we were amazed at how much it would how much  money it has saved us. Here is an example: for the month of July we spent roughly $1400 dollars on food and coffee; compare that to the month of September we spent $660 on food and coffee. That is more than 50% savings and we are eating healthier as well.  

 Ross did some research on products available that could be powered by a car battery or through a cigarette lighter. Most hot plates pull around 700 watts and our car can only handle 100 watts; which made the search difficult. He found the perfect device for $60 including shipping it to us while we were at Kevin & Trish's in Ireland.

The Cook Pro is lunch box size and consist of two hot plates folded into a rectangle shape, with a lid The internal cook temperature has only one setting and that is 300 degrees. Since this addition we have saved money and have been challenged to find new meals to cook in the car.

When we left Spain we only had two forks, a dull knife, one large spoon, and two tupperwear containers. They say that necessity is the father of invention therefore out of necessity we have compiled a small collection of house hold utensils which have become invaluable to us during this trip.

Condiments are also important when cooking simple food like we are. When we were living off sandwiches I collected extra packets of mayonnaise and mustard when I saw them. Pickles do not spoil quickly and they give the illusion of freshness so they are a popular staple in the food box. Also, out of desperation for spice in our life so where along our travels a set of salt and pepper shakers jumped in my purse.

We started using the cook box when making coffee and breakfast. Using instant coffee, sterilized long keep milk, and sugar the cook box only takes about 15 minutes to boil water for a surprisingly delicious cup of joe. We make one big Bubbah Mug each morning and share it.

Loaded scrambled eggs with croissants

As far as grub in the morning, we really cant go wrong. We have made toasted ham/bacon and cheese croissants, loaded scrambled eggs with bell pepper, mushrooms, onion and cheese, breakfast burritos, and BLT's with avocado.

For lunch we keep it simple still; maybe a PB&J, jazzed up with pineapple jelly instead of grape, and some chips.

Smoke cheese, mustard, pickles, and red wine!

It has become almost ritual for us to purchase a chunk of local cheese, sometimes even two and melba toast. Cheese and crackers before dinner is wonderful; hell cheese and crackers is good anytime. Sometimes I go all out and make little bites with Dijon mustard and sliced gherkins. Yummy

What's for dinner is a daily question, one I am sure most people identify with. We make a trip to the grocery store almost everyday, partly because we have limited space and can only buy about 3 meals at a time, and also because it gives us routine to our day. Silly as it sounds it gives us a project or a mission each day.

Before each meal we line the surface of the cook box with aluminum foil which makes clean up a breeze. Obviously we stay away from raw meat as much as possible, because we have no place to wash things properly and because we have to cook it right away. Although we have been successful with hamburger, chicken, and steak. A few of our favorite meals to date include: pasta, burgers, pizza, soup, and chili with steak.

Where we store our food

Finally what is a road trip without snacks. To satisfy the our daily sweet tooth we keep a variety of fig newton type crackers, chocolate covered raisins, sour gummy bears, and Werther's Original on hand. When our taste buds crave something salty there is always potato chips, crackers, and peanuts.