Eating like multicultural peasants.

When it comes to spending money; our biggest extravagence is eating out. In order to remedy this we've agreed to set certain goals after the wedding. First, that we will limit our eating out to one night per week. The benefits of this are two-fold. First, we will save money. And second, we will stay slim. Of course, eating at home does not guarantee either; both require planning

Unlike Altanta (which has some of the best restaurants I've had the pleasure to dine in) the desire to eat out in Columbus comes less from the quality of food that is available than with the difficulty of trying to cook in Andy's kitchen, which has almost no counter space and no room for either of the two carts that I have aquired over the years of living in small apartments. Andy is starting the hunt for a new apartment this weekend and one of the requirements is counter and cabinet space. An eat-in kitchen or some kind of dining area would also be nice. I told Andy that we're not a "family" until we start eating at a table that is not between the couch and the television.

Columbus does have a few things going for it in terms of food preparation: many small ethnic grocers. From these shops we can procure the basic ingredients for our favorite Chinese, Indian, and Mexican recipes. It never ceases to amaze me how much people will pay for a tiny bottle of toasted sesame oil from Whole Foods or even Kroger when one can spend less for a large bottle from the various Korean and Chinese grocers in town.

Currently, I am compiling lists of recipes and ingredients. I am aiming for variety with just enough overlap so that we can keep and use a set of "pantry basics": basmati rice, black beans, toasted sesame oil, buckwheat noodles, couscous, and so forth. Recipe examples (things that I have made before) include: chana masala, basic black beans, buckwheat noodles with broccoli, and pan seared tofu.