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Quarantine Cooking: Recipes & Techniques to Stretch Your Food Budget (1 Viewer)

Little off topic, but, I took a job as sous chef for a pretty popular spot here in Wisconsin. Finally pursuing a life long dream. Especially after being cooped up for 7 weeks. #### it, going for it. Pretty excited.
Congrats and good luck.  What other restaurants have you worked prior?

 
Little off topic, but, I took a job as sous chef for a pretty popular spot here in Wisconsin. Finally pursuing a life long dream. Especially after being cooped up for 7 weeks. #### it, going for it. Pretty excited.
That's awesome!  I would love to move into the cooking field.  The problem is I take waaaaaaaaayyyyyyy too long to make anything.  I did a version of this minestrone yesterday and while it turned out terrific it took me 2 1/2 hours start to finish.  People would starve if I was their sous chef. :bag:

 
So I've got an awesome Cuban Pork recipe I've been doing.  Pork Shoulder seems to be readily available.  It's cheap, and leftovers are awesome. It's been pretty fool-proof.  Made it 2x now, and gotten several meals from it.

1 Pork Shoulder/Butt - I've been using bone-in.  Did a 5.5 lb, then a 7.5 lb...the 5.5 turned out more flavorful, but both are good.

Prep the Shoulder - remove it from the bag, dry it off, and score the fat cap all over.  Cut down to the meat in a grid pattern, roughly 1" grid.

Marinade - I blend up the below 5 ingredients in a bullet blender until they're a paste.  

4 Garlic BULBS/HEADS (not cloves - yes - it's a TON of garlic)

1 yellow onion (diced)

2 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons black pepper

2 tablespoons dried oregano

Next, rub this paste ALL over the shoulder, get it down in the cracks of the scored fat cap, etc.  Put it in a freezer bag or marinade bag.

Add 1/3 cup lime juice, 1/3 cup lemon juice, and 1/3 cup orange juice to the bag.  Do your best not to wash off the garlic paste, but some of it will come off.  Remove as much of the air from the bag as you can, and let it marinade at least overnight.  The larger the cut of meat, the longer you marinade it.

Cooking -  - other closed cooking methods may work, but I use a dutch over.  Remove the shoulder, place in the dutch oven, fat cap side up, and skim off some of the garlic paste that washed off.  I re-apply that to the fat cap.  I then pour A LITTLE (1/3 cup or so) of the remaining marinade/juice in the bottom of the dutch oven.  Close it, put it in the oven at 350 for 3-4 hours.  Maybe 2/3 of the way through, I use a meat injector to suck up some of the juice in the bottom of the oven and reinject into the shoulder.  3-4 hours in, remove the lid, and continue to roast for 1-2 hours more to brown up the fat and top of the roast.  Let it get crispy.  Baste it with the juice from time to time.  It won't dry the whole thing out.  It just gives it some texture.  

Remove, drain some of the juice/fat from the dutch oven and set aside.  Shred the shoulder like you do any pulled pork.  Pour some of the drained juice/fat mixture back in as you mix it.  

Serve with Black Beans, Yellow Rice, and my favorite touch, some LIGHTLY cooked shaved yellow onion.  You can add some mojo sauce or any other sauce too.  It sounds like a lot of work, but for something that lasts several days and reheats as good as it was out of the oven, it's pretty easy and efficient.
This sounds amazing.  Would you be willing to do this again and post pictures of your process?  Helps if I can visualize some of the steps.  Now that I've got the Dutch Oven, I'm starving for new recipes and this one sounds awesome. :thumbup:

 
Ha. It's really dumb.

A couple years ago he posted on Twitter about his collection of vegan recipes and included a link to the Serious Eats repository for them. The image that popped up in the body of the Tweet that accompanied the Serious Eats link was a cross section of a beautiful rare steak.

As one might imagine, the vegans were very upset by that little technology glitch. He was embarrassed and frustrated and was very apologetic to his vegan readers.

I Tweeted something like "LOL. I accidentally clicked on the link because of the picture only to find out it was a collection of vegan recipes."

That didn't go over well. He got really upset and when I told him it was just meant to be a harmless joke, he blocked me.
You gotta be dry humpin me......

 
Congrats and good luck.  What other restaurants have you worked prior?
Don't laugh. Various fast food. I managed a Popeyes for 10 years starting at the age of 14. I am self taught. I am a single father of 2 with 5 grills/smokers in my garage. This isn't the Ritz Carlton. Its a popular pub and grill. Not Applebee's etc. The surrounding communities love the place. When I pulled up to interview, all I saw was 3 smokers as big as my car. And I said I am doing this. Took a tour, place was clean, organized, inventory was properly marked, owners were friendly. The owner, Bob, says "Can you smoke?" I said "Yeah man, I smoke Marlboros all the time". Just to be a #### and see his response. He laughed hysterically. This guy is as big as The Mountain on Game of Thrones. "Good. Now can freeze your ### off, instead of me". I was like, I'm in. (It gets cold in Wisconsin) 

The cooking part is easy to me. This is what I have always wanted to do. Beats driving a forklift everyday. It's just a matter of learning procedures. Their recipes, which I was told I could tweak. Where stuff is, etc.

To top it off, I am a neat freak, so #### will be clean, organized, you name it. Or I will call you out.

It's a gamble, but it is what I want to do. My old wrestling coach used to say, "If you aren't nervous, you aren't ready". Sound advice. I am nervous. I am ready. They are also paying me well, to start.

Can you tell I am excited? Sorry for the long post.

😬

 
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Don't laugh. Various fast food. I managed a Popeyes for 10 years starting at the age of 14. I am self taught. I am a single father of 2 with 5 grills/smokers in my garage. This isn't the Ritz Carlton. Its a popular pub and grill. Not Applebee's etc. The surrounding communities love the place. When I pulled up to interview, all I saw was 3 smokers as big as my car. And I said I am doing this. Took a tour, place was clean, organized, inventory was properly marked, owners were friendly. The owner, Bob, says "Can you smoke?" I said "Yeah man, I smoke Marlboros all the time". Just to be a #### and see his response. He laughed hysterically. This guy is as big as The Mountain on Game of Thrones. "Good. Now can freeze your ### off, instead of me". I was like, I'm in. (It gets cold in Wisconsin) 

The cooking part is easy to me. This is what I have always wanted to do. Beats driving a forklift everyday. It's just a matter of learning procedures. Their recipes, which I was told I could tweak. Where stuff is, etc.

To top it off, I am a neat freak, so #### will be clean, organized, you name it. Or I will call you out.

It's a gamble, but it is what I want to do. My old wrestling coach used to say, "If you aren't nervous, you aren't ready". Sound advice. I am nervous. I am ready. They are also paying me well, to start.

Can you tell I am excited? Sorry for the long post.

😬
I'm excited for you, man.  I really would love to move into this field for the final act of my career.  Have dreams of my own food cart. 

Keep us updated on this.  

 
I'm excited for you, man.  I really would love to move into this field for the final act of my career.  Have dreams of my own food cart. 

Keep us updated on this.  
I will do so. Their is nothing better than making good food for people. It's like a zen moment. At least, in my eyes. When my kids tell me this is the best chicken in the world. It makes me feel good. When your family gets together, and they ask no one else to cook, except for you....Hook. Line. Sinker. Challenge accepted.

 
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This sounds amazing.  Would you be willing to do this again and post pictures of your process?  Helps if I can visualize some of the steps.  Now that I've got the Dutch Oven, I'm starving for new recipes and this one sounds awesome. :thumbup:
I have to eat through about 4 pounds from my last batch.   :D   If I make it again, I'll absolutely take some pictures.  It really is pretty fool-proof though.  The Dutch Oven keeps so much moisture in there the pork really can't dry unless you probably cook it 2-3 hours too long.  Happy to answer clarification questions in the meantime.

 
I will do so. Their is nothing better than making good food for people. It's like a zen moment. At least, in my eyes. When my kids tell me this is the best chicken in the world. It makes me feel good. When your family gets together, and they ask no one else to cook, except for you....Hook. Line. Sinker. Challenge accepted.
So true. What did you do for work before?

 
So true. What did you do for work before?
I have been working in shipping/receiving for over 15 years. I had a very good job, for a prominent retail company. Had a crew of over 18 people. 12 years at the joint. Not Target, god forbid, not Walmart. I was making bank. And I got laid off. I have since taken a job at a manufacturing company. Hate it. Furloughed, told them flat out, #### off. This is my journey.

I don't want to sound like a jerk, but I am an alpha male. Not beat my chest type stuff either. I do it politely. Unless you mess up. I got sick of what I was doing, now I'm making my jump.

Every company outing, guess who was cooking? Me. 

 
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BEETS

Frugal and fine.  I hate beets too, or I used to.  This method is fantastic. They're cheap, healthy, and they can be stored for a long time

It's about 15 minutes of hands on time, but you have to hang around for a couple of hours to tend to things once in a while.  They plate perfectly with beans and rice, served chilled straight out of the fridge.  I just pulled out a bag of four that were stashed in the back of a crisper drawer for the past 4 weeks and they were in great shape.

I did this using 4 medium-size beets.  The important thing here is to use enough water to competely cover the beets; multiplication or division required if you scale up or down.

LINK:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgVwWA3HUdE

Ingredients (I used 4 beets and 2 liters of water today)

  • Beets, fresh
  • Red Wine Vinegar
  • Rosemary - fresh is better, but dried works fine too.
  • Salt
Action:

- Cut ends off of beets and peel with a potato peeler. Give'em a rinse

- Place in water and add 2 tsp of Red Wine Vinegar (NO SALT)

- bring to rapid boil; reduce to simmer with lid mostly on for 45 minutes.

- Add sprigs of fresh rosemary and 1 T of salt. Lid mostly on and simmer for another 30 minutes

- Heat off, lid on, let sit for 90 minutes.

- Remove to dish and let cool to room temp; place in container and refrigerate. ... Or you could go straight to the fridge here.  I always do things the slow way in the kitchen.

 
I will do so. Their is nothing better than making good food for people. It's like a zen moment. At least, in my eyes. When my kids tell me this is the best chicken in the world. It makes me feel good. When your family gets together, and they ask no one else to cook, except for you....Hook. Line. Sinker. Challenge accepted.
Can you share the name of the place? I get up to Wisconsin about once a year (Madison) but would be cool to check out a FBG's joint if it's not too far away.

 
This sounds amazing.  Would you be willing to do this again and post pictures of your process?  Helps if I can visualize some of the steps.  Now that I've got the Dutch Oven, I'm starving for new recipes and this one sounds awesome. :thumbup:
This gumbo recipe is fantastic.  Takes some prep and gets better the next day but you can prep/cook in the afternoon and eat it over rice that night.  

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

 
His "Meatery" is one of my favorite NOLA restaurants.  A buddy of mine lives nearby and it's his regular joint.
We visited family for a week, and the streetcar would take us right past it every day when we headed down to the quarter.  I'd be there a lot if I lived close.

 
heckmanm said:
Can you share the name of the place? I get up to Wisconsin about once a year (Madison) but would be cool to check out a FBG's joint if it's not too far away.
Bildas Freiss Lake Pub.

Day 1 went well. Smoked 4 pork butts, and 3 briskets. Didn't screw it up. My last name is not McClure. Ha. But I start to climb that ladder. Prep work sucks.

 
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I know not everyone is a fan, but I enjoy watching Gordon Ramsay cook.  During the pandemic, he's doing these meals in 10 minutes being filmed at home by his daughters.  Again, not everyone will enjoy them, but I like them to see more of his natural side, how he interacts with his family, how good he cooks, and some ideas/techniques to be used at home. 

Here's one(fish and chips) and you can search for the others pretty easily.

 
I know not everyone is a fan, but I enjoy watching Gordon Ramsay cook.  During the pandemic, he's doing these meals in 10 minutes being filmed at home by his daughters.  Again, not everyone will enjoy them, but I like them to see more of his natural side, how he interacts with his family, how good he cooks, and some ideas/techniques to be used at home. 

Here's one(fish and chips) and you can search for the others pretty easily.
He is a great chef and I have had good success with several of his short videos on technique. 

 
I made carnitas on Tuesday.  After 2 days of tacos I went with quesadillas today

Family has had enough and wont eat anymore but I might do some chilaquiles for breakfast tomorrow or try to cobble together a bastardized Cuban sandwich for lunch
Could also turn it into hash as you would with corned beef - fry it up with some diced potatoes, minced garlic/peppers/onions, etc., topped w eggs. 

 
Working on salsa verde.  Started with this as my base:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=by1OMGGNfIk

Super simple, but I need to iron out a few things.  I let my roasting pan go for 25 minutes vs 20 'cause I wanted extra char, but net result was charred tomatillo skin where the liquid all drained out.  I cooked on foil, so I managed to salvage a lot of the liquid.

I also added Manzano pepper to the roasting pan and about a 1/4 tsp of sugar, which was about twice what was needed.

Used stick blender on my roast.  Final result was a 'B', but A+ is within my grasp.

 
Working on salsa verde.  Started with this as my base:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=by1OMGGNfIk

Super simple, but I need to iron out a few things.  I let my roasting pan go for 25 minutes vs 20 'cause I wanted extra char, but net result was charred tomatillo skin where the liquid all drained out.  I cooked on foil, so I managed to salvage a lot of the liquid.

I also added Manzano pepper to the roasting pan and about a 1/4 tsp of sugar, which was about twice what was needed.

Used stick blender on my roast.  Final result was a 'B', but A+ is within my grasp.
This is great ...I mean great.

Joe posted a canned roasted salsa here that I don't feel like looking for that we still use today.

It's very, very good.  People go ape over it.  

 
Working on salsa verde.  Started with this as my base:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=by1OMGGNfIk

Super simple, but I need to iron out a few things.  I let my roasting pan go for 25 minutes vs 20 'cause I wanted extra char, but net result was charred tomatillo skin where the liquid all drained out.  I cooked on foil, so I managed to salvage a lot of the liquid.

I also added Manzano pepper to the roasting pan and about a 1/4 tsp of sugar, which was about twice what was needed.

Used stick blender on my roast.  Final result was a 'B', but A+ is within my grasp.
For salsa, roasting the tomatillos makes perfect sense.  Not too sure about the onions and garlic.  My feeling on the onions and garlic is that it reduces the bite too much and doesn't add anything to compensate.  With the tomatillos it absolutely adds sweetness so that's a key component. Now, regarding the peppers you owe it to yourself to try this recipe without roasting them. Roast jalapeno's are great as a side dish but not as an ingredient. They lose too much heat and any grassiness they have.  Try this with the peppers not roasted, or even better, try this with some serranos for just a touch more heat and more grassiness. And absolutely add cilantro.

 
For salsa, roasting the tomatillos makes perfect sense.  Not too sure about the onions and garlic.  My feeling on the onions and garlic is that it reduces the bite too much and doesn't add anything to compensate.  With the tomatillos it absolutely adds sweetness so that's a key component. Now, regarding the peppers you owe it to yourself to try this recipe without roasting them. Roast jalapeno's are great as a side dish but not as an ingredient. They lose too much heat and any grassiness they have.  Try this with the peppers not roasted, or even better, try this with some serranos for just a touch more heat and more grassiness. And absolutely add cilantro.
I still love my first mother-in-law, Guadalupe.  She would roast chiles on a cast iron, and peel and dice - that's the whole recipe. 

 
 Not too sure about the onions and garlic.  
On a technical note, it worked out fine (I 16th my onions wedges). My sugar/salt balance needs work, and surely there's a spice or two to add.  Try out the original recipe.  It may lack, but the simplicity is 9/10.

 
On a technical note, it worked out fine (I 16th my onions wedges). My sugar/salt balance needs work, and surely there's a spice or two to add.  Try out the original recipe.  It may lack, but the simplicity is 9/10.
you're drinkin' pretty hard tonight ...aren't you broham

 
On a technical note, it worked out fine (I 16th my onions wedges). My sugar/salt balance needs work, and surely there's a spice or two to add.  Try out the original recipe.  It may lack, but the simplicity is 9/10.
####, I comma guy.

Sorry, y'all.

 
I know not everyone is a fan, but I enjoy watching Gordon Ramsay cook.  During the pandemic, he's doing these meals in 10 minutes being filmed at home by his daughters.  Again, not everyone will enjoy them, but I like them to see more of his natural side, how he interacts with his family, how good he cooks, and some ideas/techniques to be used at home. 

Here's one(fish and chips) and you can search for the others pretty easily.
I wanted to like that, I really did.  I watched most all of it and wanted to come away with something I'd bookmark for future use but my god....that was obnoxious.  He speaks way too fast, has the mannerisms of a crackhead and the relatability of an aristocrat who hates peasants.  Give that guy some weed and a closed captioning panel.  

 
I wanted to like that, I really did.  I watched most all of it and wanted to come away with something I'd bookmark for future use but my god....that was obnoxious.  He speaks way too fast, has the mannerisms of a crackhead and the relatability of an aristocrat who hates peasants.  Give that guy some weed and a closed captioning panel.  
I understand. I knew not everyone would like it, mostly for that reason.

Part of it is him trying to get it done in the time allotted so he fills that in with his incessant chatter, repeating so many things. But, his daughters giving him #### the whole time while he takes it is a complete reversal of everything we ever see from him. And if you watch a couple others, you can appreciate how his talent is ridiculous.

Anyway, throw it on mute and just watch the cooking and it's still worth it I think.

 
gianmarco said:
I understand. I knew not everyone would like it, mostly for that reason.

Part of it is him trying to get it done in the time allotted so he fills that in with his incessant chatter, repeating so many things. But, his daughters giving him #### the whole time while he takes it is a complete reversal of everything we ever see from him. And if you watch a couple others, you can appreciate how his talent is ridiculous.

Anyway, throw it on mute and just watch the cooking and it's still worth it I think.
Part of it is I can't hear very well anymore, so he's just too hard for me to decipher.  I enjoyed the interaction with his daughters, but there was so much overtalking of one another that I got lost.  I appreciate the video, though because I've messed up fish and chips several times and now realize egg white is a much better option than the full egg. :thumbup:

And I suppose I need to find self rising flour.

 
Part of it is I can't hear very well anymore, so he's just too hard for me to decipher.  I enjoyed the interaction with his daughters, but there was so much overtalking of one another that I got lost.  I appreciate the video, though because I've messed up fish and chips several times and now realize egg white is a much better option than the full egg. :thumbup:

And I suppose I need to find self rising flour.


https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/149310/self-rising-flour/

 
Day 2 in the books. Prepped 20 racks of ribs & par cooked 10lbs of bacon. Working the line Monday, for the first time. Can't wait.

Why is their always 1 moron? He is 19yrs old, needs a haircut, wears coke bottle glasses, drives a Scion, and probably hasn't showered, in a month. Busboy. Telling me how to cook bacon....ok. He gets 2 weeks leeway, before I throat punch him, beer batter him, and throw him in the fryer. 

Everything else is going well. Getting the hang of this. I love it.

I will update periodically. Don't want to Hipple. Love the recipes. Keep em coming.

 
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Some instant pot vegetarian/vegan gems with pantry/freezer items

Brown lentils

Dice an onion and cook in the instant pot on saute with olive or coconut oil til soft and just brown. Add diced garlic and preferred seasoning (I alternate between Mexican and Indian flavors) and brown 30 seconds. Add a cup of rinsed brown lentils and toast for 30 sec, mixing it with the spices and browned onion and garlic. Add a 16 oz can of diced tomatoes and a can and a half of water. Stir, salt and pepper and set instant pot to pressure cook on high for 10-12 minutes. This can be served with rice, in tortillas, with pita, or my favorite low carb option, with a fried egg and some pickled veggies for the acid and crispness.

Mushroom risotto

Great way to make consistent risotto. Here I like butter for extra creaminess but use olive oil if going vegan. Saute your diced onion in fat of choice til just starting to brown. Add garlic and dried herbs of choice and saute for 1 minute, then add dried mushrooms or frozen or fresh (if you’ve planned ahead) and saute for another minute or two. Last add the arborio (do not rinse the rice) and toast for another 1-2 minutes.Salt and pepper after each of the preceding steps, and you can deglaze with a splash of wine (optional). Add 32 oz vegetable/chicken/beef broth mix and set instant pot to pressure cook for 8 minutes. Vent, then stir in greens of choice (frozen peas, frozen/fresh spinach, arugula, fresh herbs, etc) just to warm through. Serve with grated parmesan and more fresh pepper.

 
I used to go to this Cambodian restaurant in Oakland (Phnom Penh?) that made an eggplant, pork and shrimp dish that I adored. I could replicate it it, but only if I ground the pork myself, which was a lot of trouble getting out, setting up, then cleaning and putting away for 2# of ground pork.

Anyway, last night I prepared a pork shoulder Piernas, but added a lot of asianed spices to the rub: corriander, five spice, cardomon. I cooked it overnight and used the drippings to cook the eggplant and shrimp with fish sauce and soy sauce. I poured all the liquid from the Staub  into a bowl and set it in the freezer. Half hour later I pulled off all the fat and added the remaining dripping to the eggplant mixture. Then I pulled out nice chunks of the pork should and trimmed most fat (i do not approve of shredded meat). Then I folded the pork chunks into the shrimp/eggplant mixture, heated thoroughly and served over rice. Top with some scallions, cilantro and lime wedges.

 
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my grandmother (who passed away used to make this recipe called 'beans and potatoes'.....probably not very healthy, but it was a cheap recipe she used to make.

Anyways i found this and wanted to make it, but know it needs water. How much water would you suggest I add?

Basil 

Garlic cloves

1/2 can tomato paste

White beans - great northern beans - 2 cans (15 oz)

Chicken bouillon - 2

Olive oil

Red potatoes - 5 lb      

Red pepper

Black pepper

 
I TRIPLE-DOG-DARE anyone to repeat this.

Lebanese Spice Blend

This is a royal pain in the ### to make, but worth it, maybe.  Going to try this in a pot of Garbonzo Beans tomorrow (a Mediterranean spin on red beans and rice technique).  May do a refried chickpeas with this blend too.  And I have eggplant.

Ingredients

  1. 30 g Gram Flour (ground dried chickpeas)
  2. 15 g Hazelnuts (coursely smashed/chopped)
  3.  2 tsp Cumin Seeds
  4.  1 tsp salt
  5. 0.5 tsp Coriander Seeds
  6. 2  Dried Chile Piquin (I used 6)
  7.  1 tsp Sumac
  8. 0.5 tsp Garlic Powder
  9. 0.5 tsp Black Peppercorns
  10.  5 Salted Dry Limes (see prequel below)
  11.  2 tsp Brown Sugar (I used Muscovada)
  12.  1 tsp Thyme
-------

In a stainless-steel pan on medium-high, toast ingredients #1-6 for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently ... mine just started to smoke around the 10 minute mark

--remove from heat and stir for another 3 minutes
--Add ingredients 7-9, stir for one minutes.
--Cool to room temp
--Crush Salted Lime, Thyme and Brown Sugar into mix
--Work in two batches, blend everything in spice grinder
--Pour dry spice mix back into stainless steel pan, stir and cook until mixture is hot (about 2-3 minutes)
--Pour into bowl and cool to room temp
--Seal inspice jar (refrigerate if not using within three days)

__________________

Prequel:  Salted Limes

Slice limes into (1/10th ich slices - really thin)
Lightly salt
***The recipe calls for bake on wire rack at 190 degrees F for 8-10 hours - I did 200 for 5-6 hours (dark and crisp, but never burned)

Toss in ziploc and refrigerate.

 
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my grandmother (who passed away used to make this recipe called 'beans and potatoes'.....probably not very healthy, but it was a cheap recipe she used to make.

Anyways i found this and wanted to make it, but know it needs water. How much water would you suggest I add?

Basil 

Garlic cloves

1/2 can tomato paste

White beans - great northern beans - 2 cans (15 oz)

Chicken bouillon - 2

Olive oil

Red potatoes - 5 lb      

Red pepper

Black pepper
sounds like a delicious belly filler for about 5 cents a serving

 

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