County Extension Office Offers Variety Of Information For Just About Anyone

At one time or another, most of us have called our local county cooperative extension office. We’re looking for recipes or canning instructions or gardening ideas. We come away with a wealth of information on a wide variety of topics.

Now there’s a new book available through the cooperative extension offices of Washington State University that will be of interest to anyone looking for new ideas in food preparation.

“Caring Families - Food Choices” was developed by Sue Nicholson Butkus, an extension nutrition specialist. It’s a basic guide to everything from purchasing beef to cutting up chicken to cooking beans to measuring pasta to choosing a low-sugar cereal, all presented in an attractive, spiral-bound, 202-page book.

Part of the challenge for many of us is to plan meals that help stretch our food dollars from paycheck to paycheck. Often we have to make do with what’s on hand. The book addresses this; for example, it gives nine ways to serve chili (chili burger, chili soup, taco salad, chili omelet, chili taco, chili-stuffed baked potato, chili dog, chili spaghetti and chili macaroni). Can you figure out 12 ways to use bread?

My family enjoyed this casserole recipe, one of 150 from the book. It takes longer to prepare than what’s usually presented here, about 25 minutes, but it uses six inexpensive ingredients. You can cut corners by using onion powder in place of a chopped onion.

To order the book, send a check for $15 (includes shipping and handling) to: Cooperative Extension Publications, Bulletin Office, Dept. WD, Cooper Publications Building, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-5912. Ask for publication MISCO113, “Caring Families.”

Beef, Bean and Macaroni Chili

From “Caring Families - Food Choices” (Cooperative Extension of Washington State University).

1/2 pound ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1 16-ounce can tomatoes

1 16-ounce can kidney beans (or 1-3/4 cups cooked with liquid)

3/4 cup uncooked elbow macaroni

2 teaspoons chili powder

In large skillet, crumble and brown beef and onion. Drain off fat.

Add tomatoes with liquid, kidney beans with liquid, macaroni and chili powder. Bring to boil, then turn heat to low.

Cover pan and simmer gently on low heat for about 20 minutes until macaroni is tender. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking; if necessary, add extra water during cooking.

Yield: 4 (1-cup) servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 380 calories per cup.

, DataTimes MEMO: The goal of Five and Fifteen is to find recipes where you can do the shopping in five minutes and the cooking in 15. Merri Lou Dobler, a registered dietitian and Spokane resident, welcomes ideas from readers. Write to Five and Fifteen, Features Department, The SpokesmanReview, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210.

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