When Sophie Gray launched her Destitute Gourmet brand in 1999, she found many people were aghast at the idea that you could eat fashionably and well on a budget.
However, things have changed.
"Now, I don't have to defend my argument that it's possible to live well on less," she said in an interview from Auckland.
With her seventh book, 100+ Tasty $10 Meals, published recently, a decade's demonstrating and promoting her destitute gourmet principles - shopping smartly, eating healthily and in season, and making a little of something luxurious go a long way - she feels people now understand the need to live on less so they can save money for other things.
The recent recession helped catapult people into the idea, she said.
"I often find older people are not surprised by the idea but have got out of the habit, and are a bit ashamed of the wastage. They hadn't realised they'd become so careless. Those in the family-raising years were not really aware - they don't remember housekeeping money and budgets."
Destitute gourmet arose from her own circumstances when she and her husband decided to start their own marketing business and found themselves and their two fussy young children on a significantly lower income, but still with their taste for stylish food.
With a background in restaurant cooking, she adjusted her cooking so they could still enjoy stylish food on their meagre budget.
Then she realised there were probably lots of other people who would like to do the same.
Her first book, Stunning Food from Small Change, was published in 2000.
Her new book is full of simple main-course dishes based on themes that depend on basic ingredients such as dried or fresh pasta, seasonal vegetables, tomatoes, bacon, eggs, cheese and herbs for the pasta meals, or sausages, pastry, rice and beans for the sausage meals.
They also include pizza, stir-fries, meat loaves, meatballs and burgers, frittatas and fritters, and one-pan dishes.
The idea is to help people decide what to have for dinner depending on what they have in the fridge or pantry.
There's nothing worse than deciding on a recipe and finding you haven't got a key ingredient, she says.
A last-minute dash to the supermarket is definitely against destitute gourmet principles - when you run out of something before the weekly shopping day, innovate, improvise and try to make do, as most of us have stuff in jars and packets in the pantry, she says.
Another destitute gourmet principle is not to buy anything you can realistically make yourself, but many people still have the perception that because something is available ready-made it must be difficult to make, she says.
However, in her demonstrations, and her books, she whips up curry pastes, pasta sauces, bread or shortcrust pastry.
This book contains not only recipes, but also includes information and tips on how to vary recipes to suit what you have - there are four variations on fritters and four on meatballs, as well as extra suggestions on how to use them.
She intends this book to be helpful to all sorts of people, from students going flatting to families, from dads who have their children every second weekend to retired people, so she tested the recipes on her extended family, which includes children, teenagers, young adults and older people, she says.
Cornish pasties
Cornish pasties are the simplest of pies and very easy to make. You can put other vegetables in them, but just don't call them Cornish pasties or you'll have Poms like my husband patiently explaining to you that carrots, peas or anything other than spud, swede or turnip is just not Cornish. Makes about six depending on size (serving 1 per person).
• 200g rump or blade steak, cut into very small pieces
• 100g peeled and finely diced potato (roughly a medium potato)
• 100g finely diced swede or turnip or a combination
• ½ onion, finely chopped
• salt and plenty of black pepper
• 3 sheets ready-rolled frozen pastry (shortcrust is traditional but puff may be more popular, or make homemade shortcrust)
• 1 beaten egg for glaze
Preheat the oven to 200degC. Combine the beef, potato, swede, onion, salt and lots of black pepper in a bowl and work the mixture with your fingers until thoroughly mixed. Cut the pastry into rounds. I cut around the rim of a noodle bowl with roughly 16cm diameter. Brush a little water around the edges of the rounds and carefully place a spoonful or two of the mixture in the middle of each one.
Gather the sides into the middle and crimp them together, forming a seam along the top of the pasty. Place on a greased baking tray and brush with beaten egg. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until dark golden brown.
Serve warm or cold. Good with tomato sauce.
Lamb biryani
One-pan dinners are a lifeline on a busy night. Adjust the seasoning at the end to suit your palate and serve with chutney. Serves 4
• 2 Tbsp oil
• 300g lamb stir-fry or lamb mince
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• pinch of cinnamon
• 250g long-grain white rice (I like jasmine rice in this dish)
• 750ml beef stock
• 3-4 cups chopped vegetables, such as carrots, broccoli, cauliflower or use frozen peas, beans or mixed vegetables or a combination (fresh or frozen)
• ½ tsp salt
Heat the oil in a pan and cook the meat until sealed (you'll notice the colour changes). Add the onion and garlic, and cook until softened. Add the remaining ingredients, stir and cook for 20 minutes or until done.
The Otago Daily Times has five copies of 100+ Tasty $10 Meals to give away. To enter the draw for one, write your name, address and daytime phone number on the back of an envelope and send it to $10 Meals, ODT Editorial Features, Response Bag 500011, Dunedin, or email playtime@odt.co.nz with $10 Meals in the subject line, to arrive before May 11.
100+ Tasty $10 Meals by Sophie Gray is published by Random House ($30) www.destitutegourmet.com
