How are you coping with the cost of food?

Some readers, like Kathy Darby, talked about a simple approach to only buy what they need and bring lunches to work. Others like Paula Bradley shop the grocery store sales. And Louise LaMountain plays a fun game that saves $5 to $10 by surveying the contents of cupboards and fridge to see if a meal can be assembled with what’s available rather than running out to the store.

All of them rely on simple-to-make recipes that can be put easily pulled together at dinner time.

Rather than share recipes, this group of readers offered formulas for pulling together a meal when they are hungry and don’t want to be tempted with take-out. They shared their ideas and no doubt hope that others will experiment in the kitchen and become comfortable adding a little of this and a little of that until it tastes wonderful. Don’t be looking for traditional recipes to put on an index card. They aren’t here.

Kathy Darby shared a personal recipe she finds easy to fix.

"Heat oven to 425. Cook some frozen asparagus for about 5 minutes. Put two chicken cutlets in a glass baking dish and top with the asparagus. Bake for 15 minutes. Top each cutlet with a slice of cheese (low-fat if desired) and bake an additional 5 minutes. This recipe can be used with spinach as well."

Darby relies on some Weight Watchers recipes. Her secret for getting them on the table at the end of the day is simple, "I have the salmon, peppers and pineapple all cut up so that as soon as I step in the door, it’s ready to cook," she wrote.

Paula Bradley wrote that she has been "pinching pennies on groceries since I was feeding a family of six on $35 per week in the ’60s!"

"Markets put major sellers on sale in 12-week cycles. If you buy enough of what you regularly use for the sale price, you will always have a good supply at the cheapest cost," she said.

"I keep things in the house that will make a nutritious meal in minutes, like pasta, rice, chicken and beef broth and bouillon, olive oil, garlic, canned tomatoes, canned and frozen vegetables, lots of spices and herbs, canned fish and many forms of beans. The secret of good tasting food is to start with a base of good ingredients.

"I sauté garlic and onion in good olive oil, add some Mrs. Dash and fresh herbs when available, then add to that. I like to cook a little white wine into the mix."

Bradley said that to make "Italian Soul Food" add to that base a pound of fresh spinach (or other dark greens) and a can of cannellini beans, with a little chicken broth and bouillon, put the lid on and shut off the burner.

"In 10 minutes you have a great meal with only the addition of Italian bread. A half head of cabbage (cooked longer) and a half pound of macaroni is good, too."

With macaroni, she adds some canned diced tomatoes and spices. She uses that as the base for her homemade soup, adding carrots and celery into the sauté, then meat, starch and lots more broth.

"Using my base, I adapted a recipe from Michael Moskwa - one of the first local TV chefs - for peas and macaroni."

To the base add 1 small package of frozen peas with a can of broth and cook 5 minutes. Then add half pound cooked spaghetti, half a cup seasoned breadcrumbs and half a cup of Parmesan cheese."

"As the family’s fortunes wax and wane I have found the grocery list the easiest way to cut costs when necessary, said Louise LaMountain, North Smithfield. As a working single mother, she learned to feed a family of four well.

"However, a few "conditions of readiness" need to be present in the family to do this effectively.

*A willingness to consume leftovers disguised as new dishes.

*A household of non-picky eaters.

*A cook who is willing and able to cook from scratch.

She has relied on the Woman’s Day Encyclopedia of Cookery "because you can find recipes catalogued by ingredient. So, if you have 1 cup of leftover ham pieces, cooked broccoli, an egg and some Bisquick mix, you can use this approach to figure out what all this stuff could turn into," she said.

"A hint on serving - borrow from restaurant techniques. Serve a generous salad and one portion of bread before the main course. Take your time serving the entree. I have found that this approach significantly impacts the consumption of the main meal without sacrificing nutrition," she said.

"What I’ve been doing lately is buying whatever kind of winter squash is on sale . . . butternut, acorn etc. and towards the end of the week when I’ve accumulated some leftovers I halve and seed the squash, microwave until soft (10 minutes). Scoop out the inside and combine with leftover cubed meat . . . any kind . . . leftover potatoes, carrots etc. Season to taste and pop it all back into the squash shell. If the mixture is soupy, thicken with breadcrumbs or crackers. If it’s too dry, milk or white wine will thin it. When using leftover chicken for this I’ve preferred to mix in rice. Pop the whole thing into the oven on 325 for 20 minutes and you’ve got a great meal.

"Sometimes I top each half with a slice of cheese or some marinara sauce for variety. Spices add a nice change also, sometimes more Caribbean spices with roast pork leftovers or traditional Italian herbs with beef or chicken. Nutmeg and a dash of cinnamon are particularly nice with the butternut," she said.

As for snacks, LaMountain said, "My personal view is that you still can’t beat a supply of homemade cookies on hand for economy, nutrition and taste," she said.