Vegetable stew, guacamole and rising prices

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Wholly Guacamole is packed with avocados.

I keep on discovering new items and old favorites at Costco in Hackensack that help me forget I haven't eaten meat or poultry for more than a year.

A new favorite is Stonewall Kitchen Old Farmhouse Vegetable Stew, packed with potato and carrot chunks, and peas and other veggies that are fresh-tasting and firm to the bite. The ingredient label lists 10 vegetables, plus herbs and spices.

The delicious, milky looking broth contains no dairy. Two 20-ounce portions were $7.99, and they can be frozen.

An item I tried a couple of years ago is appearing more frequently at meals after my son fell in love with the guacamole at Rosa Mexicano in Hackensack, where the appetizer is prepared table-side. The restaurant's guacamole is priced at $12, but contains only two avocados.

Costco's Wholly Guacamole claims to have 15 Hass avocados "in every batch" or five in each of the three 16-ounce portions. It's a much better deal.

Check out the ingredient list: Hass avocados, jalapeno puree, dehydrated onion, salt, granulated garlic. That's it. And it's made in Mexico. I paid $8.49, and it's enough for three meals, plus it can be frozen.

I serve the guacamole after adding a liberal amount of Goya's spicy Salsa Taquera, though you can use chunky salsa or any other hot sauce.

Image by saguayo via Flickr

Rising prices

Costo's prices are trending upward for its own Kirkland Signature brand of smoked wild salmon and 100% whole grain bread.

Now, a pound of Boskovich Farms' organic spinach has jumped to $4.49, from $3.79; and three, long gourmet cucumbers went up 20 cents, to $3.99. 

I've also noticed substantial hikes -- about $2 -- in the price of apples and other fruit sold in 4- or 5-pound packages. 

Other items, such as 2 pounds of salted pollock from China for $6.39, have held the line. Frozen Pacific cod was $14.99 for 2 pounds, just under the price for fresh fillets you sometimes find in the fish case.

Two pounds of Sunset-brand Roma and Campari tomatoes have held steady at $4.99 and $5.49, respectively.  The price is high, but the tomato taste is intense.

Triple washed is good enough for me

Image by thebittenword.com via Flickr

If you prepare family meals five or six times a week, as we do, convenience and speed are paramount. My wife and I don't have the time or patience to use long, elaborate recipes for dinner.

Two of the most convenient products I know are Earthbound Farm Organic Spring Mix and Boskovich Farms Organically Grown Baby Spinach, both sold at Costco and both pre-washed, so I don't have to use a salad spinner.

I literally grab some and place it in the bowl for an instant salad with my own prepared dressing, which I keep in the refrigerator. 

The triple-washed spinach makes a fine addition to pasta with garlic, anchovies and grated cheese. (The base of the sauce is chicken stock.)

For dinner tonight, I baked almost two pounds of fresh Pacific True Cod Fillets I bought at Costco in Hackensack on Sunday for $6.99 a pound, prepared instant mash potatoes and dressed a spinach salad. The meal was on the table in under 30 minutes.

On Sunday night, I marinated a pound and a half of farmed Tiger Prawns, also from Costco, then sauteed them with garlic and extra-virgin olive oil for about five minutes. I served them with Costco guacamole topped by Goya Salsa Taquera, leftover organic spinach-and-cheese ravioli and a spinach salad. 

The U-15 prawns come cleaned (under 15 to the pound) and cost $9.99 a pound.

A pound of organic baby spinach is $3.99. The last time I bought the organic spring mix at Costco, it was $4.79 or $4.99 -- still the lowest retail price I have found.

Lamb tacos in 45 seconds

We love lamb -- especially the free-range, grass-fed stuff from Australia sold at Costco and ShopRite -- but cooking it at home is a challenge. I enjoy it medium rare, even rare, but my wife and son insist on lamb that shows no sign of blood -- in other words, well done.

Image by el_en_houston via Flickr

Last time I cooked boneless leg of lamb from Costco, I cut it into two pieces, then the pieces into thick slices, coating them with Sweet Mesquite Seasoning, also from Costco. I put half the slices in the oven at 375 degrees and after 20 minutes, I put my slices in. I still managed to overcook all of it -- mine came out medium.

Today, after my son came home from school, I made lamb tacos from my leftovers, slicing the meat really thin, placing a half-dozen pieces on a handmade flour tortilla from Trader Joe's and pouring on Goya Salsa Taquera (hot).

They went into the microwave for exactly 45 seconds (no need to cover them) and I garnished them with a little chopped parsley and onion (I didn't have fresh cilantro) before rolling them up and gobbling them down. With tacos this good, you won't need a tacos truck in your neighborhood (photo).