Visitors chill at Stroudsburg Winter Fest

Despite temperatures peaking in the teens, the annual Downtown Stroudsburg Winter Fest drew in strong crowds of families and tourists to its two-day event.Over 40 sculptures — some designed for and displayed in front of participating local businesses, others on display at Courthouse Square — adorned borough sidewalks, pulling sightseers into venues.Paula Fitzpatrick, owner of Fitzpatrick’s Irish Shop on Main Street, said every person who came into her store [...]

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Inspiration from Eva Cassidy, Sal Khan, Jimmy Carter, and More

Once a month (or so), I share a dozen things that have inspired me to greater personal, professional, and financial success in my life. I hope they bring similar success to your life.

1. Vincent van Gogh on passion and boredom

“I would rather die of passion than of boredom.” – Vincent Van Gogh

If you’re not filling your spare time with things that make you feel alive and excited and passionate, what exactly are you doing, then?

Maybe you feel as if you don’t have any spare time for passion. In that case, that means you’ve filled your life with obligations that you don’t care about, in which case you should be seriously looking at ways to divest yourself from those obligations as much as possible.

Maybe you don’t feel as though you have anything to be passionate about. In that case, you should be using your spare time to explore all kinds of new things. You should be trying everything under the sun and find something that does elicit an excitement within you.

A wonderful life is one in which you work to live, not live to work.

2. Tim Harford on how frustration can make us more creative

From the description:

Challenges and problems can derail your creative process … or they can make you more creative than ever. In the surprising story behind the best-selling solo piano album of all time, Tim Harford may just convince you of the advantages of having to work with a little mess.

I often feel as though my best writing happens when I’m pushed up against the wall of a deadline.

When I don’t have a big deadline right in front of me, it’s easy for me to get bogged down in the details of writing. I’ll write a sentence, stare at it, erase it, write it again, and so on. Half of the time, I’ll get so lost in the minutiae that I can’t see the forest for the trees.

When a deadline is on top of me, though, things are different. I tend to get into this writing “zone,” in which I write very efficiently. I stop worrying quite so much about writing the perfect sentence or the perfect paragraph and instead I focus on putting ideas down on paper.

The end result isn’t perfect, but it is pretty good and it’s usually more coherent overall.

In other words, because there’s a new kind of challenge in front of me, I step up to that challenge. I meet it head on. That challenge demands more of me than the normal day-to-day tasks.

That’s a good thing. It makes me stronger.

3. Jerry Rice on today

“Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can’t.” – Jerry Rice

Virtually all of us want a great tomorrow. We have dreams about the future that make for a much better life in some respects than the life that we have now, and it’s pleasant to think about those dreams.

The biggest thing that stands in the way of those dreams, though, is a pleasant day today.

Rather than exercising, we choose to binge-watch a show on Netflix. Rather than studying, we look at Facebook. Rather than building that small business, we leaf through a magazine. Rather than working on real change, we do little meaningless tasks around the house.

If you want a truly great tomorrow, you have to stop doing silly time-filling stuff today. Those things – browsing Facebook, watching television, and so on – don’t add up to a great tomorrow. Sure, they make the hours pass today and they entertain us for the moment, but they don’t build to anything better in life.

What are you doing today that builds to something better in life tomorrow? If you can’t answer that question when it comes to the things you’re doing today, perhaps you need to rethink what it is that you are doing today.

4. Remember the Milk

For many, many years, I used Remember the Milk as my preferred task management application. I started using it circa 2004 or 2005 or so and stuck with it for almost a decade.

The problem was that there were a few key features I really wanted that they just never seemed to implement. The biggest one was “subtasks,” meaning I wanted the ability to add a big item to my to-do list and give it a bunch of steps toward completion that I could check off along the way.

So, eventually, I switched to Todoist sometime in 2014 or so to manage my tasks. There were still aspects of Remember the Milk that I liked better, but Todoist was closer to exactly what I wanted than RtM was.

Well, recently, Remember the Milk rolled out a complete rewrite of their task management system and they added almost every feature I ever wanted, including, yes, subtasks. I tried it out and they work perfectly, almost exactly like I always wanted them to work.

So, now Remember the Milk is really close to my perfect to-do app, closer than Todoist. But do I go through the effort of switching back? I’m not sure yet.

Still, kudos to them to rolling out such a great design. Again, if I were starting from scratch, without hundreds of things already in Todoist, I would use Remember the Milk. For me, it’s the best task management tool out there right now.

5. The axe and the trees

“When the axe came into the woods, many of the trees said, ‘At least the handle is one of us.'” – Turkish proverb

This proverb comes from a number of sources of Greek, Turkish, and Western Asian sources, including from the fable The Woodcutter and the Trees.

For me, this proverb is a stark warning against confirmation bias. We rely so much on simple things to guide us toward what is right and good and away from what is wrong and bad that it becomes easy for those who want to fool us to put on the appearances of what we think of as right and good and lead us astray.

Don’t judge people by what they first appear to be. Don’t take their first words as symbols of comfort or symbols of mistrust. Don’t let a name or a label fool you.

Listen to what they’re saying. Watch how they act, how they treat others. Let the broader picture of things be your true judge.

6. Danit Peleg on downloadable physical objects and the future of shopping

From the description:

Downloadable, printable clothing may be coming to a closet near you. What started as designer Danit Peleg’s fashion school project turned into a collection of 3D-printed designs that have the strength and flexibility for everyday wear. “Fashion is a very physical thing,” she says. “I wonder what our world will look like when our clothes will be digital.”

For me, this video wasn’t amazing in terms of clothing, but in terms of the fact that very radical changes to shopping are coming in the near future. 3D printers can now print most of the stuff we buy at the store, from clothing to containers, from food items to small electronic devices. In the very near future, we won’t have to shop for much other than fresh food or refills for our home printers.

That’s an enormous shift from the world we live in today, where we have to shop for many different kinds of items. It’s really exciting to see things that we previously thought of as being in the far off future getting rather close to being available in homes. In fact, this stuff is already available for home use, but the interfaces and usability is still being improved.

7. Otto von Bismarck on learning from mistakes

“A fool learns only from his own mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others.” – Otto von Bismarck

Probably the most powerful thing that’s happened to me over the years of writing for The Simple Dollar is hearing from literally thousands of readers (probably tens of thousands), many of whom have shared their stories in great detail with me. They’ve outlined the choices they’ve made, both good and bad, and shared both their heartache and success with me.

There have been times when reader emails and messages have driven me to the brink of tears, both for joy and for sadness. Many, many such messages have left me thinking for days, about their life, about my own life, and about the world.

Over the last few years, though, I’ve realized that the flood of stories has actually helped me grow as a person. I can see many times where the stories of readers have guided me to make better choices in my own life, even if I never asked for or wanted such advice or input.

It is only through seeing the mistakes of others that I have managed to avoid them. Similarly, it is only through seeing the successful paths of others that I have managed to follow those paths.

Look at the people around you. What are they doing well? Where are they struggling? What can those things teach you about your own life?

8. Eva Cassidy – Over the Rainbow

From the description:

Restored footage of Eva Cassidy performing Over The Rainbow. The performance took place at the Blues Alley jazz supper club in Georgetown, DC, on the 3rd January 1996.

In 1996, Eva Cassidy was an obscure vocalist and guitarist who was somewhat known in the Washington DC music scene, but wasn’t known elsewhere. She discovered that she had melanoma and by the time it was caught and treated, it had spread throughout her body and she died late that year in musical obscurity.

Two years later, an audio recording of this performance at Blues Alley, along with her performance of Fields of Gold from the same show, was discovered by Terry Wogan and Mike Harding of BBC Radio 2, and the two broadcasters began frequently playing the songs. The response was overwhelming. Out of nowhere, her compilation album Songbird went from utter obscurity to the top of the British music charts. She ended up selling over ten million copies of her albums posthumously. By 2005, Amazon listed her as one of their five best selling musical artists ever.

Never give up. Never stop making things. You might never see the impact that it can have on others.

9. Bruce Lee on practice

“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” – Bruce Lee

My children are all involved in taekwondo at various belt levels. They deeply enjoy the practices (although sometimes they grumble before the practices if they’re taken away from something else they want to be doing) and participate in tournaments and such.

The interesting thing is that they expect to be good at a new move or form that they’re learning almost as soon as they work through it a time or two. They’ll get a new form right and just decide, “Yeah, I’ve got this. I’m good at this.”

The other day, I had them do a simple move that they do over and over again at their practices. I told them I wanted to see it. All of them did it perfectly, almost without effort.

Then I had them do a form that they just learned but had only really done a few times. It was jerky and slow and amateurish.

The thing is, even then they couldn’t quite see the difference. It was only when I had them stop and watch each other that they saw it. They were clearly light years better at the thing they had practiced many, many times than at the thing they had practiced just a few times.

You’re far better off becoming the master of one thing than becoming the student of a thousand.

10. Sal Khan’s 2012 MIT commencement speech

An excerpt from this speech:

“Imagine yourself in 50 years. You’re in your early 70s, near the end of your career (we have a few models here if you have trouble visualizing that). You’re sitting on your couch. 2062, and you’ve just finished watching the State of the Union holograph by president Kardashian.

And you start to reflect on your life. You start to think of all your successes, your career successes, your family successes, the great memories that you’ve had. But then you start to think about all of the things you wished you had done just a little differently, your regrets. I can imagine what they might be.

You wish you had spent more time with your children, you’ll wish that you had told your spouse how much you loved them more frequently, you’ll wish you could have spent more time and told your parents how much you appreciated them before they passed away. And just while that’s happening, a genie appears.

The genie says, “Well, I’ve been listening in on your regrets, and you seem like a good person. I’m willing to give you a second chance if you are open to it.” And so you say sure, and the genie snaps his fingers and you blink your eyes and when you open them you find yourself right there right where you are right now, June 8th 2012, Killian Court. Some crazy guy is giving a commencement speech. And you say “Oh my god, I’m in my twentysomething, fit, pain-free body again! I’m around my peers again, and the genie was serious! I can have a second chance, I can have all of the successes, all of the adventures I had the first time around, but now I can optimize things. Now when I see my classmates and I give them that hug at commencement, I can hug them a little bit harder, I can show them how much I care about them. Now that my parents are back, I can finally tell them how much I appreciate them. I can finally give them more hugs, more time. I can do everything more; I can laugh more, I can sing more, I can dance more, I can be more of a source of positivity for people around me and empower more people.”

The question is, why not do those things now? Don’t wait around for a genie to give you a second chance.

11. Jimmy Carter on a motivated life

“We should live our lives as though Christ were coming this afternoon.” – Jimmy Carter

Regardless of your religious or political feelings, stop for a moment and ask yourself that question. What would you do if you know without a doubt that Christ himself was going to descend from heaven this afternoon? What would you do differently about your personal choices?

Now, here’s the real question: why aren’t you doing things that way today? Why does it make things different that Christ would be returning this afternoon?

In other words, why don’t we live every day up to the highest standard of our values and morals?

It’s a very interesting way to think about the world and about our own choices.

12. Vincent van Gogh’s Bedroom in Arles

I felt that, this month, since I started with van Gogh, I should finish with him, too.

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to see this second version (he painted three variations on this) of van Gogh’s Bedroom in Arles at the Art Institute of Chicago.

As always with a van Gogh painting, whenever I see one of his best works in a room, it looks like it’s practically glowing with energy. It’s almost as if the rest of the room dims and his painting absorbs all of the energy in the room. His paintings come to life for me like no one else’s paintings do.

His art makes something simple, like a simple bedroom or a starry night, into an ecstatic moment, an eruption of joy and magnificence on a canvas that I’ve never seen anyone else capture.

I think very few people that have ever lived have had the gift of being able to create something that can do that.

Sure, his angles aren’t perfect. It’s not realistic (though it’s not meant to be). Many other people can create more accurate, more technical images. Others even manage to use more color.

But there’s something magical here, at least to my eyes. Something incomparable.

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Obama's Budget to Nowhere

Barack Obama's latest and last budget is nothing if not is a grandiose visionary document. No one - least of all Congress - paid much attention to it, because no one cares where this lamest of duck presidents wants the country to go fiscally. After $8 trillion of new debt added, he's done enough trouble to our nation's finances already.

 

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What Happens When You Cancel a Credit Card?

There are myriad reasons you might consider closing an old credit card. Perhaps you’ve spent too much on credit in the past and want to prevent going down that rabbit hole again. Or maybe you’re ready to upgrade to a new rewards credit card and plan to cut up your old one. Other people close old accounts simply because they haven’t used them in years and it’s one less thing to keep track of.

Whatever your reason, know this: Closing an old credit card account can have consequences.

What Actually Happens When You Close an Old Account?

Shutting down an old credit card account involves much more than a pair of scissors. Once you decide to close a credit card, you’ll need to give your card issuer a call using the contact number on the back of your card. Here’s what happens next:

Your card issuer will ask you some questions regarding your account.

Occasionally, your credit card company will cancel your card with no questions asked, but other times, they’ll try to convince you to change your mind. Sometimes they’ll even transfer you to a customer retention department whose sole purpose is to entice you to keep your card. They may even offer you special perks – including credit card rewards or balance transfer offers – to convince you to stay.

If you truly want to cancel your card, it’s okay to politely decline these offers and proceed with the closure. Just remember, closing an account means it will be closed for good.

The closed account is reported to the credit bureaus.

Within a month after you close your account, the action will be reported to the credit reporting agencies – Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. However, closing an account doesn’t mean its positive impact is over. According to Experian, accounts with no negative marks can remain on your credit history for up to 10 years.

As long as your credit card account doesn’t have any negative marks, its impact should be felt for many years to come – and that’s true whether you close it or not.

Your credit score might go down, albeit temporarily.

Closing an account could have a negative impact on your FICO score, the score most commonly used by lenders. That’s because of the way FICO scores are determined, and the complex maze of factors they use to determine whether your score goes up or down.

The FICO scoring method relies on ratings in five general categories: payment history (35%), amounts owed (30%), length of credit history (15%), new credit (10%), and types of credit used (10%).

The factors that could be influenced when you close an account are 1) the amount of money you owe in relation to your credit limits – also known as utilization — and 2) the length of your credit history.

Utilization: If you are debt-free across all of your accounts, your utilization will be zero across the board. When that’s the case, closing an old account won’t change your utilization at all. But if you owe money on other credit cards or loans, closing an old account with a high credit limit could instantly push up your utilization. Because you’ll technically be using a bigger slice of your available credit, Experian reports this could hurt your score.

As an example, say you have two credit cards with a $5,000 limit on each, and you’re carrying $2,000 in balances — that means your using $2,000 out of $10,000 in available credit, so your utilization rate is 20%. If you close one of the cards, however, you’re suddenly using $2,000 out of $5,000 in total credit — and now your utilization rate has jumped to an unsavory 40%.

Length of credit history: Closing an old credit card can definitely decrease the average age of your credit history, too – especially if the card you’re closing was established a long time ago, or maybe even your first-ever credit card. According to Experian, this is yet another reason your score could drop temporarily if you close an old account.

Image: Larry Wentzel

What to Do Before You Close a Credit Card

To close or not to close – that is the question. If you don’t have a compelling reason to close your account, it might be wise to keep it open and simply cut up the card or stash it away in a drawer instead.

Keeping an old account open allows you to lengthen the average age of your credit accounts over time, plus keep your utilization as low as possible. And if you don’t close an old account, you don’t have to worry about the closure negatively impacting your credit.

If you insist on closing your account for any reason, here’s what you should do first:

Step 1: Cancel any automatic charges linked to the card.

Before you close your credit card, you’ll want to cancel any automatic payments liked to the account, including gym memberships, subscriptions, or utilities you have automatically billed to your card. You’ll want to move these expenses to another credit card or form of payment. Otherwise, you could incur late fees or penalties — or even a ding to your credit report — when these services attempt to bill the canceled credit card.

Step 2: Pay your credit card balance in full.

Before you close your credit card, you’ll need to pay your balance in full. Make sure you allow any pending purchases to post before mailing in your final check or performing your final payment online. Once your final payment posts and your account balance drops to zero, you’ll be able to move forward.

Step 3: Redeem all of your rewards.

Most of the time, closing an account means forfeiting any credit card rewards you have earned along the way. Before you call your card issuer to close your account, you’ll want to redeem your rewards in whatever fashion make the most sense. Most of the time, the easiest redemptions come in the form of cash back or gift cards.

Step 4: Call your card issuer to cancel.

Calling the number on the back of your card is the easiest way to get in touch with the department that will actually close your account. Just remember to be steadfast in your resolve if you truly want to close your account. Most of the time, the customer service agent will close your account without too much hassle or stress.

Step 5: Check your credit report to make sure the cancellation went through.

Most of the time, your card’s closure will go off without a hitch. To follow up and make sure your account is indeed closed, you can check your free credit report on AnnualCreditReport.com or log into a free account with Credit Karma. Either way, you’ll want to double-check that your account is closed for sure.

Follow up, if needed.

If your credit report doesn’t show a closure within two or three months, it’s wise to follow up with your card issuer. Call the number on the back of your card again to ensure your account was closed as requested. If you’re not satisfied, you may also want to consider sending a certified letter stating your request for account closure using the address listed on the back of your card.

The Bottom Line

Pulling the plug on an old credit card account is a decision that shouldn’t be taken lightly. However, it’s not the end of the world, either. If your credit is good or excellent, and your debt levels are nonexistent or minimal, closing your account may not impact you at all.

At the same time, closing an old account isn’t your only option. If you’re worried about how a closure might impact your score, you can always keep your account open and stash your card away for safe keeping, or even cut it into smithereens to ensure you don’t use it (and that no one else does, either).

Either way, it’s best to make sure any decision you make is an informed one.

Have you ever closed a credit card? Did the process go smoothly?

Related Articles: 

• These Credit Cards Let You See Your FICO Credit Score Free
• Does Carrying a Balance Help Your Credit?
• Five Things People With Good Credit Have in Common

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Want to Eat Healthy on a Budget? This FREE Cookbook is a Game Changer

Eating healthy is hard no matter who you are.

But eating healthy when you’re on a tight budget can feel damn near impossible.

During my broke patches, I found myself eating a lot of $5 subs and pizzas — and on my darkest days, cans of Beefaroni. I didn’t feel good, but I didn’t have the money, time or knowledge to cook — or at least that’s what I thought.

But, here’s the thing: My budget was higher than 45 million Americans who receive food stamps. And I only work 40 hours a week and don’t have kids to support.

If I could barely figure out how to eat healthy with my budget and time constraints, I can’t imagine how much harder it must be for other people.

So I was excited to learn about Leanne Brown, a crusader for home cooking and healthy eating — all on a food stamp budget.

Her cookbook, “Good and Cheap: Eating on $4/Day,” is available as a FREE download on her website, and is jam-packed with smart tips and accessible recipes.

I chatted with Brown — who’s definitely my new food crush — to discover her best tips for eating healthy on a budget.

She had some fantastic insights, so if you want to feed your family food that’s good AND cheap, keep reading…

Why “Good and Cheap” is So Important

As a master’s student in NYU’s food studies program, Brown studied the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more commonly known as SNAP — or food stamps — and was “devastated by the numbers.”

In addition to the 45 million Americans on food stamps, she says, “many, many millions more are close to that, or haven’t signed up, or in some way are food insecure.”

And, many of these people turn to processed foods or eating out — they believe cooking is too time-consuming or expensive.

But Brown knew the opposite was true. “Cooking can make everything so much cheaper,” she says — and of course, healthier.

So, for her thesis project, she created a cookbook “generally aimed at people who are living on food stamps,” and ended up with the tagline “Eat well on $4 a day” — the average amount people have to work with for food.

After “Good and Cheap” went viral on Reddit, she ran a Kickstarter campaign to fund a print version of the book. Her goal was $10,000 — but she ended up raising over $144,000.

“It was a totally life changing, insane experience,” she says.

Now the book is available nationwide. For every copy sold, Brown gives one away to nonprofits across the country, which then give those books to people in need, or include them as part of broader public health programs.

“It’s been really amazing,” she says. “It’s gone so far beyond what I ever thought it could be. People have adapted it to so many different audiences… There’s so much joy in getting to eat a variety of foods, and feeling empowered to do it.”

11 Tips for Eating Healthy on a Budget

Though Brown’s story is inspiring, you’re probably here for her tips.

To take advantage of all her advice, I highly recommend downloading her entire free cookbook — but to get you started, here are some tips she highlighted during our conversation:

1. Start Slowly

Learning healthy eating habits is a marathon, not a sprint.

If you push yourself too hard in the beginning, you’re more likely to give up.

“Don’t expect to go from very rarely cooking, to cooking three meals a day, every single day,” says Brown.

“That’s kind of setting yourself up for failure… Maybe to start, try three new things this week, and see how they go.”

The same goes for kitchen-related purchases.

“If you think, ‘I can’t start cooking until I have everything I could possibly need, and a really, really well-stocked pantry,’ then you’re probably never going to do it,” says Brown.

Prioritize your purchases based on needs, and add items one-by-one to stay on budget.

2. Focus on Flavorful Additions

The “start slowly” rule also applies to food items — you don’t need to fill your entire spice cabinet before making a single dish.

“Try to think about adding at least one larger item, maybe every couple of weeks, that’s a really important flavor,” suggests Brown.

“Whether it’s some olive oil, or a couple of jars of spices… Think about those sorts of items that really add a lot of flavor to your general staples.”

Put simply: Decide which flavors you like the most, and buy those first.

3. Celebrate Vegetables

Brown isn’t saying to go vegetarian, but she does suggest making your meals more “vegetable-centric.”

“I absolutely love vegetables,” she says. “I think they’re exciting, and make flavor happen really easily, and are a great way to incorporate variety into your diet.”

4. Buy Produce on Purpose

I often have grand aspirations at the grocery store — buying all sorts of different vegetables I think I’ll use that week.

Then, I get home from work, exhausted — and eat a frozen pizza. Apparently I’m not the only one.

Brown says food waste is one of the reasons fresh produce can seem more expensive than pre-packaged foods. She suggests only buying produce you “have a purpose for” — at least at first.

“Really, so much of the key for budgeting well is to buy your stuff, and then make sure you actually use it all,” she says.

“Even telling yourself, ‘I will not go out and get more groceries until my crisper is empty of everything,’ you’ll notice, probably, you’re saving $10, $20 a week.”

5. Choose Ingredients With Multiple Uses

A good rule of thumb: Don’t buy some expensive ingredient that only serves one purpose.

“One of the tenets of the book is to buy items you can use in multiple ways,” Brown explains.

She gives the example of buying plain yogurt instead of vanilla yogurt: “You can just flavor it with whatever you like, and you can also use it for sauces. You can use it in cooking, in baking. There’s so much variety possible.”

6. Shop Seasonally

You’ve probably heard this advice before, but may not know how to put it into practice.

To help, here’s a fantastic interactive seasonal food guide that tells you what’s in season, based on your state.

Not only is it cheaper, Brown says eating seasonally “can also be a great way to make yourself have a variety of fruits and vegetables in your diet, because throughout the year you’re kind of changing what your go-tos are, based on what is readily available and cheap.”

7. Opt for Canned or Frozen Produce

And if something’s not in season? Don’t be afraid of the canned or frozen aisles.

“Frozen produce can be a really great value, and really good quality, too,” says Brown.

“Even [something] canned can sometimes be pretty great… Canned tomatoes are fantastic. Honestly, other than in July and August, I’d much rather eat canned tomatoes than fresh.”

8. Cook in Batches

The excuse many of us use for not cooking? “It takes too much time.”

To combat this, Brown suggests cooking in batches.

She even has a “Big Batch” section in her cookbook for recipes to make on your day off and eat throughout the week.

Her examples include a big pot of chili or beans that will last several meals, or a dozen hard-boiled eggs you can grab as quick snacks.

9. Accept It’ll Take More Time

Brown is under no illusions cooking is as quick as grabbing fast food, but she does believe the extra time is worth it — and once you’ve learned certain cooking methods, it won’t take that much longer.

“There is some sort of trade off — I won’t lie,” she says.

“I know the reality is a lot of people simply have like only an hour at home a day, because they’re working two, three jobs… so [some recipes] won’t work, but some of the 20-minute meals can. I think it’s just a matter of figuring out what you can do, and facing the reality you have.”

10. Be Kind to Yourself

When you do start cooking, be patient with yourself during the process.

“Sometimes, there’s so much guilt around eating healthfully,” explains Brown.

“People feel like they’re failing if they’re not doing things correctly… whereas being excited to try something that’s going to be tasty and interesting can be… more motivating long term.”

11. Find Joy in Cooking

Similarly, it’s important to view cooking as an enjoyable activity — rather than a duty. It’s the only way you’ll stick with it!

“Focus on the pleasure it can give you, or that it has brought you… rather than the, ‘OK, I’m doing the right thing for my family,’” explains Brown.

An Easy and Healthy Recipe: Crustless Veggie Quiche

It’s time to sample the goods!

When I asked Brown which recipe I should share, she recommended this crustless quiche — an easy and versatile dish.

“It’s delicious, and it’s awesome for lunch or dinner,” she says. “It’s actually good cold… It’s just a hilariously ‘anything you want works’ in this. I haven’t found anything that doesn’t go with eggs yet.”

She also says it’s a great opportunity to use up wilted vegetables or those on the verge of going bad. She promises this recipe will bring them back to life!

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp butter

• 1 large onion, sliced into half moons

• 3-4 cups chopped vegetables

• 8 eggs

• 1 cup milk

• 1 cup cheddar or other cheese, grated

• 1 tsp salt

• ½ tsp black pepper

Directions

Set the oven to 400 °F.

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion slices and sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper over them. Cook the onions until they’re golden brown and starting to caramelize.

Butter a pie plate and scoop in the onions, creating an even layer on the bottom. The onions add a crust-like texture and a bit of crunch.

A note on vegetables: For things like broccoli, cauliflower or winter squash, I suggest steaming or cooking them before adding them to the quiche to ensure they’ll be fully cooked. For tomatoes, zucchini, spinach or any other quick-cooking vegetable, just use them fresh.

Spread the vegetables evenly over top of the onions. The dish or pan should look fairly full.

In a bowl, use a fork to lightly beat the eggs with the milk, cheese, salt and pepper, just enough to break up the yolks and whites. This is a savory custard mixture. Pour the custard over the vegetables and onions and enjoy watching it fill in all the free spaces. Bake the quiche in the oven for 1 hour.

Once the surface is lightly brown all the way across, it’s fully cooked. Let the quiche cool for about 20 minutes, then slice into wedges and serve with a side salad.

Sounds amazing, right? Personally, I can’t wait to try all of the recipes in Brown’s book!

To grab your free copy, head to LeanneBrown.com.

Your Turn: What’s your biggest challenge when it comes to eating healthy on a budget?

Susan Shain, senior writer for The Penny Hoarder, is always seeking adventure on a budget. Visit her blog at susanshain.com, or say hi on Twitter @susan_shain.

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