I have been on an ongoing quest to cut down my spending in all aspects of my life. As you may or may not know, I have some mild food-hoarding tendencies (thank you, family), so I have a well-stocked pantry and freezer. It’s strange — when I’m at the beach house, I love the Iron Chef-like challenge of assessing available ingredients and coming up with a meal based on what’s around. Perhaps it’s because there are fewer alternate options. At home, for some reason, it often seems easier to pick up something on the way home or order in, despite the fact that I like to cook. I am trying to break myself of that habit and turn to my kitchen first. Last night I was ravenous when I got home. The goal? A decent meal in 30 minutes or less from what I had in the house. The end result was a tasty batch of rice and beans, with leftovers to boot!