Cheap eats

Searches for recipes using inexpensive ingredients increased 91 percent over the past three months at Allrecipes.com, which receives more than 35 million annual visits from users, according to its Monthly Measuring Cup report. Consumers seek more pocketbook-friendly recipes because of an unstable economic landscape. Some of the least-expensive but most-used ingredients include ground beef, pasta, and rice. Searches for make-at-home versions of popular ethnic restaurant dishes also increased significantly. Traffic spiked for searches involving Chinese fare (up 200 percent), while searches for Indian recipes rose 93 percent. In March, Green Eggs and Ham rose to the top, influenced no doubt by St. Patrick’s Day and Easter. Top searches were ham, deviled eggs, egg salad, scalloped potatoes and turkey. With Super Bowl parties and Valentine’s Day now history, finger foods took a dip. Decreasing search terms were sugar cookies, appetizers, cupcakes, pot roast and scallops. With Earth Day approaching, searches for spring vegetables surged 27 percent during March. Most popular veggie searches were asparagus, broccoli and spinach. All Recipes