Category Archives: new recipes

Spicy Sloppy Joes

Posted on by

2

A little of the same old same old is just fine for me. It becomes comforting to go back to childhood favorites and share them with your kids. Sloppy joes are the ultimate in comfort food but I needed a bit more this go around! These were spicy but I went back for seconds because I so enjoyed the flavor. If you don’t like messing with the classics these probably are not for you. But if you like throwing caution to the wind and piling on the chillies …welcome!

20130205-080522.jpg

One can Rotel, drained
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2-3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon ground mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown ground beef over medium heat. While browning mix all ingredients in bowl except Rotel.

20130205-080841.jpg
Drain ground beef and rinse. Add Rotel and cook 1-2 minutes over medium heat. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Lower and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve over you favorite hamburger buns. This was enough to feed myself and my little one with a serving left over but you could always double the recipe.

I loved this recipe and it’s frugal cant beat that!

About these ads

Fourth of July Pretzel Snacks

Posted on by

1

Today was a great day of getting out of the house. We had a play date that ended in melt down city so when we came off to bed little one went to bed. I had an unusual amount of energy today though so decided to tackle this simple “recipe”.

Pretzel sticks Ingredients:

- Pretzel Rods

- White chocolate mmmm

- sprinkles

That is it yay.

You will also need wax paper and a baking sheet to set them on to chill.

1. Melt Chocolate in microwave 30 seconds for each square. Stir to smooth consistency.

2. Lick spoon.

3. Dip pretzel sticks in chocolate and let drip excess.

4. Sprinkle with super festive colors.

5. Lay on wax lined baking sheet and let harden in fridge. 30 minutes.

After they are hardened you can decorate. I used saran wrap and ribbon so they were easy to hand out.
Total time spent dipping, sprinkling, chilling and decorating about 2 hours. Total money spent around $9.00.

Roast Chicken Repurposed Ten Ways

Posted on by

4

Mmm…how I craved one tonight! I bought a small five pound bird for a small price and am already considering all the things I can make with the leftovers. As I stated in my guest post on moneysavingmom.com I love cooking chicken. It can be repurposed so many ways. Here are my top ten.
1. Sliced Chicken and gravy. This was one of my Mother’s third day leftover favorites. After serving the Chicken for two days she would often whip up her favorite gravy with flour, chicken stock and butter in a skillet on the stove. She would then simmer the meat for a few minutes to repurpose it into a whole new meal!
2. Chicken salad sandwich. There are a million go to varieties of this meal. My preferred having low fat mayo, diced red grapes and celery on a whole wheat roll.
3. Chicken soup. After picking all meat off the bone you can add noodles, a variety of vegetables and the chicken to stock you easily have a kitchen go to!
4. Chicken tacos. After having made these using a variety of spices I discovered my husbands favorite using McCormick’s spicy taco packets and very small pieces of diced chicken breasts.
5. Chicken fajitas. Again these can be made simply with a pre made spice packet in you grocery aisle and a few other ingredients.
6. Chicken and dumplings. Left over roast chicken is perfect for this recipe!
7. Chicken and enchiladas. Also a great use for leftovers for here.
8. Classic chicken sandwich. I love shaved chicken breast, mayo, tomato and lettuce on wheat bread. The real reason my “eating for two” self roasted a chicken tonight. Amazing!!
9. Chopped chicken salad. Veggies get a protein kick with this addition.
10. A chicken casserole. With the meat already made you can easily whip one up in less than 30 minutes in one pan. An ideal meal.

By buying a whole chicken instead of breasts you can save up to 50% off. With a little creativity and a few on hand ingredients you can serve the cooked meat many different ways before you family tires of frugality. What are your favorite ways to repurpose a chicken?

Easy Chicken Enchiladas

Posted on by

6

Here is another comfort food idea that takes little effort.

Ingredients list:

1lb -2lb chicken- depending on how much you want to make. I usually do a double batch of 2 lb chicken. You can use any cut but the breast meat, in my opinion, tastes the best.

2 cups-4 cups shredded Mexican cheese (this is the four cheese you see in the market)

Corn tortillas

Enchilada sauce 2 large cans. My husband prefers the sauce hot so I will buy one can mild and one hot so it is not too overpowering.

Diced black olives (optional)

Preheat oven 350. Boil chicken until cooked, cool and shred. Place chicken on a plate, cheese on another plate ( and I usually mix the olives with the cheese), enchilada sauce on a plate. Take a tortilla and dip each side in the sauce fill with about half a cup shredded chicken and add cheese (optional olives) as well. Roll up and place in baking pan. Repeat this process until your pan is lined with tortillas. Top with extra sauce and cheese and cover with tin foil. We like ours extra gooey! Bake for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling. Remove foil and allow to cool. Serve with refried beans and/or rice. yummy!

Lots of Grace

Posted on by

0

My husband is so dear. I have had a rough week with the baby waking many times a night and come Friday night I was exhausted.  He shooed me off to bed and sat with the little one until midnight. It was awesome. Thank God for such an understanding, helpful husband!

In other news broccoli casserole is not my thing. I can’t imagine anyone who would enjoy the recipe I posted from allrecipes.com last time. I thought it would be savory and worth all the calories loaded in it but I found it greasy and salty. Surprised since it received such great reviews.  But I did find another way to cook, you guessed it, chicken. In my steamer believe it or not.  I rubbed the boneless chicken breasts with kosher salt, pepper and lemon juice liberally and set the steamer for 30 minutes and they were cooked perfectly. I am well on my way to a post titled 100 ways to cook delicious chicken breasts. Semi joking at this point since it is my favorite meat.

Tomorrow will be spent reflecting on the week and goals. I can’t wait to clip my coupons, sip my tea and sit in the husbands arms as yet another predeployment weekend slips by.

A Week I am Grateful for…

Posted on by

0

This week I fell back into my role as full time mother and wife and left crazy sick lady behind.  Which is a huge positive because that lady is never a joy to behold.
I can imagine life as a 50′s housewife and I think I might enjoy it. Not the extra elbow grease needed to complete any task or the lack of my beloved blue jeans and microwave. The same microwave that can whip up an amazing brownie in 2 minutes flat. Yeah it is easier being the chipper housewife when one has chocolate. Mmmm warm gooey chocolate…where were we? Ah yes creating our new house into a home.

Every meal is uplifting when creating it out of love but I found my eggs unusually so. I love this. Never had eggs that greeted me with goodwill and an amazing reminder but I love it. The day was spent cooking and reflecting and baking and playing with children. It is not a nitch for every lady but this lady loves it. I love living in a life surrounded by what I have created. My home, my deco, my children, my love. It is an uplifting feeling when a person sees the true love that fills their home. Granted some days are more trying than others. Some days I wish for many microwave brownies but this day was, well it was what I have made my life about. Family. The family I created in God’s love.

Who wouldn’t melt at this imagine? My sweeets. He admires his Daddy and loves all things of him.

So along with praying more I want to set more goals. Every Sunday I will be outlining a list of goals for the week. So many Moms I know do this. Otherwise it is easy to get lost in the week our purpose. This week though I didn’t share them at first I did excellent to meet many of my goals.

Try a new recipe:

A Quiche made with a brown rice crust and a cheese, broccoli and onion filling. My husband that arch nemesis of all things healthy ( well most) said “Not bad.” A review I smiled at.

Fill my freezer with homemade baby food:

This was a lot of fun actually and so much healthier and cheaper than store bought. No additives just veggies. I steamed acorn squash and cubed it and placed in ice trays to freeze. I was told each cube is a 1 oz serving so when the cubes freeze I placed them in a freezer bad in the deep freeze. At meals I take out as many cubes as the baby requires and nuke them for about 25 secs and they are delish. I steamed broccoli as well. Most ended up on the floor but he attempted to eat it quickly. Still learning but I will call these a raving hit!
This weekend I hope to steam my bags of Fuji apples and cube them as well for future meals. I can’t wait to find more in the produce aisle for my sweets to try. Until tomorrow everyone.