Cheerio Treats

My kid love cheerios, so being the awesome mom that I am, I made cheerio treats. My kids went nuts over these things. My 2 year old son stood next to them pointing and rapidly talking and smiling while my 1 year old daughter stood on tippy toes trying her hardest to reach a treat.

This recipe comes in around $3.50 (give or take depending on sales) and makes about 36 heaping tablespoon sized snacks. That's roughly $.10 per treat!

Ingredients:
1 C sugar
1 C corn syrup
1 C creamy peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
5 C cheerios (we prefer the multigrain in the purple box)

In a large pot, bring sugar and corn syrup to a boil. Allow to boil 1 minute.
Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth.
Gently stir in cheerios to coat with syrup.
Drop heaping tablespoons of the mixture unto wax paper laid out on a large flat surface.
Allow to cool at least 10-15 minutes.
Enjoy!

My Meal Planner

I've previously posted about meal planning and how it helps me to stay within a small budget, I've also shared a couple meal plans with you, but today I'm showing you my meal planner. That's right, I have a meal planner. It's pink and has enough room to plan an entire years worth of meals.

As you can see my meal planner is literally a planner. I found it in the back to school clearance at Target for approximately $2 and thought, "I could totally use this to write my meal plans in! Maybe I won't misplace it so often." Previously, I simply wrote my plans in a spiral bound notebook, but we have so many floating around, I constantly misplaced it throughout the week. Then I couldn't remember what I had planned.

Another nice feature to having an actual planner is I can remind myself to prep things or make certain snacks and baked goods on certain days so that everything is ready when it's time to put a meal together.

This is an actual picture of this week's menu in my planner. Can you read it on your computers? I checked on mine and found it legible. My only complaint is the font color, I guess I'll have to stick with black if I'm going to take photos.

Do you have a special place for your menu plan?

How I use my $50 grocery budget: week of 11/28/11

This week, I was able to stay under budget and get everything I needed/wanted, making it a good week, but most of the sales were on things I don't buy, making my savings a little lower than I prefer. Also, I only used 1 coupon, so most of my savings were purely sales.

I altered my list quite a bit at the store, items I didn't buy will be crossed out and extra items will be italicized.

Aldi
5 lb bag grapefruit $1.99
oyster crackers
2 packs fresh broccoli $.99 each
1 lb butter unsalted $1.99 $1.90
3 doz eggs $.99 each $.89 each
corn chips $.99
pork sausage $2.29
loaf of bread $.89
2 bags frozen broccoli $.85 each
Total: $12.42

Meijer:
4 gallons milk $2.50 each
loaf of bread $.99
breakfast sausage $2.69
Kraft Singles $2.50
MB (Meijer brand) chunk cheese 16oz. cheddar $3.99
Oscar Meyer Turkey Bacon $2.50
3 blackberries $.50 each
2 salad mix $1.25 each
apples $.88lb x 2.26lb = $1.99
bananas $.54lb x 2.7lb = $1.46
carrots $.89
MB corn chips $1
oyster crackers $1.34
3 Taco Bell salsa 50%off $.88each
2 Yoplait Greek Yogurt $.89 - $.50/2 MF (doubled) = $.39 each
Total: $32.09 saved: $20.55

Total for the week $44.51
Because I had all of my prices written down, I knew when I found a better price at Aldi and was able to save $.51 by switching the store I purchased the item at. I was also pleasantly surprised to find a couple items at Aldi cheaper than the advertised price saving me an extra $.39 cents.
I do realize that these are not large sums, but when you're working with $50 a week, every penny counts and will add up to something substantial eventually.

Menu plan (in basic form, no specified days)

Breakfasts:

• toast & eggs x2
• french toast 
• cereal x3

Lunches:

• black bean quesadillas
• ham/ sandwich x2
• PB&J
• leftovers
• grilled cheese, tomato soup
• (brunch) take breakfast casserole to Christmas party

Dinners:

• broccoli cheese soup (slow cooker)
• taco salad
• creamy chicken & pasta bake
• stuffed shells, salad
• pizza
• pork chops, mac & cheese, vegetable
• meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn

Snacks:

• apples
• oranges
• blackberries
• bananas
• broccoli
• carrots
• cheerio treats
• crunchy roasted garbanzo beans

Navajo Tacos

I love sweet potatoes. They are healthy and taste phenomenal! Unfortunately my husband doesn't agree. Boo! But I solved that problem!! I made these Navajo tacos with some sweet potatoes included and my husband loved it.

This recipe isn't really about the sweet potato. It's about a 2 for 1 meal that happens to include a sweet potato among it's other stars.

This meal involves a chili and fried pastry. You can use any chili recipe you like best, but I've shared the one I used below. Depending on the week, I make the chili one day and serve it as is for dinner. Then two days later, I reheat the leftover chili and make the tacos. The other way around works well too.

For the chili:
1- 1 1/2 lbs venison round steak, cubed (or any inexpensive cut of beef)
2 cans (14.5 oz) fire roasted diced tomatoes (sometimes found at Aldi)
1 can (15.5 oz) chili beans
1 can (15.5 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15.5 oz) cannelini beans, rinsed and drained
1 large (about 1 lb) sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 TBSP cocoa powder
Chili powder
Oregano
Pepper
Mrs Dash Garlic and Herb seasoning

Stir all ingredients into slow cooker, seasoning to taste (I used a few dashes of each) and cook on low 7-8 hours.

For the taco part:
This is essentially a sopapilla.
4 C all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
4 TBSP shortening
1 1/2 C warm water
oil for frying (about 1 QT)

Mix flower, baking powder, salt, and shortening together in a stand mixer and slowly add water until the dough becomes smooth. (Depending upon room conditions, not all the water will be used.) Cover bowl add allow to sit 40 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat oil to 350 F. Heating it on the stove top in a stock pot on Medium-low will take 15-25 minutes.
Roll out dough to 1/4 inch and cut out as desired. I like using cookie cutters to make fun shapes. Fry in oil about 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and serve.

The extras not used for dinner can be topped with honey, powdered sugar, and/or cinnamon sugar. and eaten for a treat.

To assemble Tacos:
Place fried dough on plate, top with chili and cheddar cheese. Also good on top: sour cream and olives.

Freezer cooking: Our Best Bites

This freezer cooking session is all from Our Best Bites, these ladies are fabulous! I won their cookbook in a giveaway earlier this year and have been very pleased with each recipe I've tried. As with almost any recipe I make, I modify it slightly to fit my kitchen and cooking style.

These meatballs are only in the cookbook, but were so easy and smelled delicious!

 I froze some of the meatballs with a sweet and sour sauce, but left part of them alone to use with a marinara.

Quick tip: When freezing your items, place them flat on a baking sheet until frozen solid. They will stand easier and take up less space.

 These waffles are so good!! I made a huge batch and served a few with dinner. The only alteration I made with the waffles was using part whole wheat flour.

 To freeze, I laid them out on a lined baking sheet to flash freeze before putting into the bags.

Quick tip for making waffles: put a plastic place mat under the waffle iron to catch most of the mess, it's much easier to clean dried batter off the place mat than the counter.

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I'm happy to be spending the day with part of my family and am grateful for the whole lot of them.

If you missed it the other day, check out these suggestions for Thanksgiving leftovers and Black Friday.

What are you grateful for today?

Pita Bread

I absolutely love a good pita bread. It's good for so many things, but my favorites are turkey Ceasar pockets and gyros. I used to simply buy my pitas in a package of 10 frozen from GFS, but their price isn't ideal and they don't have pockets. When I switched over to my $50 a week grocery budget, I knew that either my days of yummy gyros were behind me or that I would need to make the pitas myself.

As you can guess, I decided to make them myself.

Ingredients:
2 tsp active dry yeast 
1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/4 C warm water (300ml), divided
3/4 C + 2 TBSP whole wheat flour (125 g)* 
2 3/4 C unbleached flour (375 g)*
1 tsp salt
2 TBSP olive oil

*if whole wheat isn't your thing, simply use 3 1/2 C unbleached flour (500g) instead of the combination.

Dissolve sugar and yeast into 1/2 C water (I just use a glass measuring cup). Allow to activate 5 minutes or until bubbly.
Meanwhile mix together flours and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the dry mixture and pour in yeast mixture and olive oil. Mix well.
Gradually add remaining water, as needed to make a firm, soft dough.
Knead dough on a lightly floured surface (or in stand mixer) 15 minutes until smooth and elastic.

Allow to rise in a lightly greased bowl covered with a lightly greased piece of cling wrap 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in size.
Gently squeeze to deflate, then allow to rest for 10 minutes.
Divide into 8 pieces formed into smooth balls.
Roll out to make a 9 inch oval approximately 1/4 inch think.

Cover with dish towels and proof 20 minutes until slightly risen.
Meanwhile preheat oven to 425 F and with 5 minutes to go, preheat a lightly floured baking sheet (for the 5 minutes).
Place dough on hot baking sheets and immediately bake 5-10 minutes until puffy.
Wrap the freshly baked bread in a clean, dry cloth to prevent it from drying out.

Enjoy with your favorite pita dish!

These will keep for about a day wrapped in the cloth. Reheat in a warm oven.

How I use my $50 grocery budget: week 11/21/11

It was such a popular post last week, I decided to share my shopping list again this week.

Weekend ice cream, milk, and diaper wipe run $10 + some change

I have a total of 8 turkeys in my freezer, so I don't need anymore, but they are still priced like last week, so if you still need them, now's the time.

Here's what my list looked like this week (i didn't know the prices for a few items, so those are in italics)

Meijer:
1 Angel Soft Bath Tissue 12ct double roll $5.49 - $.25/1 MF (doubled) = $4.99 not carried at my store
2 Finish Powerball Tabs 20ct $3.50 - $.75/1 MF (doubled) x2 =$2 each
3 doz. eggs $.99 each
2 Helluva Good Sour Cream Dip $1.50 - $.75/1 MF (doubled) x2 = FREE
2 Pillsbury refrigerated cookie dough $2- $.75/2 MF (doubled) x1 = $1.25 each
2 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust $2 - $.50/2 MF (doubled) x1 = $1.50 each
Buy 4Pillsbury refrigerated Get 1 gallon milk-whole FREE
2 gallons milk- skim
2 French's French Fried Onions $2.99 - $.50/1 MF (doubled) x2 = $1.99 each
2 2lb bags domino powdered sugar $1.69 - $.75/2 MF (doubled) x1 = $.94 each
1 16oz Karo Light Corn Syrup  $2.29 - $.40/1 MF (doubled) x1 = $1.49
popcorn kernels $1.79 regular price
apples $2.50 for 3lb bag
bananas $.54/lb
1 box candy canes $.99
Anticipated price: $35-40
Actual Price: $33.83 Savings of $31.19

Here's what I brought home:

I found those blackberries $.50 each!! But the milk cost me $2.99 a gallon! Ugh, I almost drove to a different store to get it cheaper, but it's just not really on sale this week. I was just happy I got a "free" gallon for the cookie dough and pie crust.

Edited 11/26/11
I also spent $9.75 this week when we went to Columbus for Thanksgiving, because that toilet paper was too good a deal  -roughly $.37-.38 per double roll (before tax)!

Total for the week: $54 (the $4 came from previous weeks of not spending the whole $50)

Tortellini Soup

I love tortellini soup! My mom and I've been making this stuff a long time. I used to make it on the stove top, but these days I try to utilize my slow cooker, so I make it in there (it also takes a lot less effort on my part).

1 T minced garlic (sometimes I use more)
42-56 ish oz (3-4 small cans, 2 boxes, or 1 large can) chicken broth (you don't need quite as much if you're using the slow cooker)
2 cans (14ish oz ea) diced tomatoes (sometimes I add an extra can when I'm using the crock pot)
1 package frozen chopped spinach (make sure you get chopped, because the regular has huge leaves)
Italian seasoning (use fresh or dried oregano, thyme, basil, and/or parsley)
1 package tortellini

Stove top: cook time approx. 1 hour
Saute garlic with some butter until golden brown. Add broth, tomatoes, spinach, and seasoning and bring to boil. Add tortellini and simmer until tortellini is cooked through.

Slow cooker:  3-4 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low + 1 hr on high
Combine garlic, broth, tomatoes, spinach, and seasoning in slow cooker and cook on high 3-4 hours or on low 6-7 hours. Add tortellini and cook on high 1 additional hour.

I prefer mine topped with a some cheese.

Variation: You can also add a chopped red onion and 1 can crisp corn  to the broth.

Enjoy!

I'm linked up this recipe to Make Ahead Meals Melt in Your Mouth blog hop. Check it out.

Enchilada Ravioli

My kids love all things pasta. Sometimes I can't get them to eat anything but noodles. Needless to say, I get bored of the traditional noodles and marinara routine. This dish takes a basic ravioli and makes it different and delicious. And the best part is that it cooks up super fast.

Servings: about 4
Total time: roughly 15-20 minutes (this includes waiting for the water to boil)

Ingredients:
1 25 oz. bag frozen chicken or beef ravioli
1 14.5 oz. can Mexican style diced tomatoes
1 10 oz. can enchilada sauce
1 small can sliced olives, drained
Mexican blend shredded cheese

Cook ravioli according to instructions on bag.
Meanwhile, combine tomatoes and sauce in a large skillet over medium-low heat.
Gently stir drained ravioli and olives into sauce.
Serve immediately topped with cheese.

Enjoy!

Pot pie

If you're still looking for more ways to use those turkey leftovers from Thanksgiving, take a stop here and consider this pot pie. I love how easy and versatile a pot pie can be. I've tried several other recipes, but this one always turns out great.

1 box refrigerated pie crust
1 1/2 C turkey or chicken, chunks or shredded
1 (10.5 oz) can cream of celery
7oz mixed vegetables (more or less too taste)

Preheat oven to 425 F. Unroll one sleeve of crust and line the bottom of pie pan.
Mix together turkey, cream of celery, and vegetables in a bowl. Transfer mix to pie pan.
Unroll second crust and place over pie. Trim excess crust and seal edges together. slit the center of the top crust to vent.
Cover pie with foil and bake in oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake 10-15 minutes more (until the crust in golden brown).

Enjoy!

A note on cost:
If you're only moderately watching sales, this meal will probably cost: $6. If you are watching sales, using some coupons, stocking up when prices are good, and/or shopping at multiple stores to get those prices. You can make this meal for $4.71 or less.
Here's my break down:
pie crust: Regular price at my local Meijer is $2.50, but it periodically goes on sale for $1.50. If you have time another option would be to make your own crust, which should save you an extra $0.50-$1
chicken: I don't pay more than $2 per lb for boneless, skinless chicken. I prefer to pay $1.87 or less.
cream of celery: I buy cream of celery at Aldi's for $0.59. If you can't get it this cheap, you could substitute cream of chicken, which you can easily get for $0.50.
mixed vegetables: I prefer to use frozen veggies, which can easily be obtained for $1 (8 oz bag), but if you use a coupon, you can get them for $0.50-$0.75. Another option is to use canned vegetables which are regularly priced at $0.79.

Chicken Pillows

Another stop on the leftover turkey train is a chicken (or in this case turkey) pillow. I know they don't look like much, but this fabulously easy meal has a slightly crunchy exterior with a melt in your mouth center.
They are a regular meal at my house and a regular request from my mom. So, I hope you like them too. Side note: I usually pair this dish with steamed broccoli, but I was all out when I took this picture.

The Ingredients:

 For the pillows:

1-2 C leftover chicken or turkey

1 -8oz package cream cheese, softened

2-3 oz chopped canned mushrooms

2 packages crescent rolls or enough home-made dough to make 16 rolls

butter, melted

breadcrumbs- plain and panko

For the gravy:

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

about 3/4 C milk

 Preheat oven to 400 F

Cut up chicken/turkey and place in a small mixing bowl

 Add mushrooms and cream cheese

 Mix thoroughly

 Open 1 crescent roll package, unroll and separate dough into pre-cut triangles.

 Place a heaping spoonful (forkful) of chicken/turkey mixture on a crescent roll close to the 90 degree corner of the triangle

 Fold side of the triangle over (essentially bringing two corners together) to cover most of the chicken

 Bring remaining corner over to meet the others

(A bird's eye view will look like a slightly lumpy rectangle)

 Pinch together all seams to form a pillow

And repeat with the second can of crescent rolls

 Mix together plain and panko bread crumbs (using approximately a 2:1 ratio) in a small bowl

Place melted butter in a separate small bowl

Dredge a pillow in the melted butter

 Coat pillow in breadcrumbs 

Place on non-stick cookie sheet

Repeat with the rest of the pillows

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until pillows are golden brown

 For the gravy: place contents of 1 can each cream of chicken and 

cream of mushroom in medium saucepan.

Mix in about 3/4 used "cream of" can milk to saucepan 

Heat over medium-low heat until heated through, stirring occasionally

Enjoy!

Making it healthier:
Substitute the cream cheese for tofu- don't be nervous, tofu doesn't really have a taste, it's the texture and filler you want.
Substitute the crescent rolls for a wheat roll recipe, I'm still searching for the perfect one, but my pizza dough recipe did fairly well.

How I use my $50 grocery budget: week of November 14, 2011

I was very excited as I began planning this week's grocery trips, because it seemed that everything I needed/wanted was on sale and/or I had a coupon.  Wanna take a look? Well, you should look either way, because I feel like bragging a bit it's a good example of buying things for now and later.

Since it's so close to Thanksgiving, Meijer has a promotion that if you buy an additional $20 worth of groceries or general merchandise, you get $10 off a hen turkey (10-15lbs) or $17 off a tom turkey (16+lbs). So I decided to split my purchase into 2 transactions, since I'm trying to stock up on turkey.

Meijer Transaction 1:
1 Turkey 10-11lbs or 16-17lb ($5 or less after promotion)
4 cans Dole pineapple $.99 - $.50/2 MF (doubled) x2 coupons =$.49each
2 Crisco vegetable oil $2.79 - $1/2 MF x1coupon = $2.29 each
2 Vlasic Pickle Spears (16-24oz) $2 -$.55/1 MF (doubled) x2 coupons = $.90each
1 3lb bag apples $2.50
1 4 lb bag oranges $3
3.84+ lbs bulk sweet potato $.25/lb (the minimum needed for $20)
Estimated out of pocket cost: $20 
Actual cost: $19.19 Saved: $25.27


Meijer Transaction #2:
1 Turkey 10-11lbs or 16-17lbs ($5 or less after promotion)
4 cans Dole mandarin oranges $.99 - $.50/2 MF (doubled) x2 coupons =$.49each
2 Crisco vegetable oil $2.79 - $1/2 MF x1coupon = $2.29 each
1 bundle Broccoli $1 all out, replaced with $.88 water for kids to drink in the store
Pillsbury Sweet rolls $1.50 -$.40 MF (doubled) x1 coupon =$1.10 each
2 Sara Lee Frozen cheesecakes 50% off -$1/1 MF x2 coupons ($6.46  $6.58 to make $20 -actual $6.78)
Estimated out of pocket cost: $20
Actual cost: $19.73 Saved: $27.07


Aldi trip:
1 3lb bag onions $.79
1 10 lb bag russet potatoes $1.99
1 package quartered butter $1.99
4 5lb bags all-purpose flour $.99each
1 package sour cream $1.29 (not advertised- guessed price)
Estimated cost: $10.02
Actual cost: $10.02

Total estimated grocery cost for the week: $50.02
Total actual cost: $48.94

That's over $100 worth of stuff right there!

This week is only a slightly typical week. It's very typical for this time of year, because I stock up on turkey and low priced items for the rest of the year. However, during most of the year only about 1/3 of my grocery trip is for food storage.

Now that you've seen my shopping trips, you're probably wondering what my meal plan looks like for this week.  Well you're in luck, because I'm feeling rather generous today ;) ..And yes, most of my meals are coming from my rotating food storage.

Monday

• cereal
• bow tie pasta w/ sauce + applesauce
• vegetable soup in slow cooker

Tuesday

• baked oatmeal
• enchilada ravioli
• taco pizza

Wednesday

• baked oatmeal
• ham, spinach, tomato, & cheese wraps (veggies from last week)
• creamy chicken & pasta bake (no broccoli at store)spaghetti w/ meat sauce + garlic bread

Thursday

• baked oatmeal (if still left) or cereal
• leftovers
• shepherd's pie (using leftover vegetable soup w/ mashed sweet potato topping)

Friday

• waffles (from freezer)
• leftovers
• Thai chicken (freezer meal) w/ Thai peanut noodles

Saturday

• baked Mexican eggs
• wraps
• Pork loin roast + potato + vegetable
• Reese no bake dessert

Sunday

• cereal
• black bean quesadillas
• leftovers

Snacks

• apples
• oranges
• pickles

What's your plan for the week? Did you get any excellent deals at the grocery?

Turkey Pasta Primavera

This dish is so light and tasty and the best part is if you don't have quite as much leftover turkey as you anticipated, the ingredients will keep for quite awhile. You may even have all the ingredients on hand already.

Serves 4   Total cook time: less than 20 minutes

You'll need:
9-12oz fettuccini noodles
2 T Italian dressing
16oz frozen broccoli, cauliflower, and carrot blend
2 C cooked turkey (or chicken), chopped
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes, rinsed and drained
Parmesan cheese

Cook fettuccini noodles according to package directions.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet cook dressing and vegetable blend over medium heat 5-6 minutes or until completely thawed- cover when not stirring. Add turkey and tomatoes and cook until heated through 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.
Serve over cooked fettuccini and sprinkle with cheese.

Enjoy!

Make it healthier:
double broccoli, cauliflower, and carrot blend to 32 oz
omit Parmesan cheese

Tips for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is fast approaching! And this girl is getting excited. I love turkey!!! I've been busy buying up several for my freezer and dreaming up some different ways to use them this year.

To follow this week are my top 3 picks for using leftover turkey right now. So stay tuned.

But for right now, enjoy these semi-obvious tips for a pleasant and inexpensive holiday weekend.

Pot-luck-

• If you're hosting the holidays, ask each guest to bring something for the meal. Either assign or let them choose from your list (and don't get mad if their fluffy pink stuff isn't exactly the version you had in mind.) 
• If you're a guest, offer to bring something. Try suggesting or signing up for an item you enjoy making and already have most, if not all, the ingredients to make.
• If everyone pitches in a little bit, the meal comes together quickly and at minimal cost to everyone

Leftovers-

• Try splitting the leftovers among everyone. My family usually has tons of turkey leftover, so everyone that wants some gets some.
• If you're hosting, ask everyone to bring a container or two to take their leftovers home in. That way no one gets stuck paying for everyone else to have leftovers. 
• If you don't feel like eating all the leftovers right away, freeze them!! Put everything into portion sized baggies and freeze away. 
• If you aren't freezing something, use it right away so it doesn't get wasted. Get creative if you don't want to eat exactly the same thing. Use those potatoes to top a shepherd's pie, toss those cranberries into some breakfast muffins, let your kids play in the fluffy pink stuff if you really can't eat anymore.

Immediate family only- (just the people that you feed on a daily basis anyway)

• Don't feel like you have to make huge portions of everything or that you have to have everything. 
• Consider what things your family actually enjoys and make the meal accordingly. If the cranberry sauce is just gong to sit there untouched, don't bother.
• If turkey and the trimmings isn't your thing, make something else. Start a new tradition, have some other special meal. Just remember to be thankful.

Black Friday-

• What's the point in fighting those crowds to get some awesome deals, if you are then going to turn around and pay a portion of those savings to eat out?
• If you're going out for sales, pack a breakfast, lunch, and/or snack. Figure out how long you'll be out and plan accordingly, maybe an extra snack and beverage.
• Chances are if you've been shopping all day, you won't want to come home and cook dinner, so toss something in the slow cooker before you leave or plan ahead to have something easy.
• If massive mobs of people frighten you (I'm right there with you) avoid the malls and shopping centers. Stay home or go to the park. It's not worth it for me to fight crowds for a sale, because I get too stressed out and then I'm not very pleasant.
• If you're sure the deal is worth it, but still don't want to deal with swarms of people, compare ads and shop a price matching store (that isn't advertising the item) shortly after lunch. My mom wanted to purchase a couple Cricuts one year, so she took the craft store ad over to Walmart after the crowds had calmed down and got exactly what she wanted.

Tacos now, burritos later

Since we've been talking about freezer cooking, I thought I'd share a super easy idea to get you started. I love tacos and burritos, but rarely made them in the past, because we always had ridiculous amounts of leftovers. Nowadays, I follow this basic recipe (with occasional twists, depending on what I happen to have available) and create 3+ meals for my family to enjoy as we like. I use ground turkey and black beans, but feel free to substitute with beef and/or your favorite bean.

1 1/4 lbs lean ground turkey    $3.19
taco seasoning, to taste    $0.35
1/4 C water
2 cans black beans    $0.55ea. = $1.10
1 C shredded taco cheese    $1.00
1 package each taco shells/tortillas, burrito size    $3.00

taco toppings: lettuce, sour cream, tomato.

Brown turkey/beef in a large skillet. Drain fat. Stir in taco seasoning and water. Bring to a simmer for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, strain the black beans over a bowl. Reserve the liquid for later use.
When the five minutes have passed, stir in the black beans and heat through.
Remove about 1/3 of the mixture for use at dinner.
Stir in about 1 C of the black bean liquid to the mixture in the skillet and reduce heat to low.
(At this point I usually sit down to dinner with my family and check on the stove periodically)
Once the mixture has thickened, stir in 1/2 C cheese and continue to heat on low for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.
(By the time we're done with dinner it's usually cooled to a desirable temperature, don't forget to add any leftover dinner meat/beans to the mixture)
Scoop equal portions (1/3 C- 3/4 C, depending on preference) into your tortillas (if the tortillas aren't very pliable, you'll need to heat them first, but I don't usually have the issue with room temp tortillas) and roll up closing both ends. Wrap in foil and place in plastic bag (I use the empty tortilla bag) in freezer.
To reheat, preheat oven to 375 F, place burritos (still in foil) on a baking sheet, heat until warmed through, about 20 minutes.

If you used less filling for the burritos, you may need more tortillas, so if you don't have any, you can place the remaining mixture into freezer bags to freeze. If needed, portion out just enough for one meal of the mixture into separate bags.
I put about 3/4C of the mixture into each tortilla, so after the 5 hard tacos from dinner, I am able to make 8 very full burritos. The quantity of taco shells and tortillas is subject to your family size and how much they eat.

My family of 4 (2 adults and 2 toddlers) eats more like a family of 3, so this base recipe makes 3 dinners for the whole family and one lunch for the kids and I.
The basic total (not counting toppings) is $8.64, which even after toppings would bring this meal total to no more than $5 per meal (for 3 meals and maybe $6 for 2 meals).

More ideas: if I happen to have onion on hand, I toss some on the skillet before browning the meat.
I also sneak black olives and peppers into the mixture occasionally when the husband isn't looking.
If you'd like the burritos to be microwavable, wrap in a paper towel before wrapping in foil. Then remove foil to microwave.

Stretch it further: Freezer cooking can help save a lot of money, but can get expensive with all the plastic, foil, and paper. I suggest re-using any parts you can. The bags can be re-used over and over if they didn't touch food. If they touched cooked food, you can wash them out to re-use. Just never re-use a bag that came in contact with raw meat.

organizing a chest freezer for little to no cost

I love having a chest freezer, but sometimes the organization gets a little out of hand. The products I have in my freezer are constantly changing depending on the season and what I find on sale.

Towards the end of the summer, I had lots of little packages, with just a couple big items, so instead of going out and buying wire basket to hang in the freezer, I used boxes. I needed to go to Aldi for a few things anyway, so I grabbed a bunch of empty boxes while I was there. I tried to keep in mind what things I had as I selected each box, and lucked out that I was able to find perfectly sized boxes for my space that stack nicely on top of each other.

Here's a quick tour of my freezer at that time:

I kept my frozen meals in the raised portion of the freezer and for the most part kept them lined up so I could just pull something out without having to dig. Next to that I had my box of fruits and veggies, milk, and desserts.

When you lifted up the box of vegetables, you found a box of filled pastas.

Over from the vegetables was my box of cheeses, potato products, boxed proteins, bagged chicken, turkey, and bread.

When you moved the box of cheese, you found a box of various frozen meats.

Looking at my freezer now (during a transition phase) isn't as pretty. Most of the above pictured foods are gone and are currently being replaced with turkeys, freshly ground whole wheat and ice cream. Basically a lot of big containers. By the end of November, the bottom of my freezer should be lined with turkey and I'll need a bigger box (or at least a second box) for my frozen vegetables.

This is a perfect example of why I use boxes to help with my organization instead of spending more money on a wire or plastic container. My needs change and I'm certainly not going to waste money buying new each season.

How do you organize your freezer?

freezer cooking: new to me recipes

I began the day by grocery shopping with my family. I had already checked the adds and planned my menu accordingly. Then I got to work during nap time and was able to complete both chicken dishes before my daughter woke up announcing that I should get to work on tonight's dinner.
I did the second half of my freezer cooking after I put the kids to bed and still had a chance to watch a movie I grabbed from the library earlier.

I like using this basic set-up to do my freezer cooking, because I don't have to miss any family time or stay awake when I'd normally be sleeping.

Without further delay, this is what I made that week:
Teriyaki chicken
Thai chicken
Turkish Pork chops
Cinnamon rolls

I had 10 meals worth of chicken and 6 of pork chops seasoned and ready to bake plus lots of cinnamon rolls. I even put some in the fridge breakfast the next morning. 

This particular session was done a few months ago, and we've since eaten most of the food. There are a few things here that I would not do again

• Somehow my Teriyaki sauce didn't stay frozen very well and ended up leaking in my freezer- what a sticky mess that was!!
• I made all new recipes here, and while they were all edible and good in their own way- I didn't like the seasoning on the pork chops, the Teriyaki sauce wasn't sticky enough for my husband's liking, and the cinnamon rolls weren't the best. So no more big batches of new recipes for me.
• There wasn't enough variety, so it had to be spread out over a long period of time.

Things that worked well:

• My chicken portions were spot on!
• The cinnamon rolls worked well in big bags, because I just pulled out the number I wanted for the next morning and resealed the bag.

Freezer cooking: introduction

Freezer cooking, also referred to as once a month cooking, is when you prep food in advance and put it in the freezer for later use. Think of it as making your own convenience food.

First of all let me make one thing perfectly clear, the way I freezer cook is not quite the same as once a month cooking. I have 2 main reasons why:

1. I shop at least every other week, usually every week. I want the best price on my food, so I have to shop the best sales.
2. Our family schedule tends to change a bit, so when I try to plan more than two weeks worth of meals at a time, it gets messed up- heck, sometimes, I can't go a whole week without it getting thrown off.

So when I make freezer meals, I usually do smaller sessions while I'm already in the kitchen anyway.

I do utilize freezer cooking regularly, here's why:

• It is wonderful to grab a bag of waffles to heat in the toaster instead of pulling the waffle iron out every time I feel like waffles. 
• It's nice to grab that lasagna out of the freezer for the lady at church who just had her baby, so she can make it when she doesn't have a ton of leftovers from every one else that brought her food.
• Without freezer cooking, I'd probably never marinade meat long enough. This way, I just pull the meat out of the freezer the night before and it's thawed and ready in time to cook up for dinner.

You'll find throughout this blog that I will post about certain freezer cooking sessions that I've done. It's not a comprehensive list of everything I've ever prepped and put in my freezer. However, when I was first learning about freezer cooking, I got more ideas from people sharing their stories than anything else, so I thought I'd share some of my experiences.

Chicken & Broccolli Calzones

You have got to try this!

Estimated cost: $6-8
Makes 4-6 medium sized calzones

1/2 container Philadelphia savory garlic cooking creme
2 heaping cups shredded chicken
8oz frozen broccoli, thawed
4oz shredded mozzarella cheese
corn meal 
1 recipe pizza dough

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine cooking creme, chicken, broccoli and cheese in a bowl until moist (if mixture looks dry, add more cooking cream), set aside. Sprinkle corn meal on your work surface and baking sheet. Roll out an orange-sized piece of dough to an 8-inch circle (or whatever size you prefer). Place a couple spoonfuls of chicken mixture on half of the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border around the edge. Wet the border with water and fold dough in half over the mixture. Line up the edges and press with a fork to seal. Poke a few holes in the top with fork to vent. Bake 20-25 minutes, tenting with foil for the first 10-15 minutes.
Enjoy!

pizza dough

My husband loves pizza and instead of spending lots of money on costly take-out, I whip up a recipe of this and top however I want.

Makes: 2-3 medium pizzas

1 1/2 C lukewarm (105-115 F) water
1 tsp sugar
1 package active dry yeast
1 TBSP olive oil (I've used extra virgin olive oil and regular, and they've both turned out great)
3 C all-purpose flour
1 1/4 C whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp salt

Dissolve sugar into water. Add yeast. Allow to sit approximately 5 minutes (until foamy). Stir in oil.
Combine flours and salt together. If you have a stand mixer with a kneading attachment, use it. (speed 2 for a kitchen aid). While the mixer is running, add the yeast mixture and allow to mix/knead until thoroughly combined.

Transfer dough to a large bowl coated non-stick cooking spray. Cover with a piece of cling-wrap sprayed with non-stick cooking spray and allow to rise 1 hour.
Gently squeeze to deflate

You can either freeze it or use it at this point. If frozen, thaw before before continuing.
If using, lightly dust clean work surface with cornmeal. Tear off piece dough and roll out to desired size and thickness. Place on a pan to top and bake. (If using previously frozen dough coat pan with non-stick cooking spray before sprinkling with cornmeal.)
I suggest baking it on the bottom rack of the oven at 450 F  for 7-10 minutes depending on your toppings

Stretching your dollar: This batch of dough costs roughly $1.05. Try mixing a can of tomato sauce ($0.29) and some Italian or pizza seasoning (maybe $0.10 for the really good stuff) for the sauce (this will be enough for the entire recipe of dough with possibly some extra). Top with cheese (pre-shredded shouldn't cost more than $1 per cup, so buy when it's on sale and freeze it, you don't even need to thaw it to put on your pizza) and some in-season vegetables. As a basic cheese pizza, this entire recipe shouldn't cost you more than $4.44.

DIY: ricotta cheese

Making your own ricotta is fun and cuts the cost in about half.
I bought my milk on sale for $1.99 a gallon, so I ended up saving a little more than 50%.
And by the way, this tastes amazing! It's almost a shame I don't use more ricotta.

To make your own ricotta you'll need:
1 gal milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C vinegar

plus an item you may not have: cheesecloth

Start by heating the milk in a large pot over medium-low heat until it has reached 180 F. (This takes a long time)
Once the milk is hot enough, remove from heat and add salt and vinegar, stir, and cover for 2 hours.
Drain in cheesecloth over strainer and large bowl for 2 hours.

The liquid drained out is whey and can be used in baking.

My go-to stores for the best deals

To expand a bit on  my stock-up prices, I thought I'd share what I buy from a few stores in order to spend the least amount possible

Aldi- I primarily shop Aldi when sales are slow or I want things now that aren't on sale elsewhere. When you're there make sure you check out their special purchase items and any clearance racks, because you can find some amazing deals.
canned goods: beans, vegetables, fruit
produce: anything in season and not on sale elsewhere
dairy: milk, sour cream, eggs, ice cream
dry: flour tortillas, spices
meat: ham (during the Christmas season)

GFS- I don't do a lot of shopping here, but they are amazing for a few things. A good idea when shopping here is to stick to your list or at least not buy anything the first time you go in. They've got lots of fun things that will make you want to spend your money.
dry: white rice, yeast, spices, tortillas, powdered sugar
meat: turkey (during the Thanksgiving season)

Kroger- Kroger is usually hit or miss. They have some great sales, but not a lot of regularly priced deals. Do use coupons, because they double them up to $1 and pair it with a sale. Make sure you check out their clearance deals.
produce: sale priced produce, but make sure you compare it with other ads.
dairy: sale priced: cheese, milk, eggs
dry: pasta (on sale with coupon)
meat: lots of BOGO sales on most meats, turkey (October/November)
snacks: tortilla chips
allergy: soy/almond milk

Meijer- Meijer is my favorite store. They usually have the best sales, double my coupons up to $1, and their regularly priced items aren't too bad either.The store brand products are just as good as the national brands (well, most of them -not their version of Ritz crackers) and can save you lots of money.
canned goods: sale: spaghetti sauce, plus a store brand sale each fall gives amazing deals on basic vegetables, broth, and cream of soups
produce: if it's on sale, it's usually one of the best deals around
dairy: sale: milk, eggs, cheese, ice cream
dry: whole wheat tortillas, all-purpose flour, sale baking items, pasta
meat: chicken, turkey (during the Thanksgiving season), sale cuts
snacks: cookies, crackers, pretzels

Target- Our Target just added groceries, so I haven't had much time to explore their prices. However, they price match and their food is quality. They also have good clearance and seasonal candy prices.

Walmart- Walmart's main appeal is that they price match and are trying to make using coupons easy. Other than that, I mainly use Wal-mart when sales are slow and Aldi isn't open or doesn't have what I need.
canned goods: tomato based products
produce: spinach, bananas
dairy: milk, yogurt, cheese, bulk package eggs
dry: bakery breads, sugar, veg oil, basic baking items
meat: pepperoni
snacks: chips
allergy: store brand soy milk

Any questions or comments?

Basic stock up price list for central Ohio

One of the biggest tricks to saving money on your grocery bill is to know your prices. Some things only have good prices once or twice a year, while other things go on sale for a good price every month or two. There are a few other sites out there (that I know of) that have similar lists, but prices vary from area to area, so I thought I'd throw together a quick list of my buy prices.

These prices are for eastern central Ohio.

Cold
butter, sticks- $2.50
cheese, shredded- $1/cup (average bag is 2 cups) (you can get it cheaper by 25-50 cents a lot of the time with coupons, but this is my max price)
cream cheese- $1.25/8oz pack (easier to find cheap during winter holiday seasons)
eggs- $1/doz (about once a month for the past couple months)
milk- $1.99/gal (beginning of some months @ Aldi, stock up and freeze, then don't pay more than $2.50 the rest of the month)

Produce
in season produce- $.99/lb
carrots- $1/lb (max price)
potatoes, white round- $1/5lb bag

Frozen
frozen vegetables $1/bag or box

Meats
chicken, boneless/skinless- $2/lb (max price)
chicken, thighs or drums- $1/lb (max price)
turkey, whole- $.60/lb (October/November-this year's price is higher than last year's so far)

Dry
brownie mix- .50/box
cereal- $1.50/box
chocolate chips- $2/pack (max price)
flour, all-purpose - .30/lb (max price Meijer)
ketchup- .50 (with coupon $1 without)
pasta- .50/box (with coupon .79 without)
salad dressing -$1.29 (max price @ Aldi)
spaghetti sauce- $1 (max price)
sugar- .50/lb (store brand price drop or sale)

General Merchandise
laundry detergent- $2/ 32loads
toilet paper, double roll- .50/roll (max price)
zipper bags- $1 (max price includes 50 ct sandwich/snack & 15-25 ct qt/gal freezer or basic- sale@Meijer)

Like I wrote before, this is just a very basic list of the prices in my area. If an item is listed with max price, I will not pay more than that for an item, I either make sure I have plenty on hand or do without (i guess toilet paper is the exception, but it's easy to find at my buy price especially with coupons).

On items not listed as the max price, I sometimes have to pay more than that price, because I'm not going to deprive my family of fresh produce simply because it's the middle of winter and it's more expensive.

I hope this helps get your price list started, feel free to leave a comment with any prices you'd like to share- especially meats, since I don't buy a big variety of those.

I repeat: these are not the every day prices. These are the prices that I know are good enough to stock up a little on to get me through until the next sale. I've spent a lot of time observing prices to see how low they go and on what frequency, so I thought I'd share some of that knowledge with you.

Meat: how to get the most for your money

Meats can be a major drain on a grocery budget...
Here are a few ideas to try so you can stretch that dollar further, without upsetting the meat loving family members.

turkey:  buy them in October and November when they are at their cheapest and keep in the freezer- get enough for the whole year, because they'll keep. When using, either thaw and cut to cook in several dishes or roast and reheat/reinvent leftovers.

lunch meat: the pre-sliced packages and deli meats can get super expensive. Consider buying a precooked boneless package (sometimes referred to as a chub) and asking the meat department to slice it for you (they do it for free) or if you prefer, buy bone-in or uncooked and prep it  yourself at home.
To store the large amounts, simply divide into smaller portions and place in a freezer bag in the freezer. When thawing add a paper towel to the bag to absorb excess moisture.

$14.26 worth (just shy of 9lbs) ready for the freezer

special cuts: If you'd like pork chops, but don't like their price, look for a pork loin and ask the meat department to cut it for you.
I've been told they'll prep it however you like at no additional charge. Our family doesn't eat a large variety of meats, so I don't know all the particulars, but let this idea be your guide for other cuts of meat.
If you're unsure, talk to the person in charge at the meat department. You'll usually find them quite knowledgeable on what you can do with the various cuts.

scraps- I have found that when I'm trimming up meat (especially pork) there is quite a bit of meat marbled in with the fat. Instead of tossing it out with the fat, I take the extra time to cut it out and then when I'm all done I bag it up and stick it in the freezer to use later in a stir fry (or anything that uses smaller pieces of meat)

bones- I often find the bone-in pieces of meat to be less expensive, so if you're trying to stretch each penny, look for the bone-in variety.
After prepping your meat, put the bones and a little water in a slow cooker for several hours to create broth or stock. For more flavor add onions and/or other vegetables. Strain through cheesecloth to separate the broth/stock from everything else.
If you don't want to deal with cutting the meat from the bones, slow cooking the meat in a liquid (I recommend broths, stocks, or cream of soups) for several hours will help it fall off the bone

Stretch it even further: take the fat you trimmed off and make soap. Seriously, all you need is some lye (a product of ashes and water) and fat. You can technically use any fat, but it's best to use fat from beef (Tallo). I haven't tried it yet, but if my husband has anything to say about it, we'll be making our own soap at least once in the future.