Recently a couple of friends of mine asked me to share some recipes that are both yummy and relatively budget friendly. If you know me I am all about cheap, but healthy. So I thought I would share our monthly menu, along with some other cheap recipes / meal ideas.
As you can imagine life with four kids 4 1/2 and under, along with homeschooling two of my kids, housework, and all that goes with being a stay at home Mom I am a busy lady. So here lately my crockpot has been my best friend, especially on Monday's which is Andrew's therapy day. We also eat a lot of simple meals. I have been on a diet recently so I've been trying to eat healthier, and it has been paying off. I have to throw in some unhealthy fattening meals every now and then for my husband who has absolutely no issues with weight. On those nights I usually just add more veggies to my plate. We also do alot of soups. So here is our rundown for the month. Some of the recipes have links others are typed out.
1. Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese. That's fairly simple and self explanatory.
2. Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli- http://mom-makes.com/2010/10/28/alfredo-shells-chicken-broccoli-and-cheese/
3. Crock pot Chicken and Stuffing, Carrots and Green beans- http://team-t-adventures.blogspot.com/2010/01/easy-crockpot-chicken-stuffing.html
4. Taco Pizza- This is based off a pizza from my favorite Iowa Pizza Place, Casey's Pizza. Unfortunately they don't exist outside of Iowa and I've yet to find a place in South Carolina that makes one quite as good as Casey's . So I have to make my own every time I get a craving. First of all you make your pizza crust. I use the great value pizza crust mix from Wal-Mart (it's like .44 cents a pack and you will need two packs). Mix up your crust according to package directions. Meanwhile empty a can of refried beans into a bowl and microwave for 1-1 1/2 minutes (I use fat free refried beans). Once the beans are warmed spread on top of crust. In a skillet brown one pound of lean ground beef (I use lean ground turkey). Drain and add in taco seasoning. Put meat on top off the refried beans. Top with cheese (either cheddar or taco blend shredded cheese) Bake for the time that is specified on the crust package. Once the pizza is out of the over top with lettuce, tomatoes, black olives, a little more cheese and taco sauce. Cut and enjoy .
5. Tater Tot Casserole and green beans- I cut this recipe in half since I'm not feeding 19 kids. I also use ground turkey, and fat free cream of chicken and mushroom soup. http://www.duggarfamily.com/content/duggar_recipes/30458/duggar_s_tater_tot_casserole
6. Crockpot Breakfast Casserole- http://www.betterrecipes.com/blogs/daily-dish/2010/10/25/breakfast-casserole/
7. 5 Can Soup- This is a weight watchers recipe, and is very yummy. http://www.food.com/recipe/ww-5-can-soup-50338
8.Pepperoni Pizza Quesadillas and Salad- As simple as it sounds. Take 2 tortillas, spread just a little bit of pizza sauce on one of the tortillas. ( I use Del-Monte Traditional Pasta Sauce for my pizza sauce) Then top with desired ammount of pepperoni and mozzerella cheese. Put in large skillet that has been sprayed with non stick spray. Top with other tortilla, brown each side and then quarter with pizza cutter. This is very filling ( I can barely eat 2 quarters) You of course could add whatever toppings you want. I usually do pepperoni and cheese to please the kiddos.
9. Turkey Ranch Wraps, Pasta Broccoli Salad - This is the recipe for the wraps : http://www.skinnymomskitchen.com/2012/01/30/turkey-ranch-club-wrap/
And for the Pasta Salad: http://doughmesstic.com/2012/05/25/dreamfields-summer-pasta-broccoli-saladand-a-contest/
10. Italian Crockpot Chicken: I haven't tried this one yet but it looks and sounds delicous. It will probably be made sometime this week. You do have to scroll down a little bit to find the recipe. http://www.crockadoodledo.blogspot.com/search/label/CHICKEN
11. Goulash, Garlic Bread- I know there are many different versions of goulash out there, this is our version. You need to boil 1/2 -3/4 of a 1 pound box of macaroni. In a seperate skillet brown one pound of lean ground turkey. Drain. Once Macaroni is done drain and add in with meat. Add in 1-2 jars of spaghetti sauce (depending on how saucy you like things) and your goulash is done. Sometimes I will add in some green peppers and onions when I'm cooking the meat and it's really good with that in there. As far as the garlic bread goes, I never buy garlic bread. When we have leftover hot dog/ hamburger buns I freeze them. Then when we are having pasta or something I want garlic bread with I thaw the buns. When they are thawed I spread with a little butter and top with garlic salt and put in the oven on broil until they are nice and brown. It's cheap and that way no buns go to waste.
12. Crispy Tilapia Sandwichs, Cubed Seasoned potatoes, Oven Baked Sweet Corn - Here's the recipe for the fish: http://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/200978030/crispy-tilapia-sandwich/
For the potatoes I take out a jar of canned potatoes but for those that don't have canned potatoes you can use any potatoes you want. I quarter then and put them in a bowl. Cut up as many potatoes you think is necessary. Then pour a little olive oil over top of the potatoes and stir. Then season with a little seasoning salt (the same kind of salt that is used with seasoned french fries). Pour into casserole dish and bake until nice and brown and crispy.
For the sweet corn remove the silk and clean. Put in aluminum foil with a little butter and salt and pepper. Roll up individually in aluminum foil. Put on a cookie sheet and bake for about 20 minutes.
13. Baked Chimichangas- You will need 1/2 pound of ground beef or ground turkey, 1 can of fat free refried beans, 1 can of mild enchilada sauce, 2-3 cups of cheddar cheese, 8-10 tortillas. Brown your meat and drain. Add in the refried beans and enchilada sauce and stir and let the mix heat up well. Take a tortilla and put about 2-3 spoonfulls in the middle of the tortilla. Top with cheese and fold up. Place on a cookie sheet with the folded side down. Do this until you are out of either tortillas or meat (usually I have meat leftover). Do not put to much meat in the tortilla or the tortilla will tear. Then bake at 400 for about 15 minutes (they should be somewhat brown by this point but if they are not turn the broil on until they are as brown as you want) Take out of the oven and top with tomatoes, lettuce, salsa and sour cream if desired, or you can just eat it like a baked sandwich. For the extra meat that you may have leftover I will save it and on another night I will take the meat mixture and spread it on top of some english muffins and top with some cheese and bake. Serve with a salad. In a way it's one meal turned into two.
14. Crockpot Hawaian BBQ Chicken Over Rice- http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/06/crock-pot-hawaiian-bbq-chicken.html
15. Cheesy Crockpot Chicken and Broccoli over Rice- This is one of my kids favorites (probably because it has cheese) This is a way I can get them to eat there broccoli, and it's super good! http://clippingmoney.blogspot.com/2012/07/crock-pot-cheesy-chicken-brocolli-over.html#.UVC47Rfrwsc
16. Chicken Pot Pie Crumble-http://www.cookingclassy.com/2012/10/chicken-pot-pie-crumble-my-favorite-pot-pie/
17. Chicken and Black Bean Quesadillas- It's as simple as it sounds. Take 2-3 chicken breast cook them and shred them (or you could use canned chicken if you wanted). Drain and Rinse one can of black beans. Take a toritlla top with chicken, black beans, and desired ammount of shredded cheddar cheese (or whatever cheese you want) Put in skillet and top with another tortilla. Cook for about 2 minutes on one side (or until slightly browned) and flip. Remove from pan and quarter. I use a 8 pack of tortillas, so that makes 4 quesadillas and that more than feeds us. Usually we have leftovers for my husband to take for lunch the next day or for the kids lunch.
18. Cheeseburger Soup- http://daily-pins.com/cheeseburger-soup-perfect-for-cold-snowy-days/
19. Sausage, Egg and Biscuit Casserole- http://mrmrsbeeze.blogspot.com/2012/06/weekend-biscuit-egg-casserole.html
20. Scrambled Eggs, Cinnamon and Sugar Bread, Bacon and homemade canned applesauce
Here is the recipe for the bread: http://whiskandaprayer.blogspot.ca/2011/04/cinnamon-sugar-bread.html
21. Crockpot Turkey Breast, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Green Beans and Carrots http://coleensrecipes.blogspot.com/2009/05/crockpot-turkey-breast.html
22. Man Pleasing Chicken, Crock pot bacon and cheese potatoes, green beans
The recipe for the chicken: http://www.wittyinthecity.com/2011/08/man-pleasing-chicken/
The recipe for the potatoes: http://www.quickneasyrecipes.net/crockpot-bacon-cheese-potatoes/
23. Chicken and Tortilla Casserole -http://www.livebetteramerica.com/recipes/healthified-chicken-tortilla-casserole/e62acec5-b233-4c36-8c54-a64660f8e7da
24. Spicy Sausage Pasta http://www.kevinandamanda.com/recipes/dinner/spicy-sausage-pasta.html
25. Blueberry Muffin Pancakes, Sausage, Eggs- I use two boxes of Jiffy Blueberry Muffin Mix and follow the pancakes/waffle directions.
26. Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken, Stuffed Baked Potatoes Here is the recipe for the Chicken: http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/02/grilled-honey-mustard-chicken-recipe.html
The recipe for the potatoes: http://www.recipebyphoto.com/broccoli-cheese-baked-potatoes/
27. Honey Pecan Pork Chops, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Green Beans- The recipe for the pork chops
http://sugarandspice-celeste.blogspot.ca/2009/11/honey-pecan-pork-chops.html
The recipe for the pork chops: http://sugarandspice-celeste.blogspot.ca/2009/11/honey-pecan-pork-chops.html
The recipe for the potatoes: http://www.fortheloveofcooking.net/2009/03/roasted-sweet-potatoes.html
28.Beef and Bean Taco Casserole: http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/beef-and-bean-taco-casserole/b295e418-a72f-423a-b2fc-f17d19188379
29. Honey Mustard Mozzerella Chicken, Crash Hot Potatoes, Green Beans
These potatoes are awesome! I used just regular white potatoes because that's what I had, I also seasoned the potatoes with just seasoning salt rather than what it says to do. It turned out great!
The Recipe for the Chicken: http://pinterest-healthy-recipes.blogspot.com/2013/01/tasty-foods.html
The Recipe for the Potatoes: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06/crash-hot-potatoes/
30. Crock Pot Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Green beans
My husband loved this chicken ,and it was so simple! I made the gravy from the broth and it was delicous! http://sloppyjos.wordpress.com/2011/11/18/crock-pot-chicken/
31. Mexican Meatball Stew : http://www.bhg.com/recipe/soups/mexican-meatball-stew/
32. French Toast, scrambled eggs and turkey sausage- self explanatory.
33. Cowboy Dinner- Take 8 hot dogs and cut up and put in 13 by 9 casserole dish. Pour in two cans of hot dog chili and one can of corn drained. Stir together well. Top with cornbread (either from a mix or homemade). Bake according to cornbread directions, until cornbread is done. It usually takes longer than the directions for the cornbread.
I make my cornbread from scratch. Here is a link to the recipe that I use: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/golden-sweet-cornbread/
32. Ham and Potato Soup- Another Weight Watchers Recipe. http://www.wwrecipes.net/ham-potato-soup.html
33. Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup- This was delicious I threw half of a bag of egg noodles in with it (just because I had them left over from something and that made it awesome! http://www.fortheloveofcooking.net/2009/04/creamy-chicken-and-rice-soup.html
34. Chicken Stuffing skillet- Cook 3 chicken breasts and cut up in small pieces. In seperate pot prepare package of stove top stuffing. In skillet with chicken add in jar of mixed vegetables. Add in stuffing and mix. Prepare package of chicken gravy mix and pour on top of chicken stuffing mixture.
35. Crockpot Cube Steaks, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Peas and Carrots : http://mrsdomesticgoddessinprogress.wordpress.com/2013/01/20/crockpot-cube-steaks/
