In The Kitchen
A big part of our life revolves around our kitchen ... We plan for groceries, we buy the groceries, we put away the groceries, we cook the groceries and then we serve them out. A big part of saving $$$ takes place in the what happens in the kitchen. The internet contains a LARGE database of cheap, delicious meals you can cook for your family. I've a few go-to recipes and I'll share them here. Please note that I didn't start cooking, like seriously trying, until a few years ago. Most of the recipes I make are simple but delicious. As you can see, these recipes don't require a lot of ingredients and most of these ingredients can be found at pretty low prices. It's rare that I put an "expensive" meal on our meal plan unless it's to mark a special occasion.
Yummy/affordable side dishes
fresh, frozen or canned vegetables
- broccoli
- green beans
- carrots
- corn
salads
potatoes - instant or real
bread - French or Italian, found for .99/loaf
Chili -
My recipe for chili is VERY simple and tasty. I do use a packet of chili seasoning, don't
freak out over that. :) I basically dump all of these ingredients into my nonstick sprayed Ninja Cooker and let it cook down, slowly, all day. I don't drain or rinse the beans, by not rinsing or draining the beans more flavor is added into the chili. Try this recipe out, it's a good one. :)
1 packet chili seasoning
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can beans, any kind.
1 can whole kernel corn
1/2 cup diced onion
1 lb ground beef, cooked and drained
Spray crockpot with nonstick spray. Combine all ingredients, cook on low all day.
Serve with cheese, crackers, onions or sour cream and some cornbread, if ya like.
Mushroom Gravy Burgers -
This recipe is incredibly easy and requires not many ingredients at all. I serve this with mashed potatoes and green beans.
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk
ground beef, cooked in patty form and seasoned to your liking
Season and cook ground beef in a patty form, cook all the way through. Spray a cooking dish with nonstick spray. layout your patties in a single layer. Mix soup with milk in separate bowl then spread over hamburger patties. Cook at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Creamy Salsa Chicken-
Aggghhh my favorite lower carb meal. I can eat this for days straight, it's so delicious! This is another slow cooker meal but it does require a couple extra steps closer towards the end of cooking time. I eat this in a flat out wrap and sometimes just by itself. :)
1 cup salsa
1 can whole kernel corn
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
1 8 0z brick cream cheese
In a nonstick sprayed crockpot, pour salsa and undrained corn over the chicken breast. cook on low for 4-5 hours. 1 hour before serving, shred the chicken and add the brick of cream cheese.
Italian Chicken -
This is the easiest recipe out there, which may seem pretty far fetched as it is sooooo yummy.
With this recipe only 2 ingredients are needed.
1 bottle Italian salad dressing
1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
