SUPER SOUPS

It's fall weather finally. It has to be the wind blew th umbrella out of the picnic table! The noise scare me to death! lol


I rarely buy soup from a can. I usually keep cream of mushroom for casserole base incase I am in a hurry, chicken noodle for medicinal purposes, and a few tomato. The cost of soup has risen and I want fifty cents a can. I see it at .79 this week at Safeways. Sometimes it is a little lower at WinCo. I do buy tomato roasted red pepper soup at Costco when they have it. It is like 4.00 or more at the regular stores. Costco has it for about two. It comes in a box. I find some box soups at grocery outlet, but never tomato.

I fix the box of soup with chopped tomatoes, basil, and blue cheese. Sometimes I add a little half and half depending on how many I am feeding.

Sausage bean soup is a really quick crock pot soup.

I have posted this before.

Sauté veggies. I use onion, celery and carrot and sometimes red pepper if I have it. I cut them in small pieces. Sauté until they are so what soft.

Add veggies to the crackpot with :

3 cans of assorted beans , RINSED.
2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained
2cups broth ( chicken, beef, or veggie)

2 T Italian seasooning, 1tsp garlic powder

1/2 pound sausage crumbles, cooked and defatted.

Cook on low 8-10!hours or on high for 4-6.

Note. Rinsing the canned beans makes a great difference on the amount of sodium that you get from the can of beans.

If I have fresh garlic I tomit the garlic powder and add the garlic to the veggies last during the sauté.


You can vary the recipe to be vegetarian by omitting the sausage and using vegetable stock.
You can add hamburger instead of sausage. I haven't tried it with ground turkey since my husband doesn't like it.

Beans are something that I buy canned. Unless you have the time to cook beans and use them the same day, beans and rice have a really short fridge life. They are the two things that spoil rapidly. I rarely have the time.

If you get canned beans on sale, the cost is the same. I would prefer 50 cents a can, but the 15 for ten dollars is 67 cents. Pretty close.

Don't forget,
Split pea soup...a matter of minutes in the pressure cooker

cream based soups, broccolli, carrot,asparagus etc, a Good way to use the last of a vegetable or the stalks of the broccoli.Potato soup, corn chowder.


Clam or seafood chowder

Beer or cheese soups

Pick the canned soup that you like the best, dialect it and make it from scratch.

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Jane

Baking...it's fall , right?

All things come to baking when fall and the holidays come.

I have been getting cookies for 50/ 5.00 on 5 dollar Fridays. I only get oatmeal or peanut butter.

When I was a kid, my mother started us learning to bake at 9 years old. There were some recipes that called for Ingredients that we always had on hand. ome was snicker doodles, and one was walnut squares. walnut squares are in the 1950's Betty Crocker cookbook.. They are essentially a blond brownie.

We also made a pudding cake that we called cowboy cake. I found the recipe on the Internet under butterscotch pudding cake. Basically you mix a cake and put it in the bottom of a 8 inch square pan. Then you put some vutter and brown sugar on top and pour boiling water over all. It was really good.

A few days ago I put a recipe on my blog that was basically the insides of a pumpkin pie. A good recipe for when you have a hankering for pie, but not the time.

Apples are a good bet for baking this time of year.

Baking ingredients are on sale with a coupon at TOP this week. Halloween cookies are fun for the kids to make and decorate.

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Yesterday I watched "The Chew".

Yesterday I watched "The Chew". It was all about a dollar a plate. Actually, you can get some nice plates at the dollar store for a buck! LOL

One contribution was angel hair pasta with parsley, olive oil, garlic, and parm. It looked really good ,but most men I know would be looking around for the next course.

Yesterday we had a vegetarian version of sausage bean soup. It cost 3.25. I served it with cheese quesadas. For less than the cost of two cans of chunky soup, I got six quarts of soup-- a lot less than a buck a serving.

My catch phrase is 4 plus 1 equals 5. Four people, One meal, Five bucks.
I don't always cook five dollar meals, but I try to average 5 dollar meals.
Meat has taken about a twenty five cent a pound hike. I suspect,we have only just begun. My plan is to add another vegetarian meal to the mix and maintain the average when meat prices get too high.


This weeks plans

1) Pork Loin Roast , mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, salad
2) pork chops, dressing, broccolli
3) meat balls with cream gravy on noodles, green beams, salad
4) Mac and cheese, mixed vegetables
5) vegetable soup , cheese sandwiches
6) tuna melt, veggie sticks
7) London broil, baked potatoes, salad




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Jane

This weeks adds / October 10

This weeks adds. I usually tale a piece of paper out of the recycle bin and divide in quarters and start listing all the things that are veggies in season and stock items or meat. Then cross off anything that is cheaper elsewhere or I don't need more of or want.

5 dollar Friday
Shrimp 5 a pound
3 pound grapes


Rump roast 2.49
Apples .88
Tomatoes 1.28
Lunch meat 2.50

Jfu
Tortilla chips 1.99
Salad dressing .99


QFC

Cottage cheese, sour cream 3/5
Pineapple 1.00
Lettuce 1.00
Roma tomatoes 1.00
Grapes 1.49


TOP

pork loin and London broil are 2.49

Coupons =@
Eggs .99@
flour 1.49@
Chocolate chips 1.69@.
Butter 2.50@

Beans 15/10.00
16 ounces cottage cheese 2.00

Cucumbers .69

ALBERTSONS

grapes .99
Beans .88

NOTE
price comparisons..cottage cheese is 1.67 at QFC, it's 2.00 for less product at top.
Beans are .88 at Albertsons. .67 at TOP
Rump roast, pork loin and London broil are all 2.50 a pound.
grapes are 1.49 at QFC, 1.67 at Safeways. They are .88 at Albertsons, but inwouldnt go there just for the grapes. The savings other places are greater than the loss incurred on the grapes.

All in all, unless there are a whole lot of extra stuff on personal jfu, itnwill be TOP and QFC for us. I have my stock pretty full. If I didn't , then the pork loin and beans would be green flags for me. Winter is coming and sausage bean soup is a slow cooker magic trick of mine. It is better, cheaper, faster. A can of soupmthese days is two bucks-- more than a head start on a whole slow cooker of soup. One reason to buy tomatoes at .50 cents a can and beans at .67.

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Fruit cobbler

Slowcooker recipes are a way to entertain almost effortlessly .
The less you have to do at the last minute the less stressful it is .

Berry Cobbler

1cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
1tspg baking powder
1/4 tsp EACH salt, cinnamon, nutmeg


2 eggs
2 T milk
2 T oil

4 cups berries(blackberries or blueberries or a combination of both. )
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup sugar

Whip cream or ice-cream

Mix dry ingredients.

Mix wet ingredients.

Mix dry with the wet ingredients.

Pour cobbler batter in bottom of greased 5 quart slow cooker.

In saucepan, combine berries, water and sugar. Bring to boil. Pour over cobbler.
Cover and cook on high 2 - 2 1/2 hours or until toothpick in center comes out clean.
Uncover and let stand 30 minutes.

Pumpkin Pie Pudding

1-15 ounce can solid pack pumpkin
1- 12 ounce can evaporated milk
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup baking mix
2eggs
2 T butter
1 T pumpkin pie spice
2tsp vanilla

Mix together all ingredients. Pour into greased slow cooker. Cover and cook for 6-7 hours or until thermometer reads 160 degrees. It helps if you put a towel between the slow cooker and the lid.

APPLE CRISP

4-5 cooking apples, peeled and sliced.
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup oatmeal
Cinnamon, nutmeg
1/3 cup butter
2T peanut butter

Place apples in slow cooker.
Combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter and peanut butter. Pour over apples. Cook on low 5-6 hours.


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Jane

Our trip to Big Lots and Trader Joes

Yesterday my daughter and I stumbled upon the Big Lots 20 percent sale. One day only everything was twenty percent off.

Larry the cable guy garlic beer bread was .80.
Bumble Bee crab was 1.40
Sauerkraut was 1.60
White tea 1.60
Diced tomatoes .48 vs 1.29

You have to watch pull dates, but most of them were as far out as the other stores.

We then went to trader joes. I found good strawberries for 2.50 and a large basil plant for 5.00. There were a few prices that were as cheap as other stores. I saw a lot of organic and a lot of speciality vegetarian foods.


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Jane

Main dishes with ground meats

Ground meat used to be only beef. We had ground round, the best grade, and ground chuck. I can remember paying .88 a pound for ground chuck. Now they have ground chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, and bison. We have tried bison ( it's supposed to be less fat than beef) and liked it. I like ground lamb, but my husband doesn't. I , personally think that ground chicken is hard to cook. The texture is different than beef. I haven't tried ground turkey. I think that you could substitute other ground meats that simulate the texture of the ground beef.

SHEPHERD'S PIE

1.5 pounds potatoes , cut into chunks (or use instant mashed)

1 onion, chopped
2cloves garlic
1T oil

1 pound ground beef ( or use already cooked hamburger)
1 T flour
1/2cup beef stock
Salt and pepper
3 T vinegar
2tsp W sauce


2 T butter
1 T milk

1) boil potatoes until tender

2)fry onion until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and continue cooking 1 minute
more . Add the ground meat and cook until no longer pink. Drain off excess fat.
Stir flour into meat. Add beef stock slowly to thicken. Add salt, pepper, vinegar and w sauce.

Pour into 1.5 quart casserole.
Make mashed potatoes ( potatoes should be dense )
Spread over meat.
Brush with melted butter.
Bake at 400 degrees until top is golden.

Notes: I would use the hamburger crumbles I made last week and instant mashed potatoes to get out of the kitchen fast. I got instant mashed for .50 not long ago. That is more than the .21 that raw potatoes would cost but that's .29 cents for ten minutes work is 1.80 an hour. I can handle that. LOL.

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More oldies

LIMGUINE WITH ZUCCHINI CLAM SAUCE

12 ounces linguini

Olive oil
2 medium zucchini
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
2 cans minced clams
Salt, red pepper

1) cook pasta

2) sauté zucchini in some olive oil.


3) Stir in remaining ingredients including clams and juice.

4) turn heat down to a simmer and simmer 3 minutes.

Toss sauce with drained pasta and garnish with parsley.

I would serve this with garlic bread and a salad.

NOTE

Clams are on sale at BARTELLS sometimes. Pasta has remained a bargain at .88 to a dollar a pound.

Let's review the food pyramid. I haven't for a long time. It doesn't seem to be kind to dieters or diabetics however. It probably is what teens and active children need for fuel and growing bodies. Most of us on diets and those of us that are diabetic can't have 11 servimgs of bread or grain.

Bread and grains 6-11 servings
Veggies 3-5. Fruit 2-4
Dairy 2-3. Meat 2-3
Fats, sugar sparingly.

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Jane

More from 1970s personal cookbook

Sausage chili bake

3/4 pound smoked sausage cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 small onion, chopped
1tsp garlic salt
1-2 T chili powder
1can diced tomatoes, undrained
1can kidney beams, umdrained

2cups Bisquick
1/2cup cornmeal
1cup cornmeal
2eggs

1) cook sausage and onion in skillet for 4-5 minutes
Spoon into ungreased 9x3 pan . Stir in chili powder, garlic, tomatoes AMD beans.

2) in medium bowl, mix bisquit ingredients. Spread over meat mixture.

Bake at 350 35- 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown.


Taco beef bake with cheddar biscuit topping

1poumd hamburger
Taco seasoning
1cup salsa
2 cups frozen corn

2cups Bisquick
1 cup shredded cheese
2/3 cup milk.

1) brown meat. (or use already defatted meat) add corn, salsa and taco seasoning.
Heat to boiling. Pour into 8x8 pan.

2) stir together in bowl, Bisquick, cheese, and milk. Drop by spoonfuls onto meat mixture. (12)

3) bake uncovered 20-25 minutes until topping is golden brown. 6 one cup servimgs.


NOTES. These are adapted from Bisquick recipes. Sausage was 3/10 at QFC last week. It is sometimes cheaper at the grocery outlet. You can make your own salsa or substitute diced tomatoes,onion and peppers. Taco seasoning recipe is on a previous post.

I'm thinking the cheddar Bisquick topping would be good on a lot of thimgs.

That's all for today.

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Jane

Better, cheaper and faster than hamburger box mix and meals from the adds

I talked about no brainer pasta a few days ago. Here it is. TADA!
It's not the most sophisticated dish In the world, but a teen can easily handle it. They may need some help with the oven.

1-27.5 ounce can of pasta sauce
Water
1 pound of DRY pasta.
8 ounces (two cups) Grated cheese
Leftover meat

1) put dry pasta in 9x13 pan
2) mix together 1 can of pasta sauce and 1 can of water. You should have 7 cups.
3) pour over pasta and stir.
4) cover with foil and bake at 425 for 45 minutes.


5) uncover, Put cheese and any leftover meat on top.cook an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

NOTE. The reason why this is faster, is that you can take the five minutes to get it in the oven and then walk away to get something else done. No watched pot here.
You have enough time to make a salad and set the table and still check the mail. LOL

You can pair the pasta with the cheese and the sauce variety. Wagon wheel pasta with cheddar and regular sauce and hamburger crumbles makes cheeseburger macaroni.
A Italian spiced sauce with a white cheese and pepperoni makes pizza pasta. Use your imagination.

Cost: pasta .88, sauce .80, cheese 1.00. 2.68
This makes a 9x13 pan. Serves 6 .45 a serving

Hamburger mix is 2.33 serves 5 or .47 a serving

Meal plans

1) no brainer pasta
2) chicken thighs ( see older post)
3) Roast chicken dinner
4) salmon
5) Mac and cheese
6) tortilla soup
7) meatballs with cream sauce and noodles

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Jane

Ps. The picture shows the dish with hamburger crumbles and a vegetarian alternative. It needs to be stirred to look more appetizing. You could put a little parm on top!

The scoop on cheap groceries.

I have been reading a lot of articles on the Internet lately. they talk about 10 or 15
Dollars per person per week. Most if them talk about foods most of us have never tasted. My stats are based on about half of the USDA stats for a family of four-- 2 adults and two school aged children. I try to take a middle of the road approach. What I would describe as normal food, with a realistic approach to fat and salt intake with a limited amount of ready made foods.

I hav heard everything from top ramen, boxed Mac and cheese, tofu, and eating five days a week for free at work.Also I heard .28 cent a pound chicken parts and cheap hot dogs.

65.00 a week is not much more than the 15 dollars a person, and I think that I am pretty realistic in my meal plans.

We are not having steak and lobster, but we are not having cheap hot dogs and mystery chicken parts.

Groceries on the cheap has to be sustainable. Your nutrition has to be there too.

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Jane

This weeks adds

Before I go through the adds for the week,I thought I would talk about what to do with the hamburger I "put up " over the week end. I baked-off the meatloaf and we had it with baked acorn squash that I got last week and a salad. The rest we had n the next day. The meat balls were frozen in meal sized bags. They can become meat ball subs, spaghetti and meatballs, meatballs in cream gravy over noodles or in brown gravy over rice. Tacos are tacos. LOL. Crumbles can go in a casserole or spaghetti sauce or on a pizza.

Now, the adds:

QFC

20 Percent hamburger 2.66-- NOT. We paid 2.50 for 9 percent last week.

Chicken .88
English cukes 1.00
Pasta 1.00


TOP

Sirloin roast B1G1 nets 3.25. - used to be 2.25 cents this summer.
Coupons
2 off meat
2off produce
Butter 1.99
Cheese 3.99

Pasta 1.00 hagan brand
Potatoes 10 pounds for 2.00
Mayo 1.99
Gala apples 5 lbs 5.00

SAFEWAYS

Pork roast 1.49
Grapes 1.28
Milk 2.69


5 buck Friday

Brats , Safeways brand
Naval oranges 5/5. Lbs
Tuna 5/5
Boston cream cake

JFU
Potatoes 5 lbs .69

ALBERTSONS

Chicken thighs .99
Potatoes 5 lbs 1.49
Hunts pasta sauce .80
Strawberries 2.00
Squash .99
Chicken sausage 3.00
Fryers 1.39
Good hamburger 3.99

That's all. I have purposely added some comparison prices to this list. You need to cross off the items that are higher priced elsewhere. cross off anything that you don't need or want. Pasta sauce is about as cheap as you are going to get it. I have a recipe for what my nephew calls no brainer pasta.

I am not seeing salad fixings in the adds. The cheapest lettuces are usually iceberg and romaine. Probably at Costco. Sometimes the grocery outlet.
Cucumbers are a buck. My mother used to soak them in vinegar and salt and pepper. These are good with nasturtium vinegar.

Chicken thigh recipes are posted last month.

My mother used to fix carrot and raisin salad ( didn't go over to good with my nephews)
Apple and celery with walnuts , cottage cheese with pears, there is always sliced tomatoes with motts cheese and basil. I use dried basil if I don't have fresh. I planted some basil on the back porch. This is a good salad if you need to boost the protein level of a meal.

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Jane

Let's talk pasta !

The chew is starting a new trend to call Monday meatless Monday.


Pasta is still a real bargain at .88 to a dollar a pound. It has an eight to ten year shelf life. I keep a bin( lock and lock) full of elbow macaroni and a box each of several other shapes. A lot of recipes can be adapted to another pasta shape.

Angel hair pasta with broccoli

3 large broccoli stalks.
3/4 of a pound of angel hair pasta.
6 T butter
1/3 cup water
2cups cream
Nutmeg


2cups parm

1) Trim rough parts of the stalks. Peel stalks. Reserve broccoli tops for garnish. Finely chop remaining broccoli. Set aside.

2) cook pasta.

3) cook broccoli in melted butter. Add water. Cover and cook until broccoli is cooked.
Remove the flowerettes and return pan to heat.

4) Add cream and nutmeg to broccoli in pan. Add pasta. Toss with some of the parm.
Top with more parm and reserved flowerettes.

NOTE: I use a hard cheese from Costco as a sub for parm. Sometimes I get parmesan from grocery outlet.

EARS ( pasta ) with cheddar sauce.

1 pound ears
1.5 cups milk
1.5 cups cream
8 ounces ( two cups )cheddar cheese, grated
4 ounces (one cup) jack cheese
4 ounces ham cubes
Salt, pepper, bread crumbs

1) cook pasta.
2) in pan, bring milk and cream to simmer. Add cheeses and ham. Stir until cheese is melted.
Salt and pepper.
3) drain pasta and put into 9x13 pan. Mix cheese sauce and pasta. Spread in pan. Top with breadcrumbs. ( mix breadcrumbs, parm and parsley. )

4) bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.


Notes:
Breadcrumbs can easily be made from scratch. Put your bread heels into the oven to dry. When you have enough, grate with a box grater, or whirl in the food processor.

Ham cubes are inexpensive at grocery outlet some times. I get several meals out of a package usually. You can put them in an omlette or on a pizza, or in a salad.

This can be made cheaper and with less fat, if you use milk only.

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The rest of the story

I thought I would embellish on yesterday's post.

Meal plans are a quick jot of the main dish in this house. I usually have a good idea what I am going to serve with the main dish.

I try to do balance them by using this formula:

2 beef
2 pork or chicken
2 vegetarian
1 fish

You can use a different configuration to suit your family's tastes. The two vegetarian
Ones help to balance a higher cost of meat.

By stocking your staples, you almost never get stuck paying full price for them. I use a guideline of keeping about 24 of something that I use once a week, or 6 or so of
Something I use once a month. Things like mustard, mayo, artichoke hearts I keep one ahead so I don't have to make a special trip if I run out. Basically, when something is on sale for the rock bottom price, you buy 1) as many as you can afford to buy. 2) as many as the store will let you buy, or 3) as many as you need to reach your target goal for the product -- whichever comes first.

In the long run, after you get set up, you will find you probably spend less time shopping and cooking than you did before. If you spend more time on the front end of the meal to the table train, and less time on the back end, you will be money ahead. Basically, you get "paid" for shopping wisely, but you dont get paid for cooking.

On the subject of ready mades, sometimes salsa is cheaper ready made when tomatoes are not in season. You can also make salsa out of diced tomatoes. Tortillas are not worth making from scratch. Mashed potatoes when you can get them for 50 cents, are sometimes cheaper than scratch. I recenrly got sweet potato fries for .20 cents a pound and sweet potato in a box for .35 a meal. Pudding cups, fruit cups, boxed juice drinks, hamburger meal boxes, are not cheaper. Pudding takes no longer to make from scratch than it does from a mix. Read the ingredients on the package. They have to list them in order of volume. Fruit cups ready made, have 16 grams of sugar in them. The juice boxes I checked had 16 grams as well. That's thirty two grams of refined sugar. My carb max for a meal is 45 grams according to my dietitian. I wouldn't want it to be used on sugar syrup instead of good food. When cake mix or brownie mix is a buck, I think that they are worth it. I keep a few on hand. Base it on the amount of times you reach for them. I like an emergency stash in case I am getting company.

Stocking food at the lowest price gives you a sense of empowerment that you beat the stats; and a sense of security that you always have food in the house in the event of an emergency, be it unexpected company, sickness,or an act of God-- like snow!

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Basics of 1/2 price grocery shopping.

It's that time of the month. I thought I would go over the basics of 1/2 price shopping. We have all had times in our life when we have had to stretch a buck.
If that is you now, this blog is for you. If not, people enjoy the time saving tips and the recipes. It is my hope that I can help people.

The USDA puts out guidelines for food budgets . The last stats I can find was from 2009.
food has gone up since then and with the drought, I suspect it will go up more.

Food on the cheap takes a three pronged approach. Planning and organizing, shopping wisely, and cooking from scratch.

First: Collect your own group of recipes that use inexpensive sources of protein that your family will eat. Start with seven and go from there. It helps to have 14 so that you don't burn out on a particular dish. Daycare guidelines suggest a two week cycle.

List the staples you use frequently. Keep a log, either in a spiral notebook that you can take with you to the store, or a spreadsheet. Note the item,the size of the package, how much you paid, where and when. For us it is Diced tomatoes, refried beans, beans, mashed potatoes, pasta sauce, pasta, a few canned vegetables ( green beans and corn), tuna and salmon.

Plan a weeks meals after you get home from the grocery store from your stock and your new purchases. Use the most perishable foods first. One of the fastest ways to go off your budget is to not have a plan. If you have to answer the "what's for dinner?" question after a long, hard day it is too easy to reply with " take out".



Second: make best use of the grocery adds. I want to save as much as I spend at the grocery store. I take a piece of paper out of the computer waste basket, divide the clean side into quarters. Top each quarter with the name of the grocery store. Now go through the ad and put down anything that is really cheap that you can make a meal out of and the price. Use your notebook to record the cheapest price if it is one of your staples. By now, I have the prices in my head.
When you are done, cross off anything you already have enough of and anything that is a lower price somewhere else. Now pick the two stores that have the best prices that week. Go there, buy what's on your list, anything that you have to have and get in and out of the store. The more time you spend in the store, the more you are going to spend.

Plan your trip so that you drive the least amount. I plan a tight circle adding the dollar store and the pharmacy if needed.

The object is to never pay full price for anything. I have a guideline of 4 + 1 = 5.
Four people, one meal, FIVE bucks. That's for dinner. Lunch is leftovers, or a sandwich and fruit or veggie sticks. Breakfast is oatmeal or whole wheat toast and fruit or yogurt.

I try to use 1.00 a pound for veggies and fruit, and 2-2.50 a pound for meat for a guide line.

Third: Cook from scratch. Another way to de rail your budget is to buy pre packaged, pre made foods. a few of them are cheaper than scratch, but not many. Do the math.
hamburger meal boxes are about the most expensive thing in the grocery store, pound for pound.

There are ways to make meal prep fast from scratch.

1) cook ground meat soon after you get home or the next day. Defat it, package it in meal sized portions, label and freeze. If you freeze it flat in plastic bags, it will take up less room in the freezer. Buying it in bulk makes for the cheapest price and let's you portion control your meat so there is no waste. Works for ground turkey, beef, and sausage. Costco has Jimmy Dean at the moment for 6.89 for three pounds.

2) roast off a chicken, roast beef, or pork roast ahead of time and package it in meal sized portions. Slice roast thin for sandwiches and bag. I use the food saver bags for this so I can thaw it fast under cold water.

3) use your slow cooker and your pressure cooker if you have one. If you don't have a slow cooker, get one. If you are short on money, look at estate and garage sales and put the word out to friends and family.

I have several meals in my freezer that I can make in 20 minutes or less. Tacos, refried beans, roast beef a jus sandwiches and green salad, Super baked potatoes,
BBQ pork sandwiches and salad. Healthier fast food without the fast food price!

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Jane

Slow cooker recipes by request

I have comments that people want slow cooker recipes.

SLOPPY JOES

1 pound ground beef,defatted
1onion, chopped
3/4 cup ketchup
2T chili sauce
1 T. W sauce
1T mustard
1 T vinegar
1Tsugar

Buns

Combine all ingredients in the slowcooker. Cook on low 4 a 5 hours.

Good hamburger is 2.50 cents a pound ar Safeways ( net). It is buy 1, Get 1.
I will make meatloaf, taco meat, meatballs and beef crumbles. The meatloaf will be cooked in a meatloaf pan so that the fat drains as it cooks, I will defat the tacos and the crumbles. I cook meatballs on a 1/4 sheet pan with a rack above it so that the fat drains. I am already using low fat hamburger. It should be fairly healthy; defatting low far hamburger makes less than boneless skinless chicken breast.

Vinegar is about two bucks a gallon at Costco. It lasts a long time and you can use it for cleaning as well. Nasturshim vinegar is really good. It has a peppery taste.

Chili sauce is at the dollar store, I believe.

Hamburger buns are sometimes free at the bakery outlet if you buy the months bread products. Stick to the bread products, the other products often are not a bargain.

I either get ketchup at the dollar store, or when it is a dollar om sale.


MEXICAN SOUP

2 - 15 oz cans of black beans, undrained
2 cans diced tomatoes, Mexican flavored if possible.
1cup salsa
chopped jalapeño peppers, chopped to taste
1 can tomato sauce ( or tomato paste and water to equal the 14 ounces.


Chicken cubes, cooked, grated cheese, tortilla chips

1) dump first five ingredients in the slow cooker. Stir. Cook on low for 8 hours.
2) turn cooker to high and add cooked chicken. Cook until chicken is warm. Do not over- stir so that your chicken gets stringy.Top with grated cheese and tortilla chips.


Note:

Roast off a chicken when you get it for a buck a pound. You should never buy a whole chicken that is less than 3 pounds. More like 4 or 5 is better. Under that you are paying for too much bone, and not enough meat.Have one " Sunday dinner" from the chicken breast. Cut off the wings, legs, and thighs for another meal.Cut chunks out of whatever is left from the breast. You can use them for chicken tetrezini, pot pie, soup, pizza, or tacos.

Tortilla chips are on sale often, or you can fry them on a little oil or brush them in oil and bake them.Check the food network for directions.

I am using pickled jalapeños at the moment. I am still trying to come up with chillies that are under 1.29 a four ounce can. It is one of those things that you can splurge on and make two meals out of it I suppose. For now, I am substituting until I find a solution.

SLOW COOKER BEEF SANDWICHES

2-3 pound of chuck roast or steak. Cubed.
1 pkg dry onion soup mix
1can cola

1) dump meat and mix and cola in slow cooker.
2) cook on low 8-10 hours.
3) shred meat with a fork.
4) serve on buns.

NOTE: onion soup mix recipe is on a current post.
You could also put carrots and potatoes on the bottom of the slow cooker before you layer the other ingredients and use it as a stew.serve with a crusty bread.
I have been putting butter, micro-planed hard cheese and parsley on French bread and heating it wrapped in foil in the oven.

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Jane

More mix recipes.

You could spend a lot of money on those mix packages. At a dollar a piece, do the
math. You are paying a lot of money per pound for something you probably already have in your cabinet. Spices are all over for a buck. They are also cheaper at costco and you could share with a friend if the quqnity is too much. Business Costco caters to restraunts. For four dollars I have enough basil for a lifetime. Spices loose their strength over time. None the less, makimg your own saves a lot of money and you don't get preservatives and can adjust the recipe accordingly.

ONION SOUP MIX.

3/4 cup dried minced onion
1/3cup beef flavored instant bouillon
4tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp sugar

5 T equals an 1.5 ounce package.

Onion soup mix is just under ten dollars a pound for beef broth, onion and sugar!


SALT FREE HERB MIX

3 tsp each of onion powder, garlic powder, dried parsley
1 tsp each of basil, thyme, pepper



TACO SEASONING MIX

1/2 cup plus 2 T chili powder
2/3 cup paprika
1/2 cup plus 1T cumin
1/3 cup onion powder
1/3 cup garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp red pepper
1 T red pepper flakes

Mix together. Store in container with a tight fitting lid. Store in a cool dry place for six months.

Use 2heaping tablespoons per pound of meat.


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Jane

Quick Main Dishes

We are heading into what for many families is the busiest time of the year. The kids are back in school, the adults groups are starting up again, and the holidays are upon us. I thought I would scour the many cookbooks I have and adjust some recipes to
be better, cheaper, faster.

Beef Satay

2 cloves garlic
1 large onion, quartered
2T ground cumin
1T sugar
2T olive oil

1 pound lean boneless sirloin.

salt


Cut beef into 1 inch cubes.

In a blender combine:
garlic
onion
cumin
sugar
oil

Whirl until smooth and place in large bowl.
Marinate beef cubes in bowl.

Thread meat on skewers.

Grill skewers on lightly oiled grill and cook 5-7 minutes until done to your liking.

Serve over red onions and sliced cucumbers with rice.

Beef Stirfry

2 large oranges
3T sherry
3T soy sauce
1 T cornstarch

1 pound bonless beef
Slice thinly across the grain into 1/4 inch slices.
2 T ginger

1.4 cups bean sprouts
1.5 cups chinese pea pods, cleaned.

1) Zest one orange. Squeeze juice from both oranges . Measure juice and supplement with water if necessary to make 3/4 cup. Add sauce ingredients .

2) Stir-fry beef until browned. Transfer meat to a bowl.

3) Pour orange juice mixture into pan. Deglaze pan. Add bean sprouts and pea pods and cook until pea pods are crisp-tender. Add beef and bring up to temperature.

Serve over rice.

NOTE: sirloin was on sale at Safeways last week.

Shrimp Fajitas

Make Salsa:
3 medium tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup thinly sliced radishes
1/2 cup minced onion
1 jalapeno seeded and minced
salt, red pepper
parsley or cilantro, chopped.

Mix together, cover, and set aside.


Make Marinade :

2 green onions
3T lime juice
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp each of cumin, ciili powder,
salt, red pepper

Marinate 1 pound of shrimp that has been cleaned ( remove shells and tails. ) about 5 minutes.
Stir fry shrimp in marinade until shrimp is done.

Heat flour tortillas . Lightly brush with hot water. Stack, wrap in foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes.

Assembly:

Place shrimp over the center of the warmed tortilla. Add salsa and sour cream.
Roll.

NOTES: Shrimp is less than five dollars a pound at Safeways with JFU. If tomatoes aren't in season, use canned chopped tomatoes, well drained. Adjust seasonings to
your heat preference. Taco shells are cheapest at Costco. I store them in the fridge and they last a long time. Lime juice is cheapest in the bottle.

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Jane

PS. I made this for family . I would serve it with rice. I would also add lettuce and cheese and cut the shrimp in half. A double batch did not feed 5 adults. I think a
Single batch would of augmented with rice and lettuce. This would also work for a lettuce wrap.

SURPRISE. This weeks adds

First...there was a coupon booklet with the adds. I saw a lot of pet food, make up, and bathtubs. There was a coupon for cold cereal, and one for corn oil.
I think that's why I am not a coupon clipper except for store coupons.

Safeways

Good hamburger is B1G1. They are not telling how much it costs. It os valy pack, so batch cooking would be in order.

Gala apples are 1.00
Cabbage .69

FIVE DOLLAR FRIDAYS
Shrimp
Ribs
Cheese cake
Shredded cheese
Salmon

Coupons
Frozen veggies 1.29 a pound
Betty crocker cake mix .99

Jfu

Raspberries 2.99


Top

Coupons

Eggs .99
Salad 1.00

Meat:
Fryer legs 1.00
Country ribs or sirloin chops 2.00


QFC

Pasta 1.00

Cream cheese1.00
Oranges.99
Pears .99
Broccoli .99
Corn 2/88

Sausage 3/10

ALBERTSONS
Tangerines .88


That's all there is. That's one of the reasons why it is wise to stock. I don't have to go shop this week. We are sustainable for a while.

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Jane

Blog for September 25

I just got home from high tea with my girlfriends. I think that desert is on order.

I think this is like the recipe that we made when I was a kid. Have been looking for it for years. We called it cowboy pudding cake.

1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2tsp soda
1/4tsp salt
1/2cup buttermilk
2 T butter, melted
1/2cup raisins
1/4cup nuts
1/4cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 1/2 cup hot water ( 130'degrees)

Heat oven to 350 degrees

In large bowl, mix dry ingredients
Stir in buttermilk and butter.
Stir in raisins and nuts
Spread in ungreased 8 or 9 inch square pan

In small bowl, mix brown sugar and hot water. Pour over batter.
Bake 45-55 min or until top is brown and toothpick comes out clean.

Serve with ice cream.

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Jane