An idea about bringing down the cost of groceries

So I have started a new endeavor in an effort to save money on our weekly grocery bill. I have joined a subscription on the internet that sends me a weekly dinner menu, including grocery list for a particular store. The weekly menu is picked based on the sales at the store so the grocery list is as inexpensive as possible. Initially I was a bit on the suspicious side. Like most people I sometimes feel as though using the store brand products I am sacrificing a bit in quality and nutrition, not to mention taste! How truly wrong was I? Really Really wrong and I don’t say that often. So I am going to keep a running commentary on each recipe as we go, hopefully it will be humorous and helpful.

Enchilada Ring

1.5 pounds of chicken cooked and shredded

2.25 oz can of sliced black olives

4-6 oz shredded cheddar cheese

4 oz. can diced green chilies undrained

½ cup miracle whip

1 pkg. taco seasoning

1 small tomato diced

2 cans crescent rolls

2 tbsp crushed tortilla chips

To be served with Salsa and chips and a mango peeled and sliced

1.       1. Cook chicken by covering with water, bring it to a boil, simmer covered for 30 minutes, drain, cool, and shred.

2.      2. Combine chicken, olives, cheese, chilies, miracle whip, and taco seasoning in a bowl

3.       3. Add tomato

4.       4. Unroll crescents and separate into triangles, arrange on cookie sheet in circle with wide ends towards the middle and points towards the outside overlapping them to fit.

5.       5. Spread chicken mixture on the wide part of the triangle, bring the points over filling and tuck ends under wide ends.

6.       6. Sprinkle over with crushed chips

7.       7. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes

8.       Serve with chips, salsa, and mango

This recipe is very tasty. Because of the chilies and the taco seasoning you might think this meal would be spicy but it wasn’t! I was excited to discover that my husband actually liked it and he is a wimp when it comes to spicy stuff. I might suggest actually draining the chilies so that the crescent dough won’t get soggy. I think this is a great recipe for potlucks or group events but I do have a couple of warnings. Number one, be careful while building the ring, the longer the dough sits out the stickier it gets making it difficult to build the ring in the first place. The only other warning I have is if you aren’t big into things that get soggy in the refrigerator the leftovers of this might not be for you. I ate it cold the next day and it was delicious but the soggy texture of the crescent dough was a little on the tough side (no pun intended).

This recipe can be found at http://kellyskornerrecipes.blogspot.com/2010/06/chicken-enchilada-ring.html with a few minor changes of my own...

Caesar Burgers

1.5 to 2 pounds of ground beef

6-8 oz shredded Jack cheese

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1 pkg of hamburger buns

Caesar dressing

Romaine lettuce leaves

1 bag of frozen French fries

1.       1. Combine beef, cheese, mustard, salt, and pepper

2.       2. Form mixture into 5 or 6 patties

3.       3. Cook over medium heat to desired doneness

4.       4. Spread buns with Caesar dressing

5.       5. Top patties with lettuce

6.       6. Prepare French fries as directed

I got to say these burgers were extremely yummy! They were a big hit with my picky crew. Two notes: number one you can do these on either a grill or in a pan on the stove. I did it on the stove and it was extremely good it might be a bit messy on the grill due to the cheese. The second note is that I used honey mustard instead of Dijon mustard but that is a taste choice if you prefer the tang go with the Dijon but if you prefer a sweeter taste go for the honey. The original recipe also used the Italian four cheese mix instead of Jack cheese. When I went to the store they didn’t have the four cheese mix so I used the Jack instead and it turned out well. Remember as you use these recipes the tastes of you and your family is the important part. If there is an item in a recipe that doesn’t fit your family’s taste feel free to change it, I did =). Make these recipes your own and they will be excellent! My husband was going to make his own thousand island dressing for the burger when I suggested to him that he try it before he did and he was surprised that he liked the addition of the Caesar dressing. So remember to not be scared to try something new (even if you don’t tell them what’s in it!).

Basic recipe found at http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/caesar-burgers-106262.aspx with a few minor tweaks from me =)

BBQ Shrimp

1.5 to 2 pounds of shrimp

2 lemons cut into wedges

2 bay leaves

1 cup butter melted

1 cup ketchup

½ cup Worcestershire sauce

4 cloves garlic chopped

3 tbsp seafood seasoning

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp thyme

4-6 ears of corn

1 loaf garlic bread

1.       1. Place shrimp in 13 X 9” pan

2.       2. Top with lemon wedges and bay leaves

3.       3. In small bowl combine butter, ketchup, Worcestershire, garlic, and seasoning. Pour over shrimp

4.       4. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Stir every 10 minutes. Discard bay leaves before serving.

5.       5. Cook corn as directed, butter and salt to taste

6.       6. Prepare bread as directed.

A couple of things about this dish, number one the recipe calls for unpeeled shrimp… I used cleaned shrimp and removed the tails myself. Also be very careful to not overcook the shrimp. I overcooked them a little and they tasted really good still but those of you who might have texture issues just realize that overcooked shrimp are a little on the tough side. I found this to be very yummy and the “homemade” BBQ sauce was right on the money. And the second thing is that I ate the leftovers on top of a salad the next day with some Caesar salad dressing and it was primo yummy!

Recipe found at http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/bbq-shrimp-10000001206115/

Classic Lasagna

1 pound ground beef

1 clove minced garlic

2 tsp Italian seasoning

2 cans pasta sauce

2 eggs beaten

24 oz. cottage cheese

½ tsp pepper

½ cup Parmesan cheese

9 oz. pkg no boil lasagna noodles

8 oz. pkg mozzarella cheese

Romaine lettuce chopped

½ basket tomatoes

Favorite salad dressing

1 loaf French bread

½ cup butter

Garlic salt

1.       1. Brown and crumble ground beef, drain

2.       2. Add garlic, Italian seasoning, and pasta sauce, mix well

3.       3. Combine cottage cheese, eggs, pepper, Parmesan cheese, stir well

4.       4. In greased baking dish spread ½ cup meat sauce

5.       5. Layer ½ of the lasagna noodles, cheese mixture, mozzarella, and meat sauce

6.       6. Layer the rest of the lasagna noodles, the rest of the cheese mixture, the rest of the mozzarella, and the rest of the meat sauce.

7.       7. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes

8.       8. Let stand for 10 minutes

9.       9. Toss lettuce, tomato, and dressing, serve chilled

10.   10. Slice bread, top with butter and garlic salt, Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until golden.

Okay, complete honesty. As lasagna recipes go it tasted like lasagna and it was good however, that being said it was a bit on the watery side so I would suggest straining some of the sauce out of the meat and also strain some of the water content out of the cheese mixture. When lasagna is too watery it doesn’t hold together well and can be very disappointing that way. Also, because of how watery it was it did not make good leftovers and when you talk about a recipe that makes a casserole style dish it not making good leftovers is a definite downside.

Recipe found at http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/easy-classic-lasagna-56251.aspx with a couple minor variations as noted

Honey Chicken (For the crock pot)

1.5 pounds of chicken breast

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

½ cup honey

¼ cup soy sauce

¼ cup onion chopped

2 tbsp ketchup

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 clove minced garlic

Brown rice (enough for at least 4)

1 pound broccoli with butter and salt

1.       1. Season chicken with salt and pepper, place in crock pot

2.       2. Combine honey, soy sauce, onion, ketchup, oil, and garlic

3.       3. Pour over chicken

4.       4. Cook on low for 3 hours

5.       5. Cut chicken into bite size pieces and return to cooker to coat

6.       6. Prepare rice as directed

7.       7. Serve chicken and sauce over rice

8.       8. Steam broccoli; add butter and salt to taste

This chicken was a good recipe, not fabulous, but warm and yummy. Definitely cold weather food. I was in a rush on the day that I made it and didn’t have 3 hours so I put the crock pot on high for an hour and a half. It worked but again you have to be careful not to overcook the chicken. However, again, not a good recipe for leftovers, it did not taste as good the 2^nd day as the first.

Recipe found at http://www.crock-pot.com/Recipe.aspx?rid=287

Cheesy Sausage Calzones

2 pkgs of pizza crust

Cooking spray

1 pkg Italian sausage

1 cup onion sliced

1 bell pepper sliced

15 oz. ricotta cheese

2 eggs

½ tsp Mrs. Dash

½ cup pizza sauce

8 oz. mozzarella cheese

Romaine lettuce shredded

½ basket tomatoes

Your favorite dressing

1.       1. Prepare pizza crust as directed

2.       2. Saute sausage, onion, and pepper; drain and set aside

3.       3. Combine ricotta, eggs, and seasoning

4.       4. Put crust on sprayed cookie sheet

5.       5. Stretch crust to 10 X 13 rectangle

6.       6. Spoon ¼ cup sauce, 1 cup ricotta mixture, and ½ of sausage mix onto ½ of rectangle leaving a 1’ border.

7.       7. Sprinkle with half of cheese

8.       8. Fold dough over; press and crimp edges to seal

9.       9. Cut three slits in top to allow steam to escape

10.   10. Repeat steps 4 thru 9 with the other crust and rest of ingredients

11.   11. Bake at 425 degrees for 35 minutes

12.   12. Toss lettuce with tomatos and dressing

Okay, once this was baked it was VERY good, like to die for good. However, the pizza crust was difficult to work with, I guess I didn’t mix it as good as I should have and the dough needed to be worked with more than the package gave direction to. Also, be very careful how much of each ingredient you are putting on to the dough. I am not an exact measurement kind of girl except when I bake so I wasn’t being as good about it as I should have been and as a result was having issues with the dough becoming soggy, the dough breaking and allowing filling to leak out, and getting the dough to seal. Mostly cause the dough was dry and then the ingredients made it too wet. Once we cut into the calzones though it was really, Really, REALLY good. A picky friend of mine liked it and according to his wife he doesn’t like much so that’s a ringing endorsement right there.

Most of this recipe found at http://busycooks.about.com/od/pizzarecipes/r/sausagecalz.htm with a couple of changes as noted. I found the Betty Crocker pizza crust mix and opted for that other than refridgerated pizza dough.

I didn’t actually make the day seven recipe so I am not including it here but it was Orange Pancakes with sausage and sliced oranges.

Also, I plan on taking pictures soon and including them for recipes as I do them this week, as I am on the 4^th day of the week we will have three more without pictures before we get to today. At the end of the month (2 and a half weeks away) I will let you know whether I spent less money on eating out/groceries. I think I have so far but I want to actually do a comparison between March and April to get a good idea of the difference so I am working on that too.

Maple Dijon Broiled Salmon

1.5-2 pounds Salmon filets

1 tbsp Dijon Mustard

1 tbsp maple syrup

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

1-2 boxes long grain wild rice

12 oz. bag frozen spinach

1.       1. Place salmon on foil lined baking sheet

2.       2. Combine mustard, syrup, salt, and pepper; rub over salmon

3.       3. Broil on high 6-8 minutes

4.       4. Cook rice according to package

5.       5. Cook spinach according to package and butter and salt to taste.

My first disclaimer, I want you to know I absolutely HATE fish, I avoid it like the plague. I don’t like the taste, I don’t like the smell, and I don’t have a tendency to cook it even for other people who do like it. Having said that, how can I expect my kids to try things if I am not willing to? So I girded my loins, plugged my nose and dived into the recipe. So first the differences between the recipe and what I did. First, I bought salmon filets that were already cut and didn’t have any skin on them (fish skin? Ewww yuck!) and were about 6 oz each. Second, I used foil to put the salmon on BUT I did not use a baking sheet. Third, I used honey mustard instead of Dijon because my husband and I love sweet stuff and since neither one of us cares for fish I was “sweetening” the deal for us in the taste department. Lastly, I broiled the fish on one side for 6 minutes turned it over and cooked it 6 more minutes on the other side, making sure it had some of the rub on both sides. So that was the differences now the verdict. Oh my goodness, I LIKED it. I would eat it again. Will it make me want to eat fish on a regular basis? No but if I needed to make a fish dish this is the one that I would choose to make. Hows that for an endorsement?

Recipe found at http://video.about.com/busycooks/Maple-Mustard-Glazed-Salmon.htm I left out the chipotle peppers cause my husband is a spicy wimp.

Sweet Garlic Chicken

4 cloves garlic minced

1 tbsp olive oil

¼ cup brown sugar

1.5 pounds boneless chicken breasts

1-2 pounds broccoli

1-2 boxes chicken flavored rice

1.       1. In small skillet sauté garlic in oil until tender

2.       2. Remove from heat and stir in brown sugar

3.       3. Place chicken in lightly greased baking dish and cover with garlic-sugar mixture; salt and pepper to taste.

4.       4. Bake at 500 degrees uncovered for 15-25 minutes

5.       5. Steam broccoli and prepare rice as directed.

I have to say this recipe is very simple but oh so very yummy. It was sweet and savory at the same time. It was a quick weekday recipe and perfect for anyone who has had a long day at work and not too much time in order to cook dinner. And of course I love broccoli steamed in butter =).

Recipe found at http://www.thenovicechefblog.com/2012/02/garlic-brown-sugar-chicken-2/ but I used oil instead of butter.

So this takes us to the recipe I made last night for dinner... I guess you will have to wait for the next blog post to see it =)