Frugal Food For A Crowd

The food doesn't have to be fancy, it just has to taste good! When it's your time to have the crew at your house, break out the crockpot and let it do the work for you, frugally! You can use any meat you have on hand...chicken breasts, pork roast, etc. Those bags of frozen chicken breasts you buy for $6.00 work really well. Add your meat to the crock pot, pour a bottle of barbeque sauce on top, along with a small red onion (chopped). Cook on low until the meat shreads. Serve on your favorite bread/buns.

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This can be made a day or two ahead and reheated in the crockpot when company is coming. Add a big bowl of chips, some pickles and maybe your favorite macaroni salad. Sure to please a crowd AND your wallet.

Make Homemade Tortilla Chips And Save Money

Why pay $3.49 for a bag of tortilla chips when you can make them at home for about $1.00? The homemade ones are healthier for you because they're not fried and they taste much better! Here's how you do it:

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Ingredients:

10-12 flour tortillas
vegetable oil (or spray) - I use cooking spray such as Pam
spices

1. Cut tortillas into 8 wedges. (You can stack them and cut with a pizza cutter)
2. Brush or spray baking sheet with oil.
3. Arrange tortilla wedges in a single layer on the baking sheet and brush or spray lightly with oil.
4. Sprinkle with seasonings: salt or seasoned salt, chili powder, cinnamon sugar, etc.
5. Bake at 325 until crisp and lightly browned, approximately 10 minutes.

My favorite spice combination is garlic powder, italian seasoning and parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

When Low On Dinner Ideas....Just Dump It

I usually do my grocery shopping on Sundays (after I get my hands on the coupon inserts of course), so pickins are slim on Saturdays. I have found that almost anything can make good stew. See what you have on hand and just dump it all into the crockpot, cook on low for at least 4-5 hours and see what happens. Here's the ingredients from yesterday's "dump".

1 lb 90% lean ground beef (starting to get a little freezer burn, so had to be used) - cooked it on stovetop first and drained any fat.
1/2 bag of red potatoes, quartered
1/2 bag of frozen peas
1 can of corn
2 tbsp minced garlic
3 tbsp onion soup mix
1/4 cup flaxseed
1 tbsp italian seasoning
2 cups water

I cooked that in the crockpot for about 4 1/2 hours on low, then added a carton of V8 tomato soup and cooked for another 1/2 hour on low until the potatoes were cooked through.

It got rave reviews and requests to have it again. Served with slices of rye bread (purchased for $.50 due to upcoming expiration date ~ stored in freezer until yesterday). We ate 5 servings and there are two leftover servings in the fridge for lunches. Total cost: about $7.25. Not bad for a family dinner and two lunches.

So all you have to do is take your favorite meat (in bite sized pieces), cook it off, add veggies and spices of choice, along with enough liquid to get it cooking. Add more liquid later to your desired consistency.

What's in YOUR cupboards, waiting to be dumped?

A Frugal Snack

This incredibly easy snack can be made to fit whatever taste you are craving at the moment. All you do is place ordinary oyster crackers into a large frying pan. Spray the crackers with non-stick spray like Pam. (If you have a gas stove make sure you do all of your spraying AWAY from the flame!) After the crackers are sprayed well, sprinkle dry seasoning of your choice on top of them. Heat crackers on medium high heat, turning often. Spray a few more times, followed by a little more seasoning. Turn the crackers often to keep the coating consistent. The crackers should only be on the stove for as long as it takes to coat them well and make sure the seasoning sticks.

Some seasoning suggestions:

1. Onion soup mix

2. Popcorn seasoning (like cheddar, nacho, etc.)

3. Ranch dressing mix

4. Italian sesoning

Use your imagination! This snack is very low in fat and tastes great! It is also very economical. I can get a bag of oyster crackers for $.50 most times. You probably have the ingredients in your cupboard right now...go ahead and try it!

Never Buy Garlic Salt Again..

How many out there purchase and use garlic salt on a regular basis? I'm sure most of you have a jar of garlic salt in your spice cabinet, and it's probably been there quite a while. Here's a trick to making your own garlic salt when you need it:

Just mix three parts salt to one part garlic powder to create garlic salt. Store in an airtight container (maybe use that old garlic salt jar) or just make enough to use for one recipe. Easy and very budget friendly! Cross garlic salt off of your shopping list!

Using Up The "Ends"

I am a lover of the "ends". You know, those packages of meats and cheeses that the deli sells that no one ever wants to buy...the ends that they didn't slice. Love them! I have found a place where I can buy a pound of bacon ends for $.87. Wow! Most groceries have a section in their deli case where they put "the ends" out at least once a week, at a discount from the regular price. If you come across them, grab them! Here's some ideas for those wonderful ends:

Bacon ends:

1. Cook them using your favorite method of cooking bacon. Use them in omelets or breakfast casseroles. Put them on homemade breakfast sandwiches.
2. Put cooked bacon ends in a mini food processors and whirl ~ homemade bacon bits. I do this with the leftover bacon ends and put them in the freezer. Always have bacon bits on hand!
3. Dice several cooked ends and add them to your favorite cheese spread to give it an additional flavor.
4. Add them to baked beans for a great smokey taste.
5. They are great for topping baked potatoes, potatoe skins, etc.
6. Add them to soups, especially ones like clam chowder. Yum!

Cheese ends:

1. Shred them. Bring the cheese ends home and put through the shredder. Use in any recipe that calls for shredded cheese.
2. Cut in cubes and serve with dipping mustards for your next get-together.
3. Slice for sandwiches.
4. Use for sauces, fondues or soups.

Lunchmeat ends:

1. Shread and make a sandwich spread by adding mayo, shredded carrots, olives or anything you see fit.
2. The obvious - slice for sandwiches.
3. Add to casseroles and stir fries.
4. Add to soups and stews.
5. Slice and fry - serve with breakfast instead of sliced bacon or sausage.

Your options are unlimited really. Why not seek out these frugal little bundles of flavor and see what you can create?