My Little Discovery

Some time ago I went to my local Publix to pick up a few items. While in there, I ran across Five Family-Pleasing Five -Item Square Meals. For those of you looking for quick meals that you can get on the table in about 30 minutes, this booklet is for you!

When I first started this whole blogging thing, I gave you a glimpse of my pantry. It's changed a little here and there. I have been trying to get away from pre-packaged items. They're full of sodium and preservatives. I try to cook from fresh when I can, now.

Back to the booklet...
It has some great ideas as far as the meals themselves are concerned. With some tweaking, you can still turn out great healthy meals. Recently, I made the Mexican-Style Beef & Rice. The recipe called for ground beef, long grain rice, jarred salsa, black beans and cheese. Instead of ground beef, I used Boca crumbles. White rice was swapped for brown rice. And, the jarred salsa was swapped for homemade salsa. I did use the canned black beans. As you know, those are a staple on my list.

Our eating habits have changed a lot since doing this. DH is not a big fan of brown rice, but he knows that white rice is not the greatest thing for you.

So, there you have it. Next time you're in there, check out the displays before going in to do your shopping. You, too, may make a little discovery of your own.

What to Do with Leftovers

I have been really lazy this week. My local Publix had a sweet deli deal where you get a rotisserie chicken, a pack of rolls, two 16 oz sides and a gallon of tea for a great low, low price. So, that was dinner one night. The following night, instead of a usual salad, I opted to make tacos-chicken tacos.

I removed the remainder of the chicken, minus the skin and added it to a warm pan. I then added chile powder, cumin, ground red pepper, garlic powder, sea salt, cracked black pepper, paprika and onion powder. I don't like those taco seasoning packs for a few reasons. One, they are too high in salt and two, if you read the back of the pack, you probably already have those ingredients in your stocked pantry. I then added a little water to the pan and heated the chicken through.

While the chicken was "cooking", I chopped some tomatoes, given to us from dear friend, lettuce and shredded some cheese. I then grabbed a small muffin tin that I have and added the lettuce, cheese, tomatoes in each cup. This makes it easier to build your own tacos and if you have children, the cups are the right size for those little hands. Added some sour cream and black beans and voila! Dinner was done!

Now if you really want to, try your hand at making the tortillas. I found a great recipe here, Tammy's Recipes. As for a recipe for your salsa, you will discover that there are a million recipes out there. My advice would be to try a few and come up with one of your own with the ingredients that you like. Once you make your own, you won't be buying the jarred stuff again!

What do you think?? Happy cooking!!

Oh Baby it's HOT Outside!!!

If you have been in front of television lately, you would know how hot it has been here in the South. So hot, that I could not bear to even turn on my oven. Needless to say, the crockpot's gotten a great workout and DH has eaten lots of salads.

Here's one that I cranked out one evening when I really didn't feel like cooking at all. DH said that he would "find" himself something to eat so I didn't have to worry about dinner. When he said that, I decided that I would eat a salad. Checked the freezer and pantry and came up w/ a chicken tender salad.

I rolled the chicken tenders in an egg white then coated them w/ crushed cornflakes seasoned w/ a salt-free all-purpose seasoning. I pan-fried them in canola oil and placed them on a rack to cool. Then put the salad together. When it was finished, DH decided that he couldn't "find" anything to eat so he ate some salad. I made a honey mustard dressing to go w/.

Honey Mustard Dresssing-my way

All are to taste...

prepared yellow mustard

honey

sour cream

light mayo

Sitr it all up and give it a taste

Happy cooking and stay cool!!!

Getting the Hang of this Coupon Thing

Okay, so I am back in the saddle again after being MIA for awhile. Had to stock up on few things and get ready for school in the process. Had some great coupons that were screamin' to be used, so here ya go!! I went to my local Publix and this is what I got....

1-Flat Earth Veggie Crisp (DH loves these)-( sale $2.99)

1-Publix Spring Mix-(sale $1.50)

1-Publix Italian Salad Mix (sale $1.49)

2-Eggo Lego Homestyle-(sale 2 for $2.19)

1-Snyder Pretzel w/ Cheese (sale $3.00)

2-Pillsbury Toaster Strudel (sale $1.99 each)

1-Yoplait Fiberone ($3.09)

2-Gummisavers ($1.69 each)

1-Laughing Cow wedges ($2.99)

1-Jello Dark Chocolate pudding cups (sale $1.67)

3-Bush Beans (sale, $0.89 each)

3-Birds Eye Frozen veggies (sale, $5.00/5)

1-Publix milk ($4.15)

1-Dannon All Natural Yogurt ($1.89)

1-Crisco butter spray (sale $2.50)

2-Betty Crocker Brownies (sale 2 for $2.69)

2-Frosted Cheerios ( sale 2 for $3.99)

1-Coffeemate creamer(3 for $5.00-$1.67)

1-Planters Mixed Nuts (sale 2 for $6.00, $3.00)

2-Jif Peanut Butter Singles (sale 2 for $5.00)
plus some other items like grapes, bread, etc...



Coupons

1-Flat Earth peelie $0.55

1-BOGO for Lifesavers

1-Jello Dark Chocolate Pudding Q-$0.50

1-Publix Bush beans, buy 3, $0.50

1-Birdseye coupon, $1.00 on three

1-Dannon All Yogurt- $1.00

1-Cheerios coupon-$1.00 off two

2-Jif Peanut Butter (individual cups)-$0.50

1-Free Coffemate creamer

1-Hunt's ketchup -$0.20

1-Planters nut-$3.00- 3 Kraft/Nabiso products are purchased

2-Betty Crocker Premium Brownies-$0.50

1-Save $1.00 on milk when 2 Welches squeeze jams or jellies are purchased

1-Laughing Cow cheese $.055

1-Synder's Pretzels $0.75



Total OOP was $77.84

Total Savings:

Store Coupons $9.53

Vendor Coupons $20.06

Advertised Special Savings $37.23

Advantage Buy Savings $5.89

Total Savings at Publix $72.71



DH was really happy w/ this! Check what others have done over at Fiddledeedee.

Your Kitchen- the Spa!

Taking a break from the ABCs right now. ....

While reading one of my favorite books, How to Be a Budget Fashionista by Kathryn Finney, I reached her chapter, Beauty 101. That's when it hit me-the majority of her treatments can be made from having a stocked pantry. Again, these are her recipes, but I thought that I would share with you a few with ingredients from my pantry.

Scrubs

Honey plus Oatmeal for dry skin

Mix 1/2 cup of plain uncooked oats with 3 tablespoons of honey. Apply to your face, letting this set for 15 minutes, then rinse thoroughly.

Cornmeal plus milk for acne

Add 1/2 cup of cornmeal to 1/4 cup of milk. Mix to make a paste and scrub on the skin. Let this set for 10 minutes and then rinse.

Moisturizing Facial Scrubs

Olive oil plus avocado moisturizer

Mix 1/2 avocado with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Apply to your face and leave on for 10 minutes. Rinse thoroughly.

These are just a few. With times the way that they are, doing some spa treatments at home may be a way to help stretch your dollar. I know that these treatments include using food that you would normally eat, but I am just showing you that some of your indulgences you may be able to do at home.

Experiment, you never know what you may discover!!!

D is for Doughnuts...sorta

My not so little guy asked for some doughnuts. While most people would have jumped in their cars and headed for the nearest DD or KK, he asked if we could make ours. Of course, I replied. We always have canned biscuits in the pantry because of their million and one uses, so how could I say no.

I first got my peanut oil and added about an inch of this into my medium-sized pot. While this was getting up to temperature, I popped open the can and JC prepped the biscuits.

JC used a decorator's tip and made the holes in the biscuits. When the oil was hot, I put them in two at a time and kept flipping them until they were golden in color. When they were all done, I dropped the centers in and made doughnut holes for myself-cook's treat! I let them cool on a rack. While they were cooling, I made a powdered sugar glaze , JC dipped them and placed back on the rack glazed side up for it to set a bit. The doughnut "holes" were coated w/ sugar and cinnamon. We had a great time making these together. I really enjoy cooking w/ my other man of the house. Here's a pic of the fruits of our labor....

Stuck on C

Just when I thought I was done w/ the letter c, I stumbled upon this:

Land O Lakes now has butter in half sticks. They are really easy to use. When I opened the box, inside there was a recipe for Favorite Chocolate Cake. I read over the ingredients and had everything in the pantry to try it out. The recipe is a follows:

1 cup of sugar
1 Half Stick of Land O Lakes butter,(1/4 cup) , softened
1/4 cup sour milk*
1 (1-ounce) square unsweetened chocolate, melted
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup boiling water
Powdered sugar or heavy whipping , whipped, if desired

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8-inch square baking pan, set aside.

Combine sugar and butter in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Add sour milk, melted chocolate, egg and vanilla. Continue beating until smooth. Reduce speed to low; add flour, baking soda and salt. Beat until well mixed. Add boiling water; continue until smooth.

Pour batter in prepared pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Dust cooled cake with powdered sugar or serve w/ whipped cream.
Makes 12 servings


*Substitute 3/4 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice plus enough milk to equal 1/24 cup; let stand 5 minutes

I pretty much followed the recipe except instead of sour milk, I used buttermilk. I also noticed that when I added the boiling water, the mixture seemed a bit thin. After the cake cooled, I dusted it w/ powdered sugar and dark cocoa powder. The cake had a nice crumb to it and is just the right size as it only makes one layer.

While eating a piece, I started thinking about the possibilities. This cake could be covered in a chocolate ganache or even a buttercream icing. Orange zest could be added to the mixture as well as orange flavoring instead of vanilla flavoring. The possibilities are endless! Hope you try it.

Now I Know my ABCs

So, this time around, I will try to tackle the ABCs.

A for roasted aparagus w/ shallots

B for basil roasted chicken, w/ the basil tucked under the skin
I had a chance to visit my parents over the weekend. Now that school is out, my dad has a lot of free time, more time to tend to his garden. This year he planted an herb garden. He has chives, peppermint and basil. While I was there I clipped some basil. I think this fresh basil will be a welcomed addition to the chicken.



C-chocolate mousse and coconut cake. The coconut cake was leftover from Father's Day.

This is enough for now to get me started. What about you? What's on tap for the week??

TTFN

Salad Dressings-My Way....

So DH's last doctor's visit went okay. He was told to stay away from prepared salad dressings. Later that evening, I went in and tossed all of his stash from the fridge. Now, the only prepared dressings he has on his salads are the ones that I make. If we are eating out, he will request EVOO and balsamic vinegar.

I thought that I would share with you all one dressing that he seems to like right now. I try not to make a lot of dressings that call for cheese as some can be very salty. If I do use it, it is used very sparingly. He complains, but he will just have to get over it!!

Creamy Buttermilk and Parmesan Cheese Dressing

Here's what you will need:

1/4 cup reduced fat or light sour cream
1/4 light mayonnaise
shredded Parmesan cheese or grated, if you want a finer texture(not the canned stuff!!)
buttermilk
pinch of kosher salt
cracked black pepper or for you purists, white pepper

These measurements are not set in stone. With that said, go with how YOU would like for it to taste. I like to make my dressings the day before I will need them. This gives all the flavors a chance to meld together.

Mix the sour cream and mayo together. Add the cheese. If this mixture seems a little too thick, add some buttermilk to thin it out. If you are going for a dip texture, you may want to leave it on the thick side. Add salt and pepper to taste. Store in an air-tight container and keep in the fridge. If you make up several types of dressings, you may want to label them. Don't ask me how I know this, 'kay?

Now with just the base of the mayo and sour cream, you can add bleu cheese and a splash of red wine vinegar (or not) and you have bleu cheese dressing or bleu cheese dip.


This same principle holds true for vinaigrette dressings. You can vary this in a number of ways like by adding sun-dried tomatoes, shallots, garlic, etc. Have fun with it! Onced you've made it your way, you may not go back to the pre-made dressings.

Happy cooking!!

Ode to the Crockpot

So this week, my theme will be to use the crockpot.

Extra-Cheesy Macaroni and Cheese w/ Roasted Asparagus and mixed green salad

Veggie Lasagne w/ kernel corn or mixed green salad

Roast w/ Onion and Mushroom gravy w/ mashed potatoes and petite green peas

Beefy noodle soup w/ steamed veggies

I will be using the leftover roast to make to make the soup.

Have a great week!!!

Really Cooking from the Pantry

This week I am going to put my pantry to the test using SuperCook.

Spaghetti w/ Butter, Parmesan & Pepper with baked drumsticks

Ramen Noodle Frittata w/ roasted aparagus

Tuna and White Bean Salad

Salmon and Brocoli Alfredo w/ Pasta

We shall see how this goes!!!

Happy cooking!!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL!!!!

Fun with My Guy....

I can honestly say that my little guy keeps me on my toes. I have come to learn that children think that parents can make ANYTHING!!! With that said.....here's some crafts to make and do with your little kitchen helpers right from your pantry.

Homemade Fingerpaints

Materials:

2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 cups cold water
1/4 clear dishawshing liquid
Food coloring or food coloring paste

Mix the sugar and cornstarch in a small pan, then slowly add the water. Cook over low heat, stirring until the mixture becomes smooth, almost a clear gel (about 5 minutes). When the mixture is cool, stir in the dishwashing liquid. Scoop equal amounts into containers and stir in the food coloring or food coloring paste.

Play Clay

Materials:

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup salt
1 teaspoon cooking oil
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Food coloring or cake decorating paste

Mix the flour, water, salt, oil and cream of tartar in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it holds together (keep stirring or it will stick to the pan). When the clay is cool enough to touch, knead it on a floured surface, divide it into smaller balls and add a different shade of coloring to each ball. Store in an airtight container.

These are the two that we do the most. I have some others to share, but now I am being paged......

Enjoy!

A Little Inspiration....

I stumbled upon this site and I am in love! I could spend hours just putting in combinations to see what I can come up with. For those of you who rely heavily on your pantry and your stockpile, this is a great resource. If you like this site, then be sure to check out www.allrecipes.com, too!

Happy cooking!!

My version of fried rice

Tonight's dinner was chicken fried rice w/ egg drop soup. Hubby really enjoyed it.....

Check This Out...

I discovered this site some time ago and it is such a gem! With the increase in prices at the grocery stores, you have to get creative in ways to hold on to more of your money. Now that we stay in more than we eat out, I have discovered that alot of the ready-made foods that I buy and have bought, with a little preparation, can be made at home. I am always tweaking my pantry as I become less dependent upon ready made items. Here, she has composed a list of what is best for your budget. They're called Budget Buys. This is one you may want to bookmark!!

A Week of Dinners and My Own Take-Out

Okay, so if your Mexican restaurants are like mine in my neighborhood-DELICIOUS- then you already know how difficult it will be to get in on May 5. So, we will have our Cinco De Mayo celebration.

Double-stuffed tacos- a recipe that I found from All You, page 116, with a few modifications. First, I will be using veggie crumbles, instead of meat. This recipe will be just a gauge to go by. To go with the tacos, we will have the rest of the black bean salsa, guacamole and yellow rice(will cook extra rice for stir fry later in the week)

Spaghetti with meatballs w/ whole wheat pasta & mixed green salad

Trio salad- tuna salad, pasta salad and chicken salad (made from leftover chicken)

Chicken fried rice-using leftover chicken from Saturday's rotisserie chicken

There is a recipe that I have been mulling over as my other half has never tasted gnocchi. He doesn't care for tomate-based sauces too much, so I may swap out one dish from my list for gnocchi with yellow tomato sauce from Publix Apron's. If you ever need some inspiration, you should check out that site.

Will let you know how all of this turns out.

Happy Cooking!!

Dinner-The Meal of Champions!!

Back for another round....

Sunday dinner was mini meatloaves. I baked enough for Tuesday

Chicken and Rice, except the chicken will be poached and red bell pepper will be used w/ steamed veggies

mini-meatloaf sandwiches w/ mozzarella cheese

blackened tilapia w/ black bean salsa, using fresh tomatoes, olive oil and frozen corn

hamburgers w/ homemade buns

This should be an easy week. Hope yours is, too,.

Happy cooking....

Here we go again

So this week I am really going to challenge myself and try much harder to use my pantry and freezer. So for the upcoming week...

Fish Tacos w/ homemade salsa

Salmon Fishsticks over mixed green salad (as seen on "Everyday Italian")

Asparagus soup w/ mixed green salad and crusty bread

Roast chicken w/ broccoli-potato mashers

Chicken and Dumplings

Hope your week is great one and happy cooking!

For the Upcoming Week...

Well everything is back to normal in the house w/ the end of Spring Break. With that being said, dinner each night will need to be pretty simple. Here's the plan for the week...

Fish and Chips
Waffle Ham & Cheese Sandwiches
Everything but the Kitchen Sink Salad w/ Parmesan Crisps
Tuna Salad Hoagies w/ mini-carrots

The dessert for the week will be Chocolate-Nut Brownies from 12 Best Foods Cookbook.

Happy Cooking!!

What's For Dinner??

After doing my survey of the pantry, here's what I have been able to come up with but not in any particular order:

Roast Beef sandwiches w/ roasted potato wedges
Mini meatloaves w/ green beans and mac & cheese
Buffalo-style roasted drumsticks w/ bleu cheese mashed potatoes
Out of the shell taco salad w/ black bean soup
Salmon wraps w/ homemade tortilla

Will more than likely have the sandwiches on Monday so that I can get a start on the rest of the week.

Happy cooking!

Take the Cake...

Here's a picture of the finished Angel Food Cake, well, minus a few slices, that is. Hubby ate his slice w/ lemon curd, blackberry sauce and whipped cream. What do you think?

Pucker Up...

For some strange reason, I have this craving for lemon curd. Now eating this delicious concoction on its own, might not be the best way to enjoy it. But, pair it with let's say, Angel Food cake and whipped cream, then it's most enjoyable. The Angel Food cake recipe is from

http://www.southernliving.com/ and the lemon curd recipe that I go to to very often is listed below, after all, you have to do something with the yolks from the Angel Food Cake. This recipe is from "The Pie and Pastry Bible" by Rose Levy Beranbaum, http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/104-4969127-9466331?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the+pie+and+pastry+bible .

For those of you that love to bake, this book will one of your go-tos again and again. She has recipes from fruit pies to cream puff pastry. This books shows you techniques and equipment, too.

Classic Lemon Curd

2 teaspoons/4 grams of finely grated lemon zest

4 large egg yolks/74 grams

3/4 cup sugar/150 grams

6 tablespoons/3 fluid ounces/94 grams lemon juice freshly squeezed and strained(about 2 1/2 large lemons)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter/57 grams ,cut into pieces or softened

salt, a pinch

Have ready near by a strainer suspended over a medium bowl that contains the lemon zest.

In a heavy nonreactive saucepan, beat the yolks and sugar until well blended. Stir in the lemon juice, butter, and salt. Cook over medium-low heat, strring constantly (be sure to scrape the sides of the pan), until the mixture is thickened and resembles hollandaise sauce; it should thickly coat a wooden spoon but still be liquid enough to pour. The mixture will change from translucent to opaque and begin to take on a yellow color on the back the spoon; it must not be allowed to boil, or it will curdle. Whenever steam appears, remove the pan briefly from the heat, stirring constantly to keep the mixture from boiling. When the mixture has thickened (196 degrees on a thermometer), pour it at once into the strainer. Press with the back of a spoon until only the coarse residue remains. Gently stir in the zest and allow to cool.

Other juices that can be used are lime, blood orange, orange and passion fruit. For any of these variations, the amount of sugar and fruit juice will vary, but the yolks, butter and salt quantities remain constant.

As you can see, all of this is coming from my pantry, so I didn't have to make any special trips to the store :).

Hope you try it and happy cooking!

The Week Ahead

I did some serious cleaning in my freezer and fridge over the weekend. I wanted to start with a clean slate for my meal planning. On tap for the week is...

Trio salad plate- egg salad, tuna salad and chicken salad on mixed greens
Lemon pepper roasted chicken, green beans w/ shallots
Steamed veggie dumplings w/ a honey-chile dipping sauce and egg drop soup
Three-cheese quesedillas w/ salsa, tortilla soup w/ leftover chicken
and this recipe from http://tammysrecipes.com/spinach_tortillas , for spinach wraps.
I have been snooping around www.tammysrecipes.com for quite some time and I just don't know where to begin!! You should check it out, too.

Happy cooking

Tales from the Pantry

Well you've seen my pantry. Now these are some of the things that come from it:

salad dressings-bleu cheese, vinaigrettes

Buffalo style wing sauce

pasta dishes/pasta salads

pancakes

waffles

biscuits

scones

quick breads

cinnamon rolls

Red Velvet cake

Angel Food cake

lemon/lime curd

muffins(peanut butter, spice)

tacos/taco salad

soups-black, veggie, roasted red pepper

potato dishes-scalloped, mashed, hashbrowns

sauces

gravies

quiche

casseroles-tuna, salmon

salmon patties

cookies-sugar, peanut butter

crackers-peppered, mustard seed

dipping sauces-chili

These are just to name a few. I'm sure if I sat down and took my time, I would come up with more. Any ideas you see?? Hope this inspires you.

By the way... dinner tonight was stuffed bell peppers w/ flavored rice. I made lemon bars for dessert. Have a happy weekend!!!

The Great Steak Out....

Sorry, I couldn't resist the pun. Dinner today was another quick one. Chipmunk requested steak so I did a little shopping, in the freezer that is. I had purchased some New York strips to have for dinner one night but we ended up eating somethinge else.

Tonight we ate grilled New York Strips, creamy three-mushroom sauce and smashed potatoes w/ a small salad on the side.

It's What's for Dinner...

Tonight we ate three-cheese quiche( Parmesan,Cheddar and Romano), green beans w/ shallots and crescent rolls. Didn't have to make any emergency trips to the store because everything I needed was in the pantry. Man, that felt great to say!

The quiche recipe was from my Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book that was given to us as a wedding gift, many, many moons ago. But you can also go here, http://www.bhg.com/ and search under recipes.

Happy cooking!!

My Pantry Essentials

So my goal for at least five of the seven days is to cook our meals at home. This will hopefully save us on eating out. Right now, we don't eat out that much, but I would like to get our eating out down to about twice a month, then down to none-yeah right!

Here's my list of pantry essentials. Again, this is my list, yours will definitely be different:

milk

lemons

heavy cream/half and half

limes

unsalted butter

flat leaf parsley

eggs

celery

grated Parmesan cheese

potatoes

bacon

onions

cheddar cheese

shallots

mozzarella cheese

garlic

flour tortillas

canned biscuits

baggeg salad-mixed greens

crumbled blue cheese

sour cream

plain yogurt

vanilla-flavored yogurt

chili powder

frozen broccoli

ground cinnamon

frozen corn

ground cumin

frozen chopped spinach

grill seasoning

nutmeg

dried oregano

paprika

canned black beans

red pepper flakes

canned tomato paste

ground red pepper

tomato paste (tube variety)

dried thyme

canned salmon

dried rosemary

dices tomatoes

sea salt

canned tomato sauce

kosher salt

tuna, packed in water

coarse black pepper

chicken stock,low sodium(boxed)

white sugar

brown sugar

turbinado sugar

short-cut pastas

all purpose unbleached flour

long-cut pastas

fast acting yeast

white rice

baking soda

brown rice

baking powder

hot pepper sauce

dijon mustard

Worcestershire Sauce

roasted red peppers

peanut butter

mayonnaise

bread crumbs

olive oil

blended oil

unfiltered, organic honey

vinegars-red wine,balsamic, cider, white

lemon juice

red wine

white wine

Now, with all of this in my pantry, dinner doesn't take that long to get ready. With proper planning, we are usually eating in about 30 minutes.

Dinner tonight was leftover sliced boneless leg of lamb over mixed greens with a vinaigrette dressing, something along these lines, http://www.vinaigretterecipe.com/.