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Pasta – Tomato, Basil, & Feta Pasta

•March 17, 2009 • 1 Comment

This week’s category of recipes – PASTA!  We love pasta!  It’s easy, cheap, and so versitile.  You can do so many fun things with pasta.  The recipe I’m sharing is one that was shared with us when we got married.  The thing I love about it is that it fulfills all of my desires of a good pasta dish – easy and versitile!

In a large bowl combine: a cup of diced roma tomatoes, a cup of fresh basil, and crumbled feta cheese (as much of little as your prefer).  Cook pasta according to directions (we prefer capellini or mostacolli) and rinse.  Dump hot pasta on top of tomato, basil and feta mixture (it should slightly “cook” the tomatoes).  Pour olive oil (as much or little as you prefer) on top of pasta and begin tossing.  Add salt and pepper.

Here’s the best part – You don’t have one of these ingredients?  Use something that you do have!  I’ve made this with different cheeses, veggies, etc.  It’s fun to try different things!!

Cost: $6 – and the best thing – double it and you get 2 meals out of it!!

Share your favorite pasta recipes and/or your rendition of this recipe!

Slow Cooker – Chicken

•March 12, 2009 • 2 Comments

A few days ago, I put frozen chicken in my crock pot.  I LOVE chicken in the crock pot – it comes out so juicy and tender.  You can put it in with cream of mushroom soup, a little water and mushrooms – DELICIOUS!!  What I did this time was put chicken in with about 4 inches of water and cooked it on low for about 6 hours.  When it was done, I took the chicken out and made chicken salad (chicken, mayo and zucchini) on tortillas with slices of (more) zucchini.  Did I mention that I love zucchini?!

The water turns into chicken broth, which I decided to use for chicken soup.  I put the crock pot of chicken broth in the refrigerator overnight.  The next afternoon and I turned it on warm for about 2 hours and used it for chicken noodle soup!  When the broth was hot, I laddled it into a pot on the stove and brought it to a boil.  Then I added uncooked noodles (I used fusilli/spiral), frozen mixed veggies, and shredded chicken (from the night before).  Add salt and pepper and serve!

Cost: $11 – for 3 meals!! (chicken & mushrooms, chicken salad, and chicken noodle soup)

I love meals that you can use ingredients two nights in a row.  Can you tell based on my two “slow cooker” posts?!?

Slow Cooker – Roast & Pork Chops

•March 7, 2009 • 1 Comment

One of my favorite kitchen appliances is the slow cooker.  It’s so easy and alleviates all the end-of-the-day stress that I encounter (cooking dinner, keeping the kids entertained, picking up before Daddy gets home, etc.)  Can you relate?

I can never have enough slow cooker recipes!  Especially the kind where you just throw a few things in and leave it.  That’s a piece of Heaven on Earth!

Here are two of my favorites that you can cook 2 nights in a row.

2 lb. Chuck Roast

1 pkg. of dry onion soup mix

3 lbs. russet potatoes

1 lb. carrots

Put a few inches of water in crock pot and pour in soup mix.  Peel and cut potatoes and carrots.  Add roast, potatoes and carrots to crock pot.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Save your broth and refrigerate overnight.  The next day you can put porkchops in the broth and cook in crock pot for 6 hours on low.  I served this with asparagus and applesauce.

Cost: $15 (including sides) – and we got 3 meals out of this!  (1 meal of porkchops and 2 nights of roast).  On the second night of roast, you can use it in tacos, with BBQ sauce, or the same as 1st night!

Hello world!

•March 7, 2009 • 2 Comments

WARNING:  I’m not a chef, not a cook, not even close!  I’m a stay-at-home mom trying to put yummy, healthy food on the table every day for my family of 4.  It’s a struggle to cook healthy food on a budget.  But, together – we can do it!

Each week I’ll post a theme with a recipe that my family enjoys at an inexpensive price.  Please share your recipes in that same genera by e-mailing me and I’ll post them.

Bon Apetite!

 
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