May 15th, 2010 
My Health 
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I like to cook healthy things from scratch, no bottled pasta sauces, hamburger helper, etc…I am so busy during the week though, and I end up spending WAY too much time in the kitchen, and money is another consideration.
Do you have any favorite, easy, budget friendly, but also home-made recipes to share?
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My web site has a few Tried and True recipes. They all come from family.
I’ll post some recipes later but your best bet is to cook ahead or use planned overs. I’ll go look for some recipes and cooking ideas.
Here are some cooking ideas:
Make a pot roast. Serve the pot roast with mashed potatoes and salad.
From the pot roast you can make beef hash, barbecue sandwiches, beef sandwiches with brown gravy or beef vegetable soup. If you have leftover mashed potatoes you can top the potatoes with grated cheese and melt on top. Or you can coat them in flour and brown them in butter.
Have a baked ham dinner. Serve ham, rice and broccoli. From that dinner you can make scalloped potatoes and ham, barbecued ham, scrambled eggs and ham, omelets with ham or saute ham steaks with in a bit of vegetable oil. Add a smidgen of orange marmalade, apricot or peach jam at the end for an easy sauce. You can use leftover rice to make fried rice using the ham and rice too. You can also make rice pudding or rice cereal.
Go to 30 Gourmet for make-ahead recipes. Cooking and freezing ahead helps with the dinner time crunch.
Another option is to use Make-A-Mix recipes. Go to Amazon.com to purchase the Make-A-Mix cookbooks.
yes! I am the frugal gourmet!
My favorite (and the kids favorite) is shrimp scampi (which isn’t that expensive) and makes for lunches for two days for my hubby/me.
2lbs large shrimp (deveined and peeled), raw
1 stick melted butter
1/2-3/4 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup white wine
3 tbsp lemon juice
3-4 cloves crushed garlic
1/4 cup white onion, diced
2-3 tbsp cornstarch
salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika
Set your broiler to high. Mix lemon juice, wine, cornstarch, butter and stock together utnil smooth. Season shrimp to taste, place in a casserole dish. Add garlic and onion, then pour the broth mixture over all. Broil 6 minutes, flip shrimp, broil 6 more.
In a large pot boil as much noodles as you want per package directions. In the last three minutes, add 2 heads of broccoli, chopped to bite size pieces. Drain well, return to pot. Bring out your shrimp and dump the whole thing over the pasta/broccoli. Toss and serve.
My kids also love fried rice (with whatever veggies you have in the fridge), soups, stews, oh and baked chicken nuggets!
Chunk your chicken into 2-3 bite size pieces per chicken piece. Dredge in egg, then dredge in either crackers, breadcrumbs, whatever seasoned with your seasoning choice and parmasean cheese. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 turning once. Serve with a 1/2 1/2 mixture of ketchup and sweet chili sauce.
Roasted Garlic Cauliflower
1 head cauliflower, chunked into large pieces
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste
Garlic powder/onion powder to taste
mix together the olive oil, garlic and the spices you choose in a small bowl/cup. Place the broccoli in a large bowl, then pour the olive oil mixture and toss to coat well. Transfer to a baking dish and bake at 400 for 25 minutes, stirring halfway between.
Also, instead of doing one chicken in the crockpot, do two, then debone and freeze your chicken for quick meals on the go–chicken enchiladas (another fast and kid favorite), fried rice, chicken tacos (another kid favorite) and simple soups. I always have frozen cooked pot roast and chicken in the freezer to help me with my starvin’ marvins!
Chicken Cordon Bleu — I don’t use white wine, I use broth or water. I also cook this in a large pot and it works fine.
INGREDIENTS
3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
3 slices Swiss cheese
3 slices ham
1 tablespoon and 1-1/2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon paprika
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
1-1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
DIRECTIONS
Pound chicken breasts if they are too thick. Place a cheese and ham slice on each breast within 1/2 inch of the edges. Fold the edges of the chicken over the filling, and secure with toothpicks. Mix the flour and paprika in a small bowl, and coat the chicken pieces.
Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and cook the chicken until browned on all sides. Add the wine and bouillon. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.
Remove the toothpicks, and transfer the breasts to a warm platter. Blend the cornstarch with the cream in a small bowl, and whisk slowly into the skillet. Cook, stirring until thickened, and pour over the chicken. Serve warm.
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Italian Spaghetti Sauce with Meatballs –
INGREDIENTS
MEATBALLS
1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 egg, beaten
SAUCE
3/4 cup chopped onion
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
2 (28 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 bay leaf
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
3/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine ground beef, bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, garlic powder and beaten egg. Mix well and form into 12 balls. Store, covered, in refrigerator until needed.
In a large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is translucent. Stir in tomatoes, salt, sugar and bay leaf. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 90 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, basil, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and meatballs and simmer 30 minutes more. Serve.
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Chicken Kabobs –
INGREDIENTS
1-1/2 cups soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves – cut into 1 inch pieces
12 green onions, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pound fresh mushrooms, stems removed
DIRECTIONS
In a mixing bowl, combine first five ingredients. Stir in chicken and onion; allow to marinate for 30 minutes. Soak wooden skewers in water. On each skewer, thread a piece of chicken, onion, mushroom and another chicken piece. Place on a broiler rack. Broil 5 in. from the heat, turning and basting with marinade after 3 minutes. Continue broiling for another 3 minutes or until chicken is done. Serve immediately.