What's for dinner? Was it "budget"?

[Lisa_M]

Tonight DH and I had ravioli for dinner and salad. It was the other half of a head of lettuce from aldi's, so about .50 for lettuce, maybe .50 worth of italian dressing. The raviolis were frozen from Aldis (maybe $1.00) and a half can of jar sauce (.50) Total: $3.50

Last night I made breaded pork chops, scalloped potatoes and frozen broccoli. Probably about $3-4 total and I had leftovers for lunch today.

I think every meal I make is budget compared to going out to dinner. It's what keeps me trying to cook everynight

How do you make the sauce? Is it easy to make I have thought about makeing it but do not know how and I figured after I bought all the stuff to make it it would be just as cheap to buy the can sauce...lol

I don't know how Donald does it, but I just put in ketchup and Worcestershire sauce over the browned beef and onions, mix it up and let it cook a while.

 

[Teresa Pitman]

Last night I made dinner, and we had homemade calzones, garlic-roasted cauliflower and a mixed-greens salad.

(I made the dough for the calzones in the breadmachine, then made the filling by sauteing onions and mushrooms, adding some leftover cooked black beans, and then mixing in some salsa. Baked in the oven for 15 minutes. Very yummy! For the cauliflower I took an entire head of cauliflower, broke it into florets, added 16 cloves of garlic, mixed in a bowl with olive oil, fresh rosemary and black pepper, then spread in a single layer in a casserole dish and roasted in the oven for 30 minutes. Also yum!

Tonight my son made dinner: crispy fried tofu, home-fries with peppers and onions, greens and veggie salad, with chocolate chip cookies for dessert.

Teresa

 

[momx2]

I love good, budget dinners. Tonight was Hamburger Casserole.
1 1/2 c. macaroni elbows .40 cents
1 lb. ground turkey $2.99
1 can tomato soup .60 cents
1 can low fat cream of mushroom .90 cents
2 cups frozen mixed veggies .75 cents
worch. sauce
1 cup 2% sharp cheddar cheese shredded .80 cents

Total = $5.45 We ate it all.

cook macaroni and veggies together. Brown ground turkey with minced garlic. Drain and mix in worsch. sauce. Mix all of it together with the 2 soups. Put in 2 or 3 quart baking dish and sprinkle with cheese, cover with alumni. foil and bake at 400 for 30 mins.

Last night crockpot pork loin, mashed potatoes and green beans.

2 lb. pork loin $4
1 jar pork gravy $1
mashed potatoes $1
green beans $1

Total $7

Had leftover pork. Will make at least 4 lunch portions.

 

[Plantlady]

Tonight was vegetarian chili:

black beans (1/2 bag dry) .40
chili beans: .40
diced tomatoes: .50
tomato sauce: .20
sauted onion and garlic: .20
olive oil: .20

served over fritos: 1.00
topped with cheese: 1.50

4.40

It provides a meal for five of us, plus leftovers for my lunch for about two days.

 

[Our 2 Princesses]

ohh sounds good how do you make it???

Let's see. I don't really have a recipe but I use 2# lean ground beef browned with garlic and Italian seasoning. Then I add 2 cans of tomato soup, 2 cans mild Mexican chili beans, and 1 can of water. While I let that simmer, I boil whole wheat elbow macaroni. Then I put the chili on the elbows and top with cheddar cheese. It's very economical and everyone loves it. Hope this helps!

 

[100AcreWood]

I spend less than $225 a month on groceries.

Minnesota! Can you elaborate on how you stick to a $225 grocery budget? That is amazing. Do you buy meat in bulk and freeze it? Do you clip coupons? What is your secret?

Thanks!

 

[DisNeeFans]

.

 

[grlpwrd]

We had a veggie lasagna and homemade Chinese soup made with chicken broth and water, sliced chicken breast, baby bok choy, salt and pepper, soy sauce, and chopped green onions.

Some of my kids just wanted soup.

Then the leftovers were for their lunches. Not totally "budget," but healthy.

Tomorrow I am making chicken and long rice (a Chinese soup made with vermicelli noodles with sliced chicken breast) with veggies as a side dish.

 

[smiller]

I marinated one lonely chicken tenderloin in red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Sauteed it up with frozen broccoli, one package of cooked ramen noodles, soy sauce, cornstarch, and some Trader Joe's teriyaki sauce that had sesame seeds in it.

Quite good - I think I'll go a little easier on the sauce next time and maybe add some green beans, too. Plus, it couldn't have cost me more than $1.00!

 

[IDoDis]

Most of these recipes sound really good, but I thought the OP said cheap and healthy? Many of these menus are really bad for you and eating like that in the long term will really shorten your life span. Is it possible to eat cheap and healthy at the same time?

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

How do you make the sauce? Is it easy to make I have thought about makeing it but do not know how and I figured after I bought all the stuff to make it it would be just as cheap to buy the can sauce...lol

I make my own sauce also
small onion chopped fine
Ketchup - I use 1/2 bottle to 1-2 pounds of meat
1-2 tsps mustard
palmful of brown sugar
a few splashes of worcheshire

I brown the meat with the onion and make sure that all grease is gone. I use 95% lean so I dont need to usually drain. Squeeze in ketchup, add a little water to thin out, add all other ingredients, simmer to the consistancy that you like. Yummy!!!

 

[HeatherC]

IDODIS - I agree..some of them sound yummy, but not very healthy. But I think I would just substitute a lot of the ingredients and go from there.

Instead of ground beef, use ground turkey.
Pasta- I would use whole wheat or Barilla Plus
Cheese - Use lowfat or no fat.


A couple more cheap...healthy meals could be:

Stuffed Baked Sweet Potatoes. Bake the sweet potatoes, stuff with fresh broccoli or spinach and sprinkle a little cheese on them. Very cheap, very filling and very healthy. Serve them with a lowfat, homemade veggie soup.

Homemade Veggie Soup: Sautee some veggies in olive oil, throw in a pot with low sodium broth, add some lean protein like ground turkey or tofu and you are good to go. Makes a huge pot...very healthy and very cheap. You can even use frozen and/or canned veggies.

HeatherC

 

[Sorsha]

As the OP, I just need to clarify a little bit.
By "healthy" my original intent was somewhere along the lines of "not take-out from Wendys". LOL
In my house, "healthy" means a sit-down meal, always containing a meat, a starch, and a vegetable. Although I "home-cook" almost everything... no hamburger helper, etc.... I love butter and red meat, and often use short-cut ingredients like cream-of-something soups and processed cheese.

My original intent for this thread was NOT to see it turned into the old "$20 a day" thread... that one always disturbed me a bit. While I want to eat on a budget, I do NOT believe in doing so to the extent that all one eats is ramen, mac and cheese, and hot dogs. My definition of "budget" includes organic ingredients, fresh fruits and veggies, and lots of good cuts of meat.

Anyhow... I think I am rambling... I guess all I am saying is my original intent was to find a good balance of "healthy" and "budget"... and yummy! After all, it doesn't matter how healthy something is, or how cheaply I made it... if my family won't eat it, I have wasted my time!

Carry on with the recipe posting!

 

[alicenwonder99]

While I want to eat on a budget, I do NOT believe in doing so to the extent that all one eats is ramen, mac and cheese, and hot dogs.

OK, I made ramen noodles for dinner yesterday!!
I added fresh green beans, a red pepper, a carrot, some red onions, and I cooked up a couple of chicken breasts and chopped them up & added them to the soup. I either had the ingredients in my refrigerator already, or it was on sale at the store (green beans, red peppers, & red onions). I thought twice about adding the "seasoning" packet that comes with the ramen noodles...that stuff is so unhealthy...but I was short on time, so in it went...lol.

I set the table up with placemats, fancy chopsticks, and the "good" bowls. I told the kids the meal was Japanese Chicken Vegetable Soup. The kids still turned their nose up at the food.

I think I'll make hot dogs and Mac n cheese today...lol...the kids will probably love it...lol.

 

[Sorsha]

OK, I made ramen noodles for dinner yesterday!!
I added fresh green beans, a red pepper, a carrot, some red onions, and I cooked up a couple of chicken breasts and chopped them up & added them to the soup. I either had the ingredients in my refrigerator already, or it was on sale at the store (green beans, red peppers, & red onions). I thought twice about adding the "seasoning" packet that comes with the ramen noodles...that stuff is so unhealthy...but I was short on time, so in it went...lol.

I set the table up with placemats, fancy chopsticks, and the "good" bowls. I told the kids the meal was Japanese Chicken Vegetable Soup. The kids still turned their nose up at the food.

I think I'll make hot dogs and Mac n cheese today...lol...the kids will probably love it...lol.

That soup sounds really yummy to me! But my kids wouldn't have eaten it either LOL... my middle child has a no-touching rule. If I give her ramen noodles NOT TOUCHING a chicken breast which is NOT TOUCHING a pile of veggies, she will happily eat the whole thing... but if I mix it all together, suddenly I have crossed her little culinary boundaries.

And I think there is nothing wrong with ramen once in a while (or as an ingredient) or hot dogs and mac and cheese once in a while... Bring it on! What bothers me is when I see people eating these things almost all the time, and never eating a good old fashioned 3 course meal with a lovely piece of meat and a baked potato and some fresh veggies... but that's just me!

 

[intheworks]

How do you make the sauce? Is it easy to make I have thought about makeing it but do not know how and I figured after I bought all the stuff to make it it would be just as cheap to buy the can sauce...lol

I have a good sloppy joe sauce also if anyone would like it-the recipe actually calls for 3lbs. of ground beef which is great for leftovers, I have used much less meat and it is fine, just more soupy.

Mix one can each tomato soup and french onion soup, 1/2 cup each ketchup and brown sugar, added to your browned ground beef. Very good

 

[Mkaz]

We are almost out of beef. The only thing we have left from our cow last year are roasts. Yesterday I had no idea what to make. I defrosted it, cut it into chunks, and made beef stew. There is enough beef left for another meal. Tonight I am going to make beef stroganoff and rice.

I got a great deal on some boneless skinless chicken this week (1.59 lb). I bought two huge packages, split them into four and froze them. Depending on my mood I will make chicken ala king, chicken pot pie, or everyones favorite. I put the defrosted chicken in a large skillet. Then I add some olive oil, pepper, season salt, and basil. For a side dish I make homemade fettuccini alfredo (which is surprisingly easy). We usually have a vegetable to go along with it. Yum.

Another one that they actually enjoy (ad dh doesn't like chicken all that much) is roasted chicken w/ roasted potatoes, and a vegetable. I take the leftovers and I make a pot pie or soup the next day.

I try to use leftovers to make a new dish if I can. The family seems to enjoy them more, and it saves money at the same time. Sorry for rambling on.

 

[Mkaz]

I have a good sloppy joe sauce also if anyone would like it-the recipe actually calls for 3lbs. of ground beef which is great for leftovers, I have used much less meat and it is fine, just more soupy.

Mix one can each tomato soup and french onion soup, 1/2 cup each ketchup and brown sugar, added to your browned ground beef. Very good

Thanks. I'll have to try this one night. I make my sauce much differently. I use about 1 1/2 tsp. of chili powder, about 1/4 c. sweet baby rays bbq sauce, and enough spaghetti sauce so that it won't make it soupy. When I brown the meat I add a bit of steak dust, and onion. Then I add the rest afterwards.

 

[shortbun]

Last night we had fried egg sandwiches on very healthy bread with sliced tomatoes and lettuce. no bacon. I made roasted vegetables to go with. We had the best watermelon for dessert. I have no idea how much it did cost and I don't spend my time worrying about it. Eggs are cheap, seasonal veggies are too. The watermelon, tomatoes and bread were expensive comparatively but well worth it as they ALL were full of flavor and good for us!!!!

 

[Sorsha]

Last night we had fried egg sandwiches on very healthy bread with sliced tomatoes and lettuce. no bacon. I made roasted vegetables to go with. We had the best watermelon for dessert. I have no idea how much it did cost and I don't spend my time worrying about it. Eggs are cheap, seasonal veggies are too. The watermelon, tomatoes and bread were expensive comparatively but well worth it as they ALL were full of flavor and good for us!!!!

Where do you live that you can get edible tomatoes and watermelon this time of year?? Even our "hothouse" tomatoes are like eating hard, red tennis balls this time of year! And I wouldn't even attempt watermelon! Ah the joys of living in a remote area of the Northern Rockies. I bought strawberries for Caitlyn the other day... they are her favorite fruit and she was begging for some... they were SO bad. Hard, unripe, tasteless, dry, etc. I can't wait for spring...