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

[OceanAnnie]

I totally admit it... I know we don't eat enough veggies... but we do our best, and I always try to sqeeze some in where people won't notice them.
Truth be told... and I mean absolutely NO offense, so please don't take any... but if I tried to feed my family the meals you make, they would all move out... and I might just join them! The kids don't LIKE veggies, so to get them to even eat one serving per meal I am doing well! Tofu makes Dh and eldest DD wanna YAK! I can't abide mushrooms or peppers, and Dh hates onions. We are all waaaayyy too fond of our meat and our cheese and our animal fat based products. It may not be the healthiest, but I LIKE how we eat, and I also am realistic enough to know that I have to cook in ways my family will eat. I just do my best to make it as healthy as I can.
Hugs and Kudos to you for having a family that eats so healthy!

Tanya, I know what you mean! I serve veggies with high hopes, but they don't get eaten nearly as often as they should. I will tell you I really liked the book, "Deceptively Delicious". (I mentioned it awhile back.) It had some good recipes and ideas. I made some meatloaf and pureed some cauliflower. Added it in and no one was the wiser. I didn't follow a recipe, I looked at how the author disguised the veggies and tested it out. She used soy sauce in her hamburger, so I threw some of that in. (of course I use onion, green pepper and yellow peppers too so I'm sure that helped) Anyway, Dh couldn't tell! (I told him after dinner.) I snickered to myself all through dinner. They ate every bite. Even went for seconds!

I have some carrots I need to steam and puree. I'll probably add it to some spaghetti sauce. I still want them to eat their veggies in their "natural state". But if they don't I'll try to find a way to disguise them. Muuuhahahhhaa.

*What the author suggests is to steam and puree a bunch veggies ahead of time and put them in 1/2 to 1 cup batches to freeze. Then you'll have them when you need them. I haven't been that ambitious yet.

 

[cnj]

I would love the recipe for empenadas....I have never had a home made one and I think my family would love it!!

They are actually Paula Deen's empanadas. She fries hers and I bake mine. Anyway, here are the ingredients from the foodnetwork.com

3 cups chopped, cooked chicken
1 (8-ounce) package shredded Colby and Monterey Jack cheese blend
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (15-ounce) package refrigerated pie crusts


I cut each pie crust sheet (comes with 2) into 6 with a pizza cutter. Fill them into triangles, then fork the edges to seal. I lightly brush the top of mine with milk and then cook them in the oven at 375 for about 15 minutes. Check the time, because I am making these tomorrow and can't remember how long I cook them for. Just cook until lightly brown on the edges and golden on top like a pie. You could also fry them like she does, but mine fell apart when I first tried to do that, plus I didn't want the extra fat.

I just realized I forgot the cheese in my budget, so that is an extra dollar! Enjoy!

Also, in regards to the vegetables. We are so bad about that. My children do take their vitamins, but unless I hide the vegetables (like the bell pepper in these), they do not eat them. We do eat a lot of fruit.

Slightly off topic, but I am also on weight watchers. I will be lifetime for a year in one month. I lost 60 pounds on Weight Watchers. The sloppy joes were 7 points, with 1 point for 5 chips tonight. The empanadas are spendy being 15 points. The chicken parmigiana is 14 points, and 2 points for garlic bread. The hamburger is 8 points. I eat very light all day so I can have a big dinner.

The way I save money on food is I shop at 3 stores a week using coupons and once a month at Costco. I know exactly when each butcher is going to clearance the meat the most, and I buy my meat the day it expires and use it or freeze it. I always save at least 60% on groceries a week.

Have a good dinner!

Jen

 

[estherhead]

I made Pizza Pockets tonight:

Pillsbury Pizza Crust, bought on sale at Kroger's & with coupon: Free!
Frozen sausage leftover from an earlier meal? $.30?
1 cup mozzarella cheese bought on sale $.50
Tomato Sauce $.35

I seasoned it all up & cut the pizza crust into circles & made pizza pockets. They were supper yummy & served 5 of us for just over a dollar!

 

[babytrees]

I know the discussion got overly heated on the previous thread - but I'm not seeing a lot of vegetables in some of these meals...

Anyway, today we had homemade pizza and salad. I made whole wheat pizza dough in my bread machine (hard to calculate the cost, I buy the flour cheaply in large bags), topped it with some onion and garlic spaghetti sauce, sliced mushrooms and red and yellow peppers. After it came out of the oven, I sprinkled on some vegan parmesan. Made a salad with mixed greens, cucumbers, cut-up cold cooked asparagus (left over from lunch) and some more mushrooms. Very good!

Teresa

I don't usually mention my veggies...I try and make sure there is a fruit and veggie choice at dinner...veggies espescially.

I think I may need to reinvest in a GOOD bread machine I would love to start making my own pizza, bread all of those things I would love to know EVERYTHING that goes into it. Espescially with pizza and sauce since I can have strange reactions to red sauce.

 

[babytrees]

since Teresa mentioned veggies and a few of you have given me ideas to add veggies to my meals a little more (I will admit I hate most of them). Can anybody give me more ways to add veggies?? My husband will not eat vegetables that begin with the letter "a"...unless it's in chili or a sauce none of us particularly like tomatoes. Other than that we will usually try a veggie.

 

[TnTWalter]

FAMILY OF 5 HERE

I made smoked turkey sausage on rice with tomatoe veggie soup.....large bag of 'vegetables for soup' frozen section $2.08. Used 1/2 the bag. + 1 can of Cambell's healthy choice tomatoe soup $1. The sausage was $2.50 and the rice was $1.78 for bag and I used 1 cup so $.40 let's say. 3 had a caesar salad...I buy romaine lettuce heads for $3.99 which last 6 meals so $.66. Caesar dressing is Walmart [DH's favorite Caesar dressing...we've tried them all] $1.25 and the kids too. Used very little.... $.25.

$4.81 for a healthy meal. And I have leftover soup for me for lunch.

 

[OceanAnnie]

We're having salisbury steak smothered in onions and gravy, scalloped potatoes, and sweet peas. Maybe some sugar free jello for dessert for DH & I, Easter candy for the kids.

ETA- We're having roasted tomatoes in balsamic vinegrette instead of sweet peas. For dessert we're having baked Fuji apples with cinnamon. We'll probably divide the vanilla pudding pie and top the apples with that.

 

[momx2]

Tonight we're having Swedish Meatballs. They are simmering in the crockpot now.

1 lb. frozen meatballs $1.25
1 jar beef gravy $1.09
1 onion .25
herbs, etc. .25
6 oz. whole wheat egg noodles .85
sour cream .25
veggie??? $1

Total = $4.94

 

[marcyinPA]

Tonight is "heck night"...ok, the word I want to use ends with two L's ....anyway...

DH is warming up dinner for my 7 pm return with DS8 (Aikido tonight). We have leftover hamburgers in the freezer from my DS12's Wednesday night church program last week (they serve dinner to the middle schoolers every Wednesday night at youth club). They also gave me rolls....not a bad deal! DH is going to make the Mrs. T's pierogies with that.

In regards to veggies, we don't eat vegetarian by any stretch, but I do serve at least one veggie, if not one veggie and a salad, at every meal. I always put out the baby carrots for my DS8, who eats a total of 2 vegetables: corn and carrots, and he'll eat lettuce with ranch dressing. DS12, DH and I eat just about any veggie. Admittedly, I usually make frozen, but I don't use butter. Just seasoning. And for salad, we're big on balsamic vinegar and olive oil. We are also big fruit people, and I always have a large supply of fresh fruit on hand. Although as of today, I am out of everything but tangerines. Time to go to the farmers market! My DS8 will eat any fruit known to mankind...he's my fruit eater! I'll sometimes buy frozen fruit too...like blueberries without added anything. I eat a lot of vanilla yogurt with berries and granola for breakfast. That's my "thing" lately!

I feel that although our meals aren't totally vegetable based, we still eat very healthily without a lot of added fat.

 

[tonilea]

Today was grilled chicken breast, stuffing and steamed broccoli.

 

[chocovrdmicears]

not sure of the $$$ breakdown tonight.

*homemade italian chicken cutlets
*roasted red potatoes
*steamed summer squash
*glazed carrots

 

[Adi12982]

I'm eating at a church event tonight (I made a soup for it, but it counted as our meal yesterday. . . taking the rest in the crockpot)

DH will have spicy sausages (grilled in the oven) and rice. . . he won't touch a veggie (I buy plenty and eat them myself, but he won't. . . never has and only would if his life depended on it).

sausages, $2.50
rice, $0.25
drinks, 0.25

Total $3 - but this will feed DH for dinner and his lunch tomorrow.

 

[mom2my3kids]

Pulled pork bq sandwiches.. I put a pork loin in the crock pot last night and woke up shredded the meat and put in the fridge. Tonight is a easy night..

 

[mom2my3kids]

I totally admit it... I know we don't eat enough veggies... but we do our best, and I always try to sqeeze some in where people won't notice them.
Truth be told... and I mean absolutely NO offense, so please don't take any... but if I tried to feed my family the meals you make, they would all move out... and I might just join them! The kids don't LIKE veggies, so to get them to even eat one serving per meal I am doing well! Tofu makes Dh and eldest DD wanna YAK! I can't abide mushrooms or peppers, and Dh hates onions. We are all waaaayyy too fond of our meat and our cheese and our animal fat based products. It may not be the healthiest, but I LIKE how we eat, and I also am realistic enough to know that I have to cook in ways my family will eat. I just do my best to make it as healthy as I can.
Hugs and Kudos to you for having a family that eats so healthy!

Ditto!!!

 

[mla1977]

tonight will be BBQ chicken legs, enough for at least 2 meals.

legs were $1/lb - I think 4 or 5 lbs
BBQ sauce .50

over fries (either regular or sweet potato with spices) $2

And I think since I'll have the grill going, I'll cut up the pineapple I bought and throw some of that on too. $2

DBF may want some rice (he always wants rice) $.25

Not bad for at least 2 meals.

 

[SnowWhite607]

Well the salsa chicken smells good in the crock! I actually went to get it ready this morning and found 1/2 a green pepper in the fidge that I didnt know was there so I chopped that up too. I think the chicken will have to be more shredded than whole but I can do it on top of the rice with cheese and cour cream. Yum-O!

Tomorrow is spaghetti sauce (from frozen when I made it last week) and garlic bread. I plan to go grocery shopping while DD is at dancing tomorrow afternoon so I will maybe pick up a salad or some fruit for a quick dessert also.

1 lb ground beef - 1.69
1 can spaghetti sauce - 1.00
1 large can diced tomatoes - 1.29

So $4 but this made 3 batches of sauce to use. So average 1.33 per batch of sauce. Add some noodles (0.50) and some garlic toast (1.25) and you have a nice meal for around $3.

Is that kinda the target that we should shoot for - $3 per meal? I guess it would depend on how many people.....I cook for 3. Maybe we should shoot for $1 per person for dinner?

 

[babytrees]

Well the salsa chicken smells good in the crock! I actually went to get it ready this morning and found 1/2 a green pepper in the fidge that I didnt know was there so I chopped that up too. I think the chicken will have to be more shredded than whole but I can do it on top of the rice with cheese and cour cream. Yum-O!

Tomorrow is spaghetti sauce (from frozen when I made it last week) and garlic bread. I plan to go grocery shopping while DD is at dancing tomorrow afternoon so I will maybe pick up a salad or some fruit for a quick dessert also.

1 lb ground beef - 1.69
1 can spaghetti sauce - 1.00
1 large can diced tomatoes - 1.29

So $4 but this made 3 batches of sauce to use. So average 1.33 per batch of sauce. Add some noodles (0.50) and some garlic toast (1.25) and you have a nice meal for around $3.

Is that kinda the target that we should shoot for - $3 per meal? I guess it would depend on how many people.....I cook for 3. Maybe we should shoot for $1 per person for dinner?

I've never thought about my goal for the budget...I am happy when it's about $5 for the 4 of us...but I don't stress until it gets over the $10 level AND doesn't give leftovers.

The chicken enchiladas tonight will end up about $6 for everything but should also give at least one person lunch tommorrow.

 

[beckanoah]

Tonight we're having Sloppy Joes
Hamburger $2.00
Buns $1.00
Potato Pancakes (from leftover mashed potatoes) free!
and crudite'... Carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers...


We always have at least 1 veggie with each meal... sometimes up to 3 and a salad. I just don't always post that!

 

[merekc]

Not to keep the veggie debate going, but I have to give my two cents. My DS5 loves vegetables. Will eat them first thing on his plate (even over any junk). I always thought, if you feed kids fruits and veggies they will like them if they grew up with them (like my family did). Then came DS3. He has literally thrown up after licking a broccoli. So I don't force him to eat them. He would starve before eating most veggies. I don't get it, we always have good veggies (by this I mean fresh, a variety and cooked/seasoned well) and I think I'm a pretty darn good cook. It is truely just individual taste. I try to make sure my kids have a veggie and fruit with each meal.

With that said, my new favorite thing is edamame. My sister has been eating it for years and I always gagged and turned up my nose. But that is why I'm a firm believer you should always try everything (even those things that make you gag ). It is so good. Sam's Club has a package that comes with 8 individual packs that you can microwave and add sea salt. I also have adapted a recipe of my sister's (with things I keep on hand) and make spicy, garlic edamame. So yummy!

Take the steamed edamame and cook them for 2-3 minutes in medium heat skillet to kind of dry them out a little. Add few tablespoons soy sauce, garlic (I use minced and paste) and a TBL of hot oil (to taste). Cook for a couple minutes until all soaked in. I don't measure just approximate. It is so good. My sister's recipe is probably better,if anyone wants that, but mine is super easy.

 

[merekc]

Two more things. My DS5 (who loves veggies) loves edamame. I always save him a handful before I spice them up.

Also, if you've never had edamame. Eat the inside bean, not the shell. I kind of bite/suck the pod to get the flavor as I get the beans out. Hope that is not TMI.