Dinner--4 Ways

I've gotten pretty creative with meals lately as a result of having a kitchen that allows me to see my kids while they are playing and a new take on our financial reality (i.e. we're living on less with my husband's research assistantship salary).

So the other night I made Rotisserie Chicken in the Crockpot (recipe here.) I subbed baby carrots for the onions (not a huge onion fan..and I was able to cook a side simultaneously with the chicken). I threw together a box of stuffing (yeah, I was lazy like that...) to go with it. Thus, Dinner #1.


Dinner #2 the next night, I took some of the leftover chicken to use in burritos. Made some rice (see this post), pulled out some cheese, sour cream, tortillas, cut up some tomatoes, and sauteed half a yellow pepper. Voila! Dinner #2!


Dinner #3 is more like Lunch #3. I got creative this afternoon and whipped up Avocado Chicken Salad. Here's what I used:
-leftover chicken (enough for a sandwich)
-1 avocado, mushed up
-some celery salt to taste
-about 4 leftover baby carrots, chopped (I didn't have any celery.)
-some Mayo with Cracked Pepper

I mixed all this up and tossed it on some wheat bread. Turned out surprisingly well, the carrots give it the little bit of crunch that celery usually gives Chicken Salad. The Cracked Pepper Mayo gives it a bit of a zing and all-in-all it's rather tasty. (Sorry no picture for this one...I'm too lazy to take one of my creation...)

Dinner #4 is Homemade Pizza. The crust recipe I use can be found here. I'm going to get creative tonight and make Chicken Alfredo Pizza. Here's my ingredient list:
-leftover chicken
-pizza crust
-alfredo sauce
-mushrooms, chopped (I have some in my fridge I need to use)
-fresh spinach (again, I have some I need to use...)
-leftover tomatoes (The ones I cut up for burritos the other night)
-mozzarella cheese, shredded
-parmesan cheese, grated

I'll throw these things on top of the pizza crust and bake according to the crust instructions. Voila, Dinner #4. (Below is a picture of a pizza but not the one I made...again, lazy...)


Happy Leftover Using? Can I say that?

Taco Rice...Easy Without Buying the Pouch Rice

I'll admit that I usually buy the "throw in a pot rice sides." I have noticed however that they are much more expensive at the regular grocery store than they were at the Commissary. I love using the Mexican or Taco rice sides when we do burritos, tacos, or other Mexican dish, however I'm appalled that it costs me upwards of $1.25 or so for just one packet! There are store brand generics but even those are fairly expensive at $.89 or more a packet. So I've been on a quest for a substitute that is just as easy.

Enter homemade Taco Rice. So I looked up recipes for Taco/Mexican rice and decided it took me much longer to locate all the ingredients and cook the rice on the stove, blahdy, blahdy, blah. However, today I decided to throw some medium white grain rice, and part of a ready made packet of Taco seasoning in with the water in my rice cooker. I did mix it up before I turned the rice cooker on. If this works, I can make lots of Taco rice, much cheaper than buying the packets and without having to increase my "workload." I can also control the spices in the rice so my two year old and nine month old can eat it without complaint. I can add as much or as little as I want.

Results:
When I opened the rice cooker, I was hit with the smell of Taco seasoning. The rice itself was tinted a reddish color and upon tasting the rice, it has a very light flavor of spices. It's not the "heavy" taste of the rice packet, but I'd be willing to bet that my version is much healthier for you with much less sodium. Overall, I think this version will be great for my use of leftover chicken for tacos/burritos for dinner tonight. Another plus, I'm saving more money doing it this way too.

Got any suggestions for this recipe? Let me know in the comments!

Shopping Out of Season: Take 2

I know that I've written about shopping out of season before but I thought it was time to revisit the post. The original post is here.

In addition to hitting up the stores at their end of season sales, check out your local children's consignment shop for their end of season sales. I went to one of our local shops today and scored Fall and Winter clothing for both of my children for $1 per piece of clothing (regularly priced $4.99 or less). Everything I bought was either Land's End, Gap, The Children's Place, or Gymboree. Some stuff even still had original tags on it! I got 29 items for $30 after tax.

Crazy! All those savings! I know that all of these clothes will wash up great (given my experience with other items from these brands.) I keep money in my pocket and my kids are stylin' in brand name clothes.

I also feel better knowing that I bought second-hand and helped reduce my carbon footprint. By buying second-hand no new natural resources had to be used and no factories had to produce the clothing a second time. Also awesome!

So check out the specials going on in your area....they are probably happening about now since the spring lines are coming out...

5 Tips for Saving on Groceries

Found this blog post today and thought it might be helpful for helping to save some money on groceries (especially if you eat non-coupon things...).

Budget Friendly Vacations

I'm not currently thinking of planning any sort of vacation but I know there may be others getting ready for Spring Break etc. so here is a blog post I found for planning travel.

Extreme Couponing: An Opinion

Ok, so I finally saw an episode of Extreme Couponing. These people are insane. I saw a 16 year old boy stocking up on feminine products because they were "free." What in the heck is he going to do with them? I saw people with store rooms full of things that have expiration dates on them and the items were stacked so deep, there is no way they would ever use them before the expiration dates!

Extreme couponing doesn't necessarily save you money. I know as a mom, my time is money. If I have to shop at 8 different grocery stores to get stuff for "free," with both of my children in tow...its not worth it to me. There are so many other ways that I can spend my time--taking my kids to museums, exercising, walking the dog, playing at the park, etc. Not to mention the fact that I have now spent wear and tear on my car and used gas to get to those 8 grocery stores...All that "free" stuff is no longer "free."

The food that these people are getting for "free" is stuff that is really bad for you or stuff they'll never use (20 tubs of IcyHot, really?). If eating healthy is your goal then buying 30 Pringles chips isn't helping your case...

I pose the following alternative. Shop at one grocery store for a majority of groceries. Buy the sale items. Match coupons with those items when you can. Use the E-coupons if your grocery store offers them and stack them with manufacturer's coupons and sales. Buy local produce--cheaper and more environmentally friendly. If somewhere is having a good sale on one or two items you need, then by all means, if it fits in your schedule, stop and buy.

If you cannot resist the urge to extreme coupon (apparently, it's addicting...), all that stuff you get for "free" that you will never use, donate it! There are so many food banks and organizations to help people in need that could use non-perishables or feminine products or razors or toothpaste. Put the addiction to work for a cause.

End rant.

I'm the Homemade Queen

I have been the "Homemade Queen" lately. I've made everything from bitter apple spray to donut holes to pizza crust to fruit snacks. It's been a regular bake-off/make-off in my house. I love the fact that I don't have to rely on "the infinite marketplace" to make my family something. I know exactly what I put in everything so I know it's not harmful to my family's health. And I'm saving money while I do it! I don't have to go buy mixes or cleaning products etc. I just use products that I already have around the house. Pinterest is a bevy of information when it comes to finding homemade/D-I-Y recipes and ideas. If you are interested in some of the stuff I've found, you can see my pinboards here. Hope you'll give "homemade" a try. Happy making/baking everyone!