Inexpensive Meal Ideas for Busy Families

Getting a healthy dinner on the table every night can be a challenge, especially when you are watching the budget. Homemade meals are better for the budget, but often require a lot of time to prepare. By planning ahead and using what you have on hand, you can have an inexpensive meal on the table every night.

Pasta

Pasta can be an inexpensive meal, depending on the sauces and cheese that you choose to complement it. Kids love old fashioned macaroni and cheese. Spice it up a little with a small amount of a good quality cheese or add a few small cubes of ham. Pasta primavera is easily made by cooking and adding a package of frozen vegetables to the cooked pasta. Sauce it with a little butter and Parmesan cheese, or use a commercial alfredo sauce or tomato based sauce.

Stir Fry

Stir fries are inexpensive because they use very little meat and rely on healthy vegetables for the bulk of the stirfry. Slice or cube approximately 1/2 lb of chicken, beef or pork into small pieces that will cook quickly. Heat 1 tbsp. of oil in a wok or large skillet. Toss in the meat and cook, stirring, until the meat is cooked through. Remove the meat from the pan and add a large package of frozen stirfry vegetables or thinly sliced fresh vegetables. Stir fry for approximately 3 to 4 minutes, then add your chosen sauce. You can use a commercial soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, oyster sauce or make your own. Add the meat back to the pan and cook until everything is heated through. Serve over rice for a quick and healthy meal.

Serve Breakfast for Dinner

Who says eggs are only for breakfast? Why not serve a freshly made omelet for dinner? Stuff it with leftovers from the refrigerator or use whatever cheese you have on hand. Or make scrambled eggs and top them with salsa for those who like spicy foods. Serve with a side order of hashbrowns or a salad for a quick and easy meal.
Go Ethnic

Ethnic foods are often inexpensive because they rely on vegetables and beans with only a small amount of meat for flavor. You can make tacos or burritos using rice and beans and adding whatever leftover meats you have on hand. Spice them up with a little salsa or slice and warm the meat with taco seasoning mix or chili powder.

Resources:

• Eatting Well: Cheap Mexican Recipes and Tips
• Rutgers Cooperative Extension; Eating Cheap but Eating Healthy; Karen Ensle Ed.D.; May 2009

Healthy & Easy Southern Meals for Busy Families

Getting a healthy meal on the table every night does not need to be a struggle. The key is to have a healthy meal plan that is flexible enough to accommodate the stresses of working families. The USDA recommends that Americans increase the consumption of vegetables, fruits and whole grains, while eating less fat and sugar. Traditional Southern meals often contain far more fat and sugar than they should, but healthier options are available. Aim to eat healthy versions of your favorites on an everyday basis and save the high fat and high sugar versions for special occasions.

Serve Seafood Twice a Week

Not only is fish a healthy menu option, but it is quick to prepare. Save the fried fish for special occasions and opt for grilled salmon or salmon patties, Cajun blackened fish, seafood gumbo, shrimp and grits or shrimp etouffee. Serve with brown rice or wild rice, okra or green beans and tomatoes. Finish with a serving of fresh fruit.

Beef or Pork Once a Week

Throw a small pot roast in the crock pot in the morning for an easy week night meal. Add a little beef broth and an assortment of vegetables. It will be ready to serve when you arrive home after a long day. Thicken the juices to make gravy or serve it au jus. Use 1-inch pieces of beef to make a hearty crock pot stew in the winter.

Serve grilled or broiled pork chops with mashed sweet potatoes and a green salad. Stewed apples or ginger spiced pineapple are a nice sweet finish for this meal.

Poultry Once a Week

When you think of Southern chicken you probably think of fried chicken, but there are a lot of healthy options available. If you prefer your chicken fried, try a healthier oven-fried chicken recipe. Serve with homemade biscuits, corn-on-the-cob and a salad or green vegetable.

Prepare weeknight barbecue chicken: broil chicken breasts or chicken tenders in the oven or cook them on the grill pan, topping them with barbecue sauce during the last few minutes of cooking.

Stew chicken pieces with whole wheat noodles to make a healthy version of chicken and dumplings or cook them with rice for the Southern chicken and rice favorite. Offer green beans and tomatoes on the side.

Meatless Meals

Current nutritional recommendations include eating meatless meals two or three times a week. Traditional Southern foods offer many options for healthy meatless meals. Try a low-fat version of macaroni and cheese or center your meal around Southern peas and beans. Offer a variety of fresh vegetables and fruits and a square of cornbread with these meals. Sweet potatoes, baked potatoes or corn make good starches for these meals.

Nitty Gritty Grinders

These grinders are perfect for a summer lunch or picnic. Put the hot broth in a thermos for easy transportability.

Nitty Gritty Grinders

by Mama Jade

1 package sub rolls

1/2 lb deli roast beef (sliced thin)

1/2 lb deli turkey breast (sliced thin)

1/2 lb deli ham (sliced thin)

Swiss or provolone cheese (sliced thin)

1 sweet onion (diced)

1 green bell pepper (diced)

2 large tomatoes (diced)

condiments (mayo, mustard, etc.)

2 cans beef broth

 

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Slice your sub rolls in half without separating the halves. Put your condiments on the bread. Add 2 slices of the roast beef, turkey and ham to each roll. Add a small amount of the onion, bell pepper, and tomatoes. Arrange your sandwiches in a baking dish, side by side. Lay slices of cheese over each sandwich and place into the oven. Heat your beef broth until the cheese topping the grinders is melted and slightly browned.

 

Serve the sandwiches with a small bowl of beef broth for dipping.

 

Tips:

Any combination of lunch meat can be substituted in this recipe, as well as various vegetables and seasonings.

 

If you prefer your sandwiches warmed through, preheat the oven to 250 degrees and wait until the sandwiches are warmed and the bread is getting crunchy.

 

If you only want the cheese melted and browned quickly, use the broil setting on your oven instead.

Discover How To Turn Any Meal Into A Gourmet Treat – Puff Pastry

Is your family tired of the same old meals? Are you looking for an easy way to turn your old favorites into something special? Lucky for you there is one secret and easy to use ingredient that can help give some class to almost anything you serve.

You might think this magical secret ingredient would be hard to find or cost a lot of money, but it isn’t. In fact it can be found right in your local grocery store for under $5.00.

So what is this wonderful food that will transform your meals?

Frozen puff pastry. You know, that stuff that you probably never bother to use because it thought it was only reserved for Greek desserts and looks to delicate and difficult. Well it’s not, in fact, puff pastry is quite easy to use and very versatile and it’s a wonder why it is one of the most overlooked foods you can use to cook with.

Frozen puff pastry is easy and economical, it handles beautifully and needs no additional prep. It can be used to give a gourmet flair to a variety of staple meals and it works great every time.

From your Friday night family pizza to that Sunday roast lamb, puff pastry can add a bit of class to any meal and make you look like a gourmet chef.

Of course, you might be most familiar with puff pastry when used for desserts. It can be used with a variety of fillings for a light, delicious dessert. When you server a puff pastry dessert your guests will think you spent hours baking when you can whip up something like this fruit tart in about 20 minutes.

Fruit Tart

1. Thaw 1 sheet of puff pastry and cut into 4 pieces
2. Put 1 tablespoon of fruit into the middle of each of the 4 pieces
3. Fold the opposite corners of the pastry into the center and pinch together with your fingers.
4. Glaze the tart with a milk and beaten egg mixture
5. Sprinkle the top with sugar
6. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes

For variations you can add different fillings or make a while pie using one whole puff pastry sheet for the bottom and another one for the top – either in a pie dish or just flat on a cookie sheet.

There’s no limit to what you can do with puff pastry. Use cookie cutters to cut the pastry into interesting shapes – glaze and bake then use to garnish almost any dish. Put them on top of soups and stews or casseroles. Use them on chops or with eggs. The only limits are your imagination!

One great use for puff pastry that even the kids will love is to make little mini pizzas by cutting the pastry into rounds and cover each round with grated cheese, sauce and veggies. You an also use them to make little appetizers – use different shapes and top them with chili sauce, crab mix or anything you want.

Cooking with puff pastry is quite easy but there are a few things you need to be careful of in order to get them perfect every time. One of these things is to make sure you cook them at the right temperature. You should, of course, follow the directions on the package but most ready made puff pastry “puffs” at around 400 degrees F. Also, you must only give it a light glaze since if you add too much on it will cause the pastry to become soggy and not rise successfully. A light brushing of the egg wash with a pastry brush is all that is needed for perfect puff pastry.

So now that the secret is out, you better rush to the supermarket and stock up on puff pastry before it’s all gone!
Lee Dobbins writes for Online Gourmet Foods where you can read more articles about gourmet foods and fine cooking.

How to Make Southern Shrimp and Grits with Succotash.

In this video Chef Susan McIntosh, author of “Glorious Grits”, shows us how to make true Southern Shrimp and Grits with Succotash. She talks about how to make true southern stone-ground grits for this dish.

Easy Appetizer- How to Make Cheese Puffs

Easy Southern Grits

In the south, grits go with everything! We are more often thinking of grits as a breakfast food, however my grandmother served grits at any time of day as a delicious side dish. Basic instructions for grits follow, then later I will add a few of my favorite variations.

Basic Quick Grits

1 cup quick cooking grits (not instant)
4 cups water
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter (optional)

Bring water and salt to a boil. Slowly, stirring constantly, add the grits. Grits will clump if added all at once. Reduce heat to simmer and cover. Cook until grits are thick and creamy, approximately 5 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and stir in butter.

I omit the butter from the recipe, then serve the grits with a pat of butter melting on top.

If you have left-overs, see the next recipe.

Fried Grits

After cooking grits put them into a loaf pan and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. They will coagulate into a solid loaf. Next morning, or next meal, slice the loaf and fry in hot butter until both sides are a golden brown! You mix in flavors into the cheese before chilling into a loaf, traditional ones include cheese, fried onions,and bacon bits. Try whatever you have available.

Serve alone or topped with any (one) of the following:
Maple syrup
Homemade preserves
Honey
Brown sugar and cinnamon
Grated cheese
Fried onions
Bacon bits
Hot sauce
Salsa

Stone-Ground Grits

Stone ground grits are cooked like quick grits except that they must be cleaned first and the cooking time is much longer.

1 cup stone-ground grits
4 cups water
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter (optional)

Clean grits by placing in a large bowl and covering amply with cold water. Pour off the water and any chaff that rises to the surface. Repeat, the process, stirring the grits and letting them settle before pouring off the chaff. Drain the grits.

Bring water and salt to a boil. Slowly, stirring constantly, add the grits. Reduce heat to simmer and cover. Cook until grits are thick and creamy, approximately 40-45 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and stir in butter if desired.

Three Cheese Grits

3 cups chicken broth
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 dash hot sauce
¾ cups quick cooking grits
½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
½ cup shredded sharp American cheese
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese, extra for garnishing top
2 large eggs

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine broth, onion, garlic and hot sauce in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil.

Slowly add grits, stirring constantly. Lower heat and simmer 5 to 7 minutes until grits are thick and smooth, stirring frequently.

Remove from heat, add cheeses. Stir until melted. Set aside to cool.

In a medium sized bowl, beat the eggs until light yellow and thick.

Add a large spoonful of grits to eggs to temper, then fold the eggs mixture into the grits.

Place the grits into a lightly greased casserole dish. Sprinkle with parmasan cheese.

Cover and bake 40 minutes at 350 degrees, uncovering after 20 minutes. When done the grits should be puffy and lightly browned.

A Quick and Easy Dinner Menu for a Busy Night, Chicken with Mango Salsa

By Diane Watkins

This is a simple chicken breast, topped with a medium-hot mango salsa. Use a ripe mango for this salsa, it should yield to a gentle pressure.  You can control the heat in the salsa by adding more or less hot pepper. If you want it very mild, eliminate the hot chili pepper and substitute a red bell pepper.

The chicken cooks very quickly if you pound them thin. You could also use chicken tenders for a quick cooking alternative. If you don’t want to pound, just use fresh chicken breasts and cook longer.

The Menu

Chicken with Mango Salsa
Rice Pilaf
Spring Greens with Cherry Tomatoes

Start the rice pilaf first, unless you are using instant, it will take longer than the chicken.

Mango Chicken

4 chicken breast halves, boneless and skinless
1 teaspoon butter
1 teaspoon olive oil
garlic salt

1. Skin and bone chicken, trim off all visible fat.
2. Lay one chicken breast half on a flat surface lined with plastic wrap.
3. Place another piece of plastic wrap onto chicken breast.
4. Pound chicken thin with the flat side of a mallet or the bottom of a bottle by hitting downward onto the chicken then sliding the bottle or mallet outward to the edge. The next blow goes outward in the opposite direction, until the chicken is evenly thin all around. Not a lot of force is needed, most of the thinning is done by the outward slide. This should not take but a minute per chicken breast. If you don’t want to pound the breasts, then just cook them a little longer until done.
5. Season the chicken breasts with garlic salt.
6. Heat the butter and olive oil in a sauté pan. Saute the chicken in the butter and oil until cooked. Remove to a warm plate or platter.
7. Top with mango salsa and serve. I place the chicken on a bed of rice pilaf, then top with the mango salsa.

Mango Salsa

2 cups diced fresh or canned mango pulp
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper (green is ok, but red looks nicer)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 hot chili pepper, seeded and minced (optional)
1/2 teaspoon cumin

Combine all ingredients, blend well. Allow flavors to blend while chicken cooks.

Serve with a salad of spring greens, cherry tomatoes, and your favorite dressing along side a rice pilaf.