Breakfast Burritos, Hashbrowns, Fruit

4 eggs
4 egg whites
2 T milk
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper

4 tortillas

toppings, such as:
cheese
salsa
tomatoes
green onions
etc.

frozen hashbrowns

fruit of your choice


In a medium bowl, beat eggs, eggwhites, milk, salt, and pepper. Heat a pan to medium-heat, coated with cooking spray. Add egg mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until eggs are set. Fill tortillas with eggs and any desired toppings. Wrap up burrito style.

Prepare hashbrowns according to package directions.

Week 15 Meal Plan

I think the grocery stores are predicting sunshine because everything for a barbecue is on sale this week! I'm not sure I trust my weather forecasting to meteorologists, let alone grocers, but I'm feeling hopeful for some sun. If you need to stock up on barbecue ingredients-- ketchup, mustard, bbq sauce, etc-- this would be a great week. Some stores are even having decent sales on chicken and ground beef, so keep your eyes peeled. Invite some friends this weekend and have a party! Meet me at the park?

Also, FYI, we are trying to eat fish more often. Seafood is expensive, though, so if your budget can't quite handle it, try experimenting with the recipes using chicken or some other meat.


Wednesday
Crunchy Honey Mustard Salmon, Mashed Potatoes, Green Salad

Thursday- Breakfast for dinner!
Breakfast Burritos, Hashbrowns, Fruit

Friday
Hot Dogs, Pasta Salad, Oranges

Saturday
Eat leftovers or go out.

Sunday
Roast beef, Roasted Potatoes, Steamed Carrots

Monday
Chicken Parmigiana, Green Salad, Peas

Tuesday
Sloppy Joes, Green Beans, Sauteed Zucchini


Check out the grocery list here.

Week 15 Grocery List-- with Prices!

This week I shopped at Maceys, and picked up a few items at Sunflower Farmers Market.

Ingredients for Week 15 dinners
I will be purchasing:
1 pkg. hot dog buns ($1.50)
4-8 hamburger buns ($.75)
1 lemon ($.50)
1 head lettuce ($.78)
fruit (blackberries $.88)
oranges ($1.05)
1 red pepper ($1.99 ouch!)
a little broccoli ($.74)
a little cauliflower ($.47)
1 onion ($.65)
1 lb baby carrots ($1.59)
7-10 red potatoes ($2.66)
1 zucchini ($1.00)
milk (1 gallon $1.97)
eggs (1 dozen $.88)
1 pkg. hot dogs (turkey franks $.99)
12 oz salmon fillets (.84 lbs @ $8.99/lb = $7.56)
2.5 lbs beef pot roast (2.1 lbs @ $1.98/lb = $4.16)
Italian breadcrumbs ($1.59)
optional: 1 tomato
optional: 1 bunch green onions

In total, I spent $31.71 on this week's dinners.
The breakdown is approximately as follows:

Crunchy Honey Mustard Salmon, Mashed Potatoes, Green Salad $9.76
Breakfast Burritos, Hashbrowns, Fruit $2.41
Hot Dogs, Pasta Salad, Oranges $6.74
Roast Beef, Roasted Potatoes, Steamed Carrots $8.41
Chicken Parmigiana, Green Salad, Peas $1.98
Sloppy Joes, Green Beans, Sauteed Zucchini $2.40

I will be using from my pantry:
3 chicken breasts
1 lb ground beef
chopped pecans
tortillas
4 potatoes
fresh bread crumbs
8 oz rotini pasta
8 oz angel hair pasta
Parmesan cheese
3 to 6 oz mozzarella cheese
spaghetti sauce
salsa
Italian dressing
dry Italian dressing mix
honey
Dijon mustard
ketchup
vinegar
1 (11.5 oz) can tomato juice
Worcester sauce
1 can green beans
frozen hashbrowns
frozen peas
butter
olive oil
brown sugar
Lipton onion soup mix
garlic powder
parsley flakes
Italian seasoning
salt
pepper

I also stocked up on:
1 Pompeian red wine vinegar ($1.79)
2 pkg egg noodles ($.68 each = $1.36)
1 McCormick pepper grinder ($1.49 plus I had a $1/1 coupon from RP-4/25)

Crunchy Honey Mustard Salmon, Mashed Potatoes, Green Salad

This salmon recipe is adapted from AllRecipes. Sorry, folks, but it is not cheap. (Seafood rarely is...) But what is the point of being frugal, if not to buy the things you need to be healthy? We're working on increasing our HDLs, and salmon is a fantastic way to do just that. If you can't do salmon, I would bet this honey mustard would taste delicious on chicken. Let me know how it goes if you try it!

2 T Dijon mustard
1 t butter, softened
1 heaping T honey
1/2 t garlic powder
1/3 c fresh bread crumbs
1/3 c chopped pecans
2 tsp parsley flakes
2 (6 oz) salmon fillets
salt and pepper
1 lemon

4 potatoes, peeled and quartered
1/3 c milk
2 T butter
salt and pepper

green salad


Preheat oven to 400. In a bowl, stir together mustard, butter, honey, and garlic powder. Place in the fridge for a few minutes. In a separate bowl, stir together bread crumbs, pecans, and parsley flakes. Place salmon on a lightly greased baking sheet. Top with mustard mixture. Press on bread crumb mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Bake for 10 minutes per inch of thickness, until salmon flakes with a fork. Just before serving, generously squeeze lemon juice on top.

Place potatoes in a pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook for 20-30 minutes until tender. Drain. Mix in milk and butter. Mash with a potato masher or electric mixer until fluffy. Season with salt and pepper.

Prepare green salad.

Hot Dogs, Pasta Salad, Oranges

Are you ready for summer?

My pasta salad recipe is pretty typical, but I do have one secret: dry Italian dressing mix. I like my pasta salad to have maximum flavor without adding too much oily dressing. That's why I add a little dry dressing mix to my salad; it's like using super-flavorful dressing instead of regular!

8 oz rotini pasta
3 c chopped veggies (onion, carrot, bell pepper, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, etc)
optional: 3 oz mozzarellla, cubed
1/3 to 2/3 cup Italian dressing
1 to 2 t dry Italian dressing mix

1 pkg. hot dogs
1 pkg. buns

oranges, separated into sections



Early in the day, cook pasta according to directions; drain. Place in the fridge to cool. About 1 hour before dinner, mix together pasta, veggies, and cheese, if using. Then mix in Italian dressing to desired taste. Sprinkle on a little dry Italian dressing mix, also to taste. Place pasta salad back into the fridge to chill.

Cook hot dogs according to your preference (grill, boil, pan fry, microwave (with a slit for ventilation)). Serve on buns with your preferred condiments.

Roast beef, Roasted Potatoes, Steamed Carrots

I'm not terribly in love with roast beef, but it's one of Grandpa's favorites. So, we end up having it almost every time it goes on sale (which is every few weeks, if you haven't noticed).

2.5 lbs beef pot roast

7-10 red potatoes
1/4 c olive oil
1 pkg Lipton onion soup

1/2 lb baby carrots


In the morning, place beef in greased crock pot. Season generously with steak seasoning or salt and pepper. Cook on low 7-10 hours. Remove roast and let rest at least 10 minutes. Cut across the grain into thin slices. Place sliced roast beef back into crock pot for at least 10 minutes to warm.

Preheat oven to 425. Chop potatoes into 1 1/2 inch cubes. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. On the baking sheet, toss potatoes, oil, and soup mix. Stir until all potatoes are well coated. Bake, stirring occasionally, for 35-40 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Place carrots in a microwave safe bowl. Cover halfway with water. Microwave for 1 1/2 minutes. Stir. Microwave for 1 1/2 minutes more. Test for doneness with a fork. Continue microwaving at 1 minute intervals until tender. Drain water. Toss carrots with salt, pepper, 1 t butter, and a pinch of sugar.

If you'd like, make a gravy for the roast beef. Melt a couple teaspoons of butter over low heat in a medium saucepan. Add about a tablespoon of flour; stir to combine well. Whisk in about 1 cup of beef broth from the crock pot. Increase to high heat, stirring well until it comes to a bubble. Stir and cook on high for one more minute. Reduce heat to low and season with salt, pepper, and a little squirt of Dijon mustard.

Chicken Parmigiana, Green Salad, Peas

This chicken parmigiana recipe is an adaptation of a few different chicken parmigiana recipes I've found. Nothing too fancy.

1 egg
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 c Italian breadcrumbs
3 chicken breasts, cut in half
12 oz spaghetti sauce
3 slices mozzarella cheese, cut in half
or 3 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese

8 oz angel hair pasta

green salad

frozen peas


Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 7x11 baking dish. Bead egg, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Place breadcrumbs in another shallow bowl. Dip chicken into egg then coat with bread crumbs. Place in baking dish and bake for 40 minutes, or until cooked through. Pour spaghetti sauce around and on top of chicken. Cover/sprinkle with mozzarella. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Return to the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Serve chicken parmigiana over cooked noodles.

Prepare green salad.

Microwave frozen peas. Season with salt and pepper.

Sloppy Joes, Green Beans, Sauteed Zucchini

This sloppy joe recipe is from my great-grandma. Seriously.

1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1/4 c ketchup
2 T vinegar
3 T mustard
1 (11.5 oz) can tomato juice
4 T brown sugar
1 T Worcester sauce
4-8 rolls or hamburger

1 zucchini
Italian seasoning
optional: shredded cheese

1 can green beans


In a large frying pan, brown ground beef with onion. Drain off fat. Add next 6 ingredients (ketchup through Worcester sauce). Simmer on low for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring every half hour, until thick. (Or cook on medium-high for 15-20 minutes, stirring often, until thick.) Serve on buns.

Chop zucchini into thin circles. Heat a frying pan over medium heat and coat with cooking spray. Sautee zucchini until tender. Season generously with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Sprinkle lightly with cheese, if desired.

Microwave green beans. Season with salt and pepper.