Biscuits n Gravy

One of the world's absolute best food combinations. Biscuits, good. Sausage, good. Country gravy, too good for words. And I bet if you knew how easy they were to make, you would enjoy their comfort food goodiness much more often.

For the biscuits:
2 c. flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
6 tbsp. shortening
2/3 c. milk

Heat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender until mixture resembles "meal". Stir in almost all the milk. If dough does not seem pliable, add enough of the milk to make a soft, puffy dough easy to roll out. (Too much milk makes dough sticky, not enough makes biscuits dry.) Round up on lightly floured board. Knead and handle lightly. Roll and pat out to about 1/2" thick. Cut close together with floured biscuit cutter. Gently fit leftover bits together and roll out again. Place biscuits an inch apart on a ungreased baking sheet and cook in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes.

Sausage and gravy:
Cook 8 (or more) patties of sausage over med-high heat in a large skillet. When fully cooked, remove to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Reserve sausage grease in the pan. Sprinkle flour over the grease to an equal amount to make a roux. (For example if you have 1/4 c. grease left in the pan, add that much flour.) Stir and heat until mixture is smooth and there are no lumps. No lumps in the roux means no lumps in the gravy. Slowly add milk, about a cup. Too much milk will make for a very flavor-less gravy. Continue to heat, stirring constantly until mixture is thickened. Serve immediately by topping each biscuit half with a piece of sausage and pouring a generous amount of gravy on top.

I MUST WARN YOU, it will probably take a few attempts to perfect making the gravy. Have a packet of country gravy mix handy the first couple times just in case you need it. ;) But once you get it right, you will never go back to those powdery packets again!


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Easy Peach Crisp

Easy Peach Crisp
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4-6

Ingredients:
2 cans (15 ¼ oz each) Del-Monte sliced peaches in heavy syrup, drained (I used 6 fresh peaches instead)
1/3 c. flour
1/3 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 c. old fashioned oats
¼ tsp. cinnamon
¼ c. butter or margarine, melted
Directions: Place fruit in1 qt. shallow baking dish. Combine flour, sugar, oats and cinnamon. Mix in butter until crumbly; sprinkle over fruit. Bake at 375, 30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

*Recipe courtesy of Del Monte


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Menu Plan Monday--Soups

Last week I encouraged you to re-think lunches, toss the prepackaged processed foods and go fresher. One of the easiest areas in which to do this is with soup. I make a big batch of soup every Monday. This covers Monday's lunch, but also gives me good lunches through the week in case I make the kids pb&j or plain pasta. Soup is a good healthy filling lunch (or dinner, but I haven't been able to convince my hubby of that yet!), but not only are canned soups ridiculously overpriced, they are full of sodium, preservatives, and fat. You will be amazed at how easy it is to make some of your favorite soups at home. I usually don't post my soup recipes because I make them on Monday which is when I post my menu plans, but look for future posts where I will share some of my favorite soups and their soup-er (couldn't resist) easy recipes!

Monday:
breakfast~peanut butter and honey toast
lunch~chicken soup
dinner~grilled ham steak, seasoned potatoes, and salad

Tuesday:
breakfast~oatmeal
lunch~leftovers
dinner~chicken n rice

Wednesday:
breakfast~biscuits n gravy
lunch~picnic
dinner~ribs, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, fry bread

Thursday:
breakfast~homemade granola bars
lunch~chicken wraps
dinner~mac n cheese with ham

Friday:
breakfast~strawberry muffins
lunch~cheesy baked potatoes
dinner~pepperoni and peppers pizza

Saturday:
breakfast~cinnamon pancakes
lunch~tuna mac
dinner~red beans and rice

Sunday:
breakfast~cereal
lunch~go out
dinner~fried chicken, potato salad, melons


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Raspberry Spinach Salad

Top spinach leaves (can also use mixed greens) with:

large pieces of chopped walnuts
chunks of gorgonzola or feta cheese
shredded cooked chicken *optional

Drizzle with raspberry viniagrette (bottled or homemade) and toss immediately before serving.


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Cinnamon Pancake Mix

Super easy to make and will save you some time when the kids are begging for pancakes!

9 c. flour (I use half white and half wheat)
3/4 c. sugar
6 tbsp baking powder
1/4 c. cinnamon
4 tsp salt

Combine and store in a large container or a couple gallon size baggies.

To prepare pancakes combine 1 c. pancake mix with 1 egg, 1/2-3/4 c. milk, and 2 tbsp oil and cook as normal.


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Broccoli Beef

A favorite of my chinese-food-loving daughter

Steam one package of frozen broccoli until tender and bright green. Mix 2 tsp cornstarch with 1/4 c. soy sauce, 1 tsp garlic powder, and 1 tsp ground ginger, and 1 c. water. Using leftover beef from a beef roast, combine meat, broccoli and soy sauce mixture in a large skillet or wok. Stir and heat over med-high heat until completely heated through and sauce is thickened. Serve with steamed rice.

*to use uncooked meat, simply cut a beef roast into 1 inch pieces and saute in oil before combining with the remaining ingredients.


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Fried Apples

Simple WOW dessert

Fried Apples

3 tbsp. butter
4 large apples, cored and sliced in 3" slices
1/3 c. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Heat butter in a large skillet. Put the apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon in the skillet, stir and cover. Over med-low heat, cook apples 7-10 mins or until the are soft and the syrup is thickened. After removing apples from pan, pour the excess syrup on top. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream if desired.


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Buttermilk Fried Fish

OMG yummy

1 lb. fish fillets (I used talapia)
1 c. buttermilk

1 c. cornmeal
1/2 c. flour
salt and pepper

Cut the fish fillets into manageable pieces (mine were about 4 inches long each). Place the fish into the buttermilk (in a pie plate or similar dish) and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Mix the cornmeal, flour, salt and pepper in a shallow dish similar to the one used before. Heat about 2 inches of oil in a skillet. Dip both sides of the fish pieces into the cornmeal mixture and place into the hot oil. Cook for about 4 minutes on each side, until browned and fully cooked. Remove to a paper towel lined plate before serving.


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Menu Plan Monday--Lunches

Last week we talked breakfasts, today let's talk lunches. It is very easy to get into a rut with lunches, having sandwiches almost every day, or if you have kids, child friendly favorites like mac n cheese. Unfortunately, those frozen chicken nuggets are full of fillers and preservatives, and boxed mac n cheese is about as nutritious as the cardboard in which it is contained. There are plenty of lunch ideas that are both delicious and good-for-you, and frugal too! Here is our standard list of lunches that we rotate through, but also check through my old Menu Plan Mondays for lots of other fun things that I throw in for lunch.

Tuna Salad
Egg Salad
Chicken Salad
Sandwiches
Quesadilla/Soft Taco
Baked Potato
Pasta
Salad
Soup
Leftovers

Leftovers are a great way to stretch your lunch dollar. Last night's roasted chicken becomes today's chicken salad. Sunday's stir fry becomes Tuesday's asian salad. Also, you can have a day where the only option for lunch is dinner leftovers-great way to clean out the fridge! Give up the frozen and boxed lunches, and consider some of the fresh ideas here or in my previous posts. If you have any great lunch ideas, feel free to share them here!

Check out lunches (and breakfasts and dinners) for this week:

Menu Plan 6/21-6/27

Monday:

breakfast~smoothies

lunch~chicken tortilla soup

dinner~beef roast with potatoes, carrots and homemade bread

Tuesday:

breakfast~oatmeal

lunch~leftovers

dinner~buttermilk fried fish with homemade french fries and salad

Wednesday:

breakfast~cinnamon bread

lunch~Marlboro Man sandwiches

dinner~roasted chickens, mashed potatoes, corn and cornbread

Thursday:

breakfast~cream of wheat

lunch~deluxe fries (leftover fries from Tuesday topped with cheese, bacon, and ranch)

dinner~broccoli beef with rice

Friday:

breakfast~banana muffins

lunch~picnic of sandwiches, white cheddar puffs and fruit

dinner~pizza

Saturday:

breakfast~omelets

lunch~raspberry chicken salad

dinner~spaghetti

Sunday:

breakfast~cereal

lunch~go out

dinner~chicken enchiladas

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Guacamole

I bet you never knew that guacamole could be this simple:

Use a paring knife to slice an avocado in half vertically. Pull the two halves apart. Pull out the seed and set aside. Scoop out the flesh of the avocado and put in a bowl. (Repeat for as many avocados as desired) Mash the avocados with a fork until smooth. Squeeze into the bowl the juice of one lime for every 4 avocados. Stir to combine thoroughly. Salt to taste.

Optional:
add a small amount of finely chopped fresh cilantro or some diced tomatoes

To store:
add the avocado seed back into the bowl, cover and put in the refrigerator


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Chicken Alfredo Pizza

Top a pizza crust with:

Alfredo sauce
2 c. cooked chicken
3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
sprinkle with parsley (fresh is best)

Cook at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes.


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Rice Krispies Treats

A classic! Sometimes you can't beat the simple things.

Rice Krispies Treats

¼ c. margarine
40 large marshmallows
6 c. rice krispies

Melt margarine in large saucepan over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from, heat. Add rice krispies. Stir until well coated. Using buttered spatula or waxed paper, press mixture evenly into buttered 13x9x2 pan. Cut into squares when cool.


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Sausage Stuffed Cheesy Shells

This is one of my family's favorite meals. It is the perfect meal for a crowd!

1 lb large shell shaped pasta (the kind that can be filled)
1 lb ground sausage (you can use fancy italian sausage or just plain Farmer John breakfast sausage)
1 jar or can spaghetti sauce (26 oz)
2 C medium white sauce
1 C shredded cheddar cheese

Cook pasta shells as directed. Meanwhile, brown sausage; drain. Mix sausage into spaghetti sauce. Add ½ C cheddar cheese to white sauce. Heat until cheese is melted. Pour a small amount of cheesy white sauce into a 13x9 pan (just so the shells won’t stick). Fill each shell with the sausage/sauce mixture and place in pan. Pour cheesy white sauce over shells. Top with remaining cheese. Bake about 10 mins, just until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling.

Goes great with salad and bread.

Serves 6 to 8.


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Trail Mix

If you love trail mix as much as we do, you may have noticed that it is quite pricey. However, you can make your own trail mix easily and for much less expensive.

For a traditional trail mix simply combine equal parts of the following:
raisins
M&Ms
whole almonds
peanuts

You can also add any of the following (or use your creativity to come up with additional ideas)

popcorn
cashews (or other nuts)
Cheerios, Chex or other cereal
yogurt covered raisins
dried cranberries, dried bananas, etc
pretzels
chocolate chips
cheese crackers
bagel crisps

This is an awesome filling healthy snack for summer road trips!


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Menu Plan Monday--Breakfasts

Breakfast is one of the areas that has the biggest opportunity to save some money. If you typically have cereal, frozen waffles, or another type of convenience food for breakfast, there are many other choices that are much less pricey, but still quick and easy. Here are some ideas for breakfast foods to add to your menu:

Eggs with toast, breakfast meats, etc
Huevos Rancheros
Biscuits n Gravy
Breakfast Burritos
Mini Quiche
Yogurt (with homemade granola)
Smoothies
Bagel, Toast, or English Muffin with choice of toppings
Muffins or Breads
Crumb Cake, Coffee Cake, etc .
Oatmeal, Cream of Wheat, etc.
Rice
Pancakes, Waffles, French Toast
Obviously, there are lots of different options listed above and things that haven't even been mentioned. You can see that it is very easy to bring a little more variety to the breakfast table, and avoid falling into the trap of serving cold cereal everyday. The cutesy cereals that your children beg you for not only have as much sugar as a candy bar, but they can equal some big bucks at the grocery store. Most of the things listed above cost pennies per serving, yet with a little planning, they can just as quick and easy to serve. Use your food prep day to make things like mini quiches, fruit breads, and pancakes. Put them in the freezer, then simply pull out the night before you would like to serve. Nutritious, delicious breakfast in minutes!

Menu Plan 6/14-6/20

Monday:

breakfast~bagels

lunch~basic veggie soup

dinner~Swedish meatballs

Tuesday:

breakfast~oatmeal

lunch~leftovers

dinner~bruschetta chicken

Wednesday:

breakfast~bran muffins

lunch~sandwiches

dinner~sausage shells

Thursday:

breakfast~yogurt with homemade granola

lunch~baked potatoes

dinner~meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans

Friday:

breakfast~cinnamon toast

lunch~nachos

dinner~chicken alfredo pizza (using leftover alfredo sauce)

Saturday:

breakfast~pancakes

lunch~asian salad

dinner~burritos

Sunday:

breakfast~cereal

lunch~go out

dinner~steak, twice baked potatoes, carrots, fry bread

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Fettucine Alfredo

One of my favorite meatless meals...even more delicious with some chicken or shrimp

1 tbsp. Margarine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp flour
1 1/3 c. skim milk
2 tbsp. cream cheese
1 ¼ c. parmesan cheese
4 c. fettucine, cooked
2 tsp parsley
pepper

Melt margarine over med heat. Add garlic, saute 1 min. Stir in flour. Gradually add milk, stir until blended. Cook, stirring constantly, 8 mins or until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Stir in cream cheese. Cook 2 mins. Add 1 c. parmesan cheese, stirring constantly until melted. Pour sauce over fettucine and toss well to coat. Top with remaining parmesan cheese, parsley and pepper.


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Snickerdoodles

My favorite cookie! I could just eat the whole batch.

1 c. shortening
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 3/4 c. flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Heat oven to 400. Mix shortening, sugar, and eggs thoroughly. Blend dry ingredients, then stir into sugar mixture. Roll into balls the size of small walnuts. Roll in a mixture of 2 tbsp sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon. Place 2" apart on baking sheet. Bake 8-10 mins.

*recipe courtesy of Betty Crocker 1961 cookbook


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Cheesy Macaroni and Ham Bake

Grease a large casserole dish. Cook 1 lb. macaroni al dente. Whisk together 6 c. milk and 2 c. flour in a saucepan. Heat over low heat and continue whisking until slightly thickened, about 7 minutes. Stir in 3 c. shredded cheddar cheese and 1 c. parmesan. Once melted, add 2 c. cooked ham (cut into small pieces) and some salt and pepper. Then gently stir in cooked macaroni and pour the mixture into the casserole dish. Cut 12 slices of American cheese into strips (a crinkle cutter adds a nice effect). Arrange cheese strips onto top of casserole making a lattice top. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted.


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Strawberry Sweetcakes

Kind of like Strawberry Shortcake but sweeter!!

2 c. flour
1 1/2 c. sugar
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 c. shortening
1 c. milk
1 tsp vanilla
4 egg whites

2 c. strawberries
sugar
whipped cream in a spray can

Wash and cut the stems off the strawberries, then cut into quarters and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle some sugar over the top generously.

Heat oven to 350. Grease and flour a cupcake pan (or use paper cupcake liners). Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add shortening, 2/3 c. milk, and vanilla. Beat 2 mins on medium speed on mixer. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl constantly. Add the rest of the milk and egg whites. Beat 2 more minutes, scraping bowl frequently. Pour into pan, filling cups 2/3 full. Bake 25-30 minutes. Cool completely. Slice the top section of each cupcake across the top 3/4 of the way, so it is still connected. Spoon a small amount of strawberries into the opening of each cupcake, then squeeze some whipped cream in the opening as well.


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Baked Potato Soup

6 baked potatoes
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. flour
4 c. milk
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 c. crumbled bacon
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 c. sour cream

Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in flour, salt and pepper and heat just until bubbly (only a few seconds). Gradually stir in milk. Continue to heat until it comes to a boil. Boil for 1 minute or until thickened. Cut baked potatoes into small pieces and stir into sauce. Add half of the bacon, cheese, and sour cream. Scoop into bowls and top with remaining ingredients.


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Menu Plan Monday--Master Shopping List

Part of what makes menu planning such a wonderful time saver is the fact that you won't have to run to the store at the last minute to get an ingredient that you need for dinner! If you have made your list and checked it twice, you will have everything you need to make all your meals for whatever period of time you have planned. Part of making that happen involves having a good master shopping list. When you go through your menu plan you will write down the ingredients you need for each recipe, but you need a list of things that you always want to keep on hand, like flour, butter, milk, etc. Having a good master shopping list will ensure that you always have the basic necessities on hand to be able to make any dish your heart desires. It takes time to perfect a good master list (I still find myself altering mine), but when you have one, you will see it is well worth the time investment.

I'm still trying to find a way to upload my shopping list here to help all of you create yours, but in the meantime...
just start a basic list of things that you know you need on a regular basis. Whenever you find you are out of something you need, just add it to your list. In no time, you will have a good master list going!

What I do with my master shopping list is this:
Place inside a plastic sheet protector and put inside the pantry door. Whenever you run out of something, you can highlight the item right on the sheet protector with a dry-erase marker. (Train your family to do this!!!) Then when it is time to go shopping, you can just remove the whole thing and take it to the store. Once you are done shopping, erase your highlighted marks and start over.

Menu Plan 6/7-6/13

Monday:
breakfast~smoothies
lunch~baked potato soup
dinner~salisbury steak

Tuesday:
breakfast~cream of wheat
lunch~leftovers
dinner~chorizo quesadillas

Wednesday:
breakfast~banana bread
lunch~sandwiches
dinner~roasted chickens

Thursday:
breakfast~granola bars
lunch~pasta
dinner~cheesy macaroni and ham bake

Friday:
breakfast~crumb cake
lumch~quesadillas
dinner~pizza

Saturday:
breakfast~omelets
lunch~tuna macaroni salad
dinner~fettucine alfredo

Sunday:
breakfast~cereal
lunch~go out
dinner~enchiladas


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Chef Salad

Named because of ingenious use of various leftover foods in the restaurant kitchen, the chef salad is a wonderful planned-over food and a great way to use up whatever you have laying around your kitchen. The variations are endless, but listed below are the must-have ingredients in a chef salad.

Top your basic salad greens with:

hard boiled eggs (boil ahead of time on food prep day!)
shredded cheddar cheese
deli turkey and ham, sliced julienne
variety of vegetables including carrot shreds, cucumbers, and tomatoes

You can top with any dressing, but French is traditional and I love it with ranch! Don't forget the croutons!


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Meat Lovers Pizza

This pizza is to die for! Perfect if you have carnivores like me! I try to make it when I know I will have leftover meats from other dishes. Like my leftover sausage from Peppers and Eggs, ham from Cheesy Macaroni, and bacon from Twice Baked Potatoes. I love Planned Overs!

Meat Lovers Pizza

Top one batch pizza crust with:
1 c. pizza sauce (I just mix some Italian seasoning into tomato sauce)
2-3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese (we are cheese lovers here!)
pepperonis
chopped bacon (if bacon is cooked ahead of time and chilled you can easily just crumble with your hands)
sliced ham, cut into small pieces
cooked sausage
(you can use any meats you want!)

Bake at 400 for about 15 mins.


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Baking Mix

Thursday is my food prep day and this baking mix is one of the things I will make up ahead of time to make meal preparation even easier! It can be used in place of Bisquick to make things like pancakes, biscuits, muffins, and fruit cobblers.

4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup instant nonfat milk powder or dry buttermilk powder
1 cup vegetable shortening plus 2 tablespoons

Simply combine all dry ingredients and then cut in shortening using a pastry blended until evenly distributed. Store in a covered container or a large baggie.


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Oatmeal Scotchies

One of my favorite cookies!

3/4 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
3 c. oats
2 c. butterscotch morsels

Preheat oven to 375. Beat butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir the butter mixture into the dry ingredients. Stir in oats and butterscotch morsels. Drop by large spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 mins, until edges are brown and centers are still soft. Cool on pan for 2 mins and then remove to wire rack to cool completely.


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Garlic Lime Chicken

OMG this recipe is such a family pleaser. So good, and S-I-M-P-L-E. It is modified from a recipe found at Saving Dinner (have I mentioned how much I LOVE that site?!)

Garlic Lime Chicken

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil over med high heat in a large skillet. Sprinkle chicken pieces (any type you want) with salt and pepper, followed by paprika and garlic powder. (I can't be bothered to measure and mix, I just sprinkle it right on the chicken-just be careful!) Place chicken pieces in oil and brown about 3 minutes on each side. Turn heat down to medium low. Use a fork to completely squeeze out all of the juice of a lime on top of the chicken. (one lime will do well for up to 8 pieces of chicken) Put a lid on the pan and continue to cook until no longer pink in center. (time will vary depending on what type of chicken you use-BLSL about 10 minutes, bone in pieces 15-20) Check the pan every few minutes and add some liquid (water or chicken broth) if it starts to get dry.

Delicious served with tortillas, rice, corn, and beans El Pollo Loco style :)


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