Cincinatti Chili Recipe! Simple, Good and Cheap!

Next Week At Giant Eagle:

When you buy 2 -26 oz. Ragu jars you get box of pasta free!

Use this coupon $1.00/2 Ragu -- and final price is $1.50 for 2 Ragu's and 1 Pasta.

You may want to have this on your dinner menu for next week! I have made it and it is very good!

Cincinnati Chili (Compliments of Betty Crocker)
10 ounces uncooked spaghetti
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound ground turkey breast (or ground beef)
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 jar (26 to 28 ounces) chunky vegetable-style tomato pasta sauce (use Ragu Garden Veggie)
2 tablespoons of chili powder
1 can (15 to 16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1. Cook and drain spaghetti as directed on package.
2. While spaghetti is cooking, heat oil in 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Cook turkey, onion and garlic in oil 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until turkey is no longer pink.
3. Stir pasta sauce, beans and chili powder into turkey mixture; reduce heat to low. Simmer uncovered 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve sauce over spaghetti.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No changes.

Prep Time: 30 min
Total Time: 30 min
Makes: 5 servings (1 cup chili and 1 cup spaghetti each)

ENJOY!!!

Beef and Black Bean Tacos Recipe

I got this recipe in the February issue of All You Magazine. These are absolutely delicious, easy to make, healthy, inexpensive and everyone ate them!! LOL~definitely qualifies as a winner in this house and worth sharing.

Beef and Black Bean Tacos (Serving 5)

1/2 pound of ground beef or ground turkey

1 16 oz. can of black beans

1 package of taco seasoning

1 package of flour tortilla's

Toppings (as desired): Tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, salsa, etc.

Brown meat in skillet, drain. While meat is browning drain and rinse beans. Once meat is cooked and drained add beans, 1/2package of taco seasoning and 2/3 c. of water. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve.

FYI: Beans are a perfect filler, cutting down on the expense of meat and adding a healthy dose of fiber!

I prepared a double portion and fed my family (and 3 extra kids) for around $10 with left overs. Enjoy this wonderful meal!

Make Your Own Hamburger and Hot Dog Buns

Make Your Own Hamburger and Hot Dog Buns

Does anyone have a bread machine they want to sell cause I want to make these???? Well, for now they are documented for later use and here to share with you!

What's for dinner?

It was 6 weeks ago that I was listening to the Christian morning show, on 95.5 The Fish with Len and Brooke, and they were discussing making healthy food choices to go with the bud of the new year. That week there was one interview that really stood out...it was with a man named David Zinczenko who is the author of, Eat This, Not That a book that discusses the application of making nutritional food swaps in order to lessen daily caloric intake which in turn helps you lose weight. I thought it was an interesting concept but the shock factor kicked in when he started discussing the calories in prepared foods (like restaurants) vs. the homemade edition. He mentioned PIZZA! HE had my ear because pizza was a weekly staple, mainly for convenience but also because we love it. He said that order out restaraunt-style pizza, from lets say Pizza Hut, is equivalent to 2,100 calories vs. homemade 500 calories (these are approximations). WOW! I was amazed. Now being that I had already began on my quest to getting the same amount of food for the family on far less money, I decided that maybe the homemade version would be not only a healthier option but also a more cost effective option which would give us back one of our comfort dinners. So I tried it...





First, let me just say that it is so much fun to work on dinner with my kids! Lily likes to help me every step of the way (good math review!) and this is an easy meal to make with children. So in the past we would order pizza for convenience but then have to go pick it up... a 20 minute round trip. Making pizza takes just about 20 minutes to prepare and cook. Hmmm...maybe a few more dishes but overall, espcially with no chopping involved, this qualifies as an easy dinner night!

Second, this definitely saves a ton of money. I make TWO 1/2 sheets pizzas on two large cookie sheets. I use four bags of pizza dough, one jar of pizza sauce, 4 cups of Mozzarella cheese and I spray a little cooking spray on the sheets prior to laying the dough. All that for both extra large pizza's~~you can certainly modify if you are feeding less. I get these items on sale and use coupons so my total is ~$6. It feeds our family of 6 and we have left overs that go in the boys lunches the next day. When we used to order pizza out, it would cost $15 for ONE pizza of the same size...AND it was far more greasy!

Lastly, homemade pizza IS delicious...my kids request it! Pair it with some cut carrots or tossed salad and you have a wonderful meal without the guilt for under $10!

Mission: Eat Right, Eat Good but DO it Cheap!

One of my biggest challenges is feeding a family of 6, and often more since we always have guests, on a tight budget. Call it maturity or whatever you want to call it, but I realized that alot/most of our "extra" money was being spent on FOOD!! Our hard earned cash all gone to food! I thought, 'what a racket?...If I could cut our food bill by $50 or more that could really add up or help in other areas in our financial budget that has a need.' Unfortunately, it took tight times to force us into this more disciplined nature of resourcefulness but the Lord used this as an opportunity to show me that this is an area that we as Christians are to focus on and me/we were in desperate need of a makeover. We are called to be resourceful, whether there is a current pressing need or not. We are to learn to be good stewards as God expects His people to use the resources of time, money, abilities, and spiritual gifts to the best possible advantage in their pursuit of excellence in ministry.

Luke 16:10-11 "Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?"

So I made it one of missions for 2010 to be a better steward of the money that we do have. One area I could immediately modify was to work at cutting our grocery bill by $50-$100 a week! Yes, I said a week and yes I said work at! And I will say that so far so good. If you would like to strive to do the same, follow me as I am going to start posting the strategies that I have learned, from so many others willing to share, and use to accomplish this monstrous task.

Proverbs 24:3-4
Through wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; and by knowledge the rooms shall be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.

I am going to start a little out of order but today I felt compelled to share a recipe that I found that is SO resourceful and looks so yummy!

Today's Tip: Find recipes where the majority of ingredients can be found amongst your pantry staples and then purchase the supplemental ingredients.

Here is a recipe that I found in All You Magazine that is healthy and will cost me barely anything to make and feed our mass family.

Black-Bean Burgers
Prep: 10 min.
Bake: 20 min.
Serves: 4
Cost per serving: 67 c.

*2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
*1 stalk of celery chopped
*1 onion chopped
*1 clove garlic, minced
*1-15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
*1 large egg
*1 Tbsp. Cumin
* 1/2 c. plain bread crumbs
* Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees; lightly grease a large rimmed baking sheet.
2.Warm oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add celery and onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and saute 1 minutes longer.
3. Our beans into a large bowl and use a fork to mash into a thick paste. Scrape vegetables from skillet into bowl. Stir in egg, cumin, and bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper and use your hands to form 4 patties. Place on baking sheet and bake until firm and set, about 10 minutes on each side.

Per Serving: 215 cal., 9g Fat (1g sat.), 53mg. Chol., 7g Fiber, 8g Pro., 28g Carb., 821mg Sod.

Kitchen Tips:
*Do the mash. The burgers turn out better when the beans are well mashed. use a food processor if you prefer.
*Add extras. Present the burgers just like regular hamburgers. Add a slice of cheese just after they come out of the oven, if desired.

YUM and SO HEALTHY! I carry all but beans as staples in my kitchen so all I have to get is the beans!! This meal will cost me under $10 for 8 to eat and we'll probably have left overs!

ENJOY!!

xoxo Halley