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Friday, November 13, 2009

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 20:53:32 GMT

Frugal Friday:

I took another day to 'cook and prep' for the weekend and week ahead this past Friday. I put some things in the freezer (macaroni and cheese, stuffed peppers, creamed corn). I'll appreciate these quick meals in the future. I also made ahead sausage patties and biscuits, and pancakes and bacon for the weekend meals. It was so nice to have those prepared meals waiting instead of having to plan and prepare all weekend long.

Free to us: a box of Betty Crocker au gratin potatoes. I think I got these through an offer in their weekly e-newsletter. I'm finding more and more companies are giving special offers to e-news customers. It's well worth a little space in my email box to get these offers. If you don't want your usual account clogged with these e-letters devote a separate account to them.

I'm reading packages a lot more carefully these days, too. Often there is a rewards program, information concerning free coupons, rebate programs, etc. right on the package. Courtesy Coke reward points we've gotten two new magazine subscriptions for no money out of pocket. Planning ahead could net FREE items for next year's Christmas gifts!

I did such a thorough and careful job of shopping last week that we needed nothing at all from the grocery this weekend. Praises be! I can't remember the last time we weren't flat out of something that I desperately needed. Nice to feel all secure in the knowledge that yet indeed we only needed a paper... Our supper at home consisted of leftovers Sunday night as did our lunch on Monday.

I purposely cut my pork loin roasts a little larger than usual, opting to make them 3 1/2 pounds or so. This allows extra sliced meat for sandwiches. $1.49 for home baked pork loin vs. $3.99 pound for bologna...Not much of a stretch to figure out which is the better buy there!

I made a beautiful cake from scratch this past weekend. It tasted wonderful, but honestly that cake was a bit much for us, all by ourselves. I think I'll make a 'half' cake next time we want a layer cake. That's one layer cut in half and stacked and frosted on top and outside edge only. We'll enjoy it without feeling overwhelmed at a whole cake...I can always freeze the second or third layer if the recipe makes that much. This week's planned dessert is a recipe for cupcakes that makes just 1/2 dozen.

Funnily enough I thought I was just cleaning this week when I started wiping down the back door. Turns out I was really doing a makeover. We tend to sit on the deck more in the winter months because it's so sunny and warm in the afternoons. So my front porch chairs were moved around to the deck, a big pot of fountain grass was moved and the whole deck looks transformed, the entry more welcoming.

When I packaged hamburger for the freezer, I packed it in 1 1/4 pound packages, a little more than I'd normally package. I put it down to being tired and not thinking as I ought, but it worked in my favor this week. I took one package and used a half pound to make BBQ Beef Cups and the rest was made into chili for Cincinnati style Chili when the 'light' rains turned out heavy and the day cool and dreary. With care I should be able to stretch the rest of the packets as well, if by doing nothing more than making a burger for Chance's lunch box sandwich.

How many bottles in your home are upside down right now? I just emptied a bottle of laundry detergent I'd had upside down. Do you know I had enough detergent to wash another load of clothes in the cup just from the drip alone? I also have an upside down bottle of syrup in the fridge (about 3 tbsps in that), an upside down bottle of aloe in the bathroom (enough to treat several more scrapes and burns), an upside down bottle of cooking oil (there's at least 1 tbsp in the cap). My family knows never to toss a supposedly 'empty' bottle in this house. Only Mama declares something empty, lol!

Long ago Susan asked that I send her a certain regional magazine that is not available in North Dakota. At the time the subscriptions were so very high that I opted to take Mama's gently read copy and mail it to her, but with the higher cost of postage that has become a hefty price to pay each month (more than the annual subscription). This weekend as I clipped coupons, I happened to read over an 'advertisement' page that contained no coupons. Lo and behold, it was a subscription offer for the same magazine at an 'introductory' price (less than $1 per issue). I'm sending in the registration with Susan's address and a money order so she can get her favorite magazine at home.

I've been thinking long and hard about Christmas gifts this year. My desire to give is simply not matched by my budget and though I have several gifts already on hand, I have quite a bit of shopping to do yet. One thing I'm trying to watch carefully isn't my budget but 'gift guilt', that guilt we feel when we are certain that our giving is not comparable to what others will be giving to us. Well, truly, I wish I could do more, but facts are facts. So I'm trying to watch out for the 'guilt' purchases and instead truly trying to match the gifts to the personality of the recipient and my budget.

I've been getting a lot of those mailings from book clubs of late. I haven't belonged to a book club now in nearly three years, but I make good use of the mailers. I keep a page in my notebook just for books and movies I'd like to read/see. Then I look for them at the library or order from Netflix. Much less expensive than ordering and no additional clutter in my home. I'll reserve my shelf space for books and movies worth reading/seeing time and again.

Granny's birthday is today. She is 93. She long ago asked that we stop gifting her with more 'stuff' to sit around and collect dust or be put away and never used. When I talked to her this morning I listened for verbal cues of what she really wanted. Today that was ice cream and 'big apples, not those little hard knobbly things in bags.' So while out with Mama today I bought her just that: ice cream and big apples. She was pleased as punch when I stopped by later to give them to her.

Since I was headed to the store to shop for Granny, I made note of the items on sale this week that would be a budget bonus for our next pay period: Cheese blocks, cream cheese, and vitamins were on my list of sales items to purchase. I'll take that amount off my next pay period's budgeted amount, and mark those items off next week's shopping list.

I locked my keys in the trunk of my car this morning. Silly of me, but to make matters worse, I'd made double sure to lock the car doors first...We had another of the remote door lock thingys here at home, but alas, no spare housekey where I could easily get to it. It certainly wasn't frugal to drive down to Chance's work place to get his spare key to the car. In future, I will be sure to do something I've heard my husband do for years now. Before locking any door he asks first, "Where are the keys?" Why is he so wise? Because he's a former locksmith and knows that nine times out of ten people who lock their keys in the house or car are usually distracted from what they are doing.

I have a few favorite long necklaces, but recently three of them broke. Rather than call them a loss and toss them in the trash, I asked Kay (whose eyesight is far better than mine even with glasses) to repair them. She did and now they are all back in use.

It's the end of the day and I am tired, but I don't much feel like running back to town for takeout, nor cooking...My solution? I have a few quick cook items in the freezer that do very well despite being frozen: formed burger patties, a couple of steaks, frankfurters. All these items cook up quickly and none of them will require my spending money elsewhere this evening.

Thankful Thursday

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:53:09 GMT

This week I am thankful for:

Rainy days spent at home

Library time

A treasure found

Wandering around an antiques store

Good books to pass the time

Seeing the huge difference a little extra cleaning can make

Getting big jobs conquered one bit at a time

Realizing Christmas gifting is further along than thought

Puppy love from Maddie

Time to sit quietly and just think

Turning a 'rotten' day over to God and allowing him to make it beautiful

Breakfast with our son

Pecans from the backyard tree

A beautiful sunny day after rainy days

Golden sunlight

Tried and True Thursday

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:43:50 GMT

Pasties

Several years ago, I was a working mom. All I really wanted to be was a stay at home mom and full time homemaker. I'd had just enough of working full time, cleaning full time and parenting and being a wife part time at best. My favorite downtime was spent before the television watching video taped home decorating and homestyle shows. One of my favorite was Katie Brown's program. One of the things I liked about her program was the home crafts and the easy delicious recipes.

After a hard day at work, a frustrating evening as homemaker, mom and wife, it was very comforting to see someone making a home in the way I'd always dreamed of doing it. Well my day finally came and that notebook full of ideas and recipes was right there with me. I breathed a deep sigh of relief and began to cook and clean and declutter, to chauffeur kids from one event to another, to wrangle with a straining budget and to be a full time wife as well. It was all marvelous.

Homecooked meals were a real joy and of course crafting, too. But most of all, I was excited to finally get to put to use all those recipes I'd been collecting over the years. This recipe for Pasties was one that we kept and used over and over again. It was easy enough, hearty, filling and not expensive. I usually served the pasties with coleslaw or a salad, apple slices or oranges. I'm sharing the original recipe, but leftovers work well as pasties too: cooked corned or roast beef, leftover meatloaf, chopped diced cooked chicken or turkey all work well.

Pasties

prepared recipe for 2 crust pastry or 1 pkg of refrigerated pie crusts

1 large potato, cubed

1 sm minced onion

1/2 pound ground beef

salt and pepper to taste

Mix the raw beef with the vegetables. Pat into rough rounds, dividing into four portions. Roll out room temperature pastry rounds, and cut each in half. Place one round of beef on one side of each piece of pantry. Fold over the pastry and use a fork to crimp the edges. Place on foil lined baking sheet. Pierce top to allow steam to escape and bake at 350F until pastry is golden brown about 40 minutes. These keep well for packing in lunches as well.

Homemaker's Challenge

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:09:40 GMT

Front door/Back door

What does the entryway to your home look like? Have you done more than lately than give it just a passing glance? Does it reflect the state of your home inside?

For some reason this morning, I really took note of how our front and back doors look. The truth is, they are pretty shabby. Sure, there are pretty wreaths on the door, but both doorways sport puppy paw prints, smudged glass on the storm doors, even a little mildew and dirty buildup on the doors themselves. Truly they could all use fresh paint, but the weather isn't conducive to that today, so I settled for cleaning the back door, frame and surrounding. Oh my goodness! What a difference it made! I've still got a little work to do at the back door, but I can say honestly that the appearance of that entrance is vastly improved already. I hope to be able to tackle the front doors a little later today.

So this is my challenge to you today. Take time to really look hard at your entrances and clean them up a little. If you do nothing more than shake out the Welcome mat and wipe the doors with a damp cloth, I'm sure you'll find the appearance is far more appealing to you and your visitors.

Menu Monday

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:45:19 GMT

Monday: Macaroni and Cheese, Steamed Broccoli, Campari Tomatoes, Rolls

I made Macaroni and Cheese last week and put some in the freezer and a casserole in the fridge for tonight's dinner. Mondays are such busy days that I decided to take a page from the old "Washday Monday" tips to make an easy to prepare meal. The Campari tomatoes were on sale this past week and they are tasty little tomatoes, ranging from ping pong ball to golf ball sizes with a nice acidity that reminds me of homegrown tomatoes during my childhood years. While they were about 50cents a pound higher than the other types on sale, the extra flavor makes that added expense well worth it.

Tuesday: Beef Stew, Coleslaw, Corn Fritters, Ambrosia

I bought a big boneless chuck roast last week during my Big Shop and cut it in half prior to freezing. I cut one portion into cubes to use in stew. This meat was more than $1/pound less than stew beef, and slow cooking ensures tenderness. Also on sale, fresh Georgia corn (still in season here). I bought 8 ears, cut four in half and boiled for lunch on Thursday when the boys stopped by, and then cut the remaining fresh corn from the cobs. My cookbook recommends draining freshly cut corn and then combining with ingredients to fry into light and fluffy cakes. It's a nice change from cornbread or dumplings. Oranges are in season now too, making them well priced for eating in a variety of ways.

Wednesday: Ham Steaks, Scrambled Cheese Eggs, Toast, Pear Butter

BFS is always a money saver. I will cut a 1 pound ham slice in half for our family and then cut that into serving portions. If your family is larger, or you have guests, let the eggs (the cheaper item on the menu) be the bulk of the meal. Chance's partner made a pear butter and sent home a jar for us to eat. Oh my goodness gracious! I've eaten nearly half a jar already. On morning toast, in peanut butter sandwiches. I'm going to have to start being stingy with it, though, it's disappearing too rapidly!

Thursday: Smoked Beef Sausage, Potatoes au Gratin, Green Peas, Apple Slices

While this may well look to be separate dishes, it is in honesty a casserole. A friend of mine from a former workplace used to make this casserole at the end of a workday and she would come in the next day and rave about how good it was. I never tried it until nearly 15 years later. Why on earth did I wait so long? It truly is good! Layer sliced potatoes, onions and cheese in casserole dish, sprinkling frozen peas throughout. Lay a 1 pound link of smoked sausage atop the potatoes, cover with lid and bake in a slow oven until potatoes are tender and sausage cooked through. To speed up the meal, use parboiled potatoes instead of raw. Yummy!

Friday: Herbed Pork Loin Roast, Roasted Asparagus, Baked Potatoes, Garlic Cheese Rolls, Moist Chocolate Cupcakes

Because the pork loins were so well priced I bought the whole loin and cut into a little bigger roasts than I normally would for our family. I plan at least two meals from each roast and anticipate getting three from this one. One meal will be BBQ sandwiches for lunch next week. Another meal will be the sandwiches for tomorrow night's supper. Tonight we'll eat sliced pork loin with vegetables. The chocolate cupcake recipe is new to me. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Saturday: Cuban Sandwiches, Tortilla Chips, Guacamole, Moist Chocolate Cupcakes

Thin slices of pork roast will be placed on crusty rolls which have been spread with a tapenade of ripe and green olives, mayonnaise and spicy brown mustard, with slices of Pepper Jack cheese. Kay loves guacamole but hates avocados...Go figure! I know she'll eat homemade guacamole and I'll be lucky to get even a spoonful of it.

Sunday: Roast Whole Chicken, Sweet Potato Fries, Broccoli Salad, Apple Pie

I think nearly everything on my menu this week was on sale! I love that these meals are all good bargains. We'll likely get three meal from this chicken, too. I'm thinking we'll have enough leftover for chicken sandwiches for our Sunday night supper and then the carcass will be cooked and the bits of meat will go into chicken salad for lunch sandwiches or salads in the coming week.

The broccoli also was on sale, so I doubled up and bought twice as much as I typically do. The salad is easy to make and so tasty: raw broccoli florets, diced sweet red onion, dried craisins or raisins, and a sweet vinaigrette dressing. Toasted pecans, almonds or walnuts are a nice addition as well.

For a different flavor today's apple pie will be seasoned with lemon zest and no cinnamon. It's amazing the difference that simple change makes in an apple pie.

Friday, November 06, 2009

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:16:00 GMT

Frugal Friday:

Mama and I went shopping last weekend. I tried hard to keep in mind what I needed in clothing so that I wouldn't buy just anything at all. I could only think of one needed item, though not long ago I told myself I really ought to make out a list of needs. I came home with three new pieces. All will do multiple duty with what I have in my closet. BUT there are still several things I needed that I couldn't think of at all. I've made out a list to keep in my purse so next shopping trip I'll know just what I need.

Has anyone else noticed the high cost of chocolate candies these days? In my area prices are anywhere from 25-100% higher than in the past six months. I took advantage of the Halloween candy sales (b1g1) to buy candies for the coming month. Needless to say I'll be watching for other sales for Christmas stocking gifts.

Despite the increase in candy prices, I've noticed chocolate chips are about the same price they've been in the past year or so. No increase there. I'll be stocking up on those I think, as my family likes chocolate chips in lieu of candy.

I'm learning more and more to consider halving a recipe that makes too many servings for our small family. Many recipes lend themselves well to this. I figure it's all good practice for when Kay is gone from home and it's just me and Chance.

While I make the majority of our bread, Chance and Kay both like store bought bread on occasion. Typically I buy one loaf each pay period but this week bread was b1g1 special. Kay and I have a special way of freezing bread which keeps it fresh longer and makes it convenient for freezing. We package two slices in sandwich bags and then pack all the sandwich bags in the original bread sack. This keeps bread from losing flavor and moisture if it's in the freezer for longer than two weeks.

By the way, those bread sacks are coming in handy once the bread is used up as well. I am using them to package my own homemade bread for freezing.

The last time I made bread, I made two batches of dough: one for bread and one for pizzas. I put two nice sized balls of wholegrain dough in the freezer for future use. This past weekend I pulled out one of those balls to thaw and rise (worked beautifully!) and then cut the dough into quarters and made calzones, using two cooked Italian sausages, a few spoonfuls of cottage cheese, spaghetti sauce and chopped frozen onions and bell peppers, plus shredded mozzarella. It took just 2-3 tbsps of each filling to make BIG calzones. They were so yummy and large enough to halve for a second meal.

I divided the leftover spaghetti sauce between two jars. One for the fridge (in case Kay wanted pasta for a weekend meal) and one for the freezer.

Mama gave us some apples that didn't get eaten as quickly as I would have liked. We had 1 1/2 left. What to do with that small amount? I made mini apple pies for us, using 1/2 apple each. I used jarred caramel ice cream topping as the sauce on these dumplings.

Recently I pinched off some New Guinea Impatiens that I knew would be difficult to overwinter in my home. I put the stems in water to root. Now I will have new plant starts ready to put in pots next spring.

It's the season when dry flaky scalps begin to show up in our household due to the drier air and warmer water. When my family asked me to purchase special shampoo, I went to the store and began looking at brands. Then I remembered last year's home remedy. We added 2-4 drops of tea tree oil to each 3/4 cup of our regular shampoo. Shake well then shampoo as usual. In about a week, no more flakes.

It's been so very humid and warm and allergens so bad that it was necessary to close windows and turn on the AC once more. We've been using electric fans to help stir the indoor air, keeping the air conditioner set a little higher so it doesn't run as much.

In the past month or so I've made it a habit to shop at one store only. That's been a problem because I am limited in my choice of items I can afford. Now that my routine Big Shop Tuesday is re-established, I can return to shopping multiple sales to begin to restock the freezer and pantry.

I noticed that several of my dishcloths are looking ratty. I am leery of using ragged cloths in the kitchen, especially when someone is likely to grab one to use near the stove. I have a "best, better, good" rule in my home. I use it for my clothing and shoes: town/church, work around the house, rags. Because I sometimes by terry washcloths to use as napkins (I like these for messy meals like wings or ribs, etc) I am able to cycle them into good, better, best, as well. So this week I moved dishcloths to the rag bag (perfect for greasy hands, or wiping down dirty tools, or even cleaning the oven), napkins that are looking a little less than nice moved into the dishcloth drawer and napkins that aren't slightly stained are moved forward in the table linens drawer to be used for those messy meals.

I recently did the same thing with a pair of shoes. I've bought a new pair, so my old pair moved to the yard/garden basket by the back door.

Foods got plenty slim this week prior to Big Shop. When Alan showed up unexpectedly for a long visit on Monday, I knew that my planned lunch (half a leftover calzone) wasn't going to make a meal for two,lol. After surveying my empty fridge I reverted to the classic cold weather meal: grilled cheese sandwiches and made from scratch hot cocoa. It was filling and delicious and didn't require our running into town to buy a thing.

The backyard tree has dropped a steady supply of pecans this week. I've been out gathering them and after they've had about a week to dry out, I'll start shelling them. Sure wish that tree in the bottom would start to drop pecans. They are big pecans and well worth the extra effort of finding them in the overgrowth.

I plan to spend a bit extra over the next two months for two reasons: holidays and my need to restock my pantry and freezer. I made good headway on both this week with Big Shop. I bought 20 pounds of flour for $4, a very good price here, baby back ribs for just $2.99 pound (that's our Christmas dinner main dish), canned goods, pastas and a few baking supplies. All were on sale. I also stocked the freezer with some very good buys on meats.

With a smaller family it might not seem worthwhile to buy the bigger 'family' packs of meats. I buy them anyway, then break down into meal sized portions for us. I save anywhere from $.10-$.50 a pound buying a family pack of meat. This week's family packs included: cubed steaks, ground beef, a 10 pound whole boneless pork loin and a big boneless chuck roast. I cut the roasts into smaller roasts, divided the steaks into packs of 3, and the ground beef into 1/2- 1 1/4 pounds packages.

Wednesday and Thursday, I went to work reorganizing my food pantries. We have an emergency pantry that is away from our main food storage, where I keep canned meats, vegetables and fruits, plus juices and dry goods. I took the newest items from my recent shopping and replaced them with those in the cupboard. I checked to make sure the expiration dates were further in the future than the items they were replacing. Something I'd failed to do when we first set that cupboard up was to make an inventory of the foodstuffs there. I did that this time, and then planned sample menus. I realized that we've got about 14 meals in that cupboard. I also realized that a few additional items were needed: whole grain cereals for breakfasts, juices, a few things like dehydrated onions, peppers, garlic and other seasonings, bouillion cubes, etc. These items would considerably extend our meals and make them tasty, too. So I created a separate shopping list just for emergency pantry items.

I love having my pantries all neat and organized and inventoried once more. All that work netted me another shock. 1 dozen cans of corn that are dated Dec '09. I told Chance we'll be eating a LOT of corn over the next few weeks, in one form or another. Alan came by again yesterday, so I donated three cans to his food pantry. And we ate one can Tuesday night, mixed in with our leftover chili. All that corn reminded me of my 12 bottles of BBQ sauce that expired in June...I was giving BBQ sauce to every visitor, took some to Mrs. Harris' and shared with her family...I really need to be more on my toes where that pantry is concerned.

The weather has been so nice that hanging clothes outdoors to dry has been no trouble at all. I love that clothesline! It isn't just the savings that we're netting from air drying our clothes, it's the wonderful aroma of the clothes brought in, so fresh and nice. Not a perfume-y sort of smell.

We're still fighting with mice. I never see more than one, but occasionally we've heard it scamper through the kitchen. I went to purchase another mouse trap last night. This one is a spring loaded type but is not the traditional wooden one, it's plastic and one end is pressed open similar to a clothespin. You are supposed to lay it down in their usual pathway, because mice follow the same route over and over again. We'll see how it works...there's been no damage to pantry items so far. I am keeping my eye on that pantry!

We typically buy the store brand of pet foods for our cat and dogs. This past week however, Chance was shocked to see the big bag of name brand stuff in the kitchen when he came home. When asked why, I explained that with the sale and a $2 off coupon, I bought the name brand for nearly $4 less than the store brand. I can't say the dogs are any happier, but they're not turning up their noses at it either.

Maddie had a vet appt this week. To have her spayed and get her rabies/distemper shots and pain pills for the days following the surgery was just $117. The vet's office is a bare bones sort of place, and they don't have a kennel, but the staff was friendly and helpful and there's more staff than in the pricier offices in that town. As well, this vet feels strongly that for most pets the basics are enough, being mindful that many people who love their pets do not have incomes that allow more than basic care. Maddie is doing just fine, too. This morning she was happily running around the yard sniffing out rabbits.

Well, that's enough for this week I think. We've got a few tasks to take care of this morning and then I'm going to go to the library, my first opportunity to go since last autumn. I can't wait to wander those aisles of books!

Thankful Thursday

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:15:47 GMT

This week I am grateful for:

A filled pantry and freezer

Great bargains at the grocery

Beautiful weather: cool, sunny, autumn like days and crisp nights.

Maddie's successful surgery and good recovery.

Safe travel on the roads.

Good gas mileage.

Prayer time each night with Chance.

A long visit with Alan.

Grilled cheese and homemade hot cocoa on a chilly, cloudy day.

Hard work showing results.

Leaf showers.

Pecans from the back yard tree.

Coffee.

Clean fresh air blowing through my home.

Tried and True Thursday

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:07:54 GMT

Macaroni and Cheese

When I was growing up we ate macaroni and cheese as a side dish. Later as a new mother, I found my kids were enamored with the box stuff and the dry cheese powder. I ate it, but honestly, it had no resemblance to mac and cheese as I'd known it growing up. Still later, when even the boxed stuff was too pricey for our menu, I learned to make a creamy mac and cheese from scratch that satisfied us as a main dish. It was surprisingly easy, is super easy to 'dress up' or keep very basic.

First I'll return to Mama's version: Cooked macaroni mixed with an egg, grated cheese, dumped in a casserole and baked. Nothing wrong with that version at all. It's a good basic mac and cheese and it's satisfying and tasty as a side dish. Not quite hearty enough for a main dish however.

Now as said, I've 'dressed up' my macaroni and cheese in various ways. I've added bits of diced ham when we had it. I've added roasted garlic to the cheese sauce. I've made a 'white cheese' macaroni using an Alfredo type sauce. I've fancied it up using a blend of cheeses and dubbing it 5 Cheese Macaroni. These days it's quite the thing to add in crumbled bacon (you see that variation all over the web and in magazines). I've used dried powdered milk, canned evap milk with equal amounts of water, or just plain milk when making the sauce. You might add in roasted red peppers, steamed broccoli, diced cooked cauliflower, drained chopped spinach or pureed winter squash to boost the vegetables in your family's diet. You may season it with nutmeg, or grated onion, or worcestershire sauce or hot sauce. You can top with bread crumbs, cracker crumbs, crushed chips, or not as you choose. You can use macaroni, rigatoni, shells, bowties, etc.

It used to be that a big panful just served our family. Now that my family is smaller in size, I make the same amount of mac and cheese, but I divide into portions. I can make enough for two meals or one meal and two side dish sizes. This recipe freezes beautifully after assembling and bakes straight from freezer or thaws and bakes, however you choose. I'm telling you this is one of those super versatile recipes!

So here's my version of a classic 'wet' macaroni and cheese.

Macaroni and Cheese

16 ounces elbow macaroni, slightly undercooked, salted to taste

8 ounces shredded cheese

2 tbsps butter

1/3 cup flour

1 tsp salt

sprinkling of pepper

seasoning of choice (I used nutmeg today, about 1/2 tsp freshly grated)

3 cups milk

Melt butter over medium low heat. Stir in flour and seasoning to make a roux. Slowly add 1 cup milk and whisk until all lumps are removed. Add remaining milk and whisk, scraping bottom of pan well. You will want to stay near the stove because this needs to be stirred frequently. I prefer to use a wire whisk as the flour will sort of settle to the bottom of the pan and stick a little. The whisk allows me to scrape the bottom and dissolve any lumps that might form. The sauce will begin to thicken to about the consistency of pancake batter. That's when you turn off the heat and add 3/4 of the cheese, reserving some for topping the dish. Pour the sauce over the cooked macaroni, add in whatever you choose to dress it up and then put in a casserole dish. Top as you choose.

Bake at 350F for about 30 minutes until bubbly hot and cheese is melted on top. (If frozen will need to cook covered for about 45 minutes and uncovered for 15-20 minutes more.

Menu Monday

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:51:24 GMT

It's been a long day and isn't over yet. In about ten minutes I expect Chance will be home. At that point we begin our Monday night bill paying ritual. It's not nearly so terrible as it used to be some years ago thankfully. These days it's just the end of a day that is already too long. But this is our routine and so we stick to it. Considering how many groceries we don't have at the moment, it's a good thing we do pay bills tonight, because we do not buy groceries or eat out or have fun until bills are paid. That's the way we are.

Here's our menus for the week, starting with the meal I threw together at 4:30pm this afternoon.

Monday: Chili with beans, Mini Apple Pies

A pound of hamburger was put out to thaw this morning (by the way, I pack my burger flat in zippered freezer bags. Thaws in under two hours at room temp). I had a meal plan, and then I had unexpected company. Since it was a breezy, coolish sort of autumn day with intermittent clouds, we had hot cocoa and grilled cheese sandwiches. Unfortunately that finished off a needed ingredient for my original menu plan. Plan B: chili. No beans in pantry. Looked in freezer and found two jars of about 1 cup each of kidney and chickpea beans. I was too tired to bother with cornbread, had no lettuce for salads. What I did have was 1 1/2 apples, one sheet of refrigerator pastry. Miniature apple pies seemed a good solution. I put a streusel topping on the pies and they were very good indeed.

Tuesday: Deli sandwiches, chips, pickles, cookies

There are sandwiches on sale at the grocery, and I've put them on my list. Also on sale, are chips and cookies ($1). Supper will be under $8 for three and well worth it after a day that is bound to be busy and tiring.

Wednesday: Italian Chicken, Pasta with fresh tomatoes, steamed Broccoli, Crusty Bread

It's hard to believe we are still able to get fresh tomatoes in Georgia, but the weather has been remarkably mild. Granny has a little tomato plant on her front steps that is growing strong. She hopes to be harvesting tomatoes from it by Christmas. Warm pasta is tossed with fresh diced tomatoes, fresh minced garlic, a little fresh oregano and olive oil. It's light and tasty and perfect as a side to the chicken that Kay is making for the family.

Thursday: Beef and Bean Burritos, Avocado Salad, Yellow Rice, Cinnamon Brownies

Leftover chili, cheese and sour cream rolled into flour tortillas makes our supper tonight. Avocados are just $1 this week and will be tasty with our salad. If you'd like, you can add the rice to the chili mixture in the burrito and warm them. They are very tasty this way as well. The brownies are made with cinnamon in the batter, then frosted with a fudgy frosting. Very rich, so I'll make a small pan and cut them smaller than usual. I might even get creative and sprinkle a little cinnamon on my ground coffee before I brew it.

Friday: Orange Chicken, Steamed Snow Peas, Stir Fried Slaw, Red Pepper Strips

I'll use orange marmalade and mustard to glaze chicken. Steamed snow peas are pricey per pound, but I've learned that all I really need is enough to serve for the meal, which is usually about 1/2 pound. The price is far more affordable that way. I like to buy prepackaged slaw, cabbage and carrots and add garlic, ginger root and soy sauce, then toss in a hot skillet and cook until cabbage is just tender. Kay loves cabbage in this way, too, the only way in fact that she will eat it!

Saturday: Apple Pecan Coffeecake, Smoked sausage, fruit salad

I'll mix up an easy coffeecake for breakfast. I generally don't follow a recipe per se. I usually start out with the typical plain muffin batter then stir in fruit, in this case pecans and diced apples, then pour into a 7 x 11 pan. Topped with struesel and baked at 400F for about 25 minutes or until pick comes out clean, I've usually got a tasty coarse textured cake that is perfect for a breakfast or brunch or BFS meal. The grocery is offering their mixed fruit salad at a very reasonable price this week, less expensive per pound than I can buy the pineapple to make it. My family thinks this salad is a huge treat, so they'll eat it right up.

Sunday: BBQd Roast with Root Vegetables, Corn muffins, Cinnamon Brownies and Ice Cream

I'll follow my favorite Robin Miller recipe for a spicy sweet glazed roast with a variety of root vegetables (parsnips, rutabaga, potatoes, onions, carrots) that cooks in the crockpot while we're away from home. All I need do is stir up a quick batch of corn muffins and microwave leftover cinnamon brownies just until warm so the ice cream melts slowly over the top.

Leftover chili, corn tortillas, cheese

Friday, October 30, 2009

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:36:47 GMT

Frugal Friday:

I caught myself in some foolish thinking the other day. I bought a bell pepper at the grocery. When I took it out to make my recipe, I found I needed only about half the pepper. So I put the other half back into the fridge. For two or three days thereafter, I'd take out the bell pepper to use and then think "Noooo, it's too expensive to put into this dish, I'll just save it and use it in something else." As it happened I ended up making lasagna and the remainder of that bell pepper was just the right amount...but how often have I NOT used something like that and then it spoiled? Like the zucchini I wanted so badly, but then kept 'saving'. I saved it right up until the moment it went all mushy and got tossed in the compost. From now on, I mean to use things up and stop saving them, especially if they are of a perishable nature. Gracious, there are times when 'saving' is not savings at all!

Mama gave me half a bag of apples. We love apples and they were certainly welcome around here. No fear they will be 'saved"!

One morning this week I cooked sausage, bacon and biscuits in the oven all at one time. I think I got good use of the oven while it was on. I was making pancakes for breakfast that morning. We ate some of the bacon then, and I put the rest in the fridge. I made up sausage biscuits for 'heat and eat' breakfasts. Then I put the leftover pancakes in the fridge with the bag that contained the cooked bacon on top. It's nice to know we have quick and easy breakfasts for the days ahead.

Kay needed some puffy fabric paint. I was going to get the little bottles but when I compared prices of the small bottles with the cost of the multi pack of colors, I found that the package was a far better deal. Kay was pleased to find she now had a variety of colors to choose from and use for school and craft projects. I paid the same price I'd have paid for three of the tiny bottles.

When Kay asked for a new bottle of her favorite shampoo, I was tempted to wait for a special sale at the drug store. I happened to be in Walmart looking for a few items and went down the shampoo aisle. The shampoo she wanted was about the same price as it was at the drug store (regular price). However, there on the shelf was a pump bottle that was actually a bit larger than two of the regular bottles we usually buy. What's more it was about $1 less than the best sales price. Take off another $1 for the coupon I used and we got the big bottle for about the same cost as one bottle not on sale. Kay was very pleased to get such a large bottle.

I'm learning to use leftovers creatively. What does 1 link sausage, 2 biscuits and leftover gravy from our country fried steak supper make? I thought it would make a reasonable facisimile of sausage gravy over biscuits, and it did! Chance was pleased. I was too, because this breakfast was made on a morning when we'd planned to go out for breakfast and rain kept us home. A meal in a pinch is pleasing to not only my budget but my homemaker heart.

I saved some leftover mashed potatoes from the same meal to stir into cream of potato soup later in the week. They helped to slightly thicken the soup. Grandmama always added her leftover potatoes into her ground beef recipes to help stretch the meat.

When I drained the potatoes I cooked to mash, I poured the cooking water over the foodscraps I set aside for the dogs. I figured they could use the nutrients in their meal.

When I made our cubed steak supper, Kay asked that I set some aside for sandwiches. I told her that if she and her dad would eat only what was on their plates we'd have just enough. Well they filled up on the vegetables (yea!) and so we got a second meal off that package of meat.

As I was cleaning Monday morning, I picked up two tomatoes that positively sloshed inside. They were firm enough outside but I felt sure as pretty as they were they would soon spoil. For lunch that day I used 1 sausage link (cooked Friday morning) sliced, the tomatoes squeezed to empty of juice, then diced, a bit of garlic and onion to make pita pizzas.

I boiled eggs yesterday and then steamed broccoli that evening. Both times I saved that nutrient rich water to pour over my houseplants. What a bonus for them to get all that 'good' stuff.

I was amused by Chance's creative hanging of clothes yesterday. I had filled the lines with sheets and towels and such, then found we had a full load of clothes to wash as well. The clothes were hung up here in the house, with an open window blowing upon them. He'd done as usual: use the tension rod to hang shirts, used the wire shelving edge to hang underthings but he too ran out of room. This morning when I went into the laundry room to gather the dry clothing for folding, I found socks clipped to the edge of the lamp shade! Well they dried perfectly there. But talk about using every space available!lol

Time of year for 'dandruff' shampoo. Last year we did very well with regular shampoo mixed with a few drops of tea tree oil. We'll try the same remedy this year as well.

I used a pretty glass with a deep impression on the bottom to press cookies I made for snacks. They are so pretty! I will do this again in the future with other cookie recipes.

Food Waste: 2 small pieces pear coffeecake, 1/2 cup mashed cheesey mashed potatoes, 2 tbsps of lasagna. And two big sweet potatoes. They weren't forgotten or lost in the fridge. I bought them at the store in town where I know good and well produce is not of the best quality. The two potatoes were here only a week and spoiled right away.