Firstly thank you all SO much for your great suggestions last week!! You guys rock!! I have given a number of your activities a go this week and they have given Hannah & I something fresh to do and kept the whingy monster tucked away more than usual… always a bonus! And also my toy library trial is working wonders!! We had round 2 of swapover today and Hannah even willingly helped me clean up the toys to put them away in the shed so that she could pick out some new ones!
So this week I’d love to focus on some yummy, budget friendly, healthy family dinners, because I have a little confession to make to you – shhhhhhhh….
**Â My creative interests do NOT stretch themselves to the kitchen. Nope. Yuck. Work. Icko!… **
– I am the L.A.Z.I.E.S.T. most disinterested cook ever! That’s not to say that I’m not a good cook – it’s not like I suck at it – I just dislike it. Most probably definitely because I dislike mess & all the cleaning up…
…I have always been a lazy cook, but since I had Abbie it has got to be the pits…
So I beg of you – please help me! Inspire me, dazzle me, woo me back into the kitchen.
But it’s not just about me – do you also find that over time you get a bit stuck in a rut? I’m hoping that we can all be a little inspired to try some new yummy recipes. So without further ado, lets do it:
Here is mine:
(there are 4 of us and this is how much we had left – yip even Abbie ate it!)
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| Sorry there is no before photo!! – We were all too hungry to wait for me to take a photo – so you’ll all just have to imagine it see our leftovers instead sorry!! |
Before I begin I would just like to state that I am a cook that doesn’t measure – so I’m remembering what I did from memory and you’ll notice that my measurement methods in this post are a little nontraditional – sorry! lol…
Ingredients:
2 large fish or chicken breasts (you could add a little more meat if you want – I was a bit scrimpy for the size it made…)
1 finely chopped onion
8 decent sized potatoes
1 medium sized brocolli
2 heaped table spoons of seeded mustard
salt & pepper to season
2 large handfuls of cheese
a 2cm slice of butter off your 500gram block (told you it was a little untraditional lol…)
2-3 tablespoons of flour
About 2 cups of milk (approx – see how you go…)
Put your oven on to preheat (whoops I forgot this step so thought I better include it so you don’t make the same mistake…) Cut up your potatoes and put them on the boil to cook for mashing. If you have a steamer then cut your broccoli up small and steam it over the potatoes – but otherwise I microwaved it in a later step. In a medium pot melt your butter on a low heat. Add in the onion and mustard cook on low for another couple of minutes, stirring continuously. Once that has been softened slowly mix in your flour 1 spoonful at a time. Remove from the heat and slowly add in your milk, stirring with a whisk. Once all mixed in put back on a low-medium heat and add in your meat (I used fish so I did not brown it first – if you use chicken you may want to brown it first if you want to speed up the cooking process a bit, up to you…) Add your salt & pepper to taste. Cook on low for about 3 minutes, stirring regularly. At this point I microwaved my broccoli for about 2 1/2 minutes on high.
Take a fairly decent sized caserole dish (see my photo if you are unclear about my vagueness of size lol…). Put the brocolli in the dish and smooth it out to make an even layer. Poor your creamy meat mix over top.
Mash your potatoes using your normal method. Smooth out your mashed potatoes evening over the mix. Sprinkle your cheese over the top. Bake in a 220 degree celcius oven for about 20 minutes or until cheese is going lightly golden and meat is cooked (if you used chicken).
Enjoy!
As well as this haphazardly thrown together wonder I will also share a couple of websites that I just love:
www.taste.com.au
www.healthyfoodguide.co.nz
and my newly found new love: this clever lass works (in Australia) feeds her family of four, which includes 2 teenagers, with an $120 per week budget. Inspiring or what!? – She shares many cool recipes and blogs about her journey over here.
So here’s how you can also play: (don’t be scared – anyone can do it – you don’t need to have a special account or anything!)
- Leave a comment in the comment box with your suggestion(s) – To make things consistent please structure it as follows:
Anything you want to introduce with
**Â Name of recipe (Please include this an not just a link with no name)
Link to recipe on another website OR the recipe typed out OR a link to a blog post you have done with your recipe
Your name
– If you have never made a comment on my blog before then don’t be scared because it’s not hard – all you need to do is type in your suggestion and hit post (no account required, or even pesky word verification - If you blog about it then please use my button and link back to this post
- Come back and visit in a few days and check out everyone’s great suggestions
Right Maia – you know who you are – I am waiting expectantly for you to come out of your little hidey hole for this post and make your first comment !! – Come out and play – you know you want to ha ha… 😉
Have a great week everyone!
Oh PS – next week we’ll be doing the one I know you’ll all be interested in – links to your favorite affordable (well maybe not affordable but you know what I mean…) fabric & craft websites. So put your thinking caps on…
Oh my – where do I start…..?
Most of my budget recipes are in my head, just made up!!
This is my kinda subject though – loving it Kat!
Xx
I’ve been making budget meals since I started living in an apartment at school last september. I think my two favorites are Lentil Sloppy Joes and Stuffed Bell Peppers. The plus side is that both of them are very easy and tasty vegan recipes! I wrote a blog post for these two recipes, with a link to another sandwich “recipe” that I threw together another night. Here’s the link!
My favourite recipe is lovingly called ‘Fridge Soup’ it tends to be made the night before the day I do the grocery shop…it involves making a meal out of whatever I find in the fridge… so if there is a limp carrot or two, half an onion, a dolope of tomato paste & some cold spuds…I will whizz them up with a can of fish & make fish cakes. Or leftover chicken & some veg will be added with herbs to pasta – I thinkyou get the idea.
My plan/aim is NEVER to throw food away – I will freeze the carass of a roast chicken to make stock with (another good use of those limp veges in the fridge).
My most FAVOURITE book ever is the $21Challenge. I have managed to feed myself on a $21 shop for 2 weeks…it can be done!
Tonya
I am the Queen of budget friendly cooking, you have to be when feeding a family of seven + friends on a single income.
Like Linda most of my meals are in my head but I have recently found http://www.exclusivelyfood.com.au/
and have not been disappointed with the recipes I have tried.
xx
Great post Kat! I’ve got a few recipes that I will try to get up. But for now, I’ll start with one of our favourites. Please excuse the informal format for this one 😉
I often cook up a bolognaise sauce using 500g of mince (or less mince plus lentils for cheaper, healthier option), a diced onion, 102 cloves garlic, sliced mushrooms, 1 grated carrot, 1 large can of diced tomatoes, a large dollop of tomato paste, couple of splashes of worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, chopped basil, salt and pepper and a little additional water (I usually just swish some around in the tomato can and then tip that in). I haven’t typed the method as I am assuming most people have some idea of how to cook this (but let me know if I am wrong!).
From this mixture, I’ll serve spag bol for dinner one night plus hubby will take some leftovers for lunch. Then the next day, I make a pasta bake by layering cooked spiral pasta, bolognaise and cheese sauce in a casserole dish (I usually repeat the layers a couple of times) and top with grated cheese. Baked at 180 degrees until golden, this will provide us with dinner for another two nights or dinner plus a couple of lunches! Not bad for 500g of mince
Oops, that should have read “1-2 cloves of garlic”!!
Below is the recipe in it’s orginal form as provide by Sophie Grey aka the Destitute Gourmet. But I always make this with just ONE chicken breast (i.e. much less than 500g) and add 1-2 sliced carrots or diced eggplant (when in season) to stretch it out, so it is a pretty cheap dinner too! Leave out the chilli if kids don’t like it.
CHICKEN BIRYANI
(Serves 4)
Marinade
150g (one small pottle) natural yoghurt
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp ground chilli
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp grated ginger
500g boneless chicken meat, diced
1 Tbsp oil
2 large onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp ground cardamon
4 whole cloves (the spice, not garlic)
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups basmati rice
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/2 tsp salt
Combine the marinade ingredients and stir in the chicken. Set aside while you prepare the remainder of the dish.
In a large heavy-based saucepan, heat the oil and gently saute the onions and garlic until soft. Add the spices, bay leaves and the marinated chicken, stirring frequently until the chicken is sealed.
Stir in the rice, stock and salt and bring to a simmer. When the liquid is simmering, put the lid on and turn the heat down low. Cook without stirring for 25 minutes and then check if the rice is cooked. If it is still not completely cooked, give it a quick stir, replace the lid and cook for a further 5 minutes.
When the rice is tender, run a fork through to fluff it up and then cover with a teatowel until needed.
N.B. This is fantastic served with an extra dollop of natural yoghurt, toasted flaked almonds and chopped coriander on top plus chutney and naan bread on the side. (Don’t forget to remove the whole cloves before serving!).
One more REALLY basic one for tonight: Baked Bean Pie. Don’t laugh – it is cheap and nutritious! Simply throw 1 or 2 cans of baked beans into a casserole dish, cover with mashed potato, sprinkle with grated cheese and bake until golden. Great served with a crunchy coleslaw. Too easy!
I’ve seen versions online that have mince mixed with the beans but we never bothered with that when I was growing up. I think Dad did add finely chopped fried onion to the mash but again, I don’t bother with that – usually I am just in a hurry to get something on the table!
Oops, I’ve just realised that I may have left people in the lurch by not providing a recipe for the cheese sauce used in the pasta bake above. So you know how much to make, this is the one that I use, taken from my trusty Edmonds Cookery Book (yep, another Kiwi here!)
Cheese Sauce
50g butter
3 Tbsp plain flour
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup grated cheese
salt & pepper
Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the flour and cook until frothy. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If not using immediately, cover with a lid or plastic wrap to prevent a skin forming.
This pie is magic because a small amount of chicken goes such a long way! While the original recipe calls for just 100g of chicken, I usually increase the amount to 200g. This is a great way to use up any leftover BBQ chicken. Serves two greedy adults or two adults plus a couple of small kids
Magic Chicken Pie
75g mushrooms, sliced
100g (or 200g if preferred) cooked chicken
2 carrots, sliced and cooked
250ml chicken stock (or 1 cup water and 1 stock cube)
1 tbsp cornflour
Salt & pepper
1-2 sheets puff pastry
1. Fry mushrooms till softened. Add chicken, carrots and stock.
2. Mix cornflour with a little of the stock then return to the pan. Bring to the boil stirring till thickened.
3. Season with salt & pepper and pour into a shallow ovenproof dish.
4. Cover chicken mixture with puff pastry.
5. Bake at 200*C for 20-25 mins or until golden.
I have just actually posted about a frugal receipe. Aunt Clara’s peas and pasta is so cheap and it was a hit in our house.
You can find the receipe here- http://mahlimoo.blogspot.com/2011/04/aunt-claras-peas-and-pasta.html