cooking

Recipe: Oatmeal Mix

Abby H.23 Comments

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We love Oatmeal, but most instant oatmeal is full of sugar and isn’t really good for you (no fiber, lots of sugar, mystery ingredients).

Determined to save money and get us to eat better, I set out to concoct a batch of oatmeal mix.  After months of trial and error, here is the final result:

Oatmeal Mix

Makes 40 1/2 cup servings

Ingredients

  • 15 cups old fashioned oats (that’s 1 large canister)
  • 3 2/3 cups nonfat dry milk powder
  • 1 cup flax seeds, milled
  • 1 cup Hemp Seeds (I like these)

Directions

  1. In a large mixing bowl, mix together all of the ingredients.
  2. Store in a large air tight container for up to 6 months.

Directions for cooking the mix:

1/2 cup mix to 1 cup water, cook on the stove together until the oats are cooked (2-3 minutes). Or mix together and cook in the microwave for 2 minutes and let stand for a few minutes.

 

Add dried fruit, powdered sweetener, spices/herbs, what have you to make it your own!

Buffalo Chicken Cheesy Monkey Bread

Abby H.

Sunday was the closing night of my husband’s production of To Kill A Mockingbird, and the end of a run means CAST PARTY!!

I wanted to make something that most everyone would enjoy. After watching countless Tasty Videos on Facebook and scouring our pantry and fridge, I came up with a modified version of this Cheesy Bacon Monkey bread.IMG_1833.jpg

We are currently without bacon (I know a high crime!), so I opted to modify the recipe and use Oscar Mayer Carving Board Buffalo Chicken instead. IMG_1821.jpg

Buffalo Chicken Cheesy Monkey Bread

Ingredients:

  • 2 tubes biscuit dough (10-12 biscuits per tube) rolled out
  • 2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
  • 12 slices Muenster cheese, cubed and separated
  • 1 Package Oscar Mayer Carving Board Buffalo Chicken, chopped
  • 1 stick butter, melted
  • 1 clove garlic, minced (or use the preminced garlic in a tube)
  • 1 Tablespoon dehyrdated onion
  • black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Spray a pie plate with Pam or your favorite spray release, set aside.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

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Mix the melted butter, garlic, onions, and pepper in a small bowl, set aside.

 

 

 

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Open the rolls of biscuit dough, separate and roll out the dough.

 

 

 

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In the middle of each biscuit, drop 1T of cheese and 1 T of the chopped meat.

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Roll and pinch the dough into a ball keeping the cheese and meat in the middle of the ball.

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Dip the ball of dough into the melted butter, and place into the pie plate. balls should touch each other.

Repeat until all of the dough has made into balls.

Pour 2-3 Tablespoons of the remaining melted butter over the balls.

IMG_1832.jpgTop with remaining cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Serve hot with extra buffalo sauce and ranch dressing.

Try really hard not to eat all of the yummy little balls before serving at your party. It was really hard, those things are crazy delicious.

 

Quick Recipe: Easy, Healthy Brownies!

Abby H.

IMGP8542.jpgIn the search for healthier yummy recipes to feed Lil’ Man, I stumbled upon a recipe for black bean brownies. Ok, so stop making that face and read on. Oh, and this one is GLUTEN FREE!!

I read the recipe, and a bunch of comments and did some more investigating online and made a few tweaks to the recipe and got to cooking.

Ingredients:

  • 1 15 ounce can of black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 T. sugar free applesauce
  • 3/4 c. cocoa powder
  • 1 T. Hazelnut extract (You could use vanilla)
  • 1 1/2 c brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 1 t. instant coffee crystals (optional)- I used 1 t. of very strong coffee instead.
  • 1 C. chocolate chips

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Grease a 8×8 baking dish. I used an 8 inch round baking dish.
  3. In a blender, combine all of the ingredients EXCEPT the chocolate chips. This is important.  I didn’t do this!
  4. Pour batter into greased baking dish and top with chocolate chips. Bake for 25-35 minutes.  The brownies are super fudgy. If you want cake-ier brownies, add a pinch of baking powder.

 

If you like your brownies really sweet, add 1/4 c. white sugar. I like my desserts not super sweet, so I opted to use a little less sugar, and I’ll top mine with a scoop of ice cream- Yum!

They are not bean-y.  If I didn’t know they had beans in them. I wouldn’t be able to tell.  They are very moist, fudgy brownie. And if you use a flax egg and vegan chocolate chips, you’ve got a yummy vegan recipe!

 

4x Fuel Rewards from Kroger Stores Giveaway #KrogGC16

Abby H.

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Most of you know that I love Ralphs, which is the Kroger affiliated store in Southern California (You can find your local Kroger affiliated store here).

Did you know that when you scan your Ralphs card at checkout you earn fuel rewards? Fuel rewards are discounts in the form of cents off at the pump at local gas stations.

Well, Kroger is sweetening the deal!!! Now through 12/13/16, when you buy any Gift Card, you will earn 4x the fuel rewards! Just in time for holiday shopping!

Gift cards make great gifts! I’ll be stocking up on a few for Lil’ Man’s teacher. She always needs Michael’s and Target Gift Cards to buy supplies for the class. Stock up on gifts now for the holidays! Gift Card Selection varies by store, but you’re bound to find more than a few that you need!

Double Dip! Some Credit cards give you extra points or cash back when you make purchases at grocery stores. Use this to your advantage! Earn Credit Card Points/Cash Back and fuel rewards! It’s a win/win!

Right now, you can enter to win a $75 Amazon Gift Card! Just in time for the holidays! Spend it on gifts, or buy yourself something nice! To enter, Click here (the widget isn’t mobile friendly)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

This is a sponsored post, thanks to Tatu Digital Media for including me on this awesome offer and giveaway! All opinions are my own!

How to save money without coupons: Part Two- Produce!

Abby H.3 Comments

Yesterday I talked about how to save money without coupons when buying meat. Today I’m going to talk about fruits and vegetables!

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There are seldom coupons for fresh fruit or vegetables.

Usually when you find coupons for either, they are lower in value or you must purchase another item (like cereal, croutons, something not super healthy or inexpensive).

Here are some ways you can incorporate fruits and vegetables into your grocery budget and diet without breaking the bank!

My number one money saving tip when it comes to produce is: Eat fruit and vegetables when they are in season. Food in season is cheaper because there is a surplus of it. 

Living in So. Cal, I’m kind of spoiled in that we can grow and eat most fruits and veggies year round. But if you live some place where it snows or has cold winters, eat produce when it’s readily available.

If you aren’t sure when certain fruits and veggies are in season, check out the Produce for Better Health Foundation website here. They have lists based on season.

Tip Number Two: If you gotta eat fruit out of season (sometimes in December, you just gotta have strawberries), buy frozen fruit. Frozen berries are so juicy and flavorful. Frozen fruit is the fruit that is too ripe to sell in stores fresh, so it’s cut up and flash frozen. It contains all of the nutrients that are found in fresh fruit.

Tip Number  Three: If you grow your own fruits, veggies or herbs: Freeze, dry, or can/preserve whatever you won’t eat right away. That way you’ll have some when the weather turns.

I love to make jam and pickles. It’s really easy and you don’t need any special equipment. We don’t grow enough tomatoes to can our own, so I pick up fruits and veggies when they are really cheap and in peak season and make jam or pickles then. And you can definitely can more than just Cucumbers!

If it is something that interests you, here are a few books that I like:

If you want to get the canning gadgets that make canning a little easier, here is the kit that I bought years ago: Back to Basics 286 5-Piece Home Canning Kit I love the funnel!

Tip Number  Four: When fruit or veggies are on sale, stock up. That may sound weird, but most produce can be frozen. With the exception of raw potatoes and lettuce I think you can clean, chop, and store pretty much any fruit or veggie in the freezer. Speaking of frozen….

Fresh produce is always the best, but a close second is frozen. Occasionally frozen veggies are on sale. If they are types/varieties you like, stock up!

Canned fruit/veggies are my last resort. Why? Because, for the most part, they are canned in syrup or juice (fruit) or salt-laden water (veggies) and they are usually cooked and some of the nutrients leech out into the liquid they are cooked/canned in, and most of the time that liquid is discarded.

HOWEVER- I love salt-free canned tomatoes in recipes for all kinds of stuff, and Lil’ Man loves him some salt-free canned green beans.  Sometimes you can find low/no salt added canned vegetables.

I have found that when I calculate price per unit (more info here), blueberries and some other fruit is cheaper at Costco! So don’t overlook your large club stores.

Tip Number Five: Check outyour local 99 Cent Store (like 99 Cents Only), produce stands, and the markdown section of your supermarket. All three usually have inexpensive produce that is good quality. It may not be the prettiest produce, but that’s ok!

How do you save money on your produce?

How to save money without coupons: Part One- Meat!

Abby H.3 Comments

I know, it seems impossible that I  would tell you not to use coupons. But, let’s face it, sometimes you need to buy stuff that there are no coupons for. What’s a shopper to do? You’re not going to stop eating something just because there aren’t any coupons… That’s CRAZY!

dscn10311I’m going to specifically discuss shopping for meat, because there are seldom coupons for fresh meat.

The easiest way to save money on meat is not to buy it. However, most Americans eat meat. So, here are my recommendations for you:

Ask the butcher/meat cutter at your local grocery store when the meat is marked down each day. Some stores do it each morning, so do it at night. The meat that is marked down isn’t going bad that day, it just needs to be pulled and either cooked and eaten within the next few days or frozen. Most meat can be frozen for up to six months.

If you like to buy your meat in bulk or in large super store sized containers, once you get your big hunk o’ meat home, separate it into portions and freeze it. That way when it’s time to cook, you aren’t faced with 4-7 lbs of solid meat.  That can be a little daunting, and leads to waste. When we buy ground beef in large packages, I portion it out into 1/2-3/4lb. packages and freeze it. It’s much easier to handle the smaller portions.

We buy chicken from Zaycon Fresh– You get a 40 lb box. It’s easy to separate 40 lbs of fresh chicken into freezer bags and tuck them into the freezer. I usually do 1-2 lb packages. Sometimes I even get fancy and season the chicken as I prep it in bags! Zaycon Fresh has really great fresh boneless, skinless chicken breasts for less than the grocery store prices. And I feel great feeding it to my family because it comes to me fresh, not frozen and plumped up with salt water.

I know that the pre-cooked meat that is already cut up looks so good and you think, “Oh, it’ll save me so much time!!”, but the truth is, it costs about 2-3 times the amount that the exact same weight of uncooked meat costs. Make your own! I make shredded chicken in the crockpot once every two weeks. It’s great for topping salads, making enchiladas, casseroles, soups, or just eating out of the bag (what? Meat is goooooood).

Learn how I make shredded chicken here. I portion it out and use it in recipes. You can do the same with beef or pork. Season and cook in the crockpot for 6-8 hours on low.

If you want chicken slices, bake your chicken pieces in the oven at 350 for about 20-30 minutes. Cool, remove the skin and bones and discard them. Slice the chicken into pieces, portion out and freeze.

Buy meat when it is cheapest. What do I mean by that? Think about the seasons/holidays in the year and the meals surrounding each.

  • In the summer, barbecuing is very popular, so meat like ribs, ground beef and boneless, skinless chicken is on sale.
  • In the fall, turkey breasts and whole turkeys are on sale.
  • Near Christmas/New Year’s, Prime Rib is cheap.
  • Mid-March, Corned Beef is on sale (usually 60%+ off the regular price).

Because meat can be frozen for upwards of 6 months, buy meat that you like when it’s cheap and you’ll never be without!

Next up, tomorrow, I’ll be writing about how to save money when buying fruit and vegetables!

How do you save money on meat?

Kasandrinos International: Olive Oil and Gifts for the Family!

Abby H.

Looking for a gift for a foodie or a skin care junkie? Check out this awesome offer!

Kasandrinos International proudly offers a single source organic extra virgin olive oil and other high quality food and skin care products. Kasandrinos International only offers this year’s harvest of olive oil.

Visit  Kasandrinos – high quality organic extra virgin olive oil. Use code holidayguide2016 at checkout to save20% off!!

I’ll be getting a bottle of Olive oil to try, and I’ll be sharing my thoughts and a recipe featuring  Kasandrinos Olive Oil! Maybe I’ll make my Marinated Salad!

@usfg

Family Recipe: Marinated Salad

Abby H.2 Comments

6f6a6154-1This salad is a  favorite at our house. Because of it’s simplicity, it’s great to take to potlucks too! It would be a great addition to any holiday feast table.  It’s Vegan, Gluten Free, Low Carb, Paleo compatible!  No excuses- Give it a shot!

Marinated Salad (serves 4)

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup Balsamic Vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
  • 2 Tablespoons Mural of Flavor
  • 1 t. granulated garlic
  • 1 t. granulated onion
  • 2 large cucumbers, sliced into coins
  • 3 large tomatoes, sliced (your choice of variety)

Directions:

  1. Mix the vinegar, oil, and spices in a small bowl, set aside.
  2. Place the veggies in a large bowl.
  3. Slowly drizzle the dressing mixture over the veggies and toss lightly to coat. Cover bowl (I use a bowl like this one) and store in the fridge for 4-12 hours before serving- this allows the flavors to mingle. The salad can be stored for up to 4 days.

Sliced fresh mushrooms are also great additions to the salad, as are drained, rinsed canned artichoke hearts. If you aren’t concerned about it being vegan, adding 1/2 cup of cubed Monterey Jack cheese is tasty too!

Family Recipe: Apple Crisp

Abby H.1 Comment

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When I was a kid, my mom made apple crisp probably once a week, it’s a huge comfort food for me (and probably my brother too). It’s yummy, cheap to make, and very filling. And as far as desserts go, it’s not really too unhealthy.

This recipe makes a 9×13 inch pan. I use a pan like this one. It’s got a lid, so you can take it to potlucks or store any leftovers in the fridge. Halve the recipe to make smaller sized batch. Honestly, after having it, you won’t want to make a small batch.

Ingredients:

  • 8-10 green apples (about 3-4 cups), peeled, cored and chopped (green apples work best- Granny Smith’s are nice).
  • 1/2 stick of butter softened (don’t use oleo/spread- it makes the crumble topping watery)
  • 1/2 c. packed brown sugar (light or dark, whatever you got!)
  • 1T. cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice (whichever you prefer)
  • 1 c. quick cook oats (raw!) (if you have a gluten intolerance, you can use gluten free oats)
  • 1/4 c All purpose flour ( if you have a gluten intolerance, you can use nut meal- I like almond meal. Sometimes when I make this GF, I omit the oats and increase the amount of nut meal to 3/4 c)

Directions:

  1. In the bottom of a greased baking dish, pour the apples in a even layer.
  2. In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients with a pastry blender (Or a fork, if you don’t have a pastry blender), until ingredients are all combined and crumbly.
  3. Pour crumbles over apples in an even layer.
  4. Bake at 350 degrees until apples are all soft and mushy, usually 30 -45 minutes. THe topping gets toasty and crispy as it bakes!
  5. Serve hot with whipped cream or ice cream. Also great cold, lukewarm, or any temp in between.

It’s so freaking good!

You can use fresh peaches, apricots, or berries instead of apples. They do need to be fresh and ripe (no frozen or canned fruit).

Big Holiday Meals on a Budget!

Abby H.

imgp8302Now that we’ve gotten through with Halloween, we can start focusing on Thanksgiving and Christmas. That means two big family dinners, and most likely, countless other get togethers, potlucks, and shared meals.

Here are a few tips on how to prepare some healthy meals and stay on budget!

Ask for help! Everyone has a dish that they excel at making. Ask friends and family to bring their best dish. It will make everyone feel included and cut down on your budget. Each Thanksgiving, my parents make a turkey, rolls, stuffing and potatoes (I make the gravy as soon as my mom pulls the the turkey out of the roasting pan to rest!). Our guests bring all sorts of other awesome dishes. We all end up stuffing ourselves and taking home tons of leftovers. But the best part is trying all of the great, different dishes! Just make sure that everyone tells you what they are bringing.. You may just end up with 10 green bean casseroles!

Make a Budget and stick to it Don’t try to keep up with the Joneses! If you can’t afford everything that you think you need, just do with what you can afford. Trust me, you don’t NEED 5 different types of dessert!

Shop at discount stores. You all know my love of 99 Cents Only and Grocery Outlet by now, so I shouldn’t have to remind you, but don’t forget to shop at discount stores too! You’ll find all kinds of deals! I love starting my weekly shopping trip at 99 Cents Only. While they don’t accept coupons, I frequently find great deals on produce from name brands like Dole, Del Monte, Foxy, Driscolls, and Earthbound Organics! Check your local stores websites to see what’s on sale before you leave home.

Stretch your budget with low cost items. Potatoes are usually very inexpensive, so stretch your menu with a tasty, filling potato dish. Despite their bad reputation as being full of carbs, potatoes are also high in vitamin c, potassium, vitamin B6, and manganese. Roasted spuds tossed in olive oil and fresh herbs- YUM! Other inexpensive foods this time of year are apples. Apple crisp is one of my favorite dishes. I’ll be posting the recipe later this week!

Don’t forget your coupons! Starting in the next week or so, printable coupon sites (like the ones listed here) and coupon inserts will be peppered with coupons for holiday feast foods. Canned soups, french fried onions, stuffing, pantry staples. And don’t forget rebate/couponing apps (like these) too! You will be saving money left, right, and center!

Prepare food that is in season.  For the fall, that means root veggies, gourds (yeah, that includes pumpkins!), apples, dark leafy greens (think kale, etc.), and for those in warmer climates oranges and pomegranates! Buy meat that is on sale (typically turkey, ham, and prime rib). Tons of baking supplies and pantry staples go on sale in the fall and winter too. Stock up when prices are low- most pantry staples have a long shelf life. It will help you stretch your budget through the spring.

Bake/cook from scratch! Not only is home made food more cost effective and healthier than pre-packaged foods. Bonus- home made baked goods like bread and cookies always taste better, right? Here is my go to beer bread recipe and my families favorite cookie recipe

 

My favorite: Use what you have on hand!  Before you hit up the stores, write out your menu for these special occasions. Make a list of  ingredients needed for the recipes and check your pantry.  You’d be surprised what you may already have.

 

I’d love to hear your tips for saving money on food this holiday season!