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Meatless Mondays is a new weekly feature which will showcase some of my hits and probably misses with living a meatless life. Many of you know I stopped eating meat about a year ago for personal reasons. While, I haven’t had any desire to go back to eating meat, it has been a struggle to find healthy foods to eat.
Everywhere you go, meat is the main dish. Since I was new to this lifestyle, it led me to eating unhealthy options. I’m on a path now to cook healthier options at home without meat. While going meatless is a personal choice for me, you can still save money by having one meatless meal a week.
Will you join me on this journey by preparing one meatless dish every week?
Vegetarian Cheddar Broccoli Soup
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp. butter
- 1 onion, diced
- 1/4 c. flour
- 32 oz. vegetable stock
- 1 head of broccoli
- 1 1/2 c. milk
- 2 c. shredded sharp cheddar
- croutons
Melt the butter.
Since we are multi-tasking moms, while the butter is melting, diced your onions. I use my Ninja Kitchen to dice mine because I use it for everything.
Cook for a few minutes until soft. If your family hates onions, like mine, this may be where you want to set aside the onions and add in the bowls individually.
Then add the flour.
It will be pasty.
Then whisk in the broth. I used vegetable broth but it would probably have more flavor if you use chicken broth. Use whatever you feel comfortable with. Plus, chicken broth is cheaper.
Bring it to a boil and then add the broccoli. You will want to stir it often so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Don’t try to multitask right now. I’m kind of talking to myself there because often I leave things on the stove and go to check my email, skype, or my website and forget about my food until it is burning or overflowing.
There is no exact timing here but it is done when the broccoli is soft. Then you will puree the broccoli mixture. I use my Ninja Kitchen and can do it all in one batch.
Once all is pureed, you will put it back in the saucepan. Add the milk and half the cheese. Cook until warm.
Top with croutons & cheese. Yummy.
Serves 4 – 6.
Post Dinner Analysis
My daughter and I both enjoyed this soup. The little ones won’t eat anything with green in it. Bryan thought it was “ok.” I think he would have liked it better with chicken broth for a bit more of a meaty flavor.
I made this both ways, once with the onions in it so they were diced up nice and smooth and another time with the onions on the side. I prefer the chunky onions on the side (like pictured at the top) in the soup. If you don’t like onions at all, just leave them out.
Freezer Friendly
I will be making this one often and freezing single serving portions for easy lunches. Pair with a salad or a sandwich for a complete meal.
Meat it Up
Top with ham or bacon.
Vegan Option
Use soy milk and vegan cheese.
If you have any questions about the vegetarian lifestyle, you can read more about it at GoVeg.com.
**This recipe has been adapted from the All You Eat Well, Save Big Cookbook.
Photo by gozalewis
This is a guest post from Sarah, who blogs at The Frontier Kitchen. Sarah loves to experiment in the kitchen to create delicious recipes and shares them on her blog. You will be delighted to know that many of the recipes are very frugal!
I’m delighted that Briana asked me to do a guest post on here! It’s always so fun to see what deals Briana finds for her readers.
First off, I wanted to share with y’all some simple tips to follow for saving money at the grocery store.
- Use coupons. If you’ve been a frequent reader of Briana’s I’m sure you’re probably rolling your beautiful eyes and saying “duh!” because she is so great at encouraging people to use coupons with her posts. Need convincing? When I use grocery coupons, I typically save 50% – 80% on my grocery bill!
- Shop Weekly Sales. Chances are your life is a busy one. If so, you might find yourself without the time to clip coupons for a week or two, you can still save tons of money at the grocery store just by buying the fruits, vegetables, breads and meats that are on sale. Then, plan out your dinners for the week using the sale items for the bulk of your meals.
- Never overpay for meat. Grocery stores generally have better prices on meat than superstore chains like SuperTarget and Walmart. Wondering what a good price on meat is?
Boneless skinless chicken breast: $1.99/lb. or less.
Bone-in chicken: $0.99/lb. or less.
Beef Roasts: $2.99/lb. or less. I generally pay $1.99/lb. for mine but I do live in an area flowing with cattle so prices in your area may be higher.
Ground Beef: $1.99/lb. or less.
Fresh Fish: 4.99/lb. or less.
Steaks: 5.99/lb. or less.
All of these meats freeze beautifully so you can buy in bulk and freeze whatever you won’t use within 3 days.
Another one of the best ways to save money on meals is by making food from scratch. Now, I know quite a few of you are probably thinking to yourself “But I’m busy and don’t have time to make things from scratch!” I hear you, I really do.
What if I was to give you a recipe that was not only simple but also only took about 5 minutes longer to make fresh with quality ingredients instead of buying it pre-packaged and loaded with ingredients created in a lab? Well, get ready, because this biscuit recipe will be restaurant quality, easy, money saving AND ready in 15-20 minutes. Once you try these biscuits, you’ll never go back to the pop-can variety again.
{Grandma’s Biscuits}
Makes 10-12 biscuits
- 2 c. flour ($0.20) Bought flour on sale for $1
- 2 tbsp. sugar (0.05)
- 1 tsp. salt (0.01)
- 4 tsp. baking powder (approx. $0.05)
- ½ tsp. cream of tartar (approx. $0.05)
- ½ c. cold butter ($0.25) Used a coupon when butter was on sale for 1.99, bringing the price down to just $0.99!
- 1 c. cold milk ($0.15)
Stir together dry ingredients. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or fork until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Pour in milk and stir quickly to combine.
On a well floured surface, knead the dough by folding it in half, pressing it out slightly and repeating those two steps until the dough holds together, about 2-3 kneading repetitions. I usually sprinkle 1/8 c. flour onto the counter, place the dough down and then sprinkle another 1/8 c. flour on top before kneading.
Press out until ½” thick, cut into 2” rounds using a cookie cutter or even a drinking glass. Place on an oiled baking sheet, close together for softer sides and about 2” apart for crispier sides.
Bake at 450 for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom.
Total Cost: $0.76 for 12 biscuits! You would easily pay 3 – 4 times as much for just 8 biscuits in a can!
Bargain Briana here: I think I could probably handle these biscuits, even with my time schedule! What about you? Do you cook from scratch instead of buying prepackaged to save money?
by Briana Carter on December 23, 2009 · 9 comments
If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, you know I’m not a “Master of the Kitchen.” Not at all. So when I find something easy and delicious, I love to share it with you. Belly Button Kisses are one of my favorite holiday recipes.
The part that takes the longest is taking the foil off the Hershey Kisses. If you can find these unwrapped, save yourself some time and purchase the Hershey Kisses unwrapped!
Dessertizer: A dessert served usually before a dessert to stimulate your sweet buds.
Belly Button Kisses
Ingredients
- Milk Chocolate Hershey Kisses
- M&Ms
- Waffled Pretzels (I used Meijer Store Brand)
Preheat Oven to 300°.
Unwrap the Hershey Kisses if necessary.
Place waffled pretzels in a single layer on wax paper on a baking sheet. Then center the Hershey Kisses on the pretzel.
Cook for approx. 3 minutes at 300°. Be really careful, you don’t overheat. With my oven it took 3 – 3 mins 30 secs. You can test with a toothpick or by pressing a M&M down on the tip. Again, I will repeat, don’t overheat as it will ruin your batch. Yes, I did this the first time.
Immediately after removing from oven, place a M&M on the tip of the Hershey Kiss and press down. The finished product should look like a belly button!
Allow your finished product to set by placing it in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes. If you want to make a large batch, these also freeze very well.
You can customize these for any holiday or event. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find Holiday M&Ms at my grocery store tonight so I settled for the regular ones. It might also be fun to customize the M&Ms for a really special event. You can serve on a tray or wrap in goody bags for a special gift.
I’ve also experimented with different varieties of Hershey Kisses. Your cooking time will vary with the different types of chocolate. So do a little experimentation before trying to do a whole batch at once.
Enjoy!
by Briana Carter on November 23, 2009 · 1 comment
I recently purchased a couple bags of frozen meatballs with a buy one, get one free sale. We’ve been using them for various things like with spaghetti, on their own, with noodles, etc. The kids gobble meatballs right up!
I’m usually short on time so I love simple, quick recipes. So, of course, I’m loving this 3 ingredient Ultimate Meatball Recipe.
Ultimate Meatball Recipe
- Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce, 14 oz. can
- Heinz Chili Sauce, 12 oz. bottle
- Meatballs, pre-cooked, frozen, 2 lbs.
Dump all three ingredients in to a slow cooker. Cook on high for around 4 hours. Done.
How is that for easy! Since, I don’t eat meat, I can’t tell you personally if they were good or not. But what I can tell you is that everyone in the household has liked them! (No complaints from my picky kids!)
These types of recipes are great for pitch ins, appetizers, and other social events. Just keep a few of the staple ingredients in your stockpile and you will be ready before you get your invite.
You can find other great recipes and tips on entertaining at the Ultimate Party Meatballs website.
How do you cook your meatballs?
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Heinz and Ocean Spray and received the ingredients necessary to facilitate my review. In addition, Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.
