Back to basics cooking

[heidiiiii]

There is a new trend of going back to basics to save money. People are starting to cook their food from scratch instead of using convenience foods or take out. Boy, I was ahead of my time..hehehe

There was a segment on Oprah (i watched it because Suzy Orman was on) about how this family has like 5 kids and they live off of a annual salary of $56k a year. Hardly any debt and they are saving money..

Anyway..The woman showed how you can feed a family of four on $5 a meal.

She cooked chicken legs, potatoes, a veggie and I forget what else..

We could help each other re-learn how to make your food stretch.

Meatloaf is a great way. Do not go Blech! You can doctor it up to make it taste great. You can use ground turkey, ground beef, do a mixture of ground beef and pork.

You can make it large enough that you can have leftovers for sandwiches the next day.

I have a question. I bought a bag of barley. I have used it in soups. Do any of you have other ways of using it?

[havanaholly]

Use your leftover cooked barley with your ground meat as an extender in meatloaves and hamburger patties; put a little in your quick breads like muffins or fruit breads for extra texture (I use bran buds or oatmeal this way). You can also add whole-grain cereals, dry or cooked, to your homemade yeast breads for an extra nutritional (& flavor) kick.

Save your stale ends of bread loaves to make bread puddings (also a terrific use for leftover cooked pasta or rice)/ stuffing/ breakfast casserole.

When our sons were still living at home I fed our family of five on a whole lot less than US$5 a day!

[keinanna]

for meat loaf i use a small amount of crushed chili pepper, chopped fresh garlic, oregano, oatmeal and v-8 juice. It makes a wonderful moist meatloaf that has a lot of flavor.

I dont cook much with barley but if you go to http://allrecipes.com you can do an ingredient search and find recipes that call for barley and they are user rated which is a good way of weeding out bad recipes.

I discovered an excellent cheap meal one night by experimentation when i had nothing to make for supper one night. It is a crustless quiche which had eggs, flour, milk, cheese, sandwich meat cut into small strips, bacon bits onion and garlic. I made it in a deep casserole dish and has become a very popular meal in my house.

stew and dumplings is another meal i make when money is tight and i have almost no food in the house.

I find that making large quantities of things like soups , stews and chili are a great way to save money because you can freeze it in portions for later. so one meal that maybe had cost $10 to make can then be spread out over 4-5 meals feeding a family of 4-5 for sometimes $2 a meal

I bake a lot of my own pies and bread which is another way to use up leftover stews make some pie crusts in mini pie pans fill with stew cover with more pie dough and bake for a nice meat pie.

I will have to try to think of more things to make on a budget. I do it all the time many of my meals cost $5 or less to feed my family which used to be of up to 6 depending on how many of my ex's kids were over for supper.

Before i had my daughter i lived with a man who did not have a job so i was forced to be on a very tight budget as my 4 jobs hardly paid the rent. Our food budget was $50 a month and we never went hungry and ate pretty healthy too! I have no idea how i managed it to be honest but i made it work. I find the less money i have the more inventive i become with cooking.

Things like hamburger helper here regular priced are about $4-5 per package for about $0.75 worth of pasta and some seasoning in a pouch. If i buy the spices and herbs it may cost more initally but it is far cheaper over all because that meal that could have cost me at least $8 easily is reduced almost by half. Plus it is healthier as well.

Also another tip i have is to do big grocery shops and buy as much as you can afford go for bigger pacakges especially when it comes to meat and seperate it into what you would typically use per meal. You save a lot more money that way. Plan to buy things when they are on sale and get extra if you will use it before it expires. Look for stores that have things like customer appreciation day and give discounts. My last grocery bill was over $1600 before my savings i actually only paid about $1200 for it because i went on a day where they had 10% off your entire bill plus bought things that were on sale.

Dont be afraid to clip coupons either and there are lots of free places online that give out coupons. Go to manufacturers websites often they will have coupon offers sometimes even free trials. I have gotten vouchers for full size bottles of things like coffee creamer and shampoo/conditioners for free by going to these places.

Hopefully some of these help!

[vertigokitten]

I love to cook, and I love to save a buck.

A bag of dried beans cooked on the stove top or the crockpot will feed an army. I always serve rice with my beans.

Last week I made hoppin john. We ate it over rice for 2 days, and the third day the rice was gone and I wanted to change it up a bit I diced a few taters, boiled them in half chicken stock and water. Once almost tender I drained them and added the taters to the hoppin john. A little more seasoning and we had stew.

I also make my own chicken stock, by saving chicken bones. If I buy bulk chicken breasts I always try and buy with the bone. When I package smaller portions I sometimes remove the bone for quicker cooking or if I am turning the chicken into tenders or cutlets. I freeze the bones. When I buy whole chickens I cut them up myself and freeze the back bone, neck ect. When my bone bags are full I make stock. This is a great way to use the veggies in the crisper that are in need of being used quickly.

I also buy chicken wings when on sale and make stock that way. I freeze the stock in quart freezer bags in 1 and 2 cup measures. I also freeze stock in muffin tins and bag when solid. I do the same with fresh tomatoes, kale. Mark's mother has a garden and I get lot's of tomatoes. I par boil so the skin comes off easy, remove the core and seeds, bag and freeze. I also freeze the juice from the tomatoes too. When I find kale on sale, buy one get one free, I blanch, bag and freeze.

I keep the rind from romano, and parm. cheese in the freezer too. I always freeze hot dog and burger buns too. Why buy when you can freeze. I freeze bread ends too, they make good crumbs, and great croutons. I could go on and on.

I like this site http://budget101.com/

[nechee]

I cook almost everything in a slow cooker. We buy big bags of meat from a discount supermarket. Our last grocery bill was $200. We last went grocery shopping a month ago and we still have food left. We buy bags of frozen veggies instead of cans because you get more meals out of a bag then out of a can. We also get the Chrisco hampers close to Christmas time. Lots of food in there and you pay over a year. I get all my baking supplies from a Chrisco Hamper. Also I bake and decorate my own cakes. So we don't have to pay a bakery for cakes when the kids birthdays roll around.

[heidiiiii]

Anybody want some Butternut Squash soup??? I bought this today for $1.50. It has to weigh almost 10lbs!

Now that is saving money. How many containers of soup do you think I will get out of it? All for $1.50!

[PATBIDLACK]

I shop the ads and whenever meat is under 2.00 a lb I buy extra and separate and freeze. My mom and I cook for each other so usually there are only 2 or 3. I will throw a 3 lb roast in the slow cooker with a chopped onion and- a mixture of saltless spices. I cook this tell afternoon and then add carrots and a few potatoes.

The first night we have roast

the second night we have take part of the roast cut up it with stock added (I make my own) and make a rich soup

I divide what I dont use into 3 portions and freeze

When I take out a package of the roast mixture for The third night I add more vegetables and drop in dumplings

The fourth section I use to make stew,

the left overs from the stew I use to make meat pot pies we eat two and freeze the rest for later.

[PATBIDLACK]

I shop the ads and whenever meat is under 2.00 a lb I buy extra and separate and freeze. My mom and I cook for each other so usually there are only 2 or 3. I will throw a 3 lb roast in the slow cooker with a chopped onion and- a mixture of saltless spices. I cook this tell afternoon and then add carrots and a few potatoes.

The first night we have roast

the second night we have take part of the roast cut up it with stock added (I make my own) and make a rich soup

I divide what I dont use into 3 portions and freeze

When I take out a package of the roast mixture for The third night I add more vegetables and drop in dumplings

The fourth section I use to make stew,

the left overs from the stew I use to make meat pot pies we eat two and freeze the rest for later.

I also cook in a slow cooker most of the time. It seems to hold in the flavor nicely. When I'm in a hurry I use my convection oven but I don't feel I get the flavor I do out of the cooker. That may be because I am more likely to add additional ingredients to the slow cooker.

I also use a lot of beans. they cost very little and pick up flavor beautifully. I us a variety so that we dont get tired of them.

You can get beef bones or pork bones for stock very cheaply.

I also make my own chicken stock.

I peal my own carrots etc. It is cheaper and you can see the real quality. Cabbage is also a wonderful dollar stretcher as is squash.

[AuntDee]

Savings on little things can help too. Never throw away stale bread. Store those pieces in a container in the freezer. When you need bread crumbs put several slices in the blender or food processor and you have fresh crumbs. For croutons cut bread into cubes and toast in olive oil or butter with desired seasoning.

Use powdered milk for baking. No one will taste the difference. Buy powdered buttermilk to have on hand too. If kept in the freezer they stay fresh. I keep powdered eggs on hand . When a recipe calls for one egg white I mix wat I need I don't wast a yolk.

When I make soup. stew, spagetti I make enough for 3 meals. One for serving, one for left overs 2 nights later and one for the freezer.

buyhouse or generic brands whenever possible. While not alwaste the best once you learn which are good you will stick to those and save $$$

Don't buy pre made. Why pay others to process bread crumbs or wash your lettuce.

I use old cookbooks to cook with..from the 30'3,40's and 50's. Recipes use simple ingredients that are kept in the pantry. No waste buying an ingredient you don't like or use often.

I keep an inventory of freezer items. Recording day purchased. Using this to plan my meals. I can buy on sale and not have roasts and chops get lost in the bottom of the freezer. It has really helped to cut our food bill since I started this. As I use an item it is crossed off the list. I always know what is on hand.

When cooking I try to make enough for the follwing days lunch. Never buy lunch!

When you are going shopping or on a excursion, take a thermos of iced tea or favorite drink along..Don't by at convenience stores. Rita

[bookmarm]

I save most scraps (tiny bits of leftovers) that can be added to soup. I freeze leftover fresh herbs from the garden. I love to make a big pot of chili and divide it up and freeze portions for work lunches...beats those expensive little frozen things you buy at the store!

One big money saver here is to discourage family members who like second and third helpings. Leftovers the next day are better than just mindlessly stuffing it in! I also let the snack nibblers know that they just sat and ate $4 worth of cookies while watching a football game. The box does NOT have to be opened and emptied on the same day! We try to do home baking mostly, but it isn't always possible with fulltime jobs and school.

[Anna]

I usually make most of the cooking from scratch and also "plan" for some meals to cover more than one day, and lunches are always planned as well. We keep to a "planned meal week" and I go grocery shopping accordingly at the start of the week and usually just stock up on fresh veggies for the weekend when getting home from work on Fridays.

Hugs

[keinanna]

When i lived off of $50 a month for groceries i always made a monthly meal plan i followed it pretty strictly so that meals were planned to last several days and we did not end up eating the same thing day after day. If you do the planning before you shop and stick to the list it can be very easy to save money.

[havanaholly]

Not only the old cookbooks, but locate your county home extension agent and make friends, the USDA puts out recipe books and nutritional booklets.

My grandmother used to make patchwork filling for quilts out of old, worn out suits and jackets.

In addition to using the back, bones, wingtips & "poke" from chicken for stock, do the same thing with that ham bone, lambshank bones, beef bones, etc. After you cook it until all the meat falls off the bone, strain the liquid and chill it in the fridge and the fat congeals into a nice solid layer on top you can pop right off and pitch (or add small amounts to the fur babies' food to keep their skin healthy & coats glossy) and have lovely lowfat stock.

[chesterfieldzoo]

It also helps to not be so engrossed reading all these tips that you have dinner burning on the stove and have to start over....

I watched a show on TV about how to stretch you dollar. There was a woman who's rent was going up so she needed advice on how to cut back on other stuff. There was a picture of her pantry. It was full of bottled water, soda cans, drink boxes, hotess cupcakes, all kinds of prepackaged stuff. She was told to stop buying all of that. It would cut 2/3 of her food bill down. Use a thermos for koolaid for the kids, use tap water in washable bottles. Do more baking and freeze slices of cake or cookies and put them in sandwich bags for lunch - they will thaw in time for lunch and keep the sandwich cool as well. Kids don't care if they have the premium ice cream or the bargain brand - they just want ice cream. Make your own popsicles in ice cube trays.

If you do go the fast food route, use the dollar menu instead of the big name sandwiches. Less calories too.

[Wolfie]

We too buy our meat in bulk! I sometimes do a large beef roast in the oven....we have the first meal hot, then using our slicer we cut paper thin slices for sandwiches. Nice fat layer of roast beef on vinegar and oil hoagie rolls, then filled with a combination of chopped tomatos, pickles and onion mixed with more oil and vinegar with lots of salt and pepper. Makes a wonderful cold lunch! Then the rest of the meat that is left I made a stew with potatoes, carrots, and whatever veggies I have...celery, onions, etc. We buy big packages of chicken - for example I got 7 pounds of chicken legs/thighs yesterday for $4.99. When we got home I divided them into packages of two legs and two thighs and sealed the packages for the freezer. I got 4 pounds of bacon and also divided that into packages of 8 slices each......4 for him, 4 for me. We do this all the time. The freezer is also kept well stocked with all sorts of meats and other things, and my pantry is well stocked. No packaged foods either. Cans yes, cans of fruits and veggies abound....always on hand and ready to make something tasty. I make my own bread - well won't be doing that for a while with a dead bread machine - my hands cannot knead the way they used to. Anyway will be buying large unsliced loaves and slicing them at home on our slicer. Will probably be making batter breads and cooking them in greased cans either in the new oven (Monday can't come soon enough) or in my kettle over the propane burner on the deck.

You can begin slowly to change your cooking and eating habits to learn to save money. Don't go out to dinner more often than once a month until the economy comes back up. We note here prices are going up and up in the restaurants becuse people are not going out to dinner as much. Rentals are going up too as they have the displaced people who have been foreclosed upon trying to find an apartment. That is rotten......they jack up their rents and they have people over a barrell. I guess it comes down to doing what we have to do to survive! Soups and stews are healthy and nutricious as well! AND cheap to make! A chicken breast makes a wonderful soup base.....add some noodles and some spices and other goodies, and you've got a meal! We all have to survive this mess.... My heart goes out to those who depend on their 401K plans as they are no more. Investments are no more. I'm so glad I never had either......we on social security are a little more secure - but who knows what the future holds? I'm no fortune teller but it don't look good!

[heidiiiii]

I think the kids will be the ones that you will have to convince in the beginning. They may revolt at the fact that there is no take out or eating out or microwave foods.

Chicken legs are so cheap. You can also buy a full chicken and cut it up into pieces. One whole roaster will give you 8 pieces of chicken! It is not hard to learn how to cut them either. You can save money on buy legs and separating them into drumsticks and thighs then it is to buy them already done for you. Do you love boneless, skinless chicken breasts? Buy them with the bone in and take the bones and skins off yourself!

How to cut up a whole chicken.

Home Ec 101. Check out this site. It can give you tips and tricks on things you probably didnt know.

I was fortunate to have a Depression-Era mother who taught me well. I still do not know how to do everything so this place will help me along the way.

Think Potatoes!

Cheap, versatile, and very filling!

We love fresh veggies but sometimes they are too expensive. So I buy frozen. You can buy a square package of frozen chopped spinach for $1 and use it in soups and casseroles. All you have to do is defrost, and then squeeze all the water out of it.

Voila!

[Anna]

Speaking of potatoes... We make a potatoe and onion sopu, cheap, cheap cheap, yet nice with a couple of sliced of bread, it is sooo quick as well, my kind of fast food LOL

You only need some potatoes that will "mash" a little when cooked, a large yellow onion, slice both and then just for a little while fry in just a teensy bit of oil in a pot, add a litre of broth, allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes stir occasionally and just at the end add a little dab of cooking cream, stir with a whisk as to mash the 'tatoes into smaller bits, salt, white and black pepper and it is done...

Hugs

[heidiiiii]

Mmmm! Anna that sounds really good. I must try that one since it is getting colder.

Another cheap cheap cheap soup...Onion! French onion or other types take only some onions, broth, and spices and a bit of time. Add a slice of crusty bread or day old french in the bowl, add soup, cover with a bit of mozz, and heat under broiler.

(i do not add the sherry, but if you have it..go for it) You can use bouillon and water for the broth (cheaper).

This is Fred`s favorite food that I make. He actually bought me the soup crocks for Christmas one year.

I would use a fancier cheese for this but you gotta do what you gotta do. Tastes great with Gruyere if you can afford it. Personally, I cannot now.

[Wolfie]

At Wal-Mart Super store I got a large 10 pound bag of Jasmine rice (actually I bought 5 bags for the winter) which to me is heavenly. Today I will make up 5 cups of it...... Two cups will go for our dinner today served with roasted chicken leg/thigh combo done in my wonderful broiler/frying/roasting pan with convection. Two cups will be saved and I will make rice pudding by adding some raisens, nutmeg, and cream. One cup will be used in a stir fry for tomorrow using the leftover chicken (those are huge pieces) and veggies left over from the stew I made the other day. You can stretch your meals out ....it may take more rice than Doug and I use....... And by the way buttered jasmine rice is fabulous! Doug puts soy sauce on his but I like mine with butter. Sometimes I cook peas in it too. Fabulous!

It's snowing here today and it's sticking. We have an inch already! So we will not be leaving the yard today but just working on minis and watching the snow come down. And planning my picture frames!

[grazhina]

BARLEY casserole

This was one of my favorites growing up. I guess it's something mama made from the old country.

I don't have actual measurements, because I've always just winged it.

You need barley, salt and pepper, a bit of bacon, kielbassa or smoked sausage, hot dogs and an onion.

I generally use about 1/3 lb of barley, and cook it in some salted water til just about done. Check the cooking instructions on the bag or box. Then I'll drain off the excess water.

Saute some bacon til crisp. You'll need to save the grease. You can either cook it then break it up into pieces, or slice first, then cook, whatever method you prefer.

Chop a medium sized onion and saute in some of the bacon grease. Set the onion aside. Next slice the kielbassa and hot dogs and brown in the same skillet.

NOTE, you can use just hot dogs or just sausage if you prefer. Mom used both and that's how I like it. My preference for kielbassa is Hillshire Farm.

ALSO I now use that boxed precooked bacon, because I find it a more economical choice for my household. Nowadays I'll chop up the bacon, then throw it into the skillet to heat, you wind up with a bit of bacon grease anyway.

Next toss together everything adding pepper and a bit of salt to taste. Sometimes I wind up with a little too much barley in ratio to the meat, so I just freeze the extra 1/2 to 1 cup and use it for vegetable barley soup.

NOTE sometimes, after I've blended everything, I'll add just a LITTLE water to moisten it.

Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray, then pour in the mixture. Bake covered, at 350 degrees for @ 30 minutes. You can also just let it simmer in the pot a bit, then eat.

[havanaholly]

I learned to joint a broiler from watching Julia Child and it yields ten pieces: the pully-bone with "tenders", two breast pieces, two wings, two thighs, two drumsticks and the back. The back & wingtips go into a bag in the freezer for soup & stock and the other pieces are ready to broil/ fry/ bake/ whatever.

[heidiiiii]

Ah! See I learned something.

Then you can take those pieces for the stock and add root veggies to make a nice rich stock. Freezes wonderfully.

There are two books on my wish list this Christmas.

One is Ina Garten`s new cookbook..Barefoot Contessa-Back to Basics.

The other is The America`s Test Kitchen/Family Baking Book.

[grazhina]

Since I'm making bean soup today......

BEAN SOUP

½ lb dried beans, lima or navy

1 ham bone or ham hock

1 can chicken broth, chicken bouillion crystals or cubes will do + water

1 lb can tomatoes

¼ tsp paprika

Dash cayenne

1 c fine chopped celery

½ c fine chopped onion

2 tbl fresh parsley ( or dried equivalent)

½ c cubed ham,

Wash beans, boil for 2 minutes, then let soak I hour, drain.

Mix beans, ham hock, broth, tomatoes, paprika and cayenne, plus 2 cups water. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, 30 minutes.

Add onion and celery, continue simmering another hour til beans are done.

Remove bone, add parsley and ham. Add water if needed, salt and pepper if desired.

Today I have no ham, so I think I'll add some Italian sausage instead. It's been just about the only thing that's been on sale around here lately, that and smoked sausage, but I'm out of smoked sausage.

While I'm on the soups page of my cookbook CD

MEATBALL SOUP

Hamburger

Egg

Dry bread crumbs

Salt - pepper

Parsley

Onion powder

...Make the meatballs and brown them.

2 cans Campbell's beef broth

4 c water

2 16 oz cans tomatoes

1 env onion soup mix

Carrots

Celery

½ tsp parsley

¼ tsp pepper

½ tsp oregano

½ tsp basil

Bay leaf

Corn - peas- gr.beans

Mix beef broth through bay leaf and simmer @ 30 min. Add meatballs and the corn,peas and green beans, simmer another 30 min. Sometimes I'll add some diced potato.

I also make this soup with cubed stewing beef. You just have to simmer the beef in broth about a half hour or so, then add the other ingredients and simmer another hour. I'll often add some barley to it.

The soup tastes sort of like a fresh uncanned version of Campbell's vegetable soup.

CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS SOUP ..note, this is the original recipe as I found it years ago. I never use this much chicken. Most of the time I'll just cut up a couple of boneless chicken breasts, then simmer them a little in some broth, then start adding the cans of soup and vegetables.

2 1/2 to 3 lb chicken cut in pieces

6 c water

3 chicken cubes

6 peppercorns

3 cloves

****

1 can chicken broth

1 can cr. of chicken soup

1 can cr of mushroom soup

1 c ch. celery

1 1/2 c ch carrots

1/4 c ch onions

1 c ch potato

1 sm bay leaf

1 cup peas

1 tsp seasoned salt

FEATHER DUMPLINGS:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 egg, well beaten

2 tablespoons melted butter

2/3 cup milk

Place fryer, water, bouillon, peppercorns and cloves in kettle and bring to boil.

Reduce heat; simmer until chicken is tender (about 1-1/2 hours). Cool chicken

just slightly; cut into bite-size pieces and set aside. Strain and skim chicken broth.

Put reserved chicken and broth in large kettle; add cans of broth, chicken and

mushroom soups, celery; carrots, onion, potatoes, bay leaf, peas and seasoned

salt. Put cover on kettle; simmer soup on low heat for 2-3 hours. About 30

minutes before serving, mix up feather dumplings by sifting dry ingredients together.

Add egg, melted butter and enough milk to make moist, stiff batter

Drop by teaspoons into boiling liquid. Cook, covered and without "peeking",

for 18-20 minutes-or until the dumplings are done.

[Kitten]

Mmmm! Anna that sounds really good. I must try that one since it is getting colder.

Another cheap cheap cheap soup...Onion! French onion or other types take only some onions, broth, and spices and a bit of time. Add a slice of crusty bread or day old french in the bowl, add soup, cover with a bit of mozz, and heat under broiler.

(i do not add the sherry, but if you have it..go for it) You can use bouillon and water for the broth (cheaper).

This is Fred`s favorite food that I make. He actually bought me the soup crocks for Christmas one year.

I would use a fancier cheese for this but you gotta do what you gotta do. Tastes great with Gruyere if you can afford it. Personally, I cannot now.

Mmmm...I LOVE french onion soup. Whenever we go out to eat, that's one of the only kinds of soup that I'll order.

This thread is making me hungry...I'm making salmon croquettes for dinner tonight, with rice, veggies, and biscuits dripping in butter and syrup....YUM!

[grazhina]

What's that? Did I see my favorite soup mentioned?

FRENCH ONION SOUP

3 tbl butter

@ 3 c sl onion

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp sugar

1 ½ tbl flour

2 cans Campbell beef broth

2 cans water

1 cl garlic, f. ch

½ bay leaf

Pepper

½ c Bordeaux wine (opt)

Stale French bread

Melted butter

Swiss cheese

Parmesan (opt)

Cook onions slowly 15 min, covered, then uncover add salt and sugar, cook on medium heat til golden, @ 15 min. Sprinkle on flour and cook a few min. Add broth, garlic and bay leaf and wine. Simmer partly covered 40 min.

Brush bread with butter and top with slices of swiss cheese,Sprinkle a bit of Parmesan if you like, and broil.

Pour soup in oven proof bowls, top with the bread and more cheese, bake 350 for 20 min til crusty.

I'll usually just cube the bread, top with cheese and broil til the cheese is melted.

Yum. The soup is really good without the wine, and that's how I usually make it. Now I want onion soup.