Jeremiah is trying to eat very few carbs. It's personally probably going to be the death of me! =] I love my breads and noodles and cookies!
So I'm on a mission to find quick, simple, affordable low carb meals (specifically something that can be in the crock pot). Here is what I've come up with so far.
Zucchini Lasagna
Italian Vegetable Soup
Or I think I might just come up with something of my own! Just throw in a bunch of ingredients we already have in the house, those make the best soups!
Megan's Amazing Beef and Vegetable Soup:
Ingredients:
Roast - we had left over roast from crock-pot roast and veggies. So I diced up the left overs (about 2+ cups full)
Carrots - I used the left over carrots from the roast as well. Chopped them. 2 cups
Celery - two celery stalks diced/thinly sliced
Corn - one can
rotel - one can
onion - half of a yellow onion diced
green beans - fresh from my mom's garden, cleaned about 2 cups
northern light beans - one can
tomato sauce - one can
chicken broth - about two cups
water - enough to make soup
spices - cayenne pepper, basil, oregano, and pepper
Put everything in the crock pot/slow cooker. Cook on low for 8 hours. Stir every few hours, add water if you need to make it "more soupy"
Note: We didn't add potatoes for Jeremiah is trying to watch his carb/eating healthy. I just went through my pantry/refrigerator and added vegetables we liked. Though about using peas instead of the beans, you could use probably any kind of bean of your choice (to make it heartier). Add as little or as much vegetables or sauce to taste. Although Jeremiah really enjoyed this soup the possibilities are endless!
The same day I made the soup (Thursday) we also made omelets for lunch! YUMMY!! We put sliced ham and green peppers in ours. We cooked the peppers and ham together. Such a cheap idea!
Showing posts with label leftovers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leftovers. Show all posts
Friday, June 22, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Interesting article I found online.....
Is Eating Out Cheaper Than Cooking?
This is an interesting article that surely grabbed my attention. First off, I don't know how much credit I can give to the author. I (the math queen, not spelling) found an error! Secondly, in their comparisons at the end of the article of different high end restaurants, somethings I think are over priced.
My counter argument:
Yes, we are in the midwest where our groceries are a bit cheaper. But what about shopping using coupons, watching sale prices, buying in bulk yourself (or splitting with another family), going to the city food market, or even growing your own produce. There are ways to save money while buying groceries.
I do agree with their point, that sometimes it is cheaper to eat out (specially when it comes to seafood and other expensive cuts of meat). However, the price you pay at the restaurant does not include the tip, the gas together, the waiting time (which sometimes it would be faster for me to kill my own chicken and make lemon chicken than to wait at the Cheesecake factory) and the lack of comfort compared to your home.
I would also like to state that when we eat at home, we have leftovers! A beautiful word in my opinion. Even if you can train yourself to bring home half of your meal from the restaurant, the odds of you eating it are unlikely (at least for me).
The health side of eating at home is a big factor for me. I know where my beef and chicken comes from. I know where several of my vegetables comes from (my mom likes to can/freeze her garden inventory). I DONT know where the restaurant's food comes from. Their portions are usually too large, stuffing your face with more calories does not save you money when you have to pay for that gym membership and doctor's appointment.
Overall I think the benefits of being with family, in the comfort of your house, eating what you want and having left overs out weighs a few cents and a few dollars here. A person just has to learn how to shop wisely.
I believe that is my soap box of the day!
I'm still going to challenge my family to only eating out (including pricy and cheap-o places) only twice a month.
This is an interesting article that surely grabbed my attention. First off, I don't know how much credit I can give to the author. I (the math queen, not spelling) found an error! Secondly, in their comparisons at the end of the article of different high end restaurants, somethings I think are over priced.
My counter argument:
Yes, we are in the midwest where our groceries are a bit cheaper. But what about shopping using coupons, watching sale prices, buying in bulk yourself (or splitting with another family), going to the city food market, or even growing your own produce. There are ways to save money while buying groceries.
I do agree with their point, that sometimes it is cheaper to eat out (specially when it comes to seafood and other expensive cuts of meat). However, the price you pay at the restaurant does not include the tip, the gas together, the waiting time (which sometimes it would be faster for me to kill my own chicken and make lemon chicken than to wait at the Cheesecake factory) and the lack of comfort compared to your home.
I would also like to state that when we eat at home, we have leftovers! A beautiful word in my opinion. Even if you can train yourself to bring home half of your meal from the restaurant, the odds of you eating it are unlikely (at least for me).
The health side of eating at home is a big factor for me. I know where my beef and chicken comes from. I know where several of my vegetables comes from (my mom likes to can/freeze her garden inventory). I DONT know where the restaurant's food comes from. Their portions are usually too large, stuffing your face with more calories does not save you money when you have to pay for that gym membership and doctor's appointment.
Overall I think the benefits of being with family, in the comfort of your house, eating what you want and having left overs out weighs a few cents and a few dollars here. A person just has to learn how to shop wisely.
I believe that is my soap box of the day!
I'm still going to challenge my family to only eating out (including pricy and cheap-o places) only twice a month.
Day three and four - Wednesday and Thursday
Wednesday we had a classic go to meal for us. Mushroom soup meatballs with gravy, mashed potatoes, corn, and biscuits. Talk about your hearty meal!
Mushroom soup meatballs with gravy:
Ingredients: ground beef, can of mushroom soup, water or milk, salt and pepper. Directions: Make the meat into half dollar to golf-ball size balls. Fry them in a skillet until cooked through rolling them over from time to time (I like mine black on all sides). Drain grease. Turn down heat to medium heat. Add one can of mushroom soup and one can of milk or water into the skillet. (I just use water, milk makes it creamer but I was out). Whisk or misk the soup mixture together to make a gravy. Salt and pepper to taste.
While the meatballs are cooking I'm making mashed potatoes as well. Last night I did something a bit different. While I was boiling my potato slices (slices cook faster, more surface area) I threw in some CAULIFLOWER! After everything was tender I drained the water and then blended in some butter and evaporated milk. I forgot we didn't have any milk (getting groceries today) but I had about 4 cans of evaporated milk to use, and it worked just fine. But the cauliflower looks and taste just like potatoes... but healthier for you! SNEAKY SNEAKY ME!
While I'm working on the potatoes and meatballs I have another pan of just corn warming up while multitasking even more by cooking the biscuits. You can use whatever vegetables you want (I also served it with fresh carrot sticks). You can do whatever makes you happy! Altogether it takes me about 30 minutes to whip this meal together.
~~~~~~******~~~~~~~~
Thursday: left over night! Because Jeremiah didn't go to work the first few days of this week, he hasn't had a reason to take leftovers to work, so our fridge is fully of yummies and passed goodies. Jeremiah is also playing in a magic tournament tonight so he'll just eat when he gets home he said. However, I am going to make some banana bread... my bananas are looking rather mushy! =]
Well I have some errands to run. Hope everyone has a good day today!
Mushroom soup meatballs with gravy:
Ingredients: ground beef, can of mushroom soup, water or milk, salt and pepper. Directions: Make the meat into half dollar to golf-ball size balls. Fry them in a skillet until cooked through rolling them over from time to time (I like mine black on all sides). Drain grease. Turn down heat to medium heat. Add one can of mushroom soup and one can of milk or water into the skillet. (I just use water, milk makes it creamer but I was out). Whisk or misk the soup mixture together to make a gravy. Salt and pepper to taste.
While the meatballs are cooking I'm making mashed potatoes as well. Last night I did something a bit different. While I was boiling my potato slices (slices cook faster, more surface area) I threw in some CAULIFLOWER! After everything was tender I drained the water and then blended in some butter and evaporated milk. I forgot we didn't have any milk (getting groceries today) but I had about 4 cans of evaporated milk to use, and it worked just fine. But the cauliflower looks and taste just like potatoes... but healthier for you! SNEAKY SNEAKY ME!
While I'm working on the potatoes and meatballs I have another pan of just corn warming up while multitasking even more by cooking the biscuits. You can use whatever vegetables you want (I also served it with fresh carrot sticks). You can do whatever makes you happy! Altogether it takes me about 30 minutes to whip this meal together.
~~~~~~******~~~~~~~~
Thursday: left over night! Because Jeremiah didn't go to work the first few days of this week, he hasn't had a reason to take leftovers to work, so our fridge is fully of yummies and passed goodies. Jeremiah is also playing in a magic tournament tonight so he'll just eat when he gets home he said. However, I am going to make some banana bread... my bananas are looking rather mushy! =]
Well I have some errands to run. Hope everyone has a good day today!
Friday, January 20, 2012
Day 12 - Taco Soup (leftovers)
Tonight we had leftover taco soup. This was something we made last week and had SO much we froze extra. We warmed it up on the stove in a pot tonight and had enough to feed five grown ups (and some had two bowls!).
Jeremiah and I are both glad that it's Friday and we have the weekend ahead of us. We got a few groceries tonight at our local grocery store (the prices are typically really high, but sometimes their sales are just as good). I had a coupon for the store of $5 off $30. It was a nice little deal.
Jeremiah and I are both glad that it's Friday and we have the weekend ahead of us. We got a few groceries tonight at our local grocery store (the prices are typically really high, but sometimes their sales are just as good). I had a coupon for the store of $5 off $30. It was a nice little deal.
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