Soup and Bread are Frugal!

One of the easiest and yummiest ways I save money is to serve soup and bread once a week. Broth based soups are relatively low-fat and can be incredibly cheap. I especially like bean and/or lentil soups so that we get our protein and the beans and lentils fill us up.

I especially like to pair our soup with some kind of homemade bread. It could be actual yeast bread (whole-wheat bread, French bread, pan rolls) or a quick bread (biscuits, soft bread sticks). Either way, what can be better than warm soup and fresh homemade bread?

Wise Bread recently featured an article entitled Seven Money Saving Menu Strategies for Every Day of the Week. The idea for Sundays? Soup for Sunday! They focused on the idea that Sunday is a day where everyone wants to slow down and spend more time with their families. Soup is so easy (especially if you use your crock pot!)

There are tons of recipes for soup on the internet. You can also get soup cookbooks (I actually own one called Soup and Bread by Crescent Dragonwagon). I do have a few recipes that I really like, but most of the time I just make "soup." You know, "What are we having for dinner tonight?" "Oh, we're having soup."

There are some basic rules for making "soup" but it lends itself to infinite variations. You can make this as exciting or boring as you want. Here's how you do it:

"Soup"

Start by sautéing some chopped veggies. I always use onion and carrots and usually celery. After the onions are soft and wilty I usually add some garlic - have I mentioned that my family likes garlic?

Next you add your liquid. You can of course use plain old water but you soup will be plain and old. I add water and bouillon cubes or soup base. You can use canned broth or stock too. Depending on what you are adding later you can use veggie broth, chicken or beef broth or whatever you desire. I used half veggie and half miso the other night and it was fabulous. I try to add about a cup and a half per person. So for my family of 6 I use about 8 cups of stock or so, but I want to make sure I have leftovers.

After that, add a grain. If you are making a taco soup add some rice. A chicken soup? You could add noodles or rice. A beef soup is great with barley. I try to add something "whole" to the soup - brown rice, barley, or quinoa. Of course, if I'm making chicken noodle soup, I just use regular old noodles. Don't add too much of any of these as they soak up the liquid. A half a cup of rice or barley for 4 c. of stock is about right. Noodles for chicken noodle soup can be much more generous.

Add some veggies next. I usually add a can of tomatoes. I usually blend it so there aren't any chunks of tomato - my son wouldn't eat it otherwise. Then, depending on what I want the end to be I add peas or corn or green beans, mushrooms, cabbage, or chopped kale. You can add what your family likes. You just want to make sure you don't add something that will get super mushy too early in the cooking. You don't want broccoli mush in your vegetable beef soup. (Well, maybe you do but I don't!)

Then add a protein. You can add cooked beans, lentils, chopped chicken, cooked sausage, chopped ham, leftover roast beef, cooked ground beef or a combination of any of the above.
The lentils need to cook for 40 minutes but everything else is very flexible.

The last thing you want to add is a seasoning. You can add salt, pepper, basil, oregano, thyme. You can also add worchestershire sauce or anything else you want.

Then just let it simmer. Your crockpot is perfect for this. But you can do this on the stove if you forget in the morning. Just let it simmer until the grains and/or lentils are tender and the flavors have blended.

The best thing about soup is it is almost always better the next day. Make extra and save some for lunch the next day.

So there it is,

Sautéd aromatic veggies (onions, carrots, celery, garlic)
Liquid (stock, broth, miso)
Grain (rice, pasta, barley, quinoa)
Vegetables (tomatoes, peas, corn, etc)
Protein (chicken, beef, ham, beans, lentils, sausage)
Seasoning (salt, pepper, basil, thyme, etc)
Simmering

So easy and so open to variations. Plus, soup is perfect when you don't have anything to make. Just scrounge around in the cupboards and you can find enough to make soup, I promise. And with grains, protein, vegetables, it is a complete meal in a bowl!

Schedule yourself a soup and bread night this week!

Tomorrow I'll share some bread ideas.

Jill

Homemade Refried Beans

One of my cheapest meals is my Navajo Tacos. You make some fry-bread, top it with refried beans, some cheese, lettuce and tomatoes. And then anything else you normally put on tacos (guacamole, salsa, sour cream, etc). Everything is pretty cheap, especially if you make the refried beans at home!

I was very intimidated by making refried beans at home. It seemed complex and mysterious. Until I was talking to a friend who said, "I used to buy canned beans until I became friends with a hispanic woman. She and her friends looked down on 'those crazy Americans' who bought canned beans. I decided to try it and was surprised how easy it is!"

I sat her down and forced her to tell me how to do it! Boy, was I feeling silly when I realized just how easy it really is! And something about making this recipe makes me feel so domestic.

Here's how you do it.

Soak some pinto beans over night. The next morning, pour out the soaking water and put the beans in a crockpot. Add a quartered onion and some garlic cloves that you have peeled and very roughly chopped. Cover with water - not too much, just enough to cover the beans.

Cook the beans all day long. They should be very, very soft and the onions should be almost melty. Ok, melty isn't a word, but you know what I mean.

Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat, add some fat of some kind. Either some oil, butter, bacon fat, or (traditionally) lard. If your skillet is non-stick enough and you are trying to watch your fat intake, you can do it without the fat. I usually use a TBS or so of margarine/butter. The flavor is good and the little bit of fat helps the beans to be smoother and creamier.

Put the beans in the skillet - but don't add the liquid yet. Here's what I do: I put the crockpot next to the skillet and transfer the beans with a slotted spoon. It drains off most of the liquid but saves it so I can use it later. Mash the beans with the back of the spoon or with a potato masher (I use my pastry cutter!). You of course want to be careful not to scratch your non-stick pan. I use my cast-iron skillet so I can be a little reckless. You can mash them extremely smooth or leave them a little chunky, your choice. You want to add the onions and the garlic, too, just mash them into the beans. They'll disappear into the beans but add tons of flavor.

If your beans are too dry, add a little of the cooking liquid, until you get the consistency you want. If the beans sit for awhile while you are getting other things ready, they will dry out a bit, just add some more liquid and stir.

To flavor the beans, I add cumin and salt. I usually add some garlic powder, too. We like garlic at our house. A lot! You could add cumin, chili powder, taco seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, whatever floats your boat. I like cumin because it is a very taco-type flavor. And you need salt, trust me. I can't tell you amounts because it really depends on how many beans you cooked, and what flavors you like. Add a little and if it is not enough, add some more!

That is is! Then you eat them. How easy is that? I usually make a big batch and freeze the leftovers. Thawing leftovers is even easier.

How much does it cost? Let's see: one pound pinto beans? About a dollar. One onion? About 30 cents (depending on how big it is), some garlic cloves are about 25 cents. Then some cumin and salt and maybe some butter or oil? Fifty cents, max. So you have $2 for about four meals worth of refried beans. That's fifty cents a meal for your protein. Plus, you know that there aren't any partially hydrogenated anything or artificial flavors or colors or added chemicals or preservatives.

This took longer to write than it does to cook! It takes about 5 minutes in the morning and and about 10 minutes in the evening when you are ready to eat. Really easy and so cheap!

This is my cheap recipe for the day. To check out more cheap, family favorites, check out the Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap.

Enjoy!

Jill

Basic Baked Beans

This is my 200th post on my blog! So in honor of that I'll be posting 200 things you didn't know about Jill!

Just kidding!

It really is my 200th post but even I don't know 200 things about me. Instead I'm going to post one of my favorite bean recipes, baked beans.

Baked beans are so versatile. You can use them as a side dish for all sorts of things. We like them as a main dish, either with chopped ham stirred in or served over a bed of rice. Add some cornbread and a crunchy salad and you have a fabulous, healthful, cheap dinner.

I have heard of using baked beans as a bottom layer in a shepherd's pie like dish, or top with cornbread batter and bake and make a tamale pie type of thing. I also read a tip in my More With Less Cookbook that suggests spreading leftover baked beans on bread and toasting with cheese or a strip of bacon on the top.

This recipe comes from the More With Less Cookbook (have I mentioned that this in one of my favorite cookbooks?). It is a nice basic recipe that is fabulous by itself but allows itself to a lot of tweaking if you feel like it. It works great in the crock pot (I never make it in the oven, I only make it in the crockpot).

Basic Baked Beans

Soak overnight or by quick method:

1 lb navy beans (about two cups or so)
2 qts water

Drain the water and add fresh. The bring the beans to a boil and simmer until tender, about 1 1/2 hrs. Drain, reserving liquid

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine in a 2 qt. casserole:

cooked beans
1/2 c. molasses
1/4 c. ketchup (optional)
1 tsp mustard
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 onion, chopped
2 slices bacon, chopped or 1/4 lb salt pork (optional)
bean liquid to cover

Bake 4-8 hours, adding liquid occasionally if necessary. Cover during first half of baking time then uncover.

Notes:

• I almost never use the bacon/salt pork. I usually leave it "vegetarian" until I stir in big chunks of ham (which my veggie kids can pick out). It does need some kind of fat though, so I add a Tb. of so of oil or butter/margarine. It just gives it a smoother, richer mouth-feel.
• You do need to simmer the beans ahead of time. I learned this the hard way when I served my husband's family crunchy baked beans one summer at a bbq. I think it is the salt you are adding to the cooking liquid, it didn't allow the beans to get soft. I usually just soak the beans overnight then simmer them in the morning while I'm getting ready then stick it all in the crockpot and let it cook all day.
  
• I sometimes use prepared mustard and sometimes I use dry mustard, doesn't make a huge difference.
• I sometimes use dried onion flakes instead of a chopped onion.
• I almost always use the ketchup, but that's me.
• You can add a couple of TBs. of brown sugar for a different taste.
• You can add some "heat" ingredients if you like that kind of stuff - I don't. I'm a total "spice wimp."
• If you cook it in the Crockpot, you won't need to add additional liquid, just cook it on low for 6-8 hours and you'll be fine.

Enjoy!

Jill

Toffee-Topped Bars (and other cookie recipes!)

I have had this recipe in my recipe binder forever. I came in one of those "please buy our recipe card collection" packets. The ones where they give you some sample cards and then want you to pay lots of money for more card, you know? I didn't buy the "more" cards, but I kept the sample ones.

I've been meaning to try this recipe for years and somehow it just never made it to the top of the to-do list. Last week I needed a recipe to take to a gathering I was going to and these just seemed like the ones.

I would make these again, they were very good, and my whole family (as well as the women at my gathering) liked them. However, I am not sure why they are called "toffee-topped" bars. There is no toffee anywhere! I thought, as I was making them, that the part you sprinkle on would melt into a toffee type layer. No such luck. I'm thinking adding some toffee chips would be a good addition - I felt cheated!

In a large mixing bowl mix together:

2 c. packed brown sugar
2 c. all purpose flour

Using a pastry cutter or two knives (or your stand mixer) cut in:

1/2 c. (1 stick) butter or margarine

When it looks like coarse crumbs, remove 1 cup of the mixture and set aside.

To the mixture in the large bowl, add:

1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Lightly beat in:

1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 c. milk

Continue beating until a smooth batter forms. Pour batter into a greased 9x13 pan.

In a small bowl combine:

1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
1/4 c. flaked coconut (optional)

Sprinkle the reserved crumb mixture over the batter in the pan. Sprinkle with the chocolate chip mixture. Using a long flat spatula, spread topping evenly over the top of the batter in the pan.

Bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool bars completely before slicing. (yeah, right, like that's going to happen!)

These were better the second day. Seems like a lot of bar type recipes are like that. Not that there is much left the second day at my house!


Here are some links to other cookie recipes I have done.

Apple Berry Bars are truly wonderful and I can even trick myself into thinking that they are healthy, too.

We made Celebration Chocolate Revel Bars to celebrate the the inauguration. You don't have to wait for the next inauguration to make them. Celebrate Tuesday, just cause you can.

If you, like me, love caramel, try making the Caramel Frosted Brown Sugar Drops. We made them again for our Superbowl party. They are still cookies to die for!

Enjoy!

Jill

Soft Breadsticks

Sometimes while I'm fixing dinner I suddenly realize that this meal would really benefit from having some bread on the side. Only, it's 15 minutes until the food is done and I haven't started any bread!! Arrgh!

Then I take a deep breath and start making Soft Breadsticks. And 15 minutes later, we have bread with dinner. All is right with the world.

I got this recipe from Taste of Home magazine years and years ago. I have used it many, many, many times since. It is just that easy and that good. Try it and you'll see why we make it so often.

Soft Breadsticks

In a small bowl combine:

1 1/4 c. flour
2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Stir to combine well. Add

2/3 c. milk

Stir until a soft dough forms. This is kind of like biscuit dough, you don't want to be too tough with it or the breadsticks will be tough. Roll the dough out to a rectangle approximately 10" x 5" and about 1/2 " thick. Cut it into 12 breadsticks.

In a 9x13 pan melt 3 Tbs. of butter or margarine. Place the breadsticks in the pan, flipping to coat both sides. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and place in a 450 degree oven for 14 -18 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

Notes:

• I almost always need less milk. Don't add it all at once, you can always add more, but it is really hard to take it out if you used too much!!
• Sometimes I sprinkle them with garlic powder and sesame seeds. You could do poppy seeds or a combo also.
• We always double this recipe. I have a half-sheet cake pan that fits the doubled recipe perfectly. You could use two 9x13's if you don't have a big pan.

I don't have a picture of this recipe because we always eat them too fast. Yeah, it's not because I forgot, it's because they were gone so fast.

If you want more recipe ideas, hop on over to The Grocery Cart Challenge and check 'em out!

Artisan Bread at Home

Have you every gone to a really, really good bakery and come out with a loaf of just plain, incredibly delicious bread? Or been out to eat and they bring the bread out first and you forget all about the main course you ordered because the bread is what you really want to eat all night? I have figured out how to make it at home.

I adore bread. My oldest daughter asked me the other night, "Mom, if you made a new best friend, would they have to love bread to stay your friend?" It was an odd question (she is the queen of odd, off the wall questions), but I finally said, "yes, I think they would!"

I love to eat bread, and I love to make bread. However, I have had trouble getting my bread to taste like those artisan breads at the bakery. I discovered that the secret is a long, slow rise - and very little (or no) sugar. The trick to a really crisp crust is to add steam to the oven as the bread bakes.

This recipe comes from Home Baking by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, one of my favorite cookbooks. I have reviewed it before, but this is one of my favorite recipes. I don't make this near often enough, mostly because I don't think far enough ahead. This recipe isn't hard at all, it just takes forethought. It literally takes days to make, but 99% of that is just waiting time. Don't let this throw you. Just toss the stuff together and set in in the corner. Add a few things now and then and then bake when ready. Seriously, it is SO worth it! It is named after the authors' son Dom. It does make a really big batch (four huge loaves) feel free to half it, it works fine.

Here is how it goes, this is my very condensed version, the book has much more detailed instructions:

Dom's Large Batch Italian Boules and Focaccia

Put in a bowl:

3 c. water
1/4 tsp active dry yeast

Stir to dissolve, then add:

3 c. all purpose flour

Stir until a smooth batter forms. Cover and let sit 8 to 24 hours, whatever is most convenient.

Add to the batter:

6 c. lukewarm water

Stir then add:

2 c. whole wheat flour
4 c. all purpose flour

Stir until smooth then cover and set aside for 4 to 12 hours as convenient. Then add:

7 to 8 c. all purpose flour

Stir in bowl until you can't stir anymore then turn out to floured surface and knead in the rest of the flour. The dough should be smooth, soft and almost sticky. You really don't want to add too much flour. Put back in the bowl, cover with plastic and let rise 3 1/2 to 4 hours (or over night in a cool place).

To shape the loaves, cut the dough into four equal parts. SEt aisde loosely covered with plastic. Line three 8 to 10 inch round shallow wooden bowls or baskets with cotton clothes (such as tea towels) and flour the cloths well.

On a lightly floured surface, tuck the sides of 1 piece of dough under all around to make a large round boule. Pinch together underneath. Transfer the boule to a bowl or basket seam side up. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Let rise for 1 1/2 hrs, covered loosely with plastic wrap.

Forty-five minutes before you plan to start baking place a baking sotne in the oven. Preheat to 500 degrees.

When it is risen and the oven is preheated, transfer the bread to the baking stone. Transfer it to a peel that has been dusted liberally with corn meal first if that helps. With a really sharp knife, slash three cuts in the top. Spritz the loaf liberally with water and then throw some ice cubes in the bottom of the oven. Shut the door! The ice and the water will add steam to the oven and you don't want it to escape! You can spritz it with water a few more times in the first 5 to 10 minutes.

Bake until darkly golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. It should sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Let cool on a wire rack.

While it is cooling, you get to hear the bread "sing." This is my favorite part (other than eating it!). As the crust cools, it crackles quietly. It means it is going to have one of those fabulous crusty crusts. Yum!

If you can't fit all the loaves in at once, don't sweat it! Just bake them in batches, the longer rising time won't hurt them.

You can also make focaccia out of this dough. Before baking, press it out flat and let rise 45 minutes or so. Dimple the surface with your fingers and brush liberally with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt and herbs (basil and/or rosemary are good). We always do garlic too!

Seriously, if you are a bread fan, you have got to try this!

Jill

Oatmeal Pancakes - Yum!

I'm not sure if pancakes count as "baking" but they are a bread-type item. Plus, we had this recipe for dinner tonight and they were so good! And really healthy and surprisingly easy.

This recipe comes from the book The Passionate Vegetarian by Crescent Dragonwagon. If you are at all interested in vegetarian cooking (even if you are only looking to do it once a week or so) I highly recommend this book. It is a big one - 1110 pages!! But it is cram-packed with recipes, tips, recipe variations, and suggestions. There are some really, well, left-wing recipes. But there are lots and lots of "normal" food that just doesn't happen to have meat in it. This recipe is one of those examples.

Ethereal Buttermilk Oatmeal Pancakes

In a medium bowl combine:

3/4 c. old fashioned rolled oats
2 c. buttermilk (I used regular skim milk and added buttermilk powder to the dry ingredients)

Let the oats and milk sit for 1/2 hr.

Add to the oat/milk mixture:

1/4 c. buckwheat flour
1/4 c. whole wheat flour (I couldn't find buckwheat flour so I used 1/2 c. whole wheat flour)
1/2 c. unbleached white all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 egg yolks

Mix together, if the batter seems excessively thick, add a little more buttermilk (or in my case, milk).

In a separate bowl beat until stiff peaks form:

2 egg whites

(I used my KitchenAid stand mixer and it was really fast and easy) Fold the beaten egg white into the oat/milk/flour mixture. Cook on a non-stick pan until bubbles appear then flip. When they are done, serve with butter and syrup!

Next time I think I'm going to add some blueberries. I think they would go well with this recipe. We all ate them up and they were great.

Jill

PS If anyone has a miracle cure for the flu - you know, the high-fever-aching-headache-chills-coughing-feeling-miserable flu, please send it to me asap! The whole family has come down with it one by one. Darling Daughter number 3 came down with it this morning. Thus far, I'm the only one that hasn't gotten it. (knock on wood!) I really, really don't want to get it (however, Darling Daughter number 2 lost 6 lbs in 4 days, I wouldn't mind that!). The whole school has got it - one class last week had 10 kids absent in a class of 22! Going to wash my hands now, for the 145th time today!

Bread and Cheese Soufflé

Another really cheap and meat-free meal that we have recently discovered is Cheese Souffle. This recipe also came from my friend Kari. It is really good. Not particularly low-fat but so yummy!

Bread and Cheese Soufflé

6 eggs beaten

2 1/3 c milk

1 small can green chilies

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

1 stick melted butter

1 loaf fresh French bread

Grated cheese (save for last)

Mix eggs and milk, add milk, chilies, onion powder, garlic powder salt and butter.
Add bread - just the inside not the crusts. I get out all the bread I can. You just rip or cut it into cubes. You don't have to have it perfect because you won't be able to see the shape in the end anyway!

Pour half of mixture into a greased pan approx 9 1/2 x 11 sprinkle approx. 1 cup cheddar cheese over that. Pour last half of mixture over cheese and then on top of that approx. 1 more c. cheddar cheese. Bake 325 for 50-65 min. (Until knife comes clean in the middle.) I cover it for the first 30 minutes or so then uncover. It will puff up and be really beautiful when you take it out of the oven. Call everyone over before you pull it out. It deflates really fast and you want everyone to "ohh" and "ahh" over it first!

I served this with salad and fruit and we ate every last little bit. I even took the outsides of the bread and buttered them and broiled them as a side dish. Yum.

Broccoli Cottage Cheese Casserole

I have mentioned this recipe a couple of times in the last week. I have gotten several requests for it, so here goes!

When I first heard the ingredient list for this recipe, it seemed to me that it would not work. How would it set up, I wondered? If I had read this recipe in a book or online, I never would have tried it, it just sounded too weird. But a good friend of mine suggested this recipe to me and told me it was one of her family's favorites. She'd given me some good recipes in the past so I decided to take her word for it.

I'm glad I did. This recipe bakes up sort of like a quiche and everyone in my family liked it (my 16 yo went back for fourths the first time I made it!). It is incredibly easy to put to together can almost be a complete meal in itself. We usually serve it with some bread and some fruit. The other thing I like about it is that it uses up my eggs. My chickens are laying in abundance these days and I actually have to plan things to use the eggs up!

Broccoli Cottage Cheese Casserole

Thaw one 16 oz bag of frozen chopped broccoli. Squeeze out any extra water (you don't want a soupy quiche!)

Mix together in a bowl:

the thawed broccoli
6 eggs
2 lbs cottage cheese (I use the low fat kind)
6 Tbs flour
1/2 lb grated cheese (I used cheddar and used about a cup and a half or so)
1 stick melted butter (I used a half a stick - 1/4 c. and it was great)

Mix everything together well, making sure the eggs get well incorporated. Throw it in a 9 x 13 pan that has been greased. Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out almost clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

As I'm writing this, it sure doesn't sound low-fat. However, using my modifications and keeping in mind that it makes about 8-10 servings, it isn't all that bad. And tons of protein!

Enjoy!

Jill

Book Review - Moosewood Cookbook

Remember a long time ago when I said that I was a nanny for a year with a family in Washington DC? Remember when I said that the family was vegetarian and I was in charge of cooking dinner for them during the week? Remember when I said that I loved that year and found some of my favorite cookbooks? Well, if you don't remember me telling you that the first time, just pretend you do.

One of those cookbooks is the Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. Today, just about everyone has heard of the Moosewood cookbooks (there are nine of them put out by the restaurant), but back in 1988 when I received it, I had never heard of the books or the restaurant. A couple of the recipes that I cooked for the family came from this cookbook and I really liked the recipes. The Benton's (the family I lived with) bought me a copy for my birthday. Twenty-one years later, I'm still awfully glad they did.

This book is a vegetarian cookbook and so, of course, has no meat recipes in it. There are a lot of recipes that could easily be adapted, by adding cooked chopped chicken or beef, to be meat-ish. But most of the recipes are perfectly satisfying the way they are.

One of my favorites from this book is the recipe for Swiss Cheese and Mushroom Quiche. We make this all the time. Sometimes I substitute bacon for the mushrooms (a classic Quiche Lorraine) and sometimes I just add bacon to half of it (so my veggies can eat the non-meat half). This recipe is a good way to use up all those eggs I have from my chickens.

Swiss Cheese and Mushroom Quiche

Make your favorite pie crust recipe (or buy a pre-made crust) You will only need a bottom crust, not a top.

Place the crust in a pie tin. Cover bottom crust with 1 1/2 c. grated swiss cheese.

In a pan, saute in butter:

1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 lb mushrooms, chopped
salt, pepper to taste
a dash of thyme

Cover the cheese with the above mixture.

Make a custard by mixing together well:

4 eggs
1 1/2 c. milk
3 Tbs flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dry mustard

Pour the custard over the mushroom layer.

Sprinkle with paprika and bake at 375 degrees 40 -45 minutes or until solid in the center when jiggled.

Variations:

• substitute cheddar for swiss
• use fresh tomato slices instead of mushrooms (tomatoes don't need to be sauted first)
• substitute 1 cup chopped scallions for the onion
• add 1 tsp prepared horseradish
• add chopped cooked meat - bacon, chicken, ham, etc

And remember, real men do eat quiche.

Enjoy!

Jill

Book Reviews I've Done Before

Everyone here at my house is sick. Just last week I congratulated myself on our lack of sickness this winter.

"Oh, we must be practicing good handwashing skills. We must be eating healthy and getting enough sleep. We are so good."

Pride goeth before the fall, as they say. We are all sick. A really bad winter cold - snuffles, coughing, sore throats, sneezing, the works. That'll teach me to get all self-righteous!

Needless to say, I'm not very motivated to do blog posts. But since recently someone told me they get mad when I don't update (you know who you are!), I'm posting something.

I've done several book reviews in the past so I thought I would gather them together and update them.

I did More With Less this week.

Another book I have reviewed is Saving Dinner by Leanne Ely. I don't actually own this book but I've checked it out of the library enough that I really should just buy my own copy. We really like the Garlic Lime Chicken and the Polenta Casserole. I need to check it out again (or just buy, sigh), and get some new ideas. Especially new ideas for bean recipes. They are so healthy and cheap and high in protein that I'm really trying to add more to our diet. This book had tons of bean centered recipes. I'm doing it this weekend, I promise.

One of my all time favorite books is Cheap Fast Good by Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross. This book is such a great book for a beginner cook or someone who just really wants to branch out but doesn't have a lot of time. Tons of recipes from soups to pastas to sides - all ready in no time. One of the recipes we use a lot is Mindless Meatball Minestrone. So good and if you have frozen meatballs in your freezer, goes together in under 25 minutes.

Mindless Meatball Minestrone

Heat in a large sauce pan:

1 can (or 2 cups) chicken broth
1 can (or 2 cups) beef broth

While it is heating, add:

2 c. frozen mixed vegetables
1 can stewed or dices tomatoes
20 or so already cooked meatballs
1/3 c. pasta (spaghetti broken in 1 to 2 inches lengths, macaroni, shells, etc)

Cover the pot and bring it to a boil. When it boils, uncover and stir well. Add:

1 can light red kidney beans (or other kind of beans)
1 tsp dried italian seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Continue to boil until the pasta is tender and the meatballs are heated through. Serve with grated parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.

You can of course, soak your own beans and make this for a lot less, but I usually use the cans because they are so fast and the point of this recipe is for it to be "Mindless" right?

Yum!

So now I come to the end of my "I'm really sick but Ilene gets mad if I don't post" post. And I'm off. Maybe I should make some soup tonight. Soup is good for a cold, right?

Enjoy!

Jill

Honey Whole Wheat Bread

One of my favorite cookbooks is my More With Less Cookbook by Doris Janzen Longacre. I did a lengthy review on it before and I would recommend reading the review (not just because I wrote it, but also because it has a lot of information about why the book was written). This book is such a great book for people looking to save money on groceries.

I recently went back to my More With Less Cookbook to get a new bread recipe to try. I was looking for something easy, using whole wheat flour and able to use as a sandwich bread. I thought I would try the recipe for Honey Whole Wheat Bread. Man, I'm glad I did! It ends up soft but slices well. It makes two loaves of bread which is good because the first loaf goes really fast!

Honey Whole Wheat Bread
makes 2 loaves

Combine in a mixer bowl:
3 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. nonfat dry milk
1 T. salt
2 pkg dry yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp yeast)

Heat in saucepan until warm (or in microwave):

3 c. water or potato water
1/2 c. honey
2 T. oil

Pour warm (not hot) liquid over flour mixture. Beat with electric mixer 3 minutes. Stir in:

1 additional cup whole wheat flour
4 - 4 1/2 c. white flour

Knead 5 minutes, using additional white flour if necessary. Place in greased bowl, turn, let rise until double in bulk. Punch into loaves. Place in greased 9x5" bread pans. Cover and let rise 40-45 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes.

Let it cool and then slice. It is hard to resist it when it is hot because it smells so good!

This is a very sweet bread, perfect for toast with cinnamon sugar or jam. When we served it with soup it was a little too sweet. If I was going to serve it with soup again, I'd reduce the honey a bit (and probably let it rise a little longer). I make this primarily as a breakfast food and like the extra bit of sweetness. You decide.

Check out the More With Less Cookbook for even more cheap meals.

Enjoy!

Jill

Chicken Tetrazzini

You remember in my last post when I said that I have a meal or two stashed in my freezer that only take 15 minutes in the microwave before they are ready to serve? This recipe is one of them. It is a kid-friendly quick meal that saves me from the local drive-thru.

It is a freezer meal, which means you have to do some work to have it ready in the freezer. Thankfully, it doesn't even take all that long to prepare the first time. I always do at least x4 of this recipe when I mega-cook, and I've been known to do x6.

Here's the recipe. Think about taking some time this weekend (Safeway has boneless-skinless chicken breasts on sale this week!), and making some for your freezer!

Chicken Tetrazzini
(This recipe makes one meal's worth. Feel free to multiply as needed.)

Cook in a pot of salted water until tender:

spaghetti noodles (use as much as will feed your family. The recipe says 8 oz.)

Drain the noodles, and set aside in a really, really big bowl!

In a pan, saute:

3 Tbs margarine or butter
1 c. chopped green peppers (or a mixture of red, yellow and green- it's prettier!)
1 onion, finely chopped

When the onion is transparent and the peppers are tender, add the mixture to the pasta. Add:

4 c. grated cheese (use whatever kind you have. I don't usually use this much cheese)
2 - 10 3/4 ounce cans cream of mushroom soup (or one can cream of chicken and one can mushroom, or substitute cream of celery)
1 soup can full of milk
5 cups cooked chopped chicken (I don't usually use quite this much chicken, mostly because I'm cheap!)
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients together and put in a gallon ziploc bag. Label and freeze. To serve, defrost and place in a casserole dish. Top with buttered bread crumbs if desired. Bake until bubbly.

Or, you can do it the way I do. Microwave til hot and serve.

Notes:

• You can use mixtures of cheeses with good results.
• I almost always make this with whole wheat pasta, it adds to the nutrition.
• Feel free to make your own white sauce instead of the cans of soup. I don't use canned "cream of" soups very often but it just makes it so easy. My sister hates mushrooms so she uses all Cream of Chicken. We like it half and half. It is very forgiving.
• The amounts of cheese, pasta and chicken are very flexible! I usually use about 3 c. chicken and I measure the cheese in "handfuls" - just keep adding til it looks right!

Enjoy!

Jill

How Do We Avoid Eating Out?

We have heard a lot about ways to save money lately. It seems like even the news stations, like CNN and MSNBC, and newsmagazines like Time are doing stories about how to save money. Things like brewing your own coffee, brown bagging your lunch and cooking dinners at home get mentioned all the time. So we all know that one of the best ways to save money on your food budget is to eat out less.

But we are so busy!! My family is typical - Monday is play practice, Tuesday is play practice, Wednesday is piano, dance lessons, church youth group and play practice, Thursday is girl scouts and play practice, Friday is play practice (oh man, will I be glad when this play is over - except for it ends just when track season starts!). How do we find time to cook a full dinner?

The sad truth about my family is that we almost never go out to eat. My kids think they are deprived but with a family of 6, eating out, even at Taco Bell, is expensive! During my month of nothing I was limiting myself to $50 a week for groceries (and eating pretty well I might add), we splurged and went out to dinner with some friends to Red Robin. Even with sharing entrees our bill was $38.00! Well over half what I was spending for a week's worth of groceries!

But with a busy schedule, I've had to come up with ways to make dinner time easy - and have to have a few tricks up my sleeve for those really crazy nights! Here's what works for us:

Menu Planning

I cannot tell you how planning my meals helps me not go out to eat. On Sundays I sit down and plan meals for the week. I make my shopping list from this list of meals. When I go shopping on Monday, I get all the things I will need for the list of meals. For the rest of the week, I have all the ingredients for those meals. At least I can make those meals!

I try to look at my list of meals in the evening, I like to get an idea of what we will have the next day. That way, if I need to defrost something, or put something in the crockpot in the morning, I'm prepared. Thinking about dinner before 4 pm is essential!

Mega Cooking

I did a couple of posts about mega-cooking last week, but I wanted to mention it again because it is one of the best ways to keep us from going out to eat. Knowing that there are meals ready to be thawed and heated, keeps me sane!

I have several meals that only require 15 minutes in the microwave and they are ready to eat. These are my life savers. Several more need a few minutes of fussing then 45 minutes in the oven - leaving me time to fix a quick salad, slice some fruit and put my feet up for 15 minutes.

"Fast Food Meals"

We have a couple of super quick meals that I almost always have the ingredients for and take 20 minutes or less. One-Eyed Egyptians are one of these. Burrito Bowls are another.

Burrito Bowls

Cook enough rice for your family (brown rice is best but white rice cooks in 20 minutes). When the rice is done and still hot, toss it with butter, lime juice, and salt. I use the lime juice in the little plastic limes, I just keep one in my refrigerator.

Meanwhile, open a can of black beans. Pour them into a bowl and add some cumin and some garlic powder. Stir and microwave until the beans are hot. Set aside.

Grate some cheese. Chop tomatoes if you have them. Get out the sour cream and the salsa.

Line up all the ingredients on the table (we do it on the counter and do it buffet style). Give everyone a plate and let them pile them on. We do it in this order: rice, beans, cheese, salsa (tomatoes), sour cream.

My family loves this meal! You could dress it up with cooked chicken or beef, or taco meat, but we really like it just like this. You do all the beans and cheese in the time the rice cooks and the whole meal is ready to eat in 20 minutes.

You should try to have at least one meal that you always have the ingredients and everyone will eat, that only takes 20 minutes. Some ideas: pancakes, waffles, microwaved baked potatoes with canned chili and grated cheese, toasted cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, spaghetti (sauce from a can). I'm sure there are others. What do you use for your super quick meals?

Crockpot

Having a meal in the crockpot when I get home means that I won't have to go out to eat. We have a couple of really great meals that we like, but I really need to expand my crockpot list of meals - have any good ones? I need to go to Crockpot 365 and check it out.

Putting a meal in the crockpot does take some planning ahead but it saves you so much time in the end that it is worth it. You can even put it all together in the crock the night before and put it in the fridge over night. That way all you have to do in the morning is plug it in and plop the crock on. Ta-da! Dinner is done!

Sometimes it is a hassle to make dinner instead of going out. Sometimes I think that I "deserve" to go out to eat. But when I get to the end of the month and there is still money left and I'm not stressed out about finances? That sense of peace is what I really deserve!

Jill

Cincinnati Chili

I got this recipe from a friend of mine. She and I do mega-cooking together. Her family loved this recipe but it is a lot of work to make so she wanted to do it once and get four or five meals out of it. We had never tried it but I agreed to add it to our list - she could do x4 the recipe and I would do x2 (and if my family hated it, I'd give the extra to her for her family).

When I first served this to my family, they said, "This isn't chili." And they are right, it isn't exactly like what you think of when you say "chili." But it is still really good, and now I make x4 the recipe, too.

One note about this recipe: If you aren't a hard core baker/cook, you might not have all these spices in your cupboard. Don't stress. As long as you have most of them, it will still be good. It is better, and more complexly flavored, if you have all of them, but if you don't have cardamom in your cupboard, make the recipe anyway.


Cincinnati Chili
(the amounts given here are for one batch - do the math if you want to make more)

In a pan, brown:

1 lb ground beef
2 medium onions, chopped

When it is just about done, add:

2 cloves minced garlic (don't let the garlic burn)

Add to the pan:

1 cup thick barbeque sauce
1/2 c. water
1 Tbs chili powder
1 tsp pepper
1/2 ounce unsweetened chocolate, grated (I've used cocoa powder before with good results)
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp salt

Mix all these together and add:

tomato juice, enough that it you create a mixture that ladles easy, you know, it's "pourable." Don't worry about getting it exact, just add enough but not too much.

Stir and simmer for awhile to allow the flavors to blend. Then cool and spoon into ziploc bags and freeze.

To serve:

Reheat the meat mixture, boil some spaghetti noodles, grate some cheddar cheese, and open a can of kidney beans. You can also serve it with chopped onions and oyster crackers. To serve "Cincinnati Five-Way Chili" you serve it with all five: noodles, cheese, beans, crackers and onions. We don't like the chopped onions and I almost always forget the crackers. It is better with the crackers, I think, but I just always forget.

Everyone puts a pile of noodles on their plate, tops it with some meat mixture and then adds the toppings of their choice.

Yum!

Jill

Lentil Rice Casserole

Two of the things that I have "stockpiled" in my basement are lentils and rice. Rice is so versatile - you can use it in a million things. And lentils are a big hit in my house. I know not everyone is familiar with lentils and might not know what to do with them other than in a lentil soup. One of our favorite recipes (my daughter Jana has requested this for her birthday dinner before) is Lentil Rice Casserole.

The thing I love about this recipe is that it is super simple, uses ingredients I almost always have on hand (making it a perfect "oh my gosh, what's for dinner" recipe), and is pretty darn healthy. I use white rice in this because I've never been able to make brown rice work. You would think it would be simple - brown rice and lentils cook in the same amount of time. However, whenever I try to make it with brown rice something goes wrong. Either the lentils are still crunchy or the rice is gummy. Have a try and let me know if you can make it work. Even with white rice it still has a bunch of nutrition in it, so I'm not stressing out about it too much.

Lentil Rice Casserole

Saute in a large skillet:

1 chopped onion
several chopped carrots (I use lots because it ups the nutritional value)
1 -2 Tbs olive oil (or other good oil)

When the onions are starting to wilt, add:

1/2 c. brown lentils

Stir and cook for a few more minutes. You don't need to fully cook the carrots or onion, you just want to start them. It will look like this:


Add to the pan;

2 c. broth (we use chicken broth but you could use vegetable broth or beef, your choice)

Cover the pan and simmer for 20 minutes. Set a timer for this one, you really want it to be pretty close to exactly 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, stir in:

1/2 c. white rice

Cover again and set the timer for 20 more minutes. During this time make a salad or slice some bread or slice some fruit. Or paint your nails or check your email or whatever.

Uncover and test to make sure the rice and lentils are tender. You may need to stir in a little more water and let simmer for 5 more minutes or so. When everything is good to go, sprinkle on top:

grated cheese (we like cheddar but have used mozzarella or colby jack in a pinch)

Cover for a minute or so to let the cheese melt. Then serve!

That's it. So easy and I almost always have rice, lentils, boullion cubes, onions, carrots and cheese. Try it, you'll like it!

This recipe is adaptable, also. You can add more lentils and rice if your family is bigger. Just make sure you have twice as much stock as you do total rice plus lentils. For example if you do one cup of lentils and one cup of rice (2 cups total), then you need 4 cups of stock/broth. Make sense? I try to keep the lentils and rice even but if your family loves lentils and isn't as keen on rice, then play with the proportions. Have fun.

Enjoy!

Jill

Apple Berry Bars

I got a new cookbook for Christmas. I got the Taste of Home Baking Book. I really, really like this cookbook. I love to bake and I love Taste of Home so it is a perfect pair. I have made several recipe and not one of them has flopped. As soon as my KitchenAid stand mixer gets fixed, I'm going to try even more. I love my KitchenAid stand mixer.

I also love my apple-oatmeal bar recipe. As I was going through my new cookbook, I found a recipe for Apple Berry Streusel Bars. It was very similar to the apple-oatmeal bars but with raspberries in the middle with the apple. I made the recipe in the book and it wasn't just right (but still really good), so I tweaked my original recipe and made it tonight. Can you say, YUM?

This recipe is a great way to get oatmeal into my family and one of the recipes that I use my 25 lb bag of oatmeal in. The filling calls for 12 oz of raspberry jam. Since I made tons of raspberry jam this summer, it is pretty cheap. If you had to go out and buy a jar of jam it would raise the price but it's worth it. This would be good with just about any kind of jam, and you could probably just toss some berries (frozen or otherwise) with the apples, too. Blueberry would be good.

Apple Berry Bars
(makes a 9x13 pan, about 4 cookies for me!)

In a bowl, combine:

2 c. flour (I almost always use half whole wheat flour)
2 c. oatmeal (I use the old fashioned kind)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1 c. sugar

Cut in (like you would for a pie crust):

1 cup butter or margarine

It should resemble really coarse crumbs when you are done.
Press half (or a little more) of the mixture into a greased 9x13 pan.

In a separate bowl, combine:

4 c. chopped, peeled apple (or whatever you have - just make sure you have at least 4 c.)
12 oz (about 1 1/2 c.) raspberry jam

Spread the apple mixture over the crust in the pan. Sprinkle the other half of the oatmeal mixture over the apple/raspberry mixture. Press lightly.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 minutes. Let cool and cut into bars. While it is warm it is really good but you'll need to use a fork. After it cools, you can pick them up and eat them with your hands. I think they are better cool, but my family likes them warm. You decide!

Enjoy!

Jill

Celebration Chocolate Revel Bars!

I'm keeping my kids home from school Tuesday for the first two and a half hours. Why, you ask? Because I wanted them to see the historic inauguration of Barack Obama. Our schools waited until the last minute to decide if they were going to show it or not. I think they are going to, but I didn't want to chance my kids missing it. Plus, I have to admit, I wanted to watch it with them. They are almost as excited as I am - well, maybe they are more excited.

So, in honor of a festive occasion, I'm posting a recipe for one of our favorite cookies. In addition, it uses up three of my bulk buying items: flour, oatmeal and chocolate chips!

Chocolate Revel Bars
(originally from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book)

Cream together in a bowl:

1 c. minus 2 Tbls butter (save the 2 Tbs for later)
2 c. packed brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda

When well combined, add:

2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla

Beat well and add:

2 1/2 c. all purpose flour
3 c. quick cooking rolled oats

If you are using a stand mixer, you can add it all the flour at once and then add the oats. If you are using a hand mixer, you may need to add the oats with a wooden spoon. It gets fairly stiff. Press two-thirds of the mixture in the bottom of a 15x10x1 inch pan. Set the other one-third aside and make the filling.

For the filling, in a medium saucepan combine:

2 Tbs butter (the stuff you set aside before)
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Heat over low heat until the chocolate chips are melted and everything is combined. Remove from heat and stir in:

2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c. chopped walnuts of pecans (I never add these because several children have nut issues - they just really don't like them!)

Spread the warm filling over the dough in the pan. Take the other 1/3 dough and dot it over the surface. I take small pieces and flatten them out in my hands and place them all over the filling. It won't cover everything and that is ok.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until the top is light brown. The filling will still look "unset" but it will set up as it cools.

Let cool then slice into bars. Try not to eat every single one yourself. It will be tough, but try to save some for the other members of your family.
Just look at that fudgy goodness! These are better when they are cool. And even better the next day - if there are any left. Yeah, right.

Enjoy!

Jill

Chinese Chicken Salad - redux!

In honor of "Buy stuff Cheap Week" I'm reposting the recipe for Chinese Chicken Salad. When I can get chicken for really cheap, this is a good way to stretch a couple of breasts to feed your whole family. This is my theory about meat: I very rarely serve meat as a "dish," I almost always serve it as an "ingredient." What I mean is, I stretch the chicken by adding it to cabbage to make a salad, I stretch the ham by adding it to rice to make fried rice, I add the sausage to bean and rice to make Red Beans and Rice. This way I can buy a lot less meat but still make my family feel satisfied. When I do serve it as a "dish" (such as the Italian Chicken I posted yesterday), I make sure I have lots of yummy side dishes like potatoes, steamed veggies, a rice pilaf, homemade bread or rolls or biscuits, or jars of home canned fruit. That way I can stretch my food dollar and no one cries, "Where's the beef?"

Another way we like to eat our really cheap chicken is in Chinese Chicken Salad. My kids eat this like crazy! I'm pretty sure everyone has had some version of this salad at a potluck at some time in their lives, but this is my version, and it is the best. No really, my version is the best version, ever. Really. And it is relatively healthy, too. (Just close your eyes and imagine that those ramen noodles are, um, thin sliced celery, ok? Besides, all that cabbage cancels out the ramen, right?)

Here is what you need to make Chinese Chicken Salad:
Some cooked, chopped chicken (about 2 cups or so, but this recipe is very forgiving)
One head of green cabbage
Some slivered almonds (about a half cup or more if you like them and can get them cheap)
2 packages of chicken flavored ramen noodles
Vegetable oil, lemon juice, seasoned rice wine vinegar, salt, pepper, sugar

First, chop the cabbage - please remember to remove the core, it is not tasty. I chop my cabbage by putting it through the slicing attachment of my food processor. You are looking for something between salad-green-size pieces and coleslaw-size pieces. Throw all the chopped cabbage into a big bowl. Throw in the chopped chicken (throw carefully, you don't want to take out someone's eye!)

Next, put the ramen packages on the counter and smash them. Just whack 'em good. You are breaking up the noodles into bite size pieces not dust! Now add the noodles to the cabbage/chicken (remove them from the package, duh.). Save the flavoring packets, you will be adding these to the dressing.

Next add the almonds. I always toast them slightly in my toaster oven, I think it brings out the flavor. You could toast them in a dry skillet on the stove also. Or you can just add them raw. I usually add some sesame seeds (2 Tbs or so) when I toast the almonds, but you don't have to.

Now make your dressing. Combine in a container:

1/2 c. oil (use a good quality vegetable oil or olive oil)
2 TBS lemon juice
2 TBS seasoned rice wine vinegar (you find this with all the other vinegars)
1 tsp sugar
2 seasoning packets from the ramen noodles
salt and pepper to taste

Shake, stir or otherwise combine the dressing ingredients until the sugar and ramen seasoning is dissolved. Pour this over the cabbage/chicken/almonds/ramen and mix everything together well. Serve soon, this doesn't taste quite as good after it has sat awhile, the noodles get mushy. We do however, finish off all leftovers (if there are any, which there very rarely are). You can serve this with soy sauce but we prefer it plain. Prepare to fight for your fair share - my fair share is at least half. Hey, I made it, it's only fair I get half, right?

Jill

Italian Chicken

This recipe is one of my favorite ways to serve chicken to my family. It isn't the most low-fat way, but it is one of our favorites. I think it is because it is so tender because it is pounded thin. And flavorful because of all the seasoning on it.

When you get your chicken for $1.49 a pound, it is also very cheap! I think my family is a low meat kind of family, it only takes two large chicken breasts to feed us (and we had leftovers for lunch tomorrow!). But even if you need more, if you can get them cheap, it isn't to expensive. Then if you serve it with Crashed Potatoes and some steamed veggies, it is a really cheap meal.

Here's how you do it:

First take you chicken breasts (boneless, skinless, please!). Place the chicken breasts between two pieces of waxed paper (back when I was really, really frugal, I would save the bags from inside the cereal boxes and use those for waxed paper in this recipe). Then pound it with something heavy and hard. I use my wooden rolling pin:Smash it pretty good, don't be afraid of hurting its feelings or anything. Really mush it flat. When you get done it will look like this compared to its un-mushed counterpart:
Then you are going to want to do the other one, too. When they are done, cut them into serving size pieces. I cut them into, more or less, three pieces each. Then I bread them. To bread them you will need three things:

a bowl of seasoned flour (stir salt and pepper into plain white flour), a bowl of milk, and a bowl of seasoned breadcrumbs. I use plain breadcrumbs and then stir in basil, garlic powder, salt, oregano, pepper and whatever else sounds good. Sometimes I add parmesan cheese. I usually make my own breadcrumbs. I save the ends of the bread, and that last piece that is threatening to go bad. I pop them in the freezer and when I have enough I place them on a cookie sheet in the oven at 300 degrees for 45 minutes of so (turning once) until they are really dry and hard. Then I put them into the food processor until it is breadcrumbs. I use 100% whole wheat bread so my breadcrumbs are "healthy." Yeah, right.

First dip a piece into the flour, then the milk then the breadcrumbs. Pat those breadcrumbs on there good - you want them to stay there while you are frying them. When you have them all done, put them in a pan with some hot oil in it.

Olive oil is good for this but, let's face it, it is expensive. You can use canola oil or vegetable oil with good results. Just make sure the oil is hot before you add the chicken or it will get really greasy.

When they are brown underneath, turn them over and let them brown on the other side. As they get done (check to make sure they are cooked all the way through, but they should be because they are really thin), remove them and keep them warm until the all the pieces are done.

That's it! Sometimes I serve this with gravy over mashed potatoes, sometimes with sauted peppers and onions, and sometimes (like last night), with Crashed Potatoes on the side.

If you have cheap chicken in the freezer, a good, satisfying, cheap meal is always handy!

Jill