Supposed to be frugal Friday :)

I was sick Friday so I didn't get this posted but I also wanted to post this I think it's very important. Saving money on meat! Yep meat :) my family loves meat but the price of meat is so expensive. I try to make it stretch. Who says you have to use a full lb of hamburger in a single batch of spaghetti sauce or meatballs ? When I buy hamburger in bulk it saves money per lb. and then when I separate into bags I put approximately 3/4 lb on each bag. For example I take a 5lb package of meat and divide it into 6 bags. Makes it stretch a little more :) or when I make taco meat I add refried beans to it. :) chad says it just saves him time :) I say saves money :) I hope you are able to use a few of these tips and make your meat stretch a little more

Frugal Friday

I wanted to add a little something to my Cooking blog. I love being frugal to help my family save money.  I also love freezer cooking and what do you know the two go hand in hand :)  Freezer cooking saves you time and money.  You don't have to grab take out or buy unhealthy boxed meals when you take a few extra minutes to get things in your freezer..
*Today I am making a large batch of french toast. I buy a dozen eggs and a loaf of bread and cook up the whole thing. I then serve some to my family, as much as they want to eat at the time, then I lay the rest on a jelly roll pan and place wax paper between the layers. I then freeze for a hour to flash freeze it. When that hour is up i place them in a gallon sized freezer bag. And there you have it breakfast ready for a busy morning with only minutes of effort . I

Never Fail Banana Bread :)

Ingredients: 

1 ¾ cup Flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup brown sugar or pure evaporated sugar cane
4 bananas mashed
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 tablespoons milk
2 eggs
1 ½ Tbs cinnamon

Instructions: 

1. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl with a whisk, making a well in the center.

2. In another bowl, mash together bananas, butter, milk, and eggs.

3. Add banana mixture to dry ingredients

4. Pour batter into a loaf pan. I like to use mini loaves and freeze a few

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-60 minutes, until bread tests done with a fork or toothpick (comes out clean). If bread is browning too quickly, lay a piece of foil on top of the loaf while it's baking. Reduce time if you are making mini loaves

6. Cool loaf on a wire rack, covered with a clean towel. When cool, slice with a thin knife. Banana bread can be frozen

Yields 1 loaf or 4 mini loaves

Best chocolate chip cookies ever !

My hubby loves these cookies ! I've tried different types he always asks for chocolate chip " cuz you make the best" . So try them see what you think...

Chocolate chip cookies
2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup butter flavored shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp Vanilla
3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 12 oz . bag chocolate chips

I like to pop this into my kitchen aid mixer, but be sure to not over mix or they will become tough.
Preheat oven for 375 .
Cream, butter and shortening for 10 seconds, add sugars , mix another ten seconds, add eggs than vanilla. Cream those all together. Add flour, salt and baking soda while kitchen aid is off. Turn it back on to combine the dry ingredients with the butter mixture just till combined, add chocolate chips just till combined.
I love the cookie scoop and stone for my cookies!!! Anyway scoop cookies with medium cookie scoop and place about 12 on a pan . Bake 10-13 min
Cool on wire rack and repeat till dough is gone. If your family is anything like my hubby the cookie yield may vary depending on how much dough e takes out:). But should yield 4 dozen

Christmas cookies

Here is a platter of cookies I made for chad's co-workers. I will post the recipes soon ;)

Crock pot tortellini soup

This is a recipe I made up and it's so yummy and easy!

1 can diced tomatoes
1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
1 lb Italian sausage cooked
1 med carrot cut ( I jullianed mine)
3 cups spinach torn (optional)
1/2 onion diced
2 tbs basil
1 garlic clove pressed
3 cups water
2 cups frozen tortellini

*put everything in the crock pot but the tortellini . stir and cook on high for 4 hours . Add frozen tortellini 30 min before serving .
Then enjoy with some garlic bread and you've got a great meal

chicken broccoli braid

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2 Cups cooked Chicken

1 Cup chopped Broccoli

1/2 Cup Chopped Red bell pepper 

1 Pressed garlic clove 

4 oz sharp cheddar cheese 

1/2 cup mayo

1 Tbs dill

2tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp salt

dash of pepper

2 packs cresant rolls 

1 egg whites lightly beaten

Combine all the ingredients but cresant rolls and egg whites.lay the mixture in the middle of the cresant rolls
Press all seams together so filling will not leak out. Along outer side of dough, along each of two opposite sides, cut 2 inch strips from end toward center. This will look like fringe along the two longer sides of the dough. Add filling down the center of between the strips. To braid, lift strips of dough, one at a time, across mixture to meet in center, twisting each strip one turn. Continue alternating strips to form a braid. Tuck ends up to seal at end of braid. Brash with egg white.  bake 25-28 minutes or until deep golden brown. Makes 10 servings.

Freezing Rice

I have been very much into Freezer Cooking lately! It is so nice and has saved us a lot of money and me a lot of time. Not to mention it is just so much fun to see how creative I can be :)  Here is something that I discovered a little while ago and thought I would share it...Huge time saver!  FREEZE RICE! Yep you heard me right ( or read me right I guess in this case)  You can make your own steamer bags of rice!  I like to make a  crock pot meals on Sunday or Wednesday mainly and a few top rice.. Like my Chicken Adobo, so good, but don't want to wait for my rice to cook 20-25 min when we get home from church . I mean come on the rest of my dinner is prepared, so why wait :)  Here is what I do...


On a day with spare time pull out your rice maker, or whatever you use to make rice, and make a batch of rice. I like to do a large batch, 6 cup water 3 cup rice.  Once it is done cooking I fluff it up, and fill up a Qt size freezer bag and seal it removing all the air.  Be sure to label it "Rice Heat 4-5 min, High" then when you are ready to use it. just pull it out and plop it right into the microwave frozen and sealed.. the ice crystals will help it steam right up just like the store bought ones, When it is done place in a bowl and fluff it with a fork and there you go 5 min rice ! I hope you find it as useful as I do!

24 hour planner giveaway!I

I love to plan and try my best to stay organized! I recently discovered that if I have my day planned out I am more likely to get more done. I have started making goals for myself in many areas, cleaning goals, weight loss goals, teaching goals, just many different things.  so my friend is having this wonderful giveaway for a planner! Good Luck!http://empoweringmommy.com/2011/03/dotmine-day-planners-24-hour-giveaway-ends-38-at-12-noon-cst.html

pictures by kami

While we were working on the kitchen Kami asked if she could take some pictures... here are a few pictures through the eyes of kami 

 

 

our Menu

Turner Family Menu
Monday:
Breakfast- Cereal
Dinner- Chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, and brussel sprouts

Tuesday:
Breakfast- Oatmeal
Lunch- salad with tuna/ peanut butter sandwich
Dinner- Pancakes

Wednesday:
Breakfast- Cinnamon rolls
Lunch- pizza
Dinner- Baked Beans and cornbread

Thursday:
Breakfast-egg and toast
Lunch- Left overs
Dinner- Mexican Pasta ( new recipe)

Friday-
Breakfast-Oatmeal
Lunch- Peanut butter and Jelly/ for me.. Salad
Dinner- (Wedding) grilled cheese

Saturday:
Breakfast-cereal
Lunch- home made pizza
Dinner-

Sunday-
Breakfast- Cream of wheat
Dinner- Steak and onion Pie ( cooking for 2)

Enter to win a $50 gift card and a 100!

My friend Rachael has this awesome blog, she also is offering a wonderful give away. http://empoweringmommy.com/2011/02/foodnetworkstore-com-50-giveaway-ends-228-7-winners.html/comment-page-1#comment-41677 and http://empoweringmommy.com/2011/02/shopping-for-your-valentine-at-red-envelope-100-gc-giveaway-ends-210.html

Chicken broth

Well it has been a while since I have posted. I am not so good at taking the pictures, so I really hope you still are able to enjoy the recipes  :)

 So I love to have money. So to help do that I make my own chicken broth.  I got a whole chicken cut up cheap at the store.  So i placed it in a stock pot  with 2 stalks of celery,2 cloves of garlic, 5 small carrots, an onion cut into big chunks, some  bay leaves , salt and pepper.  Then covered it with water, and boiled it till the chicken was falling off the bones.  Once it was done I placed the chicken into a boil, removed the veggies, and strained the broth through a cheese cloth or flour sack, into a mixing bowl.  The flour sack/cheese cloth is wonderful for removing all the yucky stuff that the chicken leaves behind on the flour sack and not in your broth :)
I then put the broth in pint size containers and waited for it to cool and then placed it in the freezer. That one chicken saved me lots of money in broth and is so much better for us with out all of the preservatives and sodium.

So have fun saving money and getting healthy.. flu season is the perfect time to use up this broth :)

Trail mix

My Kami absolutely loves trail mixes and she loves cinnamon.  So I decided to try to make a low calorie snack that was on the healthier side and still yummy.
This is what I came up with. I hope you enjoy it .. you can use any types of cereals, and dried fruit and nuts. Its a very flexable recipe.
3/4 cup brown sugar
1-2 tbs cinnamon
3 tbs butter (melted)
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cup crispix
1 cup multi grain cherios
2 cups rice chex
1 cup pretzels
1 cup walnuts
1/2 cup dried cranberries
 in a large bowl mix together cereals, pretzels, berries, and nuts.
in a smaill mix sugar and cinnamon
add vanilla to melted butter, toss sugar mixture over cereal mixture then keep tossing while adding the butter. place on a jelly roll pan or large cookie sheet and put in oven at 275 . stir every 10 min for 40 min
allow to cool and enjoy!

The best home made Fried Chicken ever!

Ever wonder how you can make fried chicken as good as you buy it at the store.. well I think I have figured it out... well atleast we like it :)
* heat frying oil in pan or deep fryer
* take the skin off 7-8 pieces of thighs or legs
* mix 1 Tbs salt ,1/2 Tbs garlic, 1/2 Tbs  pepper
* coat chicken with the spices
* put 3 eggs , a dash of milk, and a dash of hot sauce ( enough to make the egg mixture look orange) in a bowl and beat till well combined.
* in a plastic bag  put 2 cups of self rising flour if you don't have self rising flour put 2 cups flour 1 tsp salt and 1 Tbs baking powder
* dip the chicken in the egg mixture then put in bag with the flour.
* shake the bag
* remove chicken and place in the hot oil
* fry approx 20 min or till it is 160 temp and fluids run clear.
Fry as many as your pan will hold :)
I hope you like this it is super easy and so yummy!

Pumpkin oatmeal cookies

Pumpkin Oatmeal cookies
2 cups flour
1 cup quick oats ( I like a more oaty texture so I used half quick half rolled)
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt 
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup choc chips
1 cup walnuts
* combine flour oats, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a bowl. In a large bowl cream butter and sugars, addeggs and vanlla. then stir in pumpkin. Gradually add the dry ingredients. mix in choc chips and nuts. For a healthier version add raisins or cranberries instead of choc chips or add 2 cups instead of choc chips and nuts.
* spoon on to pan and bake at 350 for 10-12 min.
let cool on pan for a few min before moving to a cooling rack
* I hope you live them like I do.. I may have lots of new pumpkin recipes for you . I was given a few pie pumpkins and have been pureeing my own pumpkin and baking the seeds!  So much fun!!!

HOme made Mac and Cheese

So I warned you  I am not good at the picture taking but this is so yummy I have to share it anyway!

This is my new favorite food!!! (next to steak) 

* Boil on small box of mac noodles approx 6 min.and drain water do not return noodles to pan yet..

* melt 4 Tbs of butter in the pan you boiled the noodles in

* whisk in 1/3 cup of flour. 

* add 1 1/4 cup of milk , stir constantly till it comes to a boil. 

* add 1 lb of velveta cubed .

* stir till melted, while stirring add some season salt and peper to taste.

* once the cheese is melted add the noodles and mix well. 

* pour mac and cheese in to a casserol dish and place in the oven at 350 for 15-20 min.

**** for different variations you can saute some onion in the butter before adding the flour just be sure to remove the onions then place them in the mixture when adding the cheese.that is my favorite way to make it! I love the flavor that sauted onions give!

** another thing is add some cheddar cheese or crackers on top before baking :) 

hope you enjoy it as much as we do!!

Brushetta topped Parmesean chicken

This recipe is so yummy!! and so good because it has that fresh taste!
There are only 3 of us who eat dinner so I only made 3 chicken breasts. You can make as many as you need :)

I have 3 chicken breast marinading in Italian dressing over night you can have them start for an hour- 24 :)
*mix together in a gallon size plastic bag
1 cup flour
2 Tbs Italian seasoning
2 Tbs garlic powder
1 tsp salt
a few dashes of pepper
3 Tbs graded Parmesan cheese
*Remove chicken breast from the marinade and place in bag to coat with flour mixture.
Place in a pan with a Tbs of EVOO and brown each side.

*While that is cooking its time to make up your brushetta
Chop... 
2 roma tomatoes
1/2 onion
2 Tbs fresh basil
1 Tbs shredded Parmesan cheese 
1 pressed garlic clove.
* your brushetta also wonderful on toasted french bread!!!
*once your chicken is cooked place on a platter or in a nice dish and top with brushetta and place in the oven on 450 to warm  and melt the cheese. approx 15 min

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!! If tomatoes are out of season or seem to expensive to make this is a great recipe to just top with some spaghetti sauce and parmesean cheese and it is delish!!!

Chicken Basil tomato Pizza

We Love pizza at our house! I love trying new toppings on my pizza. This one came to me when I went out to my garden and saw lots of basil!!!
Recipe:
Dough.. 1 cup warm water
             1 Pkg dry active yeast
             1 tsp sugar
             1 tsp salt
             2 TBS oil
             2 1/2 cups flour
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water, pour into larger  bowl, add the other ingredients, stir or knead the dough. let rise for 15 min.  preheat oven to 425.
Once dough has risen roll out to fit your pan. Place dough in oven for 5-8 min to cook a little while you prepare the toppings.
Toppings:
     1/4 cup alfredo sauce
     3 roma tomatoes ( sliced)
     2 Tbs fresh basil
     1/4 onion chopped
      2 cups mozzarella cheese
      1/2 chicken breast cut
Spread the sauce on the dough ( if you don't have alfedo sauce you can use 4 Tbs evoo and 2 pressed garlic cloves) 

      

 Top with 1 cup cheese, tomatoes then basil

then add the onion and chicken. ( I made grilled chicken the night before and this one is just an extra one. see I love to be frugal ) oh I did sprinkle garlic salt on it too. Salt really works great with the tomatoes!

  Top with remaining mozzarella cheese and bake for 12-15 min, or untill golden brown!

Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!!!



    

Starting my new blog!

I love to cook! I was trying to figure out if I had a hobby , my husband has music. He loves to sit on the couch and just play its guitars, yeah plural... any way I asked him, What is my hobby, He says cooking. I never thought of it as a hobby just something I enjoy.  I ask if I can start quilting. Of course he doesn't mind :) Then I mention to my mother in law that I wanted a hobby so I am starting to quilt.. Then she says I cook... So I think cooking is my hobby :) I am not that good at it really just enjoy it. I don't make fancy things because we are on a very tight budget. SO I guess I am very frugal and try to make it taste yummy.  That is what I want to share I hope I am able to.. Please bare with my pictures. I am not so good at taking pictures of food but with this blog I am sure I will get better ! ENJOY!