anyone have any GOOD quick recipes for dinner??

Question

i have been tring for months to spend a certain amount at the store and cook good meals at home..but i always end up having to go back to the store byt the end of the month..the food i cook and buy never lasts!! how do other ppl do it??i have heard the one family of 6 spends only 200.00 a week!!! i couldnt live off of that and we opnly have 4!! anyone have any ides for recipes or how to be a better shopper??

Answer 1

We try to buy things that really stretch for lunches and dinners. We also shop quite a bit at Costco. Costco has frozen & fresh entrees that are big and inexpensive. They also have giant fresh pizzas that last us 3 days!

I buy a bag of individual sized ciabatta breads so I can make paninis (grilled sandwiches). I buy big jars of sundried tomatoes & tapanade & a roll of mozzarella wrapped with prociutto...it makes a LOT of sandwiches. Good cold or hot for dinner.

I buy or make giant lasagnas to eat over 3 days (or 2 dinners and a lunch).

I buy jars of pasta sauce on sale ($2 or less a jar) and I get a variety so I can make cheap pasta dishes. Add turkey, ground beef, sausage, veggies...or leave it plain to enjoy with some bread.

I also make tacos (cheap, quick & easy).

I buy a rotisserie chicken and eat it hot & fresh the first night....then make chicken salad to eat on salad greens or salads for two more nights (or lunch).

Basically I watch all the sale ads and go grocery shopping for what's on sale.

Answer 2

Here's a link to a bunch of OAMC cookbooks (Once A Month Cooking). These recipes are usually pretty economical too. I have done this before - but only cooked for 2 weeks at a time. You could even cook for one week at a time - or just use the recipes daily.

I'm bad about missing ingredients and having to make another visit to the store, but if I make a meal plan ahead of time - and shop from that list, I do much better!

Check it out - - >

Answer 3

Modified once a month cooking (OAMC) is the way to go for us. There are tons of websites (look up OAMC, freezer cooking, etc.). I shop often but stock my pantry with items on sale (I hit the store several times or bring the kids to beat the limits). Then I make dishes around what was on sale. I make 2 or 3 at a time and freeze the extras.

I also belong to a Monthly Meal Exchange Group. I find a recipe that will be very inexpensive for me to make (based on what I have been able to stock up on). If there are 8 of us, I make 8 of my dinner, they all make 8 of their dinner and we exchange. So I go home with one of mine and 7 different dinners that probably cost more than mine because I got my ingredients on screaming sale.

Planning meals around sale items and using coupons can seriously cut down on your overall food bill.

Answer 4

spaghetti pie
it tastes better the longer it is in the fridge!



12 servings

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 pound spaghetti
salt, for pasta
12 eggs, lightly beaten
1 ½ cups grated parmesan cheese
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, very finely minced
½ cup Italian parsley, chopped
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

Equipment

9” x 12” baking dish, preferably glass€

Preparation

Lightly grease the inside of a 9” x 12” baking dish with the butter. Preheat the oven to 350° F.

Prepare the spaghetti according to the package directions and undercook by 2 or 3 minutes. It should be very al dente. Drain and rinse with cool water. Set aside.

Beat the eggs lightly to combine. Stir in the grated parmesan cheese, extra virgin olive oil, finely minced garlic, parsley, salt and pepper.

[Chef’s Note: Be sure not to add too much salt as the cheese has plenty of salt already.]

Add the egg mixture to the spaghetti and mix until all the spaghetti is well blended with the eggs. Pour into the buttered baking dish and spread the spaghetti mixture evenly in the pan. Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes or until the eggs are completely set. Uncover the spaghetti pie and sprinkle the shredded mozzarella cheese over the top and bake, uncovered, for another 5 minutes or until the mozzarella is melted and slightly browned. Remove from the oven and cool.

Service

Spaghetti pie is best served at room temperature. It can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If longer storage is required, it can be wrapped in plastic wrap and then in foil and placed in the freezer for up to a month. Thaw and bring back to room temperature before serving.

Variations

Spaghetti pie is one of those delightful recipes that can be creatively adapted to individual tastes. Feel free to add your own special ingredients such as pepperoni, prosciutto, maple ham, sun dried tomatoes, blanched vegetables or other types of grated cheese. You can also substitute whole wheat or spinach spaghetti, or even linguine or fettucine.

Answer 5

Shopping once a month may be an unrealistic expectation especially for fresh items.
Plan a weeks menu ahead of time and that way you can use one food purchase for several meals. For example, buy cabbage and use half for slaw and put the remainder in stir fry for another meal.
Buy in bulk to reduce the cost of things that won't spoil, such as rice and pasta, pickles etc.
Buy family size packages of meat, then divide it for several meals. Stretch the meat by adding beans, pasta, cheese and rice or vegetables in casseroles to increase the portion size for a smaller cost.
Check online and in newspapers for coupons for items you use.
Don't splurge on lots of prepackaged foods, they are costly and high in fat and sodium.
Once a week have a sandwich night, or soup night to cut down on how much you actually prepare each week.
Learn to make such items a quiche which uses eggs and is usually inexpensive, vegetable soups and stews, and stir fry also stretch the meat which is a high cost item.
Use a slow cooker to easily prepare tougher cuts of meat another plus is having most of the meal ready when you come home.

Answer 6

If you want to eat truly healthy, lose body fat consistently, normalize your blood pressure, cholesterol levels, prevent cancer, and even boost your brain health and energy levels, you may have heard all over the news that the Paleo Diet has been found to be one of the best methods of achieving all of these benefits compared to any other popular "fad" diets out there. Go here https://bitly.im/aMIoJ

The truth is that the Paleo Diet will never be considered a fad because it's just simply the way that humans evolved to eat over approximately 2 million years. And eating in a similar fashion to our ancestors has been proven time and time again to offer amazing health benefits, including prevention of most diseases of civilization such as cancer, heart disease, alzheimers, and other chronic conditions that are mostly caused by poor diet and lifestyle. One of the biggest misunderstandings about the Paleo Diet is that it's a meat-eating diet, or a super low-carb diet. This is not true

Answer 7

Stroganoff
1 lb ground beef
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 container sour cream

brown beef. Add soup and 1/2 sour cream. Simmer 15 min. Add rest of sour creme. Cook another 5 min. Serve over hamburger buns

Answer 8

it's not easy ... you have to budget and eat a lot of rice and other cheap foods ... also, join Costco ... get their ground beef, very good price ... divide, wrap in Saran wrap and freezer bags when you get home .... make taco meat, chili, meat loaf ... stuff that is easily freezable ... they have great prices on boneless, skinless chicken thighs ... these can be crock potted in broth and garlic powder and frozen ... freeze in portions of the appropriate size for 1 meal for the 4 of you ... this chicken will be shredded, you can make soup, tacos, eat it plain, on a salad, add BBQ sauce and put it on a bun ... add it for a make-shift stir fry ... don't get their tuna, though ... there is not much in the cans, seems like a bad deal on the tuna ... use the thighs and hamburger in casseroles with rice, egg noodles, or whatever you can come up with ...

grilled cheese, mac & cheese, hamburger helper ... think fast, cheap, and easy ... being super-creative and coming up with new meals usually costs more money for the spices and fresh veggies ...

good luck!

Answer 9

necessary take cooking classes cououns.calm down.merry x-mas

Answer 10

ham?