It's a Tasty Thrifty Tuesday (yep, I'm a nerd!)

Good news: It's not Monday anymore. Yay! It seemed this evening that we had eaten meals that involved potatoes, corn and bread for like a week, and I was pretty tired of it. What was the antidote? Something SPICY!! So, searching through the cabinets I went.....think.....think.....oh yeah! Beans in the freezer, tortillas in the cabinet, rice, salsa, cheese...check, check, check. Everything came together nicely for a rice and bean burrito supper! Aside from my love for all things hot and spicy, this is a really cheap meal to have. For one, it is meatless. That alone makes it cheap. The ingredients I use are all very inexpensive, and are easy to keep on hand in the cabinet at all times. What did I use for my Rice and Bean Burritos?

From Dollar Tree:
10 ct. package of medium flour tortillas
8 ounce bag of "mexican shreds" shredded cheese
Jar of jalapeno slices (only used a a couple tablespoons)
Campbell's Traditional medium salsa (only used about a half cup)
Tortilla chips (just to crunch on between the soft burrito bites)

From Kroger:
Frozen leftover pinto beans (I always buy bags of dried beans and cook my own)
White rice (1 cup uncooked)
Taco seasoning (about 50 cents)

What I did: Thaw the recycled butter bowl full of beans in the microwave while the rice cooked on the stove. After the rice was done, I added 2/3 cup of water and the taco seasoning packet. I removed the beans from the microwave. Then, I scooped an icecream scoop of beans and two scoops of seasoned rice into the tortillas, tossed on about a tablespoon of shredded cheese and folded them up, placing them into a baking dish. Once it was full, I tossed a little more cheese on top and I baked it for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees - - just enough to allow the cheese to melt.

After you remove them from the oven, you can top them with a little salsa, cheese and peppers and they are delish! My guys love them too, despite the fact that they are huge meat eaters. These are very filling and actually make you feel as if you are eating something hearty and meaty. From the ingredients used, I still have plenty of tortilla chips, jalapenos, salsa, and rice left to use for other meals in the future. I estimate that I have about $3.50 in all ten tasty burritos. Try that Taco Bell!!!!! Your bean burrito is $1.09 for one burrito, which would mean ten of them would set me back $10.90 plus tax. By the way, Taco Bell, I may have picked up a couple of extra sauce packets the last time I visited with you. Here they are in the picture, heehee. They are in good hands.

Have a fun, frugal and fabulous Tuesday, from our house to yours!!

"Hey Grandpa, What's for Supper?" Turkey Casserole...

I suppose I could have entitled this post "Turkey Leftovers Part II", considering my post several weeks back on Turkey Pot Pie. If you're looking for a super easy and tasty way to use up some leftover chicken or turkey, you have landed on the bulls-eye! On Saturday night, I baked a turkey. We ate a little of it but ultimately decided to cover it and put it in the fridge to have after church the next day. We went to church. We came home. Then, we ate......and ate and ate through Sunday lunch and supper as well as Monday lunch and supper. The hubby and I both took turkey, dressing, gravy and the other usual suspects to work today for lunch and we STILL had some leftovers lurking in the fridge. Puppy and Leonard even enjoyed some, of course. Now, I frown on wasting food, or anything else for that matter...so I had to use up the rest of this ol' bird (he could have been young, though....or "he" could have been a "she"...but I digress). To me, leftovers are the epitome of frugality PLUS they pose a challenge to my creativity that I actually appreciate.

Peering into the fridge, I remembered that I had run out of flour the other night making little muffin-tin pizzas. Darn. That put a damper on my plans until I saw the bag of corn meal hanging out patiently, beckoning me to pick it up. Sure - - why not. And so began my new "recipe": turkey casserole. I didn't think of taking a picture until I had dumped a big scoop of casserole and an even bigger scoop of cranberry sauce onto my plate a bit haphazardly. I could have staged it better for a prettier picture, I guess, but you'll get the idea. With its delicious cornbread crust, doesn't it look yummy?

Turkey Casserole

First, preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 by 13 pan (I used glass).  Then, mix up some cornbread batter:  2 to 2 1/2 cups cornmeal and 1 egg, plus enough milk to make it "mushy" and enough water to make the mixture pourable. Next, in another bowl add the following and mix together :

Can of creamed corn ( I felt like the "cream" in the creamed corn probably kept it moist

Can of green beans

About 2 cups of leftover turkey, cubed

About 1 cup leftover stuffing

Now, pour only enough of the cornbread batter on the bottom of the pan to cover it. Add turkey / veggie mixture and cover with remaining cornbread batter. Bake for 45 minutes. After I removed mine from the oven, I poured the leftover turkey gravy (had about 1/2 cup, which I watered down to make 3/4 cup so it would pour easier) over the top of the whole thing. 

I served my Turkey Casserole with a simple lettuce & cheese salad, cranberry sauce and rolls. And guess what........we still have a half a pan left!!!!!! It's like a miracle turkey or something. "Clark, that's the gift that keeps on giving..." To freeze or not to freeze? That, dear readers, is the question. I did find a really neat illustration on The Culinary Chase that humorously illustrates the various areas on a turkey that makes for the best leftover uses. Check it out:

Of course, I didn't use the "suggested" cut of meat for my recipe. For tonight's casserole, I went with the "anything goes" approach. Meat was flying (pun INTENDED) into the bowl from wings, legs, back and anywhere else from whence I could scrape it. The final verdict: Hubby said, "That's good, babe!" (usually won't eat the dark meat) and cleaned his heaped-up plate. Son said, "Yeah, Mom it was fine" and chased it with a Hershey bar, chips and popcorn. Personally, I don't know if I can handle any more turkey for a few more weeks, so tomorrow might be a Hamburger Helper night on Ridgewood Circle.

Have a fun, frugal and fabulous night, from our house to yours!

Free and Frugal Friday Ramblings

Yay, it's Friday! I am just about as excited as that camel is on Wednesdays! I hope everyone has enjoyed the Lord's blessings of a wonderful week. I know I have. I especially love it when He blesses me with an abundance of freebies and "cheapies", and it has been a good day for these things indeed.

During my lunch break today, I went to Walmart. I had other business to do there and it is within a mile of my workplace, so it wasn't like I made a special trip. Do you remember me telling you about a $7.00 off any Tena product? Well, I redeemed that coupon today. I was able to score a $4.97 package of 20 Tena Serenity pads AND $1.73 in change!!! You see, Walmart's coupon policy states that the customer will receive the difference in money if the coupon value exceeds the product purchase price. I encourage you to read and print the policy, found HERE. Also, you can still request a Tena coupon HERE. Since I literally got PAID to grab these Tena pads from Walmart, I will find someone who can use them. I mean, why not??

All that freebie finding can be pretty rough on a gal, and by the time I left Walmart, I was parched. I needed some refreshment, and fast! I remembered the coupon that Dunkin Donuts had sent me in the mail for signing up to receive their emails. It was good for any medium beverage, which includes hot cocoa, tea, hot or iced coffee, or one of three flavors of Coolattas. So, into the DD drive-thru the Chrysler went, and out I came with a yummy Minute Maid Orange Coolatta, which you can sign up to receive HERE. Not only will you receive (by postal mail) a coupon for signing up, but you will also receive one for your birthday. Sign up your honey, too! Doesn't this look refreshing?!?

I am always busting through the door of my house just as weak and starving as if I had spent a fortnight trekking across the Sahara. This afternoon was no different, to be sure. For supper, I decided to try one of the FREE Kraft Recipe Maker kits I got from Dollar Tree the other day. I chose the Chicken Bruschetta since I had some pasta and a can of chicken on hand (also from DT). In my usual rebellious style, I DID NOT follow the directions on the box. They asked for bow-tie pasta and I used macaroni. They asked for 1 1/2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast and I used a 5 ounce can of Butterfield Farms White Chicken chunks. Ha - - take that! All in all, I had about $1.60 total in the dish, between the macaroni and the chicken. Get your own $1.00 off Kraft Recipe Makers coupons HERE to get FREE boxes of this kit at Dollar Tree. Look how yummy and totally Italian (in a cast iron skillet, of course):

Yes, folks - - God is good to me and I am having such fun sharing the wealth with you. Please say an extra prayer tonight for the hungry and cold. Have a fun, frugal and fabulous evening, from our house to yours!

Warm, Homemade Sugar Cookies - - Yummy

You've been there - - we all have. You've just finished supper, it's freezing cold and pitch black outside, and you want something sweet.  Pronto. But who really wants to traipse out into the foreboding cover of night to make that dreaded trip to the grocery store or............dare I say it...........Walmart?!? Besides, if I set foot into Kroger hungry for something to satisfy my snack attack, I may not make it out alive. Well, okay........I will actually make it out alive, but with 576 pounds or 3 grocery bags of fatty junk in tow. Who wants that? Why not take the easy AND frugal way out, stay in your warm and cozy kitchen and whip up a simple, tasty treat tonight! You probably already have the ingredients on hand, and the family will love you. Sugar cookies are humble little nuggets of goodness that are not too flashy yet always satisfy that sweet tooth. You could even gussy 'em up with icing or sprinkles if you wanted to. I found a recipe not too long ago, tweaked it to make it my own and have since baked up several batches of soft, yet chewy sugar cookies. In fact, the scenario above describes my own dilemma tonight as I searched the cabinets for something sweet after our supper of chicken fried rice, mashed potatoes, macaroni & tomato and rolls. Here's how they turned out:

There are several reasons why I like these cookies:

1. Spoon them straight from the mixing bowl onto the cookie sheet (NO rolling and cutting) and enjoy super easy cleanup.
2. No special ingredients need to be purchased. This recipe is made with things you probably already have.
3. The cookie is light and soft, yet slightly chewy, which is a good thing!
4. Since it is, in fact, made with a few standard pantry items, it is inexpensive. I haven't calculated the actual cost, but I might do that out of my own curiosity later on.
5. They are quick to mix up (5 minutes) and bake (10 minutes).

Without further adieu, here is my recipe:

Tanya's Sugar Cookies

2 Cups sugar

1 1/4 Cup margarine

2 eggs

3 Cups self-rising flour

1/2 Teaspoon salt

Directions:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream together sugar and margarine in a mixing bowl with mixer. Add salt and eggs and continue until mixed. Turn off mixer and add flour, mixing by hand until batter is smooth. Drop 12 evenly spaced walnut sized spoonfuls of dough onto each cookie sheet. Bake 9 - 10 minutes or until edges appear slightly brown. They may still appear a bit under-baked on top when they first come out of the oven, but this is okay. They will firm up in a matter of minutes. Enjoy with a cold glass of homemade sweet tea. The recipe for that can be found HERE!

Have a fun, frugal and fabulous evening, from our house to yours!

Cheap Eats = Good Eats, or... Directions? What Directions?

Good Tuesday night, dear readers! I may have mentioned in another post about the Hamburger Helper and Chicken Helper coupons I used at Dollar Tree to score eight 80 cent boxes of those respectable products by the wonderful Betty Crocker. I was super anxious to get home after work this afternoon. It was cold, snowy and windy, and all I wanted to do was rush home and cook something hot and yummy. However, I was also really hungry. It seemed eons ago that I had eaten lunch (or at least 4 hours, LOL). After rushing through the door, tossing off my coat and proceeding to look through the cabinets, I decided that some Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo would fit the bill perfectly for some warm comfort food on this snowy afternoon. As I assembled the things I needed, I made a grave discovery..............................NO MILK IN THE FRIDGE!!!

The kid. It had to be the kid. I glanced in the trash can only to see the empty jug just lying there. I could tell it had put up a good fight, but had met its match in a 12 year old growing boy over the course of a mere 24 hours. Panic ensued as I pondered my next step.....should I? Could I...........use............water?!? At this stage in the game, I had NO desire to make the grueling 5 minute, mile and a half trip back to Kroger. I just wanted to cook. And eat. I took the plunge and boldly went where few culinary purists have ventured. I measured out not the 1 1/2 cups of water and 2 1/2 cups of milk that Mrs. Crocker directed me to add to my Chicken Helper, but 4 CUPS of good old H2O and proceeded with the rest of the directions as if nothing had happened. I used tap water, even! We live on the edge here on Ridgewood Circle. It's just how we roll.

So, how did it turn out, you ask? Quite delicious, I must say, and the guys in the household thought so as well. I didn't tell them about the lack of dairy products in the dish until after the meal. They would have "missed" the milk in it had they known the truth. Go on - - try it for yourself. Here's what to look for, and as I said, they currently have it at Dollar Tree:

And...........here's the final product in the absence of the side dishes with which it was served tonight (baked potatoes, fried apples, cornbread and cheesecake):

Coupons are still available, folks. You can print an "80 cents off four boxes" HERE OR you can find a nice "90 cents off four boxes" by signing up on the Betty Crocker site HERE and clicking on the "coupons" tab. Both sources allowed me to get two prints out of each coupon. Don't forget to follow your Dollar Tree coupon policy, which you can find HERE. 

I'm gonna go ahead and let you in on another secret: I used canned chicken chunks from Dollar Tree in this recipe instead of cooking fresh raw chicken. It worked great, and gave me the added bonus of not having to wait for chicken to cook before I could get started with the rest of the recipe. I guess I really just threw the directions for preparation out the window on this one, huh? It turned out yummy AND my family of three will eat it for leftovers again tomorrow night. Total cost for it as the main entree was $1.80 plus a few pennies for the minimal amount of margarine and water used. Both cheap and good. Mission accomplished!

Have a fun, frugal and fabulous night, from our house to yours!

My Dollar Tree Deals this week - WOW

If you have never checked out the grocery section of Dollar Tree, then you are definitely missing out - - especially if you are fortunate enough to have a Dollar Tree in your area that has a refrigerator / freezer section! Unfortunately, the Dollar Tree in my town does not have a refrigerator / freezer section, but the one in the next town over does. We had to drive over there this morning to take my husband for an MRI so my son and I went to DT while we waited on him. Well, we were thrilled to score 3.5 ounce RIBEYE STEAKS there for a buck each for my husband's birthday meal tonight! We also got some other cool name brand grocery items for cheap and free using coupons. For those of you who didn't know, Dollar Tree has been taking coupons for about a year now. Read their coupon policy HERE. In order to abide by their coupon policy, be prepared by taking someone with you and perhaps doing multiple transactions as well.

These pics represent two different days of Dollar Tree finds. I went a couple of days ago as well, and decided to go again once I found that some of my coupons had reset and I was able to print more copies.

Haul #1:  ALL FREEBIES - Two Kraft Recipe Makers kits and Two Progresso Recipe Starters Cooking Sauces. I used two $1.00 off Kraft Recipe Makers coupons and two 50 cent off Progresso Recipe Starters coupons (my DT had them priced at 50 cents each which is already great).

Haul #2: Two Kraft Recipe Makers (Free with coupons), eight boxes of Hormel Pepperoni (four free with the use of 4 $1.00 off 2 coupons) and three ribeye steaks for $3. This is $13 worth of items for only $7. Now, I am by no means an "extreme couponer", but that is a pretty significant savings to me!

If you only have a few coupons, making a special trip would not be worth it. You would spend more in gas than you would save. But, it is worth checking out the coupons.com website and being familiar with what your Dollar Tree sells so that you be able to match coupons up to score some free groceries. I get most of my coupons from www.coupons.com. The Progresso, Kraft and Hormel coupons are still available, as are some Hamburger / Chicken Helper coupons (80 cents off four = $3.20 = 80 cents total per box at Dollar Tree!). Also, there is a Progresso SOUP coupon for 50 cents off two cans. The soup is delish, and the coupon makes it only 75 cents a can. Folks, you just can't get it for that price at the grocery store. In fact, here are the current Walmart prices for some of these items: Progresso Recipe Starters or Soup is $1.88, Hamburger Helper is $1.68 a box and Kraft Recipe Makers is $1.98. So, go to coupons.com, turn on your printer and get ready to save some dough! Keep in mind that my free items were totally free this time because they were grocery items. If you have a coupon that covers the cost of something like toothpaste, then you will have to pay tax on it. But, hey - - I don't mind spending 6 cents on a tube of toothpaste, do you?

Unfortunately, Dollar Tree isn't paying me to say any of this, although I wish they were! I just wanted to make sure and pass along these great free and cheap grocery ideas to you. I love it when others share deals with me! So, have a fun, frugal and fabulous day from our house to yours!