$10 Dinners part 3

In $10 Dinners part 2 I broke down the shopping list into each item needed and listed the prices separately so you could see how the dinner value is calculated.

Because we want to generate 100 of these $10 dinners, in the interest of time from now on I will only indicate the total cost of the dinner. Remember that is my cost and hopefully you can match or beat that cost, and save yourself even more money!

In these times when people are looking for ways to make more money, we can't forget to try to save as much of the money we are making as we can. The extra money you save on your grocery bill could be put towards savings, debt payments to pay them down faster (and save you interest!), or other items you need.

Try to have as much fun planning meals on a budget as you can. Think positive about this and you will do well and can be very proud of yourself. Remember health is important and we are trying to make nutritious meals which cover a wide range of the food groups.

Today's $10 Dinners:

4. Menu: (Mock) BBQ beef on a bun, coleslaw, orange wedges
Shopping list: 3 cans of well-drained tuna in water
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1 1/2 cups of bbq sauce (homemade works great)
Combine the above ingredients in non-stick skillet. Heat thoroughly for about 10-15 minutes. Serve on discount or homemade buns.
6 cups shredded cabbage
1 shredded carrot
1/2 cup chopped onion
coleslaw dressing- bought or homemade
Combine coleslaw ingredients and blend well.
Orange wedges- 3 or 4 per person
Total = $7.98

5. Menu: Vegetable BBQ Couscous, cucumber and tomato slices and sausage patties
Shopping list: 1 lb bulk pork sausage meat
1 package frozen veg mix (corn, black beans, broccoli and red peppers)
1/2 bottle bbq sauce
1 box couscous
1 english cucumber
2 tomatoes

Make couscous according to package. Cook frozen veggies, drain and add bbq sauce. Heat together. Form sausage meat into patties and put onto cook in skillet with lid. Meanwhile, slice cucumber and tomatoes. Arrange alternate slices on a plate. Turn sausage patties over and cook on other side.
Serve veggies over couscous, with sausage patties on the side and a plate of cucumber and tomato slices.
Total cost: $7.80

6. Menu: Pinto Beans and Cornbread
Shopping List: 1 lb. dry pinto beans
1 large can tomato sauce
ham pieces or bone
one clove garlic, chopped
spices: pepper, onion powder, cayenne, garlic powder, etc.
1-2 pkg cornbread (or homemade)
Salad dressing

Directions:
Soak beans overnight in water. Drain and rinse. Put all ingredients except salad in crockpot. Add a variety of the spices if desired. Cook for 12 hours on low. Salt as needed after beans are cooked. When beans are ready, cook cornbread and serve. Leftover beans can be used in burritos the next day or frozen.
Total cost: $5.40

I hope today's recipes give you some new ideas for cooking within your budget.

$10 Dinners part 2

Okay, Here is the beginning of our list of Dinners for $10 or less.

1. Menu: Spaghetti with scrambled hamburger, salad, canned peaches
Shopping List: Spaghetti (1.85), sauce (1.00), 1/2 lb hamburger (1.25), salad (2.00), peaches(3.00)
1/4 bottle of salad dressing (.75) TOTAL = $9.85

2. Menu: Beans and meatballs with crusty rolls, carrot, celery and cucumber sticks
Shopping List: 1 Tbsp Oil, 1 onion(.20) 2 cloves garlic(.05) 1/2 cup ketchup(.15) 2 Tbsp brown sugar, 2 Tbsp mustard, 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans(1.50), 1 can (15 oz) pork & beans(1.50), 16 small meatballs- use 1/2 lb ground beef(1.25) Crusty rolls-discount or homemade (1.00) carrot, celery and cucumber(3.00) TOTAL = $8.65

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large saucepan, warm oil and add onion and garlic; cook til tender. Add ketchup, brown sugar and mustard. Bring to simmer.

Drain kidney beans and add with pork and beans to onion mixture; mix well and remove from heat. Add meatballs and pour all into 2-quart casserole. Bake 40 minutes or until bubbling.

3. Menu: Chef salad and garlic toast
Shopping List: 1 large head lettuce, iceberg or leaf (1.50) 4 eggs (.50), 6 slices thin-sliced ham (1.50), 1 shredded carrot (.20), 8 chopped green onions (.75), 1 cucumber (1.00), 2 tomatoes (1.50), discount or homemade bread(1.00), garlic powder, parmesan cheese(.50), margarine(.25), 1/2 bottle ranch dressing(1.00) TOTAL= $9.95

Directions: Hardboil eggs; cool, peel and chop into 1/8ths.
Cut ham into thin strips, shred carrot; chop green onions and cucumber. Cut tomatoes into 1/8ths. Toss salad ingredients together.

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Spread each bread slice with margarine, sprinkle on the garlic powder and parmesan cheese. Bake in oven till crispy around edges but still soft in middle, about 5 minutes.

$10 Dinners

$10 Dinners: Quick, Easy, Cheap Meals
I have decided to postpone the bread machine posts until later because I have noticed a lot of demand lately for ideas for dinners that are in the $10 or under range.

Then if you like, you can leave comments to add to our list.

I would like to come up with a list of 100- Dinners under $10.

After that, I want to be really daring and do dinners under $5. (We might have to make that $6. We'll see!)

These dinners need to cover as many food groups as possible, and use ingredients that are available to most people.

The dinners should be able to feed 4-6 people. This depends, of course on age and appetite.

I will gear the dinners to feed my family, which is 7 but not all are big eaters.

Food is a little more expensive where I live, but I will include my prices and hopefully you can make them for less!

Chopped Bread

Quick Easy Cheap Meals are well-accompanied by some hearty, homemade bread.
Try this one:

Chopped Bread

1. Make your favorite dough in the bread machine. Whole Wheat Bread dough posted previously works great.
2. Take out the dough and pat into a 10 inch circle. In the center, add the following. Make sure all ingredients are well-drained and patted dry.

• 1 cup grated or cubed cheese
• 1/4 cup cooked meat or deli meat slices
• 1/4 cup chopped peppers and onions
  

3. Bring up edges of dough and seal around the add-ins. Chop through several times one way, and then several times the opposite way. Bread dough cubes should be about 2".
4. Lightly mix dough mixture with knife, making sure most add-ins are touching dough.
5. Place dough mixture on lightly greased baking sheet and lightly pat into a round loaf shape.
6. Let rise.
7. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes until puffy and brown.

Enjoy!

This chopped bread makes a nice savory loaf. If you like, make a slightly sweeter loaf by using the following for the add-ins:

• A mixture of 3 chopped apples + 1/2 cup sugar + 1 tsp cinnamon

Shape and bake as above.

This general idea can be adopted to make other tasty loaves. Just make sure your add-ins are dry so as not to get a soggy loaf.

Bread Machines

Yesterday I posted my very favorite bread recipe. We only make 100% whole wheat bread, and that recipe makes a wonderful loaf.

I have discovered, however, that the exact same recipe in a different bread machine will behave differently.

My 10 year old wonderful Black & Decker does something that not all new bread machines do. It pre-heats the ingredients before kneading. I don't know exactly why, but this seems to make a big difference when baking with whole wheat flour.

This is one reason why experimenting with a recipe and then adjusting it until it is perfect for your bread machine really is worth while.

Yes, you may have some loaves turn out less desirable. Don't waste it. Just make something else out of it. Try again. Once the recipe is perfectly suited for your bread machine, copy it into your bread machine book and it will be there whenever you need it.

When I make dough, here are some of the things I make with it:

• pizza
• cinnamon rolls
• giant pretzels
• buns
• chopped bread
• pizza buns
• bagels

Over the next few days, I will post on the dough recipe and instructions for each of the above.