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Budget Cooking for a Large Family

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tuna sandwich for adults

Okay, so I’m probably not going to blow your mind with my suggestions here,
but will the school year upon us, I thought I’d share my favorite recipes for large family cooking on a budget.

As an extra bonus, most are easy and quick to cook so you spend less time in the kitchen:

My Favorite Budget Recipes:

Tuna Fish Sandwich for Adults

Potato Leek Soup

Clam Chowder
(sometimes *gasp* without the clams…..shhhhhh!)

Cheesy Ham and Potato Soup
(This is awesome the day after you have a ham dinner)

Japanese Chicken Drumsticks

Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

Baked Ziti with Sausage & Motzerrella

Fiesta Lime Chicken

Easy Bake Mayo Chicken

Easy Tuna Casserole

Also when you really want to stretch the budget, here are three quick tips:

Soup Tip:
Serve Bread to fill those bellies.

Meat Tip:
Serve Rice/Noodles to cover the plate then add in the meat in controlled portions

Veggie Tip:
Potatos are pretty cheap, last long in the pantry and really filling.

Steak Tip:
Cook it late at night after all the kids are tucked in bed.

Okay, so what are your favorite budget / homeschool friendly recipes?

Slow Cookin’ Summers

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Okay, not just in the Summer.

I use my Slow Cooker ALL THE TIME.

Maybe even more then my oven.

And Maybe even more then my microwave.

Sometimes I don’t even put it away.

Sometimes it just sits on my counter top for weeks at a time.

Even my 2 year old know how to use it.

Put in food. Push buttons. Wait.

Yum.

Here are a few of my tried and true recipes:

Crock Post Roast

Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken

Tangy Beef Strogonoff

Oh and my favorite Pork Ribs with a bottle of BBQ sauce and Onions.
(that’s not missing a link. That’s the recipe.)

But I’m looking for some NEW flavors to add to our weekly menu,

I’ve been here.…and here……..and over here too.

but Now I’m asking YOU for your recipes
(or your links to someone else’s recipe)

Recipes that require minimal prep time
(read: not many pans to clean)

Recipes that make A LOT of food….
(because leftovers is often the main dish around here)

And of course Recipes that are CHILD friendly
(read: not too spicy, icky, or “thoughtful, but not my favorite Mom.”)

I know you have a killer recipe to share with me!

One that will produce quiet, closed mouth, chewing sounds at the table.


Cake Pops!

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Have you ever heard of Cake Pops?
I see them at Starbucks everytime I get my latte
but I owe it to Pinterest for helping me realize that I too could make them!

So here is some eye candy for you today:

Rolling up the dough (Carrot Cake & Cream Cheese Frosting)

Adding our Sticks:

Dipping in Chocolate: (Milk Chocolate Chips)

And then of course Frosting! (More Cream Cheese Frosting)

Mine aren’t as pretty and round as all the amazing Pops out there,
but Hey, it’s a start!

Have you tried any good Cake Pop Recipes?
I’m interested!


Sculpting Tools

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This weeks Crafty Classroom projects called for playdough!

And we were completely out.

Okay, that’s not really true.

We have a HUGE pile of puke brown playdough.

And while I love the color brown, the projects we have planned require a bit more of a variety of color.

So I pulled out the recipe book and decided that it was time to try for some Homemade playdough.

And I must say that this is the best batch of playdough I’ve yet to make:

It’s soft, and pliable, stays fresh and best of all….
No dirty pot to clean!

You’ll want to
boomark the recipe & tutorial
Trust me….good stuff!

Homemade playdough got me thinking about Homemade Tools so I thought I’d share a few of the sculting tools we use on our projects:

Popsicle Sticks make great knives for little hands

Cut Popsicle Sticks make great scoring tools for older children

Any cylindrical shape toy makes a rolling pin…tinker-toys, markers, ect.

Paper Clips, beside being great hole pokers…are great for gauging out bits of clay from hard to reach places…great for sculpting faces!

Toothbrushes make great textures

So do Combs….

Doorknobs make great stamps….

And even your clothes make interesting patterns!

The trick is to find objects throughout your house that you can repurpose into a useful crafty tool! That’s part of the fun too, so get your children invloved in the scavenger hunt and let their creativity shine through!

Total Cheeseball

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I’m sooooo over all the Cheese balls at the grocery store.

O V E R

I totally get tricked every year into thinking,

THIS cheese ball will be the one.

If I see the words: Bacon, Peper-jack, Motzerella, Wine or Olive…..

I’m a gonner. it’s going in the cart, and I’m out $5 bucks for something that tastes like cheese in a can with toasted almonds.

I feel like such a well, …….Cheeseball

Okay, it’s really not a total waste of money….I’ve got a four year old little boy who’d slurp in down in 10 minutes flat if I let him.

Anyway, this year I’m going to finally get out of this Cheeseball slum and these are the little fella’s that are gonna help me:

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Look how pretty….

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cheeseball

……and tasty too! I snuck in a few bites before I rolled them up! (wish I would have made two!)

Here’s the Recipe:

Feta Cheese Log With Kalamata Olives and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Totally simple and totally worth it. Here are a couple more that might be gracing our Christmas table this year.

Cheddar Cheese Log

Cheese Ball with Everything

Anyone else have a delicious Cheese Log recipe to share? I’ve got a zillion packs of Cream Cheese left!

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Chicken Sausage? Who’d a thought….

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I have never tried Chicken sausage.

(on purpose anyway….I’m sure that there has been some random chicken parts have been thrown into the usual cheepy hot dogs I buy at Wal-mart.)

But this is the first actual PACK of Chicken Sausage I bought, with the word Chicken written in larger then an 8pt font.

Anyway, to continue on with my Trader Joes Kick…..I thought I’d show you just what I made with it last night.

The recipe is from Cooking.com and it’s been one of my favorties.

Only problem is that it doesn’t call for Chicken Sausage…..just chicken.

But after seeing all those beautiful pasta commericials for Olive Garden, I’m pretty sure I saw a sausage looking one…so I think it’s going to work!

So Here’s what I did:


First I sliced the sausage and fried it for a while…yum.

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Then I diced up some veggies (mushrooms, onions, carrots) and fried them too:

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I started the noodles ( I picked up a pack of these delicious fellas’):
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For the sauce I used these babies (and the rest of the Trader Joes Whip Cream):

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It turned out really pretty too look:

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And finally I pilled them all together on a plate:

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Soooo Yummy!

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Frying Cheese

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I have NEVER heard of this cheese before!

When I saw it in the store I thought, “A special kind of cheese, made just for frying?”

I am going to be the “Best Wife on the Block” if I come home with this.

(Hubby always burns his fingers trying to scrape every last piece of fried cheese from the pan)

So I forked over a Crazy amount of money….

More expensive pound for pound then a Rib-Eye kind of money

And here is what I did with it….

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Looks like French Toast right? Funny thing is, it tastes like it too!

Not quite what I was expecting flavor-wise.

I’ve got have a block of this stuff left….any ideas on what to do with the rest?

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30 minute Gourmet Soup

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After a recent trip to Trader Joes (do you have one of those….they’re dangerous) I snaged these great items:

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And I thought it would be fun to post how I use them all. most of them.
(…..I already scarfed down the Mango slices….)

Anyway, I’ll start it off with how I use the Whipping Cream:

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Potato Leek Soup

-3 Potatoes
-2 White onions
-1 Bunch of leeks
-Chicken Stock
-Whipping Cream
-Thyme, Rosemary, Salt & Pepper

It really couldn’t get any easier, and it’s absolutely DELICIOUS! People think it’s so good, and gourmet…but it’s not. (If you serve it in a bread bowl it’ll really knock their socks off!)

Here are the instructions:

Bring some Chicken stock to a boil:
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Cut up your leeks:
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Cut up your onions:
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Cut up your potatoes:
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Add to the Pot & Simmer 30 minutes
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After 30 Minutes Turn to LOW and Add in your Thyme and Rosemary:
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Then Add in your Whip Cream (half the container):
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Salt & Pepper to taste, Serve in a bowl with CRUSTY bread for dipping:
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(I like my all chunky, but Hubby likes his Potatoes smashed up a bit and the soup more thick…so if you like mash up some of the potatoes :)

Stay tuned….The Frying Cheese is next!

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String Cheese Salad

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What do a tomato, an avacado and a string cheese have in common?

They’re all ingredients in String Cheese Salad…

My newest “Throw something together, it’s 5 O’Clock and we don’t have anything to go with the chicken, and we can have Cheddar Pringles again, kind of a meal”

Seriously, the kids love that there is string cheese in it!


It’s Time for a Crock-Pot…

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I have been out to eat way too many times since Monkey was born.

It’s bad.

The lady at McDonnald’s knows my kids names.

That’s not good at all.

But between Homeschooling, Sports, Awana’s, the Baby and just life in general I just can’t find the time to cook dinner.

When 5 O’clock rolls around, I’m struggling in the kitchen to throw together a nutritious meal.

If it wasn’t for Hubby cooking outside on the grill, we’d be eating out every day of the week.

(And boy, my husband can work the grill, let me tell ya’)

But charcoal cooking (though delicious) gets expensive.

So, I’ve decided it’s time for a Crock Pot.

I went to Walmart.com to see what there was and get a price range, but I really have no idea what to look for?

So far I think I like this one:


Hamilton Beach Set ‘n Forget Probe Slow Cooker

It looks real pretty doesn’t it.

But I realize it’s not all about looks.

But what is it about?

I have no idea what to consider when getting one of these things.

It says it’s a Six Quart….is that going to last when my kids are older.
Will that make enough food for Me, Hubby, and Three Teenagers? (2 of them boys?)

This is a big purchase for us (That model is about $50)

So if anyone has any advice or can tell me what slow cooker they recommend, my McDonnald’s hating husband would be ever so grateful!

What am I going to wish I would have thought of?

I Can’t Believe My Eyes….

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Or my taste buds for that matter.

Did this marvelous cookie really come from my kitchen?

Lets do a little side by side comparison: (no laughing now)



Are you Freaking Kidding me?

Was it really that easy?

I BOW TO YOU ALL!

You are all amazing Cookie Cooks.

And you we’re all so sweet to come to my rescue!

You wise, wonderful, super-amazing, fantastic, ……

Horrible….Horrible people.


How in the world am I ever going to loose the baby weight now?

I mean, look at the bottom of these things.


Have you ever seen a cookie so goldenly delicious?

How did this happen? Why was the difference so extreme?

Okay so Here is what I Changed:


First of all I changed my recipe. I went over to My Sweet Chaos for inspiration (Thanks Ariana!)

Then I went through all your wonderful comments:

I moved my oven rack to the very top. (Thanks Allana)

I set it to 325 instead of 350. (Thanks Krista)

I did my very best to fold in the ingredients (Thanks Paula)

I put a few extra chips on top before I baked them (Thanks Ariana)


Here’s some photos of how it all went down:







These cookies tasted fantastic! A complete 180 from the ones I made last week, and I am soooo excited to offer them to my Husband, I swear he’ll think I bought them or something.

This is the start of something Amazing people!

I can feel a cookie addiction coming on quite shortly…..

I do have one more question though,

if I can beg you all for a little more cookie wisdom.

Why is it that my batter is so much more “Gooey” looking then Ariana’s?

Go look how fluffy her dough is, and then look at mine again.

What’s up with that?

Just In Case You Thought I was Perfect….

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I’ll let you in on a little secret.


I make CRAPPY Cookies.


KERRRRRR-AP-EEEEEEE



There I said it.

I can’t Cook a Cookie of my life depended on it.

Somehow they always turn out dry

And believe me….

I’ve tried to make them a million different ways:

I’ve used butter, then margarine, flour, then sifted flour, cookie pans, cookie pans with air in the middle….

I’ve even tried 3….YES 3 different ovens…

10 different recipes….

I have an entire cookbook devoted to cookies:



And I can’t make a single one.

My POOR Husband (bless his heart) always samples one or two from each batch

And it breaks my heart to watch him munch and crunch and chew and GAG the dry little buggers down.


Someone out there has the answers

I know you’re there….

Please, Rescue me. I need help!

Why do my cookies always puff up like Shortbread?

This is no time to keep Grandma’s No-Fail cookie recipe a secret

It’s a baking Emergency, He’s got a birthday coming up and I so desperately want to surprise him with the most delicious cookies he’s ever tasted…..

Cookies that will make a man proud….

Seriously I want to knock his socks off….

So that way when he goes to Grandma’s and eats her cookies he’ll secretly think, “My wife makes way better cookies then this…..I love my wife so much……she’s just the greatest…..she’s pretty and she can cook…and…..”

…and….Well you know or something like that…right?


Hey Wait…. I Make a Mad Tuna

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Oh I was so wrong about my Non-Recipe-Creating Status.

I forgot that I recently made my own recipe.

My OWN. I OWN IT.

It’s mine.

And you know what?

I’ll totally share the recipe with you.

Are you ready?

This is the best Tuna Sandwich you will ever eat.

E-V-E-R

Okay.

Don’t scroll down unless you can handle the midnight cravings.

Or If you’re not willing to spend the extra 10 minutes making a Tuna Fish sandwich.

I’m warning you…….the usual Mayo and white bread will never taste the same.

Okay….Ready……

BAM!

Mad Tuna Sandwich by Chef McClintick

Tuna-What?

Yummy right?

Word.


Here’s the scoop:


Get yourself some Pumpernickel bread from Walmart. Slice it up.
(hint check the day old rack, as they don’t always sell their stock)



Add in your tuna. I love Starkist pouch tuna. I simply feel spoiled using it, and I don’t have to get all goopy and smell like tuna for the rest of the week.


Top with Mexican cheese.
Yeah, pre-shredded cheese….totally spoiled right.
In my defense I buy it because my hands are filled holding Monkey all the time. Poor, poor me.

Then add in some diced red onion and red pepper.
Salt and Peppa’ to taste.



That’s it.

Seems pretty simple….and it is…..but I’m telling you:
It’s the best tuna fish on the block.

It’s got the right stuff!

Baby.


And These make great Tuna Melts too, just sprinkle the bread with the cheese and pop in the oven till it melts. Then put the sandwich together.

If you make this you HAVE to tell me what you think

….even if you hate it.

It would make me feel good enough to know that someone at least trusted my culinary ability enough to humor me

And Just as a Side NOTE: Any and all slang words used in this post are not affiliated with the Mad Tuna Sandwich and it’s affiliates. Particularly if it is used incorrectly, incoherently, or if comes from the 1980’s as I was still in grade school during that period, and cannot be held responsible for any mis-representation of the actual word.

Zillions of Zucchinis

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So this is our first year growing Zucchini.

We’ve always heard that these always produce more then a family can eat, so we weren’t surprised when our one measly little plant quickly filled up our Fruit bowl:

Please ignore the cobwebs under the cupboards
I just had a baby Sheesh….. :)

Now, obviously we’ve got some overflow issues here.

I’ve made like 12 loaves of delicious Walnut Zucchini Bread:

But now I’m hoping for something different.

What else can I make with this stuff?

So I’m calling out for your favorite Zucchini recipes….

In return, I’m offering up one of my most favorite Fall Recipes:

Puff Pastry Apple Pies

Okay, so it’s not exactly my recipe,
(technically don’t have any recipes of my own making)

But I do make it every Fall, so I kind of own royalty fees and that’s the best I can do.

But be warned. This stuff is like edible GOLD. It will cause strife and jealousy, and overall greediness to enter your peaceful country home.

Look the little monsters won’t even take their mitts off it long enough to get a photo of it.

I suggest you set a few extras aside before you call in the troops.

It’s that good.

Now hit me with some Zucchini goodness!