Tag Archives: savory

Frugal Family Meals: 1 Chicken, 3 Meals

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With a growing family of 6, it is always a challenge to make a meal stretch further than one sitting. I usually try to eke a leftover lunch or two out of one dinner, or we take leftovers from the week and have a day of eating from the fridge. It’s always interesting to see the combinations we can come up with when all we have to eat are leftovers!

One of the easiest ways to make a meal last is using a whole chicken. You would be amazed at how much meat there is on one bird! We typically buy a 3-pack of chickens from Costco (just the regular ones, though depending on your location, the organic birds are often available, and bigger!) once a month or so and make them stretch quite easily. It’s not only a frugal way to eat, but also very tasty.

These are 3 of our favourite ways to use 1 chicken for 3 meals.

Frugal Family Meals 1 Chicken, 3 Meals

Roast Chicken and Vegetables

A simple roast chicken in a Dutch oven is so mouth wateringly delicious and comes together in under 2 hours.

Prepare your whole chicken by making sure the goody bag often stuffed inside is removed (unless you like eating that stuff :D). Wash the chicken (skin on – keeps the moisture in!) and pat dry with a paper towel.

Oven Roasted Chicken

Place a few garlic cloves, about 1/2 cup chopped carrots, celery and onion inside the chicken. Rub inside and out with olive oil. Sprinkle all sides with Dutch Kip Kruiden chicken spice rub (SO DELICIOUS!) or salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme. Make a few slits in the skin and rub some spice under the skin.

Place some of the chopped veggies on the bottom of the Dutch oven. Place chicken on top, then fill remaining space with the remaining veggies. Drizzle with olive oil.

Cover and cook the chicken at 425 degrees for 1 – 1/2 hours.

 

Curried Chicken Salad

Curried Chicken Salad

This recipe is very similar to the leftover Turkey Salad – only this time you’re using chicken!

Chop up 4 cups of leftover chicken into pieces, add 1 chopped celery rib, 1/2 cup cranberries (optional), 1/2 – 3/4 cup mayo, salt, pepper and curry (to taste). Mix together and serve.

 

Chicken Stock = MULTIPLE Meal Options!

Healthy Chicken Stock

1 chicken makes about 2 1/2 quarts of chicken stock – that’s more than enough to make a hearty chicken soup or lentil stew.

Place remaining chicken bones – fat, tendons and all the liquid and drippings from the roast chicken – in your crock pot. Add some chopped onion and garlic. Cover to about an inch from the top with filtered water and add 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar.

Place crock pot on low for 12-15 hours (the longer the better! Sometimes I even do 20 hours, though others do only 8). Drain off the liquid, saving the chicken parts for a second batch.

Cover again with water (if the amount of chicken has decreased to fill the crock pot less than half, reduce the amount of water) and cook again on low for 12-15 hours.

Store chicken stock in the fridge to make chicken zoodle soup (substitute wheat noodles for zucchini noodles), lentil stew, or freeze in ice cube trays for future use. If you make your stock without onion and garlic, you can even add a cube to your morning smoothie for an extra healthy boost.

What are your favourite ways to stretch a meal?

Easter Dinner Menu Plan

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For generations, food has been an important part of celebrations and traditions.   There is a comfort in eating certain foods on certain days, cooked the same way you always remember.   You probably have your favorite birthday cake or dessert, Christmas meal and cookies, and other special foods for special days.  I used to think that it wasn’t THAT big of a deal, especially when the kids were little. It sometimes felt like SO much work to make the effort.  And there ARE times to exchange the tradition for something less stressful if it keeps the heart of the celebration from being lost. I remember we traded our traditional home made Thanksgiving feast for one bought at Safeway because I had just had our fifth child.  I was really thankful for that store bought meal, but the next year, we appreciated the home made one even more!  And the older our kids get, the more they more they look forward to these traditions.

That being said, I want to share one of our favorite (and easiest) Easter and Christmas meals.  We love this one because things can be made ahead of time which comes in handy especially on these particular holidays.

So here is the menu:  Spiral sliced ham, Gen’s Potatoes, Grandma’s Crescent Rolls, Curried Fruit and steamed Green Beans.

A day or two before the holiday:

Grandma Gen’s Potatoes

Prepare a buttered 9×13 pan

10 medium potatoes, cooked and mashed (don’t add liquid to them)

Add and beat til fluffy:

1 pkg cream cheese

8 oz sour cream

1 package Ranch mix(this works the best) OR 1 t. garlic powder

salt to taste

Place mixture in 9×13 and add 1/2 c melted butter(you can use less, it just might not have quite the crisp on top) and sprinkle with paprika

At this point, you can cover (when it cools a bit) and place in the refrigerator for 1-2 days ahead of time!

Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 45  minutes, if refrigerated or 30 minutes if baking immediately.  Edges should be lightly browned.

Durenda Wilson Busy Mom

Grandma’s Crescent Rolls

Dissolve one package of dry yeast in one cup water

Melt one cube of butter

In mixing bowl beat three eggs.  Add 1/2 c sugar and 1 t. salt

Add yeast mixture

Add melted butter

Add 4 1/2 c. of all purpose flour (or half wheat/half white flour)

Store in air tight container until ready to roll out.  Roll out in 2 circles.  Cut each into 12 pie-shaped pieces.  Roll into crescents.

Place on greased cookie sheets.   If you want to go ahead and bake them, let rise 2 hours or until doubled.   Or at this point you can freeze them. Then you can just let them rise on the counter overnight and bake them in the morning. Bake 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees.

crescent rolls TBM wm

Day of:

The Spiral ham we buy from Costco ( a no brainer)-this goes in the oven for about 1 1/2 hours. (Don’t forget to put your potatoes in about 30-45 minutes after the ham goes in)

Curried Fruit–this goes amazingly well with the ham and potatoes.  Not something I would have put together, but my husband’s mom has made this meal for years and it’s always a big hit.

In a 9×13 pan (OR large saucepan on the stove if you are low on oven space) place:

1 can of peaches (half drained)

1 can of pears (half drained)

1 can pineapple (half drained)

Melt 1/3 c butter, 1/3 c brown sugar and stir in 1 t. curry powder and pour over the fruit.  Bake until heated through.

Green Beans I find the best and freshest from Costco as well.  You can use frozen, but they aren’t quite as tasty.  I usually steam them for about 4-5 minutes so they aren’t completely limp.  Then add a couple Tablespoons of butter and salt to taste.  Sometimes we throw some real bacon bit in for extra flavor.  The taste goes well with the ham.  Make this in the last few minutes before dinner.

We hope your family enjoys this meal as much as we do!  Happy Easter!  He has risen!  He has risen indeed!

 

 

Slow-Cooker Italian Beef Soup

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Slow Cooker Italian Beef Soup

 

**This post contains affiliate links of our favorite things. At no additional cost to you, thank you for supporting The Busy Mom!**

What you need

  • 1 lb ground beef (I have also used cut up leftovers from a beef roast)
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 small onion
  • 2 can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano
  • 1 package frozen mixed vegetables
  • 2-3 potatoes, cubed
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper
  • 4 cups beef broth (again, I use this from leftover beef roast. If you don’t have that, my favorite is Knorr homestyle concentrated stock)
  • 1 tsp basil
  • 1 tsp parsley
  • 1 cup shell pasta

What to do:

  1. Brown hamburger in a skillet. Mince garlic and dice onion and add those into the hamburger. Cook until hamburger is browned. (If you’re using leftovers, you get to skip this part with the hamburger).
  2. Add all ingredients to crockpot, except pasta.
  3. Cook on low 6-8 hours, adding in pasta for the last 20 minutes and cooking on high.
  4. Note: if you like a “soupier” soup, you can add more broth.

Our whole family loves this soup! I serve it with my as-good-as-Olive-Garden breadsticks.

Cheesy Bacon Potatoes

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Loaded Mashed Potatoes

I recently received a review copy of the Gooseberry Patch Hometown Christmas cookbook. As always, I was excited to flip through it and read the recipes, tips, and stories. Yes, I love those books!

I was especially excited to see their recipe for “cheese and bacon party potatoes.”  I have made something similar for a while, but my recipe looked something like this: potatoes + some butter + milk until it’s just right. Season with “enough” salt and pepper.  Then add a couple handfuls (or a generous shake of the bag) of shredded cheese and some bacon. Anyone else cook like this??  It works, but it’s not so great for sharing!

However, the similar Gooseberry Patch recipe included some helpful measurements so I was able to use it for a guideline to share my dish with you.

These are fantastic, and easy enough for an everyday family dinner, but they’re also great for pot-lucks and holiday gatherings. I took them to a church fellowship meal recently and brought home a scraped-clean dish.

What you need:

4 c. mashed potatoes
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I used a mix of cheddar and colby-jack, I liked to mix things up!)–Divided
1/2 lb bacon crisply cooked (divided)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 c. green onions/chives

What to do:

1. Combine all ingredients, reserving some shredded cheese and bacon, to sprinkle on top. Mix well. I use a hand mixer for this, it’s one of only 2 things I use a mixer for. (the other is meringue, in case you’re wondering).

2. Spread into a greased 3 qt. casserole dish. Sprinkle the top with bacon and cheese.

3. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes, until cheese is melted and the top is golden.

Note: You could also use sour cream or whipping cream in place of the milk for a slight variation.

Yummy!!!

Chicken Pasta with Creamy Basil Sauce

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Chicken Pasta with Basil Cream Sauce

 

Sometimes, some of the best recipes come about by mistake. This was just such a recipe.  Picture this: I had decided on spaghetti for dinner. The pasta was cooking away on the stove and the oven was preheating for the garlic bread. I reached into the cabinet for the spaghetti sauce and there was none. Such a rookie mistake, but there I was with spaghetti cooking and no sauce.

I knew I had everything on hand for a cream-based sauce, and they are surprisingly quick and easy. This dish was the result that night, and the entire family loved it.

Ingredients:

1/2 8 oz. package pasta
1 lb. grilled chicken breast
1/2  12 oz package of frozen broccoli
1 can petite diced tomatoes

For the sauce:
3 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
2 cups milk (2 % or whole)
1-2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 tsp italian seasoning
salt
pepper

Directions:

1. Cook pasta and frozen broccoli in separate pans. I used spaghetti since that’s what I already had cooking, but I would probably use penne noodles instead when I make this dish intentionally.

2. Grill chicken in a skillet (Cut into one-inch pieces and cook in oiled/buttered skillet over medium heat, approximately 5-7 minutes per side until done and no longer pink.). I highly recommend batch cooking when it comes to grilled chicken, and freezing the extra for a quick meal option.

3. Meanwhile, make the sauce. In a 2 quart pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk well. It should be very thick, almost clumpy. If not, add a bit more flour.  Cook the butter and flour mixture for about a minute, whisking constantly.  Add milk slowly, whisking briskly while pouring. Continue whisking until mixture is very smooth. Add Italian seasoning, basil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Stir frequently, cooking approximately 5-10 minutes or until sauce is thickened. If your sauce is overly thick, add more milk a couple tablespoons at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.

4. Combine pasta, broccoli, chicken, sauce, and diced tomato into skillet. Heat through.

5. Serve with shredded Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

What have been your best “mistakes” in the kitchen?

5 Things to Make with Leftover Turkey

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5 Things to Make With Leftover Turkey

You know it’s coming. The Turkey Coma is just around the corner! Crispy deliciousness, whether roasted or deep fried, it’s enough to make one giddy with glee at the thought of eating it for days after.

But once the dishes are cleaned and the last bit of pumpkin pie eaten, the question arises: what DO we do with all the turkey leftovers? And while a turkey sandwich or some soup is certainly a good way to use up the remaining bird, there are some more creative, yet simple ideas.

Pesto Sauteed Veggies and Turkey Sandwiches

turkey pesto sandwich

This is a bit of a switch up on the “traditional” turkey sandwich.

In a frying pan, saute chopped veggies until soft. Add turkey to warm it up.

Mix pesto with mayo and spread on crusty bread (we love to use ciabatta buns from Costco). Top with veggies, turkey and some chopped feta. Broil until the cheese bubbles (but watch closely!).

Turkey Stock

turkey leftovers

Just like you would make chicken stock, turkey stock is a super healthy way to use up some of your turkey leftovers – including the bones! Just follow these instructions from Kitchen Stewardship and substitute your turkey bones and meat.

Turkey Pot Pie

After making stock, use some of the remaining meat to make a turkey pot pie. Simply convert your favourite recipe and, you guessed it, substitute turkey for the chicken.

Curried Cranberry Walnut Turkey Salad

turkey salad

For a refreshing change, turn your leftover turkey into a light salad. Chop up 4 cups of turkey into pieces, add 1 chopped celery rib, 1 cup of cranberries, 1 cup of toasted and chopped walnuts, 1/2 – 3/4 cup mayo, salt, pepper and curry (to taste). Mix together and serve.

Turkey Pizza or Pizza Pockets

Using your favourite pizza dough recipe, spread with a light barbecue sauce, sliced turkey, onions and green pepper. Top with a blend of cheeses (mozzarella and cheddar) and bake.

 

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Tips for Parenting Food Allergic Kids {Holiday Meal Ideas}

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thanksgivingallergytips

If your kids have food allergies like mine do, you know the frustration of large get togethers that center around food. It’s just hard. Nothing replaces the feeling of being left out, especially when that is part of every holiday memory you have.  Thankfully kids get focused on playing, but there is inevitably time at the table, and that’s hard! Other than skipping the mealtime altogether (which my kids don’t want to do when given the choice), we resolve do the best we can. Honestly, it’s a lot of work for me, but it is always worth it when I see my kids’ plates licked clean of their favorite foods.

I thought I’d share how I do our traditional Thanksgiving meal free of the eight major allergens and corn. Keep in mind, it’s not made to be full of gourmet recipes, but alternatives to the main family meal (because we get together with many other people who cook) that are still delicious but simple to do… a way to include everyone without making an entirely different meal.

EveRy food allergy family has different needs, so find what works here and leave the rest. Use your safe something and make something else work. You know food allergy mamas are the queens of modifying! I’ve been unspecific on purpose, because we all have our own spreads, margarines, oils, amounts etc that work for our specific needs. I’m just sharing how we think out of the box. And I have no photos because I can’t wait until next Thursday to take them all so I can share them with you!

Turkey
I get fresh turkey legs or thighs from the butcher at my higher end grocery store, put them in the crock pot with at least 1 cup of broth or water (more if I want to make gravy), and set them to cook on high for a few hours(less than 4 hours for 4 legs) … I just watch to see when it’s done.*
*I buy meat with no ingredient list, which means nothing has been injected into it. The injected solutions are not corn or other allergy friendly.

Gravy
I keep things pretty simple in the kitchen, as you’ll notice as this post goes on. I have no idea how everyone else makes gravy or what they do to complicate it, but I’m the hired gravy-maker now for our family gatherings, and people keep going back for more.  I take the broth leftover from the crock pot (fat included), bring it to a boil (high heat) in a skillet. Turn down to medium-low, and add brown rice flour, whisking consistently (though not necessarily non-stop) as it boils. Keep whisking and simmer for 2-3 minutes while it thickens, repeating this step until it’s as thick as you like it. Salt to taste.

Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes are a tough thing since so many sweet potato casserole recipes our kiddos will see are covered with marshmallows and loaded with sugar, milk and eggs. What I do now is bake sweet potatoes in their peel (poke with a fork, bake at 425 until they’re soft), peel them, place in small casserole dish, mash lightly with a fork, stir in some liquid (safe milk alternative or chicken broth), add margarine (or your safe spread), then top with brown sugar and cinnamon. It’s okay if they’re loaded with sugar… everyone else’s recipes are too!

Dressing… or is it stuffing?
Either way, I got nothin’ for ya’ because we don’t like it, so I’ve never tried to replace it! (Post a comment if you have a recipe to share.)

Mashed Potatoes
We make our mashed potatoes with chicken broth instead of milk, and safe margarine or oil instead of butter. The chicken broth adds so much flavor, we prefer them over those made with milk and butter now!
Or go really easy (no one will tell your mother) and use these instant flakes! Potatoes only!

Something Green
Ummm, do they really have to eat something green?  I suppose to be helpful I’ll add that steamed veggies with a holiday-amount of your favorite spread are permissable. My kids love salad, so when I require them to eat something green at a holiday meal (really, never) I give them that, and it’s really easy to make match for every guest who will attend.

Rolls
Sometimes I make safe rolls, depending on how well I’m doing on getting everything else done… usually that’s not very well, so most years the kids have had toast (on their safe bread), warmed and slathered with their margarine (or whatever you prefer) and honey. If I get my act together a few days early, I make the safe dough or rolls and freeze them to easily bake or thaw Thanksgiving morning. (For gluten free “rolls,” I make the same dough I use for bread and bake it in muffin tins.) Cranberry muffins made safely are perfect too.*
*In quick breads or muffins, I use familiar wheat recipes and sub brown rice flour cup for cup with excellent results. And I use 1T flax meal stirred into 3T warm water for each egg I need to substitute. These make for easy allergy free baking and avail a lot of options!

Dessert
I’ll admit, I’ve tried and failed at a number of allergy friendly pie recipes. The dairy-corn-wheat-egg free pumpkin pie was gross and the dairy-corn-wheat-egg free pecan pie (we’re obviously not nut free around here!) was very runny, though still delicious. I’ve settled on a good old modified apple crisp.  Smells like fall as it bakes, and can be loaded with doubled topping for extra holiday fun! Oatmeal raisin cookies are my most successful allergy free cookie recipe, and can be pre-made, frozen and then warmed just in time for dessert too!

Allergy Free Apple Crisp

6 medium tart apples, sliced and peeled
2 1/4 cups turbinado, raw or brown sugar
1 1/2 cups brown rice flour
1 1/2 cups oats (gluten free if you need that)
1/3 cup oil (just enough to coat the topping when stirred)
2 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Arrange sliced apples in pan. Mix all other ingredients and sprinkle over apple layer.
Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes, or until topping is lightly browned.

Drinks
This might seem like a silly one, but to a corn allergy child, prepared drink options are severely limited. I make sweet tea beforehand to make sure he has something he loves.

A few other tips:
Feed them a snack before you arrive or before the meal.  If they’re not starving, their eyes and stomach will be much more satisfied with what they can have instead of what they can’t have.
Fix their plate for them (before you call them to the table) so they don’t have to walk through the line and see what everyone else might be having.
If dessert isn’t an organized event, don’t feel the need to call them when everyone else comes. Leave them playing and feed them their dessert whenever they come looking.
As silly as it sounds, fun holiday paper plates & cups or beautiful china makes a different meal really exciting too… it takes the focus off the food!
Create “matching” food only for the things they like. One year I went to great effort to make a safe green bean casserole… only to be reminded how much my son hates green beans. Now I just “match” the foods I know my kids love. They have a plate full of their favorite foods, and are very happy to not have to eat broccoli! (I avoid any and all food battles on holidays as a gift to my food-allergy-mama self. I encourage you to do the same!)

Most importantly, don’t encourage (or allow) a “poor me” attitude about their allergies. They are tough, for real, but some people can’t run, or hear, or even swallow. Help your children keep in perspective that there is much they can enjoy as a kiddo with food allergies, and all their favorite foods on Thanksgiving are a great beginning!

Now it’s your turn. Share your suggestions or post links to your allergy free recipes here!