Easy And Delicious Chicken & Dumplings

 

Oh how we love chicken and dumplings.  Comfort food at its finest!  Here is an easy recipe that means you can enjoy this meal anytime.  Even on a week night. 

Chicken & Dumplings 

2 cups cooked chicken

1 family size can cream of chicken soup

2 cups chicken broth

2 cups milk

2 cups frozen peas & carrots or mixed veggies

Salt & pepper to taste. 

In a large pot whisk soup, broth and milk until smooth.  Stir in chicken and frozen veggies.  Add salt and pepper, if desired.  Place over medium heat and allow to come to a boil.  Meanwhile mix up dumpling dough. 

1 cup flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. dried parsley

1 slightly beaten egg

1 Tbs. oil or melted butter

3/4 cup milk 

In a small mixing bowl combine dry ingredients.  Measure out milk in a one cup measuring cup.  Add egg and fat.  Stir to combine and add to dry ingredients.  Mix just until everything comes together. 

Over bubbling soup drop large spoonful of dumpling dough onto broth.  Lower heat to medium low, cover with lid and set time for 12 minutes.  DO NOT REMOVE LID until timer goes off.   

OH, YUM!!

Serve and enjoy!

Last Week’s Thrifty Moves

A very full pantry.

Last week I did a lot of strategic grocery shopping with the ads and doubling up sales items with coupons I had in order to further stock up our pantry.  I was very happy with all the items I was able to get while still staying well within budget.  I am very comfortable with the level of food I have set aside as we head into the winter months. 

As a family we have been making a concerted effort to use up all the little bits left in bottles of soaps, shampoos and lotions that once again seem to have collected and cluttered up our tiny abode.  We all agreed when we moved in that we weren't going to have this happen in our new home but before we even realized it we had a new collection.  How does this happen?  So far we have been making good progress in our endeavor to eliminate all these upside down containers now lined up in our bathroom. 

My youngest and I flushed the holding tank one more time just to make sure.  She was sufficiently grossed out by the process.  I am happy to report that we are good to go!  Our little issue has completely resolved itself. 

I ordered the girl's birthday presents online and they arrived via free shipping last week.  I wrapped them with supplies I already had on hand. 

We celebrated some major accomplishments last week - my novel getting published, my oldest getting bumped from 7th grade band to the 8th grade class and sitting 3rd chair, and my youngest passing her first playing test on her violin.  By dining out for lunch we saved money over the higher cost of dinner out.  It was also quieter in the restaurant and made for a really nice time for us to sit and visit while we ate. 

I ordered the girl's Christmas gifts together with my office supplies online with free shipping. 

We watched our favorite TV shows on Hulu and Amazon.  For family movie night I introduced the girls to The Coneheads movie on Amazon.  They thought it was both entertaining and hilarious. 

I sent out two greeting cards this week.  A get well card from my stash and a Thanksgiving card I purchased at the dollar store for 50¢. 

I gave my youngest a haircut. 

We veered off course of our menu plan in order to use up little bits of this and that leftover in the refrigerator.  It meant virtually no food waste this week and some challenging thinking as far as what to make with these things.  Good eats though! 

How was your thrifty week last week?

Easy Pork Verde - A Five Ingredients Or Less Recipe!

 

My family loves this dish and it couldn't be any simpler.  It cooks all day in my slow cooker and the aroma throughout the house is a slice of heaven. 

Pork Verde 

1 sirloin pork roast -  approx. 1 1/2 pounds

1 medium onion

1 28oz. can green enchilada sauce, divided* 

1 recipe steamed rice - 6 servings

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese or sour cream 

Cut pork into 1 inch bite sized pieces, trim away any excess fat.  Cut onion into a large dice.  In slow cooker place onion in bottom.  Add pork on top of onion.  Pour 1/3 of enchilada sauce on top.  Set slow cooker to low and allow to cook for 8 hours, stir occasionally. 

Serve spooned on top of rice and garnish with cheese or sour cream, as desired. 

Serving Suggestion:  Use as a filling with warm flour tortillas. 

*Divide remaining enchilada sauce into two freezer containers.  Label and freeze for future use. 

My favorite brand.

I purchase the large can of sauce because the smaller can is a bit too much for this recipe and not enough for another batch.  Plus if you compare volume the smaller cans are much more expensive. 

I will usually serve this on rice and then use the leftovers for another meal as suggested with tortillas.  I also spoon any leftover rice into my tortilla along with the verde and cheese and a little dab of sour cream.  Wonderful! 

This recipe is also delicious if you substitute the pork with boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  If you use chicken I recommend not cooking it as long.

Operation Christmas Child

 

Last month when I stopped in to make a deposit at our credit union I also picked up my shoebox.  Every year at Christmas time, as a family, we select a charity.  Usually we give to our local foodbank and then give our leftover change after our Christmas shopping is complete to the Salvation Army red kettle. 

This year we decided to do something different.  We decided to give a gift to a child in another country.  My son and I used to do this when he was younger and we thoroughly enjoyed it and I am happy to have the opportunity to do this with my girls.  I hope we will continue to do this in the future. 

It is a lot of fun to decide first of all who will get our gift?  A boy or a girl?  How old of a child?  And then of course, what will we give them? 

We decided on a boy since we are a household full of girls (save for our male cat Henry).  And they chose an age range of 5 to 8 years old.  The first thing we did was go through everything we had in the house. 

From the school supplies box we found crayons, water colors, pencils, markers and a note pad.  Then the toiletry bin where I store our extras yielded a brand new toothbrush with sharks on it and a tube of toothpaste - perfect!  Next I went through our gift box under my bed and found gum and two toy race cars. 

The day after Halloween my youngest told me she wanted to share some of her Halloween candy with "our boy".  We went through her bag and she selected all the Jolly Rancher candies and suckers she had plus a package of fruit snacks (you can't send chocolate anything because it might melt).  We put her collection of candies into a Christmas themed zippered sandwich bag and she was very happy about it. 

While my oldest was at a school dance the youngest and I headed off to pick up one other item.  At the craft store we picked up a couple T-shirts on sale for 2/$6  They are nice heavy duty shirts and come in great colors.  Plus the price was unbeatable. 

We wanted to make sure we filled up the box as full as we could and I think we accomplished that quite nicely.  I hope our box brings some serious joy to this young fellow.  I know it made us happy to do it. 

It doesn’t cost a lot to do a lot either.  It mainly just takes the time you expend to put it all together.

 

If your are interested here is the link:

Operation Christmas Child.

 

 

Next Week's Meal Plan

 

Even with a tiny kitchen I can whip up a great meal.  Nothing is better than sitting down together as a family to eat a nourishing and delicious dinner.  So this what I have planned for our dining pleasure next week. 

Sunday – Enchilada Casserole, Garden Salad

Monday – Clam Chowder, Garden Salad

Tuesday – Turkey Sandwiches, Carrots & Celery w/ Ranch Dip

Wednesday – Scrambled Eggs, Biscuits & Gravy, Fruit

Thursday – Pizza Pasta, Green Beans

Friday – Hamburger Mushroom Gravy & Rice, Peas & Carrots

Saturday – Leftover Buffet, Pizza or Dine Out 

School Lunches: 

Monday: - Enchilada

Tuesday - Soup

Wednesday - Turkey Sandwich

Thursday - PB & Honey Sandwich

Friday - Pasta 

I based this plan off of items I already had on hand and items on sale at the local grocery store.  School lunches also include sides and a beverage. 

What delicious items made it on your menu this week?

Simple Biscuits & Gravy Breakfast - Thrifty Too!

 

This breakfast nods back to the depression era when nothing ever went to waste and getting a good meal on the table was often difficult.  Here's a simple, yet hearty and delicious breakfast to get your family going in the morning. 

When the cupboards thin out at the end of the month this meal definitely fits the bill and makes a great budget stretcher.  You will need one recipe of freshly baked biscuits and some country gravy. 

Country Gravy 

Over medium heat melt 3 Tbs. rendered bacon fat in a medium sized saucepan.  Sprinkle in 3 Tbs. flour and whisk until smooth.  Cook for one minute.  Continue whisking and drizzle in 2 1/2 cups milk.  Bring to the boil and remove from heat.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Spoon gravy over hot biscuits. 

 

Melt your fat.

 

Whisk in the flour and cook one minute.

Watch it!  Don't let it boil over.

Mmmmmm!

I  use the leftover flour on my board from making the biscuits as part of the flour for the gravy.  Waste not, want not. 

Scramble some eggs, add a piece of fruit or a glass of juice and some coffee or tea and you are all set.  A jar of jam or apple butter for the extra biscuits is also nice. 

Who would guess that something so simple could be so delicious?!

Last Week’s Thrifty Moves

I love free stuff!

I didn't do a whole lot of thrifty things this week. 

I did do some grocery shopping, sticking strictly to sales items and loss leaders which allowed me to stock up on canned soup (2/$1), peanut butter ($1.78 ea.), cheese and butter (3/$5), eggs (98¢/doz.), and canned pumpkin (10/$10). 

I ordered two items for my daughter's birthdays this month and received free shipping. 

I made pumpkin pancakes from scratch for breakfast twice this week and a loaf of pumpkin bread.  I used the pumpkin I "baked" in my slow cooker last week. 

I got my haircut and color done by my stylist for $45 plus tip!  It had been nearly six months since I was last in. 

We watched our favorite TV shows again on Hulu for free. 

I listened to a lot of music this week on Youtube. 

I stuck close to home and conserved gas. 

The youngest and I went to the mall and turned in a coupon good for a free bottle of shower gel.  She used a 20% OFF coupon to purchase three small bottles of lotion that were already on sale.  She plans to give them as Christmas gifts. 

How was your thrifty week last week?