PINEAPPLE CHICKEN STICKS

When our food budget is very limited, we sometimes get stuck in the rut of believing we cannot afford to make anything more than mac ‘n cheese and hot dogs.  This could not be further from the truth.  The quantities used in the recipe of this fun tasty meal cost about $7.00 in total and makes 6 skewers.  Assuming each person will consume 2 skewers each, you are feeding 3 people for $7.00.  You can’t even go to a fast food restaurant for that price.  And putting food on a stick and grilling or broiling it seems to be something almost anyone will eat regardless of what is on the stick.

I use chicken thighs for this recipe only because I prefer the dark meat of chicken.  You can definitely use chicken breasts instead, but if you do keep costs down by buying split breasts that have the bone and skin and remove the bone and skin yourself.  If you have a nice pair of kitchen shears it is very easy to cut the bone away from chicken meat.  Also keep the cost down by buying your store’s brand of canned pineapple instead of a national brand like Dole.  And if you are fortunate enough to have space to grow your own peppers, you will definitely reduce the cost of this meal.

What You Need

6 10” Bamboo Skewers, soaked in water for a minimum of ½ hour

1 ½ Lbs. Chicken, skinned and deboned and cut into 1” pieces
20 oz. Can Pineapple Chunks in Natural Juice, drained, juice reserved
1 Sweet Green Pepper, cored and seeds removed, cut into 1” chunks
¼ cup Teriyaki Sauce
½ cup Pineapple Juice (from reserved canned pineapple chunks juice)
¼ cup Honey

Preparation

Whisk together honey, teriyaki sauce and pineapple juice in a medium bowl.  Cut chick into 1 inch pieces and put into marinade sauce in bowl.  Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight.

Once chicken has marinated as long as you desire, remove chicken to a plate, reserving marinade.

Starting with and ending with a chunk of pineapple, put pineapple, chicken and green pepper chunks onto skewer, alternating pieces.  You should have enough quantity to fill 6 skewers three quarters full.

Cooking

Put skewers on grill or broiler pan and cook for 5 minutes.  Brush with marinade, turn and cook for 5 minutes.  Brush with marinade, turn and cook for 5 more minutes or until chicken is done but not dry.  Discard any unused marinade.

Serve over rice pilaf.

PORK AND APPLE STUFFING BAKE

This recipe mixes the classic pork and apples for a filling comfort meal at a reasonable price.  Although any recipe with apples seems like a fall-time meal, I really do enjoy this in the summer if it is not too hot to turn on the oven.  This recipe cooks at a low oven temperature which increases cooking time.  You can increase the oven temperature to decrease cooking time, but cooking pork slowly helps keep the pork moist and tender.

What You Need

9 x 13 x 2 baking pan, well- greased
One 6 oz. Box of Pork-Flavored Stuffing Mix
1 ¾ cups Apple Juice
1 Green Granny Smith Apple, sliced very thin
1 lb. Pork Shoulder Steaks (2 pork steaks are approx. 1 lb.) - see note
1 Tsp. Rubbed Sage
1 Tsp. Dried Thyme
¼ Tsp. Black Pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 325^o
Mix together the sage, thyme and pepper and rub into each side of each pork steak
Sear pork steaks in hot skillet about 1 minutes per side
Spread dried stuffing mix evenly across bottom of your well-greased 9 x 13 pan
Peel apple and slice thin enough to get at least 20 slices
Place apple slices on top of dried stuffing mix
Once oven is pre-heated, pour 1 2/3 cups apple juice over stuffing and apples
Place browned pork shoulder steaks on top
Cover baking pan with foil.

Cooking

Bake covered at 325^o for 25 minutes.  After 25 minutes, stir stuffing mix and turn pork over, recover pan and cook another 20 minutes or until pork is no longer pink.  Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes.  Remove foil and serve.

Makes 4 servings

There is more than enough room in the 9 x 13 pan to fit more than 2 pork shoulder steaks if you need to feed more than 4 people.

Note:  You can choose to use pork chops instead of pork shoulder steaks.  I use shoulder steaks because they are less expensive and this blog is about low cost cooking.  One pork shoulder steak should feed two people depending of course on the individual’s appetite.  If you do choose to use pork chops, make sure they are no more than 1/2 inch thick.

HOLD THE MAYO MACARONI SALAD

I enjoy macaroni salad as well as the next person, but I do get tired of the mayonnaise and/or whipped salad dressing salads.  In addition, if it is a salad someone has brought to a backyard cookout, I get really concerned about the mayo not being refrigerated.  Lastly, this blog is about low cost cooking.  The dressing used for this salad is less than what it would cost to use mayonnaise.

It is highly recommended to make this a day ahead to give the flavors time to blend, but you can make and serve immediately.  I just personally think it tastes much better after sitting for 24 hours.

What You Need

8 oz. Uncooked Elbow Macaroni
2 cups Frozen Peas, thawed
2 cups Frozen Corn, thawed
½ cup oil (preferably olive or canola)
½ cup lime juice
3 Tbsp. sugar
¼ tbsp. Cumin
Salt and Pepper to taste
10-15 Cherry Tomatoes, halved

Preparation

To thaw peas and corn, place in a colander and rinse under running cold water for 3 to 4 minutes, gently stirring with hands.  Set aside and allow to drain well.

Cook macaroni in rapidly boiling water for 10 minutes or until desired doneness.  When macaroni is finished, drain in colander and rinse with cold running water for 3 minutes.  This helps to 1) stop the cooking and 2) rinse off excess starch.

While macaroni is cooking, whisk together the oil, lime juice, sugar and cumin until mixed well.

Once the macaroni and vegetables are thoroughly drained, mix together in a medium sized mixing bowl.

If you are going to add salt and pepper, now is the time to do so, then stir well.

Pour dressing over all and stir until mixed well.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.  Stir in cherry tomato halves right before serving.

Makes 6 -8 side dish servings.

CHEESY SPINACH BEEF BAKE

This simple meal is a great way to get those picky eaters who won’t eat vegetables to eat some spinach without complaining.

Consider preparing this dish the night before.  Then when you get home, all you have to do is preheat the oven and cook.

What You Need

2 qt. baking dish, greased
1 lb. ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed.  Squeeze out excess liquid.
1 small can (4 oz.) mushroom pieces and stems, drained
16 oz. container sour cream
1 tbsp. garlic salt
¼ tsp. black pepper
1 to 2 cups shredded mozzarella or Monterey Jack cheese or Swiss (I prefer Swiss)

Preparation

Cook ground beef and onion in skillet until no pink remains breaking up pieces as the meat cooks.  Drain fat.  Add the spinach, mushrooms, and garlic salt.  Cover and cook about 5 minutes. 

In a small bowl, mix sour cream, garlic salt and pepper.  Stir into ground beef mixture in the skillet.  Spoon skillet contents into greased 2 qt. baking dish.  Sprinkle shredded cheese over top.

Cooking

Preheat oven to 350^o.  Bake uncovered for 25 – 30 minutes or until bubbly and heated through.

Makes 4 - 6 servings.

If you make this dish in the summertime when fresh tomatoes are either growing in your garden or abundantly available at farmer’s markets or grocery stores, considering serving  fresh sliced tomatoes as a side dish.

SKILLET CHICKEN WITH SOUR CREAM GRAVY

Fried chicken is a staple meal in many households.  If you are tired of the same old fried chicken and gravy give this tasty twist a try.  The chicken in this dish is cooked in much less oil than what is normally used for frying, so it is a bit healthier.   Using fat free sour cream also helps if you are concerned about fat content.

What You Need

Large Frying Pan -14” if you have it
3 lbs. Chicken – thighs, legs or wings or mix of all
¼ Cup Flour
2 Tbsp. Cooking Oil (any kind, i.e. Vegetable, Canola, Olive Oil)
¾ Cup Water
½ Cup Chopped Onion
2 tsp. Paprika
½ tsp. Salt (optional)
1 Tbsp. Flour
1 8 oz. Carton Sour Cream
1 tsp. Finely Shredded Lemon Peel (optional but worth it)

          Note:  if you don’t have a lemon, you can use ½ tsp. jarred lemon peel if you have it

Preparation

Rinse chicken pieces and pat dry.  Coat all chicken pieces with ¼ cup flour.  Brown chicken on all sides in hot oil, about 10 minutes.  Drain off fat.

Cooking

Mix together ¾ cup water, ½ cup chopped onion, 2 tsp. paprika and optional ½ tsp. salt.  Add to skillet with chicken, cover and cook 35 – 40 minutes or until no pink remains.  Transfer chicken to serving platter, reserving skillet juices.  Cover chicken to keep warm.

Stir 1 tbsp. flour into the sour cream.  Stir mixture into juices in skillet.  Cook and stir until thick and bubbly.  Stir 1 minute longer then add lemon peel.  Pour sour cream gravy over chicken.

Serve over rice.

SAUSAGE NOODLE BAKE

The cost to make this very simple casserole depends on the type of sausage you purchase.  If you are looking for the least expensive option, buy whatever is on sale at your grocery store.

A nice variation on this recipe is to use 1 lb. of cooked ham, especially if you have leftovers from a cooking a large ham earlier in the week.  Just make sure to cube the ham into 1" pieces so they do not dry out too much during cooking.  If you do substitute ham for the sausage, I would highly recommend using shredded Swiss cheese instead of cheddar. 

What You Need

2 qt. baking dish, greased

8 oz. egg noodles
1 package smoked sausage or kielbasa, cut into ½ inch chunks
1 can condensed cream of celery soup
1 cup milk
1 tsp. white pepper (if you don’t have white pepper, use black pepper)
1 small can Durkee French fried onion
2 cups shredded cheese (the stronger flavor of cheddar is best but you can use mozzarella or Swiss)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375⁰

Cook egg noodles according to package directions
Cut the sausage into ½ inch chunks
In large mixing bowl combine soup, milk, pepper and 1 cup of cheese
Add well-drained noodles and sausage chunks to soup mixture and mix well
Put sausage and soup mixture into well-greased 2 qt. casserole dish
Top with remaining cheese and the small can of Durkee onions

Cooking

Put the sausage and soup mixture into well-greased 2 qt. casserole dish

Top with remaining cheese and the can of Durkee onions
Cover and cook for 20 minutes
Remove cover and cook an additional 5-10 minutes or until slightly browned on top.  Sserves 4-6.

 

Note:  This recipe doubles well with the following adjustments: 

• Use slightly less than 16 oz. of egg noodles (when I double the recipe I use all but about ½ to 1 inch of a 16 oz. bag)
• Do not double milk to the full 2 cups.  Only use 1¾ cups milk for 2 cans of soup
• Use a 9 x 13 casserole pan