Victoria's Seceret: Free Panty Coupon

Go to the Victoria’s Secret Facebook and hit the "like" button, you will be able access a Free Panty printable coupon to use in stores starting tomorrow (5/18). The coupon is good for a free panty (10.50 value) with ANY purchase.

Eat From the Pantry Challenge

We have been doing well on our eat from the pantry challenge, but I have been so busy I have not had a lot of time to post pictures or recipes of what we have been eating. Last week I made this ham and bean soup recipe. I was inspired by the recipe here from the free cook book I told you about here.

But since it is pantry challenge month I altered it quite a bit. Here is what I started with:

Then I decided to add a can of chicken broth because I did not think there was enough liquid and I threw in 2 diced sweet potatoes that were going south in the pantry. (that's what soup is good for right!)

Here is how the soup turned out!

I also cooked up some barley separately, because I don't like how bloated it gets if you cook it in the soup and I made french bread for the first time ever!

Here is the recipe for the bread:

1 cup of water

3 cups of bread flour

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon active dry yeast

cornmeal

egg white + 1 tablespoon of water beaten

*Put the first 4 ingredients in your bread machine (in the order your machine suggests) on the dough cycle.

*When the cycle is finished. remove dough, punch down, cover and let rest for 10 min.

*Then divide dough in half and on a lightly floured surface roll into a rectangle, then twist into a spiral, and seal edges.

*Place seam sides down on a greased baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal and brush with 1/2 egg white mixture

* Cover and let rise for 35 to 45 min or until doubles. Score top with 3 or 4 diagonal cuts and place in a 375 degree oven for 20 min.

* Then brush with the remaining egg mixture and bake an addition 12-15 minutes until the bread sound hollow. Cool on wire rack.

Here are my results (I made 2 batches):

I think I did pretty well considering it was my first time, and the bread machine really did most of the work! (I will try to improve on keeping the loves a consistent size and shape). I also used all purpose flour because I did not have any bread flour as the recipe called for. I can not wait to try with bread flour, I am sure it will be even better!

Our meal was yummy and HUGE it fed us 3 nights!

The next day I took the left over french bread and sliced it into 1/2 slices and put it in a bag overnight to get a bit harder. The next morning I made a french toast mixture of eggs, milk, sugar and cinnamon. and let the bread soak in it for about 20-30 min while I got dressed.

Then I cooked them in batches a skillet with a little cooking spray. They make excellent french toast "sticks." They are perfect toddler size and they freeze better than french toast made with regular bread!

Eat From the Pantry Challenge: Our Goals

For the Month of January my Family is going to attempt to participate in Money Saving Mom and Life as Mom's "Eat From the Pantry Challenge." You can read more about the challenge here or here, but basically each family is encouraged to set their own goals that are realistic for them. If you are interested in participating you should also read the post here "My Pantry is Different from Yours" it will help you in setting goals for your own challenge!

I still hope to do quite a bit of freezer cooking this month since having prepared meals is so helpful while I am in graduate school!

So here are our family's goals for the Eat From The Pantry Challenge:

1) Stop at the store a maximum of three times in January.

2) Buy mostly "fresh" foods including meat, bread, dairy (milk, eggs, cheese, etc.) and produce (fruits/vegetables) (I will allow myself to purchase a few "pantry" items to round out a meal and I will still pick up any free or super cheap after coupon "pantry" items to store for future months-but this will come out of our budget!)

3) Cut our typical grocery budget in half from $290 to a a total of $145 or less on groceries during the month of January.

**we usually have dinner out once a week as a family (this comes out of a separate budget so we plan to continue eating out)

Freezer Lunches

I made bean burritos buy taking reduced sodium canned pinto beans and a can of rotel (free after coupons) heating and mashing it up a little and then wrapping it a reduced carb flour tortilla. then wrap the whole thing in foil. You can put some cheese on the inside, but I omit the cheese to keep the calories low and then I just add cheese to the top of the kids when we reheat them. These were mostly a success but I think I could have made the beans a bit less runny!

I also made chicken quesadilla by taking some of the black beans I made in the slow cooker and some chicken breast that I poached, along with some salsa and cheese. Put all of this on 1/2 of a low carb flour tortilla, spray the tortilla with vegetable oil and then heat at 450 until the tops are brown. You can wrap individually in foil for freezing. These were a success!

Freezer Breakfasts

This was another failure...I made hash browns the good old fashion way and I thought since you can buy them in the freezer section of the grocery store you should be able to freeze them at home. But when we went to reheat out frozen ones they were gray! they tasted ok but they were very unappetizing....I am guessing they need some king of preservative to keep them from oxidizing, like lemon juice on an apple. Any suggestions?



I also made strawberry pancakes. I don't consider myself much of a baker so I almost always start with some sort of baking mix to help me out! One of these days I am going to make my own baking mix.....but this time I used a boxed pancake mix and I used strawberry apple sauce to replace the oil in the directions plus I added thawed frozen strawberries. They were a success!

These were for my hubby. Egg and bean breakfast burritos. Scramble up some eggs, add salsa and black beans (I made them in the slow cooker so they are lower in sodium). Put in a low carb tortilla and wrap in foil. Hubby says they freeze well!


I also made and froze blueberry muffins (from a boxed mix), they were a success!

Turkey Shepards Pie

I roasted a turkey because they were so cheap around Thanksgiving, then we ate what we wanted and the rest of the meat went into making this Shepard's pie. It is a great use up of leftovers after the holidays. You take shredded turkey or chicken, gravy ( I used jarred but home made would be even better), and canned mixed veggies, then top with mashed potatoes ( remember the ones I already made for freezer mashed potatoes). Heat until warm through out and potatoes start to brown, easy as that!

Since these pies were going in the freezer I did not bake them here, I topped them with the potatoes and after the picture I put saran wrap and foil on them.

Now some successes... Freezer Mashed Potatoes and Freezer Mashed Sweet Potatoes

I used the recipe here for Freezer Mashed Potatoes, but I substituted fat free sour cream rather than full fat and laughing cow cheese in place of the cream cheese since I am on the Weight Watchers plan. These were wonderful!!! I had my hesitations about mash potatoes in the freezer, but they are very very good, you must try them....especially if you are a boxed potato person!

I covered them with saran wrap and then with foil after the picture before freezing.

(The remaining potatoes in the bowl were used to top the Shepard's pie in the next picture)

I didn't have a recipe for the mashed sweet potatoes, I was just working off the same concept of the mashed potatoes. Instead of cheese and sour cream I used a little brown sugar and a small amount of butter. I have also seen recipes that call for banana or applesauce if you are trying to keep it light (I do not care for the banana with the sweet potato myself) We sprinkle with mini marshmallows when reheating.

Lets Start with a Failure! ... Mac and Cheese Cups

I wanted to make the Mac and Cheese Cups recipe I found here, I think they look delicious and I thought they would freeze and reheat really well. Which would make for a fun hot lunch side dish for my two year old. The recipe worked fine as you can see from the picture above and they were yummy...it was the freezing that was a problem! Even though I cooled them before putting them into the bags and freezer they somehow formed one solid block of macaroni! Which was obviously not the point. So next time I will use sandwich baggies to wrap each one before putting them into the larger freezer bag.

(some recipes I have seen call for the use of foil muffin liners but I avoided that so I could easily microwave the cups with worrying about trying to remove the foil liner)

First Attempt at Once a Month Cooking

During the month of December I tried for the first time to do a full month of freeze ahead recipes. I chose December because it was really a half month for us since we were traveling, it seemed more manageable. And I did the cooking over the course of a week rather than all in one or two days like many more experienced once a month cooks. Overall I think it was a success, but I do think I still have a thing or two to learn about this once a month cooking thing! The next several posts will be about the cooking (successes and failures)!


Here was our menu plan.

Jar Butterscotch Brownie Mix

I had a really busy schedule this year and baking the the dozens of holiday cookies that I usually bake just wasn't in the cards, the problem I faced was that I usually give those cookies out as neighbor gifts, to small gatherings, and to fill up goodie baskets. So I needed something faster than baking, but still just as yummy and I came up with the Jarred cookie and brownie!



I decided to try Butterscotch Brownies in a Jar (you can see pictures of my process below.)


First I made a test batch...before giving something away you have to make sure it tastes good...ymmmy!

To be more frugal I used recycled spaghetti sauce jars rather than the large mason jars called for in the recipe. And I made a parchment funnel to help me with the flour although net year I think a dollar store funnel would be well worth it!

Using the spaghetti sauce jars was ok, but I could not fit all of the ingredients in the jar so I had to attach a little bag to the side. Here I am filling up the bags. I use a tall drinking glass to help hold the bag open.

I think they turned out cute and I am not convinced that it really would have fit in a mason jar either!



What I learned:

*I am going to start saving spaghetti sauce jars now, because I am doing this again next year it definitely cuts down on my baking and my eating!!

*I did find it easier to work in batches in the kitchen, doing a few jars at a time (5 in this case) but if you have a large kitchen it would probably be easiest to do them all at once.

*Next time I see a cheap funnel I am buying it!

Sausage and Egg "Muffins"

I know many of you do baking days and freezer cooking days. I enjoy doing them too, but in all honesty they can be overwhelming. So most of the time I try to cook a little extra here and there to freeze. It is not quite as satisfying as seeing all that food laying out for the big picture when you are done with a baking day, but I find it to be much easier for time management and it allows me to more easily incorporate my kids into helping me in the kitchen because I am cooking for much shorter periods of time.

Today I made a recipe I adapted from the recipe here.

Sausage and Egg "Muffins"

Makes 24 "muffins"

Ingredients
•2 cans (12 fl. oz. each) Evaporated Milk
•8 large eggs, beaten
•7 oz precooked turkey sausage links, diced
•1/2 teaspoon onion powder
•1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
•4 cups 1/2-inch cubed Italian or French bread (about 9 slices)

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 350º F. Spray Muffin tin with cooking spray.

COMBINE milk, eggs, sausage, onion powder and garlic powder in large bowl. Add bread cubes, stirring gently to moisten bread. Pour mixture into baking dish.

BAKE for 30-35 minutes or until set. Serve warm or freeze in ziptop bag and defrost and reheat in microwave.

** These came out great, they make good finger food for toddlers as long as you cut the sausage small enough. I eliminated 1/2 the bread, 1/2 the meat, and the cheese from the original recipe to cut out some calories. I calculated my version as 2 Weight Watcher Points.

Freezer Cooking Day Final Results

Lots of Pumpkin seeds (I don't freeze these)
6 cups of pureed pumpkin for the freezer
2 cups of pureed pumpkin for baby food
2 dozen Spice Cake Cupcakes
24 Pumpkin Pancakes
24 Pumpkin Waffles
2 Large (8 serving) pans of Lasagna

Not bad for a few hours worth of work! But boy am I tired!

Pumpkin Sausage Lasagna

I finished the Pumpkin and Sausage Lasagna and it was a hit!







Up next...the final tally!

Waffles, Pancakes, & Cupcakes Ready for the Freezer

The Waffles, Pancakes, & Cupcakes are ready for the freezer and now I am off to make the last of my freezer cooking day tasks...the Pumpkin Sausage Lasagna.

Here is the Recipe it is from Rachel Ray's show:

Sausage and Pumpkin Lasagna
Ingredients
2 pounds butternut squash or pumpkin halved and seeded
EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for liberal drizzling
Salt and pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg
3 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons honey
2 pounds sweet Italian sausage
4 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 quart whole milk
10-12 leaves fresh sage, very thinly sliced
2 boxes no boil, flat edged lasagna sheets
2 cups grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
Yields: Serves 6
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Drizzle squash with a little EVOO and season with salt, pepper and a little freshly grated nutmeg. Roast cut-side down until tender, about 40 minutes. Let cool enough to handle, then scoop flesh out of skin and add to food processor. Puree squash with stock and honey, in 2 batches if necessary, and reserve.
Heat a drizzle of EVOO in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and brown the sausage, crumbling it into very small bits as it cooks, about 7-8 minutes.

While the sausage cooks, heat a pot over medium heat. Add butter and melt, whisk in flour, cook 1 minute then whisk in milk. Season with salt, pepper, a little freshly grated nutmeg and sage. Cook until thickened, about 7-8 minutes, whisking occasionally.
Dot some pumpkin puree in the bottom of a casserole dish then add a layer of pasta. Top with 1/3 of the cooked sausage and cover lightly with pumpkin puree. Cover with another layer of pasta, 1/3 of the béchamel sauce and 1/2 cup Parmigiano. Repeat with 2 more layers, ending each with béchamel sauce and using all of the remaining cheese for the top layer. Sprinkle parsley across the top, cover and bake lasagna 30 minutes. Uncover and cook 15 minutes more to brown the top.

I will be modifying it to make it healthier by using turkey sausage (I had some in the freezer that I got a great price on recently). And I will be using 1% milk.

I will be doubling the recipe so we have some for tonight, and leftovers this week, plus a big pan to freeze.

I will update with a picture and the verdict on the taste after dinner!

Pumpkin Waffles and Pumpkin Pancakes

There is really no secret recipe to tell...my trick, to use a Rachel Ray phrase, is that I "take a little help from the store." I use a box pancake mix, and follow the directions on the box, except I omit the oil completely and replace it with pumpkin. I also replace about 1/2 cup-1 cup (depending on how big a batch I am making) of the milk or water called for in the recipe with pumpkin. If you prefer a favorite pancake or waffle recipe rather than a box mix, you can do the same substitution using that recipe. I also add a pinch of cinnamon to my pumpkin waffles.

I freeze the waffles in groups of twos and the pancakes in groups of threes and you can pop them in the microwave or the toaster just like the ones from the freezer section from the grocery store. Only they are much healthier.

Next...I need to package them for the freezer.

Spice Cake Cupcakes

I have been trying out the Weight Watchers program for a while now and this is a recipe I learned about in a meeting, although there are several different variations I have tried.

You take a box of spice cake mix and a can of pumpkin puree mix it with a hand mixer (the mixture will be too stiff to do it well by hand). Do not add anything else, no eggs, oil, water, etc. Spoon the mixture into a cupcake pan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. One box will make 12 cupcakes and they are 4 WW points each. This could not be easier. It can be done with a white cake mix, carrot cake mix, and chocolate cake mix. (The chocolate cake mix is actually a Hungry Girl recipe). I have tried all except the carrot cake and I have liked all that I have tried.

The only thing I did differently is that I used my own pureed pumpkin rather than the canned and I doubled the recipe. I think cupcakes are a fun baking activity to get the little ones involved in! They turned out great as usual!








Up next... Pumpkin Pancakes and Pumpkin Waffles

Freezer Cooking Day

If you have not heard about it already Money Saving Mom and FishMama are hosting a live-blogging and tweeting Freezer Cooking Day that includes more than 250 other women around the country who are participating. I got a late start since I did not have time to join in yesterday, but I have been cooking away this morning!

I started with cutting, gutting, and roasting of the 10 pumpkins! (If you don't know why I have 10 pumpkins see this post).




Then I pureed all the pumpkin and divided it into the bowls and containers based on my plans for the recipes. And roasted the pumpkin seeds (lots of pumpkin seeds)!



I ended up with:

1 1/2 cups for Pumpkin Pancakes
1 1/2 cups for Pumpkin Waffles
3 1/2 cups for Spice Cake Cupcakes
3 1/2 cups for Sausage Pumpkin Lasagna
2 cups for Baby Food
6 cups to Freeze for use later
Lots of pumpkin seeds

Recipes for each will follow!

Up first...Spice Cake Cupcakes...

Food 'n Fun

Here are a few web sites, tips, and activities that I have foud helpful for managing life with little ones while being thrifty!

Check back often as I uptade this post!

$5 Dinners is a Website published by Erin who is on a mission to create dinners for her family of 4 (soon to be family of 5) for $5 or less. She is also in the process of producing a cookbook! Link to her site using the button below.