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A Busy Mom's Kitchen A Minute with Noel |
Greetings!
August sure passed by in a flash. Saturday, I was in the kitchen baking bread and hamburger buns, when my son came in the kitchen and said "Mom, it's raining outside." Wow, It's cold and wet in August? What happened to the 80+ weather we we're having? With two weeks into the school year, it's really time to focus on getting back to those quick and easy hearty menus that can be made within a matter of minutes.
Not sure what to make?
This week in the kitchen, we will continue as always with Make-Ahead Meal Ideas focusing on using some quick and simple ingredients.
Remember, it's always a good idea to browse your weekly local grocery storeads for extra savings. Over the weekend, Raley's was offering a 3lb bag of apples for FREE with a $10 purschase. Fresh fruit for school lunches or an appetizing dessert like an Apple Crisp served over vanilla ice cream. Yum!
For our Sunday Family Dinner, I experimented with my 30-minute Holiday Menu in preparation for Raley's In-store magazine, Something Extra. I mentioned before I was asked by the managing editor to participate in the Holiday Challenge and create a fast recipe for families in under 30 minutes, using at least 3 Raley's Dailies. The meal was made in 25 minutes. The recipe will be featured in their Holiday issue.
The kitchen had a much needed makeover this past week, so don't forget to stop by and let me know what you think. I've been debating over the past few months on a new kitchen theme. I wanted to freshen up the kitchen and give my readers a fresh new insight on all of my kitchen ideas, recipes, family life, add some cooking videos and more. This theme was designed after a recent blog critique, so my designer and I shared some ideas and she did an amazing job. Please stop by. I'd love to hear what you think!
See you in the kitchen! |
Noel's Kitchen Tips.com
 | Here is a recap of what we shared on the blog last week, just in case you missed a post or two!
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Inexpensive WEEKLY MEALS FOR LESS!
The first thing you need to do is to plan your weekly meals.
All this week in the kitchen, I'll be sharing inexpensive recipes I've been creating for less than $100 a week and that won't break your budget. Remember family meals don't have to be expensive to be good.
I go through the sales flyers weekly and take advantage of all the buy one; get one free sales that my family eat. Many times, beef, pork, chicken, ham, bread, bagels, butter, juice, and etc are buy one; get one free. I freeze the extra items. I buy canned veggies, chopped tomatoes and puree when it's on sale at the price of 10 cans for $10.00. I buy rice in a four pound bag for $4.49 and store it in a plastic container for easy access. Potatoes are constantly on sale here with the buy one; get one bag free. The list goes on and if you are vigilant and use coupons, the savings is even higher.
Monday:Meat Loaf Sandwiches with Soup
(using 1lb of hamburger. I made hamburgers on Saturday night and made Meatloaf at the same time. Let Meatloaf cool and place in an air tight container until ready to use.)
Tuesday:Rotisserie Chicken and Green Salad
(make salad ahead of time by washing lettuce, spinning with salad spinner, break up into bite size pieces, chop celery and carrots, red or green bell pepper, store in air tight container or zip-loc bags. Add tomatoes when ready to serve. *6-8 heads of romaine lettuce last us a week.)
Wednesday:Spaghetti and Salad with Garlic Bread or Rolls
(make Spaghetti Meat Sauce ahead of time or use jarred sauce only if it's on sale.)
Thursday:Grilled Chicken Breasts with California Style Vegetables
(Broccoli, Carrots and Cauliflower)
Friday:Tacos, Corn and Salad
(Sometimes we just throw the corn and salad into the taco shells and add salsa, cheese, and sour cream for a slightly healthier taco.) |
