Budget Friendly Meals

Unless you have been living under a rock, you know we are living through the first pandemic in our lifetime. Hopefully, the last in mine and my children's children lifetime. To say many of us are stressed and concerned would be the understatement of the year. Each day, I hear stories of someone else losing their job, or another family struggle. Feeding your family should not be something you have to worry about right now.

Do you believe you can make delicious meals to feed your family? Do you think you can do it on a budget? I am here to tell you, you can! And no, it is not Tostinoes pizza. Even though that can definitely have a time and a place. What we often lack is the skills and knowledge to make creative and delicious meals for just a few dollars. If you have a basic stocked kitchen, then these recipes are for you.

Before I dive into some recipes, here are some kitchen staples to get as you shop.

Flour

Sugar

Yeast

Cheese

Eggs

Pasta

Butter or Margarine

Canned chicken

Canned tuna

Chicken quarters

Cheap pork cutlets

Ground meat--whether beef, chicken, or turkey

Canned tomato sauce

Frozen veggies--make sure to have broccoli

Applesauce, yes applesauce

**MAJOR TIP***

Do not always buy the family size or value pack of something. Read your price labels. Did you know price labels tell you how much something is per unit? Once, someone asked me to pick them up a family size pack of Kraft. When I compared the ounces per container and the overall price, I realized they were paying more for the family size AND getting less. Retailers put things like "family size" and "value size" to trick you, the consumer. Always check the unit costs as opposed to what you think you are getting. It was cheaper for my friend to buy 2 boxes of Kraft over the family size, less money and more food. Here is a really good article to better articulate what a unit label tells you.

Breakfast on a Budget:

Zucchini Bread Muffins--https://www.lecremedelacrumb.com/zucchini-bread-muffins/

You literally need 1 zucchini for this recipe. I also cut the sugar in half, you really do not need it. If you do not have eggs on hand, substitute with applesauce. Healthier and adds some natural sweetness. You will need 1/4 cup per egg. For this recipe, that will require 1/2 cup. When I make this recipe, it will make 16 to 18 muffins. For a family of 4, this means at least two breakfast meals. Your total cost mainly lies with the zucchini. Our local store sells this for $1.28 a pound. Overall, you will probably pay that for the entire recipe. 1.28/4=30-ish cent. Since this will make 2 morning meals, your total cost per person? A grand .15 cent per person per meal (a meal would be 2 muffins per person. How can you beat that? You can also freeze these in a Ziploc bag.

Pancakes from Scratch--Total cost for a batch, which will feed at least a family of 4—maybe a $1 for the meal. Break that down, .25c a person

If you do not have eggs, sub with applesauce or oil.

1 cup of flour

1 tbsp of baking powder (this helps make them fluffy)

1 cup of milk, any type (almond, soy, or cows)

1-2 eggs, I prefer 2

2 tbsp of butter or margarine softened or melted

1-2 tsp of vanilla essence—I used Dollar Tree vanilla fake essence

Combine all the ingredients, mix with a whisk for at least 2 minutes. This will help add air and make the pancakes extra fluffy.

Warm pan, don’t make it too hot. Slow and steady finishes the race. Butter the pan, make pancakes.

Now, challenge your mindset with what you add to your pancakes. My husband is from South Africa, and they serve with shredded cheese, jelly, and/or butter.

You can freeze leftovers or let your kids snack on them throughout the day.

Lunch on a Budget:

Homemade Mac-N-Cheese--It is cheaper to make your own mac-n-cheese. Not to mention, way yummier. If you buy a Great Value box of mac-n-cheese, you pay .50c for 7.25 ounces. You can buy a 1 lb box of plain, elbow pasta for .88c. Did you know that 1 lb is 16 ounces? You are getting more pasta for less cost. You can also had sliced ham, bacon, cooked onions, or whatever you want to stretch this into a dinner portion-sized meal. My husband loves cooked mushrooms and Spam.

1 lb box of elbow noodles or whatever pasta you have on hand

2 tbsp flour

2 tbsp of butter/vegan butter

2 cups of milk or almond milk

3 slices of cheese or 1 cup of shredded cheese/for the vegans nutritional yeast

salt and pepper to taste

Boil pasta, drain and set aside.

Now you will make a white sauce. In a boiler, melt 2 tbsp of butter or margarine (DON’T make it too hot), doesn’t really matter. Slowly whisk in 2 tbsp of flour. It will form a paste. Then slowly stir in the milk. It will thicken eventually. Once thick, add the cheese of your choice. This is your sauce. Stir in noodles. This is your mac-n-cheese.

You can do one of two things now. Either eat like it is, super yummy. OR, you can transfer to a baking dish, preheat the oven to 400 F, top with cheese or bread crumbs, and bake until brown.

To make it a meal, you could serve it with a small side salad. Walmart has salad packs for $1 and some change.

Mini-Corn Dog Muffins--super easy and extremely low in cost. Kid friendly as well.

Cornbread mix--Jiffy is fine

3 hot dogs

Prepare cornbread mixture according to the package.

Fill a greased muffin/cupcake pan with cornbread mixture.

Chop hot dog into 4 equal parts. Insert into the top of the cornbread mixture. Bake according to the cornbread package.

You can also top with cheese. Serve with a veggie or fruit.

Dinner on a Budget:

Crockpot Italian Chicken--Super easy, serve with rice or mashed potatoes. Add a green veggie for extra portion.

Ingredients

Chicken--use whatever you can find on sale, tenders, breasts, thighs, up-to-you

1 bottle of Italian dressing, Great Value works just fine

Place the chicken and entire bottle of dressing into your Crockpot. Cook on low for 7 hours OR high for 3.5 hours. If using a bone-in chicken, you will need to remove the bones once cooked.

Super yummy if you serve with rice and side salad. You can also top with Parmesan cheese the last hour of cooking. My mom used to do this, there were never any leftovers.

Ground Beef Gnocchi--Total cost was $3 and some change.

I didn't use any cream. The gnocchi was a 4 cheese gnocchi, so that was like the cream. It was on sale at our Walmart for 1.40. I only used 1/3 pound of ground beef. No stock, water with a beef cube. I used a .46c can of diced tomatoes and peppers (the Great Value version of Rotel). I also used garlic salt, not real garlic.

My fussy eater ate it up. This is a very tasty and filling meal for a family of 4-5. You could make garlic bread or toast to stretch the main meal to feed more.

https://www.saltandlavender.com/ground-beef-gnocchi/

Want more recipes?

Check out this running list of cheap, delicious recipes that I make. I try to add to it a few times a week, or when I discover something new.

OR

You can check out my Pinterest board. It is full of yummy recipes. From using a slow cooker, to cheap snacks, and more.