Clearin’. It. Out.

We enjoyed this tilapia (on sale for $1.99/lb!) with Brussels sprouts from the freezer, and rolls from the freezer.

Summertime Pantry Challenge continues…

(This would have been well under $5 if I’d waited and used tomatoes from my garden!) __________________________________________________

Have a Frugal and Healthy Recipe to share?

Post the recipe on your blog and then add the link below. Other guidelines can be found here. To make it easy for other readers to find your recipe, please leave the link that leads directly to your recipe post. Any links that lead to your homepage will be deleted. If you don’t have a blog, feel free to leave your recipe in the comments section!

This is one of my husband’s all time favorite meals.

When he walks in the door and smells these on the table, I have a very happy man.

It’s easy to keep all of these ingredients on hand for a quick meal as it uses canned salmon.

I’ve modified his mother’s recipe to suit our allergy set (dairy free), as I hope you will for yours!

You can serve this with mashed potatoes and a nice big salad to round out the meal.

* The egg is only a binder in this recipe so you are free to leave it out if there is an egg allergy in your house. If you need to leave out the egg, up the water to 3/4 of a cup to make up for the liquid loss. The patties won’t stick together quite as nicely, but they’ll be equally delicious, I promise

**You could also use GF bread crumbs to make this a gluten free meal!

I recently got some tilapia for $1.99/lb. It’s rarely that price, so I got enough for 2 meals (a little over a pound for each meal)…and now I’m wishing I’d gotten more.

I’m on a grilling kick right now and really wanted to grill up some of the tilapia. Tilapia is a very delicate and tender fish and I knew it wouldn’t stand a chance on the grill grates…so foil packet it was!

This is so simple…a matter of adding some seasoning and a few slices of lemons/oranges. I’m not sure that the prep work could be any easier, actually!

Sprinkle kosher salt, pepper and some ground ginger onto each tilapia fillet.

Lay 2 orange and 2 lemon slices on top.

Wrap and grill.

(We enjoyed this as part of our “surf and turf” Father’s day dinner last night! The kids and I ate this…and Steve shared some of his monster steak with us too! Plus we had an entire plate leftover!)

__________________________________________________

Have a Frugal and Healthy Recipe to share?

Post the recipe on your blog and then add the link below. Other guidelines can be found here. To make it easy for other readers to find your recipe, please leave the link that leads directly to your recipe post. Any links that lead to your homepage will be deleted. If you don’t have a blog, feel free to leave your recipe in the comments section!

Next up on the “What to Make When” Series…Fresh or Frozen Fish Fillets.

Every now and again, there will be a great price somewhere buried in the store circular…$2.99/lb for fresh salmon fillets.  $2.99/lb of frozen tilapia fillets.  These two types of fish are what we like to eat…and what we can manage to squeeze into our grocery budget! (Besides canned tuna.)

A few favorites…

• Sweet Balsamic Tilapia
• Scampi Tilapia
• Grilled Tilapia
• Honey Ginger Salmon
• Firecracker Salmon
• Salmon Tomato Chowder

(Click here to view the complete list of “What to Make When” features.)

Do you have any favorite budget friendly fish and seafood recipes to share!?  Link them up or leave them in the comments.

When I first heard this title, I was skeptical.

When I decided to try to make it, I was still skeptical.

When I put the dish together, the skepticism remained. I baked it anyways.

And I’m glad I did, because when I took a bite, all my skeptical thoughts were washed away.

I was expecting it to be “over-tuna-y.” It was not.

I was expecting it to be too bland (yes, despite the hot sauce). It was not.

I was expecting the boys to take a bite and leave it be. They did not.

Now that I’ve pleaded it’s case, here’s the recipe…

Spicy Tuna Melt Pie

Adapted from Rachael Ray’s Tuna Melt Pie

Ingredients

• 1 tsp olive oil ($.03)
• 1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped ($.30)
• 1 green pepper, chopped ($.20) Check out my green pepper steal from the farmer’s market
• 1 6 oz can mushrooms, drained ($.99)
• 1 4 oz can green chilies ($.59)
• 3 6 oz. cans tuna, drained ($1.50) $.50/can is my “never pay more than” price
• 3 Tbsp mayonnaise ($.05)
• 1 cup shredded cheddar choose ($.67) Optional
• 1 cup milk ($.10)
• 3 eggs ($.30)
• 1/3 cup flour ($.08)
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted ($.20)
• 1-2 Tbsp hot sauce ($.20)
• 1 15 oz. can corn ($.50)

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 450°. Lightly grease a quiche plate, pie plate or 9 inch cake pan with non-stick cooking spray.
• In a large skillet, heat the olive oil  and add the onion and green pepper.  Saute for a few minutes, until softened. Add the mushrooms and green chilies cook for about 5 minutes.
• In a large bowl, combine the tuna and mayonnaise, breaking up the tuna. Stir in the sauteed veggie mixture, then stir in shredded cheese.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, flour and butter.  Stir into the tuna-cheese mixture, then stir in the hot sauce.
• Pour the spicy tuna melt into the greased pie plate, cake pan or quiche plate.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until is set in the middle and begins to golden on top.
• Heat the corn, as directed on the can.
• Serve Spicy Tuna Melt Pie with side of corn kernels.

Cost $5.26

Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.

Love. Love. I’m in love.

For several reasons.

1. Fish…wanting to add more fish into our diet.
2. Made these in the slow cooker.
3. Super easy clean up.
4. Kids ate every bit of the fish…and wanted more. (Yes, I let them dip it in ketchup. Gotta do what you gotta do.)
5. It only takes 2-3 hours to make so you can start it just after lunch…those of you who are at home.
6. Delicious.
7. Flaky, tasty, sweet  goodness.
8. It didn’t taste like fish.
9. The kids loved it. (Wait, I already said that!)
10. The kids loved it. (Ok…sorry, but this is super important.  To get your kids to not only eat fish, but to LIKE the fish is a huge deal to this mama.)

So that’s why I (and a few others) love this meal.

Ingredients

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar ($.05)
1 tsp brown sugar ($.01)
Salt and pepper
4 frozen tilapia fillets ($2.99)
1 1/2 cup brown rice ($.60)
1 acorn squash ($.99)
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened ($.40)
1/4 cup honey ($.40)
Dash of cinnamon and ginger ($.05)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk or stir the balsamic vinegar, brown sugar with a few dashes of salt and pepper.

2. Place the thawed fish fillets onto a piece of foil that is large enough to wrap completely around the fish. Pour the sweet balsamic sauce evenly over the fish fillets and then wrap the foil tightly around fish.

3. Place the foil packets in the base of the slow cooker and set on low and cook for 2-4 hours. Fish will be white and flaky when it is cooked.

4. Cook the rice as directed on the package.

5. Make Honey Roasted Acorn Squash.

6. Serve Sweet Balsamic Tilapia with Brown Rice and Honey Roasted Acorn Squash.

Cost $5.49

__________________________________________________

Have a Frugal and Healthy Recipe to share?

Post the recipe on your blog and then add the link below. Other guidelines can be found here. To make it easy for other readers to find your recipe, please leave the link that leads directly to your recipe post. Any links that lead to your homepage will be deleted. If you don’t have a blog, feel free to leave your recipe in the comments section!

I dug some tilapia fillets out of the freezer. I bounced out to the garden to pick some fresh parsley from the garden, thinking I was going to do the same old Lemon-Dill Tilapia thing (that’s my fall back for when I’m feeling uninspired)…but of course, I opened the fridge to grab the lemon juice…and the garlic bulb practically jumped off the shelf!

Parsley, lemon juice, garlic…Scampi, of course!

Snatched the butter (dairy-free margarine, really) and off I went to make a little something to pour atop the tilapia fillets.

Ended up being fairly simple. And oh my heavens, tasty too!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups brown rice ($.60)
12 oz. bag frozen tilapia fillets ($2.99)
1/4 cup butter/margarine ($.25)
3 large garlic cloves ($.15)
2 Tbsp lemon juice ($.05)
Fresh parsley from the garden
Salt and pepper
12 oz. bag of peas ($.88)

Directions

Cook the brown rice as directed on package.

Put the tilapia fillets into a greased, glass baking dish.

Melt the butter/margarine.

Crush the garlic and add to the melted butter with the lemon juice and chopped parsley.

Pour over the fillets. Season with salt and pepper.

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until fish is white and flaky in the middle. (Be warned…your house will smell uh-mazing while the scampi tilapia is baking!)

Cook the peas as directed on package.

Serve Scampi Tilapia Fillets with Brown Rice and Peas.

Cost $4.92

__________________________________________________

Have a Frugal and Healthy Recipe to share?

Post the recipe on your blog and then add the link below. Other guidelines can be found here. To make it easy for other readers to find your recipe, please leave the link that leads directly to your recipe post. Any links that lead to your homepage will be deleted. If you don’t have a blog, feel free to leave your recipe in the comments section!

I dug out some tilapia fillets from the depths of the freezer.  Thankfully they were vacuum packed and in another freezer bag, so they almost as good as fresh!

I wanted to grill the fillets straight on the grill, but they were too thin…so I “foil grill” it is. And we’ll round out the meal with Buttery Succotash with Dill and Grilled Garlic Bread.

Ingredients

4 frozen tilapia fillets ($2.99)
1 Tbsp lemon juice ($.05)
1 Tbsp Seafood seasoning -lemon and dill ($.05)
Grilled Garlic Bread ($.75)
Buttery Succotash with Dill ($1.20)

Directions

1. Place the thawed fish fillets into a foil pouch, add a dash or two of lemon juice to each fillet and season with a little seafood seasoning.  Wrap the fillet in the foil and place on the grill.  Grill for 7-10 minutes, or until fillet is white through and through.

2. Prepare the Buttery Succotash with Dill and the Grilled Garlic Bread.
3. Serve Tilapia on the Grill with Buttery Succotash with Dill and Grilled Garlic Bread.

Cost $5.04

Hello again! It’s me – Sarah, that overly-enthusiastic-about-garlic lady who introduced y’all to my White Bean Spinach Dip a few weeks back. I hope y’all got a chance to try it out!

This time around, I wanted to share with you one of my favorite soup recipes; Salmon Tomato Chowder. It’s good stuff. If you’re having friends or family over for dinner and want to keep costs low, this is a great recipe to make because, well…because salmon is classy, even in chowder.

First up, we’ll need 2 salmon filets. I generally use the frozen variety (thawed) because I live in a landlocked state and most fish are already frozen before they reach the grocery store (fish lovers can all join me in a loud groan of disapproval at this tragedy).

Anyhow, saute the salmon in a bit of olive oil over medium heat, about 3 minutes per side. Chop cooked salmon into small pieces.

In a large pot, combine salmon, rotel tomatoes, potato, onion, and corn. Oh, and a little bit of salt and pepper.

When cooking, the best way to achieve good flavors in your food is to add a small amount of seasoning each step of the way. This also gives you more control over the amount of spice that you add.

Add chicken broth and cook over medium heat until the chowder reaches a low boil. Maintain the low boil until the potatoes are fork-tender – about 10 – 15 minutes, depending on how small you chopped them.

Remove chowder from heat and pour in ¼ c. half & half, cream, or whole milk. Stir to combine.

Garnish with scallions for a little burst of color and flavor.

Serve immediately, with a slice or two of artisan bread; y’all enjoy!

Salmon Tomato Chowder (Printable Recipe)

Serves 4

2 salmon filets, patted dry (2.50)
1 large russet potato, chopped small (0.15)
1 medium onion, diced (0.20)
1 c. fresh or frozen corn (0.30)
2 cans undrained Rotel tomatoes, Mexican variety (0.48)
2-3 c. chicken broth (Free – if you make your own)
Salt and pepper
½ tsp. chili powder (0.05)
½ tsp. garlic powder (0.05)
¼ c. half & half, cream or whole milk (0.05 – 0.15)
4 scallions, sliced (0.10)
Artisan loaf (1.00) Check out the day-old bakery section in your grocery store and you’ll likely find some really good deals on bread. Just be sure to freeze or eat it within 2 days.

Total Cost: $4.88

Saute the salmon in a bit of olive oil over medium heat, about 3 minutes per side. Chop cooked salmon into small pieces.

In a large pot, combine salmon, rotel tomatoes, potato, onion, and corn. Oh, and a little bit of salt and pepper. Add chicken broth and cook over medium heat until the chowder reaches a low boil. Maintain the low boil until the potatoes are fork-tender – about 10 – 15 minutes, depending on how small you chopped them.

Remove chowder from heat and pour in ¼ c. half &half, cream, or whole milk. Stir to combine. Garnish with scallions and serve immediately.

Sarah Lenhart is the author of Frontier Kitchen, a cooking blog dedicated to simple home cooking that your family will love. She lives in Wyoming with her husband and daughter.

Operator fail.

Chef fail.

I shall explain! This is the other salmon that I bought when on sale for $2.99/lb.  I immediately added the marinade, wrapped it up in foil, put it into a plastic freezer baggie and froze it.

Operator fail. I forgot to mark which side of the salmon was “up” before freezing it.

Chef fail. I forgot to put the foil on a cookie sheet when I put it into the oven. And I forgot to look to see which side was “up”…oh wait, I wouldn’t have been able to tell…because of my operator FAIL!  Needless to say, the juices immediately spilled all over the oven floor.  So I rectified by placing the foil salmon pack on a cookie sheet…only to have all the juices spill out on to the cookie sheet.  The juices burned. The house smelled bad. But…

The salmon tasted fine.  But I think it would have tasted great, had not all the juices and marinades seeped out…as I baked it upside down.

Ugh.

Live and learn!

Adapted from this recipe on Recipezaar…featured on the OAMM March Menu.

Ingredients
1.2 lb salmon fillet ($3.65)

Marinade:
1/2 cup olive oil ($.50)
1/4 cup soy sauce ($.20)
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar ($.20)
1 Tbsp brown sugar ($.05)
2 garlic cloves, crushed ($.05)
2 tsp red pepper flakes ($.10)
Salt and pepper

1/2 cup wild rice mix + 1/2 cup brown rice ($.40) Trying to use up what’s in the pantry!
1 12 oz. bag of frozen peas ($.50) Sale plus coupon

Directions
1. Place salmon fillet onto foil.
2. Whisk marinade in small bowl. Pour over salmon. Wrap foil around the salmon. Freeze or bake.
(Bake at 350 for an hour from frozen or 20 minutes from fresh.)
3. Cook rice and peas as directed on package instructions.
4. Serve Firecracker Salmon with Rice and Peas.

Cost $5.65