I fell wildly behind these last few days…and in the process my beautifully designed meal plan and food photographs just didn’t happened as I hoped they would! I did manage to make this delicious-ness late last week…using up some potatoes I found in the freezer that I’d bought during the 50% off store closing sale.

This week’s $5 Dinner Challenge recipe can be found over on One Dish Dinners -

Ham and Potatoes Saute with Baked Eggs

And yes, it’s Monday afternoon…still trying to figure out what to eat this week. If you need me, I’ll have my head in our deep freezer…still hoping to have cleared it out…by the end of the week! ACK!

Hope you enjoy this delicious & hearty breakfast, or brinner!

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I love slow cooker meals.

I love how smoothly my days “run” when I’ve got dinner going in the slow cooker. I love being able to sit on the couch through the “witching hour.” (Who am I kidding…I’m don’t sit on the couch. And just sit.) So I guess, I love being able to get through the witching hour without being in the kitchen and having little people pulling at my knees or tugging on my shirt, asking for a snack.

“Dinner will be ready in 5 minutes…you can wait until then.”

How many times have I uttered that phrase?

Thousands, maybe.

So this meal was a big hit…with all the little men, the big man and I really enjoyed it too. Plates were cleared, stakes were claimed on the leftovers (pulled pork sandwiches for lunch), and we all left the table with full, happy bellies.

The delicious flavors, the ease of the prep and cooking…a winner indeed!

And there’s more!

I want you to try to give every night a new flavor too…so we’re giving away the following this week!

• $25 Kroger gift card
• Recipe cards
• A variety of ConAgra products needed to create the recipes

Enter to win and you’ve got a few meals ready for your family to try!

Giveaway Details – CLOSED! Congrats to Rebecca L…our winner!

1. Contest ends Monday, January 23rd at 9 pm EST. Winners will be announced back here on this post, and notified via email with further instructions.

• Entry #1: Visit Give Every Night New Flavor, then share what recipe you think will be your next family favorite.
  
• Entry #2: Like Kroger on Facebook, or follow on Twitter.
• Entry #3: Sign up for free email updates, or RSS posts from $5 Dinners.

2. Winner will be selected by Random.org.

**NOTE: If you receive the email newsletter and wish to enter this giveaway, click on the title of this giveaway to get to the site and leave a comment on the site with your name and email address to be entered!

*Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign on behalf of Kroger and ConAgra foods. Opinions are my own.

There is just something so American about BLTs. Something so basic and delicious.

I was not a fan of tomatoes until about 7 years ago. Some time during my days in the Dominican Republic, my taste buds morphed and decided to start liking tomatoes. Then I had to break the news to my Aunt Julie (the only family member on my moms side who didn’t like tomatoes either), and turns out…she recently started liking tomatoes. Hmphfff.

Well, now we can both enjoy these little goodies!

How these came about…I found some Sister Schubert’s dinner rolls in the freezer. Right next to a package of turkey bacon. So BLT Sliders it was. I had some lettuce and a tomato on hand. But when I went to get out the mayo, I decided that was too boring. So I grabbed some grated Parmesan and some spices and ended up with a delicious spread for our sliders!

Nom.

Nom.

Nom.

(Note: Because we are getting ready to put our house on the market, I’m doing my best to clear out our deep freezer so we can put it out in our storage shed…to make things a little roomier in our laundry room. This is one of those “let’s get this thing cleared out” meals! Expect to see more of those around here!)

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Pork roast is an inexpensive meat that can be make many different ways. What happens when you coat a pork roast in blackening seasoning? You get the most flavorful, delicious, tender pork roast with a little Cajun flair- all allergy-free! This may sound like a spicy dish, but it isn’t at all. Combine it with some mashed potatoes and a fresh green salad and you’ll have a fabulous top 8 free dinner on the cheap!

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I discovered long ago that I could get my kids to eat any orange vegetable if I season it with pumpkin pie spices. I decided to take that idea and kick it up a notch and apply it to Sunday Dinner.

This is an easy one-pot dinner. It is also quite frugal for a fancy Sunday dinner. Pork roasts go on sale for as little as .99 cents  a pound in my area and sweet potatoes have been on sale for around .50 cents a pound.

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I always make too many mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving dinner. I assume everybody will want to eat as large of a serving of mashed potatoes as I do. Shockingly, that is not the case and I am left with a bowl of leftover mashed potatoes. I don’t mind though because that means I have enough mashed potatoes to make Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole.

This is a fast and easy way to repurpose leftover mashed potatoes. It also is a great way to salvage mashed potatoes if you have accidentally made them too runny.

I made this casserole using leftover Mashed Red Potatoes, but you can use any mashed potato recipe as the base. I left the skins on my potatoes because I am lazy. I reconcile my laziness with the knowledge that leaving the skin on provides more nutrients and fiber in a dish that my husband describes as a “carbohydrate bomb”.

Leftover mashed potatoes dry out a bit while in the refrigerator and cooking them in the oven will dry them out further, so you will want to add enough milk to the leftover mashed potatoes to make them quite moist. Some potato casseroles recommend adding sour cream or cream cheese, but I find that the onions and bacon add so much flavor that you don’t need the added calories or added expense of those items; milk will do quite well.

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A little over 3 years ago my life changed for the better.

I was doing the dishes after having a meal similar to this one. And just like you’d see on a “ticker” on ESPN or FoxNews, the phrase “$5 Dinners” passed through my brain. Then it passed through again. And again.

And it wasn’t long before I was sitting at the computer to see if this concept had been launched in internet-land yet.

It was just before the word “recession” made its way into mainstream media. But it was while we were in our own little “personal recession,” if you will. My husband was working his “main job,” along with a pizza delivery

There are 2 things that I remember about the meal that we had on that fateful August night…it was pork chops that I’d bought on Manager’s Special, along with peaches that were also on sale…and probably some homemade rolls. And the total of the meal being $3.85.

I remember sharing that number with my husband, as if it were yesterday. And I remember the look on his face like…wow, that’s pretty cool that it’s so inexpensive…but a little creepy that my wife remembers how much all of it cost.

(I think he’s pretty grateful for my strange ability to remember prices on food, how much I paid for specific items after coupons, and how to total meal costs while wheeling the cart through the grocery store!)

We’ve had a similar pork chops with peach salsa since then. And now we can add the “grilled” version to the every growing list of meals that can be made for less than 5 bucks.

Here’s how it went down the other night…

How to Halve a Peach

Run the knife around the peach…starting at the top by the stem…

…running all the way back to where you started the cut.

Gently twist…

And pull the two halves apart.

Scoop out the seed with a spoon.

They are ready to be grill-ified!

Perfectly tender and smoky pork chops with melt in your mouth grilled peaches and a slightly crunchy bite from the red onions…

This breakfast is perfect for the mornings when you want something tasty but without much mess. As it’s made in one pan and is super quick and simple, it fits the bill nicely. I think this would make a fantastic breakfast for dinner as well!

The only top 8 allergen it contains is eggs!

First we’ll sautee onion, garlic, and mushrooms until the mushrooms take on this lovely golden color.

Then we’ll add in some chopped ham. I just picked up some safe lunch meat that was on sale and used that.

After the ham is heated through, we’ll add in the eggs and spices and scramble the whole thing together.

When  the scramble is done add a few sliced green onions or even chives for garnish and you have a lovely, filling breakfast!

It is summer time and the living is easy. To compliment that concept, I love to prepare these easy and delicious potatoes for my husband to throw on the barbecue. Marinate some meat beforehand and dinner is ready to go.

Barbecued Potatoes

• 5 medium potatoes
• 1 large onion
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon butter
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat the barbecue to high.

Thinly slice the potatoes, onions and garlic.

Microwave the potato slices on high for 5 minutes, just to start them cooking. 
Or cook briefly in boiling water.

Meanwhile, butter a large sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil (or if you run out of heavy duty, double wrap in regular aluminum foil.

Spread a layer of potato, onion and garlic slices on the buttered foil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, repeat until all the ingredients are used up.

Fold up the sides of the foil over the potato mixture and seal the top and the ends. 
You may need to push the potatoes into an even layer through the foil. Put on the barbecue. Cook on high for 20 to 30 minutes, reduce to medium (or move to top rack) for another 10 to 20 minutes Often, we turn down the potatoes when we turn down the temperature on the meat. The potatoes should cook about 40 to 45 minutes in total. 

Open the foil and transfer potato mixture to a serving plate.

YUM!

Super Easy Marinade for Pork Chops

This recipe is enough for two meals. I marinate the meat, take half out of the bag for dinner and freeze the rest for next time.

• 2-3 pounds pork chops
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons vinegar (whatever kind you like and have on hand)
• Montreal steak spice (to taste)

Directions

Slip your hand under the rim of a plastic bag and use it to toss meat pieces into the bag.

Pour the oil and vinegar directly into the bag. Shake the steak spice over the meat.

Twist the top of the bag and push the air down, to create an air pocket. Shake the meat to distribute the ingredients.

Let the air out of the bag and gently massage.

Refrigerate until cooking time (time it so that the meat is done about five minutes before the potatoes are done).

Remove the portion for today’s dinner onto a plate. Close bag and put into a zipper lock freezer bag. Label and freeze.

Sear the meat on high for one or two minutes on each side and then turn barbecue to medium until cooked through (about 4 minutes per side). Place on serving platter, cover and let rest for about five minutes before serving.

Frugal Tip

Saver, know thyself! OK. There is a wonderful deal on chicken that is close to its expiry date. It is half off its already great price. You buy three chickens: One for dinner, two to marinate and freeze. What a deal. Yes, it is a busy week, but you can save so much money!

Only you get home and you already have dinner made. Oooops. So you put the chickens in the fridge to deal with after dinner. After dinner, you run out to take the kids to sports, after all the taxiing, you are really tired and go to bed early. The next day is a run around day. So it the next. Somehow, by the time you get to the chickens you got for such a great deal, they have already spoiled and you have to throw them away. Hmm, not such a great deal after all.

Really, when faced with such a great deal, I don’t jump on it as often as I would have before. Not because I am not frugal, but because I am realistic. If I am realistically not going to be able to easily deal with the great deal, I pass it up and leave it for some other frugal person to take advantage of and I save myself some money after all.

Welcome to the first post in my summer series called “Friday Nite Bite.”

This has nothing to do with any vampires or neck biting.  It will however be a summer friendly meal…usually cooked on the grill…that you can enjoy on the long, lazy summer nights!

So last week we had Sesame Pulled Pork Lettuce Wraps.  And I had another pound of pulled pork left (that I put in the freezer).  As I was rummaging through the freezer, I found a bag of frozen sister schubert’s rolls that I bought right before heading off to NYC.

Perfect for Sliders!

Tonight it’s BBQ Pulled Pork Sliders and Grilled Sweet Potato Fries!

(TIP: If it’s too hot to have the slow cooker running in the house, warming up the kitchen…find a safe place on a porch and let it cook outside. But be warned…you might have a few neighbors knocking on your door wanting dinner!

What are y’all biting on this fine Friday nite?!