As part of No Cold Cereal Week and Pantry/Freezer Challenge Month, I made this fabulous oatmeal (along with another I’ll share next week!)…

…as well as Banana Cinnamon Waffles (which I made the night before…because we all know (or maybe you don’t) that I am SO NOT a morning person…and I’m not sure what I was thinking when I made up this challenge.

For me, the easiest thing to do for breakfast when my brain is still asleep…pour a bowl of cold cereal. Not this week!

Back to the oatmeal.

It’s pretty mindless, really?  And pretty quick, too. Something even I can do before my brain wakes up.

Ingredients
2 cups of quick cooking oatmeal
4 cups of water
3 Tbsp sweetener – I used white sugar…seemed like the best fit for peaches
2 peaches, sliced – From the freezer this time. But fresh work too!
Cream or milk for each bowl

Directions
I shall show you…

I *heart* French Toast Casseroles!  I love how you can take SUPER STALE french bread and turn it into a breakfast (or dinner) masterpiece!  By soaking the bread overnight in a fruity, egg-milk mixture, stale french bread can be completely transformed and redeemed!!!  When Andrea sent this recipe, I HAD to try it!

Note: The marked down french loaf bread that I *knew* was in the freezer was not to be found   So I used some burger buns from the freezer instead!  This was sweet enough in and of itself that it did not need any syrup!

Ingredients
1/2 cup brown sugar ($.15)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ($.03)
1/2 cup melted butter or margarine ($.40)
3 apples – peeled, cored and sliced ($.99)
1 cup dried cranberries (FREE!) From Walgreens trip two weeks ago!
1 French Loaf, cut into 1 inch slices ($.79) Look for these when they are marked down and then freeze if you don’t eat right away!
6 eggs, lightly beaten ($.60)
1 1/2 cups milk (I used rice milk!) ($.15)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract ($.10)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon ($.05)
Favorite fruit: bananas, cantaloupe, berries or Fruit Salad ($1)
6-8 slices bacon ($.75)  We rarely eat a whole package of bacon because it’s not a part of our regular diet, so I freeze what we don’t eat right away!  Just separate it into however many slices you wish to eat so that you can just thaw what you need!

Directions
1. In a large bowl, mix together brown sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Mix in melted butter or margarine. Stir in chopped apples and dried cranberries until evenly coated. Pour into prepared pan.

Arrange french loaf slices in an even layer over apples.
2. In same bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, vanilla and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Pour over bread, making sure every slice is fully soaked. Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate over night. THIS IS KEY!

3. Preheat over to 375 degrees. Remove dish from refrigerator while the over is heating. Bake covered for 40 minutes. Remove cover, and bake 5 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
4. Prepare your favorite fruit or turkey bacon.
5. Serve Apple Cranberry French Toast Bake with Fruit and/or Bacon!

Cost $5.01

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Monique shared this recipe with me.  Hello, scrumptious!

I couldn’t bring myself to buy the $2.49  jar of peach salsa.  So I compromised and used the peaches I bought last week and the red onion from this week to make my own peach salsa.  And ended up grilling it alongside the pork chops!

I also grilled up some zucchini and tomatoes in the grilling basket! 

Ingredients
3 large (or 4 smaller) pork chops ($2.19) I used a little more than 1 lb.
4 small peaches ($.75) About 1 lb.
1/2 red onion ($.35)
Bunch parsley (from the garden)
1 tsp canola oil ($.03)
1 zucchini ($.50) From the farmer’s market this afternoon
3 small tomatoes (from the garden)
2 garlic cloves ($.10)
4 basil leaves, chopped (from the garden)
1 tsp olive oil ($.03)
1 cup white rice ($.20)
Salt/Pepper

Directions
1. Grill pork chops for 6-8 minutes on each side, or until no longer pink in the middle. Cooking time will vary depending on heat of the grill and thickness of the chop.
2. Cut peaches and red onion into 1 inch-ish size pieces. Add to bowl with chopped parsley and canola oil. Toss well. Add to grilling basket and grill for 8-10 minutes, or until peaches soften and onions become translucent. Stir occasionally. Remove from grilling basket.
3. Slice zucchini into thin circles. Cut tomatoes into 1 inch-ish cubes. Add to bowl with minced garlic and chopped basil leaves and olive oil. Toss well. After the peach salsa has cooked, use the same grilling basket to grill the zucchini and tomatoes. Stir occasionally. Grill for 8-10 minutes, or until all the zucchinis have turned golden and the tomato skins have started to peel away. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
4. In medium saucepan, add 1 cup rice with 2 1/4 cup water. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and summer for 20 minutes. Fluff with fork before serving.
5. Serve Grilled Pork Chops over Rice with Grilled Peach Salsa and Grilled Zucchini/Tomato Medley.

Cost $4.15

This is my new favorite smoothie!  The boys and I usually having a smoothie with lunch and this has been a hit for the past few weeks.  I will say that it tastes different each time, probably depending on how ripe and sweet the peach is…and of course, how much sweetener is added!  I find that the ripest (softest…without being bruised and damaged) peaches make the best tasting smoothies!!!

Ingredients
1 banana ($.10)
1 peach, seed removed ($.30)
1 cup strawberries, fresh or frozen ($.35)
1 cup milk ($.10)  Rice milk for us!
2 Tbsp ground flaxseed ($.10)
1 Tbsp sweetener…honey, agave, sugar ($.05)
Water to fill blender to 4 cups

Directions
1. Add banana, peach (with or without skin…lots of nutrients in the skin!), strawberries into the blender. Add milk, flaxseed and sweetener.
2. Fill blender with water until the liquid level reaches 4 cups. Don’t have markings…add about 2 cups of water.
3. Blend on low for 30 seconds, then blend on high for 30 seconds, or until smooth and creamy!
4. Drink immediately!!!

Cost $1.00 for 4 8 oz. glasses

Today’s guest post comes from Rhoda at Southern Hospitality! I love looking through her site at all the fabulous photos and decor ideas. Plus, I came across this fabulous Spinach Lentil Stew recipe that I can’t wait to try…come autumn!

Summer is here and those fresh peaches are readily available for the picking, so now is a good time for an easy and delicious fresh peach cobbler, with the addition of blueberries for some extra appeal, but those are optional too.  This is one easy recipe that your family will enjoy and it’s pretty enough to take to a summer gathering.  Eaten warm out of the oven with some vanilla ice cream, your guests will be clamoring for more.  
 
Easy Peach Cobbler
 
6 large peaches and about a cup of blueberries (optional). Peel and slice peaches
1 Pillsbury pie crust in a pie baking dish, thawed
4-6 slices of white bread (I used wheat & it was just fine) with crust trimmed off & cut into 1” strips
1 stick of melted butter
1 egg
1 cup sugar
2 TBL regular flour

 
Put pie crust in pie pan when thawed and arrange.
Place sliced fruit into the pie shell.
Melt butter in bowl, add egg, sugar, and flour. Mix until blended (by hand). 
Place strips of bread over top of fruit (like lattice) and pour butter mixture over the top.
Bake in 350* oven for about 35 mins. until golden brown.
 
Enjoy with vanilla ice cream.

Originally from GA, Rhoda now resides in B’ham, AL with her hubby of 4 years. She is a Decorating Consultant with a small business from home, where she helps other women feather their nests and create a beautiful home. A bonafide yardsale queen, she wears the crown proudly and loves to hunt down bargains wherever they may be. You will find her out junking or thrifting, with a paintbrush in her hand most days, as she is happiest when creating something pretty.  She blogs at Southern Hospitality!

Tonight’s variation of Pulled Pork Sandwiches included Cascadian Farm Organic French Fries (1/2 bag…$.80 on closeout with coupon last week), and 1 peach ($.50). I also made homemade buns and rolls ($.96 for 2 meals!) Still came in under $5!!!!

My mom-in-law told us how she was cooking peaches in with her pork chops! Let me tell ya…YUM! Within an hour of her telling me her latest and GREATEST, I had 3 pork chops and 1 sliced peach in the frying pan!

Ingredients

3 pork chops ($1.85)
1 fresh peach ($.52)
2 eggplants ($1.50)
1 pepper ($.75)
S/P

Directions
1. Slice peach into thin slices. Put pork in frying pan and spread peaches over the top. I added a bit of water, S/P to allow it to simmer longer, so the sweet peachy goodness would have extra time to sink into the pork! Cook pork through, then cover and simmer 5-10 minutes.

2. Slice up eggplant and peppers, add a little S/P…give to hubby to grill!

3. Enjoy some delicious “sweetened pork” and perfectly grilled veggies!

Cost $4.62