Are you following me over on Instagram? I have a fun community over there where I share a lot of Reels demonstrating cooking hacks and cooking tips. Which insta are you following? I thought it would be fun to share what photos, reels, and videos are trending on our Instagram profiles once a month! These are your current favorites. Are you following all of our accounts? … [Read more...]
You Can Drive!! Happy 16th Birthday to $5 Dinners!
"MOM, when do I get my driver's license?" If the blog could talk... 16 short years ago I started this little blog thing here and named it $5 Dinners. I needed to lower our grocery budget and I needed to feed my people. So I started sharing all the recipes and things I was learning along the way. Here we are, 16 years later...in a similar economic climate as back … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Back to School Recipes List
Freezer Friendly Dinners, Lunchbox Ideas, School Snacks, Make-Ahead Smoothies and On-the-Go Breakfasts! It's that time of year again. The craving for routines returns. The school supply shopping, shoe shopping and new clothes shopping takes over. You spend more money than you want to, even with braving the crowds on tax-free weekend. And you STILL HAVE TO FEED … [Read more...]
“What am I going to do with my kids all summer?!” – 10 Solutions and a Printable Summer Activities at Home List
Are you starting to panic about summer activities at home? Worried that your kids will be staring at your face or at a screen for the next three months? In an effort to stop the "I'm booooooooored!" grumbling before it starts, I've been researching all things summer activities and wanted to share a few options and ideas that I have on my list with you! Summer … [Read more...]
NEW COOKBOOKS: Feeding Teenage Boys on a Budget + Teen Cuisine
Introducing Erin Chase's latest cookbook about feeding teenagers on a budget, plus the companion mini-cookbook that will teach your teens how to cook scrumptious recipes with "Shorts" videos! The idea for this cookbook came to me about 15 years ago...in a booth at a lunch in NYC with my cookbook editor. And the time to share it with you is now... So, yes...this is … [Read more...]
Erin’s “What I Like Right Now” List
Things I'm Crushing On (And Using All the Time) This Month Holiday 2023 FAVES … [Read more...]
VIRAL: Beef Ravioli Bake
I think Ravioli Bakes might be my new favorite dinner. I don't know why...they just seem so easy. Well, they are easy. The ravioli doesn't take any pre-cooking. You just add it into the dish, pour the sauce (in this case a beefy-spaghetti sauce) over the top, then pile on as much cheese as your waistline can handle. ;) Then, bake. And you end up with this. Now, there … [Read more...]
CHALLENGE: 5-Ingredient Freezer Meal Plan
How to prepare SIX meals in LESS THAN 30 MINUTES with this 5-Ingredient Meal Plan! I don't know about you, but it makes my heart happy when a recipe only needs a handful of ingredients. And when they are "normal" ingredients, too! You know what I'm talking about. Ingredients you often have in your kitchen, and are commonly found at a typical grocery store. So I made a … [Read more...]
Guacamole with Street Corn
If I started keeping track, I imagine I eat an avocado or guacamole at least 5 times a week. Sometimes I get guacamole at my fave tex-mex restaurant, sometimes I make my own, sometimes I get it on top of a Chipotle salad, sometimes I just scoop it right out of the skin with a little lemon juice and salt. I'm always looking to mix things up and keep the guacamole "fresh" and … [Read more...]
Deck the Freezer Party – Recipes & RSVP HERE!!
Holiday To-Do List Already Starting to Stress You Out?! What if you could prep SIX 5-Ingredient freezer meals in 30 minutes...before the holiday chaos begins?!? I'm Erin Chase and I'm here to show you how... Join me the week of NOVEMBER 1st for a few days of tips and tricks that will help you breeze through this meal prep! Each day throughout the Deck … [Read more...]
Erin’s Recipes from Big Bad Budget Battle
Get the Recipes Erin Cooked on Food Network's Big Bad Budget Battle WELCOME to my Big Bad Budget Battle Besties! I'm so glad you're here and I can't wait to connect with you and further help you on your journey to spending less money on groceries and cooking well on a budget. I am beyond tickled by the concept of the show, the opportunity to compete on the show, and … [Read more...]
RE-DESIGNED for YOU: The “20 Meals for $150” Plans
Save TIME, MONEY, and MORE with these amazing 20 Meals for $150 Plans! ELATED. ECSTATIC. STOKED. That describes how I'm feeling this week, as I re-share this amazing grocery saving and sanity saving resource with you! Many moons ago, I decided to make some updates to the "20 meals for $150" plans. I started creating them in 2013, and it was just time for a … [Read more...]
The Best Ever Make-Ahead Freezer Meals Cookbooks!
If you love getting ahead with dinner prep, and you love cookbooks, these Make-Ahead Freezer Meal Cookbooks are the books for YOU! The Freezer Meal Stereotype Often times when people think of freezer meals, they think of mushy casseroles. Or slow-cooker-only recipes. Or bland, tasteless, freezer burned meals. It is also the assumption that these bland, mushy … [Read more...]
Best Grocery Savings Mobile Apps
Check out the Best Grocery Savings Mobile Apps! These are also Erin's favorites. (She might be a bit biased about the first one!) MyFreezEasy With MyFreezEasy, it really is as easy as 1-2-3. Get organized, choose your recipes, use the shopping list provided, and then follow the instructions to get your make ahead freezer meals into your freezer! You'll save on groceries … [Read more...]
Pumpkin Pie French Toast
Oh my heavens - divine, divine, divine. This Pumpkin Pie French Toast recipe is a MUST TRY in the fall and winter months! I so wish I'd doubled this recipe for Pumpkin Pie French Toast while I was first making it. Tripled, or quadrupled even! These are so scrumptious...perfect for the fall season. It's really simple...you just add some pumpkin puree and spices to … [Read more...]
Mocha Brownies
Before you say it, yes...brownies were dessert of the month in April...just a few short weeks ago. But Caramel Cashew Brownies and these Mocha Brownies are different. Very, very different. I know. I know. This is really an indication that I have a brownie problem. Please. Send help. Brownies anonymous, anyone?! So I served these to a group of ladies last week...and … [Read more...]
Double Pumpkin Pie French Toast
The VIRAL Pumpkin Pie French Toast Gets "DOUBLED UP" - Here's How to Make it! Years ago when I first posted the OG Pumpkin Pie French Toast recipe, I had no idea how beloved it would be. It's been shared millions of times over the years and I love to see how much people love it. When I originally posted it, the endless types of "pumpkin spice" products were just coming to … [Read more...]
Summer Mexican Recipes
Summer Mexican Recipes for Easy and Delicious Family Meals! Quick breakfasts, bite-sized appetizers, and perfectly grilled dinners! We have compiled a list of wonderful Mexican style recipes that are perfect for summer (and Fall...if you live in the south and it's still summer LOL) Scroll through the list below and find your new family … [Read more...]
Snickerdoodle Apple Cobbler
The most perfect Fall Dessert doesn't exi......oh wait, it sure does exist in the form of this 4-Ingredient Snickerdoodle Apple Cobbler! I so badly want to call this a dump cake...it's ALMOST a dump cake. But the egg ruins it. Scratch that... The egg cobbler-izes it. It tastes like a dump cake, cooks like a dump cake, it's just that the batter is a bit … [Read more...]
Open-Faced Smoky Provolone Sloppy Joes
These 4-Ingredient Open Faced Smoky Provolone Sloppy Joes Could Be Your New Favorite Weeknight Dinner!? A hearty sloppy joe sauce - made with ground beef and a can of sloppy joe sauce - piled high onto Texas garlic toast, and covered in melty smoky provolone cheese. It truly is as delightful as it looks, and is an easy way to "change up" Sloppy Joes … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Peachy BBQ Baked Beans
Slow Cooker Peachy BBQ Baked Beans: A Sweet and Savory Comfort Dish Dried beans are by far the cheapest way to prepare beans for meals or side dishes, and when I cook them...I need it to be easy and hands off. My favorite way to cook dried beans is in the slow cooker. I've got this great BBQ "Baked" Beans recipe for you, cooked in the slow cooker...with a peachy … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Black Bean Fajita Bowls
These Slow Cooker Black Bean Fajita Bowls are a simple, yet flavorful meal that brings all the vibrant taste of fajitas into one delicious dinner bowl. The dish begins with a slow-cooked medley of black beans, bell peppers, onions, and a blend of fajita spices, including smoky cumin, chili powder, and paprika. The slow cooking process allows the beans to become tender … [Read more...]
Rice & Beans Yellow Curry
Save Money with this Rice and Beans based Yellow Curry Recipe - It's Packed with Both Flavor and Nutrition! And Won't Break the Bank! This vibrant Rice & Beans Yellow Curry is a delicious and comforting fusion dish that combines the warmth of traditional yellow curry with the hearty flavors of rice and beans. Essentially, I took our favorite Chicken Yellow Curry recipe … [Read more...]
Rice and Beans Week: 2024
Budget-Friendly Delights: These are the Best Rice and Beans Recipes to Save You Money on Groceries! Yes, you can still make a $5 Dinner. Like a dinner for four people that costs less than $5 for the entire meal. It takes a little creativity and some sale/discount shopping, but it can be done. And the easiest types of meals are rice and beans meals. The recipes in this list … [Read more...]
Did You Know Your Slow Cooker Can Cook THIS…
From Breakfast to Desserts to "Baked" Things, Let Your Slow Cooker Take Care of These Recipes and Meals for You... … [Read more...]