As we find ourselves staying home and getting creative with the items we have on hand to pull dinner together, this list of rice and bean pantry recipes and tips are a stellar resource to save! I present to you... QUARAN-Beans and Rice!!! Even though the recipes we share on this site are mostly on a $5 per meal budget, there are times in the month that you … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Indian Butternut Squash and Lentil Curry
I spent several years overseas and fell in love with cooking different meals from other cultures and cuisines. It's remarkable how different combos of spices, herbs and simple ingredients can make for such a phenomenal meal. This Indian-inspired dish with lentils, butternut squash and a tomato based curry sauce is to-die-for. We served it with flatbread, almost using the … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Split Peas and Brown Rice
Could this possibly be easier or more yummy? Three ingredients in your slow cooker means a hearty, warm, freezer-friendly dinner can be ready with only 5 minutes of effort. My family boycotts the kitchen when we run out of a few items. Bananas are one. And split peas are another. I'm glad something so popular is easy to make and freezes well. Unlike other legumes and … [Read more...]
Rice Cooker Hearty Tomato Soup
What's this about a rice cooker? Turns out, it works a bit like a slow cooker. Only a little faster. It uses less energy than cooking on a stove. And, for me, seems to make less of a mess. Try it sometime. Like with this soup. Tomato soup and grilled cheese are about as American as apple pie, right? And tomato soup seems like one of the standard things to come in to from … [Read more...]
Freezer Friendly Slow Cooker Lentil Recipes
Here’s how this time of year goes: You’re so busy doing the fun stuff, you’d prefer dinner to cook itself. But then, you remember all the treats you have been snacking on at work or all the icing you and the kids ingested making cookies or the thousands of calories you inhaled at the Thanksgiving table, and your … [Read more...]
Lentil Minestrone Soup
Ever since becoming a mom, I've felt like life just keeps getting faster and faster. And faster. We have a gazillion things happening in each of our days, but that doesn't mean we have to sacrifice important things like a healthy dinner. Or our sanity. I wanted to share this Lentil Minestrone Soup with you guys because it is very low maintenance (as most soups are) saute … [Read more...]
Spicy Lentil Soup Recipe
Lentils have a bad reputation. They are known for their bland taste, but they really don’t have to be. With enough heat and kick, lentils can be transformed into a delicious, time-warming, taste bud-igniting spicy lentil soup. Try this recipe: Spicy Lentil Soup Recipe 1 cup chopped yellow onion4 garlic cloves, crushed2 jalapenos, chopped1 … [Read more...]
Hearty Lentil Soup
Lentils are a delicious, hearty and super frugal food that makes really nutritious meals with lots of meatless protein. This wonderful soup is a great way to warm up. Â I like to serve it with garlic bread for dinner or lunch. Magda's Hearty Lentil Soup 1 tablespoon olive oil1 onion, chopped1 medium red pepper, finely diced1 cup frozen corn2 … [Read more...]
Sharon’s Hearty Minestrone Stew
I have been making this stew ever since my children were very young. It is savory and delicious, and it is quite healthy. One time, I remember having relatives over one day for supper, and I served this with crackers. Their young children wouldn't even taste it. They were used to consuming pretty, processed foods and eating at fast food restaurants. I had to make them peanut … [Read more...]
Spicy Chorizo and Lentil Soup
Splurge Alert! Over the summer I'd stop at the local traveling farmer's market in my town. It comes through every Thursday through the summer, and I look for the sign every week (as I can't remember when it starts back up. May, likely?!) on Thursdays when I take Charlie to school. There are many days when I just which we had more grocery budget … [Read more...]