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$5 Dinners | Budget Recipes, Meal Plans, Freezer Meals

Budget Recipes, Meal Plans, Freezer Meals and Cooking Tutorials for the Busy Home Chef

MyFreezEasy - Save Money, Eat Healthy with Freezer Meals

Slow Cooker Macaroni and Cheese

December 23, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 85 Comments

Slow Cooker Macaroni & Cheese | 5DollarDinners.com

This Slow Cooker Macaroni & Cheese ranks right up there with premium comfort food. A great side for a New Year's Day meal. Okay, I confess. We even have this easy recipe as the main course on busy weeknights or for Sunday dinner. It's a dressier version of the boxed kind. Homemade macaroni and cheese for the seven of us. A highly requested family … [Read more...]

Red Beans and Rice

December 20, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 12 Comments

I've been wanting to whip up Red Beans and Rice for a month or two. Ever since I picked up Creole seasoning at the store to make Jamie's Cajun Meatball Stew, really. I turned to the one man who could help me make the best Red Beans and Rice with what I had on hand. Emeril. We're on a first name basis...because well, he's on a first name basis with everyone! So, Emeril has … [Read more...]

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup with Pearled Onions

December 13, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 10 Comments

My December "clear out the pantry" challenge continues.  Tonight in the form of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup with Pearled Onions. I pulled a whole chicken from the freezer and cooked it in the slow cooker on Saturday.  My plan was to then use half the cooked and shredded chicken for this soup, and the rest for BBQ chicken sandwiches for lunch yesterday.  I also saved the broth … [Read more...]

Beef Stew with Cider and Cinnamon

December 10, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 4 Comments

Seriously. It works. You're just going to have to trust me on this one. (The cinnamon and cider flavors are a subtle and delicious addition to this stew.) Beef Stew with Cider and Cinnamon Ingredients 1-2 Tbsp olive oil ($.10) About 1 lb. beef stew meat ($2.39) 1 small red onion, chopped ($.30) 2 garlic cloves, crushed ($.10) 1 Tbsp steak seasoning … [Read more...]

Mediterranean Fava Bean Salad

December 9, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 1 Comment

Have you ever had a fava bean?!? I hadn't...until recently. I had no idea what to expect. I didn't realize they were "big" beans. And I had no idea what they tasted like. I picked up a can of fava beans to use as a "prop" for a news segment that I did sharing the Just Add One with other home chefs. But you know me...nothing ever goes to waste in my kitchen... One … [Read more...]

Baked Garlic Rosemary Chicken with Sherry-Simmered Carrots

December 8, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 11 Comments

garlic rosemary chicken

Looking for something to spruce up your holiday side dishes and meal?!? Might I suggest adding a splash (or a cup!) of Holland House cooking wines to your marinade, or a splash of Holland House vinegars to a homemade salad dressing.  Make your home merry this holiday season with the delicious flavors of Holland House Wine for Cooking and Premium Vinegars. They will … [Read more...]

Spiced Cranberry Almond Party Mix

December 8, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom Leave a Comment

Party Mix. It brings up so many great memories of holiday parties and other gatherings! When it comes time for holiday parties, it's easy to get overwhelmed with all the possibilities of what to serve. I've tried a number of different varieties of party mix at different events, and I've experimented with a number of different combinations in my own kitchen. And I have … [Read more...]

Split Pea Sausage Soup

December 6, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 14 Comments

My quest to create a little breathing room in the pantry and freezers continues... Last night I made this amazing soup. I think Steve said how much he liked it at least 6 times. (Which definitely says something. He's a quiet kind of guy. And for him to say that 6 times speaks volumes.) I took split peas from my legumes container, sausage links from the freezer and some … [Read more...]

Quadruple Berry Pudding Cake

December 4, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 10 Comments

So my friend Christan and I have been trying to get our families together for dinner...oh, for about 2 months now!  And it finally happened just before Thanksgiving! She made Stack-E-Up-Es...and I brought this. Christan's family has been transitioning to the Nourishing Traditions lifestyle, so I *tried* to make as healthy as a dessert as I could!  This Quadruple Berry … [Read more...]

Stack-E-Up-Es (or the Polynesian Buffet)

December 3, 2010 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 25 Comments

Just before Thanksgiving, we had the pleasure of eating dinner with Christan, her husband and her 3 girls. (It was so lovely being in a "hormonally balanced" place. 3 boys. 3 boys. All the estrogen and testosterone totally cancelled each other out. But really, it made for a loud and rambunctious evening.) Christan shared this in an email before we headed over.  I was … [Read more...]

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