Few things in my stretching-the-budget and filling-tummies career have made as big a difference as biscuits. Do you remember how much the canned variety costs? Oh, I dearly love the convenience. But I don’t like paying for it. Especially when I have to get so many cans to feed the seven of us. And that’s where batch cooking homemade biscuits comes in. But here’s the trick. … [Read more...]
Marvelous Meatballs
We do LOTS of bulk cooking because our family of seven always seems to be eating but momma doesn't always want to be cooking, and it's important to us (and to our budget) to prepare home cooked meals as often as possible. Our five kiddos are pretty picky and all seem to have different tastes so it feels a lot like hitting the lottery when we find a dish that always … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Batch Cooking Navy Beans
I really love it when my slow cooker can do the work for me. January usually means a freezer and pantry challenge, including rice and beans. So, about once a month I batch cook some beans to tuck away in the freezer. Especially in the winter months, that means navy beans. Using the slow cooker to batch cook takes only a little pre-planning. You need to rinse and … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Chicken Pesto With Bowtie Pasta
We do a lot of bulk cooking because our schedules are crazy during the week but we really prefer to serve home cooked meals to our five kids. This is a super simple recipe as well as a great way to cook once and eat many times! I just bought 40 pounds of boneless chicken breast for a great deal but I need to get it put up in the freezer pretty quickly so I put half of … [Read more...]
October Potatofest Recipes
Our feeding the larger family ways will help you feed a crowd and take a break during the holidays! October is potato month for me for several reasons. Not only are potatoes frugal and can be served in a variety of ways, but October is right up next to November and December. October is the month I pile the potatoes in the freezer – freeing me up at holiday time. … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Orange-Cranberry Pork Roast
So I'm gone almost 6 full days this week. A new record for me! In an attempt to keep my guys from having to go out to eat every night while I'm gone, I've put together some meal options for them. I'm leaving spaghetti for them to have tonight. And here's what I've left for the rest of the week. (I even organized it neatly into the freezer door to make things even easier … [Read more...]
Homemade Hummus
Raise your hand if you love hummus. Yes, yes, lots of folks out there. Me too! Ok. How many of you pay big bucks for one of those tiny tubs of hummus at the store? A few, yes. How many have this little problem of keeping food and snacks stocked in your house? Me too! Well, I’m here to share my way of saving big bucks in the hummus economy. Thinking of how I batch cooked … [Read more...]
Apple Pie Filling for the Freezer
So over Labor Day weekend, we picked almost 30 pounds of apples. There remain about 5 apples in the fridge, that we will snack on this week. But our surplus is not gone! Much of it is packed away nicely in the freezer. After making 3 big batches of slow cooker applesauce (2 of which are in the freezer, and the other long gone!), I also made 2 pies worth of filling for the … [Read more...]
Slow Cooker Applesauce
When you "accidentally" pick 30 pounds of apples, you've got to do something...and do it quick! That's a whole lotta apples to process! One of the easiest things to do is make slow cooker applesauce. I intentionally picked a bunch of Golden Sup apples from the orchard because I knew they were a sweeter variety, and wouldn't require any sweetener to be a good applesauce. I … [Read more...]
Egg & Sausage Biscuits
It’s back to school time! That translates to: hurry with your homework, so we aren’t late for scouts, orchestra, school meetings, OT appointments, soccer, and wait, DINNER! I love sitting down to eat as a family, but sometimes that’s just not possible. It times like those that I love the egg biscuits! I’ve even tossed one out the door at a child who “didn’t have time to … [Read more...]