This being our Month of No Spending, we’ll be eating exclusively from the pantry and freezer this month. Based on a quick survey of the freezer and pantry, that shouldn’t be too difficult — at least not the first two weeks anyway. We’ve got plenty of frozen chicken on hand, along with a frozen turkey breast and a full-size bird. In addition, we have more than enough beans, rice, pasta, spaghetti sauce, flour, sugar and powdered milk. Ditto on the frozen veggies, cheese, cereals, pudding, Jello, coffee and diet soda. (Gotta have my two-can jolt in the morning.)
We’re a little short on bread and ground beef so I may have to get a little creative in the waning days of February, but for this week, at least, our meals are fairly typical.
Monday: Salsa chicken in the crock pot. I’ll be making a double batch of this fantastic dish and freezing one for later in the month. This has become a frequent meal in our house after I discovered it last fall over on the Frugal Upstate blog. We generally eat this on tortillas but also love it served over pasta or just solo.
Tuesday: Four-cheese macaroni casserole, salad.
Wednesday: Cincinnati-style chili with crackers. This is in my freezer, just waiting for me to defrost and heat through for any easy meal.
Thursday: BBQ chicken sandwiches, baked french fries, applesauce.
Friday: This is sweet Caroline’s regular night to sleep over at Grandma’s so we’ll treat ourselves to a fast-food dinner out — sans cash. I’ve got coupons for free chicken sandwiches at Chick-fil-A and we’ll either drink water or bring our own soda. Talk about a cheap date! I think this takes the prize. But, hey, it will still be nice to spend a little time together.
Saturday: Tilapia on the grill, if weather permits. If not, I’ll make it in the crock pot using a recipe from Stephanie O’Dea’s Make It Fast, Cook It Slow cookbook. I’ll serve it with veggies and homemade baked french fries.
Sunday: Blueberry pancakes, our breakfast-for-dinner selection for the week.
Check out more menu plans over at I’m an Organizing Junkie.
6 responses so far ↓
1 angi // Feb 1, 2010 at 10:12 am
i am planning on trying that crockpot chicken. with the oven out I am on the look out for great recipes that dont require the oven. thanks for sharing.
2 ToyLady // Feb 1, 2010 at 12:24 pm
We love that salsa chicken in the crockpot - I’ve been making it for several years! I usually put cream cheese in at the end, and serve it over rice; it’s always been a family favorite.
3 Cate // Feb 1, 2010 at 4:52 pm
When you start running out of bread, you can always make your own! (Providing you have yeast, flour, etc.) Once I started making our own bread, I never went back to storebought!
I’m really interested to see how your no-spending challenge plays out.
4 Amy Dunn // Feb 1, 2010 at 10:21 pm
Hey Cate, thanks for stopping in to comment. I’ve got my yeast and flour at the ready. I’m hoping to have a baking day real soon. Stay tuned.
5 Amy Dunn // Feb 1, 2010 at 10:22 pm
That sounds like a delicious version, ToyLady. I’ll have to try adding the sour cream some time. And thanks for stopping in and taking the time to comment!
6 Amy Dunn // Feb 1, 2010 at 10:24 pm
My sympathies, Angi, on the oven on the fritz. But what better time to get crocking. I am certain you will LOVE the salsa chicken.
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