Got all dishes in dishwasher and
done by hand. Was slacking in the
dish washing department the last couple of days.
Trying to bounce back from Christmas
and get the place back to normal as possible
and start stocking the freezer with some
freezer meals.
I am currently working on a big pot
of white gravy. This will be used for 2
different type freezer meals so I am
seeing how far I can stretch it.
1. Chicken Al La King
2. Potato Soup
This is my base gravy for those meals above.
Using what I have on hand!
Some or most of these prices
reflect mark down items I have found.
3 country gravy packets $1.50
1 country sausage gravy packet .33 cents
1 can cream of mushroom soup .49 cents
5 cup chicken stock .99 cents
1 can chicken broth .29 cents
5 cups milk .70 cents
Total: $4.30
Chicken Al La King
Dip out 5 cups of gravy and add to
a large saucepan. $2.15
Add 5 pounds chicken leg quarters,
skin & bones removed $1.44
Stir in package of frozen mixed vegetables .35 cents
Season with salt, pepper &/or season salt
Pour over rice, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes,
pasta or biscuits.
Total cost
$3.59 + cost of what you are putting it on
so let's add another $2 for that = $5.59
Makes 2 meals (10 servings)
@ .55 cents a serving
***************
Potato Soup
6-7 cups gravy mix above $2.15
3 pounds potatoes, boiled & cubed $1.00
1 pkg Italian sausage, sliced $1.80
1/2 pkg dry onion soup mix .25 cents
salt & pepper
shredded cheese or parmesan topping (optional)
Total cost: $5.20
Makes 3 meals (15 servings)
@ .34 cents a serving
****************************
12:00pm
Working on getting 10 pounds of
cubed potatoes boiled up.
About 1/3rd of these will go
into the potato soup and the rest
will go to make
Ham, Sauerkraut & Potatoes.
I'm omitting the apples in this recipe.
If I have time I am hoping to get
2 casserole dishes of this recipe
done up today also.
One for New Years and one for
another day.
Main ingredients:
Ham slices $2.00
potatoes $2.00
sauerkraut $1.29
2 cup grated cheddar cheese $1.67
(plus whatever extra cheese we have
from Christmas leftover)
1 1/2 cups milk .21 cents
Total cost to make 2 meals:
$7.17
Serves 10 @ .71 cents a serving.
**********************
So in the last 2 days I was able to make
5 meals- Ham & Bean soup
2 meals- Chicken Al La King
3 meals- sausage potato soup
2- Ham, sauerkraut & potatoes
1-scalloped potatoes
Total of 13 meals for the freezer!
My 10 pounds of potatoes boiling,
chicken al la king ready for freezer
& white sauce gravy
mix ready for potato soup.
While putting things in the freezer I noticed
I had a large bag of turkey leftover from
Thanksgiving. So I've been sitting here thinking
about what to use if for. And about that
time I got a recipe in my email from Pillsbury
for Turkey Dinner Pizza, LOL!
I can make my own pizza crust in the bread
machine rather than buying their ready made crust.
Then will keep an eye out for those
holiday mark downs at the store
for cranberry sauce, stuffing & gravy to
be able to make this!
Need more ideas of how to use up leftover turkey?
Thanksgiving Leftover Turkey recipes
from Betty Crocker
------------------------------------
Check out this printable coupon
with all the talk about making up
some cheap meals :0)
from hip2save!
.
Wow! Little Caesars released a pretty rare coupon! Just go here and enter your email address to print a rare Buy any HOT-N-READY Pizza and receive a pizza of equal or lesser value FREE, valid through 12/28! Aren’t their medium pizzas priced at $5?! If that’s the case, you should be able to snag 2 pizzas for $5 total.
Think I'll stock the freezer with a couple
pizzas also!! I know large pepperoni
pizzas are $5.00 so with this coupon
2 for $5.00!!
HERE is another Little Caesers coupon
for bread sticks & sauce for $1.99!
So 2 large peperoni pizzas with bread sticks & sauce
for only $6.99!!
----------------------------------
Also from hip2save
WALMART
It has been reported by many that the Gillette Fusion ProGlide Gift Sets are on clearance for just $4.44 at Walmart! If you can find these priced this low at your local Walmart (you may want to do a price check), then you can use the $4/1 Gillette Fusion ProGlide coupon found in the 12/26 PG to score a gift set for ONLY $0.44! These gift sets include a razor, deodorant, body wash + More, so $0.44 definitely gets you quite a few items!
There is a new Walgreens Chex Mix monthly Register Reward deal starting today, 12/27 and running through 1/23…
Buy 3 bags of Chex Mix = $1.50 RR
Buy 4 = $2.50 RR
Buy 5 = $3.50 RR
Deal Scenario:
Buy 5 bags of Chex Mix 8.75oz on sale for $0.99
Total = $4.95
Use 2 $1/2 coupons found in the 12/5 General Mills insert o
Plus, use the $0.50/1 coupon found here
Pay $2.45
Get back a $3.50 RR
Final cost 5 bags for FREE + a $1.05 moneymaker!
2:50pm
Finally done with my freezer cooking for today,
woo hoo!
I omitted the apples in the saurkraut
and instead I cooked the kraut with some
frozen pineapple juice (leftover from draining a
can of pineapple. Put in ice cube trays then popped
out and put into zip bags.)
a couple tablespoons brown sugar and
some nutmeg.
I ended up with some leftover potatoes
so I threw them in another dish
and covered with sauce to make
scalloped potatoes.
From start to finish it took
me 4.5 hours to make what you see below.
Not even that if you consider break times
and time to make hot dogs for lunch
and eat lunch! And also
took time out to refill my printer ink
cartridges and bring laundry up from the basement.
Ok gonna chill now for the next coupleof hours til hubby comes home.
Then ask him if we can go to
Little Caesers to pick up a couple
pizzas with the coupon I printed.
-----------------------------------------
4:20pm
Just checked mail and I'm not a happy camper.
I got a cable bill from Wow that made me go WOW!
They charged me almost $40 to come out
and fix the internet & phone the one day.
They told me there was water in the box on
the power line! GRRR!
They never said anything that day about
charging me to come out and fix the problem!
And the phone still keeps cutting out
and gurgling and the internet still goes out
at times. So what the hell!
Seems like someone is always
standing with their hand out
wanting money!
4:45pm
Mom & Don's coming over tonight
to open presents. Can't wait to see mom's face
when she opens the mop I got her!
Will get pics if my camera doesn't die
before then, lol.
I've been using it quite a bit here lately.
I was able to print off
2 buy 1 get 1 free pizza coupons so
will go get those when Tony gets home.
So instead of a late Christmas dinner
we're having Christmas pizza.
-----------------------------------
6:00pm
Picked up 4 large pepperoni pizzas,
16 bread sticks and 2 dipping sauces
for $14.00 for all!
Buy 1 Get 1 Free $5.00 pizzas,
got 2 but had to do two different orders.
Plus used 2 coupons for 8 bread sticks
and dipping sauce for $1.99.
Christmas with mom and Don.
Salt out taking a stroll in her ball.Got all the left over pizza divided up
and put away.
Not too bad for a $14 investment.
6 of us ate pizza supper tonight,
got 3 lunches made with pizzas for tomorrow,
and 2 whole pizzas and about 4 bread stickswith dip packed up to put in freezer.
So 4 meals for $3.50 a meal.-------------------------------
Before I head to bed and bore you
with any more of my freezer meals
(hey it's our way of life though
and about being frugal)
I wanted you to read a story
of what these church ladies did
for a member of their church.
Sounds like something I would do.
I cooked up a meal for the guy across the
street & his three kids, gave out Christmas
gift bags to single, elderly people that live by us
and try to give people things that I know could
use items I find that don't have much money.
Which by the way, I still have this Barbie bike
which is looking for an owner. I would of hated
to see this go to the trash or scrappers when some little
girl would love it that doesn't have one!
But anyway here is the story,
A Winter Miracle
My Frugal Life: A Winter Miracle
I wanted to share with you all what our "stay at home married ladies" group at church did several years ago at Christmas. We were a Wednesday night group of about 15 women who met weekly for Bible Study and grew rather close. Our ages ranged from 20 to 92. It was a nice group and before and after our Bible study we would discuss child raising tips, sewing tips, recipes and such.
During one meeting, in late August an 80 year old widow in our group confided that she needed prayers for finances. She was running even with her finances, but with winter coming on she was worried about not having money for heat, and was going to be short about $40 a month, unless she gave up some of her medications or food.
Most of us had been in her home, she had taken care of several of our children while we had a night out with our spouses, made sure she sent us all birthday cards, had made us cookies and such, and we felt we needed to help her. But, money was tight for us too, as our common thread was that we were stay at home moms - on a single income.
So, we made a list of what we knew she used and needed and divided it up. Each of us also got her a $5 Walgreen card (as we knew that was where she got her prescriptions and she had a $5 copay on each one). We also each got her canned goods, baking supplies, and such. Basically each woman only had to spend around $15, and we had several months to do it, so it was not a strain on any of our budgets. We planned to give our gifts to her after the first cold snap.
When the temp dropped we were ready. While one lady in our group took her to a doctors appointment then as a treat took her out to eat, the rest of us attacked her apartment. First, we deep cleaned the places she couldn't due to her age - such as high in the corners, behind furniture, and such.
Then, we filled up her kitchen cabinets with canned goods, her bathroom cabinet with shampoo, soap, deoderant, TP, and toothpaste. We put laundry soap and dryer sheets in her laundry room, and a package of new vacuum cleaner bags with her sweeper. We also left a package of trash bags, a few cleaning products, a box of greeting cards, and a book of stamps. Since she always made new church members knitted potholders, we also left some new skeins of yarn in her knitting basket.
We left her the $5 Walgreen cards with her medications. Then we disappeared and never said another word about it.
At our next meeting she was praising God, and very confused as to where it all came from. She was so excited that since her cabinets were full she could spend her money on her winter utilities. She was in tears. She talked about that "winter miracle" until she died almost a year later. She had no children of her own, and had outlived her own family. Possibly she knew we were at the bottom of it, but she never let on that she knew. It still warms my heart every time I think of her or that quick 90 minutes that 14 of us spent on Thursday morning in her apartment that day. A little from each of us, meant the world to her. Isn't that what Christmas (and everyday) should really be about?
.