Roasted Chicken

Oh my God. Roasting a chicken is sooooo hard...is what you can say to those you serve it to. In truth, roasting anything is probably the easiest thing you'll ever do in the kitchen. I'm sorry this post is late, but I wanted to have at least one photograph to share with you. The bird I roasted was eight pounds because I wanted leftovers to make chicken pot pie from. I do apologize for the quality of the photo, I'm not a photographer, and the lighting in my kitchen isn't really conducive to good food photos (and the sun sets waaaay before dinner time this time of year). But to add visual interest...here's the chicken I made for dinner tonight It's not on a pretty serving plate, because we carve before serving:







Now, are you ready for the long involved directions?

Get a chicken. Take a tablespoon or two of softened butter and mix with poultry seasoning. Rub the seasoned butter between your hands and slid your hands up under the skin of the chicken. Stick it in the oven in a roasting pan for 1/2 hour per pound at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and nom. It's that easy.

Roasted Chicken
Ingredients
Choose a chicken that gives you about 1/4 to 1/2 pound of meat per person. - $0.89 per pound.
1 tsp poultry seasoning - $0.84
1-2 tbsp butter - softened - $0.16

Directions
Take the chicken out of any packaging it comes in, reach into the cavity between the legs (sounds dirty, I know) and remove the neck and organs, which should be in a plastic or wax paper bag. Rinse the chicken. Mix the butter and poultry seasoning and then slide your hands under the skin and rub the butter across the breasts. (Again...dirty) After putting most of the butter under the skin, rub whatever's left across the top of the skin, this will give you a nice golden color when it's done cooking. Put the chicken into the roasting pan breast side up (by the way, the breast is the rounded side of the bird) and stick it in a 350 degree oven for 1/2 hour per pound of meat. Test it with a meat thermometer to ensure it's done, but if you don't have one, check and make sure the juices are running clear (no pinkish tinge). Let it sit for ten minutes or so after taking it out of the oven (this makes it easier to cut). Carve it up and serve it! 

Total estimated recipe cost: $8.12
Per Serving estimated recipe cost:  $0.50 (based on sixteen servings)

I usually serve this with plain old mashed potatoes, gravy, and a steamed frozen vegetable, which would bring the total price for the meal to:


Total estimated meal cost: $6.54
Per Serving estimated recipe cost:  $0.81 (based on eight servings)

Since I plan to get a second meal out of the chicken, I halved the cost of it for this meal.
 

Spaghetti and Sausage Meat Sauce

This is an old family recipe...mom calls it "Depression Era Cooking" and I can remember having it as a child with "Mystery Meats". We always had it on Saturday and mom would throw in any meat that was leftover from the week to use it up. These days we make it with ground beef and sweet Italian sausage, but I have to admit, it was pretty good with chicken, pork, or roast beef as well. This is another recipe that can serve from six to 15 adults, depending on the amount of pasta you cook. Another hallmark of depression era cooking, I've been told, since you never knew if you'd be feeding just your family, or other relatives who couldn't scrape together a meal. Like the black bean chili this is one that can be made in the crockpot (slow cooker) and left to cook all day on low. You can also make it on the stovetop, but it will still need a couple of hours to cook if you do it that way.

Grandmom Mellon's Spaghetti and Sausage Meat Sauce
Serve over pasta

Ingredients
1 29 oz can of Tomato Sauce - $1.49
1 12 oz can of Tomato Paste - $1.09
1 29 oz can of Crushed Tomatoes - $2.09
2 lbs ground beef - $5.98 ($2.99 lb)
1 lb mild or sweet Italian sausage - $3.49
1 tbsp sugar - $0.04
1 tbsp salt - $0.03
2 tbsp Italian Seasoning - $0.84
1 tbsp dried basil - $0.24
3 cloves of garlic (minced) - $0.39
1 medium onion (minced) - $0.89
2 tbsp olive oil - $0.20
1 lb pasta of choice (we usually use rotini) - $1.00
Directions
In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil, then toss in the onion and garlic. Cook until the garlic is fragrant and the onion is clear. Add the ground beef. Brown the beef, then drain.

In your slow cooker (or a large pot on the stove) combine the tomato paste, tomato sauce, and crushed tomatoes. Add the salt, sugar, and spices. Stir in the cooked ground beef mixture. Set slow cooker on high until the sauce starts to bubble, then set it on low, stir occasionally. If cooking on the stove, cook for at least two hours, in slow cooker, leave it to cook until an hour before you plan to serve it.

An hour before serving, remove the casing from the sausage and brown in a large frying pan, using a wooden spoon to break into crumbles. Add the sausage to the sauce in the pot, stirring to mix it in thoroughly. Continue cooking on low for an hour.

Serve over pasta! Makes six to 15 servings. The leftovers make a fabulous lasagne! Just layer lasagne noodles with sauce, mozzarella cheese, and riccota cheese (or as my family prefers, cottage cheese - don't ask...it works). I usually get three layers out of my leftover sauce. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour or until bubbly.

Total estimated recipe cost: $17.77
Per Serving estimated recipe cost:  $2.22 (based on eight servings)

This cost is based on full-price for store brand items. The cost will go up if you choose higher priced brands, and will go down if you hit a good sale. I highly recommend clipping coupons and checking sale flyers before shopping! Prices for spices are estimated on the number of teaspoons/tablespoons in an average spice jar. Price can be significantly reduced by buying spices in bulk!

Shopping List
1 28 oz can Tomato Sauce
1 28 oz can Crushed Tomatoes
1 12 oz can tomato paste
2 lbs ground beef
1 lb mild or sweet Italian Sausage
Sugar
Salt
Italian Seasoning
Dried Basil
Garlic
Onion
Olive oil
1 lb box of your choice of pasta

Black Bean Chili

I have no pictures of this yet, but I should be making it again soon so I'll add the pictures when I do. It's a simple recipe, and easy to make. It can be made in a slow cooker (crockpot) and left to cook on low all day, or made on the stove in about 20 minutes at the end of the day. I've made it both ways, and either way it's very flavorful and satisfying (just ask my nephews and their friends who always manage to show up on chili night!) The recipe makes about eight to ten servings, and can be stretched to serve twelve if you make extra rice. This recipe also freezes well, so if you're not feeding the army I often have for Chili Night you can toss the leftovers into the freezer for later.

Black Bean Chili 
(Serve with white rice, tortilla chips, shredded cheese, sour cream and)


Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil - $.20
2 lbs lean ground beef - $5.98
1 medium onion (diced) - $.89
3 cloves of garlic (minced) - $.39
2 tbsp chili powder - $.58
1 tsp cumin - $.24
1 tbsp Italian seasoning  - $.42
1 28 oz can of stewed tomatoes - $1.49
1 29 oz can of tomato sauce - $1.49
1 16 oz bag of frozen cut corn - $1.99
1 29 oz can of black beans (drained and rinsed) - $1.89
1 cup uncooked rice - $.38

Sides
Tortilla Chips - $3.99
Shredded Cheese (I prefer a cheddar/jack blend) - $3.99

Sour Cream - $1.09

Directions
In a large frying pan heat the olive oil. Add the diced onion and minced garlic. Cook until the onion goes clear and the garlic is fragrant. Add the spices. Cook for about a minute. Add the ground beef, stirring to mix the onions and spices well into the beef. Brown.

In a large pot or slow cooker, combine the stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, corn, and black beans. Stir well. Add the ground beef (do not drain or you will lose the spices). Stir well. On the stove top, allow to cook for about 20 minutes, enough time to cook your rice. If making in a slow cooker, turn heat to low, cover and let cook all day. Serve over rice.

Total estimated recipe cost: $25.01
Per Serving estimated recipe cost:  $3.12 (based on eight servings)

This cost is based on full-price for store brand items. The cost will go up if you choose higher priced brands, and will go down if you hit a good sale. I highly recommend clipping coupons and checking sale flyers before shopping! Prices for spices are estimated on the number of teaspoons/tablespoons in an average spice jar. Price can be significantly reduced by buying spices in bulk!

Shopping List
1 can black beans
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
Olive oil
Garlic bulb
Onion
Chili Powder
Cumin
Italian seasoning
2 lbs ground beef
1 bag frozen corn kernels
Tortilla Chips
Shredded Cheese
Sour Cream

Welcome!

These days we're all feeling the pinch in our wallets. My goal here is to provide information on feeding yourself and your family in a budget friendly and healthy way!  I am not a photographer, or a chef so while I will include photographs of recipes when I can, the quality will most likely not be professional, but hopefully it will improve as I learn more about what I'm doing. I will be including an estimated price for each complete recipe and a per person price. These prices will be based on my local market's prices, so it may be different in your area. This is just meant to be a guideline. I'm going to try to include a shopping list in each post as well as tips for saving time and money. I won't promise a post every day, or even every other day, since, like most of us, I do have a day job and I have to manage my time carefully. Right now I'm shooting for once a week updates, and we'll see how it goes from there! And since it was my birthday this week, I give you:

 My birthday cake!