Looking for Cheap and Quick Meals

I use cookbooks that are called 101 things to do with a slow cooker or casseroles, or there are many more. They are relatively cheap-$10. If you go to half.com then they are like $5 a piece after shipping. They have very simple recipes, and very inexpensive. My family loves them!!! Good luck! Also try www.kraftfoods.com they've usually got some really good and cheap ones.

I make my own alfredo sauce by taking a cube of butter and melting in in a frying pan. Then add 8 oz. of cream cheese and melt it. Add milk to the consistency you like then add garlic powder and pepper to taste. Sometimes it thickens if it sits too long. Just add more milk. Put it on any noodles or chicken. Anything that you would use alfredo sauce for. It is delicious!

Have you tried a crock pot? You could put the ingredients in before you go to work and it would be ready when you got home. Crock pot meals can be very inexpensive because they don't need expensive cuts of meat, etc. I just read a mac and cheese recipe on facebook. I will try to get back to you after I look it up .

All the responses you've gotten so far are great. But I have one more suggestion for you. If you do not already have one, invest $30 or so in a slow-cooker. You put the ingredients into the slow-cooker in the morning, turn it on and go work. When you come home, your dinner is ready. Plus it lets you buy cheaper cuts of meat that would end up being tough if they were cooked by any other method but in the slow, moist cooking method of the slow-cooker, they come out tender.

My favorite slow-cooker meals are ham and beans, split pea soup and scalloped potatoes with ham. For the ham and beans, put baby lima beans, chopped onions or onion flakes and a meaty ham bone or diced ham into it in the morning, cover it with water, put the lid on and turn it on low. Go about your day. Come home and make some cornbread, dinner is ready. Cost of meal is about $5. If you want to use northern beans, which take longer to cook, start them at night before going to bed.

Split pea soup is pretty much the same recipe, but start in the morning.

For scalloped potatoes and ham, spray the inside with cooking spray and layer thick potato slices, onion slices and chopped ham into the crock pot. Pour a can of undiluted cream of mushroom or cream of celery soup on top and spread it with a spoon so it soaks down evenly as it cooks. Last thing is a layer of shredded cheese. Let it cook on low setting for 8 hours.

You can find tons of slow-cooker recipes online. The Crock Pot company has a site as well.

Here is a recipe that I like and is pretty cheap. I'm a single mom with no child support so I understand how you feel.

3 to 4 chicken breasts (depends on size, you could use less)
1 can of mild rotel (could use crushed tomatoes bc of kids)
4 or 5 slices of velveta (or equivilant)
1/3 bag of doritos
1 Can of cream of chicken soup

Boil the chicken with some seasoning of your choice, I ususally put mine in the slow cooker in the morning so it is ready when I get home. Shred chicken. Layer the doritos on the bottom of a glass dish. Mix the chicken and soup and rotel together and put on top of doritos. Place cheese slices on top. Put in oven at 350 until cheese melts.

This is pretty good, quick and inexpensive. Hope it helps.

Here are two good, easy chicken recipes. They both call for boneless, skinless chicken breasts which will go on sale frequently for about $5-$6 for a big bag of them (I can't remember how many pounds per bag). I honestly am not sure how much the meals cost total, but they are tastly and your family will eat them whcih is better than some cheap recipe that they will hate and not want to eat.

Chicken Fingers with Honey Sauce
12 ozs. skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
2 Beaten egg whites
1 tablespoon honey
2 cups cornflakes, crushed
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup honey
4 teaspoons prepared mustard or Dijon-style mustard
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1. Rinse chicken, pat dry with paper towels. In a small mixing bowl combine the egg whites and the 1 tablespoon honey. In a shallow bowl combine the cornflake crumbs and pepper. Dip the chicken strips into the egg white mixture. Roll in the crumb mixture to coat. Place in a single layer on a ungreased baking sheet. Bake chicken in a 450º oven for 11 to 13 minutes, or until no longer pink. 2. Meanwhile, for sauce, in a small bowl stir together the 1/4 cup honey, mustard, and garlic powder. Serve with chicken.
Makes 4 servings (hint: cut up the chicken and roll it in the crushed cornflakes and pepper ahead of time, then put it on a covered cookie sheet in the fridge until you are ready to pop it in the oven for dinner. Also, kids may not like the honey mustard sacue because it is a little bit spicy so they might want to eat theirs plain).

Broiled Chicken with Spicy Apricot Glaze

½ cup no sugar added apricot jam (Smucker’s Simply Fruit works well)
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
About 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into strips
½ teaspoon salt

Spray the rack of a broiler pan with nonstick cooking spray; preheat the broiler.

Whisk together the jam, mustard, lemon juice, and crushed red pepper in a small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with salt. Place the chicken on the broiler rack and brush with half of the jam mixture. Broil 3 inches from the heat, brushing periodically with the remaining glaze, until lightly browned, about 4 minutes on each side.
OR: Put all ingredients into a crock pot and cook on high for 3-4 hours or until done. Don't cook in crock pot for too long or the chicken will dry out.

And here is a simple and cheap recipe for ground hamburger, cook and drain one pound of hamburger, add tacop seasoning and one can of rinsed black beans, follow directions on taco seasoning package as far as how much water to add and how long to simmer it (10 minutes usually). Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream, and salsa on either tortillas or tortilla chips.

Good luck, I hope that you find some recipes that your family will love!

This is one of our very favorite meals. Not only is it super easy, but it is very inexpensive to prepare as well. I hope you like it!

Chicken Stroganoff

2 Tbsp. margarine
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 lb. chicken breasts, cut into chunks
½ c. sour cream
2 c. sliced fresh mushrooms, optional
4 c. hot cooked egg noodles
1 medium onion, chopped (1/4-1/2 c.)

In a skillet over medium high heat, in 1 Tbsp. margarine, cook chicken until browned. Reduce heat to medium. In same skillet, In 1 Tbsp. margarine, cook mushrooms and onion until veggies are tender and liquid is evaporated. Stir in soup and sour cream. Heat to boiling. Return chicken to skillet. Heat through, stirring occasionally. Serve over hot noodles.

Looks like you could start your own cookbook with all the great recipes you've gotten. I have 2 more for you. In planning for the arrival of our 2nd girl, I froze a ton of meals. But, here are the 2 that I come back to for ease and cheapness.

Tuna Noodle Casserole
1 can tuna
1 can cream of mushroom
about 6 oz noodles
1 cup veggies (we like to use peas)

Mix it up, put it in 8x8 pan top with buttered bread crumbs and cheese. At this point you can cover and freeze or bake @ 350 for about 30 mins until everything is bubbly. If you freeze it, make sure to thaw in the refrigerator or microwave before cooking. Thawing on the counter top encourages yucky bacteria.

Chicken Parmesean

Cook enough spaghetti for 4
1 jar pasta sauce
4 cooked chicken patties from the frozen section
shredded mozerella cheese

Put cooked spaghetti in 9x13, cover with sauce and put chicken patties on top. Top with cheese. Freeze. Thaw and bake @ 350 for about 30 mins until bubbly.

HI G.,

I have 2 super easy, fast chicken recipes that are cheap cheap.

1) Caesar chicken (adapted from a recipe on www.eatchicken.com)
1 package chicken breasts
3 T. olive oil
Juice from one lemon
1 t. mustard (I like dijon or a jalapeno - basically anything other than regular yellow)
1 t. worcestshire sauce
3/4 t. garlic powder
a couple squirts of zesty italian dressing
1/4 t. pepper
sprinkle of salt
1/3 c. grated parmesan
2/3 c. breadcrumbs

Combine olive oil through pepper in a plastic bag and add chicken breasts. Marinate for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine parmesan and breadcrumbs. Dredge chicken breasts in parmesan and breadcrumbs and place in a greased pyrex dish. Drizzle marinade over the chicken. Bake for approx 21 minutes, until fork inserted is removed easily. Serve with pasta, risotto, etc.

The other recipe is Phillippine chicken, cooked in a crock pot.
1 package chicken breasts (frozen or thawed)
1 c. water (3/4 c. if chicken is frozen)
1/2 c. vinegar
1/4 c. soy sauce
2-3 gloves chopped or crushed garlic
Combine all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. The longer it cooks, the yummier it is. Serve over rice. If you'd like to spice it up, add a little cajun marinade, red pepper flakes, or tabasco.

Enjoy!

Warmly,
S. Mesh
Development Director
Cultural Care Au Pair - www.culturalcare.com
____@____.com

I use Recipezaar.com alot because you can search by rating and read the reviews before you try a recipe. I would agree with everyone about the crockpot too, but I would not reccommend the Betty Crocker Crockpot meals. My family did not like them.

You can also be creative with leftovers. I thin out leftoever mashed potatos with condensed milk and use it as the base for potato soup. I have also blended up leftover spaghetti sauce (meat and all) and used it as a base for a very rich and hardy tomato soup. Taco meat goes well in Spaghetti sauce and dried out bread and rolls are good with thinned out Crm of Mushroom soup over them. Crushed up stuffing makes awesome breading and is usually cheaper (in bulk)than breadcrumbs.

Growing up, my family made something called "Spence Mess" and I have never meet anyone who did not like it. We even leave out the meat for the vegetarian in our house. I do not like mushrooms, but this does not have a mushroom flavor at all even despite the soup. You can probably use whatever soup you like though. I have also added 1/2 cup sour cream if you want it creamier.

1 can crm of mushroom
2 cups cooked rice
2 cans of whatever veggies you like
or a couple handfuls of frz veggies
1 lb cooked hamburger

Mix and eat. It stores really well in the fridge or freezer too.

Tater Tot Casserole:
1 pound ground beef (or ground turkey)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/4 cup milk
1 package frozen, mixed veggies
2 cups grated cheddar cheese (or slices of velveeta)
1 package frozen tater tots

Brown hamburger and mix in frozen veggies, soup and milk.
Transfer mixture to casserole dish. Top with grated cheese or velveeta slices. Top with tater tots row by row. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
Prep time: 15 minutes Bake time: 1 hour
*Will DEFINATELY feed 2 adults and 2 children. We usually have plenty of left overs too. And kids love it. It's also great cause you can mix in any kind of veggies you want and the kids usually can't tell. Also....you can keep almost everything in the freezer until you need it. You should be able to pull this one together for under $10.00

Rachael Ray was making a cheesy hashbrown chili casserole on her show the other day that looked really good too, you can probably find it on her website.

Another good one is to pour instant rice into the bottom of a casserole, add a little bit of chicken stock and some veggies. Throw in a couple of pork chops. Top the whole thing with cream of mushroom soup and bake for about an hour at 350. The rice gets done on it's own, the pork chops come out super yummy and tender. And best of all there is virually NO prep time.

My husbands whole family are from a small farming community. I used to make fun of all the recipes they had using cream of mushroom/chicken/celery soups, but now that I have one kid, and another on the way I have changed my tune. "When in doubt (or a hurry) CREAM IT!!" :-)

Hope this helps a little. Good luck!

I didn't have time to read everyone's posts so someone else may have already suggested this but I just tried a Stouffer's family meal last night and it was delicious. It was $9.59 at Safeway (don't ask how I remember these things) and it had four parmesan chicken breasts and spaghetti. I am pregnant with my second and working and having zero energy so was looking for soemthing with no prep. I'm planning on getting more when I do my next shopping trip. Good luck!

Hi G., I recently made a macaroni salad from allrecipes.com. It was really good and you can add cubed ham or precooked chicken to it to make it a little meatier. You do have to let it sit overnight but that saves one night of cooking. It's nice too on that website that you can change the amount of servings. Sometimes when I only have a little of something I change the servings until I see that ingredient measure up to what I have available. Here is the recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Classic-Macaroni-Salad/Detai...

I also recently typed in the ingredients I had available on this website and it came up with some yummy meals (I typed in chicken and rice).. Here are two more recipes you can try.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Heart-Healthy-Burrito/Detail...
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Warm-Chicken-Ranch-Wraps/Det...

If these links don't work you can either type in the recipe name or I can e-mail them to you seperately. On the Warm Chicken Ranch Wraps I used chicken nuggets instead of regular chicken for my really picky 3yo.. My 1yo can't eat the tortilla as a whole so I cut it up into pieces she could eat and put the rest of the ingredients into her divided dish for her to eat.

Another thing I like to make that is quick is meatloaf and boxed mashed potatoes with some veggies. Really quick and simple to make. 1 lb ground beef or turkey meat, some ketchup, salt, pepper, egg and bread crumbs. I don't have exact measurements as I do it to taste and it's different every time. :) I sometimes make this over the weekend cover and refrigerate until the next day to eat. Take it out of the fridge when you get home, turn the oven on and pop it in while you settle in. There is also a lot of meals you can make by freezing them ahead of time. One I like to make is enchiladas. Here is that recipe:
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Hearty-Chicken-Enchiladas

Good luck! You are being resourceful and trying to make healthy meal for your family. Good job!

If you aren't against breakfast for dinner It is easy to make ahead. I make a triple batch of pancakes once a week for dinner and save the rest to microwave for breakfasts...same goes for scrambled eggs and turkey sausage or bacon.....
Spaghetti and meatballs, big salads with egg on top (don't avacado until you are ready to eat).
I do lots of cooking ahead...we have 7 kids and a crazy busy schedule!

Here's a website you should really enjoy.
http://www.5dollardinners.com/

I cook up ground turkey, mix in with a box of mac and cheese (I add in some extra cheese too) and put some peas (frozen and just thawed with warm water). My kids LOVE this, total cost $5.00.

Or we have nacho night were I make up ground turkey with taco seasoning, put it on some low salt whole grain tortilla chips and cover with cheese, put in the microwave and let the cheese melt, then top with a little sour cream (if they like that) and diced fresh tomatoes, $6.50 a meal. Or you can do this and wrap them in tortillas.
I do quesidillas some nights too with homeade soup.

Another thing you can do is baked spaghetti. Layer the bottom of a large pan with some sauce, then cooked noodles, then add cooked turkey meat and sauce mix, top with mozerella and bake until golden brown on top. Light on the sauce.

Or I make chicken enchiladas with mild green chili, this recipe is about $15 a meal but makes a lot and my kids love it. If you want this side note me.

Make your own homeade chicken fingers by when there is a sale getting the breast tender strips, bread them and put them in the oven and bake them. Serve with a side of veggies and baked potatoes.

My kids love salads, raw veggies and fruit so I got to Sprouts a natural food store where their produce is so much less expensive.

Some nights we have mcmuffin night, where I make scrambled eggs, toast some english muffins and put cheese on them and make sandwiches out of them with fruit on the side.

I buy once or twice a month the Lauras all natural premade meat meals. Like the roast beef, it is so good, no nitrates or fillers and all good beef, rated as heart healthy. It is $7 a package but it is a lot for four and I just added sides and my kids love it. Takes me a few minutes to heat up in the microwave. You can find this in the produce section.
Once a month I get a rotesserie chicken too at the store, precooked so I just have to heat and add sides. They are $7 but they are less expensive then a whole chicken at the store and saves me tons of times.
Hope that helps. I cook for five kids (three that I babysit and my two) a few nights a month so I have to be creative without breaking the bank.

Try these two sources
http://30minutemeals.cdkitchen.com/
http://30minutemeals.net/

Have fun experimenting!

I just got this email from Albertson's and saw your post so I hope this website helps you.
http://allrecipes-shop.albertsons.com/Articles/TenMealsOn...

G.,

Have you considered going to one of those make & take meals places? I actually came across one called Easy Entrees and it is nothing short of FANTASTIC! The meals are delicious, it's cost-effective(I've found it cheaper than going to the store to buy ingredients) and my daughter gobbles up everything I put on her plate! I just went last night & paid $150 for 12 petite size meals(supposed to feed 2-3 but we always end up with leftovers, so we get 2 meals out of each). You can't go to the store & spend $150 for 24 meals! If you have picky kids, they do have kids' selections, too.

I'd encourage you to check it out..www.ezentrees.com. The owner's name is Robin Fickle and she's wonderful. If you don't have time to physically go and prepare the meals, they will do it for you at no extra charge. You can just swing by and pick it up.

I like Easy Entrees because it isn't a chain (Supper Solutions, Dishin it Up) and they use all natural and sometimes even organic ingredients. The staff is terrific, too.

Let me know if you have other questions. I go the last Wednesday of every month with my StrollerFit group. You're welcome to join us if you'd like!

I hope that I don't make this too long but here are some of my favorites:
Szechuan:
1-1.5lbs of top round steak (which I usually buy already cut into pieces to save time)
1/4 C chicken broth
1 T soy sauce
1 T szechuan sauce
1/2 t red pepper flakes
Marinate the meat in the sauce while cutting up veggies for about 10 minutes. Then start cooking the meat and once it's done:
From this point me and my husband go different ways so you can decide which sounds better. I add 1 C bean sprouts and 4 roma tomatoes, cook it up, and call it good. My husband has to have onion and peppers instead. I also cook up some rice for him to eat underneath it. It's really healthy and good for you, also cheap and quick.I am pregnant and szechuan is a little spicy so I either dilute it a little with more chicken broth or I don't add as much szechuan.
Another one is simple haystacks:
Cook up some rice.
Cook up some chicken and once it's cooked add some cream of chicken soup mixed with a little milk and top the rice with it. You can garnish it with cheese and La Choy noodles.
I also buy frozen meatballs and they cook up so great and you can either do spaghetti with meatballs, or swedish meatballs (just add some cream of mushroom soup and put on top of noodles). You can just throw them in the crock pot in the morning with the sauce if you want to.
Voila's chicken and garlic frozen meals are delicious and really fast to cook up. They usually cost around $6.
Italian chicken:
Get a couple of chicken breasts and coat them in italian dressing. Broil on one side for about 5 minutes and turn them over. After a couple of minutes put some sliced tomatoes and feta cheese on top and let them finish cooking. I usually eat this with asparagus and it all goes so well together.
Hope this helps!

Hawaiin Haystacks is one I like to make. You can cook the chicken in the crockpot to make it ready to go on the table. Put in boneless chicken breasts, cream of chicken soup and you can add either a ranch or italian salad dressing packet(this is optional) I adjust how many cans of cream of chicken to the amount of breasts I put in. If I find a deal on chicken I make a big pot at once it freezes great and can then just be defrosted. At dinner time I shred up the chicken with a fork and add a bit of sour cream and milk just to get a more liquidy mixture, let that continue to warm while I Cook rice and put out grated cheese, olives, chow mein noodles, raisins, celery, mandarin oranges, pineapple... whatever you like. Then you just take a scoop of rice, chicken sauce then put whatever toppings you want. My kids all love it and can adjust the toppings to whatever they want.

I totally understand this -- try www.familytime.com
they will email you (if you would like) a daily recipe out of the cateegories you request. They even have a "recipe finder" based on a certain ingredient. And they have tons of great desserts incase you are ever looking!
They have a great planning calendar and also shopping list. I get their "recipe a day" and Love it! Good Luck.

My husband and I like to cook but we've been renovating our kitchen for a long time. We're so uninterested in spending a lot of time in that kitchen! We discovered box meals a while back and they've been life-saving. We usually get them at Wal-Mart for about $3 each and they will easily feed your 4 people. That's less than $1 per person. The best part is that they contain all the ingredients except for water, and they take about 5 minutes to prepare. There's a pretty good variety between two main brands that make them (between Betty Crocker and Banquet, we prefer the Banquet meals but they're all decent). Combine them with a fresh veggie and they're a perfect meal.

Also, my husband and I got some good inspiration from those box meals and have made them from our own recipes. Sadly, they're more expensive when we make them not from the box, but at least we can somewhat control the calories.

Good luck!

If you are not already using Share you might want to look into it- http://www.sharecolorado.com/index.cfm?action=host_site_l...
This has helped us with having some affordable quick heat and eat meals to avoid fast foods on the nights you do not have time or energy to make a meal.

Most of our meals are quick and simple depending what was on sale- sales/ coupons and buying in bulk makes our meals cheap.
Fresh flour tortillas (local factory in town 12 cnt $2.50), cheese (8 oz $1.50), chicken (in a can $2.50) with corn (.33) and salad (from Costco 3 lbs $1.99).
Then from left-overs Chicken made it to chicken salad sandwiches= salad for the lettuces on the sandwiches, breakfast burritos with the tortillas and cheese -egg, potatoes, cheese, sour cream YUMMMM....
Or chicken enchiladas, cream of chicken/mushroom soup with cheese, green chilies layered in the flour tortillas

Bottom round steak(or other cheap steak) into the crock pot with a jar of cheap salsa, can of black beans and 1/2 cup of water cook all day serve with sprinkle of cheese and a biscuit or roll that you can make with the 2 year old's help

Cheap pork ribs with bones- the ones that go on sale for $1.99 lbs- cook in crock pot in a jar of cheap BBQ sauce- then dump sauce and add sauce you like and cook for 30 min/1 hour then serve ….. left over’s make great pulled pork sandwiches with coleslaw beans etc….

Stock up on chicken breast on sale (I stocked up @ Sprout's $1.99 lbs boneless skinless). When you cook- cook twice as many per meal so you can then have a quick dinner a night or two later- cubed into pasta, added to spaghetti, fajita strips, cubed with dipping sauces (ranch, BBQ, ketchup), chicken sandwiches, cheese and chicken burritos, chicken nachos, reheat the checkien and cook it down in BBQ sauce for sandwiches or mix chicken, veggies, cheese or sauce in noodles pretty much anything.
The other day I added up the total cost of dinner for 5 it was less then $2.50. Flafel mix $.46 *smashed box clearanced price, Tarzaki dip used about $.50 (container was $2.50, bought it ealier as snack with chips), Veggies $.33, Salad ~ $.20, pears $.40 and milk* ~$.50 *Horizon Organice milk half gallon was clearance 3 days before exp date $.75 :)
Biggest thing on saving cost of food/ meals is not to waste what you have bought. DH has gotten used to saving even if it is just three spoonfulls of veggies.

This is EXACTLY what my company has begun doing! We have recipes that take 30 minutes or less for real people to make and cost around $2/serving (so $8-12/meal). I would be so happy to share with you these recipes (and I've made them all and they are DELICIOUS and my kids will eat them!). I am an independent consultant and thus must follow the company rule of not puting my website or their name on a website such as this. HOWEVER, if you'd like the recipes, just PM me here and I'll send them.
I understand your need for cheap and simple recipes!

Check out this website Menus4Moms. They give you a whole week of menus at a time and they are usually pretty cheap. You can add or take away from the menus to make it cheaper and easier. they will email it to you every week for free if you register on their website. I have nine kids and this helps a lot. Good luck!

My two favorite quick meals take prep in the crock pot before but then they are a snap at the meal time:

Salsa Chicken:
3 chicken breasts
1 large bottle of pace mild salsa.
Put it all together in a crockpot and then shred about 30 minutes before you want to eat it.

It is great over rice, in tortillas or quesadillas which kids will usually eat.

Shredded beef
1 eye of the round roast cut in half long ways. (cheap for 3 at costco)
1 can beef broth
1 can beef consume'
1 can french onion soup
1 square of beef bullion
(Do not dilute the soups)

Put into the crockpot on low for 6-8 hours. Shred beef 1/2 an hour before you want to eat it.
This can be used for french dip sandwiches with the left over broth for the au jus. or you can put it into tortillas. My husband just likes to eat it plain with veggies on the side.

what I have left over from these recipes I will put into muffin cups and freeze. Then i pop them out and put them into baggies and then you have individual servings for lunch or another meal.
Hope these help.

Hi, G.. My mom makes this great meal that my brother and I loved growing up; I make it now, too! It's kind of a like a cheaper,easier version of lasagna; we call it Mazette.

1 lb. ground beef (or turkey)
1 small container cottage cheese
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 small can tomato soup
1 package egg noodles
grated cheddar cheese (or mozarella, if you want)
You can also throw some veggies in if your kids will eat them--peppers and onions are good, and so are mushrooms.

Brown the meat and add the tomato soup and stewed tomatoes; cook the noodles, then combine meat mixture, noodles, and cottage cheese in a casserole dish. Top with grated cheese and cook at 350 'til bubbly. It's good served with salad and bread, or steamed veggies.

Enjoy!
S.

I have learned that if I have my hamburger cooked ( I bake mine lots at one time,[I add onions, and seasonings] I put it in one pound bags, and freeze it. That way I can pull out a bag and say sloppy joe, or hamburger gravy or lasagna, or spaghetti, or hamburger helper. You can do the same with chicken. It saves lots of time. Pampered chef has some good power cooking recipes. If you want that web site you can contact me. I have a great spaghetti casserole recipe, you take cooked spaghetti noodles, cooked chicken (can use canned) cream of mushroom or celery or chicken soup, season to taste. cover with grated cheese (you can mix it in). Cover with tin foil,cook till heated and cheese is melted.

Here are a couple of my family's faves: Spaghetti - 1 1/2 lbs hamburger, 1 jar Ragu chunky vegetable or mushroom sauce, and pasta. Gotta have garlic bread though. We also like to get the Safeway flash frozen Chicken breasts for $10, then we can have chicken breasts with Montreal Seasoning, some veggie (fresh, usually whatever is on sale), and either potatoes or Pasta Roni (we like the parmesan angel hair). I don't know about 30 minutes or less (maybe if you take the chicken out early enough), but these are great to get started and leave until you are ready for them, then wrap up everything in the last five min. Hope this helps. good luck!

I can't cook (mostly because I can't follow directions very well)...I've been married for 5 years and we have a 3 year old daughter. She has practically grown up on Mac & Cheese & PB&J Sandwiches. My husband and I usually eat out every meal. So lately I've made an effort to start "cooking". I went to walmart and bought tons of meals that you either put in the crockpot or put in an 8x8 baking dish and put in the oven. Everything we've tried has been wonderful. These meals range from $6-$8 a package and are in the frozen meals section. Really inexpensive & very tasty. I also bought the Pillsbury dinner rolls that you just throw in the oven and they are done in 6 minutes. I spent about $155 at Walmart last Friday and bought enough food for 3 weeks of meals. I don't budget very well and I don't use coupons. I prefer to buy namebrand items rather than generic and I don't shop "sale" items. I just go to the store and wander the isles and usually leave with a heaping cart of food that looks like I have 12 kids to feed. I was actually surprised at how inexpensive my cart of food was this past week.

We are big fans of manicotti. And we just use the recipe on back of the barilla brand manicotti shells. It is really easy and doesn't take long. It calls for manicotti shells, mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, basil or oregano, one egg and spaghetti sauce. My son will eat it. ANd we usually half the recipe. Good luck to you.

Chicken and dumplings:
2 boneless chicken breasts cooked and cubed
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 can water
1 c bisquick
1/3 c milk

In skillet add chicken, soup, and water(you can also add salt and pepper if you want). Stir ingredients together. In a seperate bowl mix bisquick and milk. Once chicken mix comes to a boil dollop spoon fulls of bisquick mix into mixture. Turn down to med-low and cook for 10 minutes uncovered. After 10 minutes, cover and cook 10 more minutes. Enjoy.

Check in the freezer section of the grocery store. They have all kinds of frozen crock pot items as well as quick 10 minute meals that are wonderful. They have meat, and veggies in them and are really healthy. I use them a lot for my son and I and have plenty of leftovers, but even if you had to do 2 packages it would be less than $10. Our favorites are Stouffer's skillet meals!

This is the easiest recipe EVER, and my family absolutely loves it!

Easy Cheesy Meican Soup

1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
1 lb Velveeta cheese
1 can peeled & diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes, undrained
1 can corn, undrained
1 can pinto beans, undrained (I substitute w/ black beans as we don't care for pinto beans)

In a large saucepan, brown ground beef along with onion. Add velveeta cheese & melt. Add the 4 cans of vegetables to mixture. Heat through & serve. Serves 6.

I usually double it, so there are leftovers. It re-heates very well.

Hope this helps!
M.

Hi G.,

Wow, you have gotten some good ideas. I'll have to try some! I'm always on the lookout for a new recipe. Here are a few of our quick and/or easy favorites. I hope your family likes them too!

Sloppy Joes

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (or turkey or chicken)
1/2 cup chopped onion
garlic to taste
1 (10 oz) can condensed tomato soup
1/2 cup ketchup
3 to 5 tbsp grape jelly (I usually use 5, we like it a bit sweet)
1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1 tbsp prepared yellow mustard
1/2 tsp salt (can be omitted, if you like)
1/2 tsp celery seed
hamburger buns

In large skillet, cook burger with onion and garlic until no longer pink - drain. Stir in remaining ingredients, bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer (uncovered) for 10 mins or until heated through. Serve on buns.

Pork Chops and Stuffing

1 pkg (6 oz) stuffing mix (your choice of flavor)
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups chicken broth (or veggie broth, or water)
4 boneless pork chops
worcestershire sauce (optional)

In saucepan, bring broth and butter to a boil. Stir in stuffing mix. Cover and remove from heat, let stand for 5 mins. Spoon stuffing in bottom of 8 inch square baking pan. Place pork chops over stuffing. Sprinkle with worcestershire sauce and salt/pepper if desired. Cover and bake @ 425 for 15 mins. Uncover, bake 20 mins or until meat juice runs clear.

Creamy Broccoli Soup

1 pkg chicken and broccoli rice mix (I use Rice a Roni)
2 cups chicken broth
3 cups water
10 oz pkg frozen chopped broccoli (thawed slightly)
2 med carrots, shredded (or maybe half pkg of the pre-shred kind)
2 tsp minced, dried onion
1 can (10 oz) cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, cubed

In large saucepan, combine rice, broth, water, and contents of seasoning packet and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 mins, stirring once.
Stir in broccoli, simmer 5 mins (you will want to chop any pieces that are too large - you want it to be bite sized). Add carrots and dried onion, simmer 5 more mins. Stir in soup and cream cheese. Cook and stir until cheese is melted, probably about 10 mins. Serve.

Super Easy Taco Soup

1 lb ground beef
14 oz can diced tomato, undrained
15 oz can kidney beans, rinsed/drained
1 pkg taco seasoning
15 oz can tomato sauce
1 can of water

Brown beef in skillet; drain. Put in a 3 qt slow cooker. Add other ingredients and stir. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours. Top servings with sour cream, shredded cheese, green onions if desired.

Pulled Pork

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 cup chopped onion (or dried minced kind to taste)
1 cup honey hickory BBQ sauce (or your favorite kind)
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 boneless pork roast (2 - 2 1/2 lbs) excess fat trimmed
hamburger buns

In 3 qt slow cooker, combine first 6 ingredients, stir. Add pork. Spoon sauce over meat. Cover, cook on low 7 hours or until meat is tender. Remove meat and shred with 2 forks. Return to slow cooker and heat through on warm. Serve on buns.

Shepherd's Pie

1 lb ground beef
frozen corn
1 pkg onion gravy mix
1 pkg brown gravy mix
1 can beef broth
1 pkg instant mashed potato flakes (plain or flavor of your choice)

Brown beef in skillet with seasonings of your choice. Drain. Mix gravy mixes with can of beef broth and cook to pkg directions. Make instant potatoes to pkg directions. Spray 8 inch square baking pan with cooking spray, layer beef, corn, gravy, and top with potatoes. Sprinkle with paprika, if desired. Bake uncovered in 350 oven for approx 30 mins or until bubbly.

Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta

8 oz uncooked tube pasta (we use mini penne)
1 lb ground beef
6 slices bacon, diced
1 can (10 oz) condensed tomato soup, undiluted
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Cook pasta to pkg directions, drain. Cook beef in skillet until no longer pink, drain and set aside. Cook bacon until crisp in same skillet. Drain off fat. Add beef, pasta, and soup to skillet. Stir and heat through. Sprinkle with cheese, cover and cook until cheese is melted.

Meatless Chili Mac

1 lg onion, chopped
1 med green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups uncooked macaroni
1 can (16 oz) mild chili beans in sauce, undrained
1 can (15 oz) great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
4 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1/2 cup sour cream

In large saucepan, saute onions, garlic, and green pepper in oil until tender. Stir in water, macaroni, beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 mins or until macaroni is tender. Top servings with sour cream if desired.

Above recipe makes A LOT since it is so filling; we always have leftovers.

Slow Cooker Bean Soup (this freezes well)

2 cans chicken broth
16 oz frozen mixed veggies
15 oz can black beans, drain and rinse
15 oz can kidney beans, drain and rinse
15 oz can pinto beans, drain and rinse
15 oz can great northern beans, drain and rinse
15 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 med onion, chopped
1 tbsp chili powder
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp pepper

In 5 qt slow cooker, combine all ingredients. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours.

Vegetable Beef Soup (also freezes really well)

1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
2 (28 oz) jars pasta sauce (your choice, we use Newman's Own Sockarooni)
14 oz can beef broth
1 1/2 cups water
1 can diced tomato with garlic and olive oil, undrained
1 can diced tomato with green pepper and onion, undrained
16 oz pkg frozen mixed veggies (thaw slightly under hot water)
1/2 tsp pepper

Cook beef and onion until no longer pink, drain. Combine beef and remaining ingredients in a 5 qt slow cooker. Cover and cook on high 6 hours or low for 8 - 10 hours.

Wow - now that I look back, that is a lot of recipes! Sorry, I got in a groove I guess. lol I didn't include any chicken recipes, although we do eat chicken an awful lot, because a lot of the recipes I use require pre-cooked chicken that you shred or cube or whatever. Unless you buy the rotisserie chickens, that adds a bit of time to the overall cooking time with having to cook the chicken first, so that is why I didn't include any. I do have a pretty good recipe for shredded BBQ chicken in a slow cooker (that chicken doesn't have to be pre-cooked or anything) so if you would like that one, just drop me a line and I'm more than happy to share! Hope you get some use out of one or two of these recipes; they have worked really well around our house with our 3 yr old. All the best, cj :)

Hi G.,
I recently published a cook book called "Just Recipes". In it, you can find easy recipes that kids like! I have a 2-year-old daughter who is my toughest critic. I created these recipes by looking in my cabinets and coming up with different meals. All my recipes taste delicious as left-overs and even taste good cold the next day. Most of the meals are really hearty and totally filling. (We are on a tight budget because my hubbie has been out of work for months now. The ingredients are simple: flour, salt, garlic powder, cheese, ground beef, chicken, etc. There's 29 recipes, and it's on sale at Amazon.com. The local bookstores in the valley will have them in about a couple of weeks. If you want more info. and want to browse the recipes, there's an option on Amazon where you can look inside the book to see if it's something you are interested in. I also have a blog you can check out. The site is justrecipescookbook.blogspot.com. The blog also shows all the press we have gotten from the book. I have been getting great responses thus far. Good luck!

Here are some quick ideas that might work and help out..
My son loved fries and chicken nugget/strips and u can even add green beans or corn to get all food groups...total prep and cook time is 20 min...total cost under $15...

Another great idea is nacho night or taco night..all u have to do is buy the meat and fixings and they can create their own dinner...Finger foods are great cuz its easy and u can get all food groups if you do all the toppings...its great for 2 yr olds cuz it lets them feel the food and feed themselves..everybody loves these quick ideas...and its cheap!!!

I know you said you don't like websites, but my favorite is Taste of Home. It has the fancy recipes from the Taste Of Home magazine, but also the simple recipes from Simple and Delicious. It rates them, tells you how long they take, and has photos of most of them. The best part, I think, is that after I've made one, if my family LOVES it, I save the recipe to My Recipe File and then it's easy to find again. No more clipping and stashing recipes in a bag where I can't find them later. If my computer crashes, the recipes are still there at Taste of Home for me to reconnect to with a new computer.

This is one of my favorite quick, cheap meals.

1 box of mac and cheese, prepared according to box directions.
1/2 lb. ground turkey or ground beef
1 small can of tomato sauce
1 can of corn, drained.

I brown the ground turkey/beef, while the mac noodles are cooking. After the mac and cheese is prepared, I just stir in everything else and serve. My husband loves this, my kids love this, and my brothers and sister love this!