Great Meals On A Lean Budget

Grilled Whiskey-Marinated Pork Chops with Green Bean Salad

2008-07-14T14:06:00.000-07:00

This is a nice marinade that can be used with a variety of grilled meats.

Pork Chops

· 1/3 cup whiskey
· 1/3 cup soy sauce (Low sodium)
· 3 tbsp Brown sugar
· 2 tbsp cider vinegar
· 3 cloves garlic
· 1 tsp black pepper
· 1 tsp red pepper flakes

· 1 tbsp cornstarch

Mix first seven ingredients together. Save ¼ cup of the mixture. Pour the remaining marinade over the pork chops in a sealed plastic bag. Refrigerate the pork chops overnight.

Before grilling the chops, mix cornstarch into the ¼ cup of unused marinade. Gently heat until bubbly and thickened into a golden sauce.

Serve the grilled pork chops with a spoonful of the sauce over the top.

Hot Green Bean Salad With Potatoes

This is a great recipe as a side dish to your favorite grilled entrée. It can also be used as a hot or cold side dish for your summer picnics. The green beans and potato make a great combination.

2 tbsp olive oil
1 small or ½ medium onion, chopped
1 slice onion finely chopped
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp corn starch
1 to 1 ¼ cup sugar
1 cup white vinegar
32 oz Green beans, cooked
2 to 4 medium potatoes, diced and cooked
4 slices of bacon, crumbled

Cut bacon into small pieces with a kitchen shears. Fry the bacon until crispy. Place the bacon on a paper towel to drain the bacon fat.

In a clean deep fry pan add olive oil, small chopped onion, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until the onion has a slightly golden color.

Continue cooking the onion and add the corn starch and mix into the onion thoroughly. Add the sugar and mix again.

Add the vinegar to the entire mixture and keep stirring over the heat until all the ingredients have melded together. Allow the mixture to cook until hot and bubbly. When the sauce has thickened, remove from the heat.

Cook the green beans and potatoes together until both are tender. Rinse and drain in a colander.

Place the beans and potatoes into a serving dish. Pour the warm sauce over the beans and potatoes. Sprinkle the finely chopped onion on top along with the crispy bacon bits.

Low-Budget Tips: This is a great summer dish because it can be made with your home-grown green beans. If you don’t have a garden, don’t worry. Fresh market beans or frozen green beans will work well, too. I prefer to nip the bean ends and keep the beans whole. Some stores also have whole frozen green beans.

Pick the beans when mature, but still thin. The beans get tough when their seeds get too fat. Cook the beans until tender. Make sure they are no longer crisp. For variation you can also use fresh yellow beans. I prefer the color contrast of the green beans and white potatoes.

Lean and Healthy Tips:

This dish can be made with the bacon fat instead of the olive oil. This will produce a stronger bacon flavor. I replace the bacon fat with olive oil to keep the calories and fat to a minimum. White flour will also work in place of the corn starch. This will give the sauce a milky appearance. The corn starch creates a clear or translucent appearance. I find that many prepared bean salads are too sour. You can add more or less sugar to the sauce to suit your personal taste. (Kids will like this better with more sugar.)

Grilled Parmesan Chicken Breasts and Grilled Potatoes

2008-07-09T12:39:00.000-07:00

Grilled Parmesan Chicken Breasts

This is a great summer chicken recipe for the grill. It can be served with a variety of side dishes or other summer fare. We are serving it our favorite medley of potatoes and vegetables.

Boneless skinless chicken breast halves, fresh or thawed
salt
1 tbsp onion powder
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Dip each chicken breast into cold water and place between two sheets of plastic wrap. Using a flat meat pounder, gently pound the chicken breast into a flat sheet about 1/4-inch thick.
Season each piece on both sides with salt and pepper. Place the chicken into a gallon size ziplock bag.

Combine the minced garlic, parmesan cheese, fresh chives, lime juice and olive oil. Pour into the ziplock bag over the chicken and seal the bag. Let the chicken remain in the marinade for at least 1 hour. Refrigerate the chicken until 15 minutes before grilling.

Prepare your gas or charcoal grill for cooking. Grill each chicken breast until firm to the touch, 1 to 2 minutes per side. (It is important to pound the chicken breast to maintain a uniform thickness through the whole chicken breast. This will ensure that the entire breast is done at the same time.)

Grilled Potatoes and Vegetables

6 medium Red Potatoes
1 whole onions cut into thin wedges
Red Peppers
Banana Peppers
Garlic Salt
Pepper
Zuchini slices (optional)
1 – 2 tbsp Vegetable oil

Cut clean, washed red potatoes into cubes about 1/2 inch thick. Cut onions into wedges. Cut red and banana peppers into strips. Toss all the ingredients together in light vegetable oil. Sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper.

Place your grilling basket on the hot grill. Add the potato and vegetable mixture. Be careful of flare-ups from the vegetable oil. Begin tossing the vegetable medley immediately and as needed throughout the grilling process. The vegetables can be tossed like you would a salad or a stir fry, using one or two metal utensils. Do not let the vegetables stick to the grilling basket or they will burn. The vegetables are finished when the potatoes are tender.

Important Tips:
Place charcoal on only one side of your grill. This will give you an area to move your chicken or cooking basket if the grill gets too hot.
Cut the potatoes into small enough pieces so that they will cook quickly. You may want to add the other vegetables after you have cooked the potatoes for 3 – 4 minutes. This will prevent the onions and peppers from overcooking.

If you have a small grill, cook the potatoes first, remove from the grill and prepare the chicken. Then place the grilling basket back on the grill and add the vegetable to the potatoes and cook a few more minutes. If you have a larger grill, you may be able to keep the potatoes warm in the basket, while you cook the chicken.

Lean Budget Tips

After pounding the chicken, you may want to cut the fillets in half or in pieces. This will control the portion size of the chicken and make it easier to grill.

The vegetable medley is quite economical and can be altered with other of your favorite vegetables.

If red peppers are not in season, sprinkle red pepper flakes on the medley for a nice kick to the potatoes.

Lean and Healthy Tips

Grilled boneless and skinless chicken as prepared in this recipe offers an excellent meal that is low in calories as compared to other main dishes.

This chicken is also great served over a lettuce salad either hot or cold. The parmesan flavor to the chicken makes it quite delicious served either way.

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Baked Fish Fillet Sandwich With Broccoli Slaw

2008-07-04T13:17:00.000-07:00

This is a very tasty way to make baked fish. It is served on a homemade country style hard roll with Broccoli slaw on the side.

Baked Fish

6 Cod or Haddock fillets
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp light Miracle Whip
1/8 tsp onion flakes
1/8 tsp Durkee Citrus Blend Seasoning
(Lemmon pepper seasoning can be substituted)
1/3 cup cracker crumbs (Butter style cracker)
Cooking Spray

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Thaw fish fillets completely before cooking. Wash fillets and pat dry. Place fish fillets in a baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Mix the Miracle Whip, lemon juice, onion flakes and Citrus blend seasoning. Spread the sauce evenly over each fillet. Sprinkle with cracker crumbs. A butter style cracker such as Ritz or Townhouse work well. Spray each fillet with a little cooking spray after adding cracker crumbs.

Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. The fish should flake easily with a fork. Do not overcook the fish. The sauce will help keep the fish moist.

Homemade Style Hard Rolls

Bread Starter
1 cup warm water
2-1/2 tsp bread machine yeast
1-1/2 cups bread flour

Parchment Paper

Dough
1 cup warm water
3 tbsp butter
2-1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp honey
1 egg
4 cups bread flour

This recipe can be made by hand or with a mixer, but I use my bread machine. By using a bread machine I maintain a consistent quality as the mixing process is the same every time.

Add the bread starter ingredients and set your bread machine to the dough setting. The bread machine gently heats the dough to the right temperature to get the proper leavening action. When the cycle has completed, add the remaining ingredients and start the cycle again. I add 3 cups of flour to the start of this cycle and gradually add the fourth after a nice ball of dough has formed.

Since my bread machine is small, I do not let the cycle complete, as the dough will rise over the top. Halfway through the cycle, transfer the dough to a large bowl. Spray the top of the dough with cooking spray and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place for about one hour.

Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Place the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Cut the dough into 16 pieces. Gently knead each piece and place it on the parchment paper. DO NOT grease the parchment paper. The rolls will brown perfectly and can be removed from the parchment effortlessly. This is a great time saver for cleanup, too!

Let the dough rise again for at least 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake the rolls for 20 – 25 minutes. Congratulations, you just made perfect homemade rolls just like grandmother used to do!

If you like, you can lightly spray the rolls halfway through baking. This will result in a crispier crust. I like to press the bottom of the roll dough into some corn meal before placing it on the parchment paper. For a shinier appearance, brush an egg wash on the top of each roll before baking.

Broccoli Slaw

2 packages broccoli slaw
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dry mustard
1 cup vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil

Put broccoli in a large bowl. Mix together remaining ingredients by shaking vigorously in a jar. Pour over the broccoli slaw and refrigerate. A very simple recipe for summer cookouts. This also works well with shredded cabbage. The broccoli slaw is heartier and offers a nice change of pace from regular cole slaw.

Lean Budget Tips

Frozen unbreaded fish fillets can be very inexpensive when compared to pre-breaded, packaged varieties. Try using different types of fish. Most white fish varieties will work well with this recipe.
Making homemade rolls is fun as well as easy on the pocket book.
When making homemade bread only use bread flour. Compared to the cost of a good roll purchased from a bake shop or supermarket, homemade rolls are a bargain. These rolls can be used with burgers or chicken at your favorite cookout.

Lean and Healthy Tips

Baked fish prepared in this recipe offers an excellent meal that is low in calories as compared to fried fish.
Homemade rolls are free from preservatives. They can also be made with whole wheat flour instead of regular flour.
Broccoli slaw offers a nutritious side dish alternative. Your guests won't even know it is broccoli and it tastes great.

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Beef Stroganoff

2008-06-28T10:36:00.000-07:00

Main Dish: Homemade Beef Stroganoff Recipe

Thin cut round steak. Cut into strips
1 vidalia onion - Cut in slices and then into pieces
1 package of mushrooms ( I used whole mushrooms, quartered for a heartier presentation)
2 cups Beef broth
1/3 cup red wine
2 dashes of Worcester sauce
4 dashes of A-1 steak sauce
1 12 oz can of tomato puree
3 tbs corn starch
salt
pepper
olive oil
sour cream
chives
- - - - - - - - - -

Cut round steak into strips. Brown in olive oil. Brown a little at a time. It is important to brown the meat before mixing it together with the sauce. Salt and pepper each portion of steak while it is browning. Set aside.

Brown onion lightly in olive oil. Add mushrooms until slightly golden color. Add cornstarch to vegetables. Stir well. Be sure to add the cornstarch before adding the meat and the liquids. You will avoid getting lumpy gravy by following this step closely.

Add meat. Stir well. Add tomato puree and mix.

Add Worcester sauce. Add steak sauce. Add red wine. Mix well. Add your favorite red wine to the stroganoff sauce. The wine should be just enough to enhance the flavor of the meat and sauce.

Add Beef broth. Beef broth can be purchased ready-to-go from your market, or you can make your own from a beef powder. It is very inexpensive to use a beef broth powder. We use this a lot in our cooking. Taste your homemade broth before adding to meat and sauce. Determine the best concentration of the beef flavor.

Turn up temperature until the sauce starts to thicken. Be sure to keep stirring while the sauce thickens.

Turn down temperature to low and simmer slowly for two hours. If you prefer, you can put the beef stroganoff in the oven and bake on a very low temperature-- about 300 degrees F.

Prepare egg noodles just prior to serving. Serve the stroganoff in individual pasta bowls with meat and sauce over the noodles. Add a tsp of sour cream to the top of each serving and sprinkle with chives.

Lean Budget Tips

Use left-over roast beef to make a completely different yet tasty meal.
This recipe can be made without meat. This can be friendly to your budget. The recipe also does not list the number of ounces of meat or mushrooms. Use as much meat or mushrooms as you like.
If you have freezer space, buy round steak when it is on sale.
Any lean cut of beef will work. It is less expensive to buy a roast than to purchase ready-cut stew meat. You can also get a better quality meat for less than the cost of stew meat.
For stroganoff I like to cut the meat into thin strips. This will help the meat brown quickly and will stretch your budget as less meat per serving will be needed.

Lean & Healthy Tips

For fewer calories this recipe can be made meatless.
For the cholesterol conscious: Use yolk-less egg noodles.
You can omit the sour cream and chives. The recipe did not include adding the sour cream to the sauce, but rather adding to the top of the serving with a sprinkle of chives.
Pack your own lunch with the leftovers. Use a pre-portioned dish to control the serving size.

Side Dish: Pea Pods and Baby Carrots

This is a twist to the traditional peas and carrots side dish. The pea pods and baby carrots give this dish a more robust appearance than ordinary small peas and cut carrots. The trick to preparing this side is to cook the carrots until tender without overcooking the pea pods.

Steam the carrots first until almost tender. Then add the pea pods and steam for just a couple minutes longer.

Several variations can be used to create just the right appearance for serving:

Use a ratio of only 25% carrots to 75% pea pods. The carrots highlight the peas and offer a nice contrast.
Cut the baby carrots into quarters lengthwise. This will create a unique appearance and shorten the steam time. (Be careful not to cut yourself when quartering the carrots!)
Add sliced zuchini and onion pieces to the pea pods and slices carrots. This combination can be prepared quickly when stir-fried over medium-high heat. Stir constantly when preparing this way.
Serve the vegetables in a small jello or desert dish, not in the same dish as your stroganoff.
Sprinkle a little salt and butter over the vegetables before serving. The salt and butter may be omitted for the calorie conscious person.

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