GLP Recession Proof Meals - Cooking goes a long way in lieu of buying crap

Easy - steamed vegetables.

Broccoli, carrots, onions, potatoes (or whatever vegs. you like).

The only strenuous part is peeling the potatoes, if you want.

Wash vegs. and put them on top part of a steamer on stove. Salt and pepper if you want and add butter to finished product.

This can make a meal or two around this house.

Is that good?

Not so much a recipe as a tip....if you don't fish, consider buying a sport fishing neighbor a yearly license in exchange for fresh fish....it's a good investment for fresh fish...

I'm a avid fisherman and used fish to barter for everything from car repair to haircuts and even steaks....have you seen the price of fresh fish at the markets lately?.....I also keep my deep freeze stocked...use a vacuum sealer and the fish last a long time....

I went to a slow cooker (Crockpot) website and printed out their cookbook once and still have it. If you don't want to print it, just borrow some recipes from there.

It's all about the lentils.

Root Beer-Can Chicken


Ingredients

1 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
2 (12-ounce) cans root beer, divided
2 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1 (3 1/2-pound) whole chicken, skinned


Preparation

1. Prepare grill for indirect grilling, heating one side to medium.

2. Combine first 7 ingredients and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a small bowl.

3. Open both root beer cans; pour 18 ounces into a small saucepan. Set remaining root beer aside (in the can). Bring 18 ounces root beer to a boil. Cook until reduced to 1/3 cup (about 20 minutes). Remove from heat. Add remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, butter, and vinegar, stirring until smooth.

4. Rub paprika mixture evenly over chicken. Holding chicken upright with the cavity facing down, insert reserved opened root beer can into cavity. Place chicken on unheated side of grill. Spread legs out to form a tripod to support the chicken. Cover and grill for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into meaty portion of thigh registers 160°, basting chicken every 20 minutes with sauce.

5. Lift chicken slightly using tongs; place spatula under can. Carefully remove chicken and can from grill; place on a cutting board. Let stand 10 minutes. Gently lift chicken using tongs or insulated rubber gloves; carefully twist can and remove from cavity. Discard can. Carve chicken.

You cant eat the fish from any stream or river around Montgomery county PA. Even the park's or fish & game website discourages it. It's a sin.
The kids and i love to fish, we just have to throw it all back because that shit is polluted worse than a Kensington crack whore.

Lentil and green pea soup in a crock are one of our favorites

With about 30% of their calories from protein, lentils have the third-highest level of protein, by weight, of any legume or nut, after soybeans and hemp.[
[link to www.thekitchn.com]

NutrientDRI%/DV%
molybdenum330%
folate89.5%
fiber62.5%
copper55.5%
phosphorus50.9%
manganese49%
iron36.6%
protein35.7%
vitamin B127.5%
pantothenic acid25.2%
zinc22.8%
potassium20.8%
vitamin B6



1lb Polish Kielbasa Sausage
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 pound lentils or green pea, picked and rinsed
1 cup peeled and chopped tomatoes
2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth

Toss it all in the crock pot in the morning and sit down with a salad and hearty soup at supper time, french bread or crackers.

Last Edited by Lost Angel on 01/13/2014 05:16 PM

You can make a bomb bread pudding with left over stale bread!!!

Eggs
milk
stale bread
vanilla extract
cinnamon
raisins
(The consistency should look like porridge)

Melt sugar into a caramel glaze
pour caramel into pan (careful not to severely but yourself)
Cut banana into round pieces and place them on the caramel covered pan

Pour the bread mix into the pan

Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 min or until the middle is fully baked.

Flip the pan onto a cookie sheet or large enough plate.

this is great! my Slavic family called them halushki. Add the noodles to baked or braised pieces of chicken, yummy!


Chicken and halushki. Grew up on it. Paprika on the chicken, too, if you like.

Get dried beans - any kind you like - black beans, black eyed peas, navy beans, butter beans. The are cheap. Follow directions on bag. If you soak first, they will cook faster. Can season with some kind of meat, optional, or use some spices from your rack.

Make a big-arse pot of rice.

Will last for a long time, depending on your family size. Or, can freeze the leftovers in freezer bag for lazy night dinner.

Maybe add some sort of bread to fill those little tummies up.

YUM YUM!

Pancakes from scratch. No I don't have a recipe. Look online or in a cookbook.

Excellent thread, Phen, I always love these threads - they're both fun and useful!!!! The people perish for want of GOOD CHICKEN RECIPES!!!!!!!

My favorite Sunday morning breakfast with the pancakes fried up in bacon grease and canned peaches on the side.


I know the grease is a no no for health but yummy!

Last Edited by Lost Angel on 01/13/2014 05:18 PM

Chili is another one thats reasonable to make and can be used a lot of ways so you dont feel like you are eating the same thing over and over.Its one of my staple foods.

Plain with crackers
On top of mashed potatoes,add cheese if desired.
Top french fries or tater tots,add cheese
On a baked potato
Over noodles
Over rice

Over tortilla chips with beans or cheese added or both

Can add about any ingredient to suit your taste.

Make your own spaghetti sauce, be cteative, don't use that canned or bottled shit.

Add to any cooked pasta and you can feed many for cheap, real cheap...

Mexicali Meatless Tostadas


Ingredients

1 (12-oz.) package frozen meatless burger crumbles
3 teaspoons taco seasoning
12 tostada shells
1 (8.5-oz.) pouch ready-to-serve whole-grain Santa Fe rice

1 (16-oz.) can refried beans
1 (8-oz.) package shredded Mexican four-cheese blend
Topping: pico de gallo

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425°. Prepare crumbles according to package directions. Stir taco seasoning into hot crumble mixture. Prepare tostada shells and rice according to package directions.

2. Layer refried beans, crumble mixture, and rice on tostada shells. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 425° for 5 to 6 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with topping.

Oh yes and chili over macaroni is a favorite here too!

Being a Celt, I'm not much of a cook - although I bake a mean potato - but one thing I recommend is the Incredible, Edible Egg. Baked, boiled, fried, scrambled, omelettes, over easy, with bacon or some veggie soy shit, broccoli, peppers, onions, garlic. There is NOTHING you can't do with an egg.

Cranberry Chicken and Wild Rice

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 ½ cups hot water
1 package (6.2 oz) fast cooking long grain and wild rice mix
1 can (16 oz) whole berry cranberry sauce
1 tablespoon or so of each: lemon juice, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce

Put chicken in greased 13x9 pan
in bowl, combine water and rice mix with the seasoning packet then pour around chicken
in separate bowl combine the whole berry cranberry sauce, lemon juice, soy sauce, and worcestershire sauce. Pour on top of chicken.
Cover and bake at 350 for 40-50 min.

Simple, easy, and very tangy...leftovers make a great lunch to take to work the next day. Also freezes then microwaves well.

Crockpot is my godsend....

We actually fed a church group of about 150 this way, and spent less than $60 on the ingredients.

So true.Just a plain ole egg sandwich or on a biscuit is so good.A couple strips of bacon or a slice of ham and its all you need..Loved deviled eggs too.


I know a lot of people eat ramen noodles..I have found if you add just a spoon full of meat pieces it seems so much more filling.
I fry hamburger or diced chicken,usually a lb at a time,drain it well,then put it in a freezer bag.It is so fast and easy just to get a small amount from the bag and add it in since its already cooked.Can use it for a lot of other things too as an add in..

Also I bake extra biscuits to freeze.Once baked you can put them in a freezer bag in a flat layer and take one out at a time when needed.Taste about he same as when they were baked.
Also saves energy by making enough for more than one meal at a time.

Homemade chicken pot pie:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1 or 2 chicken breasts of whatever chick you have. Cook until done. Shred it up.

3 or 4 medium potatoes, diced.
3 stalks of celery diced.
4 medium carrots sliced.
2 medium onions sliced and diced.
24 oz chicken broth (you can make this yourself by boiling chicken necks and backs, etc.) Just make it nice and rich for flavor instead of buying expensive broth in a can. (Add salt to taste for the homemade broth.
1/2 stick butter (optional but makes it richer).
1 can cream of celery, chick or mushroom soup.
1/3 cup of all purpose flour.

Put all of this in a large skillet and cook until veggies are done. Add flour LAST and cook for a few more minutes. If you have too much liquid, let it cook down until it is the thickness you want. Or add some more flour if you want to thicken more. (This is a kind of seat of the pants recipe and very forgiving, you can add more veggies if you desire.)

For the crust, make your own if you are industrious OR;

1 1/4 cup bisquick
3/4 cup milk
1 egg

Pour your filling into a large casserole dish, no bottom crust. Then mix up your bisquick mixture and pour over the top of your filling. Bake until bubbly and golden brown.

This makes a ton of food, will feed 6 people, at least. If you are not piggies, it'll feed 8.

I could post here every day. Freeze everything.

Essential item: freezer bags

The day you shop, cut your fruit and veg up into portionsand freeze. Rub a little olive oil on your veg to prevent freezer burn (nasty taste you get from frozen pizzas)

To prepare for dinners chop:
Bag of Onions
Bulb of Garlic
3-4 tins chopped tomatoes
Bag of potatoes
punnet of button mushrooms
Carrots
Any frozen veg
Thyme
Rosemary
Cajun Spices
Olive Oil
Curry spices

Take a giant spoonful of the veg (according to your liking) and add one tiny spoonful of spice to a freezer bag, label to your recipe and freeze. You can take a bag out each time, fry your meat, add a bag and boil some veg and pasta.
With meat, rice and pasta sheets, you have the ingredients for Curries, Spaghetti Bolognaise, Stew, Lasagne, Cajun Risotto, and Soups.

Add Tuna & breadcrumbs for a tuna bake.
(Put bread in smoother maker)

Add Eggs, Bacon & Breadcrumbs for Breakfast, French toast, Omelettes and meatballs.

Keep yourshopping list simple, freeze everything on the day of purchase and Google recipes on your favourite foods.

That is a fantastic idea. You must be the Greatest Cook in Ireland!!!!

Hawaiian Delight:

Put a slice of spam on a slice of toast, Top with a slice of cheese, A pineapple ring, and a maraschino cherry.

Broil till cheese is melted and spam is warm.

Serve with a salad and fruit for desert.

Simple, Easy, Quick And delicious.

Best recipe finder IMO, from the simple to the adventurous

[link to www.bbc.co.uk]

Premade dips are expensive as heck. Here's a great recipe. I HATE cottage cheese but with this recipe, you won't even know it's in there!

12 oz cottage cheese
1/4 cup Ranch dressing
2 cloves fresh garlic.

Blend until completely smooth, refrigerate until chilled.

Dip fresh veggies or chips into it and it's pure heaven I tell you. If you love garlic.

Low calorie too and you can use whatever cottage cheese you want.

WARNING: ADDICTING!

Oh I too make mean baked potatoes the sky is the limit on toppings let your creativity loose on baked potato toppings!