Sandra's Meal and Budget Tips

PRODUCT REVIEW

We all want to save money, but at what expense? Taste? I'm not a brand loyal kind of person on most products. But sometimes the cheaper isn't necessarily a win. This is the case of Farmer John "premium" classic pork sausage. It's just OK. Not great, not awful. Just kinda meh 😕. Maybe it will be better as a sausage and gravy mixture over biscuits. I had it with egg, cheese, and bread as a breakfast sandwich. I'll stick with Owen's or HEB brand in the future. I bought 4 of these at $1.25 each at Dollar Tree. So, I have 3 and a half left to use. If I try the gravy idea, I'll let you all know how it turns out. 💡 Bottom line, not worth the savings.

Garlic Parmesean Chicken Pasta FAIL! 🤪

Originally I was going to use salmon in this creation, but after opening a can and seeing bones and skin I became very nauseous. I tried picking them out but just couldn't stomach it. If it doesn't look appetizing, it won't be. My motto. This isn't one of my best meals, but it's somewhat tolerable. I don't care for the Garlic Parmesean dipping sauce I used. It has way too much vinegar in it, so I might just toss it. I will not be making this one again. Let's call it a FAIL.

I'm getting close to the end of my food assistance program. So, I decided to try a few things from the Dollar Tree freezer section. This Fast Bites spicy chicken sandwich was surprisingly pretty good. Not of Chick-fil-A quality, but it's great for those on a tight food budget. I paired it with some chick fil a sauce left over from a company luncheon. It gets my approval! 410 calories, 16 grams of protein. Currently $1.25.

It's hard to buy anything for a dollar these days, so if you're near one of the many Dollar Generals... be sure to grab some tuna. 4 for 4 is how it is advertised. Even though I have tuna, I can't pass up this deal. I'm not sure how long this sale will last. It is one of the best canned proteins you can buy. Preppers highly encourage and recommend stocking up on these.

It's been a while since I posted any cooking. Today I made salmon patties, fried rice, and black bean salsa. All main ingredients were FREE to me. Spices and fillers were purchased. Yummy y'all. I'm thankful for the food I receive from a local church supported food bank, as well as some amazing friends.

🔥 🥵 damn..Burrito bowl?

Homemade Spanish rice and black bean salsa. A little hot and a little cool. Yes, with pickled jalapeños. So 😋 I like it spicy 😋

If you're on a tight budget don't be too proud to accept hand-me-downs. And even if you're not!Two big bags of FREE clothes. Time to start sorting what to keep and what to pass on.

Mock Taco Bell chicken quesadillas. I got this idea from a YouTube video. Some ingredients were free others purchased.

One large tortilla
1/2 package ready to eat chicken breast.
Seasoning of choice.
Hand full of shredded cheddar cheese
2 tbsp Taco Bell creamy Chipotle sauce.
Margarine

Topped off with Pace medium Pecante Sauce (not shown).

Homemade flour tortillas. I definitely need to work on my rolling skills. Made four 8 inch tortillas. I already ate one and they are just as good if not better than store bought.

1 cup all purpose flour
1.5 Tbsp oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup HOT water

Mix ingredients and roll into a ball. Kneading not needed. Divide ball in half. Then half again. Roll each ball. Let rest 30 minutes. Using a rolling pin, roll out each ball into tortillas. Cook on hot skillet. Watch carefully to see when done, flip etc.

Everything tastes better when it's fried. Fried pork loin chops, and fried garlic butter mashed potato pancakes with cheese... oh so down home delicious🫡🤫🤭

My sauerkraut was a FAIL. When I checked on it this morning it was moldy. Not to sure what i did wrong. Out in the garbage it went. But at least I tried. 🤭

Bean and cheese quesadillas.
Don't forget to use your leftover condiments to save $$$. Sorry for the blurry picture. The meal was delicious 😋 I think sour cream would have complimented these. But I didn't have any.

100% Free to me! Blessed.

Trying out this Celebrity Luncheon Loaf. Not a huge fan, but it is edible. Mixed with eggs and cheese for a lunchtime breakfast taco. I only ate one. I'm saving the second one for later. It is decently filling. I give it one thumbs 👍. And don't forget the ketchup (or salsa) to give it a boost of flavor.

Free to me, so definitely budget friendly.

This recipe was recommended by my boss. 1/2 lb of ground beef with ~ 2 cups of cabbage, 1/2 chopped small onion, and seasoned to taste. A little of this and a little of that. It's delicious.

I was gifted 2 5+ lb cabbages. I'm going to try to make a small batch of sauerkraut with a little more than half of one cabbage. First "massage" is done. Wish me luck. ☘️ From my research it takes about 2 weeks to ferment. 🫢 Hopefully it will turn out.

Mini pizzas!

Rolls sliced in half, mozzarella cheese, Sonic marinara, diced ham, and pineapple!
Yummy goodness!

More chicken, broccoli, and rice. Healthy eating!

First time in I don't know how many years I've made cookies from scratch. Yummy peanut butter🥜 cookies 🍪. First dozen is cooling.

Dollar Tree has announced another price hike. Be sure to stock up on your favorite non-perishable products before that happen. Prices will range from $1.50 to $7.00. I have a few favorites. Compare your per ounce prices too. It's not always a better deal.

We don't always get what we want from food banks, but we can shop sales to save money. Chicken breast was $.97 per lb. a couple of weeks ago at HEB. Broccoli- ~ 1.26 lb. I get a lot of rice for free, so thats the only part of this meal that was from the food bank. Very healthy meal for tonight's dinner. And yes I do often eat off of paper plates. It saves on washing dishes 😆 I am truly blessed 🙌 😇.

Shredded bbq chicken breast. Yummy 😋

Everything in this meal except the parmesean cheese was FREE TO ME! I'm very thankful for my local food pantry and great giving friends.

1/2 lb ground beef
1 can of del Monte traditional spaghetti sauce
1/2 can of chopped mushrooms
3/4 box of Barilla spaghetti

I cooked a spaghetti squash. Now what? I've never eaten or served spaghetti squash so I'm not sure what to do with it 🤔 it's a little bland. Seasoning suggestions?

Smoked sausage stir fry on Ramen noodles. Just throw it together 😆 🤣 😂

Crock-pot Chicken and Stuffing

2 large Chicken breast cut in half
1 box stuffing (stove top or other brand)
1 8 oz block of cream cheese
8 oz Chicken stock or bouillon
1 can cream of chicken soup

Place chicken in bottom on Crock pot.
Mix all other ingredients together and spread on top of chicken. Cook on med-low setting for 7-8 hours.

My chicken browned on the bottom, which I like. But if cooked any longer it could have burned. It's nice and creamy. A great comfort food.