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-- Baby Boomers -- Family - -- Green -- Home and Auto -- -- In Critical Condition -- Lifestyle -- -- Just Starting Out -- Money -- |
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Company Pleaser Does anyone have a quick, inexpensive meal that one could use for company? I am a working mother, so a good slow-cooker recipe or a make-ahead casserole would be great. I want something that will really be a "company pleaser," not just okay. Bring Rave Reviews Chicken (or Turkey) Almond Casserole 1 c. finely chopped celery Mix mayonnaise and mushroom soup together. Add the rest of the ingredients except corn flakes, almonds and melted butter. Combine 1/2 cup crushed corn flakes, 1/2 cup sliced almonds and 1/4 cup melted butter. Place on top of casserole. Cook at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes until heated through. This can be assembled ahead of time and put in the oven before company comes. It is delicious! Serve with warm rolls and a salad and a warm apple or fruit crisp with vanilla ice cream (candlelight is nice too!) for dessert and you have a lovely meal that your guests will rave about. Italian, Anyone? This recipe (my own) is a huge crowd-pleaser. I take it to every office potluck. "Dress it up" with some garlic bread and a salad and you have a filling, delicious meal. I usually make it the night before and refrigerate. Then you can turn the slow-cooker on Low before you leave for work in the morning and let it cook all day. The house smells great, too! slow-cooker Lasagna 8-10 uncooked lasagna noodles Brown ground beef in skillet. Drain. Stir in Italian seasoning. Combine sauce, mushrooms, spinach, ricotta, sour cream, and cream cheese. Break noodles into thirds. Place half in bottom of greased slow-cooker. Spread half of ground beef mixture over noodles in slow-cooker. On top of beef, layer 1/2 of sauce, 1/2 of water, and 1/2 of mozzarella cheese. Repeat all layers. Cover. Cook for at least 5 hours on low or jump-start and cook on high for 1 hour and low for 3. Enjoy! Try This Unique, Easy Pork Recipe This recipe is not cheap due to the cost of the meat, but it is reasonable, very easy, unique and was a crowd-pleaser when I served it for 8 people recently. You'll need to double the recipe to serve 8 people. Serve with mashed potatoes. Cranberry Pork Roast 1 (2.5 pound) boneless rolled pork loin roast Place pork roast in a slow cooker. In a medium bowl, mash cranberry sauce. Stir in sugar, cranberry juice, mustard and cloves. Pour over roast. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until meat is tender. Remove roast and keep warm. Skim fat from juices; measure 2 cups, adding water if necessary, and pour into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Combine cornstarch and cold water to make a paste. Stir into gravy. Cook and stir until thickened. Season with salt. Serve with sliced pork. Pick Up These Cookbooks There's two wonderful cookbooks called Fix It and Forget It and Fix It and Forget It for Entertaining. Every recipe is designed to be made in a slow-cooker. They are both available in paperback for about $12. If you don't want to spend the money, they are available used on amazon.com for $2 to $4 and also at the library. Try This Beautiful Side Dish Here is an inexpensive side dish with a beautiful presentation, and it doesn't cost much, especially when these ingredients are in season. My husband and I sometimes have it as a main dish when we want something light for dinner. Salad Nicoise a large platter First, make a bed of lettuce on the large platter. On top of it, add the potatoes, carrots, cucumbers and tomatoes in four quarters, like spokes of a wheel. Sprinkle the green onions and olives on top. If using tuna, you can either sprinkle it on top or put it at the center in a mound, like the hub of the wheel. For dressing: 1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil Shake together and pour over salad right before serving. Easy and Delicious Roast I have church people over a lot and I like to have an easy pot roast (I get chuck roast). I buy the roast, then fill the pan with water, the roast, packaged pre-peeled baby carrots, half a large onion, and if I have a big enough pan, I toss in a ton of red baby potatoes with spots removed and most of peeling still intact and cut in half. I bake it at 400 degrees for an hour. When done, I place the meat on a plate and slice it. Then I place the potatoes, carrots, and onions on the other side of the platter. Add a salad, bread of some type, and fruit/dessert. Or you can also do mashed potatoes and gravy in lieu of the red potatoes. Low-Carb Option To the person who wanted a quick, inexpensive meal for company, this one is a hit at work. We have it about once a week and I shop for the ingredients from my local Save-a-Lot, so it feeds 6 to 7 for about $10. Chicken Stroganoff 1 bag of chicken tenders or boneless breasts Put everything except sour cream in the crock and cook all night on low if using an older crock. In my newer crock, this cooks in about 6 hours on low so I have to set my alarm for 3AM so I can turn the crock off and put it in the fridge. When done, the chicken will be very tender. Just stir everything up and break up the chicken into bite size pieces. Stir in sour cream. If you cook it overnight, you can store in the fridge until you get home from work and then warm it in the microwave. Serve over noodles or rice. You can also serve over spaghetti squash or French cut green beans if you are on a low carb diet. There's only about 6 carbs in a cup of the sauce. Serves 7-8. Yummy! You can make Beef Stroganoff by substituting about 3 pounds stew meat and 4 cans cream of mushroom soup, but I think the chicken is better. If you are a very resourceful cook and want to limit your sodium even further, you can make your own cream base soup and substitute for the canned stuff. Check Out Rachel Ray's Latest Cookbook I just checked out Rachael Ray's latest cookbook from the library. It is called Rachael Ray 20 Minute Meals, Get Togethers. She does the 30-minute meal show on TV and I was curious what she would include in her cookbooks. She is down-to-earth and seems to have a great knack for making a terrific meal with common ingredients. It may not be what you were looking for, but it might be an interesting peruse anyway! Spice It Up a Bit I have a recipe that I have been using for 18 years. This is a Cajun Chicken or Shrimp dish that a family friend always brought for Thanksgiving, until he moved back to LA, and we finally managed to get the recipe from him! I always get an enthusiastic response when I serve it. I use Chicken when I cannot afford Shrimp. It can be baked in the oven or prepared in the slow-cooker. Cajun Chicken with Rice and Cheese 1 lb. Chicken or Shrimp (bite-size pieces) Mix all ingredients together (I use my hands, wearing rubber gloves) except the cheese. I also add more spices (cayenne pepper and more tobasco) if it is for our family. I use Basmatti Brown Rice. I have found that this is the only brown rice that doesn't have a strong taste, and it is healthier in such a rich recipe. You can eliminate the crab if it is too expensive. I usually do. You can either saute the fresh veggies or add them raw to save time. We took this to our last potluck and even the kids were eating it along with their pizza! Can't Beat Beef Burgundy! I believe the following recipe to be an excellent, easy and inexpensive solution for company. Beef Burgundy 2 pounds stew meat Place stew meat, soup, wine and mushrooms (canned or fresh) in a slow-cooker. Cook on low 7 to 8 hours. Serve over mashed potatoes, noodles or rice. Served with a tossed green salad and French bread, it is a complete meal. Vanilla ice cream for dessert is grand! Do you have a time or money saving idea that wasn't included in this article? Please send it to tips @stretcher.com. We get the best ideas from our readers!
Other Dollar Stretcher Food Articles: An $1800 Grocery Bill Better Slow Cooker Meals Frozen Inspiration The Book Buzz
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