What’s for lunch? Asian Beef and Noodles. This is a colorful, budget friendly stir-fry dish that takes only five ingredients—all of which you're likely to have on hand. Ready to eat in about 20 minutes! Serve with fruit (fresh, frozen or canned – whatever you have available) for a complete meal. I had to raid Bytes’ cupboard to find the ramen. I don’t usually buy it, but he keeps it on hand because he likes it for a snack. Or a meal when he is pressed for time. It was worth sneaking down the stairs, avoiding the laser beam network, dodging under the security camera, giving the guard cat a generous handful of treats to keep him busy, and opening the cupboard door just right to avoid setting off the piercing alarm. Actually, I just asked over the stair rail, “got any ramen?” and ... [Read More]
Budget Friendly
Deviled Egg Salad Sandwich
What’s for lunch? Today it is Deviled Egg Salad Sandwich. Egg salad is my favorite sandwich . This one has a couple of twist that make it special. First, toasting the bread takes it to a new level. Ordinarily I wouldn’t bother. But since we are trying to treat ourselves nicely with what we have – staying at home and all --, I did. And it was worth it! The mustard and pickle relish add the devil to the egg salad for a tasty change. The recipe makes four generously filled sandwiches. If you don’t need that many sandwiches, the recipe will divide in half easily. OR make the whole batch, make the number of sandwiches you need. One? Two? Pop the rest of the egg salad into the fridge immediately, where it will keep, tightly covered, for use within 3-5 days. The best way to boil ... [Read More]
Baked Spaghetti
What’s for lunch? A big pan of baked spaghetti. Or Pasketti as Bytes’ Big Brother used to say. The whole family will love it! Layers of pasta, meat sauce, sour cream and cheese – comfort food of the highest order! The number of servings will depend on the appetites at your house. It makes 8 large servings, which will serve the three of us with two man-sized servings (and one regular serving for me) for TWO meals. Two littles usually ate the equivalent of one of the 8 servings. Which means enough for the man sized eater, two littles and one regular serving. The point? You may very easily get TWO meals for the effort in making one! And that’s a bonus in my book. If your cooking tends to be based on last minute decisions, you’ll find no judgment here because there are a lot ... [Read More]
Buttery Apple Crisp
Nate the Great's Mommy set the dessert on the table. MMMMMM Apple Crisp. One bite and it was wow! Light and buttery, cinnamony, and just right sweetness. This apple crisp just whispers in your ear and wraps you in warm apple flavor kissed with butter and cinnamon. Where did you find this recipe, I asked. (just for you, of course!) In grandma's community cookbook, she said. Of course. Every cook who knows someone from that little town has a fat orange covered spiral bound cookbook on the shelf or in the kitchen drawer. Apparently even those who weren't even in kindergarten yet when it was published! How could I have missed it? Granted there are 7 apple crisp recipes in the book, including one with marshmallows, one with eggs and one with raisins. Interestingly they all call ... [Read More]
Gumbo Sloppy Joe Sliders
Creamy Gumbo Sloppy Joe Sliders are a great addition to the appetizer table for Game Day. Or for any party! They are delicious, filling and different from the usual. Slider means you still have room to sample other goodies – and circle back for more Sloppies! They are tasty and amazingly easy to make. Saute onions and brown the ground beef in the same skillet. Mix the two soups together in a medium bowl. Just the soups straight from the can – no other liquid needed. Add the soup to the meat and onion mixture in the skillet and bring to simmer. I simmer a few minutes to let the meat absorb the moisture and flavor. Any excess moisture is also reduced. You don’t want the sloppy joes to be --- “soupy”. Sorry – just had to do that!! Choose your favorite slider bun – Hawaiian ... [Read More]
Overnight Oatmeal
Add pizzazz to your breakfast with Overnight Oatmeal! It’s healthy, nutritious and delicious! I had a bowl of hot oatmeal every morning with raisins and walnuts for a very long time. When I heard about oatmeal made overnight in the refrigerator and eaten cold I was pretty skeptical. But we needed something to go with scrambled eggs (protein!) and the idea of a basic dish with lots of variations kept leading back to Overnight Oatmeal. Sauted apples were the first version we tried. Peel, slice and dice an apple and saute it with a tablespoon of butter in a small frying pan. Layer the hot apple with the cold oatmeal --- ummm, heavenly. Great for a leisurely morning. But there are lots of add-in and topping options. Enough to keep your tastebuds excited for a very long time. ... [Read More]
