Cheesy Baked Spaghetti (aka Scooter’s Spaghetti, adapted from Salad in a Jar)

Ingredients

1. 8 ounces uncooked spaghetti hopefully in your stockpile!
2. 1 pound ground beef Ground Round On Sale at Publix, $3.99/lb
3. 1 large can spaghetti sauce (26.5 ounces) Ragu BOGO $2.20, Use $.50/1 Ragu pasta sauce 1/29/12 RP
4. 1 tablespoon butter
5. 1/2 cup chopped green peppers optional, we did not use them
6. 1/3 cup chopped onions Sweet Onions On Sale, 1.29/lb at Publix
7. 8 ounces softened cream cheese
8. 2 tablespoons milk
9. Fresh grated Parmesan cheese we substituted with mozzarella because I didn’t have any Fresh parmesan
10. French Fried Onions (small can) Use $.30/1 French Fried Onions

Directions

1. Cook spaghetti according to directions on the package. Cook to al dente, drain and set aside.
2. Brown ground beef, and drain grease.  Pour spaghetti sauce into ground beef and heat.
3. While spaghetti & ground beef are cooking, combine onions, peppers & butter in microwave save bowl.  Cover and heat on high for four minutes.
4. Add cream cheese and milk to microwaved onions & pepper mixture and stir (you may need to warm the cream cheese up a few seconds in the microwave to make it easy to mix together.)
5. In a 10×6 oval pyrex dish (or similar size), put a thin layer of the spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the dish.
6. Then add all the spaghetti noodles.
7. Next add cream cheese mixture, and then the spaghetti sauce.
8. Sprinkle parmesan cheese (or mozzarella) over the top of the casserole.  (I added about 3/4 cups of mozzarella, but I think fresh parmesan would ahve been fantastic!)
9. Bake at 350 for twenty five minutes. Add can of fried onions, and bake an additional five minutes (be careful not to let them burn!)
10. Garnish with grated parmesan. . . yummmmmmm!

 Cream of Asparagus soup

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 stalks celery, chopped
• pinch of garlic powder
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 pound fresh asparagus, trimmed and  chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

 

Wash and dry your vegetables. Peel the tough skin off the bottom of the asparagus.

Chop into 1 inch segments

Steam or boil till tender. Normally about 5-7 minutes.

In a 3 quart sauce pot, add 2 tablespoons butter, chopped onion, garlic powder and celery. Cook over medium heat till onions start to turn translucent (normally 4-5 minutes).

Add 3 tablespoon of flour into the pot. Stir around and let cook to get rid of the “raw” flour taste . Cook about 2 minutes (medium/ low heat) stirring to prevent clumping or burning. Add chicken broth and milk at the same time, stir and bring back to a boil. The flour mixture will start to thicken the broth.

Add onion/ broth mixture along with your steamed asparagus to a blender. Save a few of the asparagus tops for garnish. ONLY FILL THE BLENDER HALF WAY and do not put the cover on tight. Just cover with a towel and mix. Blend till smooth and creamy (about 1-2 minutes). Salt and pepper to taste…. enjoy!

Roast Beef Potato Rolls

You will need

• Deli style sliced roast beef 6-8 large slices or 12-14 small
• 3-5 cups mashed potatoes
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese (save 1 cup for top)
• 2 cups brown gravy
• 9×13 pan, buttered to prevent sticking.

Lay your roast beef  flat, in the middle of each one add a row of mashed potatoes and top with cheese.

Wrap and overlap the ends of the roast beef to create a tight roll, place in a buttered baking dish.

Sprinkle the top with 1 cup cheese, cover with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes.  If the mashed potatoes are hot when you make them it will only take 15-20 minutes to cook.  But if they are cold you will need to the full 30 minutes cooking time.

Top with brown gravy and enjoy!

Bread Sticks ~ thick and chewy

You will need

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 egg yolk (save the whites to brush the bread sticks with before baking)

In one bowl add 1/2 your flour, add Yeast and Salt  mix well and set aside.  In another bowl ( I used my kitchen aid) add water, oil, sugar and egg yolk, mix a few times then slowly add in the flour, yeast and salt mixture.  Once it is well blended stir in the rest of the flour.  If you use a kitchen aid make sure you have your dough hook on and mix till stiff dough is smooth and elastic…. if not mix by hand, knead on a floured surface 6-8 minutes.

Cover bowl, and place in a warm spot to rise, till it has doubled in size.  Normally takes about an hour.  Punch down dough to get the air out, and turn out on a floured surface.

Have your little helpers roll out 8-10 bread sticks….  OR if you like them a little thinner and crisp make 16 thinner bread sticks.

Place on a greased baking sheet, and cover.  Once again  they need to rise in a warm spot.  I normally let them rise in the oven, that is just warm (NOT HEATED)  Let them rise for an hour, or till doubled in size.

Once the have doubled in size take the cover off, brush tops with egg whites mixed with 1 tablespoon water.  You can top with a bit of garlic salt, or parsley or leave plain.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10-11 minutes

Once they are cooked you can also add a little shredded cheese on top for Cheese Bread Sticks, 30 seconds – 1 minute in the oven should melt the cheese.

Bread Sticks ~ thick and chewy

2 hours prep time, 10 minutes baking time

Makes 8-16 bread sticks
You will need

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 egg yolk (save the whites to brush the bread sticks with before baking)

In one bowl add 1/2 your flour, add Yeast and Salt mix well and set aside. In another bowl ( I used my kitchen aid) add water, oil, sugar and egg yolk, mix a few times then slowly add in the flour, yeast and salt mixture. Once it is well blended stir in the rest of the flour. If you use a kitchen aid make sure you have your dough hook on and mix till stiff dough is smooth and elastic…. if not mix by hand, knead on a floured surface 6-8 minutes.

Cover bowl, and place in a warm spot to rise, till it has doubled in size. Normally takes about an hour. Punch down dough to get the air out, and turn out on a floured surface.

Have your little helpers roll out 8-10 bread sticks…. OR if you like them a little thinner and crisp make 16 thinner bread sticks.

Place on a greased baking sheet, and cover. Once again they need to rise in a warm spot. I normally let them rise in the oven, that is just warm (NOT HEATED) Let them rise for an hour, or till doubled in size.

Once the have doubled in size take the cover off, brush tops with egg whites mixed with 1 tablespoon water. You can top with a bit of garlic salt, or parsley or leave plain.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10-11 minutes

Once they are cooked you can also add a little shredded cheese on top for Cheese Bread Sticks, 30 seconds – 1 minute in the oven should melt the cheese.

Matts Mom makes this and I love it, hope you enjoy it too.

Cucumber Salad

• 1/2 cup Sour Cream
• 2 Tbsp Cider Vinegar
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
• 3/4 tsp Dill Weed
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 3 Medium cucumbers sliced (as thin as you can get them)
• 1/2 slices onions ( as thin as you can get them)

In a bowl combine the sour cream, vinegar, sugar, garlic powder, dill, salt and pepper.  Add cucumbers and onions, toss till well coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Shredded Beef and Cheese Biscuit Rolls Recipe  

Start by making your biscuit dough or used premade dough.

Baking Powder Biscuits ( from Clabber Girl site)

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon Clabber Girl Baking Powder
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup shortening, margarine, or butter
• 2/3 cup milk
• Instructions:

In a medium mixing bowl, stir together flour, Clabber Girl Baking Powder, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening till mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in center; add milk all at once. Using a fork, stir just till moistened.

On a lightly floured surface, knead dough for 10 to 12 strokes or till the dough is nearly smooth.

For this recipe you will want to roll the dough out as thin as you can get it.  Then top it with 2 cups of shredded beef and 2 cups of shredded cheese ( I used mexi-style).  Leave one end topping free so when you roll it closed you can get a good seal on the end.

 Start rolling into a roll ( kind of like Cinnamon rolls)

 Use a sharp knife to cut into 1 inch segments.

 Place into a greased baking dish.  Bake at $450 degrees 12-16 minutes till edges have started to brown and middle is cooked well.  Top with brown gravy and enjoy!

One way to save money is to cut down on food waste.  My family does not always like left overs so sometimes I will make “piggy back meals” … these are meals that are able to use leftovers, but give them new life in a different recipe or meal plan.

Meal #1 Oven baked ham, with potato casserole and rainbow carrots.

Piggy Back Meal Ideas~ Cheesy Ham and Potato Chowder 

Or Pork and Veggie Stir Fry with Pork & Seeds with hot mustard.

Click here for Piggy back meal ideas with Roast Beef.

One way to save money is to cut down on food waste.  My family does not always like left overs so sometimes I will make “piggy back meals” … these are meals that are able to use leftovers, but give them new life in a different recipe or meal plan.

For example this week I make a small  beef roast into French Dip sandwiches,  (for recipe click here)  But we ran out of the dipping sauce.  Which left me about 3 cups of shredded beef.

I then took the 3 cups of shredded beef, chopped it up real good added a can of refried beans, and a dash of hot sauce.

Stirred it all up till it looked like a nasty brown ball of muck …lol.

Then I rolled them into small  burritos.  You know kind of like the ones you buy at Taco Time… But they call them a Crisp Meat Burrito and charge you $2.25

I fried mine in a skillet with a bit of olive oil… but you could bake them in an oven as well.

Finished product is a totally different taste, and look (which keeps the menu plan new and fresh, and the budget happy)

What are your favorite meals to Piggy Back?