Macaroni and Cheese

This stuff is seriously delicious. I know I probably say that about everything, but seriously. It's really really good. Not too bad on the budget...but definitely not great on the diet side. But a little bit never hurt right? Thirds may not be a good idea though. But I'll leave that up to you. Make this. Make this immediately. I made this quadrupled for Elise's "small" birthday party last weekend and it was a hit.

Also, I drizzled in some truffle oil...and I don't think words can even express how amazing the truffle oil is in the mac-n-cheese....just try it. Find some truffle oil and drizzle it in, it's soooo good.

Macaroni and Cheese

1 lb. macaroni or shells cooked and drained

2 cups milk

8-12 oz velveeta, cubed

1 cup cheddar cheese (I used sharp)

1/2 cup mozzarella

1/2 cup monterey jack or colby jack

salt & pepper

truffle oil (I guess that parts optional....but why?)

1/2 cup bread crumbs

2 T. parmesan cheese, finely grated

1 T. butter

Preheat oven to 350. Put the cooked noodles in a 9x13'' pan. Heat the milk on medium heat and melt in the velveeta. Stir constantly and don't try to do it too fast or the milk will scald and ruin the perfectness. Pour the velveeta/milk mixture over the noodles and stir in the other shredded cheeses. Season with salt and pepper and stir in the drizzle of truffle oil. Melt the butter and stir the butter, bread crumbs and parmesan cheese together and sprinkle over the macaroni. Bake for 20 minutes.

Money Saving Monday: Cash

Again with the saving money. It's always at the top of my mind, I try to make a game out of it. Today I'm going to emphasize using cash. Before we had kids and I was working we had "budget" but it was more of an option than a goal. I would use my debit card for everything trying to keep a tally in my head on how much I had spent and I would usually feel like I hadn't spent that much until Rob added it all up and then I was appalled at how fast the frequent grocery trips and coffee stops had added up.

During the budget crisis of '06 I quit working and we had our first child so we had to face our spending demons. (Ok, I had to face my spending demons. Rob doesn't spend.) Anyway, we set a weekly budget of $100.00. That included groceries, formula & diapers, gifts, and eating out. Yah, kind-of pathetic. Actually I think it's pretty much the poor house. I cried. I cried a lot. No more leisurely and pointless Target visits. No more 4-times-a-week latte habit. At the beginning of each week I would take out $100 cash. I had to start weighing every single purchase. Do I buy the name-brand trash bags, or the Kroger brand? Do we really need Diet Coke? Should we really be buying every single person in our humongous family a birthday present?

I had to make some hard decisions. And get really creative. And cook at home more. And find free entertainment. And... It has so helped me to be on a cash budget because I very rarely go over the budget. It's really easy to "plan" on how much we'll spend and save money on those accidental overdraft fees. And mostly to avoid unnecessary expenses like things you toss in your cart on a whim and then never eat or bring a drink from home instead of stopping at Sonic for a soda. Every dollar counts. If I spend only $50 at the grocery store on Monday, that means I have money left to take Robbie to McDonalds, get a latte, and a small Target trip during the week. Manipulating your cash can be fun! For me it helps to physically see the amount of cash left in my wallet.

Your budget will obviously be different than mine. You may have more budget categories and put cash into envelopes. The whole point is just to use cash for things that you go to the store to buy (not bills) to avoid overspending and keep track of what you spend.

Greek Salsa

This is sooo delicious that it all disappeared before I could get a picture. I made this yesterday for Elise's birthday party and all the adults loved it. We had something like this at a party once and Rob insisted that I figure out how to make it, so this is what I came up with. It's really good with tortilla chips or pita chips! And somewhat healthy.

Greek Salsa

6-7 Roma Tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/4 red onion diced finely
2 cucumbers, peeled and diced
1 c. crumbled feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 T vinegar (I used red wine but anything will work)
1 T olive oil

Mix everything together and let sit in the refrigerator at least an hour before serving. But, don't make it too far ahead either, it gets runny and ugly!

Baked Ziti

We love pasta. Rob has never been an ounce overweight in his life (try not to hold it against him.) and he would prefer to have pasta twice a week and an entire loaf of cheesy garlic bread with every single meal. (Really. I'm not over dramatizing that.) Naturally I have struggled with my chubby middle since third grade so we usually have pasta once every two weeks and I keep bread in the freezer so I can pop in half a loaf for him a few times a week while I "pass" on the bread.

Anyway, this pasta I made for our neighbors. Poor Patty was having a rough week with three of her four kids home sick from school so I wanted to help her out and I sent this over to them. (Rob doesn't know that I made this cheesy creation and then passed it off!)

I rarely follow a recipe so I tried to write everything down as I did it, but if you need more seasoning, etc. ...adjust!

Baked Ziti

1 lb ziti or penne

1 lb Italian sausage (turkey or chicken sausage works great and your skinny husband won't be able to tell)

1/2 onion chopped

1/2 green pepper, chopped

5 garlic cloves, diced or pressed

2 tb tomato paste

1 can diced tomatoes with the juice (14-16 oz)

1 can tomato sauce (14-16 oz)

1 1/2 Tb Italian seasoning

2 tsp basil

2 tsp granulated garlic

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp crushed red peppers

2 cups mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

While you're preparing the sauce, boil the pasta as directed. Drain, set aside. In a large skillet brown the sausage with the onions and peppers. Drain fat add in garlic and cook a minute. Add tomato paste and cook for two minutes until it starts to brown. Add in all other ingredients EXCEPT cheeses. Simmer for 20 minutes, checking for seasoning. In a 9x13'' pan mix the pasta with the sauce, cover with cheeses and bake for 25 minutes at 350.

Money Saving Monday: Toys

Well, I thought since I am "cracked-up" and all, that I should maybe start sharing with you some of my money saving tips. I have become quite the pro at making the budget stretch. Since Christmas is coming up and I LOVE to shop for gifts I decided today I would share with you some tips for money-saving Christmas shopping. Although my husband likes to remind me that, "we can't afford to save too much money!" Because that's usually how I justify purchases...."yah, but I saved so much!"

Unfortunately in my family shopping is viewed as almost a pasttime or hobby. Nothing gets my blood going like a good sale. I am one of those people that get up before the crack of dawn on Black Friday to rush out to the crowds and save $34.00 on toys and clothes. It's fun for me. A rush. Last year Elise was 5 days old and I still went and brought her along.

So, for today's Money Saving budget tip: toys. I keep a closet full of toys for gifts for my neices and nephews and my friends' kids. That way I always have something on hand that I bought for a great deal and I don't have to go out and spend money that I'd rather buy a latte with on a more expensive gift.

There are a couple good places to look for clearance toys. At Target they almost always put the clearance toys on an endcap at the very end of the toy department on the edge of the sporting goods. You can find $30 toys for $5 or even less. Last year I found a Fisher Price Little People market for $4.96! Stuffed it in the closet and had it ready for Christmas. I make it a habit to walk down the endcaps looking for great bargains every time I'm there. It really does pay off. Also, on an endcap by the cards and party supplies I will find great art supplies on clearance for gifts too. One tip though, don't buy something totally stupid that you'll be embarrassed to give someone just because it's a good deal. Speaking from experience here.

Another great place to find good deals on toys is Kohl's. They seem to kind of hide the great toy deals in the very back of the toy department on a low shelf. But, if you can find them they're golden! Saturday I found a High School Musical game on clearance for $5.99 and it was an extra 25 percent off!! WOW, I'm pretty sure my niece will love it and it was well within my budget.

Ross has great toys that are quite a bit cheaper than they would be at a department store or even Target regular price. You have to be willing to dig, but you can find cool stuff.

Also, Dollar Tree will occasionally have great stuff that is name-brand and not just junk. And, for a dollar so you can't beat it. Unfortunately every time I walk into that store I end up with a cart full of stuff I never knew I always needed. Then as soon as I get home I realize I didn't really need it. SO--keep on task! Don't buy junk!

This year we are experimenting with a much smaller Christmas budget than usual so I'll be eyeing endcaps and clearance bins to make it through the season with nice gifts that fit into my budget. I refuse to give junk as gifts, and you really don't have to!

Grilled Shrimp

We love shrimp. If you don't think you like shrimp, you may change your mind when you make this! SO simple, easy and very few ingredients. Always use raw shrimp for this!

We first had shrimp grilled like this up at Lake Powell with some business friends. Our friend John cooked for us one night and made this and it was love! So thank you John, for introducing us to this amazing recipe. I usually try to spend $2 or less per pound for meat but I do make an exception for the occasional shrimp or fish.

This time we had this wonderful Alaskan shrimp that Rob's mom brought for us. It's so amazing it tastes like mini lobsters. So Rob grilled us up some shrimp! Yummy.

If you don't live in Southern Arizona you may be past the grilling-out season, but we pretty much live in hell so we grill. A lot. So either saute this on the stove or save it for summer.

John Cox's Grilled Shrimp

1 lb raw shrimp, de-veined and peeled

3 garlic cloves minced, divided

juice of 1 lemon, divided

1 Tb olive oil, divided

salt & pepper

Just before grilling toss half of the chopped garlic, olive oil and lemon juice with the shrimp. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Grill until just pink...being careful not to overcook. Once cooked add the other half of all the ingredients and a bit more salt & pepper. Enjoy!

We usually have this with veggies and pasta with homemade pesto sauce.

Pioneer Woman and YC's Guy

The Pioneer Woman's cookbook came out and she was speaking and doing a booksigning at a store in Tempe last night. So, I talked my sister into going out there with me with bribes of going to a yummy stir fry restaurant.

The pictures are of this hilarious guy in line with us making his stir-fry bowl....he was DEFinitely getting his $10 worth out of the buffet! I'm pretty sure he packed in at least a full pound of Alaskan cod before he even started adding veggies. I asked him if I could take his pic, he said sure. Just so you know I did NOT eat that much! But if you're going to be out in the east valley you should definitely try out YC's--you get to make your own bowl of stir fry, add a sauce, and then watch the guys fry it up for you. It's really healthy and a great price.

Anyway, off to the book signing we went. I LOVE Pioneer Woman. She is my favorite food blogger, or really my favorite blogger in general. She's funny, entertaining and her food is SO good. I don't go to concerts or follow stars....so for me to drive an hour to see Pioneer Woman I felt a little stalker-ish. It was fun to see her in person....then came the line. The. Line. They gave out letters to let you know which group you could line up in. I got "M". When I finally gave up and left at 9:15 pm....they were on "B". So, hats off to you Pioneer Woman, you have quite the following. I'm just not as loyal as some. My friend stayed the whole time and she didn't get home until 1:30!!! That's devotion! My devotion is conditional and seems to end at 10 pm!

Makeovers Rock

THANK YOU, THANK YOU to Lisa at the Blog Spa. She did such an awesome job on my blog makeover. I'm so excited, I look like a legitimate blogger now!

Val's Chicken Pot Pie

I'm all about using a rotisserie chicken which saves time and money. BUT buying a whole chicken, cooking it and making several recipes with the chicken saves a lot more money. And I seem to have a little more time than money so that's what I did!

The other day I got a huge chicken at Fry's for $.50/lb. I cooked it up making a batch of homemade chicken stock, a pot of chicken soup that was enough to send dinner over to the neighbor, chicken tacos, and a chicken pot pie. I definitely got my $3 out of that chicken!

For the chicken pot pie I used boxed stuffing but you could very easily make your own stuffing. However, I find that the boxed stuffing is super cheap and saves time. You could definitely use canned chicken or cook a chicken breast or two to get the chicken for this recipe. (Homemade stuffing recipe coming towards the end of the month.)

This recipe makes an 8'' square pan, but if you want a bigger batch just double.

Val's Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Filling:

1 stalk celery, chopped

1/4 onion, chopped

3 large carrots, diced

2-3 garlic cloves, chopped or pressed

3/4 cup frozen peas

2 1/2 cups cooked chicken, cubed or shredded

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 c. sour cream

salt, pepper to taste

Stuffing Topping:

3/4 onion, chopped (the rest of the onion that you used for the chicken filling)

2 celery stalks, diced

1 apple, peeled and diced

4 Tb. butter or spread

2 boxes chicken or turkey stuffing

water called for in stuffing directions

1/2 cup apple juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. In a large skillet saute carrots, celery, onions in cooking spray until they start to soften. Add in garlic & peas and cook another 2 minutes. Dump in chicken, soup and sour cream and season with salt and pepper. Put all the chicken mixture into an 8x8 inch casserole dish. Wipe out the skillet and melt the butter in the same skillet. Saute the apples, onions, and celery until soft. Add in the stuffing and the water & apple juice. Season with salt & pepper. Top the chicken filling with the stuffing and bake for 30 minutes.

Oreo Truffles

Oreo Truffles, you had me at hello. I know food doesn't equal love....but this may be as close as it gets.

A friend of mine made these and brought them to a party the other night and I had never tasted anything so amazing. Then I found out they were very simple to make. Once Rob heard about these candies he couldn't take waiting for Thanksgiving or Christmas cookie-making. So being the ever faithful and doting wife that I am I went to the store and got the ingredients. Just for him of course.

Oreo Truffles

1 package Oreo cookies

1 block cream cheese, softened

1 pkg almond bark (found only at Wal-Mart around here)

Crumble up the Oreos with a food chopper or your hands very finely and put them into a large mixing bowl. Drop in the cream cheese and mix with your hands until it is a sticky dough ball. Roll the Oreo mixture into small balls. Melt the almond bark in the microwave as directed. Do not over heat the chocolate or it will lump up. Roll the truffles in chocolate and let cool on wax paper or parchment paper. Let cool and harden.

Either white chocolate or dark chocolate is super yummy with these truffles.

*Note: if you can't find the almond bark you can use 2 packages of chocolate chips and melt them in the microwave. DONT over cook the chocolate or it will lump up. Also, add a little bit of vegetable oil to thin out the chocolate a bit. Then refrigerate to help the chocolate harden.