Ingles 4 Under $40

I love how 4 Under $40 just comes together every week. The more I practice making reasonable, mostly healthy inexpensive food choices for my family from only the sale papers, the easier the job becomes! And you are going to be SHOCKED when you see how "little" you can eat well on!

Monday – Nachos $11.48

Brown and season ground beef according to seasoning packet directions. Assemble nachos however your little heart desires. We like ours with salsa and lettuce and sour cream.

NOTE: If you want the LL Stadium Style or Salsa con Queso cheese then it comes in a nice, neat jar. A healthier option is to buy the big bag of LL Shredded Cheddar cheese on sale and use it here and later in the week (and you’ll still have plenty left over!). You can also trade out regular LL Sour Cream for LL Plain Yogurt. You get the same effect, but a bit less fat and better stuff for your tummy.

Tuesday – Kielbasa Roast $5.21

I listed this recipe several weeks ago and had never before tried it. Turns out it was super-yummy and a great alternative to the more expensive beef roast.

Cube potatoes (6 or 7) & Kielbasa sausage. Chop carrots (recipe calls for 4, but these are a fav, so I usually use the whole pound) and quarter 2 medium onions. Place into a greased 9x13in baking dish. Season with salt & pepper as desired. Cover tightly with foil and bake 1 hour at 400 degrees.

Wednesday – Church 

Thursday – Chicken Pot Pie $5.24

There are a million different ways to do chicken pot pie. I prefer my MaMac’s, but the Ingles’ paper had this recipe listed. I like to top mine with “whop” biscuits (from a can), but you can spring for the Bisquick if you’ll use it for other things. ( I think it’s kind of a budget buster for this one meal.) I listed 3 different chicken options depending on your time and how much effort you want to put forth pre-cooking the chicken. And also swapping the frozen veggies for a can of Vegall is an option if you already have that on your shelf.

Mix 1c chicken, frozen veggies and 1 can (regular) cream of chicken soup. Place into well-greased 2-qt baking dish. Mix 1c of Bisquick with 1/2c milk and 1 egg. Top chicken mixture with Bisquick mixture or flattened canned biscuits. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 min until golden brown. Vary baking time as needed for canned biscuits.

Friday – Quiche $7.88

I know, quiche sounds terrible. But, it’s really not! AND it’s a great way to incorporate lots of fun veggies into a healthy dinner. I will definitely be adding red peppers since they’re on sale. You can add or subtract whatever else you think your crew might eat. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drain frozen spinach well and press dry between paper towels. Brown LL Sausage and diced onion. Drain and set aside. If you decide to use fresh spinach cook it well at this point. Lay crust over pie or quiche dish and poke hole in the bottom of crust with a fork. Prebake for 10 minutes. In separate bowl mix 4 eggs, cheeses (3/4c shredded cheddar and 3oz cream cheese), sausage and onions. Pour into finished crust and bake 30 minutes. Now, the recipe I have says remove and stir gently with a fork after 30 min to ensure even baking - just don't stir the crust. (News to me.) But, if you do that, bake it 10+/- more minutes for a total of about 40 minutes – until golden brown.

How does 4 UNDER $30 suit you?!?!?

~Megan

Nachos		11.48
Ground Beef	2.98lb	2.98
LL Taco Seasoning	3/$2	0.67
LL Tortilla Chips	3/$5	1.67
LL Salsa con Queso		2.38*
LL Cheddar Cheese	2#/$6.48	.5#/1.62
LL Salsa (16oz)		1.98*
Lettuce		1.58
LL Sour Cream (8oz)		0.98
LL Yogurt (Plain 32oz)		1.98*
Kielbasa Roast		5.21
Smithfield Kielbasa	2/$5	2.50
Idaho Potatoes	5#/$1.98	0.80
Carrots	.98lb	0.98
Yellow Onions	.98lb	0.93
Chicken Pot Pie		5.24
Tyson Trimmed & Ready Breasts	2.98#	2.98*
Harvest Farms Bone-in Breasts	1.98#	1.98
Hormel Canned Chicken	2/$5	5*
LL Frozen Mixed Veggies (16oz)	32oz/$3	1.50
Vegall Canned Veggies (29oz)		2.08*
LL Cream Of Chicken Soup (reg)		1.08
Bisquick	3.28/box	*
LL Canned Biscuits	2.08/4-pack	0.52
milk	1/2 cup
egg	1	.21(6ct)* or .16(doz)
Quiche		7.88
LL Frozen Pie Crust	1.98 (2ct)	0.99
Onion	.98#	0.47
LL Sausage	2/$5	2.50
LL Frozen Chopped Spinach		0.98
LL 3oz Cream Cheese	8oz/1.84	0.69
LL Shredded Cheddar Cheese	2#/$6.48	1.62
eggs	4	.83(6ct)* or .63(doz)
*indicates NOT added into meal total
	Grand Total:	29.81

4 Under $40 - Eastern European Style

I received an email last week from someone who was very interested in my 4 Under $40 and how it was working out. I thought I'd begin again and really work on getting creative with the menu. Once my house guest is gone I'll review how 4 Under $40 works. I'm also still in the process of working out a good format so bear with me as I proceed. But, since I have an Eastern European in my home for another week I though cabbage and sausage might be a good place to begin . . . .

Monday - Crockpot Roast ($9.68 less Potatoes)

Round Roast (3+#) $6.12

Carrots (2#) $1.88

Potatoes (ok, forgot to purchase, but already had plenty at home) <$3

Seasoning Packet $1.68 (Next time grab a can of Campbell's Beefy Mushroom Soup)

Throw it all into the Crockpot and cook on Low for 8 hours. Dinner is DONE!

Tuesday - Stuffed Cabbage ($12.21) 

Head Cabbage - ($1.87/lb) $1.08  - - organic cabbage is only $1.98/lb

2 qt Water

1 Tablespoon butter

1 onion ($1.98/3 lb) chopped

1clove garlic ($1.26/3 bulbs) chopped

2 cups cooked rice ($.93/lb - Laura Lynn Brown Rice)

1lb ground beef ($1.21lb) $3.60

salt & pepper

1 Tablespoon dried parsely

4 cups Tomato Puree ($.84 can Laura Lynn) $3.36+/-

*Cook Rice according to package directions.

*Core cabbage. Boil in water until leaves begin to peel back (2-3min). Reserve 1 cup of cabbage water for later use. Separate leaves and shave/trim thick stems (do not cut off, just trim down so they aren't as woody).

*Saute' onion and garlic in butter.

*In large bowl combine onion mixture, cooked rice, raw ground beef, salt & pepper, and parsley.

*Place 1 cup tomato puree in bottom of Dutch oven. Put 1/3cup rice filling into each cabbage leaf, fold stem end first and place into dutch oven. 

*Mix remaining tomato puree with reserved cabbage water and pour over stuffed cabbages. Bring to a boil, immediately simmer. Cover and cook 1 hour until very tender. Use remaining puree mixture to cover stuffed cabbages as needed.

This recipe was taken from HERE. It's by far the most involved of the week, but it sounds delicious and should be worth the effort.

Note: The full cost is $12.21, but that is your full price for onions, garlic and rice and you won't use it all with this meal so your "per serving" cost is much lower.

Thursday - Kielbasa Dinner ($2.48)

5 medium potatoes, cubed 

4 whole carrots, peeled and cut into sticks

1 large onion, quartered or smaller

1 lb Kielbasa, cut into 1in pieces - Johnsonville Polish Kielbasa $2.48

*Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 9x13 in baking dish and fill with all ingredients. Salt & pepper as desires. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour.

This recipe was taken from HERE. And there is also a "creamy" version with milk,  cream of mushroom soup, and cheese. I've also already included the full cost of potatoes, carrots and onion in Monday & Tueday's prices so there's no need to repeat them here. 

Friday - Chicken Noodle Soup and Chicken Salad ($10.82)

Whole cut-up chicken ($1.28/lb) $5.34

Large Laura Lynn Cream of Chicken Soup $1.68

Manischewitz Fine Egg Noodles (in ethnic foods) $2.12

Bakery Croissant Rolls ($1.68/6)

*Boil chicken as desires. (I add salt & pepper, thyme, rosemary, and anything else I think might make my broth yummy - sometimes even a chicken bouillon.) Remove chicken and strain broth. Add Cream of Chicken soup to broth continuing to simmer.

*Debone chicken and return 2 -3 cups to broth reserving the rest for another meal. 

*In separate pot, cook egg noodles per package directions. When done, drain and add to chicken broth.

At $10.82 this meal gives you a bonus Chicken Salad to go with your soup or as lunch on Saturday or Sunday. 

*Mix reserved, chopped chicken with desired amount of mayonnaise. Salt & pepper to taste and stir until creamy. Add other ingredients as desires.  Place into Croissant Rolls ($1.68/6).

Whammo! It's a two-fer! 

Here's my entire receipt. I did forget the potatoes and I don't usually include pantry staples like butter and spices into the price. This week you get not 4 but FIVE very healthy mostly whole-food meals for $36.25 (unless you have to buy potatoes and you'll still be under $40) and that is quite a deal.

~Megan

**Let me add that if you a plan-ahead-er, you might also want to grab some of the ground turkey and chicken breasts that are on sale for meals I have in mind for next week. Throw 'em in the freezer and we'll discuss on Monday.