Showing posts with label cheap dinner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cheap dinner. Show all posts
Thursday, 25 July 2013
Garden soup
As mentioned in my previous post, I have been quite busy in
my garden over the past few months planting and maintaining veg. The first things that I planted this
year were spinach, watercress and rocket seeds.
I sowed them straight into a prepared bed in May
Wednesday, 4 July 2012
Turkey meatballs in tomato and fennel sauce
Last night I made turkey meatballs in tomato and fennel sauce for dinner and we had the leftovers for dinner tonight. The recipe appeared in the March 2010 issue of Good Food magazine. I decided to make it when I realised that I had all the ingredients in that were required
As with a lot of the Good Food recipes I have used recently, this was really quick and easy to make. My husband, daughter and son loved it - my daughter informed us that she wanted a second bowl of it after her first forkful! I liked it to, but I think the next time I make it I'll add something to the meatballs to give them a bit more flavour. They definitely need some seasoning at the very least.
With regards to the leftovers, instead of heating up the whole dish, I had prepared all the meatballs on the first night, leaving half in the fridge for dinner tonight. I cooked them while the pasta was boiling and then added them to the sauce that I had made the night before and reheated. It worked out really well and dinner was on the table in the length of time it took for the spaghetti to be ready.
Alterations
When I was preparing the ingredients for the sauce I added two onions instead of one as the onions I had in were quite small. I also added three carrots as my carrots were quite small as well. I omitted the tomato puree simply because I forgot to add it! Other than that I stuck to the recipe.
I think it would be easy to add additional veg to the sauce without altering the taste too much. As the sauce is blended, it is a handy way of getting veg into kids without them realising it which can be helpful if you have fussy eaters.
Tip
To save time on a busy weeknight, you could prepare the meatballs the night before and keep them in the fridge until you are ready to cook them the next night. In fact, you could even make the meatballs before freezing them so that all you had to do is lift them out of the freezer to defrost when you want to have them for dinner. You could also make the sauce ahead of time and reheat it after the meatballs have been cooked while the pasta is boiling, saving more time.
Cost
This is another one that is difficult for me to work out the cost of as I got the turkey mince up north in Asda a while back and had it in my freezer. The turkey mince was £1.98. The can of chopped tomatoes cost 66 cent, the onions cost about 25 cent, the carrots were around 30 cent, the spaghetti that I served it with was about 80 cent (allowing for two nights) and I have allowed another 40 cent for the fennel seeds, breadcrumbs, oil and garlic. In total I reckon that this dish cost me about €5 to make. Considering that this did us for dinner for two nights that makes it about €2.50 per night to feed two adults, a four year old and an 11 month old baby.
As with a lot of the Good Food recipes I have used recently, this was really quick and easy to make. My husband, daughter and son loved it - my daughter informed us that she wanted a second bowl of it after her first forkful! I liked it to, but I think the next time I make it I'll add something to the meatballs to give them a bit more flavour. They definitely need some seasoning at the very least.
With regards to the leftovers, instead of heating up the whole dish, I had prepared all the meatballs on the first night, leaving half in the fridge for dinner tonight. I cooked them while the pasta was boiling and then added them to the sauce that I had made the night before and reheated. It worked out really well and dinner was on the table in the length of time it took for the spaghetti to be ready.
Alterations
When I was preparing the ingredients for the sauce I added two onions instead of one as the onions I had in were quite small. I also added three carrots as my carrots were quite small as well. I omitted the tomato puree simply because I forgot to add it! Other than that I stuck to the recipe.
I think it would be easy to add additional veg to the sauce without altering the taste too much. As the sauce is blended, it is a handy way of getting veg into kids without them realising it which can be helpful if you have fussy eaters.
Tip
To save time on a busy weeknight, you could prepare the meatballs the night before and keep them in the fridge until you are ready to cook them the next night. In fact, you could even make the meatballs before freezing them so that all you had to do is lift them out of the freezer to defrost when you want to have them for dinner. You could also make the sauce ahead of time and reheat it after the meatballs have been cooked while the pasta is boiling, saving more time.
Cost
This is another one that is difficult for me to work out the cost of as I got the turkey mince up north in Asda a while back and had it in my freezer. The turkey mince was £1.98. The can of chopped tomatoes cost 66 cent, the onions cost about 25 cent, the carrots were around 30 cent, the spaghetti that I served it with was about 80 cent (allowing for two nights) and I have allowed another 40 cent for the fennel seeds, breadcrumbs, oil and garlic. In total I reckon that this dish cost me about €5 to make. Considering that this did us for dinner for two nights that makes it about €2.50 per night to feed two adults, a four year old and an 11 month old baby.
Wednesday, 27 June 2012
Patatas bravas with chorizo
Last night I made the patatas bravas with chorizo from the May 2010 issue of the Good food magazine. According to the recipe it serves 6 as an appetiser, but I made it for dinner instead, adjusting the volume of ingredients so that I made enough for two adults, one child and a baby.
The recipe was easy to follow and make, but I had to steam the potatoes for longer than the suggested 10 minutes as they were still rock hard after the 10 minutes had passed. Next time I will cut the potatoes smaller in the hope that they steam quicker. Another thing that I will change for next time is the type of potatoes that I use. We had roosters in the house, so I used these but they were too floury and feel apart in the pan a bit. I think that waxy potatoes might have held together a bit better.
To save time when I make this recipe in the future I will probably steam the potatoes the day before and keep them in the fridge until I am ready to use them.
For the baby I mashed some of the potatoes and stirred in some of the tomato sauce and onion. He loved it.
Alterations
Instead of using 250g of small cooking chorizo I used three large cooking chorizo from Marks and Spencers and cut them into chunks. I substituted the red chilli in the recipe for some dried crushed chillis instead and as there was no cayenne pepper in the house I didn't add it to the dish. As the recipe was only for two adults and one child I used less potatoes than the suggested 1kg.
Cost
The chorizo sausages that I used cost €1.25. I have estimated that the potatoes I used were €1.50, the onion was 20 cent, the can of chopped tomatoes was 67 cent and I have allowed 30 cent for the garlic, olive oil and spices. That makes the total cost €3.92 which is quite reasonable for dinner for the family.
If I used potatoes from the garden the cost of the meal would be reduced further, making it an even cheaper recipe to make.
The recipe was easy to follow and make, but I had to steam the potatoes for longer than the suggested 10 minutes as they were still rock hard after the 10 minutes had passed. Next time I will cut the potatoes smaller in the hope that they steam quicker. Another thing that I will change for next time is the type of potatoes that I use. We had roosters in the house, so I used these but they were too floury and feel apart in the pan a bit. I think that waxy potatoes might have held together a bit better.
To save time when I make this recipe in the future I will probably steam the potatoes the day before and keep them in the fridge until I am ready to use them.
For the baby I mashed some of the potatoes and stirred in some of the tomato sauce and onion. He loved it.
Alterations
Instead of using 250g of small cooking chorizo I used three large cooking chorizo from Marks and Spencers and cut them into chunks. I substituted the red chilli in the recipe for some dried crushed chillis instead and as there was no cayenne pepper in the house I didn't add it to the dish. As the recipe was only for two adults and one child I used less potatoes than the suggested 1kg.
Cost
The chorizo sausages that I used cost €1.25. I have estimated that the potatoes I used were €1.50, the onion was 20 cent, the can of chopped tomatoes was 67 cent and I have allowed 30 cent for the garlic, olive oil and spices. That makes the total cost €3.92 which is quite reasonable for dinner for the family.
If I used potatoes from the garden the cost of the meal would be reduced further, making it an even cheaper recipe to make.
Monday, 18 June 2012
Sunblush tomatoes and spinach tagliatelle
Tonight I made sunblush tomatoes and spinach tagliatelle for dinner. This is one of my favourite quick vegetarian meals and is a handy recipe to have up your sleeve for a busy midweek night.
I chopped some of the tomatoes, spinach and pasta up into the chunks and feed it to the baby who devoured it! I added a little cooled boiled water to it before giving it to him to help keep up his water intake. He was not impressed when his was all gone and we ended up giving him some tagliatelle to feed himself while we were finished ours as he was looking at us with puppy dog eyes!
Tip
I make my own sunblush tomatoes by roasting them in the oven. Making your own will save a bit of money as shop bought ones can be quite expensive. I also find that shop bought ones can be extremely oily. If you are using shop bought ones in the recipe, put a spoonful of the oil into the pan before adding the tomatoes and frying. Do not pour the whole lot into the pan straight from the tub! My husband did this one night as I wasn't very direct in my instructions with regards to dealing with the tomatoes and the dinner was really greasy and not as pleasant to eat as it normally is.
When I make my own, I add a bit of extra flavour by adding some crushed garlic, dried basil and oregano, as well as olive oil to the tomatoes before putting them into the oven to roast. As I had the oven on for dinner last night to cook the oven chips we had with the dinner last night I put the tomatoes into the oven at the same time so that the oven was on once. After lifting out the chips, I put the oven up to gas mark 9 for five minutes and then turned it off, but left the tomatoes in the oven to continue roasting. Once the oven was cooled I removed the tomatoes and put them into the into a tub and put them in the oven ready to use in the dinner tonight.
Ingredients - enough of each to serve the number of people you are cooking for.
Sunblush tomatoes - (I made my own with 1.5 punnets of cherry tomatoes)
Spinach, stalks removed (I used one small bag of baby spinach)
Tagliatelle (I used 6 nests of Dunnes tagliatelle)
Method
Cost
I've estimated that the tagliatelle cost me €1, the tomatoes were €1.50 and the spinach was €1.49, making the total cost less €4 exactly. In the past I have used spinach that I've grown myself to make this meal, meaning that it can cost me as little as €2.50.
I chopped some of the tomatoes, spinach and pasta up into the chunks and feed it to the baby who devoured it! I added a little cooled boiled water to it before giving it to him to help keep up his water intake. He was not impressed when his was all gone and we ended up giving him some tagliatelle to feed himself while we were finished ours as he was looking at us with puppy dog eyes!
 |
| I paused long enough to take this photo of my tagliatelle before eating it! |
Tip
I make my own sunblush tomatoes by roasting them in the oven. Making your own will save a bit of money as shop bought ones can be quite expensive. I also find that shop bought ones can be extremely oily. If you are using shop bought ones in the recipe, put a spoonful of the oil into the pan before adding the tomatoes and frying. Do not pour the whole lot into the pan straight from the tub! My husband did this one night as I wasn't very direct in my instructions with regards to dealing with the tomatoes and the dinner was really greasy and not as pleasant to eat as it normally is.
When I make my own, I add a bit of extra flavour by adding some crushed garlic, dried basil and oregano, as well as olive oil to the tomatoes before putting them into the oven to roast. As I had the oven on for dinner last night to cook the oven chips we had with the dinner last night I put the tomatoes into the oven at the same time so that the oven was on once. After lifting out the chips, I put the oven up to gas mark 9 for five minutes and then turned it off, but left the tomatoes in the oven to continue roasting. Once the oven was cooled I removed the tomatoes and put them into the into a tub and put them in the oven ready to use in the dinner tonight.
Ingredients - enough of each to serve the number of people you are cooking for.
Sunblush tomatoes - (I made my own with 1.5 punnets of cherry tomatoes)
Spinach, stalks removed (I used one small bag of baby spinach)
Tagliatelle (I used 6 nests of Dunnes tagliatelle)
Method
- Put on the tagliatelle to cook according to instructions. Before rinsing, remove a mug of water from the pasta pot. Rinse the starch off with hot water from the kettle.
- Heat the tomatoes in a frying pan and add the spinach. Cook until the spinach has wilted.
- Add tagliatelle to the frying pan and stir into the tomatoes and spinach. Add a little of the water from the mug at a time to coat the pasta. Serve.
Cost
I've estimated that the tagliatelle cost me €1, the tomatoes were €1.50 and the spinach was €1.49, making the total cost less €4 exactly. In the past I have used spinach that I've grown myself to make this meal, meaning that it can cost me as little as €2.50.
Friday, 15 June 2012
Summer pea pasta
Like many parents, when feeling unwell I still have to make dinner for my kids regardless of how I'm feeling. So on Monday night I wanted something quick to make so that I didn't have to stand at the cooker for long. Also, given that I wasn't feeling very well, I didn't want something creamy or heavy to eat. I found this recipe for summer pea pasta in the August 2010 issue of the Goodfood magazine and thought it would make an ideal meal for my family.
This recipe was really handy for me to make as I had all the ingredients in the house except the basil and chilli which are available in my local green grocers, so I didn't have to go to a supermarket to get ingredients for dinner.
Tip
Eating vegetarian can be a good way of cutting the costs of a meal so I have decided to try and introduce more vegetarian meals to my family. Unfortunately, my husband tends to expect meat with every meal (show me an Irishman who doesn't!) so I find that when I suggest adding a vegetarian option to the menu that it is usually meet with a 'what meat are we having with that' from him. On Monday night he had no idea what he was having for dinner as the menu hadn't been prepared in advance, so couldn't protest at the lack of meat, so perhaps my plan for the future should be to just spring meat-free dishes on him!! Fortunately for me, this dish was really tasty and filling, so he couldn't complain too much about the lack of meat. If he did I think I would have told him how much it cost and pointed out that he could maybe have a nice steak some night soon with the money I saved!!
Alterations
As I was making this for two adults and one child, I used a bit less pasta, basil and peas than what the recipe suggests. I used the full amount of red chilli, garlic and lemon zest suggested despite using less of the other ingredients and the result was a dish full of flavour.
Cost
This was quite a cheap dinner to make. The basil was 40 cent, the pasta was 50 cent, the peas were 50 cent, the red chilli was 30 cent, the garlic was 20 cent and I am allowing 10 cent for the olive oil. This means that the total cost of the dish is €2.
I haven't counted the lemon zest in the overall cost as I still have the lemons to use in another dish and didn't want to end up counting the cost of them twice.
This recipe was really handy for me to make as I had all the ingredients in the house except the basil and chilli which are available in my local green grocers, so I didn't have to go to a supermarket to get ingredients for dinner.
Tip
Eating vegetarian can be a good way of cutting the costs of a meal so I have decided to try and introduce more vegetarian meals to my family. Unfortunately, my husband tends to expect meat with every meal (show me an Irishman who doesn't!) so I find that when I suggest adding a vegetarian option to the menu that it is usually meet with a 'what meat are we having with that' from him. On Monday night he had no idea what he was having for dinner as the menu hadn't been prepared in advance, so couldn't protest at the lack of meat, so perhaps my plan for the future should be to just spring meat-free dishes on him!! Fortunately for me, this dish was really tasty and filling, so he couldn't complain too much about the lack of meat. If he did I think I would have told him how much it cost and pointed out that he could maybe have a nice steak some night soon with the money I saved!!
Alterations
As I was making this for two adults and one child, I used a bit less pasta, basil and peas than what the recipe suggests. I used the full amount of red chilli, garlic and lemon zest suggested despite using less of the other ingredients and the result was a dish full of flavour.
Cost
This was quite a cheap dinner to make. The basil was 40 cent, the pasta was 50 cent, the peas were 50 cent, the red chilli was 30 cent, the garlic was 20 cent and I am allowing 10 cent for the olive oil. This means that the total cost of the dish is €2.
I haven't counted the lemon zest in the overall cost as I still have the lemons to use in another dish and didn't want to end up counting the cost of them twice.
Sunday, 27 May 2012
Maple and pepper-glazed chicken with roasted carrots
Last Wednesday night we had maple and pepper-glazed chicken with roasted carrots for dinner. This recipe was from the March 2010 issue of Olive magazine. It was delicious!
I am only getting to write about it now as I have been a bit unwell the last week. I did make the dinner, as it was a quick one, and took a few photos so that I would be able to post about the meal as it was so delicious.
The meal was really quick and easy to make. When I put the carrots in to roast, I put a few potatoes on to boil so that I could make a little bit of mash to go with the chicken and roasted carrots. To be honest, I don't think the mash is really necessary, but I knew my husband would be starving and would appreciate a bit of mash.
I gave the baby a bit of mash and chicken. I only gave him a little of the chicken though as I was conscious of the fact that it had been cooked in stock. He had some of the roasted carrots to eat as finger food. They went down really well and I ended up giving him more from my plate.
Alterations
Other than using three chicken breasts instead of two and more carrots, I made no alterations to this recipe.
Cost
The chicken breasts cost €3, the carrots cost 40 cent and I have allowed €1 for the remaining ingredients and potatoes. The total cost of the meal was €4.30.
I am only getting to write about it now as I have been a bit unwell the last week. I did make the dinner, as it was a quick one, and took a few photos so that I would be able to post about the meal as it was so delicious.
The meal was really quick and easy to make. When I put the carrots in to roast, I put a few potatoes on to boil so that I could make a little bit of mash to go with the chicken and roasted carrots. To be honest, I don't think the mash is really necessary, but I knew my husband would be starving and would appreciate a bit of mash.
I gave the baby a bit of mash and chicken. I only gave him a little of the chicken though as I was conscious of the fact that it had been cooked in stock. He had some of the roasted carrots to eat as finger food. They went down really well and I ended up giving him more from my plate.
Alterations
Other than using three chicken breasts instead of two and more carrots, I made no alterations to this recipe.
Cost
The chicken breasts cost €3, the carrots cost 40 cent and I have allowed €1 for the remaining ingredients and potatoes. The total cost of the meal was €4.30.
Saturday, 12 May 2012
Orange, carrot and mint soup
For lunch this weekend I wanted to make some sort of a carrot soup that I had never tried before. I didn't want anything with coriander in it or red lentils, so I did a search on the GoodFood website and found this recipe for orange, carrot and mint soup. All the ingredients were in my cupboards and I as interested to try the combination of orange, carrot and mint. It was lovely!
Now, I have to confess that when it came to making the soup I wasn't too pushed about step 3 - it seemed like it would take a lot of time to me. Plus it would result in extra dishes to wash which would use up even more time!! Instead I used my hand blender to blend the soup in the pot. It was still really smooth and velvety.
Alterations
I didn't really make any alterations to this recipe. I had no large onion so I used 2 small onions instead, but I don't really think this could be called an alteration as this ingredient was listed already. To lower the fat I didn't bother using the cream. If I was to make it again I might use fry lite to further lower the fat content.
I didn't add any salt to the soup and it tasted fine without it. I never add salt to any of my cooking as I think it's best to leave it for people to add their own salt.
Cost
The recipe was quite cheap to make. The carrots cost 70 cent, the onions were 10 cent (bought when they were 29 cent for a kg), the orange that I juiced was 80 cent and I have allowed 30 cent for the mint and the vegetable stock cube. This means that the recipe costs €1.70 in total. There is enough to do lunch for my family today and tomorrow.
Now, I have to confess that when it came to making the soup I wasn't too pushed about step 3 - it seemed like it would take a lot of time to me. Plus it would result in extra dishes to wash which would use up even more time!! Instead I used my hand blender to blend the soup in the pot. It was still really smooth and velvety.
Alterations
I didn't really make any alterations to this recipe. I had no large onion so I used 2 small onions instead, but I don't really think this could be called an alteration as this ingredient was listed already. To lower the fat I didn't bother using the cream. If I was to make it again I might use fry lite to further lower the fat content.
I didn't add any salt to the soup and it tasted fine without it. I never add salt to any of my cooking as I think it's best to leave it for people to add their own salt.
Cost
The recipe was quite cheap to make. The carrots cost 70 cent, the onions were 10 cent (bought when they were 29 cent for a kg), the orange that I juiced was 80 cent and I have allowed 30 cent for the mint and the vegetable stock cube. This means that the recipe costs €1.70 in total. There is enough to do lunch for my family today and tomorrow.
 |
| My effort in a bowl! |
Monday, 30 April 2012
Very quick chicken stew
Dinner tonight was very quick chicken stew from Olive magazine's December 2006 issue. I don't buy Olive magazine but the GoodFood website has some recipes from the magazine on it. I found this recipe when I was looking for a low GI chicken meal on the website.
The stew serves two. As I wanted to have it for dinner on Tuesday night as well I doubled the ingredients. While saving time on preparing dinner tomorrow night, it did take slightly longer than the 30 mins stated to make as there was a lot more in the pot.
I made a few alterations to the recipe. I had chicken breasts in the freezer, so I used four of them instead of the chicken thighs listed in the recipe ingredients. Also, I had now fresh tarragon in. I do have dried tarragon in my cupboard, but rather than use it, I decided to use some parsley as I had bought some for the quinoa (bulghar wheat) tabbouleh and had some leftover.
As I want to have give some of the chicken stew to my baby for dinner tomorrow night, I left the chicken stock cube out of the recipe, just adding boiled water instead. As the chicken and vegetables were going to be cooking in the water I figured that they would flavour it. To be sure that the stew had plenty of flavour without the stock cube, I threw a couple of bay leaves into the pot and seasoned with pepper to add a bit more flavour to the stew. You can buy low salt stock cubes suitable for giving to babies, but I do not have any of these in the house. While the stew tasted ok - it was much better the second night, I think it would have tasted better if I had used chicken or vegetable stock in it. Next time I make it I will use some chicken or vegetable stock that I make myself in advance.
TIP - Anytime I have a roast chicken for dinner, I always boil the bones after the stripping all the meat from it to make stock. I throw in a carrot, celery and an onion (skin on) if I have them in the house. I then pour the stock into some 'Pour and store' bags and put in the freezer for when I need it. Unfortunately I didn't have any in the freezer for this recipe, otherwise I would have used some.
Cost - The chicken breasts were bought at the butchers when it was 12 chicken breasts for €10. I used four chicken breasts in this recipe, so the cost was €3.33. The potatoes were 99 cent, the shallots were 49 cent, the carrots were 50 cent and the peas were 50 cent (another estimate). I have allowed 20 cent for the parsley, bay leaves and pepper. The total cost is €6.01, making the cost per meal 0.005 cent over €3! Not too bad.
The stew serves two. As I wanted to have it for dinner on Tuesday night as well I doubled the ingredients. While saving time on preparing dinner tomorrow night, it did take slightly longer than the 30 mins stated to make as there was a lot more in the pot.
I made a few alterations to the recipe. I had chicken breasts in the freezer, so I used four of them instead of the chicken thighs listed in the recipe ingredients. Also, I had now fresh tarragon in. I do have dried tarragon in my cupboard, but rather than use it, I decided to use some parsley as I had bought some for the quinoa (bulghar wheat) tabbouleh and had some leftover.
As I want to have give some of the chicken stew to my baby for dinner tomorrow night, I left the chicken stock cube out of the recipe, just adding boiled water instead. As the chicken and vegetables were going to be cooking in the water I figured that they would flavour it. To be sure that the stew had plenty of flavour without the stock cube, I threw a couple of bay leaves into the pot and seasoned with pepper to add a bit more flavour to the stew. You can buy low salt stock cubes suitable for giving to babies, but I do not have any of these in the house. While the stew tasted ok - it was much better the second night, I think it would have tasted better if I had used chicken or vegetable stock in it. Next time I make it I will use some chicken or vegetable stock that I make myself in advance.
TIP - Anytime I have a roast chicken for dinner, I always boil the bones after the stripping all the meat from it to make stock. I throw in a carrot, celery and an onion (skin on) if I have them in the house. I then pour the stock into some 'Pour and store' bags and put in the freezer for when I need it. Unfortunately I didn't have any in the freezer for this recipe, otherwise I would have used some.
Cost - The chicken breasts were bought at the butchers when it was 12 chicken breasts for €10. I used four chicken breasts in this recipe, so the cost was €3.33. The potatoes were 99 cent, the shallots were 49 cent, the carrots were 50 cent and the peas were 50 cent (another estimate). I have allowed 20 cent for the parsley, bay leaves and pepper. The total cost is €6.01, making the cost per meal 0.005 cent over €3! Not too bad.
Monday, 23 April 2012
Quick chicken chasseur
I have made this Quick chicken chasseur recipe from the good food magazine a number of times in the past but had forgotten about it until my husband requested it one day. Previously we have had it with various different types of potatoes - mash, boiled and even chips - and rice. To be honest, while I am sure it is supposed to be served with potatoes my family seem to prefer it when it comes with rice. We had it for dinner last week, but I am only getting a chance to write about it now.
It is ready really quickly making it an ideal mid-week dinner to prepare when you get home from work and have to get something on the dinner table quickly.The can of chopped tomatoes I used didn't have any garlic in them, so I added a couple of gloves of garlic at the start of cooking. I usually don't bother adding the flour to the recipe and I use bacon medallions rather than streaky rashers in order to lower the fat content of the recipe. I didn't have any fresh parsley in so I used some dried parsley and I added this towards the end of the cooking time. When I made this for dinner last week I used two cans of chopped tomatoes instead of one.
Cost - Although I have made this recipe many times before, I have never worked out the cost of it so I am interested to see how much it works out as now. As I was making it for two people and one child, I only used 2 chicken breasts and 3 bacon medallions. The chicken breasts where bought on offer for €10 for 12, making the cost of the chicken that I used €1.67. The bacon medallions were 75 cent - I bought them on offer for €1.50 a while ago and put them in the freezer. The mushrooms were 99 cent, the chopped tomatoes cost €1.33 and I have allowed 50 cent for the garlic, dried parsley and beef stock cube.
The total cost of recipe €5.24. As I indicated I only used two chicken breasts as I was only intending to serve two adult portions and one child's portion. However, adding the extra can of chopped tomatoes bulked up the meal enough for me to be able to get extra portions from the pan for dinner another night, so I managed to get 4 adult and 2 child portions for this price, making the cost for me (minus the rice) €2.62 which is really good. This works out much cheaper than using 4 chicken breasts to get the same number of servings.
TIP - As I am trying to give my baby as much of the same food as we are eating I refrain from adding the stock cube until the same point that I add the Worcestershire sauce so that I can give him a little of the chicken chasseur to try. I then let the pan simmer for a few more minutes before lifting it off the heat and serving.
Monday, 16 April 2012
Broccoli and almond soup
Well, as I said in my menu planner for the week I intended to make some soup for the weekend but the type of soup would depend on what vegetables were on offer in the supermarket. When I was doing my shopping broccoli was on offer for 35cent for 500g. I bought two to use for soup and as one of the vegetables that I would serve with the roast beef dinner on Sunday.
To be honest I hadn't ever made a broccoli soup before and had only ever eaten it once when I was kept in hospital overnight while pregnant with my second child. I liked it and was sure I'd find a recipe among my various recipe books at home. If I hadn't I would have fallen back on the trusty Goodfood magazine website for a suitable recipe.
As luck would have it I had a choice of recipes for soups using broccoli as the main ingredient. I decided to make broccoli and almond soup for the simple reason that I had all the ingredients - there are only 4 excluding the seasoning - in the house. The recipe is from 'The Soup Bible', edited by Debra Mayhew.
The recipe is as follows:-
Ingredients
50 g/ 2oz/ 0.5 cup ground almonds
675 g/ 1.5lbs broccoli
900 ml/ 1.5pints / 3.75 cups of vegetable stock or water
300ml / 0.5pints / 1.25 coups of skimmed milk
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
This soup was really quick and easy to make. I decided not to garnish the finished dish with the toasted almonds which saved me a bit of money and will make my ground almonds last a bit longer. I found it quite tasty. In the future I might use chicken stock instead just to give it a slightly different flavour.
Cost - This soup was really cheap for me to make owing to the fact that the broccoli was only 35 cent. I used one and half heads of the broccoli that I bought to make the soup, costing me 53 cent. I used about 35g of ground almonds which I have estimated at about 85 cent. The milk was about 30 cent and I will allow 10 cent for the stock cube and seasoning. The overall cost of the soup is € 1.78 using these estimates.
To be honest I hadn't ever made a broccoli soup before and had only ever eaten it once when I was kept in hospital overnight while pregnant with my second child. I liked it and was sure I'd find a recipe among my various recipe books at home. If I hadn't I would have fallen back on the trusty Goodfood magazine website for a suitable recipe.
As luck would have it I had a choice of recipes for soups using broccoli as the main ingredient. I decided to make broccoli and almond soup for the simple reason that I had all the ingredients - there are only 4 excluding the seasoning - in the house. The recipe is from 'The Soup Bible', edited by Debra Mayhew.
The recipe is as follows:-
Ingredients
50 g/ 2oz/ 0.5 cup ground almonds
675 g/ 1.5lbs broccoli
900 ml/ 1.5pints / 3.75 cups of vegetable stock or water
300ml / 0.5pints / 1.25 coups of skimmed milk
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/ gas 4. Spread the ground almonds evenly on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for about 10 minutes until golden. Reserve one quarter of the almonds and set aside to garnish the finished dish.
- Cut the broccoli into small florets and steam for about 6-7 minutes until tender.
- Place the remaining toasted almonds, broccoli, stock or water and milk in a blender and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Reheat the soup and serve sprinkled with the reserved toasted almonds.
This soup was really quick and easy to make. I decided not to garnish the finished dish with the toasted almonds which saved me a bit of money and will make my ground almonds last a bit longer. I found it quite tasty. In the future I might use chicken stock instead just to give it a slightly different flavour.
Cost - This soup was really cheap for me to make owing to the fact that the broccoli was only 35 cent. I used one and half heads of the broccoli that I bought to make the soup, costing me 53 cent. I used about 35g of ground almonds which I have estimated at about 85 cent. The milk was about 30 cent and I will allow 10 cent for the stock cube and seasoning. The overall cost of the soup is € 1.78 using these estimates.
Sunday, 25 March 2012
Lentils with chorizo and red wine - yummy!!
On Saturday evening, as planned, we had lentils with chorizo and red wine for dinner. I have to say that it totally surpassed any expectations that I had. My husband confessed to me after we had finished that when he saw it in the pan prior to being served he was a bit concerned about eating it, but that he loved it and would like to add it to our regular list of dinners. Proof that looks can indeed be deceptive!!
As per the recipe suggestion I served mine with plenty of crusty bread which we used to mop up the juices. As the kids had gone to bed, we decided to finish the bottle of wine we used with the meal.
I added more liquid than is stated in the recipe as I felt my lentils were not soft enough by the time the liquid had reduced. I poured in a bit more water, but I think if I make it again I will simply add an extra 100mls of stock. If it doesn't all reduce that won't be a problem as the juice is delicious mopped up with the bread.
I had no fresh thyme in so I didn't add it. If I had thought at the time I would have added a little dried thyme, but I wasn't really thinking.
The other difference I made was totally accidental. I had my parsley prepared in advance...and forgot to add it! My husband went into the kitchen with the bowls when we had finished and shouted that he could really taste the parsley in the dish. Cheeky git!! Anyway, if you do not have any parsley then don't worry about it as I can assure you that the meal still tastes delicious. Next time I will be adding parsley though as it is one of my favourite ingredients, which I guess just goes to show how tasty the dish was that I was so wrapped up in eating it that I hadn't noticed that I left the parsley out!
COST - it is hard for me to work out the cost of this one as I had the chorizo, garlic and lentils in. I had to buy wine, onion, leek and the parsley which I accidentally omitted. I think it is safe to say that the recipe is well under €5 though, but I think the cost depends a lot on the wine you buy.
As per the recipe suggestion I served mine with plenty of crusty bread which we used to mop up the juices. As the kids had gone to bed, we decided to finish the bottle of wine we used with the meal.
I added more liquid than is stated in the recipe as I felt my lentils were not soft enough by the time the liquid had reduced. I poured in a bit more water, but I think if I make it again I will simply add an extra 100mls of stock. If it doesn't all reduce that won't be a problem as the juice is delicious mopped up with the bread.
I had no fresh thyme in so I didn't add it. If I had thought at the time I would have added a little dried thyme, but I wasn't really thinking.
The other difference I made was totally accidental. I had my parsley prepared in advance...and forgot to add it! My husband went into the kitchen with the bowls when we had finished and shouted that he could really taste the parsley in the dish. Cheeky git!! Anyway, if you do not have any parsley then don't worry about it as I can assure you that the meal still tastes delicious. Next time I will be adding parsley though as it is one of my favourite ingredients, which I guess just goes to show how tasty the dish was that I was so wrapped up in eating it that I hadn't noticed that I left the parsley out!
COST - it is hard for me to work out the cost of this one as I had the chorizo, garlic and lentils in. I had to buy wine, onion, leek and the parsley which I accidentally omitted. I think it is safe to say that the recipe is well under €5 though, but I think the cost depends a lot on the wine you buy.
Monday, 20 February 2012
Pancake Tuesday!
Well, as it's Shrove Tuesday I decided that we may as well have pancakes for dinner. Pancakes are quick and easy to make and can be served with of sweet and savoury foods.
One of my all time favourite ways to eat pancakes is to have them with maple syrup and crispy bacon. I also love them served with blueberry compote that I make by heating blueberries and a little sugar in a saucepan over a low heat. A bit sweet to be having for dinner everyday, but we only do this once a year on Shrove Tuesday so I think it's ok to have them for dinner as a once off!
Pancakes are excellent finger food to give to babies. I made small ones especially for my son and gave them to him to try. My 3 year old daughter refuses to eat eggs, so pancakes are a good way of including eggs in her diet.
One of my all time favourite ways to eat pancakes is to have them with maple syrup and crispy bacon. I also love them served with blueberry compote that I make by heating blueberries and a little sugar in a saucepan over a low heat. A bit sweet to be having for dinner everyday, but we only do this once a year on Shrove Tuesday so I think it's ok to have them for dinner as a once off!
Pancakes are excellent finger food to give to babies. I made small ones especially for my son and gave them to him to try. My 3 year old daughter refuses to eat eggs, so pancakes are a good way of including eggs in her diet.
Who doesn't like a Sunday roast?
To be honest, until a few years ago I had gone off Sunday roasts altogether. During my final few years living at my parents house we seemed to have roast chicken or beef with potatoes and vegetables all the time. At least, that's what it felt like. After I left home to go to university I stopped eating roast dinners, even managing to avoid eating them when I went home. I had become sick of them! Fast forward a (good) few years and I love having a roast dinner. We don't have them every Sunday though - I don't want to get to the point where I am bored of eating them again - and I try to shake things up a bit by having different vegetables on the side or cooking the potatoes a different way.
Yesterday we had a roast chicken dinner. I got the chicken from my local butcher on Saturday. It cost €6.99 which is a bit more expensive than the whole chickens you can get in the supermarkets but I prefer to buy it from my butcher as I feel it tastes much better.
With the chicken yesterday we had a little bit of mash potatoes, roast potatoes (made the same way that the roast potatoes were made last weekend), mashed carrots and parsnip and gravy with onions, some carrot and parsnip through it. For dinner this evening, we had leftovers from yesterday. The baby had the same dinner as us, minus the gravy.
TIP - Having a whole chicken - then get as much out of it as possible. After slicing the roast chicken for our dinner yesterday and today, I pulled the remaining meat from the wings and legs and put it in a bowl. Then I made chicken stock by boiling the carcass in water in a stock pot on my cooker. I used the chicken stock and the meat to make a soup (a version of the creamy chicken soup mentioned earlier in the blog) for lunches this week.
Cost - Sometimes paying for a whole chicken can seem a bit expensive, however you can get more out of a whole chicken than you can out of chicken breasts making it good value for money. We had dinner for 2 nights - slicing a breast for each night - plus six portions of soup from our lunch during the week. The chicken was € 4.66 (I've allowed two thirds of the cost for the roast dinners), the parsnips were 49 cent, the carrots were 99 cent per 1 kg bag (I used them all between the soup and dinners), the potatoes were about € 1.50 and the onion was 28cent. The total for the roast dinner was €7.92, making it €3.96 per dinner.
Looking at the cost of our roast dinner I can easily understand why my mum made so many of them. It was good value for money and offered a well balanced meal of protein, carbs and veg.
Yesterday we had a roast chicken dinner. I got the chicken from my local butcher on Saturday. It cost €6.99 which is a bit more expensive than the whole chickens you can get in the supermarkets but I prefer to buy it from my butcher as I feel it tastes much better.
With the chicken yesterday we had a little bit of mash potatoes, roast potatoes (made the same way that the roast potatoes were made last weekend), mashed carrots and parsnip and gravy with onions, some carrot and parsnip through it. For dinner this evening, we had leftovers from yesterday. The baby had the same dinner as us, minus the gravy.
TIP - Having a whole chicken - then get as much out of it as possible. After slicing the roast chicken for our dinner yesterday and today, I pulled the remaining meat from the wings and legs and put it in a bowl. Then I made chicken stock by boiling the carcass in water in a stock pot on my cooker. I used the chicken stock and the meat to make a soup (a version of the creamy chicken soup mentioned earlier in the blog) for lunches this week.
Cost - Sometimes paying for a whole chicken can seem a bit expensive, however you can get more out of a whole chicken than you can out of chicken breasts making it good value for money. We had dinner for 2 nights - slicing a breast for each night - plus six portions of soup from our lunch during the week. The chicken was € 4.66 (I've allowed two thirds of the cost for the roast dinners), the parsnips were 49 cent, the carrots were 99 cent per 1 kg bag (I used them all between the soup and dinners), the potatoes were about € 1.50 and the onion was 28cent. The total for the roast dinner was €7.92, making it €3.96 per dinner.
Looking at the cost of our roast dinner I can easily understand why my mum made so many of them. It was good value for money and offered a well balanced meal of protein, carbs and veg.
Sunday, 19 February 2012
Chicken and chorizo jambalaya
Last night I made the chicken and chorizo jambalaya recipe from the April 2011 issue of the good food magazine.
The recipe requires Cajun seasoning. I didn't have any Cajun seasoning so I used a teaspoon of hot chilli powder instead. It has a few of the ingredients used to make Cajun seasoning in it and was the closest possible substitute I had in my kitchen. I found that the 350ml of chicken stock was not enough to make the rice tender and I had to add a bit more water to it as it was cooking.
Overall this was really easy to make and turned out really nice. I feel that it took less time than the 55 minutes stated in the recipe to make and would be happy to make it during the week after getting home from work. Next time I make it I'll add an extra pepper to increase the amount of vegetables being served.
TIP - This recipe is already low fat, but I decreased the amount of fat further by not adding the olive oil when cooking. Instead, I cooked the chicken in a non-stick saute pan which is the only pan I had suitable for making the recipe as I don't own a frying pan with a lid.
Cost - The two chicken breasts cost €2, the chorizo cost 75 cent, the red pepper was 95 cent, the can of peeled plum tomatoes was 67 cent, the rice was 30 cent, the onion was 28 cent and I am allowing 20 cent for the garlic, chilli powder and stock cube. That makes the total cost of the recipe €5.15. The recipe will easily serve 4 adults. Leftovers would make a nice cold lunch with some salad leaves.
The recipe requires Cajun seasoning. I didn't have any Cajun seasoning so I used a teaspoon of hot chilli powder instead. It has a few of the ingredients used to make Cajun seasoning in it and was the closest possible substitute I had in my kitchen. I found that the 350ml of chicken stock was not enough to make the rice tender and I had to add a bit more water to it as it was cooking.
Overall this was really easy to make and turned out really nice. I feel that it took less time than the 55 minutes stated in the recipe to make and would be happy to make it during the week after getting home from work. Next time I make it I'll add an extra pepper to increase the amount of vegetables being served.TIP - This recipe is already low fat, but I decreased the amount of fat further by not adding the olive oil when cooking. Instead, I cooked the chicken in a non-stick saute pan which is the only pan I had suitable for making the recipe as I don't own a frying pan with a lid.
Cost - The two chicken breasts cost €2, the chorizo cost 75 cent, the red pepper was 95 cent, the can of peeled plum tomatoes was 67 cent, the rice was 30 cent, the onion was 28 cent and I am allowing 20 cent for the garlic, chilli powder and stock cube. That makes the total cost of the recipe €5.15. The recipe will easily serve 4 adults. Leftovers would make a nice cold lunch with some salad leaves.
Monday, 13 February 2012
Chicken and veg bake with mashed potatoes
My husband prepared dinner tonight from a recipe that I taught him how to make - chicken and veg bake. We had leftover mash from yesterdays roast dinner with the chicken and veg bake.
I usually use a can of chicken soup for this recipe but we had none in the house so used a can of mushroom soup instead.
Ingredients
2 x chicken breasts (€2)
carrots (30 cent)
celery (50 cent)
broccoli (59 cent)
can of mushroom soup (€1 - estimate)
milk - I use around 250ml (50 cent - estimate)
slice of bread (5 cent)
Method
TIP - This recipe is already low in fat, but to lower it further I use low fat condensed soup.
TIP - To save time on making the meal tonight I prepared the veg in advance so that all my husband had to do was steam it. After preparing the veg I put it in a resealable sandwich bag and stored it in the fridge.
COST - The total cost of the recipe is €4.94. As this is doing dinner for two nights (we are having leftovers tomorrow) this means that the cost is only €2.47. Not bad, although the mash increases the cost slightly.
I usually use a can of chicken soup for this recipe but we had none in the house so used a can of mushroom soup instead.
Ingredients
2 x chicken breasts (€2)
carrots (30 cent)
celery (50 cent)
broccoli (59 cent)
can of mushroom soup (€1 - estimate)
milk - I use around 250ml (50 cent - estimate)
slice of bread (5 cent)
Method
- Prepare the veg and cut into chunks. Steam until almost soft and remove from the heat.
- Cut the chicken breast into chunks and cook in a non-stick frying pan.
- Heat the soup and add milk to it. Once is it starting to warm lift it off the heat.
- Make breadcrumbs with the slice of bread in a food processor.
- Put the veg in the bottom of a rectangular roasting dish. Put the chicken on top of the veg and then pour the heated soup on top of it. Scatter the breadcrumbs across the top. Put the dish in the oven.
- Heat until the breadcrumbs are beginning to brown. Lift out of the oven and serve.
TIP - This recipe is already low in fat, but to lower it further I use low fat condensed soup.
TIP - To save time on making the meal tonight I prepared the veg in advance so that all my husband had to do was steam it. After preparing the veg I put it in a resealable sandwich bag and stored it in the fridge.
COST - The total cost of the recipe is €4.94. As this is doing dinner for two nights (we are having leftovers tomorrow) this means that the cost is only €2.47. Not bad, although the mash increases the cost slightly.
Sunday, 5 February 2012
Chunky chicken and ham chowder
Our dinner tonight made use of some of the food we had in our freezer. At Christmas, the ham we got was very large (I had to get the butcher to cut it in half so that I could cook it!) and we had quite a bit leftover. So I sliced it and froze it to use in dinners early in 2012. I decided to use some of the ham this week, but didn't fancy having a dinner of meat, veg and potatoes both nights that I am having ham, so opted to make the chunky chicken and ham chowder from February 2006 issue of Goodfood dinner tonight.
TIP - Although the fat content of this meal is low to begin with, it is possible to lower it further by using fry lite spray in place of the olive oil and by using skimmed milk.
I made it earlier in the day for dinner later one. This worked out well, although I did find it necessary to add a bit of water as it becomes extremely thick when standing.
For me one of the best things about this chowder was the fact that I was able to give it to the baby as well without making an alterations. I just mashed the veg and finely chopped the meat before giving it to him. He really enjoyed it and actually ended up having some from his dads bowl as well!!COST - As I already had the ham leftover it is difficult to work out the exact cost for this recipe. The leeks were €1.32, the potatoes were 50 cent, the milk as 80 cent, the chicken was €2 and the peas and sweetcorn were about 60 cent. So, excluding the cost of the ham, this recipe was €4.62 for 4 servings (I have counted the baby and toddler serving as one, plus serving for lunch earlier in the day when I made it).
To be honest, I found that there was a lot of meat in it and I think that the next time I make it I will use one chicken breast instead of two, which will lower the cost a bit. I also think it would be possible to add some extra veg to it and make it last for a second night or lunches the next day.
Tuesday, 24 January 2012
Spicy sausage pasta
This is a quick and easy dinner that I used to make a while ago and had forgotten about. I've adapted from WW recipe I got a few years ago. This recipe serves 4, so I make it for dinner and we have the leftovers for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
fry lite cooking spray
1 red onion, sliced
1 red pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
1 green pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves
crush chilli (to your own taste - I use lots!)
150g chorizo, thinly sliced
punnet of mushrooms (chestnut mushrooms are lovely in this dish if you can get them)
400g can of chopped tomatoes
Method
The cost for this meal is quite low. The chorizo was € 1.50, the two peppers were 90 cent for both, the red onion was 23 cent, 66 cent for the can of chopped tomatoes, 23 cent for 250g of pasta and 99 cent for the punnet of mushrooms. I've added on an extra 30 cent for the fry lite, crushed chilli and garlic. The total cost is € 4.81.
As this was adapted from a WW recipe it is low in fat. In the old points system (pre-pro-points) it was 4.5 WW points per serving.
Ingredients
fry lite cooking spray
1 red onion, sliced
1 red pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
1 green pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves
crush chilli (to your own taste - I use lots!)
150g chorizo, thinly sliced
punnet of mushrooms (chestnut mushrooms are lovely in this dish if you can get them)
400g can of chopped tomatoes
Method
- Cook the pasta according to instructions, drain and keep warm.
- While the pasta is cooking, spray a large pan with fry-lite and fry the onion over a low heat until it starts to soften.
- Add the sausage, crushed chilli, garlic and peppers, turn up the heat and fry for a further 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, mix well and fry for a further 3 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the pasta to the pan and mix. Bring back to a simmer and serve.
The cost for this meal is quite low. The chorizo was € 1.50, the two peppers were 90 cent for both, the red onion was 23 cent, 66 cent for the can of chopped tomatoes, 23 cent for 250g of pasta and 99 cent for the punnet of mushrooms. I've added on an extra 30 cent for the fry lite, crushed chilli and garlic. The total cost is € 4.81.
As this was adapted from a WW recipe it is low in fat. In the old points system (pre-pro-points) it was 4.5 WW points per serving.
Saturday, 21 January 2012
Cream of scallion (spring onion) soup
Spring onions were on offer in Dunnes this week for 45 cent per bunch. I remembered seeing a recipe for Cream of Spring Onion soup in a recipe book at home, so bought 3 bunches to make it. I then set about the somewhat mammoth task of trying to find the recipe (note to self - must write down the name of the cookbook I see recipes I'd like to make in so that I can find them easier!). Anyway, I eventually found the recipe yesterday and set about making it to have for lunch today.
It tastes quite similar to leek and potato soup, so if you like it you should like this. The recipe is from 'The Soup Bible' published by Hermes House. The recipe is as below. I've added any alterations I made in brackets. The recipe serves 4-6 people and can be served hot or cold.
Ingredients
25 g/1 oz/2 tbsp butter
1 small onion
150 g/5 oz/1.75 cups spring onions, chopped (I used a bunch and half of the spring onions I bought in Dunnes)
225 g/8 oz potatoes, peeled and chopped
600 ml/1 pint/2.5 cups vegetable stock
350 ml/12 fl oz/1.5 cups single cream (I didn't use this, so my soup was really just spring onion soup, not cream of spring onion soup!)
30 ml/2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to season
Method
TIP To lower the fat of this recipe I didn't add the cream. It was still tasty. The fat content could be lowered even further by using fry lite instead of the butter.
Cost - Again, this is another recipe that was quite cheap to make as a result of the scallions being on offer in Dunnes. I used a bunch and half in this recipe, so that's 68 cent. The potatoes I had left over from a bag I had from a previous week, estimated cost 50 cent. I had a lemon in already as I had bought a tray of 4 for €1 two weeks ago. I used half of a lemon, so that is 12 cent. The onion was leftover from a bag I got for 49 cent, so 6.5cent for it. I've allowed 50 cent for the remaining ingredients, making the total recipe cost €1.86!
Obviously if I had added the cream this would have added quite a bit to the overall cost of the recipe, so omitting it kept the recipe under € 2 as well as lowering the fat.
It tastes quite similar to leek and potato soup, so if you like it you should like this. The recipe is from 'The Soup Bible' published by Hermes House. The recipe is as below. I've added any alterations I made in brackets. The recipe serves 4-6 people and can be served hot or cold.
Ingredients
25 g/1 oz/2 tbsp butter
1 small onion
150 g/5 oz/1.75 cups spring onions, chopped (I used a bunch and half of the spring onions I bought in Dunnes)
225 g/8 oz potatoes, peeled and chopped
600 ml/1 pint/2.5 cups vegetable stock
350 ml/12 fl oz/1.5 cups single cream (I didn't use this, so my soup was really just spring onion soup, not cream of spring onion soup!)
30 ml/2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to season
 |
| Step 1 |
- Melt the butter in a saucepan and add all the onions. Cover and cook over a very low heat for about 10 minutes or until soft.
- Add the potatoes and the stock. Bring to the boil, then cover again and simmer over a moderately low heat for about 30 minutes. Cool slightly.
- Puree the soup in a blender or food processor. (I used my hand blender so didn't need to do the first part of step 4)
- If serving the soup hot, pour it back into the pan. Add the cream and season with salt and pepper. Reheat gently, stirring occasionally. Add the lemon juice. (I don't add seasoning. I put salt and pepper on the table and let each person season their own instead)
- If serving the soup cold, pour it into a bowl. Stir in the cream and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Cover the bowl and chill for at least 1 hour.
- Sprinkle with the chopped spring onion greens or chives before serving. (I didn't bother with this)
TIP To lower the fat of this recipe I didn't add the cream. It was still tasty. The fat content could be lowered even further by using fry lite instead of the butter.
Cost - Again, this is another recipe that was quite cheap to make as a result of the scallions being on offer in Dunnes. I used a bunch and half in this recipe, so that's 68 cent. The potatoes I had left over from a bag I had from a previous week, estimated cost 50 cent. I had a lemon in already as I had bought a tray of 4 for €1 two weeks ago. I used half of a lemon, so that is 12 cent. The onion was leftover from a bag I got for 49 cent, so 6.5cent for it. I've allowed 50 cent for the remaining ingredients, making the total recipe cost €1.86!
Obviously if I had added the cream this would have added quite a bit to the overall cost of the recipe, so omitting it kept the recipe under € 2 as well as lowering the fat.
Oven baked chicken, tomatoes and baby potatoes
This is one of my favourite meals to make on a Saturday where I just do the prep work and through the dish in the oven, checking on it every now and then. It takes a while for the potatoes to cook in the oven, so you are best to leave it until a night are able to start dinner a bit earlier. I have often adjusted the amount of this dinner I make and served it to anything from 2 to 7 people.
Ingredients
Chicken breasts - 1 per person
Baby potatoes - allow 250g per person
Cherry tomatoes - at least 250g (I always put in as many as I have)
Red onion - 1 or 2
Dried basil - as much as you like
Garlic cloves - I like garlic so usually have at least 3 cloves
Olive oil
Method
You can use large tomatoes, but I have found that cherry tomatoes left whole are the tastiest way to make this recipe as they explode in your mouth when you put them in whole. Yummy! I always use the baby potatoes as I used large potatoes one day and I found that they went really mushy in the juice from the tomatoes and the olive oil. While still tasty, it wasn't as mice as it is when made with baby potatoes.
TIP If you want to make this mid-week you can speed up the time it takes to make by par boiling the potatoes before cutting them for 10 or 15 minutes. Drain and then cut them before putting them on the roasting tray. Dry them out in the oven for a minute before adding all of the rest of the ingredients, except the chicken breasts. Put in the oven for 10 minutes before adding the chicken breasts to the top of the dish.
TIP To lower the fat content in this meal, you can spray fry lite on the ingredients instead of using olive oil. I have done this in the past and it has been fine, but you need to stir it more often to make sure the ingredients don't catch on the bottom. I'd do a few sprays each time you remove the dish from the oven. You might find it better to cut the tomatoes in half if you are using fry lite as more juice from them will go to the bottom of the roasting tin, helping to prevent the mix from sticking.
Cost - This dinner was quite cheap for me to make. I used 3 chicken breasts at €1 each, 1 kg potatoes at 45 cent, 250g of cherry tomatoes 89 cent and red onion 23 cent. I'll allow a further 30 cent for the basil, olive oil and garlic cloves, making the total for this meal €4.87. It served 3
Chicken breasts - 1 per person
Baby potatoes - allow 250g per person
Cherry tomatoes - at least 250g (I always put in as many as I have)
Red onion - 1 or 2
Dried basil - as much as you like
Garlic cloves - I like garlic so usually have at least 3 cloves
Olive oil
Method
- Turn on the oven - I use gas mark 7 for this
- Wash the baby potatoes and cut them in half, or quarters (the smaller they are the quicker they cook). Put them in a large roasting tin. Drizzle with olive oil and put in the oven for 10 minutes to start them cooking.
- Wash the cherry tomatoes. Lift out the roasting tin and add the tomatoes to the potatoes. Mix well and put back in the oven for a further 10 minutes.
- Prepare the red onion(s) by cutting into large chunks. Slice or crush the garlic. (NB. Crushing the garlic can sometimes result in it burning) Remove the roasting tin from the oven and add the onion and garlic. Sprinkle the dried basil (as much as you want) and give a good mix. Add a bit more olive oil if needed. Put back in the oven until the potatoes are almost soft.
- Place the chicken breasts on top of the mixture and put the roasting tin back in the oven. After 10 minutes, remove from the oven and turn the chicken breasts. Mix the potatoes, tomatoes and onions under each chicken breast as you turn them. Put back in the oven until the chicken is cooked. Remove and serve.
You can use large tomatoes, but I have found that cherry tomatoes left whole are the tastiest way to make this recipe as they explode in your mouth when you put them in whole. Yummy! I always use the baby potatoes as I used large potatoes one day and I found that they went really mushy in the juice from the tomatoes and the olive oil. While still tasty, it wasn't as mice as it is when made with baby potatoes.
TIP If you want to make this mid-week you can speed up the time it takes to make by par boiling the potatoes before cutting them for 10 or 15 minutes. Drain and then cut them before putting them on the roasting tray. Dry them out in the oven for a minute before adding all of the rest of the ingredients, except the chicken breasts. Put in the oven for 10 minutes before adding the chicken breasts to the top of the dish.
TIP To lower the fat content in this meal, you can spray fry lite on the ingredients instead of using olive oil. I have done this in the past and it has been fine, but you need to stir it more often to make sure the ingredients don't catch on the bottom. I'd do a few sprays each time you remove the dish from the oven. You might find it better to cut the tomatoes in half if you are using fry lite as more juice from them will go to the bottom of the roasting tin, helping to prevent the mix from sticking.
Cost - This dinner was quite cheap for me to make. I used 3 chicken breasts at €1 each, 1 kg potatoes at 45 cent, 250g of cherry tomatoes 89 cent and red onion 23 cent. I'll allow a further 30 cent for the basil, olive oil and garlic cloves, making the total for this meal €4.87. It served 3
Thursday, 19 January 2012
Salmon, green beans and baby potatoes
Tonight we had a dinner mostly from the freezer. It went down really well and cleared a bit of space in our freezer. It also allowed me to use up the last of the green beans I had grown in the garden and frozen last year. To be honest, the beans were not at their best as they were frozen in the middle of September.
The baby potatoes were on offer in Dunnes and bought for 49 cent, the Salmon was bought when it was on offer and around €4. As the green beans were homegrown this dinner was quite cheap.
The baby potatoes were on offer in Dunnes and bought for 49 cent, the Salmon was bought when it was on offer and around €4. As the green beans were homegrown this dinner was quite cheap.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)