So after quitting my job I took a long look at our budget and decided it was time for us to go back to meal planning. This is something I have done for a very long time but we take a break from when finances allow. However, now that we are back to a single income family of 5 it was time to start cutting back and reassessing our bills. I figured that there are many out there who could use this to help them as well, so I decided I will share with you what I have put together over the last few months. Below each recipe name will be the links to where I found the recipes; also some will have our own variations put up in separate blog posts, and others will have reviews.
I hope that this helps some of you, I know my family and friends all enjoy seeing these when I make them and following along when I make my own variations on recipes.
1: Creamy Pepperoncini Chicken toasted buns [ Also known as Mississippi Crack Chicken]
https://www.slurrp.com/recipes/creamy-pepperoncini-chicken-1649344357
This was amazing, We used the recipe as a guide but I will be sharing our own version of this one as a dairy free version.
2: Tacos– Ground Turkey instead of beef, you can also use ground chicken or a meat alternative. Nothing fancy just American Style Tacos, which are loosely inspired by Mexican street tacos.
3: Menemen– Turkish Scrambled Eggs [This hearty egg scramble gets its name from the Turkish market town of Menemen, a small town located just off the main highway of north Izmir.]
https://www.seriouseats.com/menemen-turkish-style-scrambled-eggs-tomatoes-chilies-recipe
Seriously, this was delicious!
4: Big Kale Pasta Salad
https://www.budgetbytes.com/big-kale-pasta-salad/
This is a great one if you want something different and new, we love a good pasta salad. Using this recipe just helped us take a classic family favorite and reimagine it.
5: Loaded hummus pitas
https://www.budgetbytes.com/loaded-hummus-pitas/
I love Beth’s recipes over at Budget Bytes, I actually have been inspired by many of her posts and food here recently. So you may notice more than one on this list and more to come.
6: Honey Sriracha Tofu with Rice
https://www.budgetbytes.com/honey-sriracha-tofu/
This was beyond amazing, we have never really experimented with tofu until the last few months. Like anything new it takes some practice and experimenting before you truly find how you enjoy it. We added this to our make again list.
7: Pizza Melts [ Grilled Cheese] and Pappa al Pomodoro [ tomato bread soup ]
https://www.budgetbytes.com/pizza-melts/
https://www.greatitalianchefs.com/recipes/pappa-al-pomodoro-recipe
I love a good grilled cheese, but sometimes you just want to change the classics and experiment a little. That is what we did with this meal, we took the Pizza Melt grilled cheese and went one step further adding in an old world style Italian soup to it. It was warm, delicious, and an instant hit with everyone!
8: Biscuits and Gravy with potato hash
https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/sausage-gravy-biscuits/
Okay this is where my southern roots starts to show along with a big percentage of Irish Ancestry. This is just one of those, feel good, deep down in your soul meals. It is a family favorite for sure.
9: Cauliflower Taco Skillet with Quorn
https://www.budgetbytes.com/beef-and-cauliflower-taco-skillet/
Oh look, it is another recipe that came to us from Budget Bytes- LOL!! Seriously, go follow her!
We did do something different with this recipe as I cannot have beef, instead we added in Quorn a meat substitute. Over all we were very happy with this recipe and will be adding it to our lists to make again.
10: Pesto Chicken and Vegetables
https://www.budgetbytes.com/easy-pesto-chicken-and-vegetables/
😉 This was really good! I am a sucker for anything that uses a lot of vegetables if you can’t tell. Plus add in a protein like chicken and this is already a winner in my book. We did opt for a red pesto instead of green though, our daughter preferred the red.
11: Spaghetti Bolognese with Quorn
https://www.quorn.us/recipes/meatless-spaghetti-bolognese
So this is the basic recipe from their site, which I feel like just about everyone should know how to make a simple Spaghetti Bolognese with or without meat. 😉 And to make it even more simple, grab a jar of your fave sauce and call it good! We love the Tomato Basil sauce from Lidl/Aldi
12: Tofu Scramble
https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/tofu-scramble-recipe/
Sooooooooo, in our Tofu adventures I had tried a Tofu Scramble at a Mexican Restaurant and really wanted to make our own at home. I was amazed how simple and delicious it was, it you want it to look like real eggs, just add in some turmeric to the Tofu! Seriously, mind blown! We added this to our make again list.
13: Left overs: Yep, Anything that was left over from two weeks that was still good made its way into our bellies one more time. I love a left over night especially if my body is yelling at me to slow down and take it easy.
14: Unstuffed Bell Peppers
https://www.budgetbytes.com/unstuffed-bell-peppers/
Warm, comforting and delicious! This is great for those who are not the biggest fans of bell peppers like our daughter, but love the stuffing that goes inside of the peppers. We used a ground pork sausage to make this but you could also use Italian sausage, or even a meat substitute sausage if you desire.
Hope you all enjoy this series!
Much Love and Many Blessings!
Mrs. B
LunaOwl 