Money/Time Saving Recipe #2: Roast Chicken & Stuffing

We are on a tight budget in my house right now, and in an effort to save money and time I'm working on making wallet-friendly dinners that are big enough to at least make lunch the next day and, at best, also freeze for later. (Please keep in mind that I have a family of three, so you would need to increase the size of each recipe if you have a larger group to feed.)

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Roast Chicken w/Yummy Stuffing
Time: 2 hours (about 30 minutes active)
Makes: 4-6 Servings


Ingredients:

7lb Whole Roaster chicken (preferably organic and locally & humanely raised)
salt

2 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 large carrot, shredded
1 stalk celery, finely diced
1/2 tsp salt
white pepper, to taste
3/4 cup water or chicken stock
1/4 cup dried cranberries, diced
1/4 cup raisins or prunes or apricots, diced
1/4 cup walnuts, diced
Chopped fresh herbs (I like sage)
5 cups cubed stale bread


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Apply salt liberally to chicken. Let sit while you prepare stuffing.
3. In large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat.
4. Add onion, carrot, celery, and salt. Cook, stirring often, until onion is clear and soft.
5. Add pepper.
6. Add water or chicken stock and dried fruit and nuts, cook until simmering.
7. Remove from heat. Add chopped herbs and bread.
8. Toss/stir until well combined.
9. Stuff chicken and place on roasting rack. (Place extra stuffing in small baking dish and set aside.)
10. Cook chicken for about 1.5 hours. When there is about 20 minutes left, put the remaining stuffing in the oven to heat and brown.
11. Once cooked, remove stuffing from chicken and stir in with the stuffing that cooked separately.
12. Carve chicken, and serve.

I served this with baked sweet potatoes and broccoli. Adding sweet potatoes is very easy. Just scrub, wrap in aluminum foil, and place in the oven with the chicken. Large sweet potatoes take just over an hour to cook.

Make sure to save all leftover chicken and the chicken skeleton for chicken soup! (Recipe coming soon)

Money/Time Saving Recipe #1: Three Bean "Chili"

We are on a tight budget in my house right now, and in an effort to save money and time I'm working on making wallet-friendly dinners that are big enough to at least make lunch the next day and, at best, also freeze for later. (Please keep in mind that I have a family of three, so you would need to increase the size of each recipe if you have a larger group to feed.)

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Three-Bean "Chili"
(Adapted from Rachael Ray's recipe Veg-Head Three-Bean Chili)
Time: 30-40 minutes
Makes: 8 servings

This recipe is not spicy, and therefore kid-friendly. (Which is why I said"Chili"-it's really much more like a bean stew.) If you're looking for more spice, add 1-2 diced jalapeno peppers and hot sauce.


Ingredients:

Olive Oil
1 Medium onion, diced
2 large bell peppers (any color), diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups beer and/or chicken or vegetable stock
1 32-ounce cans crushed or diced tomatoes
2 14-ounce cans black beans
2 14-ounce cans kidney beans
2 14-ounce cans refried beans
1 small bag frozen corn, defrosted
1 Tbsp ground cumin
2 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp salt

Possible Toppings:
Avocado
Cheese
Sour cream
Green onions

1. Heat olive oil in large pot or dutch oven, over medium heat.
2. Add onion; cook 2-3 minutes until softened.
3. Add bell peppers, garlic, and salt; cook 2-3 minutes until softened.
4. Add beer, stock,tomatoes, cumin, and chili powder; cook until simmering.
5. Add black beans, kidney beans, and corn; cook until simmering.
6. Add refried beans; cook and stir until refried beans have softened and are evenly distributed.
7. Enjoy!

This is particularly delicious served with cornbread. My favorite toppings are avocado and green onions. After serving dinner, I set aside some chili and the rest of the cornbread for lunch. I take the remaining chili and freeze in a muffin tin, and then transfer to a freezer bag. This way, you can heat all of it for a family dinner or just an individual serving for yourself.