Tips:

• If you don’t have a garbage disposal, place a colander in your sink at the end of your meal before you rinse the dishes. Then all the food scraps are caught in the colander and you don’t need to clean out the drain.
• Keep baggies of frozen cookies and brownies in the freezer for kids’ or anyone’s lunches. Place the cookies or brownies in the lunch sack and, between them and a frozen drink, you don’t need to worry about the lunch staying nice and cold.

Menu:

One Pot Ham Dinner*
Fruit Salad
Apple Streusel Muffins*
Brownie Marshmallow Bars*

Recipes:

One Pot Ham Dinner

1 fully cooked ham slice (1- 1 1/2 lb.)
4 medium potatoes,sliced
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 cups frozen cut green beans
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup water

In a large skillet, brown ham slice over medium heat. Arrange potatoes over ham. Add salt and pepper. Top with beans and onions. Combine soup and water, and pour over everything. Cook 2 minutes. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45-50 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Makes 4 servings.

Apple Streusel Muffins

1 pkg. (6 1/2 oz.) apple cinnamon muffin mix
1 large apple, peeled and diced
1/3 cup walnuts, chopped
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
4 1/2 tsp. flour
1 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted

Mix muffin mix according to package directions. Fold in apples and pour into greased muffin cups. Mix nuts, brown sugar, flour and butter and sprinkle some on each muffin. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Brownie Marshmallow Bars

1 pkg. fudge brownie mix
1 pkg. (10 1/2 oz.) mini marshmallows
2 cups (12 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter
1 Tbsp. butter or margarine
1 1/2 cup rice crispy cereal

Mix brownies according to package directions for fudge like brownies and pour into a 13×9 greased pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 28-30 minutes. Top with marshmallows and bake 3 minutes more. The marshmallows will not be completely melted. Cool.

Melt chocolate chips, peanut butter and margarine and stir until smooth. Remove from heat. Add rice crispy cereal. Spread on brownies. Chill for 1-2 hours before cutting.

Photo By: Marshall Astor

Related Photos

Tips:

• Quick Meatballs - add 2/3 cup of crushed seasoned stuffing mix to 1 lb. hamburger. Mix and roll into balls.
• Use up stir fry leftovers by adding a little soy sauce to the vegetables and rice. Then spread the mixture on a warm flour tortilla and roll burrito style.
• Keep a plastic knife in your canisters to level off things like flour or sugar.

Menu:

Confetti Chicken and Rice*
Garlic – Cheese Biscuits*
Frozen Fruit Fluff*

Recipes:

This recipe is especially quick if you use leftover chicken and rice in it. I call this type of recipe a dump and mix recipe. It calls for a lot of ingredients but is simple because you are just opening a lot of cans. It could be mixed up ahead of time to pop in the oven when you need it.

Confetti Chicken and Rice

1 can (10 3/4 oz.) cream of chicken soup
1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream
1/2 cup small curd cottage cheese
1 (3 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
3 cups chicken, cooked, cubed
3 cups rice, cooked
1 1/2 cup Monterey Jack or Mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chilies
1 can (2 1/4 oz.) sliced ripe olives, drained
1/8 tsp. garlic salt
1 1/2 cup crushed corn chips
2 cups shredded lettuce
2 medium tomatoes, chopped

Blend first 4 ingredients well. Add in next 6 ingredients. Pour into a greased 2 quart baking dish and bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until heated through. Just before serving, top with corn chips, lettuce and tomatoes.

Garlic – Cheese Biscuits
(from the Dining on a Dime Cookbook)

2 cups flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 Tbsp. chives (optional)
3/4 cup Cheddar cheese, grated finely
4 Tbsp. shortening
1 cup milk or sour milk

Mix flour, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, chives and Cheddar cheese in a bowl. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender or fork until it resembles cornmeal. Add milk, stirring just enough to combine ingredients. Do not over stir. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased cookies sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 10 biscuits.

Note: You could add bits of bacon or pepperoni to this recipe, too.

Frozen Fruit Fluff

3 medium firm bananas, sliced
1 can (29 oz.) peach halves, drained and diced
1 can (21 oz.) cherry pie filling
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1 carton (8 oz.) whipped topping

Combine everything but whipped topping and mix well. Fold in whipped topping. Pour into a 13×9 pan. Cover and freeze for 8 hours or overnight. Will keep in freezer 1 month.

For more quick and easy menus like these to help you make dinner quickly without stressing over making your own menus, check out our Menus On A Dime e-books!

Photo By: ohmeaghan

Related Photos

Be Kind To Yourself!

We have been hitting cleaning and getting organized hard the past couple of weeks so I want to stop and take a moment to tell you to take a breath and try not to become overwhelmed. I recently read this quote that I love. I can’t remember who wrote it or where it came from but it says, "Remember: You aren’t seeking perfection, just organization."

Your home doesn’t need to be magazine perfect. It just needs to be as comfortable, functional and as healthy as you are physically able to make it. Don’t drive yourself and your family insane trying to keep every toy off of the floor but do try to at least keep things comfortably under control, which means not having toys knee deep on the floor. When the toys have been there so long they have two inches of dust and are growing things on them, there’s a problem.

And once again, if you are sick, have sick children, are moving or have a newborn (no, a five year old is not considered a newborn) the normal rules don’t apply. Adapt them to your circumstances and do the best you can.

      -Jill

For a good excuse to give yourself a break, make a cup of tea or coffee, put up your feet and enjoy one of these yummy muffins. As an added bonus, your family will love the smell when they walk in the door!

Applesauce Muffins

2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 egg
1 1/2 cups applesauce
1/4 cup margarine, melted

Stir by hand until mixed. Don’t over mix. Bake at 425° for 20 minutes.

Topping

While baking the muffins, combine:
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 nutmeg

Melt 1/4 cup margarine, While hot, dip the muffins in margarine and then in the sugar mix.

*You can add some blueberries or cranberries to these muffins to kick them up a notch.

photo by: veganfeast

Related Photos

My Recipe For Homemade Rye Crisps

I had a loaf of rye bread that I got for Mike on clearance for .50. He never got around to eating and it was going to go bad. I decided to cut it up into very thin slices and make my own rye crisps.

I sliced them as thin as I could. Then I brushed them with olive oil. I sprinkled them with garlic, onion powder and salt. Then I dried them in the oven for about 30-45 minutes at 200 degrees.

They turned out great!

You could do this with any type of bread. I got about $8 worth of boxed crisps for .50!
Yum!

-Tawra

photo by: treehouse1977

Related Photos

St.Patrick’s Day is a couple of weeks away but I thought I would start early with the special St Patrick’s Day menus. Corned beef will be going on sale soon and there is no reason you need to wait until the "wearing of the green" day to have corned beef. For that matter, stock up on it for some other day.

Corned Beef Tips:

• Cut corned beef across the grain for more tender slices.
• Save juices and reduce. Dice leftover corned beef and make corned beef soup with leftovers.

Menu:

Irish Corned Beef Brisket and Cabbage
Irish Soda Bread
Blarney Stone Cookies

Recipes:

Irish Corned Beef Brisket and Cabbage

1 (3 lb.) corned beef brisket, plus seasoning packet
1 large onion, peeled
10 small (red) potatoes
15 baby carrots
1 head of cabbage, cored and cut into wedges
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Place brisket, seasoning packet and onion in a large Dutch oven or pot. Cover with water 6 inches above meat. Bring to a boil and boil for 30 minutes. Reduce to medium low or to a  gentle boil. Cover and cook for 3 1/2 hours. Remove onions, cut into wedges and put back in the pot. Add carrots, cabbage and then potatoes. Cover and cook 30 more minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove vegetables, but keep the meat in the juices until you’re ready to slice it so it won’t dry out.

Side Sauce

Mix the night or day before and then serve on the side with your corned beef.

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
2 Tbsp. horseradish
1/2-1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Irish Soda Bread

This Irish Soda Bread is great served with Irish stew. Eat leftover soda bread toasted or use for French toast.

1/2 cup sugar
4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. soda
3/4 tsp. salt
2 cups raisins
1 Tbsp. caraway seeds, optional*
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
1 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350° (175° C). Mix first seven ingredients. In a second bowl mix eggs, buttermilk and sour cream. Add liquid ingredients to dry, adding enough until flour is moistened. Knead 10-12 strokes. The dough will be very sticky. Place in a 9 inch cake pan. Cut a 4" X in the top. Brush top with milk. Bake for 65-75 minutes.

*Caraway seeds make it more authentic, but if you don’t like them or don’t have them, you can leave them out. You could also use 1 cup of raisins and one cup dried cranberries.

Blarney Stone Cookies

Add a couple drops of green food coloring to the dough of your favorite sugar cookie recipe. Sprinkle with green sugar* or frost with green frosting.

*Make green sugar by placing sugar in a container with a couple of drops of green food coloring and shake.

photo by: stuart_spivack

Related Photos

Menu:

One Dish Ham Dinner*
Glorified Green Beans*
Tossed Salad
Cheese Corn Bread*
5 Minute Peach Crisp*

Recipes:

One Dish Ham Dinner*

1-1 1/2 lbs. ham, cooked and thickly sliced
4 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced
Salt and pepper
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 (10 3/4 oz.) cream of mushroom soup
1/2 soup can of water

In a large skillet brown the ham slices. Layer with the potatoes, salt and pepper. Next layer the onions. Dilute soup with the water and pour over everything. Cook for 2 minutes. Reduce heat and cook about 45-50 more minutes until potatoes are tender.

*Cheese Corn Bread

1 pkg. (8 1/2 oz.) cornbread mix
1 tsp. minced onion
1/2 cup cheddar cheese

Mix cornbread according to package directions. Add onion and cheese. Pour into greased 8×8 pan or muffin cups. Baking as directed.

*Glorified Green Beans

1 small can green beans
1/4 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Saute mushrooms in oil. Add green beans and heat through. Place in serving dish. Salt and pepper to taste. Mix lemon juice and mustard and drizzle over beans.

*5 Minute Peach Crisp

1 (29 oz.) can sliced peaches, drained
2 envelopes (1.6 oz.) cinnamon spice instant oatmeal
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) margarine, melted

Place peaches in 1 1/2 quart greased baking dish or pan. Mix all the rest together and sprinkle on top of peaches. Bake at 425° for 15 minutes or until golden.

photo by: jerseyjj

Related Photos

Pecan Pie Muffins

1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup (stick) butter or margarine, melted

Combine first 3 ingredients. In separate bowl beat eggs until foamy and add butter. Pour egg mix into dry ingredients and blend until moistened. Don’t over blend. Pour into muffin tins with papers. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes.

For lots more quick and easy home cooked recipes, check out our Dining On A Dime Cookbook.

photo by:futurestreet

Related Photos

Quick Breads

• You don’t always need to make your quick breads into loaves. I use my banana bread recipe to make muffins. I also frost them with vanilla or cream cheese frosting to make cupcakes. These don’t dry out quite as quickly as a slice of bread, are easier to serve and kids will almost always eat a cupcake with frosting where they might turn up their noses at a slice of bread.

• Turn your regular banana bread into a Christmas bread by adding candied fruit to it like red and green cherries.

• Add butterscotch chips to your pumpkin bread for a different twist.

• When making quick breads, sprinkle your greased pan with sugar instead of flour to prevent sticking. This prevents that gooey white on the bottom of the loaf.
• Make your quick breads the day before you need them. Wrap them well and put them in the fridge. They will slice easier and leaving them in the fridge gives the spices and flavors a chance to meld together.
• If your bread happens to last long enough to dry out, try toasting it in the toaster for breakfast or for a late night snack with hot chocolate or coffee. Be sure to slather it in butter, honey butter* or cream cheese while it is still warm!
• Sometimes we would love to have homemade biscuits but don’t have the time to roll them out. You can get that same great taste with less work by making drop biscuits. Mix baking mix biscuits as if making regular biscuits but, instead of rolling them, take a large spoon and drop on a greased cookie sheet. Bake as you would regular biscuits.

  If you don’t have a biscuit cutter, remember you can use a glass (flour the edge before cutting) or just gently roll the dough into a rectangle and cut with a knife into squares.

• Make quick breads in the waffle maker just like you would waffles! Serve with honey butter. 

Photo By: whitneyinchicago

Related Photos

Creative Homemade Zucchini Bread Idea!

From: Andrea

I very rarely turn on the oven during the summer… Why pay to run the a/c to fight against the heat from the oven ? We all like homemade zucchini bread but I didn’t want to turn on the oven just to use up some zucchini from the garden.

I always like the end piece of the loaf of zucchini bread so I decided to try making it in the waffle iron and we LOVE it! If someone likes the gooey middle, they may not prefer them this way.

I have also made Amish Friendship Bread in the waffle iron. I think you could do this with most ‘sweet’ breads. If we have cornbread in the summer, I make that in the waffle iron as well. Hope this idea helps someone else out.

P.S. I did not vary anything in the zucchini bread recipe.

photo by: mr_t_in_dc

Related Photos

Menu

Chili
Corn Dog muffins
Relish dish

Recipe

Make these muffins next early in the day and warm in the oven for a few minutes before serving.

Corn Dog Muffins

2 pkg. (8 1/2 oz. each) corn bread mix
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 cup milk
2 eggs
4-5 hot dogs or 6-7 little smokies, sliced or chopped

Mix dry ingredients. Stir in wet ingredients just until moist. Don’t over mix. Batter will be thin. Add hot dogs and pour into paper-lined muffin tins. Fill about half full. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Photo By: Chippycheeky

Related Photos