My Frugal Kitchen: What We Ate This Week

We did not grocery shop this week as we had plenty of food at home. All meat in this week's menu was bought earlier in the summer on markdown and frozen for later use. 

Here is a list of what I planned on making for dinner this past week: 

 
1. Chicken 

2. Tacos 

3. Pork Tenderloin 

4. Hamburgers

5. Spaghetti

6. Pizza

7. Grilled Chicken

Drinks Available:

1. Water

2. Iced or herbal tea, sweet or unsweetened

3. Lemonade

4. Green Tea

5. Grape or Orange Juice

Breakfast Options for this week: cereal, oatmeal, eggs & toast, yogurt, and fruit options were grapes, cherries, peaches, cantaloupe, and blueberries. Yogurt parfaits were also an option.   

And here is what we actually made for dinner this week: 

Sunday: This was a busy day in the kitchen this week. I set chicken out to thaw and decided to make a special chicken dish using some marked down half and half we bought this week. I also had some yellow squash I needed to use and made a squash casserole. I also made a blueberry peach crumble using this recipe from McCormick. 

Here is the recipe I made with the chicken: 

Creamy Garlic Chicken

Ingredients:

2 or 3 large chicken breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons butter divided
1 whole head garlic cloves peeled
1/2 cup chicken broth or stock
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cups half and half
1 pound linguine

Seasoning: 

2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 cup flour
Salt and pepper 

Instructions

To make the seasoning, combine flour, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano and basil in a small bowl; season with salt and pepper, to taste.

In a gallon size Ziploc bag, add chicken, olive oil and seasoning mixture, shaking to coat thoroughly.

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.

Add the olive oil and 1 tbsp of the butter to a skillet over medium-high heat.

Once the pan is hot, saute the chicken for 4-5 minutes/side or until it's nice and golden. Take the chicken out of the pan and set it aside.

Reduce the heat to medium, and add the rest of the butter to the pan. Let it melt and then add the garlic cloves.

Cook them for 3-4 minutes, stirring often, until they're lightly browned on the outside.

Add the chicken broth, lemon juice, and garlic powder to the pan.

Let it bubble for around 4 minutes or until the liquid is noticeably reduced.

Stir in the half and half and add the chicken back into the pan.

Let it cook for another 5 minutes or so, until the sauce is reduced and the chicken is cooked through.

Monday: Took Italian sausage out of the freezer to thaw and made spaghetti for diner. This was served with a side salad and garlic bread.

Tuesday: I took one of the pork tenderloins we bought on markdown and made that in the Instant Pot and served it with mashed potatoes and green beans with onions. 

 
Wednesday: My daughter wanted hamburgers, but we were out of buns, so we compromised. I made hamburger steaks with homemade gravy that really turned out to be Salisbury Steaks.  These were served with Mashed Potatoes and Green Peas.

Thursday: We had Homemade pizza and I made a side salad to go with it. 

Friday:  We still didn't have any hamburger buns, but did have some bread like Texas Toast so I made Patty Melts for dinner. These were served with Potato Salad and cucumber slices with ranch dressing for dipping. 

Saturday: Grilled Chicken Salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, french fried onions, cheese, and romaine lettuce. 

Let's inspire each other with our dinner menus. What was on the menu in your home this week?

 Belinda 

~ Living within our Means ~ 

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