Menu Plan Monday

We are at the end of the groceries from our last monthly shop, so this is the time of the month to get creative. Last month with the rising price of groceries, I had enough money in the budget for three weeks of meals, so I knew this time was coming. We were able to get some free food during this month, so that definitely helped. 
Here are some meals I can make this week, although they may change up as we will be getting groceries in the next week.
I have one more package of the plant based burgers that Bailey got for free after an Ibotta rebate, so I will make a meal out of those one day. We had them for dinner on Friday and they were delicious. We would definitely buy them again. 
I have two cans of chicken breast meat and plenty of mixed vegetables on hand. I can make a sauce and pie crust from scratch to make a chicken pot pie for one day. If I don’t want to make a pie crust, I can always make a biscuit topping for the pot pie. 
We always have beans on hand. I have pintos, great northern (soup beans), and navy beans on hand. So, we can have beans and cornbread for dinner one night along with some ham or I could make baked beans. 
We have some canned beef on hand that I can make a meal out of as well. I thought about making BBQ sandwiches, but would need to make the BBQ sauce from scratch. I have all the ingredients for that on hand, so that shouldn’t be any problem. 
We can also have a big vegetable stir fry this week, which is one of our favorite meals to have. And another good meal would be to have a baked potato night. 
We have all of the items needed to make breakfast for dinner one night too. I could make a quiche, pancakes or waffles, and/or eggs.
We also have plenty of rice, elbow macaroni and spaghetti on hand for those types of meals. I even have a couple of bean and rice packets I could make one night. 
We also have several cans of salmon to make salmon patties one day. And we have plenty of delicious tarter sauce to make to go with them. 
It still surprises me how many meals we can make from what we have on hand. We wouldn’t have to do any grocery shopping this week and still have plenty of food to make meals. That is what I love about The Pantry Principle. There is always something we can make for dinner. 
How about you? What kind of meals will you be making this week?
Belinda ~ Living within our Means ~ My Linktree

Self Care Sunday

Abbie Paulhus

When I was married we attended church regularly and referred to Sunday as the Lord’s Day because it was the first day of the week and we would spend that time at church. It was a time of rejuvenation, which gave us renewed hope and energy for the coming week. 
We can still spend Sunday like we did back then taking time to care for ourselves. This gives us the opportunity to stop and take in all that surrounds us, take time to pamper ourselves, and renew our spirits for another week. 
What do you have planned for self care today?
I’m going to pamper myself a little bit. I gave myself a haircut, so I plan on washing my hair and pampering myself a little bit. I also plan on doing some reading and I may watch some YouTube videos on personal growth. 
Belinda ~ Living within our Means ~ My Linktree

Frugal Friday #2 of December 2021

Welcome to Friday!
My Frugal Week
The mailman couldn’t deliver a package to our mailbox the other day, so I went to investigate and we ended up going to town to drop off packages and made a Walmart run. Bailey was able to get us some free plant based burgers via Ibotta. 

Last week Burger King celebrated their 65th year in business and celebrated by allowing everyone to order one Whopper for 37 cents. Which was the original price of the Whopper when they first opened. 
We put up our Christmas tree on Sunday and I wrapped the presents I’m giving and placed them under the tree. I’m still waiting on one present in the mail, but other than that I am done shopping for Christmas. 
We hung laundry on the clothing rack to dry rather than run the dryer. 
Question of the Week
Why are people surprised at the cost of produce when it is out of season? One way people save money is to eat with the seasons. 
Here In Tennessee the season for strawberries is in May. If you want to save money, buy what you can afford when they are in season and preserve them however you like and then enjoy them all year long. That way you won’t have to pay $7 per pound for them In December when they are out of season. 
On the Blog...
I updated my Cornbread Dressing recipe page to include directions on how to make the cornbread. Bailey has been making a list of recipes we want to make for Christmas and thought it was confusing the way I had it, so hopefully it makes better sense now. 
Saving Money In My Frugal Kitchen
We did all the usual things, used up leftovers for other meals, cooked from scratch, kept up with the dishes and cleaning kitchen so I want to go in there and cook.
Meals This Week
Friday: Hamburgers, Onion Rings, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Onions
Saturday: Tacos! (One of my favorites)
Sunday: Chciken Fajitas, Corn Tortillas, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Onions
Monday: Ham, Baked Potatoes, Stir Fried Vegetables, Corn
Tuesday: Homemade Pizza, Salad
Wednesday: Sticky Pineapple Chicken, Rice, Stir Fry Vegetables
Thursday: Potato Casserole using hamburger and a can of Fiesta Nacho soup I had lurking in my pantry. I served it with carrots and green beans. 
Saving on Entertainment
This week I’ve been watching Farm Cooking with Nan on Facebook. She has a sweet disposition and I enjoy watching her cook. 
What I've been Reading This Week
Southern Living 34 Easy Christmas Cookies
Freebies
Bailey brought home Suave body wash, Clorox wipes, and the plant based burgers all for free after rebate from Ibotta this week. 
That is all the news to report on our frugal week in Tennessee. Thank you for dropping by, you are always welcome here. We would love to hear about your week in the comment section. 

Belinda ~ Living within our Means ~ My Linktree

Menu Plan Monday

Good morning! Here is a list of meals that we will be having this week. Come back on Friday to read about the side dishes I served with each meal. Until then, I hope you have a wonderful week. 
TacosBarbara G’s Beanie WeeniesPineapple Sticky ChickenChicken Stir FryHam and Potatoes Soup Beans and Cornbread

Belinda ~ Living within our Means ~

Frugal Friday ~ December 3, 2021

Welcome to Friday! 
My Frugal Week
I stayed home on Black Friday and didn’t even look at the sale ads. Money is tight this year, so I didn’t want to shop unnecessarily. 
Bailey did go to a thrift store as I saw in the paper they are closing until spring and all their clothes are $1.00 now until the last day on December 3rd. The shop owner had already disposed of all of his womens clothing though, which was the main reason Bailey went, so she only came home with five mens pieces. 

On Saturday one of the local churches was having a “Loaves of Love” bread giveaway. We came home with a bag of Pepperidge Farm bread and buns and a gallon of milk. 

I used the “make an offer” option on eBay to save myself $8.00 on a present for Christmas. They may not always accept my offer, but this time they did. 
Earning Money
I listed one thing for sale on eBay this week. I need to try and list at least one thing per day.
Avoiding Spending
I didn’t avoid spending this week as I bought a Christmas present. 
Saving Money In My Frugal Kitchen
As I mentioned last week I shredded the zucchini and froze three bags of it. I also made two loaves of zucchini and carrot bread on Saturday. The recipe is below if you’re interested. 
I made Ham and Cheese cups for breakfast one day. This is a recipe that Cheryl shared with us on her blog, Cheryl’s Frugal Corner. 
Meals This Week
Friday: This was the day when I cooked the free turkey we received at the church on Saturday. I used my GE roaster and used lots of onions and Herbs de Provence. 
The label said a 13 pound turkey should cook for 3 & 1/2 to 4 hours. I checked it at 2 hours, the timer was popped up and my meat thermometer was reading 185 degrees, so it was done. 
Saturday: Turkey Enchiladas ~ I doctored up the turkey meat and made it into enchiladas, which I normally make with chicken.  I was a little concerned that people would notice, but no one was the wiser. I also used some turkey to make BBQ sandwiches and the turkey hater in the family said they were delicious. hehehe 
Sunday: We had enough enchiladas from yesterday to enjoy them again today. I made a nice green salad to go with it and had some corn on the side. There is one serving left for someone’s lunch this week too.
Monday: Cheddar Sausages on Buns, Oven Fries, Salad, and the last of the corn. 
Tuesday: It was movie night, but I had an afternoon nap, so lunch was really late. I had a pound of ground beef thawed, so I just made a quick batch of tacos for late lunch/early dinner. 
Wednesday: Hawaiian Chicken, Yellow Squash, Buttered Rice. I cut the squash up with an onion and one tablespoon of butter and microwaved it for five minutes. It was really good. 
Thursday: I made Bean and Cheese Enchiladas and instead of covering them with enchilada sauce, I covered them with a small packet of Hormel chili my Mom gave me. It was a big hit. 
Recipe of the Week
Credit: Maria’s Mixing Bowl
Carrot Zucchini Bread
Ingredients:

3 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups zucchini grated

1 1/4 cups carrots grated

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup walnuts chopped (optional)

Directions:

Place cleaned carrots in food processor and pulse until shredded.

Repeat with zucchini. 

Beat together the eggs, sugar, and oil.

Add the all the other ingredients and beat well.

Pour into 2 greased and floured 9 x 5 loaf pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour.

Saving on Entertainment
I’ve been watching Shoestring Jane on YouTube. She reminds me a little bit of Frugal Queen and put up a good video on having a frugal Christmas. She also has a Facebook group called My Second Hand & Fugal Life and also has the Shoestring Cottage blog if you’re interested. 
That is all the news to report on our frugal week in Tennessee. Thank you for dropping by, you are always welcome here. We would love to hear about your week in the comment section.
Belinda~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree