Wednesday, July 3, 2013

40+ meals for less than $8 a day!

I saw on Pinterest, which led me to www.whoneedsacape.com, that a mom prepared 40 meals in 4 hours. I was excited by this post because mealtime was becoming the bain of my existence. All I could wonder is what we were going to eat for lunch and dinner. None of my previous attempts to plan meals worked and I was willing to try anything.

I approached 40+ meals in 4 hours as a personal challenge. I made 37 meals in 5 hours but later realized that I used too much meat in some recipes and had a lot of leftovers. Think of it this way, an actual chicken only has 2 breasts, 2 thighs and 2 wings so try not to use more than this in a recipe that calls for chicken.

Go to www.whoneedsacape.com for a master grocery shopping list but you may have to do some of your own research to determine how long certain frozen items last in the freezer or deep freezer; the type of freezer makes a slight difference.

I've also included the MASTER GROCERY list that I used BELOW. All recipes can be cooked on low between 6-8 hours in a CROCKPOT.

My favorites are Mongolian beef, Curry Chicken, Pollo Guisado (Stewed Chicken) and Ropa Vieja. Those were the most delicious to date.

Ultimately, I spent $272 on groceries and made 37 meals. That's $7.35 per meal! I've attached the recipes.


BJs & Local Supermarket Prices

  •  3 cans of Diced Tomatoes    6 @     $6.29
  • 72 Hefty 1-gal Storage bags              $8.49
  • Soyvay Teriyaki sauce                      $3.29
  • Agave Nectar                                    $6.49
  • 1 Sweet Baby Ray Buffalo Sauce     $1.99
  • 2 Sweet Baby Ray BBQ Sauce        $2.00
  • 2 Real Lime                                       $3.98
  • Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb                  $4.99
  • Lipton onion soup (4 or 6 pack)        $5.99
  • Italian Dressing                                 $3.00
  • Pataks Chicken Tikka Masala 2@    $4.99
  • Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard            2@ $6.99
  • Goya Sofrito                                     $3.99
  • Garlic Stuffed Olives                        $6.99
  • Brown Sugar  (4lb)                           $2.99 
  • 12 pk boneless chicken breasts         $20.81
  • 12 pk boneless chicken breasts        $20.36
  • 12 pk boneless chicken breasts        $18.39
  • 12 pk boneless chicken breasts        $23.56
  • 12 pk chicken thighs                        $10.14
  • 30pk chicken wings                         $17.04
  • 4 Pork Tenderloins                           $15.09
  • 2 split chicken breasts (4lb)              $13.00
  • 4 lb beef stew chunks                       $16.20
  • Top round steak                                $17.08
  • Baby back ribs (2 racks)                   $15.10
  • Bag of frozen peas                            $6.49
  • bag of frozen peppers and onions     $5.99


                                                         Total: $271.68

Other spices needed (I already had):
  •   cumin
  • ground mustard
  • ground nutmeg
  • ground thyme
  • dried oregano
  • salt
  • pepper
  • allspice 
  • soy sauce
  • Worcestershire sauce
  • Ketchup
  • All purpose flour
  • 2 c. plain greek yogurt
  • 1 quart of heavy cream
  • 2 cans (20 oz) diced pineapples
  • Curry powder
  • chili powder
  • cayenne
  • paprika
  • garlic salt
  • Onion powder
  • sesame seeds
  • 2 fresh onions
  • 20 fresh garlic cloves
  • 2 oranges
  •  fresh ginger
  • 3 bags baby carrots
  • garlic oil
  • vegetable oil
  • olive oil
  • peanut oil
  • balsamic vinegar
  • white vinegar
  • Dried Chipotle peppers

 RECIPES: (REPLACED all HONEY with AGAVE)

·     Agave Spice-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin (See pic) X2

    BBQ Ribs (see pic) X2
  •     Cook on low 6-7 hours and then broil in oven for 5 min for char


·      Jerk Chicken X2
  • 2 skinless chicken breasts
  • 1c. water
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg &  allspice
  • 1 tsp salt, cayenne pepper & ground ginger
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp ground thyme
  • 1 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 1/2 c. frozen onions and peppers

·      Curry Chicken (my recipe) X3
o   4 breasts
o   3 tbsp curry powder
o   2 c. frozen peas
o   1 can diced tomatoes
o   1 c. heavy cream
o   1 tbsp garlic salt
o   1 tsp ground black pepper
o   1 tbsp garlic oil
·      Chicken Tikka Masala X2
o   2 breasts
o   1 jar patak’s tikka masala mix
o   1 c. yogurt
    1 tsp cayenne pepper or 8 oz of pineapple juice (it will cut the acidity)

Or you can follow recipe below.

·      Buffalo Chicken Wings X3
o   Pour Sweet Baby Ray's Buffalo sauce onto wings until they are covered
    • Bake covered for 45 min at 350 degrees F
    • Bake uncovered for 15 min (bake longer as needed so that skin is crispy)
    • Broil for 5 min 

·      Pollo Guisado (stewed Chicken) X2
  • 1/2 GOYA Sofrito container
  • 1/2 can tomato sauce
  • 3 chicken breasts
  • 1-1 1/2 c. of water


·      TeriyakiChicken X2
o   4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
o   small bag of baby carrots
o   1 20 oz cans of pineapple, undrained
o   4 garlic cloves, chopped
o   1 medium red onion, cut into chunks
o   1 cup Teriyaki Sauce
·      OrangeChicken X2
o   1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs (cut into bite size pieces)
o   3 tbsp peanut oil
o   juice of 2 oranges
o   1 tsp fresh ginger
o   3 tbsp Soy Sauce
o   handful of cashews (as garnish)
·  Chipotle Lime Chicken X3
    • 1 lb Chicken Breast
    • juice of 4 small limes
    • ½ tsp cumin
    • 1 tsp dried chipotle pepper
    • ¼ tsp onion powder
    • 3 tbsp olive oil
    • 2 handfuls chopped fresh cilantro
·      Garlic & Herb Marinated Chicken X3
o   4 breasts
o   1 c. Italian dressing
o   3 tbsp Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herbs
o   1 red pepper
·      Ropa Vieja (old clothes)/Shredded Steak (see pic) X3

·      Peruvian Beef Stew (see pic) X 1

·      MongolianBeef X3
o   1 lb. stew meat
o   2 tsp. olive oil
o   1 onion, thickly sliced
o   1 tbsp. minced garlic
o   1/2 cup soy sauce (I used wheat free tamari)
o   1/2 cup water
o   1/2 cup brown sugar
o   1/2 tsp. fresh minced ginger
·      Agave Mustard Chicken Thighs (see pic) X3

·      Lechon (pork tenderloin) (see pic) X2

GOOD LUCK!!!!


Sunday, June 23, 2013

Krafty Kid Fun

Creating portable games that can fit in a tin are a great way to keep your children entertained while traveling! You can get as creative as you want.

I used an old tin from a magnetic poetry set but have seen others use an Altoids tin. I've mixed and matched pieces from existing games lying around the house. The checkers magnets are from a backgammon set. The purple outlined cards, purple putty, paper die and blank sheets came from a fast food kids meal. The cards have challenges like come up with a silly song, tell a knock knock joke, etc and are double sided. This translate into limiting little idle hands.

I handmade the checker, tic tac toe and leafy dice game in the picture below. I even added a few magnetic words so my kindergartener and soon-to-be first grader can practice constructing words.

If you have an iPhone or android phone, then I recommend that you download the FREE PBS kids APP for shows on the go during small shopping trips and even in-the-car entertainment. My toddler loves it.

Taking a few board books along also helps.



Sunday, June 2, 2013

Shea Butter = Better Body

For those who aren't familiar with shea butter, it's a creamy product that is smooth like creamy peanut butter and is made from the nut of the Shea tree native to west Africa. Shea Butter is great for eczema, burns, psoriasis, stretch marks --I swear mine almost disappeared-- and other skin conditions. I still use it on myself and my family! It costs about $7 USD for 32oz (946mL).

Even National Geographic was raving about it. Apparently, other countries use Shea butter for food product which is a testament to it being truly all natural and non-toxic.

Just be careful because the yellow color can stain white clothes or sheets. It's difficult to wash out of the whites.

I love using Shea butter and am a little upset that it has become such a fad with the mainstream lotion companies. They probably only add an extremely small amount but this is the pure raw uncut stuff. 



Body Butter Recipe:
8 oz. Organic Raw Unrefined Filtered Shea Butter
4 oz. Organic Coconut Oil
4 oz. Sweet Almond Oil
1/4 oz. essential "scented" oil (ex: lavender, peppermint, eucalyptus, etc)

1. Melt Shea butter and coconut oil in a double boiler. Remove from heat until temp is below 60 F

2. Stir in the sweet almond oil

3. Place oil mixture in freezer for 20 min or until the mixture is partially solid

4. Remove the mixture from the freezer, add the essential oil and mix for 10 min

5. Place the mixture in the freezer again for another 10 min,
then whip until a butter like consistency is achieved.

6. Place the butter in a clean jar --you can use those clear travel jars or anything you choose-- which you may store away from heat and humidity.