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Meal Planning

Meal planning at it’s finest and the recipes to boot!

Christmas Budget Brunch – Yummy & Frugal

Christmas Budget Brunch

Looking forward to Christmas brunch this year?  Me too!  I love the Holidays and food is a very important part of all the celebrating.  After watching the kids open gifts, a yummy brunch is a great way to feel full inside and out.  Prepare your brunch with love and the family will love it!

Are you on a budget this Christmas? Try my Christmas Budget Brunch and enjoy saving money and eating well with your family this year. #Christmas #Christmasmenu #Christmasrecipes
Christmas Brunch on a Budget! Enjoy!

Maybe you are hosting guests and would like to have something to offer them as they wake up on Christmas morning.

I’m thinking of memories of Dad making his infamous pancakes, sausage scent filling the house and that special syrup reserved only for Holidays, Mom would whip up.  #makingmehungry

Christmas brunch is a special time to sit as a family and remember what the Holidays are all about.  After spending money on gifts, decorations, and Christmas cards, it is usually the last thing on one’s mind…to buy more food for the morning.

If you enjoy living a frugal lifestyle or the Holidays are hitting your budget hard this year, this post will help you come up with a great brunch, that will break your belt buckle and not your bank!

Let’s try to keep our cost down to under $12 for our entire Christmas brunch. This brunch will easily feed six hungry mouths.  Here are some awesome food ideas that will wow and keep your loved ones, big and small, full all Christmas morning.

**This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase I will receive a small commission, so thank you so much!!!

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What is a Split-Meat Meal? Eating on a Budget – Spaghetti & Tacos

SPLIT MEAT MEALS – Eating on a Budget

 

 

Split Meat Meals- Spaghetti & Tacos
Split Meat meals – Spaghetti & Tacos

What is a split meal? Do you often cook dinners on a budget?  If so, my split-meat meal idea is perfect for you! Make your spaghetti and tacos this week, using only one package of meat!

Split meat meals are great for families trying to save money on food and stay healthy. You are using half the meat for both meals and filling yourself up with other items such as vegetables or bread.

I started my split meals when my husband was buying our ground turkey from Costco. The packages of meat were bigger, so I would make two meals out of one meat pack! My two go-to meals for splitting are spaghetti and tacos! (Although you could do Chili and add extra veggies)

So my split meal is just that! I split the meat and drum up two meals with one meat package and meal prep.

This works best for a family of four with younger kids. My kids are ages six and four and do not mind if their spaghetti sauce or tacos don’t have as much meat. Plus if you start this when they are young, then they are used to eating their meals with less meat as they grow.

Related:

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What Do I Do With All of This Leftover Turkey! Turkey Recipes

Leftover Turkey
Leftover Turkey

Are you cooking a turkey for Thanksgiving this year or hosting? You are bound to end up with leftover turkey. With recipes estimating over 1 pound per guest, there is always turkey left at the end of the Thanksgiving meal.

I have hosted Thanksgiving three times so far and I am sure I have more to come. Yet, I have to admit, I was super nervous cooking the turkey my first time. However, I later realized, cooking a turkey is super easy. You just need to prep your turkey and pay attention to the meat thermometer and timing. My first bird turned out juicy and succulent. My guests raved  I even sent home leftover bags with several of my guests. However, I still ended up with piles of turkey I was left eating for days after and the plain turkey was getting old after Black Friday.

So what is a girl to do? Find some amazing recipes to use your turkey up! I love saving money and since Thanksgiving day turkey isn’t cheap, I hate wasting any bit of it!

And I am a turkey lover! My husband… Not so much! So I am left eating the majority of our leftovers. However, we are about to convert you with some of our leftovers, with my two boys.

Need a few ideas so that yummy, juicy bird does not go to waste?  Here at I Heart Frugal we believe in using as much of the food as possible, in order to continue with our frugal living habits, which saves you money!!!

Left Over Turkey Recipes:

1. Turkey Sandwich –  Load up your favorite bread (I love multi-grain), add a little mayo, tomato, lettuce, and cheese (I like provolone with turkey)  and you’ve got lunch or dinner that is bound to be a winner!

Pro Tip: Taking leftovers for lunch is a HUGE money-saver!

2. Turkey Soup – Now that the weather is getting colder, everyone loves to warm up with a yummy bowl of soup. Use your bird to replace the meat in any chicken soup recipe or use the turkey bone to make your own broth and enjoy in any recipe that calls for broth!

3. Turkey Pot Pie-  Sick of the regular old chicken pot pie? Why not use turkey? Make a basic dough or Pillsbury biscuits, add some veggies and cream of chicken soup and bake them up! Homemade pot pie doesn’t have to be difficult! Here is an amazing pie crust recipe from All Recipes to try with your pot pie!

4. Cold Turkey Salad – Add your turkey to lettuce, dried cranberries, walnuts, blue or feta cheese! Top with a little raspberry vinaigrette dressing and you will have a dish even the kids will love! (We will have to skip the dressing for my oldest son. He likes everything plain!)

5. Hot Turkey Salad – Yum! This is a recipe my Great-Grandma used to make!

Quick Recipe:  Add 3 Cups diced turkey, 1 cup thinly sliced celery, 1 cup shredded cheese, 1/4 cup chopped black olives, 1 tablespoon chopped onion, 1 teaspoon salt, 2/3 cup Miracle Whip and stir!  Sprinkle with shredded cheese and top with crushed potato chips.

6. Give Away Leftovers – than the gift of giving during the holiday season.  Buy some freezer bags and send your guests home with some leftovers of their own!  They will leave happy and you will cut down on wasted food! A win, win!

Leftover Turkey Recipes Conclusion

Whatever it is you do with your Turkey, this year, I’m wishing you a joyful, peaceful Holiday Season with good food, good family and good friends and love in your hearts! Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Related Posts:

  1.  Yummy and Cheap Pulled Pork
  2. Easy, Budget-Friendly Tuna Noodle Casserole
  3. Budget-Friendly $75 Dinner Meal Plan

Easy Stuffing for Less! Spruce up Stove Top for $5.38

Spruce up Stove Top Stuffing

Thanksgiving Stuffing
Spruce up Stove Top this Thanksgiving

Are you on a budget this Thanksgiving?  Are you stressed out about the strains of hosting?

There is so much thought and effort that goes into hosting Thanksgiving dinner at your house.  The menu, the cleaning, and let’s not forget the food budget!

That’s enough to give a busy mom and headache! Ouch!

One way to save money (think less stress) this Thanksgiving is to use Stove Top Stuffing as your main side dish! I have used this recipe for a few years and my guests raved about it!

This recipe is a quick, easy way to spruce up your Stove Top and you will save money because you are using Stove Top! Yet, you will still have a dish that your guests will love!

Both times I made this recipe, there was nothing left at the end of Thanksgiving dinner, so I guess it was a success.

I’m wishing all of you the best this Holiday Season and I’m hoping my recipe will help lighten the cooking burden and financial burden hosting Thanksgiving can bring!  Let’s try this and see how many compliments you get this year!!

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Related Thanksgiving/Food Posts:

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How to Make Cheap Pulled Pork – Slow Cooker Recipe

How to Make Cheap Pulled Pork – Slow Cooker Recipe

Crockpot Pulled Pork Recipe #crockpot #pulledpork #slowcooker #recipe #dinnerrecipe

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Recipe:

Pulled pork is one of my favorite slow cooker recipes. The way I make it is easy and yummy.  There are many other recipes out there with more thought and effort, but I am a mother of two small kids and just don’t have the time to wear the “gourmet chef” hat right now.

I like to cook dinners that are fast, easy, and frugal! This one is a little higher priced than some of my other recipes in my two-week meal planning post, but when you are making tuna noodles for under $3 and Chili for under $4, you can afford to spend a tad more on pork and sweet barbecue sauce!

So let’s begin the slow cooker dump, sit back and watch our latest Gray’s Anatomy episode (yes, I still love that show!), and let our slow cooker do all the work! In the end, you will have a great meal the family will love and the cooking will happen while you take a load off!  Slow Cooker plugged in? Here we go!

For more crockpot recipes, head over to this post: 70 Slow Cooker Recipes Perfect for Fall and Winter

or check out Slow Cooker Soup Recipes to Know Your Socks Off

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link I may be compensated but if you choose not to, feel free to browse or carry on with your cooking! My posts are here to help and any money I make is just a bonus! Thanks!

What you will need

  • 1 1lb package of pork – I buy Market Pantry center-cut pork; however, some people use pork shoulder(cheaper). It is up to you but the center cut is already cut and is less fatty, which is healthier for the fam!
  • 1/2 an onion sliced  – Pro Tip: Cut the entire onion up when you get home from the store and use the other half for another recipe
  • 1/2 bottle of Sweet BBQ sauce (Update: My son and I have been making our own pulled pork BBQ Sauce and it is so easy to make – See recipe below)
  • Around a tablespoon – Salt, pepper, and paprika for seasoning

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Recipe Directions:

1. Turn on your crockpot and set it to four hours on high. Spray your slow cooker with cooking spray for easy cleanup.

2.  Add onions to slow cooker

3. Season each side of pork with salt, pepper, and paprika ( I do a light coating of each)

4. Put the pork on top of your onions

5. Add BBQ sauce

6. Stir after about an hour and a half into cooking.

7. Let it all cook on high for four hours – Sit back, Relax!!

img_0461
Easy, cheap pulled pork recipe

8. Check and Shred. Your pork will turn a lighter color as shown in the picture below, and shred very easily with a fork.

 

Easy, Cheap Pulled Pork
Yummy, Cheap Pulled Pork

 

Pulled Pork
Easy, Cheap Pulled Pork

Yummy & Cheap Pulled Pork

Easy Slow Cooker Pulled Pork - Cheap and Yummy #pulledpork #recipes #dinnerrecipes #porkrecipes #slowcooker #slowcookerrecipes
Easy Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Cheap Pulled Pork Final Notes…

Serve this yummy pork on a bun or open face on a piece of bread.  I like to serve with corn as a side dish!  Enjoy and watch the faces of your family as you serve! You are bound to get a smile.

What is your favorite slow cooker recipe? Please leave me a comment. I would love to hear from you!

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Suggested Reading:

  1. Budget-Friendly Meal Planning
  2. 50 Cheap Meals that Will Fill Up Your Family
  3. 50 Make-Ahead Tailgate Foods for your Tailgate Menu
  4. 7 Easy Dinners for the Lazy Girl
  5. Chili-Fall Budget Meal Under $4
  6. Budget-Friendly Two-Week Dinner Meal Plan – Under $75
  7. $40 Dinner Meal Plan Your Family Will Love
Easy Pulled Pork
Easy Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

 

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