If you don’t have a cow costume then you can download a free starter kit from Chick-Fil-A. 

Yummy, yummy! 

image from chick-fil-a

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

• Boil several pounds of chicken at one time and divide it up in to pound bags and then freeze them. (saves $)
• Cheat and find the rotisserie chickens from Kroger or Food Lion and get them right before they are thrown out and are discounted.  Usually this is around 8 pm.  (saves time and $)
• If you are really cheap, dumpster dive. (saves $)
• Find chicken in a can when it is on sale.  The grocery game is a great way to do this.  That was how I did my chicken the other night. (saves time and $)

Hope this helps.  Do you have any other tips?

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Ingredients:

• chicken (I used 4 boneless breasts)
• 1 can diced tomatoes (I used the ones with green chilies)
• green salsa (such as the kind made by Herdez)
• minced garlic
• sliced onions
• sliced bell peppers
• salt and pepper (I used Goya Adobo seasoning, which is one of our faves!)
• 14 oz can of kernel corn, drained
• 15 oz can of black beans, drained and chopped or mashed

In a crock pot, put in your chicken, tomatoes, about 3/4-1 cup of green salsa, about 1 cup of sliced onions, some sliced bell peppers (if you wish), about 3 cloves minced garlic (I used the bottled minced) and salt and pepper (or Goya Adobo seasoning). Cook the chicken for about 3-4 hours, until tender.

Take the chicken out of the crock pot and set it on a plate or cutting board to let it cool some. Drain the juice out of the vegetables, reserving some of the liquid. Put the vegetables back into the crock pot. Add the can of drained corn and drained black beans. Cut up or shred the chicken and put it back into the crock pot. Add a little more of the green salsa (about 1/4 cup) and some of the liquid from the vegetables that you drained (about 1 cup). Stir all this together and allow it to cook for another 15-20 minutes.

Use the chicken in tacos, burritos, or quesadillas. Yummy!

We had enough of this chicken to feed our family of four and then some to freeze for another meal. I also served this recipe with Spanish rice. We topped our tacos with cheese and sour cream and a bit of fresh, homemade salsa (pico-de-gallo). Sorry, I wish I had a picture to share.

Enjoy!

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

During the hours of 7 am-10:30 am, McD’s is giving away the chicken biscuits. During the hours of 10:30 am-7 pm, they will giving away the chicken sandwiches. Don’t forget, you need to purchase a drink to get this sandwich for free. The sandwich usually costs about $2.79, so although you have to purchase something it seems to be a worthwhile deal.

Don’t forget about the free Dunkin’ Donuts iced coffee that is also on May 15. No purchase is necessary to receive the free coffee.

Do you have any freebies to share?

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

How you choose to cook the chicken is up to you.  I would recommend boiling it or cooking it in a skillet with a little butter.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a bowl, mix the chicken, half of the cheese, and a dash of the spices together. Spray pan(s) with cooking spray. Unroll croissants and fill with chicken mixture. Then re-roll and lay in pan. In a sauce pan, heat soup, water and milk together until hot, then pour over croissants. Top with remaining cheese. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes.

Some tips:

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Place chicken in the bottom of a crock pot. Sprinkle taco seasoning over chicken. Pour salsa over seasoned chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Finish with a sprinkle of cheddar or pepper jack. Leftovers are good shredded and served on tortillas. Sometimes I’ll use diced tomatoes with chili peppers if I don’t have salsa in the house.

I also enjoy making the easy salsa chicken.  Here’s a variation of the recipe that we enjoy:

To make easy baked salsa chicken you just put your boneless chicken in a rectangular cooking dish and pour some salsa on top.  Bake for 30-45 minutes (or until chicken is about done) at 350 degrees.  Then spread some cream cheese on the chicken and sprinkle it with shredded cheese (cheddar, Mexican, pepper jack).  Bake for about 10 more minutes until the cheese is melted. 

I serve this with Mexican rice and a side dish of refried beans or black beans.  My husband really likes the cream cheese on the chicken.

Stay tuned because I’ll be posting how to use a variation of this recipe for easy chicken taco salads.  And if I forget, just give me a nudge. 

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

I have finally decided to have several winners and to announce them one at a time with their special recipe. It’s kind of like first place per category. So, here goes . . .

The winner for best chicken casserole is Laura from Laura Williams’ Musings.  I’m all for a good chicken casserole, especially one where I can slip in some veggies for the kids without them noticing.     Here’s Laura’s recipe.

Easy Chicken & Vegetable Bake

1-1/2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast cut into bite size pieces
3 cups of cornbread stuffing mix
1-1/2 cups of water
4 TBSP butter
1 10-3/4 oz can of condensed cream of chicken soup
1/3 cup of sour cream
1 bag of frozen broccoli florets, thawed and drained
1 14.5 oz can of sliced carrots, drained
1/2 of a medium onion chopped
2 TBSP of Grey Poupon Harvest Coarse Ground Mustard
Shredded cheese (for topping)
oil for frying

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Pour just enough oil into a large skillet to cover the bottom. Heat on medium until hot. Combine the onions and chicken and cook until the chicken is done and no pink shows. 

While chicken and onion mixture is frying, bring the water to a boil and add the 4 TBSP of butter.  Once water is at a rolling boil, add the cornbread stuffing mix.  Turn off the heat and allow to cool for about 5 minutes.

Once chicken is done, use a large mixing bowl and combine the chicken/onion mixture along with the stuffing to the rest of the ingredients and stir to mix thoroughly.

Pour the mixture in a baking dish, top with shredded cheese, and bake for 15-20 minutes. Keep an eye on it as not to let the cheese burn. You want it to be melted and a little brown but not burnt.

Click on Laura’s site to see a picture of the casserole.

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

My hunny loves french onion soup.  I found a new recipe that is supposed to taste like Apple Bee’s French Onion Soup.  Hubby will be thrilled.

I’ve made shepherd’s pie before, but never like the Easy Shepherd’s Pie recipe suggestion here.  This one doesn’t have vegetables in it, so maybe my kids would eat it.

I’ve tried this 7 Layer Bean Dip at parties and get togethers.  Now I’m glad to have this simple and yummy recipe for myself. 

If you’re looking to eat for cheap and healthy, then try this recipe for Hearty Quesadillas.  Sounds good to me!

It’s nice to have some homemade once in a while.  This recipe for zucchini bread sounds delicious.

This recipe for Lemon Cream Jelly Roll has me salivating this morning.  I think I just gained 2 lbs by looking at it.  lol

Here’s an easy recipe for Chicken Marengo.  I’m always looking for easy recipes, how about you?

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Imagine how thrilled I was when I tried Perdue Perfect Portions.  Each fillet is perfectly sized and individually wrapped for fast and even cooking.  I was amazed when I began to open the fillets and saw that they’re of even thickness.  Of course, I was also impressed when I didn’t find any fat or tendons to cut off of the breasts.  It was a girl’s dream come true!

The first time I cooked the breasts I baked them in the oven using a cuban sauce.  My husband (who prefers red meat) said, “Now this is how chicken is supposed to taste.”  Yay!  Score!  I made more of these for my parents this weekend.  This time I made oven fried chicken.

The Perduce Perfect Portions are perfect for small families or singles.  I was thinking just how great they would be for a college student who is trying to be thrifty and cook for themselves, but doesn’t want to waste food.

Perdue has recipe suggestions on their website.  You’ll also find food handling tips and other helpful information.

Have you tried the Perdue Perfect Portions?

Post from: Thrifty Mommy