Broccoli Cheese Quiche

It never occurred to me to serve quiche...long ago it had been categorized as a "fancy" dish to be reserved for special brunches and such. But then I learned how inexpensive they could be to make, and I was sold! Quiches can be used to get rid of the last of your leftover broccoli or asparagus from previous dinners, become a savory home for bacon or ham scraps, or turn "brinner" into something more than eggs and toast!

This recipe is for a broccoli cheese quiche, but you can substitute fillings and cheeses for whatever suits you! Any of the ingredients can also be exchanged for some of their lower fat counterparts.

Broccoli Cheese Quiche

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 1/2 cups frozen broccoli, thawed
1 frozen pie crust

Directions:

-Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
-Whisk together the eggs, milk, sour cream, thyme, salt and pepper. Be sure the eggs are well mixed in. Add the cheese and stir to distribute.
-Put thawed broccoli in the frozen pie crust. Pour the egg mixture over the broccoli. You may have to use a spoon to distribute the cheese a little, as it may settle on the bottom.
-Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes, or until cooked through and top is a golden brown.

TO FREEZE: Allow the baked quiche to cool. Cover with aluminum foil and then wrap in plastic. When you are ready to eat it, place the quiche FROZEN into a 375 degree oven for about an hour or until heated through.

TOTAL COST:

Eggs: $0.56
Milk: $0.14
Sour Cream: $0.50
Cheese: $0.75
Broccoli: $0.60
Pie Crust: $0.90
Seasonings: $0.15

GRAND TOTAL: $3.60 for 4 servings! Less than $1 per serving!

Sweet Potato Apple Muffins

Another great recipe that grew out of my need to get rid of some mashed sweet potato leftovers from Thanksgiving - these muffins bake up nice and soft, and anytime I can get both a fruit AND a veggie into my kiddo is a good time :)

Sweet potato Apple Muffins

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2 small apples, peeled and diced
1 cup leftover mashed sweet potato
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup milk
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla

-Preheat oven to 400 Degrees
-In a medium bowl, whisk oatmeal, flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
-In another small bowl, combine sweet potato, brown sugar, oil, egg, milk and vanilla, whisking to blend well. Pour over dry ingredients and stir to combine.
-Add apple dices, stir to combine.
-Scoop into muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Total Cost:
Oats: $0.12
Flour: $0.09
Apples: $0.40
Sweet potato: Free! (leftovers)
Brown Sugar: $0.15
Oil: $0.20
Milk: $0.04
Egg: $0.12
Vanilla: $0.04
Other ingredients: appx $0.15

Grand Total: $1.31 for 12 small muffins or 6 large muffins!

Basic Pancake Mix

I found this on Recipezaar.com and I will never buy another boxed mix again. I had to make a few small adjustments to the original recipe, since we like our pancakes a little thicker, but you can easily adjust the milk or flour amounts to your liking. I find it lends itself VERY easily to add-ins as well!

The original author also mentioned that you can pre-mix the dry ingredients and either store or give away as jarred mix gifts...another great and frugal gift idea :)

Basic Pancake Mix

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
2 Tbsp sugar (white or brown)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup milk (increase to 1 1/4-1 1/2 cups if you like thinner pancakes)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients.

Make a well in the center, and add the milk. Stir with a whisk until well blended and slightly thicker than your desired consistency.

Add eggs, vanilla, oil and any add-ins you like. Stir to combine well - you can add extra milk or flour at this point if you want to change the consistency at all.

Pour in 1/4 cup measures onto a hot griddle or pan. Cook until bubbly across the surface. Turn over and cook for an additional 45 seconds-1 minute. DO NOT TURN THEM AGAIN! (this makes pancakes rubbery!)

Total Cost:
Flour: $0.14
Sugar: $0.02
Baking Powder: $0.04
Salt: less than a penny
Milk: $0.12
Eggs: $0.24
Vanilla: $0.02
Oil: $0.06

Grand Total: $0.64 for about 8-10 large pancakes!

Applesauce Bread

This recipe is courtesy of HeavenlyHomeMakers - I adore this recipe because it's a nice break from my usual muffins, it's healthy, and I ALWAYS have applesauce on hand :) I like to do this recipe as mini-loaves, but it's tasty in ANY shape!

Applesauce Bread

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 cup rapadura or 1/2 cup honey
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. sea salt
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg
3/4 cup applesauce
2 eggs
1/4 cup butter, melted


Directions:
Mix dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add applesauce, eggs and butter. Stir well. Pour into a buttered bread pan or stone. Bake for 45-55 minutes at 350 degrees, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the loaf comes out clean.

Total Cost;
Wheat flour - $0.60
Honey - $0.75
Applesauce - $0.24
Eggs - $0.28
Butter - $0.27
Spices, baking powder, baking soda, salt - negotiable

Grand Total - $2.14

Sausage Oven Omelette

I put this recipe together while trying to come up for something to do with some Cheddarwurst sausage that I had bought on sale - it's a great breakfast-for-dinner or brunch dish and you can use just about any type of sausage you have on hand. Try it with breakfast sausage, regular kielbasa, or sweet italian sausage!

Sausage Oven Omelette

Ingredients:
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb sausage, cut into bite sized pieces
8 eggs
1/3 cup milk
1 cup grated cheese (any type)
1 small chopped onion
1/2 bag frozen broccoli, thawed and drained
salt and pepper (to taste)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease a 9x9 pan or casserole dish
Heat oil in skillet, brown sausage until almost cooked through.
While sausage is browning, whisk together eggs and milk until blended well. Add cayenne pepper if desired.
Add onion and broccoli to skillet, cover and cook for appx 3 minutes, remove from heat.
Stir sausage and vegetables, and 1/2 cup of cheese into egg mixture. Salt and pepper to taste
Pour into prepared casserole or dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top.
Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, or until eggs have set and top is lightly browned.

Total Cost:
Cheddarwurst sausage - $2.00
Eggs - $1.12
Cheddar cheese - $0.95
Milk - $0.06
Broccoli - $0.50
Onion - $0.20
seasonings - negotiable

Grand Total: - $4.83 for 6 servings - $0.81 per serving!

Muffin Mania

This muffin recipe is from Cat Can Cook - it's wonderfully versatile AND simple! It takes me all of 10 minutes to put together, and I can use any add-ins that I have on hand. The base recipe is with bananas, but you can really use anything. Check out the original post, the comments are chock full of suggestions! I include some of my other add-ins at the bottom of this post.

Banana Muffins

3 or 4 Large bananas, mashed (the more bananas the moister, so I use 4)
1/2 cup white sugar (original recipe calls for 1 cup, but I don’t like them too sweet)
1 slightly beaten egg
1/3 cup melted margarine or butter
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups flour

Directions:
Mix the mashed banana, sugar, egg and margarine together. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix together baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour.

Mix wet and dry ingredients all together, being careful not to over-stir!

Pour into greased muffin tins, and bake in 350 degrees oven for approximately 20 minutes. Enjoy!

TOTAL COST:
Bananas-$0.75
Sugar - $0.07
Egg - $0.14
Butter-$0.15
Flour - $0.14

GRAND TOTAL - $1.25 for 6 big muffins, or $0.20 per muffin

Add-ins that I've used (check back, I update this list anytime I try something new!):

• 2 mashed bananas, 1-1 1/2 cup sliced strawberries, 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 3 mashed bananas, 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 1 pint frozen blueberries
• 1-1 1/2 cup sliced strawberries, 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 2 cups shredded zucchini, 1/2 tsp each of cinnamon, nutmeg and ground ginger, 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups shredded carrot, 1 cup applesauce (replaces butter), 1/3 cup brown sugar and 1/3 cup white sugar (replaces all regular sugar), 1/2 tsp each nutmeg and cinnamon