Bacon Spinach Penne

This recipe hails from AllRecipes.com - it was fast, inexpensive and delicious! I had never thought of wilting my spinach with the hot pasta, what a great time saver!!

Bacon Spinach Penne

Ingredients:
1 (12 ounce) package penne pasta (or other pasta)
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
6 slices bacon, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 10 oz bag of fresh spinach, torn (or one 10 oz bag baby spinach)

Directions:
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta, and cook until tender, 8 to 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Place bacon in the skillet, and cook until browned and crisp. Add garlic, and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook until heated through.
Place the spinach into a colander, and drain the hot pasta over it so it is wilted. Transfer to a large serving bowl, and toss with the remaining olive oil, and the bacon and tomato mixture.

Total Cost
Pasta - $0.89
Bacon - $1.00
Diced Tomatoes - $0.85
Spinach - $1.00
Olive Oil, Garlic - $0.20

GRAND TOTAL: $3.94 for 6 servings!

Sweet and Savory Crockpot Pork Roast

This gem landed in my crockpot on a day when I needed to throw something in the crockpot quickly, and had to use whatever was available in the pantry. The combination of sweet and savory flavors pleased all the palates in my house!

Sweet and Savory Pork Roast

1 1/2 to 2 lb pork roast
1 packet dry onion soup mix
1 1/2 cups apple juice
3-4 carrots, peeled and sliced
3-4 potatoes, peeled and quartered

Place the pork roast fat strip up in the bottom of a 6 quart crockpot. Arrange carrots and potatoes around the roast. Pour the apple juice over everthing, then sprinkle the dry onion soup mix over everything. Stir the veggies lightly to coat with the soup mix.

Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours, or on high 3-4 hours, until the roast is no longer pink.

Total Cost:
Pork Roast - $3.60
Soup mix - $0.50
Apple juice - $0.10
Carrots - $0.75
Potatoes - $0.80

Grand total - $5.75 for 4-6 servings!

Honey Ginger Pork Chops

I found this on Recipezaar.com, while searching for simple recipes that wouldn't require anything that wasn't already in my pantry. This recipe will serve well as either an overnight marinade, or as an OAMC dish!

Honey Ginger Pork Chops

Ingredients:
4 pork chops
1 tsp ginger
2 garlic cloves
3 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup honey
2 Tbsp butter, melted

Directions:
-Prick pork chops with a fork and rub the ginger and garlic on both sides of each chop.
-Melt the butter in a small saucepan, then add the soy sauce and honey and cook for 1-2 minutes on low or until blended.
-Pour over chops and marinate in the fridge overnight.

(**if making for OAMC, allow the marinade to cool, then place chops in a gallon freezer bag and pour marinade over them. Seal and keep frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw completely and cook as directed below)

-When ready to cook, remove chops and discard marinade. Grill 8-10 minutes per side, turning several times.

(These can also be baked in a shallow baking dish at 375 degrees for about 20-30 minutes, depending on the thickness of your chops)

Total Cost
Pork Chops: $4.00
Honey - $0.55
Butter - $0.14
Seasonings - $0.15

Grand Total: $4.84 for 4 servings

Orange-Apricot Pork Chops

This was another great find on Once a Month Mom - the original recipe hails from one of my personal favorites, A Year of Crockpotting and it translates well as either a fresh cooked meal or OAMC freezer stash.

You can find the pumped-up OAMC version (4 meals worth) in the April Printable Menu from Once a Month Mom...the individual recipes are in a scrollbar at the bottom of the document.

Orange-Apricot Pork Chops

Ingredients:
6 pork chops
1 cup apricot jam
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges (and juice!)

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine jam, sugar, salt and spices.

For fresh cooking:
Place pork chops in the crockpot, spoon jam mixture over the chops. Pour entire contents of mandarin oranges can (juice and all) over the top. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4 hours.

For OAMC/Freezer prep:
Place pork chops and contents of mandarin oranges can together in a gallon freezer bag. Pour jam mixture into the bag. Seal and Freeze. To cook: thaw, then follow regular cooking directions as for fresh cooked.

Total Cost:
Pork Chops - $4.50
Jam - $1.00
Oranges - $0.50
Sugar - $0.20
Spices - $0.20

Grand Total - $6.40 for 6 servings - or $1.07 per serving!

Chicken (or beef, or turkey) Biscuit Wraps

I found this recipe over at Recipezaar.com when I was looking for something new to do with shredded chicken. I tend to find the family-sized packs of chicken leg quarters on sale and you can only roast them so many times!! You can easily substitute chicken with shredded/ground turkey, beef or pork - or anything you have leftover from another meal!

Chicken Biscuit Wraps

Ingredients:
3 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 beaten egg
1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup diced white onion
1 large red pepper, stemmed & chopped
1/2 cup finely sliced celery
1/2 carrot, shredded
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons mayonnaise
1 (17 1/3 ounce) can Pillsbury Grands refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
Pam cooking spray

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-In large mixing bowl, add 3 cups meat, egg, water, mayonnaise, onions, pepper, celery and grated carrot. (If it is bland, add salt and pepper or other spices to taste.) Cover and refrigerate.
-Slice biscuits horizontally, into 16 rounds. Use a serrated blade to slice through dough. Roll each half in flour on both sides.
-Take a floured glass or rolling pin and flatten and widen each round to 5 or 6 inches or wider.
-Spray Pam on a baking sheet.
-Proportion the filling between the 16 rounds. Use a slotted spoon when filling, so liquid drains.
-Take one half of biscuit round and fold over to cover and seal only the edges after folding.
-Carefully lift with spatula to baking tray.
-Bake about 17 to 18 minutes. Watch the top of the rounds, tops should be lightly browned and dry.

Serve with your choice of sauce, gravy, or dressing (like pot stickers!)

Total Cost:
Chicken: $2.98
Egg: $0.14
Onion: $0.15
Pepper: $0.30
Celery: $0.10
Carrot: $0.10
Mayonnaise: $0.10
Biscuits: $0.75

Grand Total: $4.62 for 8 servings, or $0.57 per serving!!

Easy Garlic Pork Chops

Another great find from Allrecipes.com - not only is it fast but there are only two steps :) Great meal for a work night when time is short and mouths are hungry!

Garlic Pork Chops

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
4 boneless pork chops
1 clove minced garlic
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk


1. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. add the pork and garlic and cook for 10 minutes, or until the chops are well browned on both sides. Remove the chops and set aside.
2. Stir the soup and milk into the skillet. Heat to a boil. Return the chops to the skillet and reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the chops are done. Serve with couscous or rice.

Total Cost:
Oil - $0.03
Pork chops - $4.00
Garlic - $0.05
Soup - $0.50
Milk - $0.08

Grand Total: $4.66 for 4 servings

Crockpot "Fried" Rice

This recipe comes from one of my all time favorite recipe resources, A Year of Crockpotting - if you haven't been to her site you MUST stop by...especially if you have a crockpot that you've been neglecting. How does 365 tested recipes sound? :)

I liked this recipe because I too am always looking for ways to use up either leftover cooked veggies, or the remnants of not-quite-used-up bags of frozen veg in the freezer. The meat is totally optional, I priced it out as meat-free because I usually have specific plans for those leftovers anyway...it's the veggies that get me!

Crockpot Fried Rice

Ingredients:
-2 cups leftover rice/quinoa
--3 T butter
--2 T soy sauce
--2 t worcestershire sauce
--1/2 t black pepper
--1/4 t kosher salt
--1/2 diced yellow onion
--1 cup of whatever frozen or fresh vegetables you have on hand.
--leftover meat (optional)
--1 egg
--sesame seeds for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Plop everything on in there together. Mix it around, and cook on high for 2-3 hours, or on low for 3-4. You are only heating everything up and cooking the egg.

Total cost:
Rice - $0.40
Butter - $0.21
Onion - $0.10
Veggies - appx $0.25
Egg - $0.14
Seasonings - appx $0.15

Grand Total - $1.25 for 4 meatless servings! (under $3 with leftover meat!)

Pork Chops with mushroom sauce

Easy peasy pork chops! I like to sautee some extra mushrooms and add them in the last 5 minutes of cooking.

Pork Chops and Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients
1 Tbsp Olive oil
4 pork chops (boneless or bone-in)
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp white pepper
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 onion, chopped
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
3/4 cup milk
Cooking spray
1 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray baking dish with cooking spray
-Heat oil in a skillet. Rub chops with mixture of salt, pepper and garlic. Brown in skillet on both sides, remove from pan and place in baking dish.
-Brown onions in skillet. Pour in soup and milk, stir until blended and starting to heat up. Pour over pork chops
-Cover and bake for 30 minutes. If desired, while pork is cooking, brown sliced mushrooms in the skillet and add for the last 5 minutes of cooking.

Total Cost:
Pork chops - $3.00
Onion - $0.15
Milk - $0.05
Soup - $0.50
Spices - $0.20
Mushrooms - $1.50

Grand Total - $5.40 for 4 servings, or $1.35 per serving)

Caraway Pork Chops

This is what happens when I buy a new spice - I go hunting for fun ways to use it! This is another Recipezaar offering, and it gave me an excuse to use more of the caraway seeds I just bought. I cut down the quantities of apples and onions after reading some of the comments on the recipe, and made this a 4-serving dish to fit the size of our family. But it's easy enough to shrink or expand the recipe to meet your own needs!

Caraway Pork Chops

Ingredients:
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 apples, peeled and sliced
2 Tbsp honey
2 tsp caraway seeds
4 pork chops
Garlic
Salt and pepper
Dijon mustard

Directions:


1. Preheat oven to 350 deg F.
2. Layer onions and apples in the bottom of a shallow baking dish.
3. Drizzle honey on top and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon caraway seeds.
4. Prepare chops by sprinkling them with garlic salt and pepper and spreading mustard on them.
5. Place chops on apples and sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon caraway seeds.
6. Cover and bake 1 hour.

Total Cost:
Onion - $0.20
Apples - $0.30
Pork Chops - $3.60
Honey, seasoning, garlic - appx $0.30

Grand Total - $4.40, or $1.10 per serving

Oven Baked Country Ribs

I found this recipe at Heritage Schoolhouse while looking for something to do with the country-style ribs that I find on sale quite often. It's a BBQ-style sauce, but leaves my crockpot open to make some yummy side dishes!

Oven Baked Country Ribs

Appx 4 servings
Ingredients:
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1/2 tablespoon mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 1/2 - 2 pounds pork ribs

Directions:
Combine ketchup, water, brown sugar, vinegar, worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt and pepper. Heat a large lightly oiled skillet over medium-high heat. Add ribs and sear until browned. Place ribs in a single layer in a baking pan or casserole dish. Pour half of the sauce over the ribs, reserve remainder. Bake ribs at 350° for 2-3 hours. Turn and baste meat every 30 minutes with remaining sauce.

Total Cost
Ketchup - appx $0.45
Brown sugar - $0.10
Vinegar - $0.05
Pork Ribs - $2.60
Other seasonings - $0.05 total

Grand Total - $3.25, or $0.82 per serving!

Herb Crusted Pork Tenderloin

This is a Paula Deen recipe so I knew right away it would be great. Even though this is for a full pork tenderloin, it can also be used as a seasoning rub for chops - just reduce the heat to 425 from the start and cook for about 15-20 minutes or until the chops are cooked through. Make sure you score the edges in 2-3 places so that they don't curl up!

Herb Crusted Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:
1 (4-pound) boneless pork loin, with fat left on
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoon olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme or 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon dried basil or 2 teaspoons fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried rosemary or 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary


Directions:
Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.
Place the pork loin on a rack in a roasting pan. Combine the remaining ingredients in a small bowl. With your fingers, massage the mixture onto the pork loin, covering all of the meat and fat.
Roast the pork for 30 minutes, and then reduce the heat to 425 degrees F and roast for an additional hour. Test for doneness using an instant-read thermometer. When the internal temperature reaches 155 degrees F, remove the roast from the oven. Allow it to sit for about 20 minutes before carving. It will continue to cook while it rests.

Total Cost (using boneless chops):
Pork tenderloin chops - $1.88
Oil - $0.04
Garlic- $0.12
Salt, seasonings - negligible

Grand total: $2.04