On the super-cheap

Here's a very tasty soup (stolen mostly from the back of the Goya dried split pea package) that by my account cost about $7.00 to make eight VERY hearty servings.

Split pea soup with turkey ham

1 package Goya dried split peas, sorted and rinsed
1/2 to 3/4 lb. whole turkey ham, chopped/diced (if you are trying to do this from pantry/staples only, substitute 1/2 lb. cooked crumbled bacon)
3 cans of low salt chicken broth, or homemade, and 4 oz. extra water
1/2 large or one small onion, chopped finely
2 carrots, chopped finely
vegetable oil

Put vegetable oil on medium heat and saute onions until soft. Add carrots and ham and cook until ham is browned a bit and heated through. Add broth, water, and peas and bring to a boil. Once boiled, cover and put on a simmer until peas are soft. Add more water if necessary for consistency and salt/pepper to taste.

Freezes VERY well and looks great in a bread bowl!!!

Got five minutes during "24"?

Or any other show you're vegging out to after the kids are in bed?

Cook up 4 cups of water with 2 cups white rice. Let air cool and refrigerate.

Next morning, you can warm it up with a little butter, milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, and raisins and have a great kid breakfast they'll die over.

Better yet, do the following for a FIVE MINUTE dinner that actually tastes good... I ALWAYS do this dinner if I've had a stir fry or anything that was "on rice" the night before - just double up the batch and your dinner is done for the next night. Plus it's about $1.50 a serving.

Homemade Shrimp Fried Rice, fast and cheap

Leftover rice cooked the night before
1/2 package frozen peas
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 lb. medium or large raw frozen shrimp, thawed, peeled & deveined
chopped scallions
garlic salt
soy sauce

Heat vegetable oil in pan over medium-high heat. Once oil is heated, place beaten eggs in pan and stir vigourously. Once almost set, add the shrimp and frozen peas and cook mixture until peas are soft and shrimp is pinked. Add leftover rice and mix together. Add scallions, garlic salt to taste, and soy sauce until rice takes on a light brown color. Stir occasionally - this is key. You want the heat high enough and the rice to sit in one place long enough to get a little crusty, but not too long that it burns. Scrape bottom of pan often to circulate. Serve immediately.

Enjoy the cheapness!!!

The prodigal blogger

Well, it should be noted that full-time working motherhood is a delicate balance. And, when you add a sick baby with RSV for a few weeks and a washer that has broken so you have to travel to clean onesies, well, menumaking goes out the window.

Back soon... hopefully... my body needs to get back on healthful menus (as I snarf my burger and chocolate milk).