Inexpensive dinners?

Milliechel67

I totally meant to post this earlier but forgot. My cousin and I are doing a challenge to plan a week of eating for $33/per person.  I am totally slacking on my meal planning and I mostly know what breakfast and lunch will look like but I still haven't sat down to figure out dinners.  If you have any inexpensive dinner ideas, please share!  And if you're interested in why we're doing it or if you want to try it yourself, here are the details...

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5420/p/salsa/web/common/public/content?content_item_KEY=9057

karma007

Okay, this is interesting....When my daughter was small, we were FS recipients, and heaven knows how we survived, even with the help. It's really scary, and thank god for things like food banks.

Milliechel67

karma007:

Okay, this is interesting....When my daughter was small, we were FS recipients, and heaven knows how we survived, even with the help. It's really scary, and thank god for things like food banks.

Seriously.  I can't imagine.  When we were young, my mom used to buy a bag or two of of groceries for a family we knew that were going through a hard time every time she did our family shopping.  As a little girl, I thought it was neat that she did and it's always stuck with me.  But now that I'm trying to figure out how to make this work, I can see how much of a help a gallon of milk, pb&j, beans and rice and a couple other random items can be. 

munkii

We eat on the cheap a lot, and almost everything makes leftovers for each of us for at least one day.

1.  Sauteed squash and onion with marinara over rice or quinoa.  2 zucchini (or 1 large eggplant), 1 onion, half jar of marinara, and 2 cups of rice.  That's it (well, spices too )
2.  Steamed broccoli and carrots with sauteed onions and peppers over rice.  1 head broccoli, handful shredded carrots, 1 onion, 1 bell pepper, 2 cups rice.  We normally toss the veggies with a couple tablespoons Soyaki and a little bit of the steam water.  Add an egg for some extra protein.

3.  This frittata with beets and beet greens OR butternut squash and spinach: http://www.carascravings.com/2010/03/roasted-beet-frittata-with-beet-greens.html

4.  Posole - We make it with vegetable broth and no pork.  Sometimes we add quorn (which is expensive but this has several servings).  Also, buy a lime to add some juice to your serving and make your own pickled red peppers (there are lots of good recipes online.  http://www.food.com/recipe/quick-posole-59513

5.  Tuscan Pie - Replace the sausage with zucchini and omit the cheese (or seriously cut it in, at least, 1/2): http://www.food.com/recipe/tuscan-italian-sausage-pot-pie-100038 (also, buy dried beans and make your own rather than canned - same with hominy above)

6.  Shakshouka: http://www.carascravings.com/2010/03/pps-shakshouka.html

To stretch these even more, you can add salad to each meal.  You can get a week's worth of salad at Sam's or Costco for about $3.  You can also make your own dressing with a little olive oil, lemon juice, and spices.

kelliejo83

One of my favorite dinners - eating on the cheap or not - is stir fry.  We use Ramen noodles so it's super cheap.  Or, rice is cheap too, I just don't like it.  Saute some bell peper and onion, make up the oriental ramen noodles (not as soup, just as noodles), add some soy sauce, and it's delicious.  You can add meat, but it's just as good without!

I would also recommend soup.  My husband makes soup or chili and it always gives us like 8-10 servings!

Milliechel67

mmm... I'm getting hungry.  Ran out of time today to do meal planning.  Breakfast and lunch tomorrow are already set... I bet some of these ideas will end up on my list for the week though!