Let's make our money work with healthy, diverse meals on a budget. Here you will find out how to make multitudes of meals from scratch even if you have never cooked before. All recipes are designed to feed four people, unless otherwise specified. Before you begin any recipe be sure to read the whole entry as most recipes expect that you know the base recipe.
About Products Selected
This site is designed with brand new cooks in mind. Because of that you will see a lot of items linked here. For an experienced cook it is easy to recognize what the difference between a pot, a sauce pan, a casserole, etc. means. But if you are brand new to the cooking from scratch idea it can be confusing. All products linked are meant to give you a clear idea of what kinds of items I am referring to. These items linked also represent brands that I am familiar with, that I have found to be high quality and I find them to be fairly priced and long lasting for regular use.
For pots and pans I prefer the quality of Circulon brand above higher priced brands and their longevity above lower priced brands. For glass bowls and bake ware I prefer Pyrex. For low priced kitchen ware I prefer Norpro. For smaller quantities of dried goods I prefer Bob's Red Mill, which I can find at all of my local stores. For larger quantities I prefer ordering from Barry Farm. I often use the bulk section at my stores as well. While it is certainly less expensive to make stock at home, it is far more convenient to purchase it. I like Pacific Natural Foods and Imagine Foods low sodium broths. These suggestions are designed to make your food preparation easier and affordable. You'll also be able to accurately duplicate the recipes on this site and the meals seen on Frugal Feeds Videos. Look for all of these products and kitchen items at your local stores or click on the links and it will take you to where you can buy them online. (Although many of the items will cost more with shipping than they will if you can find them at your local store).
Making gravy can spruce up the flavor of left over meats, vegetables and breads. Gravies often use the browned bits from your roasted meat but they can also be made without the meat drippings. Here we will cover the usual gravies and some that you have probably not tried yet.
Beef Gravy
After roasting beef drain the fat from the roasting pan. Using a spatula scrape up the browned bits and place the browned bits into a sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk in 2 Tablespoons whole grain flour and 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 2 Tablespoons red wine, 2 Tablespoons dried parsley and 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce. Add 1 cup low sodium beef broth while whisking the whole time. (Or 1/2 cup plain dairy or non-dairy milk with 1/2 cup either low sodium beef broth or water). When mixture begins to boil reduce heat to medium-low and continue whisking until the gravy is the consistency you want. Serve over beef, potatoes, roasted carrots, brown rice or biscuits.
Poultry Gravy
After roasting a chicken or turkey drain the fat from the roasting pan. Using a spatula scrape up the browned bits and place the browned bits into a sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk in 2 Tablespoons whole grain flour and 1 teaspoon thyme. Add 1 cup low sodium chicken broth while whisking the whole time. When mixture begins to boil reduce heat to medium-low and continue whisking until the gravy is the consistency you want. Serve over chicken, turkey, lean pork, potatoes, whole grain biscuits or use in a casserole.
Sawmill Gravy
Use your Basic White Sauce #2 made with low sodium chicken or low sodium beef broth. Grind in fresh black pepper and stir in cooked minced lean beef, chicken, browned and drained breakfast sausage, browned and drained Italian sausage or lean bacon. Serve over whole grain biscuits, mashed potatoes, oven fried chicken, chicken fried steak, beef, chicken or use in a casserole.
Heat oil in sauce pan over medium heat. Stir in the nutritional yeast, whole wheat flour, onion powder and garlic powder. Stir until it is all fairly well mixed together. Pour in the broth, a little at a time, while whisking the whole time. When it begins to bubble, reduce heat to low and let it simmer for two minutes. Taste the gravy and either add the soy sauce or don't. Serve over vegetables, mashed potatoes, stuffing, whole grain biscuits, turkey, chicken or pork.
In a medium sized sauce pan over medium-high heat add the mushrooms and onions to 1 Tablespoon low sodium broth. Add the herbs and saute until mushrooms have lost their liquid and the onions are well browned. Stir often. Add the whole wheat flour and stir until all of the mushrooms and onions are well coated. Whisk in the broth. Simmer over low until it is as thick as you like. Serve over vegetables, potatoes, brown rice, whole grain noodles, barley, pork, chicken, beef, biscuits or use in a casserole.
With each of these gravies you can change the flavors easily by changing the type of broth used, the type of flour used, the type of nuts used, the type of yeast used, the type of soy sauce used, the types of herbs used, and what you serve them on.
These puddings are the type of milk based puddings that most Americans think of when they think of pudding. Pudding can be a healthy option for desserts and snacks when made with 2% milk or low fat non-dairy alternatives. It can be your basic vanilla or chocolate but it can also be so much more than that. We'll start with the basics and then get on to some more creative ideas.
Plain Pudding
4 1/2 Tablespoons starch
up to 3/4 cup sweetener (I use 1/2 a cup of most sweeteners)
3 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon flavoring
Starches: Best For:
Corn Starch Low Shine
Arrowroot High Shine, Fruit Puddings, Freezing
Tapioca Starch High Shine, Fruit Puddings, Freezing
Tapioca Pearls High Shine, Tapioca Pudding, Freezing
Kudzu Expensive, so only use it if you have to
Rice Rice Puddings
Choose one starch, one sweetener, one milk and one flavoring the first time you use this chart. Once you get accustomed to their properties you can blend them into custom puddings that suit your tastes. Because each type of milk, each type of sweetener and each type of starch work differently you will want to start with what you are familiar with and then the next time change only one of the ingredients. Do that each time until you have worked out how each of those ingredients delivers taste, texture, structure and how it cooks.
Basic Pudding Instructions:
Mix together the starch and sweetener and then whisk in the cold milk. Using a large cook pot, fill it half way with water. Place a large glass or metal bowl onto the pot so that it does not touch the water and has enough height that you can easily hold the bowl steady with a pot holder on your hand. Turn on the stove top burner to high heat. Pour pudding mixture into bowl. Once the water starts to boil be sure to whisk the pudding regularly. When smooth, carefully transfer to a skillet over very low heat. Continue to whisk until the pudding takes on a thick and creamy consistency. When it does, remove from heat. Add the salt and flavoring to the pudding. Cool. When cool pour into a bowl, place a sheet of plastic wrap on the surface of the pudding and chill. Remove the plastic film when fully chilled and you shouldn't have a film of pudding on the surface. Serve with stewed fruit, berries, sweetened apples, braised bananas or broiled pineapple slices. Top with toasted nuts or sweetened coconut. Using different starches results in different look, feel, taste, texture and thickness. Use cornstarch the first time you make it. Using different sweeteners results in different tastes, textures and thickness. Use raw sugar the first time you make it. Using different milks results in different tastes and thickness. Use cow's milk the first time you make it. Use vanilla flavoring the first time.
Variations on Plain Pudding
When using Cocoa add 1/2 cup cocoa to the starch/sugar mix.
When using Chocolate add 1 ounce of chocolate to the bowl over the pan of boiling water and let it melt before adding the milk/starch/sugar mixture.
When using Nuts, toast them first.
When using Fruit add 1/2 cup to the milk/starch/sugar mixture but don't use acid fruit like lemons, pineapple..
When using Tapioca pearls simmer the tapioca and milk for 20 minutes and slowly add in two well beaten egg yolks, then the salt and sugar. Cook 15 minutes more. Beat the 2 egg whites fluffy and fold in to the tapioca pudding mixture.
When using Rice use 1 cup rice and 3/4 cup raisins or currants. I like to add cinnamon too. Try it with Maple Syrup as the sweetener. Adding two beaten eggs makes it hearty.
To make Butterscotch use brown sugar and add a Tablespoon of butter.
To make Caramel place sugar in a dry saute pan over medium-high heat. Using a wooden spoon, stir constantly until the sugar melts and turns dark brown--do not let it go too brown or it will burn. Add a teaspoon of water and stir well. Mix the carmelized sugar with the milk and allow to cool completely. Then add the starch and proceed as usual.
When using Stevia only use a small amount. Stevia is a powerful sweetener so you must decide by taste how much is enough. Generally two small drops is equal to one teaspoon of sugar.
Some Popular Pudding Types:
Almond
Banana Cream
Berry
Boston cream
Butterscotch
Chocolate
Coconut Cream
Caramel
Dulce De Leche
Lemon
Orange
Peanut Butter
Pistachio
Pumpkin
Rice Pudding
Strawberry
Tangerine
Tapioca
Again, once you get the basics down you will be able to create many recipes on your own and adjust the ingredients to suit your taste.