This week, I literally went through EVERYTHING we had in the pantry, fridge, and freezer to try and come up with recipes from our existing food and save from having to buy groceries because we were on a tight budget this week. Here's what I came up with and I only spent $40 (including things not on the menu like water, diet mtn dew, sandwich meat for lunch, etc...)

SUNDAY: SPAGHETTI & MEATBALLS + CIABATTA BREAD

• 1 pack frozen meatballs
• 1 jar marinara sauce
• 1 box noodles
• 1 box New York frozen ciabatta bread

As you may can tell by now, I'm not very technical with recipes and measurements. I apologize to all my Type-A friends out there, but I like to just "throw it in a pot and see what happens" : )

So, just about every time Publix puts pasta and pasta sauce on buy 1 get one free, I grab it up. I pretty much always have some type of noodles and sauce (either marinara or alfredo). It's just quick and easy, so I like to make sure I'm stocked up and only paying 1/2 price. A couple of weeks ago, Publix had frozen meatballs on BOGO, so I grabbed a couple of packs thinking I can always use them as a quick party appetizer, or in this meatball sub casserole I've been wanting to try. This week, I decided I would use them for spaghetti & meatballs (a classic)...although the only noodles I had handy were fettuccine, so it was really fettuccine & meatballs, but who's judging! I also decided to use the crockpot because, well, I could...

DIRECTIONS: Add meatballs and sauce to crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. I also tossed in a couple of shakes of salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasoning just for good measure... (note: my sauce cooked a little too much and got thick and sticky so I think next time I may add a little bit of water to thin it out before it cooks). When meatballs are done, cook noodles and bread according to packages. I like to put the noodles down first, top with sauce and meatballs, then sprinkle some mozzarella cheese and parsley on top to make it pretty!

MONDAY: GRILLED CHICKEN (x2), COUSCOUS, SWEET POTATO FRIES

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• KC Masterpiece Marinade (Caribbean Jerk flavor)
• 1 box Near East Pearled Couscous (Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil flavor)  
• 2 sweet potatoes

Around our house, my husband does all the grilling, so I can't give you directions on how to do it, but what I CAN tell you is that you need to try this marinade. It is so good! He not only marinates the chicken in it before he grills it, but he also brushes it on the chicken as it's cooking on the grill to keep it moist. While he's grilling, I'm whipping up the sides in the kitchen and VOILA! Dinner is ready!

HELPFUL TIP: While he was grilling, I had him make an extra batch of chicken to use another night (see Wednesday).

For the couscous, just cook it according to the package. No additional ingredients required except a little olive oil. For the sweet potato fries, Chip got a me a food processor that slices and I've been playing around with it. I like to peel the potatoes, throw it in the processor and slice it up, then put them on a cooking sheet, drizzle some olive oil over them, shake some cinnamon sugar on them, and bake on 400F for about 20-25 minutes. I keep an eye on them and flip about half way through (and coat the other side with oil and cinnamon sugar). They come out looking like this:

You don't have to use the slicer in the food processor. You could also cut them up with a knife and make fries or smaller sized chips.

TUESDAY: JAMBALAYA WITH CONECUH

• 1 box Zatarain's Jambalaya mix
• 1 package Conecuh original smoked sausage
• Some type of bread (see below for what I came up with)

I thought I was going to have a tennis match this night, so I planned something so simple EVEN THE HUSBAND CAN MAKE IT!

Cook Conecuh on George Foreman grill on Medium for approximately 15-20 minutes until done. Let rest before cutting (or you'll lose all the flavor). You can also cook this in the skillet - I think instructions are on the package. Cook Jambalaya according to package - it's a "just add water" type box and the flavor is really good. Once it's done, chop up the sausage and add it to the mix. We don't usually need the entire sausage and will set some aside for later. 

For a quick bread side item, I had an extra hamburger bun in the pantry, so I took the two pieces, spread butter on top, sprinkled garlic salt on them, and popped them in the oven on broil for about 3-4 minutes. These WILL BURN QUICK if you don't watch them. It's a great way to get use up your leftover buns before they get old. You can also use hot dog buns:

WEDNESDAY: GRILLED CHICKEN SALADS

Monday night, I had the husband grill extra chicken so that when we got back home from church Wednesday night, we could throw a salad together. Here is what we had with ours:

• 1 bag Publix Italian salad blend
• Grilled chicken (caribbean jerk flavor)
• Fresh tomato from my in-law's garden, chopped...or you can buy a tomato, but it's just not the same :)
• 3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (I already had this handy from making my breakfast wreath for Tis So Sweet Sunday night...I made extra)
• 2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
• Italian shredded cheese
• Naturally Fresh Lite Ranch dressing

Of course you can add whatever toppings your heart desires! Some examples may include:

• Strawberry/cranberries/pineapple/oranges, almonds, feta/blue/goat cheese, vinaigrette dressing
• Blackbeans, corn, tomatoes, onion, avocado, lime juice, chipotle ranch dressing, corn chips
• Tomato, cucumber, onion, olives, radishes, chickpeas, etc.

THURSDAY - ON YOUR OWN...

The husband "feeshed" (a.k.a. fished) a tournament and I had a work-thing where we were eating dinner, so I just left him to fend for himself...with ample warning time of course :)

FRIDAY - CHICKEN FRIED CUBED STEAK, MASHED POTATOES, & BLACK-EYED PEAS (the food, not the band...)

• Cubed steak (we use deer meat, but beef works just fine)
• Approx. 2 cups vegetable oil
• Flour
• Garlic powder
• Salt and pepper
• Montreal steak seasoning
• Crystal hot sauce
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 - 2.75 oz pkg Southeastern Mills Old Fashioned Peppered Gravy Mix
• 1 pkg Idahoan mashed potatoes
• 1 can Margaret Holmes seasoned black-eyed peas

In a baking dish, create your flour mixture by blending flour, garlic powder, salt & pepper, and montreal steak seasoning based on your taste (it should be primarily flour, but you should also see a pretty good amount of the thick pepper in the montreal seasoning). In a separate bowl, mix the egg, milk, and about 4-5 good shakes of the Crystal hot sauce. Mix well so that the egg is completely blended. Pour the vegetable oil into a large, deep skillet and heat to about 6 (med to med high) on the stove top such that the oil is almost to a boil. Set up your dipping station with you flour mixture and egg mixture. With each cubed steak, dip into flour mixture on each side and cover well, then dip into egg mixture, and then again into the flour, covering well each time. Place each covered cubed steak into the hot frying pan carefully and cook approx. 4-5 mins on each side until golden brown and crispy. Meanwhile, make gravy according to package directions and serve warm with hot gravy. Also, the mashed potatoes and black-eyed peas only take approx. 10 minutes. Cook according to packages.