Budget Friendly Meals
There are a plethora of reasons one may choose to be on a budget and which categories you may opt to “budgetize”. I tend to stick with budgetizing things like using an antenna for tv reception, no land line, and food. Food might sound a tad odd if you read my other posts and see my love of cooking but I try to stick with cheaper ingredients whether it be store branded or on sale and cook in batches for easy freezing. Two of my favorite budget friendly recipes I have included below. The first is a typical beans and rice recipe southern style and the second is tuna helper that’s been “helped”. Both recipes can be tweaked to fit your food budget and both recipes work well with store brands.
Red Beans and Rice
This recipe is an old favourite of mine. It actually came from my dad. I’m not sure when he started making this but it always cracks my mom and me up because we are the southerners in the family not my dad. This recipe makes 6-8 servings depending on how much water you choose to add and how much rice you want to eat with it. Typically I do a 1/2 c red beans to 1/2 c rice serving. Over the years we have discovered that Green Giant makes cans of red beans and they taste much better than kidney beans which you may use as a substitute.
Ingredients:
3 cans of Red Beans, drained
1 package of Smoked sausage (the oval shaped package), sliced into 1/2 inch thick slices and then cut into halves (you may cut this down to 1/2 a package if you choose)
Onion (diced - any proportion that you enjoy) or onion powder
Celery (diced - any proportion that you enjoy) or celery powder/flakes
Garlic (minced - any proportion that you enjoy) or garlic powder
Mahatma Rice - white or brown will work - it just tastes better
And the secret ingredient - Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning (use to taste) This ingredient is usually found beneath the spice racks.
Directions to cook:
1. Begin by sautéing the onion, celery, and garlic in about a teaspoon of oil (I typically use Extra Virgin Olive Oil) in a soup pot on medium heat.
2. Remove once they become tender and then brown sausage in pot. Remove sausage and drain on a paper towel.
3. Place beans into pot and stir the bottom of the pot to loosen up the flavours. Add 1-2 cans of water to the pot depending on how thick you like your red beans. I tend to add 2 cans of water.
4. Add veggies and sausage to the red beans and cook for 30-40 minutes until the mixture has thickened then remove from heat. The mixture will remain to thicken once removed.
5. While the mixture is cooking make your rice following the directions on the bag. The rice will take about 20 minutes to cook on a stove top.
6. Add your Creole seasoning when serving.
A nice addition to this recipe is cornbread. I typically buy the Jiffy brand which runs a nice $0.33 a box. The only warning I have is that cornbread mixture can attract/contain weevils so either purchase the day you are cooking or store in a zip lock.
Tuna Helper with some Helpers!
My second recipe today is for the old standby tuna helper. Tuna helper comes in many varieties and is quick and very easy to make. The nice thing about these helpers - whether they are chicken, tuna, or hamburger - is that they are mainly a cheesy flavour which allows you to add extras to the box mix which stretches the servings per container from 5 to about 8.
One of my favourite things to do with tuna helper is to add 2 cans of tuna (light tuna in water of course) vs. the recommended 1 can to add in the nutrition you gain from eating fish and some additional protein. Another way I stretch my helper is by adding in frozen veggies. Usually I add in the entire package which is about 16oz of veggies and ~$1 and it will add veggies into your diet and cut the number of calories you would normally eat in this meal. My favourite right now is peas and carrots. Other things you can add would be frozen corn, frozen broccoli, or green beans. Spices and seasonings can also be added to your helper. Garlic, Onion, and even Creole Seasoning adds some flavour to this ordinary cheesy taste.
Next time we will discuss helping out some of those lipton rice mixes which are also budget friendly food items 
