This is our first “cooking for the week” recipe. As we mentioned Friday, the concept is to pick a block of time, a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, when the weather is going to be bad does the trick for me. During this time, you make as many of these dishes as you can, 3 is a good target. One is Sunday dinner, with another dinner or two stored in the freezer, and the other two can either go in the freezer entirely or half in the fridge for the next two nights meals. As Martha A Cheves of Stir, Laugh, Repeat wrote to me, by buying larger portions of some of these ingredients, you can save money, and freezer containers are pretty cheap at Dollar Tree stores. I’ll write more about this concept in future posting, now, it’s chili time.

1lb. ground sausage meat
1lb. ground beef
1 can (28oz) tomatoes (I use whole or crushed)
1 lg sweet onion
1 tbl chopped garlic
1 tbl chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground pepper
salt to taste ( I leave this out)
1 can (16oz) kidney beans
1 can (16oz) pinto beans

Fry chopped onion in olive oil until translucent, then add garlic and cook till soft. In large pot, fry sausage & ground beef (in a bit of oil), then drain off fat. Add tomatoes, beans, onion, and all seasoning. Cook for 30 minutes. Makes 8 servings, so two meals for a family of 4. Enjoy, looking forward to any comments, or ideas for other recipes that fit this category.

written by admin \\ tags: chili, cooking for the week

Between the current economy, with incomes down and money tight, and people finding themselves with less time to cook during the week, I’ve been giving more thought to meals that can be made in larger quantities and frozen in portions to serve at a later time. The next few recipes posted will expand on this concept, and you will have a number of different dishes to choose from, cooking them all at once on a weekend afternoon, and free up some time when you need it most. Of course, this will also help you cut back on the number of take out or restaurant meals you’re buying. Enjoy the weekend, the first recipe in this series will post on Monday.

written by admin \\ tags: frugal cooking, recipe

This recipe comes from my childhood, my grandmother, who passed away over 25 years ago used to make this, and I still remember the recipe.

2 lbs dough (you can buy pizza dough in most supermarkets)
1 lb sausage, sweet or hot
1/2 lb shredded mozzarella or grated cheese
few tablespoons olive oil
pepper to your liking

First, roll the dough out with a rolling pin, pretty thin. Rub the olive oil, leaving just the top edge dry. Cover with raw sausage. In this picture it looks like pepperoni, but this is link sausage squeezed out and spread out over the dough. Sprinkle with cheese and pepper.

Cut into sections, about 4 inches long, and press between your hands (end to end, don’t squeeze out the filling.)

Cook at 350F for about 30 minutes until browned. If you don’t eat sausage for whatever reason, you can substitute ground beef, turkey, or other filling. This is a fun recipe for the kids to help with and to tinker with the filling. Enjoy! Note – when I tried to confirm the spelling of this dish, I couldn’t find anything close. The recipe itself is called ‘bogliolati’ on other recipe sites, but my family never heard of that dish. Different parts of the country I suppose.

written by admin \\ tags: dough, italian food, italian sausage roll, minuloti, recipe

Raisin Oatmeal Cookies
1-1/4 (2-1/2 sticks) cups margarine (this is 5/8lb)
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar (approx 5.5 oz)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups Quaker Oats (not quick)
12 oz (2 cups) raisins

Heat oven to 375°F. Beat margarine and sugars until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add combined flour and baking soda; mix well. Stir in oats and raisins Bake 7 minutes. Makes 36 big cookies.

When I make these for friends or family, I’m told they are the best raisin oatmeal cookies they’ve ever had. On the other hand, after giving this recipe out, I’d been told “it doesn’t work.” Here’s the secret – if they look done when they come out of the oven, they are overcooked. They need to come out looking a bit undercooked, and let them cool to keep their soft, chewy, texture. Write, and let me know if you tried this recipe. Next time I bake them, I’ll add pictures to this post.

written by admin \\ tags: cookies, dessert, raisin oatmeal cookie, recipe