Seafood Italian Dinner for under $15.00

Budget friendly dinners have become a priority in my house lately. With all the people I have to feed, it's important to not only offer variety, but also something that EVERYONE will eat that TASTES GOOD.

Here's how I fed my family for under $15!

Crab Broccoli Alfredo

Ingredients:

1 box bowtie pasta @ $1.18
2 jars Alfredo sauce @ $1.43 each
1 bag frozen broccoli florets @ $0.99
1 package imitation crab meat (hey...it's fish that still counts) @ $2.50
1 package of bread sticks @ $2.99
1 bag of mixed greens salad @ $0.98
1 jar salad dressing @ $3.48

TOTAL = $14.98

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Directions:

If I have to tell you how to make this, maybe you're on the wrong site! HAHAHA!! Cook the pasta. Empty the sauce in a large pot. Add about 3/4 cup of water to thin the sauce a bit. Cut or shred the crab meat. Throw in the broccoli and simmer on low heat until the vegetables are tender. Drain the pasta and toss in the Alfredo sauce. Season to taste.

CHEAP DINNER!! Enjoy!

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Easy Chili Verde

I'm mad...I should have taken pictures but I wasn't thinking about it!

My mom used to make this all the time when I was a kid. Last night I was going to make Pork Adobo and realized late in the game that I didn't have anymore bay leaves...so out went THAT idea!! Instead, I decided to make Chili Verde. This goes VERY well with some cheese, rice and beans wrapped up in a large, warm tortilla!! And oddly, my CHILDREN loved it!

Ingredients:

4lbs. PORK stew meat (can also use chicken or beef)
2 small cans mild diced green chiles
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 medium-large sliced onion
8 cups chicken broth (or water and chicken bullion)
4 tablespoons cornstarch

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Directions:

Normally this is something I would toss into the crock pot, but since my has been acting a little possessed lately, I did it in my stock pot. Cut the meat down to 1 inch chunks. Here's the part you're gonna LOVE...put the liquid, the meat, the onions, and garlic in the pot and bring to a rolling boil. Turn down and simmer on low/medium for about 90 minutes (because we want to make sure the pork is COOKED).

Remove about 2 1/2 cups of the liquid and stir in the cornstarch until it's dissolved completely. Pour it back into the pot and mix well. The entire thing will thicken. You can season to taste, but it's usually pretty tasty without having to add anything else to it.

If you choose to do this in the crock pot, reduce the amount of liquid to 4 cups.

Enjoy!

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