We decided to be financially responsible and go with the second option. (Next time, we'll just rationalize away that money)
By Saturday night, pickings were slim in our freezer. A stray thing of sausage, all kinds of frozen fruit for smoothies (by no yogurt, and barely enough milk), and some muffins I don't remember my mom making (hoping they were from around my grandmother's birthday in November, and not my grandfather's birthday in July). The pantry was pretty much bare except for a giant bag of potatos we'd bought on a whim the week before.
Strangely, the fridge had all kinds of weird things.
So we got creative, and while our taco-meat-without-salsa-or-taco-seasoning was really just ground beef with a LOT of sriracha and cheese, our potato meal turned out MUCH better.
Ooops Potatos
1. Have your husband cook up sausage meat (removed from casing)
2. Microwave cleaned potatoes (that have been stabbed with a fork 5-10 times) for 5 minutes. Flip onto other side and microwave for another 4-5 minutes.
3. Scoop potato away from skin (leaving the skins as intact as possible).
4. Mix potato "guts" with sour cream, butter, and various spices (we went with our "Garlic spread mix" which is garlic, salt, and likely MSG, since everything I love has to have something I'm allergic to in it). Mix in cooked sausage
5. Restuff the potatos. Sprinkle with cheese.
6. Bake for about 5 minutes at 350. Or 400. Until the cheese is melted is pretty much the best way to judge it!
A smart person would serve this with a side of salad, or at least veggie sticks. But a smart person would have also made accomodations for birthdays BEFORE they happened.
But a smart person wouldn't have had the fun of creating new recipes!
These look and sound delicious! Sometimes it's fun to get creative with what you have. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteWell done! I have a friend who was really trying to stay on a budget. She and her husband would pretend to be on a TV cooking show called "What's in the Fridge?" to come up with creative and delicious meals using only what they had. Sounds like you're on the same show!
ReplyDeleteYumm. I often make incredibly cheap meals using vegetables and seasoned sauces. Good food doesn't have to be expensive.
ReplyDeleteYum! Delicious. I often come up with bizarre meals because we don't always have just-so stuff in the house. The other night was cajun rice, scrambles eggs, and roasted brussel sprouts. Another night was shredded leftover chicken mixed with hummus, then grilled on oat bread with muenster cheese. Both pretty good meals.
ReplyDeleteI love stuffed potatoes, and yours look pretty damn good considering you didn't have much to work with. I figure budgets are works in progress and you make adjustments as you go. At least you're being smart about it and toughing it out for a week.
ReplyDeleteYum!! Those look delicious!
ReplyDelete