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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Smile! It’s Marilyn’s Cucumbers!

August 22nd, 2010


Marilyn knows and grows cucumbers so she sent her favorite salad recipe for us to share!

Marilyn describes herself as frugal.  That pretty much says it all for all of us who hang out in the Clubhouse.  We are all about getting all we can from EBT cards from SNAP and WIC.  We do all we can with food commodities and what comes from the food pantry.  If we have goods from the Farmers Market or Angel Food Ministries, we make that stretch as far as possible.  And then, some of us, like Marilyn, are frugal and want to be good stewards.

She sent her favorite recipe for cucumbers:

MARILYN’S CUCUMBER MARINADE

4 medium cucumbers, thinly sliced
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup cold water
2 tablespoons chopped dill
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper

Combine sliced cucumber with all other ingredients; cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours before serving.
Marinated cucumbers recipe serves 4 to 6

YUMMY, Marilyn!  Pretty similar to what we make at our house but with a bit of a twist.  It’s always fun to freshen the menu with new ideas and we appreciate your sharing!  Thanks so much!

We have  another great offering from our faithful contributor, Sandra.  She suggests this would be a perfect project for the weekend because it needs to simmer to marry the flavors.

SANDRA’S OLD COUNTRY SPAGHETTI GRAVY

3½ hours | 25 min prep | Yields about 24 cups of gravy.

4 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste

2 (28 ounce) can tomato puree

3 (28 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes

1 (35 ounce) can whole tomatoes in puree or water (crush by hand when adding to the pot)

4 cloves garlic, crushed (or substitute 2 tablespoons garlic powder)

½ cup onion, chopped

3 – 4 tablespoons good olive oil (it should smell fruity when heated)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon Kosher or other coarse salt

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

2 tablespoons dried basil

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes (optional)

½ cup parmesan cheese

1 cup dry red wine

5 cups water

In a large stockpot on low-med heat add olive oil and sauté onions for about 4 minutes, then add garlic powder and cook a moment longer. Then add remaining ingredients, being sure to mix everything very well. Cover and cook for 2½ hours. Taste and adjust seasonings, salt or sugar as desired.

So now we have the makings for a complete meal, except for dessert.  Maybe we’ll be too full for dessert?

Those of you who have entered your name and email address have received a series of cooking tips and we hope those have been helpful for you.  Occasionally, VERY occasionally, we send out messages that are germane to this site.  We never mean to intrude or overload your Inboxes.  We are tickled pink when new people join our gang!

We are also tickled pink to have comments and emails: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com will get your email to us.

If you are interested in health and wealth you might also like to see The Healthy and Wealthy You blog.  You might even like to look into having another stream of income or super dental care by clicking on some of the ads and links in this post.  No pressure; just great ideas to enhance your life if you like.

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Sheila Went to Idaho?

August 16th, 2010

Sheila was responsible for the famed "Ben Bowl" we received so joyously. Now Sheila has traveled to Canada. AND IDAHO.

Sheila is another of our faithful Food Stamps Cooking Club members.  She’s been vacationing and eating well and wisely in the process.

Always eager to lend a helping hand to our Club Members, Sheila has offered this recipe on a post card she picked up in, as you might expect, Idaho!  Mother Connie jumped all over this because of the great crop of taters The Normanator has produced in this year’s garden.  And, not surprisingly, has put HER spin on this tasty dish.

IDAHO BAKED POTATO SOUP 

*Mother Connie says this translates as “comfort food!”


2/3 cup butter

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

7 cups milk

4 large potatoes, baked, peeled and cubed-approx 4 cups

4 green onions, sliced

12 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

1 ¼ cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup sour cream

¾ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

In large soup kettle, melt butter.  Stir in flour; heat and stir until smooth.  Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until thickened.  Add potatoes and onions.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients; stir until cheese is melted.  Serve immediately.  Yield:  8 to 10 servings.

***Mother Connie, in her quest to be thrifty, used 3 cups of potatoes and 1 cup of shredded sautéed zucchini.  Also, not having green onions, white onions from the garden were substituted.

Remember the Foccacia bread recipe we shared recently?  The leftover bread we had was cut into cubes, drizzled with olive oil and parked in the oven to toast.  That made for lovely, yummy croutons and we felt as if we were attending a feast!  We had a salad with Swiss Chard and tomatoes from the oven.  What a great meal!

Thank you, Sheila.

Users of EBT cards provided by WIC or SNAP; Angel Food Ministries users; those who frequent food pantries or use food commodities can appreciate the value and cost effectiveness of this soup, even in warm weather.  If you garden, if you have taters and no meat you could make this sans bacon and have a very nourishing meal.  For those who watch their food budgets closely; for those who yearn for comfort food-this is a wonderful menu item.

Your cards and emails and comments are priceless to us.  Thank you SO MUCH for your participation in this effort to help folks stretch their food dollars.

Connie Baum
The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Low Cost Kale Salad?

August 8th, 2010

This text will be replaced by the player
Here is a wonderful tutorial I found on the internet because Renita, one of our faithful Club Members, brought it to my attention. It is part of the Natural News TV Network.   I was very pleased to find this because I am weary of creamed and sauteed kale.  I wanted something fresh and tasty and this certainly fills the bill.
While the Kale Salad is the star of this video, alongside the chef with a wonderful accent, I would like to draw your attention to the WATER UNIT at the left side of the video.  This is the kind of water unit our kids have in their group homes and it provides pure, clean, magnetized, energized water.  This is the kind of water that is beneficial to vibrant good health.  If you would like more information, shoot me an email: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com and I will cheerfully give you the persnickulars.
For users of Angel Food Ministries, food commodities or food pantries; anyone who has an EBT card from SNAP or WIC; those of you who are frugal, thrifty and looking to save money on your food budgets-this kale salad will really be a highly nutritious dollar saving menu item.  You might have to lay out some cash for the ingredients initially but having them on hand will open new vistas for food prep on a dime.
We LOVE LOVE LOVE getting your comments.  We have met some mighty fine folks because they took the time to leave their thoughts on this blog.  We met a coupla stinkers, too.  We might swipe an idea from one of our favorite bloggers:  she threatens to dip spammers in a vat of fish waste.  Twice.
We hope YOU love, love, love the things we bring you and the series of cooking tips you may sign up to receive.  In addition, we sometimes send out messages we think will be of value to you.
This blog is designed to help you stretch your food dollars and still be healthy.  We love people; we hope it shows.

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should they be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Always do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Sandra Discusses Cukes and Zukes?

July 20th, 2010

Do you recall the “almost oopsie” Mother Connie had with using veggies recently?

That post prompted one of our faithful Members to send this comment.  We chose to offer  it here as a mini blog post because it is so comprehensive and valuable.  Thanks, Sandra.  We appreciate that you are so generous with your ideas!

“Wow!  Mother Connie, that sounds wonderful!  I usually just roast my zukes in the oven with some salt and pepper.  But I have a friend who marinates hers and then dehydrates them.  So they turn out like chips but are healthier.  Imagine some zukes chips flavored with italian dressing, balsamic vinegar, or even bbq sauce.  Yum Yum!  And zukes are so easy to grow.  :)

I also love to use zukes in veggie fajitas a few times a summer.  I just cut zukes and yellow squash in long strips and saute them with onions, peppers, and peeled tomatoes.  Then I serve them in tortillas with some sour cream and cheese.  Yummy and healthy!  :) “

Even though we just pushed ourselves away from the dinner table, these ideas are mouth-wateringly appealing!

Thanks again, Sandra!

Anyone who is frugal, anyone who uses WIC or SNAP or Farmers Markets; even users of Angel Food Ministries can benefit from these helpful ideas.  If there are folks reading this blog who simply yearn for comfort food, want to better manage their food pantry food or food commodities, we hope this is a helpful place to come.  Whether a person loves to cook or hates to cook, we hope to offer some assistance.

A message was sent out today about cooking with beans.  Here’s hoping you found that beneficial, as well.

I’m guessing YOU ALL have better ideas than Mother Connie…I surely hope you’ll all take a page out of Sandra’s book and share with the whole class.

Another point to consider:  Chef Shawn Bucher and Chef Joshua Stokes left comments for us on the post that featured their work!  (We were as excited as teenagers being invited to a Prom!)   They were also kind enough to send personal messages via email.  No doubt they like having Food Groupies…grin

The offline Cooking Class will be happening on THURSDAY!  We will keep you all in our loop!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know that there are links in this post.  Should those links be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Always do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Do business only with those you trust implicitly.


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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Is It HOT Enough For Ya?

July 19th, 2010


 

This girl is so happy because she helped her mother clean out the refrigerator and discovered there was a box of popsicles in the freezer compartment!

 

If you took the opportunity to opt in to the Food Stamps Cooking Club’s series of tips, you know about the “ritual” of clearing out the fridge on Wednesdays.  It’s become routine here that the big ole box gets emptied, wiped down-scrubbed thoroughly on some Wednesdays-and tidied.  That way no food will be wasted because it got shoved to the back of the unit and became a science project.

Last Wednesday was no exception.  The fridge was all sparkly and even had a fresh box of baking soda, ostensibly to soak up unpleasant odors.  The only problem was that there WAS an unwanted, unidentified aroma that was not a good thing.

When Renita and I were on the phone I happened to open the door and I complained loudly and bitterly into Renita’s ear.  She had the solution:  “Try folding some newspapers into fours and slip those onto the shelves.”

Now, why hadn’t I thought of that? It worked like a charm right away, I might add. Thanks, Renita.

This story is true and it is meant to reinforce to you how much all of us Club We members need one another.  Some of us are users of SNAP.  Others who come by here depend on WIC or Angel Food Ministries.  Some folks depend on food pantries, food commodities, even Farmers Markets.  We all crave comfort food and most everybody aims to be good stewards and shop wisely and frugally.  These are the reasons why this blog exists and since we are all in this together, we had just as well pitch in and SHARE ideas.  I know you all are filled with creative solutions to all sorts of household and kitchen dilemmas.

Please, won’t you leave YOUR comments, hints and tips here?  You are also welcome to send your ideas to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com.  Oh, how we love mail!  Almost as much as we love your comments!  Thanks, people!

I bumbled onto a yummy salad combo I wanted to share with you:

KIDNEY BEAN SALAD WITH RICE

1   can kidney beans, drained or 2  cups home cooked kidney beans

4  medium eggs, hard cooked; peeled and diced

1   small onion, peeled and diced

1  rib of celery, diced

1  cup of cooked rice-any type you like best

1/4  cup pickle relish

2  tablespoons prepared mustard

vinegar-enough to moisten *My fave is Rice Vinegar but use whatever you have on your shelf.

mayo or salad dressing-enough to moisten

salt and pepper to taste

Combine ingredients in a good sized bowl and mix gently.  Serve over a bed of greens.

This salad reads like a potato salad but has personality and packs a protein wallop.  The beans and the rice give a complete protein.  AND IT IS ECONOMICAL, quick to fix and delish!

Experiment with the seasonings, if you feel adventurous.  Your bunch may appreciate a sprinkle of turmeric or a dash of ginger for a touch of heat.  If you want to add a little more color you could use some red pepper bits or pimiento. This is a good dish for kids to get involved in creating.

You would be well advised to keep a container of cooked rice and/or cooked beans in your refrigerator for adding them to stir fry meals, casseroles, or for use as side dishes for any menu.  These items are wonderful meal stretchers and work as a team to provide complete protein at very low cost.

Here’s hoping you are enjoying your summer with your family and that we’ll hear from you soon!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should those links be clicked and sales result, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Do business only with those you trust implicitly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: We’re STILL Full of Beans…

May 20th, 2010

If soup costs a dollar, does it have BEANS in it?

Your humble blogger still has beans on the brain.  It’s all Sandra’s fault. Grin…  I found a recipe for something I love but not everyone in our family is so crazy to have…HUMMUS.  It is just the BEST, in my humble opinion.

YUMMY HUMMUS

Try to say that quickly three times!

  • 1 can of chickpeas *You can use your own dried, soaked and cooked beans with some of the cooking liquid.


    •

  • 2 tbsp of olive oil


    •

  • 1/4 cup of lemon juice


    •

  • 1 clove (1/2 tbsp minced) of garlic


    •

  • 1/2 tsp salt


    •

  • cumin to taste  *The smoky flavor is wonderful; I’d suggest using about a palm full.


    •

  • up to 1/2 cup of water

It works best for me to use my food processor to make a smooth paste of all the ingredients but if you don’t have one, not to worry.  The Kitchen Police are not picky; you can use a tater masher if that’s what you have.  I have a friend who uses a fork in a shallow bowl.  MAKE IT WORK FOR YOU.

If your family is not fond of garlic, you may certainly omit that.  You may choose to add chopped cilantro or parsley for some variety.  This is your chance to experiment and shine!

This spread is wonderful to top toasted bread slices.  Or you might like to use it to fill celery ribs.  It is an ideal sandwich spread-preferable to the soybean mayo products we have come to think of as standard.  Hummus makes a wonderful, healthy and filling snack for youngsters or  adults who wait impatiently for their dinner!

Hummus is a standby staple for people who love comfort food, people who use food commodities and food pantries, and folks who utilize Angel Food Ministries or Farmers Markets Coupons.  It’s cheap, nourishing and tasty.   It’s also very quick and easy to prepare.   That’s a combo that’s hard to beat.

We have BEAN writing a great deal about beans.  We’ll see who sends us more suggestions.  HINT, HINT, SANDRA! Just drop something into our inbox: foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should those links be clicked and sales result, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Do business only with those you trust implicitly.


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Food Stamps Cooking Club: How Have You BEAN?

May 20th, 2010

 

Have you BEAN eating well?

 

One of our many faithful Club Members left us a note the other day with a message about beans.  She reminded us that they are great on their own and can even be sprouted.  She offered a  super reminder.  Thanks, Sandra!

Users of food commodities and food pantries, fans of SNAP, WIC, Angel Food Ministries and those who keep a close eye on their food budgets are likely to use beans in a wide variety of ways.

Or, NOT…sometimes we cooks get into a rut and just have the same old things fixed the same old ways.  It happens, all right.

This week I had a partial bag of dry red beans on the shelf.  I thought it would be interesting to pair them with some rice and add some spices to see what I could create.

I chopped some onions and celery and sauteed them in a bit of olive oil.  The fragrance filled the house and soon faces peered into the kitchen to wonder aloud if there were a need for “Taste Testers.”

The beans had been rinsed and drained; they had soaked overnight.  They bubbled along in a rich, tomato-y broth when the sauteed veggies went into the pot.  Then I discovered the barley!  I toasted a half cup of it, tossed it into the mix and added some rice, along with plenty of water so the grains could absorb that, along with the fragrant flavor.  A touch of garlic powder went in with the other goodies, followed by a pinch of red pepper flakes, and of course there was salt and pepper. Sea salt is the only type of salt Club House shoppers ever buy, for health reasons.

The resulting soup was a huge hit with those who put their toes under our table!  Some even begged for seconds!

This bean dish could have easily been prepared using the crock pot.  Since I was home to stir and taste and babysit the soup I opted to cook it on the stove top.

A simple salad of lettuce garden-fresh radishes, onion, celery and cabbage coated with a sweet dressing made for a filling and nourishing meal that was under budget.

Canned beans are wonderful to have on hand to add to salads, stir fry dishes and to use as a side dish.  One of our favorite snacks is an open faced pork-n-bean sandwich!

Another big rave in the Club House is the pork n bean dish with a chopped apple added in!  That combo sounds implausible but I promise you, it tastes really good.

Chef Shawn Bucher recommends that every meal should consist of a protein, a starch and a vegetable.  When you make your meals, consider beans for your starch.  When beans and grains are combined it makes for a complete protein.  The variety of beans that are available are pretty, tasty, and fun to create in your kitchen.

Getting the small fry in your household involved in choosing, preparing and eating these delights will do much more than fill young tummies:  you will form bonds and make memories; you will have fewer fussy eaters because they will feel invested; they will be contributing members of the family and that will enhance their self esteem.

By using beans and teaching your children to grow bean sprouts, choose varieties for the family meals and help to prepare bean dishes for the family you’ll create comfort food, happy tummies, and super kids!

Beyond that, you will have BEANED all that take out food, too!

Connie Baum

The FTC wants you to know that there are links in this post.  Should these links be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger or your guest blogger will be fairly compensated.  Always do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Only do business with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Is the Coffee Ready?

May 19th, 2010

Brew up some coffee!  We have PIE!

Leave it to the Club Members!  Even after being away from the Club House, the mail continues to pour in with loads of food ideas for those who are keeping close watch on their food costs.

Today’s recipe is timely because rhubarb season is in full swing!  Even if you get a hankering for a good rhubarb dessert after the season passes you know the freezer is likely to have a stash that will satisfy your longing for a yummy dessert.

This family favorite comes from Sadie’s daughter, Sheila and we share it with our best wishes:

“MOTHER’S RHUBARB PIE’

From Sheila Davis with a nod to Sadie, God rest her soul

1 cup sifted flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tablespoons butter       
1 egg beaten
2 tablespoons milk

Mix this and press into 9″ pie plate


3 cups diced rhubarb
1 small pkg strawberry jello
1/2 cup flour

Arrange rhubarb in shell and sprinkle with dry gelatin dessert.

1 cup sugar                    
1/2 tsp cinnamon                 
1/4 cup melted butter

Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, and melted butter and sprinkle over top.

Bake 350 for 50 min. or until rhubarb is tender.  Serves 6.
For people who keep a close eye on their food budgets, or those who utilize food pantries and food commodities; for users of Angel Food Ministries or SNAP or WIC this might be an excellent way to utilize your food supply.

It may even be possible for you to fall heir to some rhubarb; some families have more than they can use themselves and would love to share.  ASK AROUND.

Keep those cards, letters and emails coming, kids!  They are the life blood of this Club.  We cheerfully accept fan mail and critical comments, too.  We make every effort to deliver what will be helpful to our members.  foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com

The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should those links be clicked and sales result, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Do business only with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: Quick Meals and Slow Cookers?

March 22nd, 2010

 

When you see these beauties popping up in your grocer's produce case, you can be sure Spring has arrived!

 

Asparagus is a favorite around our table.  It’s not the cheapest thing to buy but for a special Easter meal it might be worth the extra shekels.  You have to make those choices on your own, particularly if you, like us,  are watching your food dollars like hawks.

Time is always at a premium, too.  Some of you have let us know the various ways you Club members manage your food, your food costs, and your time-bless your dear and generous hearts-and today is no exception.  We have a lovely meal idea from one of our faithful and it will help you provide a family favorite while you save some time.  THAT is a winning combination!

Here is the straight skinny for an easy-do meal from Max and the Slow Cooker:

“Well, it’s not so quick, in fact it’s kind of slow, but it will do ALL the work for you during the day while you’re at work!  It’s a slow-cooker :) .

You can even start with frozen food (if it’s frozen into a shape that will fit into the cooking vessel of your slow-cooker, that is.  And if it’s a whole chicken, like for the recipe I’ve included, it should already be cleaned.)

Here’s one of my kids’ most requested recipes:

* Don’t worry, the name is not really the description!

Sticky Chicken

1 whole chicken, cavity emptied, rinsed and patted dry (a damp chicken is okay, but no puddles)
1/2 tsp. each: black pepper, garlic powder
1 tsp. each: white pepper, dried thyme, onion powder, cayenne
2 tsp paprika
UP to 4 tsp salt

Mix all the dry ingredients together.  Then rub the seasoning mixture all over the chicken, inside and out, in between the skin and the chicken meat (unless you’ve skinned your chicken), everywhere.  That’s it.  Put the chicken into the cooking vessel of the slow-cooker, and cover.

Cook on low up to 8 hours, or high for 4.  Or any combination like that — if I’m at home, I like to do an hour on high, then 6 on low.

This recipe is very forgiving.  If you don’t have a whole chicken, you can use chicken parts.  (But don’t use skinless, boneless breasts, they will be dry!  Use split breasts on-the-bone.  Cheaper, too.)  If you don’t like cayenne because it’s too spicy for kids, omit it.  If you love dill weed on your chicken like we do, add some in.  If you want to decrease the amount of salt or pepper, feel free to do so.

The chicken will be falling-off-the-bone tender.  It is delicious served over rice.

P.S. I have no idea why it’s called “sticky” because it isn’t!
Thanks, Max!  We appreciate the information and the idea. You personify the beauty of the Food Stamps Cooking Club!
YOU are welcome to send YOUR great ideas to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com , too!  We love to hear from all of you.  You’ve been sharing us with those in your circle, too…we know this because we are sending out our occasional messages to more and more Club members!  YAY!

If you are happy with what you read here, you might also enjoy looking over The Healthy and Wealthy You or Mother Connie Sez. Those blogs have to do with health, mostly.  Sometimes Mother Connie rants and raves…If you are even remotely interested in adding another stream of income to your household you might appreciate Rapid Cash Review or Rapid Cash Marketing.

The primary function of this Food Stamps Cooking Club blog is to help those of you who are navigating the deep waters of managing food prep; especially those of you who are doing so with the help of SNAP or WIC; Angel Food Ministries or Farmers Markets Coupons.  You may be using Food Pantry Food or food commodities.  We all need all the help we can get and it helps us all when we help one another.  We surely hope we are making things better for you and yours by offering our recipes, tips, ideas and encouragement.
The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should these be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Always do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Do business only with those you trust implicitly.

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Food Stamps Cooking Club: WIC Mommy Speaks Out!

February 15th, 2010

 

Kids have more energy for active play when their Mommies use WIC wisely and creatively!

 

Some time ago The Club heard from a young SAHM-stay at home mommy-that she is a WIC recipient and had something wonderful to share.  Then life happened, as it is wont to do, and she was unable to share her idea.  Today my mail was WAY FUN again and she has sent us a scrump-deedly-upmshus recipe using  WIC provisions.  We thank Jaime from the bottom of our grateful hearts.

“I promised you a while back that I would send you one of my WIC recipes so today I’m sending it along.  This recipe works with WIC items received while pregnant or after a child is one year of age.  I have a 9 1/2 month old but look forward to getting these ingredients again.  Other than the meat everything is from WIC.  The recipe originated from Kraft but I have tweaked it to work with what I have.

I call it COUNTRY PIE:
Heat oven to 350 degrees

1 # ground beef, pork or even cut up chicken cooked

2 cups rice, instant works best in this recipe.  You get instant brown rice from WIC

tomato sauce, one can; again a WIC item

cheese, the amount depends on the person’s preference, also a WIC item

Okay; you layer the meat in the bottom of a 9 x 9 pan, pie dish or can be doubled for 13 x 9.

Put some of the sauce in the meat, just enough to moisten,  if you have not seasoned the sauce you can put some on top of this layer.

Then put 2 cups of rice mixed with rest of tomato sauce and one can of water.  Again, season if sauce has not been seasoned.

Cover with cheese.  Cover the dish with foil and cook for about 20 minutes.

My kids love this!  Quick, easy, cheap meal using mostly WIC items.  Ground beef found on sale or clearance, chicken cooked before hand and chopped finely, all can be used.  In fact, my kids actually prefer this with chicken!  Thanks for allowing me to contribute!
—Jaime Grimes, Proud Army wife and SAHM to 3″
Oh, Jaime, we are so grateful to you for sharing this easy to make, low cost dish for those we love best!
This dish will also be helpful for people who depend on SNAP or food pantries; food commodities users and procurers of Angel Food Ministries will benefit from knowing about this.    If people are using Farmers Market Coupons or just pinching pennies, this idea might be just the ticket for a meal for their table very soon!  I think SAHMs and WAHMs or WAHDs will like having this in their recipe collection, too!
YOUR ideas, dear visitors will be welcome, too.  Just shoot an email to foodstampscookingclub@gmail.com .  We note that you are also signing up to get our series of Cooking Tips and the occasional broadcasts we send your way.  THANKS, GUYS.
The FTC wants you to know there are links in this post.  Should these links be clicked, resulting in sales, your humble blogger would be fairly compensated.  Please do your due diligence when conducting affairs online or offline.  Do business only with those you trust implicitly.

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