<p>I recently made this - planning on the last of the leftovers for lunch tomorrow:</p>
<p>1 onion chopped
2-3 cloves garlic chopped
throw in some cumin and turmeric
saute and add 1 chopped zucchini saute some more
add some grated fresh ginger
add 1 can diced tomatoes (I chop them up a bit more)
1 can of kidney beans
Heat up, so everything is nice and hot
add chopped cilantro and juice of 1 lime</p>
<p>Good with rice. Quick and easy.</p>
<p>Omelets.
Cheese for the kids. Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Onions, Cilantro, Cheese, etc. for the adults. Plus salsa on the side.</p>
<p>Omelets here every weekend 
Love it because DH makes them!
He adds some ham.</p>
<p>I take all leftovers, cut up meat, all vegetables, rice, mashed potatoes, gravy, literally everything and put everything in a big Tupperware container in the freezer. Add to it everyday, and when there is enough leftover “stuff” just add canned broth to it for a delicious soup. It is never the same twice! I especially like the way mashed potatoes will make it slightly thicker and creamy, and you never waste leftovers.</p>
<p>Is it time to dust off those family recipes from the Depression? </p>
<p>My husband’s family ate a dish that they called “beanaroos”–white beans cooked with a smidge of ham, ladled on a buttered piece of white bread and covered with ketchup. Actually very tasty…once you get past the idea of soggy bread.</p>
<p>mathmom, add an onion and a tablespoon of chili powder, and that’s my mother’s chili, which came out of the “I Hate to Cook” cookbook in the 60s.</p>
<p>I do remember that cookbook, but I’m pretty sure this one dates back further. :)</p>
<p>All the in-laws think it would be improved by more spicing - normally I would agree - but part of the charm of the recipe is that it’s nursery food.</p>
<p>I just googled “great depression recipes” - no kidding, there are several books out there!</p>
<p>Second the omelets suggestion: good stuff and easily customizable. And the health gurus finally agree with me - a few eggs a week is not going to kill me. Of course, one can always use the whites only.</p>
<p>Stir fry is quick and cheap.
It basically involves cutting meat (chicken, pork or beef) up into thin slices and marinading in a mixture of soy sauce, corn starch, water, a bit of sugar (optional) and cooking sherry (optional). If onions are going to be included, slice them and fry them first. Next fry the marinated meat, Set aside and fry whatever vegetables you want (some may need blanching first).
Meanwhile cook the rice in a rice cooker. The whole thing could take no more than half-an hour.</p>
<p>Beans & rice! </p>
<p>brown rice
2 cans pinto beans
green pepper, carrot, onion, garlic - all minced
chili powder -3T
cumin - 1T
cayenne - 1/4 t
Tabasco
(ketchup if you like)</p>
<p>Start the rice.
In a cast-iron skillet, cook the vegetables in a little bit of olive oil until soft. Add the beans and the spices (adjust for household tolerance), shake in some Tabasco (ditto) (and yes the ketchup here if you insist). Cover and simmer, while the rice cooks.</p>
<p>Heap a scoop of rice in a bowl and ladle the beans on top. Serve with grated monterey jack or cheddar, and sour cream. And more Tabasco.</p>
<p>Cheap, cheap, cheap, fast, easy, and it’s a complete protein (provided you use brown rice).</p>
<p>My mom says that during the depression they and everyone they knew lived on navy beans cooked with a ham hock. She’d make then ever so often and I hated them.</p>
<p>For us, a huge money saver is just eating at home.</p>
<p>I have a funny book called “Cakes Men Like” with recipes and ads from the 1900’s through the 1960’s. It includes “pork cake, an economy holiday cake,” a Depression recipe. It starts with a couple of pounds of chopped salt pork that you pour boiling water over. No butter, no eggs. Just thinking about it makes me depressed.</p>
<p>Hanna, you made me laugh!</p>
<p>My grandma had a Depression recipe that she continued to make for the rest of her life - oatmeal cookies made with bacon grease instead of butter or shortening. They were actually delicious, though this recipe sounds awful now.</p>
<p>I just read that the only component of the S&P that ended in the green yesterday was Campbell Soup…</p>
<p>I make rice pilafs: just brown a bit of meat or chicken, add salt and spices, onions, garlic cloves, shredded carrots, add rice, pour hot water on top of it, bring to a full boil, reduce heat and let the rice soak all the liquids. Delicious, and my H thinks he is getting a meat dish for dinner. :)</p>
<p>Our main money-savers are eating out less and wasting less food. We’re trying to be much more vigilant about not letting “science projects” grow in the fridge. It’s embarrassing what we used to throw away. And this may sound odd, but I’d like H to spend less time in Costco unless he has a list–too much opportunity for impulse buying.</p>
<p>As far as our meal planning (such as it is) goes, I’m leaning more and more vegetarian these days, though I can’t say H is leaning with me 100%. I like meat less and less, more for health reasons than for ethical reasons (sorry). And the bonus is it’s much less expensive. Beans, eggs, ricotta, and cottage cheese always work well with me for protein. My favorite cookbook lately is Everyday Food: Good Food Fast. The recipes are imaginative, easy, and mostly inexpensive–plenty of non-meat options. Last night I sauteed some portobello mushrooms in olive oil with onion and herbs, added a bunch of fresh spinach, and served it on top of spinach pasta mixed with ricotta. We felt healthy, and I don’t think H cared that it wasn’t chicken.</p>
<p>Fried rice, fried noodles with some leftover meats or just a bit of strips of ham and some veggies (I use the peas and carrots cans or packs on sale) can make a good meal. Also make pretty egg strips by making a quick omelet and than cutting into strips and topping the rice and noodles. An attractive display makes food look so much better.
Also Costco sells twin packs of frozen whole chickens. Half the price of their already cooked chicken. You can just brush some olive oil on them and sprinkle some salt & pepper, stick them in an oven pot with a lid and let them cook. Lots of left overs for casseroles, sandwiches, wraps, salad.</p>
<p>My H makes soup–including his own broth–all fall and winter. He does lots of bean soups (lentil, split pea, white bean), cabbage soup, minestrone, and chicken/vegetable. When it’s just the two of us, we have soup with a big salad–lettuce/cukes/peppers/green onions. H had too many casseroles as a kid so he refuses to eat them now.</p>
<p>Yes - Bromfield.</p>
<p>I was going to say Soups. Soups and (Fresh/Warm) bread. Great winter food and very satisfying and filling.</p>
<p>I remember reading of a study that said that folks were much less hungry after eating the same quantity of food in a soup then if they ate the exact same quantity of ingredients + water that constituted the soup.</p>
<p>To GA2012MOM–</p>
<p>I like your idea of putting leftovers right into a container in the freezer and stockpile to make a soup later. It would save them from becoming science projects and you get another meal from the dibs and dabs.</p>
<p>Once I read a suggestion that you could use leftover salad, dressing and all in a homemade soup but so far I haven’t been that brave.</p>