Chicken Broth

Chicken broth is a recent addition to my meals.  I've only been making my own for about a year now.  I have thrown in all kinds of spices and finally came up with a combination I love.  This particular broth recipe is the one I use when making soups or to cook rice or noodles in.  

Chicken Broth
Ingredients
1 chicken leg-quarter
4 cups of water
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 Tablespoon salt
1/2 Tablespoon garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon celery salt

Directions

1. Add all ingredients to a pot and place cook on low so that the water does not actually boil but still thoroughly cooks the chicken.
2. Remove chicken from the water and strain out any chicken that have come off the bone so the broth will be clear.
3. It is now ready for your favorite dish.

Notes
It depends on the size of the chicken on how long to cook.  I normally pull a leg quarter out of the freezer and put it directly into the water and cook it about 5-6 hours on low.  If you do not have that time, you and defrost or use fresh chicken and cut the time almost in half.

It is important not to boil the broth as it will become cloudy and some of the good proteins will be destroyed.

Sometimes, when I need a lot of broth, after I remove the chicken from the bone, I put the bones and skin and fat back in the pot and continue to cook on low until the bones are soft.  This allows all the minerals to leach out of the bones and makes your broth healthier.  I also add some more water and spices to get more broth to freeze. 

I freeze my broth in 2 cup containers/freezer bags.  This is the exact amount I use in most of my recipes.  I use 2 cups of broth to cook my rice and two cups when I make soup.

You most certainly can add veggies to your broth, like onions, carrots or celery, but I like to add the veggies into the actual recipes when I cook them.  
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Is homemade worth it?

1 chicken leg-quarter = $.50
1 teaspoon pepper = $.01
1/2 Tablespoon salt = $.02
1/2 Tablespoon garlic = $.045
1/2 teaspoon onion powder = $.01
1/2 teaspoon celery salt = $.11

One recipe of chicken broth costs $.75.

Keep in mind, you have around the equivalent of 2 cans of broth, already seasoned.

One can of broth costs around $1, so you will save $.25 making it yourself and get twice as much. 

Recipes that use chicken broth

Chicken Noodle Soup

Chicken and Rice

                                                                          

 

Taco Soup

The first time I had taco soup, I was skeptical on whether or not I would like it.  I never really liked many soups, especially those filled with tomatoes.  I did slightly modify the recipe my friend gave me for this soup to make the tomatoes less chunky and toned down the spice slightly, but it still has a great taco taste that I can enjoy.

Taco Soup
Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cups of water
2 cans tomatoes (sauce or diced)
1 can pinto beans
1 can corn
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 can rotel and chilies

Directions

1. Brown meat and onions together.  Drain off fat.
2. Put into large pot.  Dump in all other ingredients.
3. Bring to boil and then turn down to simmer for at least one hour before serving.

Notes
Original recipe called for one pkg dried ranch seasoning.  We are not big ranch eaters at my home, so I just omitted it with good results!

This recipe easily feeds 8-10 people.

Have Leftovers?  Freeze it!  Place extra soup in single serving freezable containers or plastic bags.  When you want soup, just pull it out, thaw and heat!  It is just as good as freshly made soup!

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How much does it cost?

1 lb ground beef = $4.00
1/2 onion, chopped = $.40
2 cans tomatoes = $2.00
1 can pinto beans = $.79
1 can corn = $1.00
1 pkg taco seasoning = $50
1 can rotel and chilies = $1.00

This recipe costs $9.69.  This recipe can easily feed 8-10 people.  One serving of taco soup, assuming 8 servings, costs $1.21. 

Fried Chicken Strips

Who does not love fried chicken?  This is my own recipe that I came up with after playing around with the spices in my cabinet.  It is still simple and easy and only uses spices that most people commonly keep in their pantries.

I made this for my family when they came to visit.  I seriously fed seven people off of 2 chicken breast... Five adults and two children.  We even had some left over, enough for another person.   That really helps when you are on a budget and needing to feed a crowd!

Fried Chicken Strips
Ingredients
2 chicken breast, cut in strips
1 cup self rising flour
1 1/2 Tablespoons salt
1 Tablespoon garlic
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon pepper
1 cup buttermilk

Directions

1. Sprinkle 1/2 Tablespoon of salt over the chicken.
2. Place in a container and cover with buttermilk at least 30 minutes before cooking.
3. Mix the flour and spices together.
4. Take the chicken strips and let the excess buttermilk drip off.  
5. Place in four and coat well.
6. Fry in oil that is preheated to 350 degrees.

Notes
You can either deep fry or pan fry these.  The picture shows pan fried chicken strips.  I put one inch of oil in my frying pan and flip the chicken half way through cooking.

You can also cut the chicken up smaller and make chicken nuggets.  I do this for my daughter who likes bite sized meat chunks more than the strips.

Want a quick meal in the future?  Freeze them!  If you want to freeze chicken fingers for later use, just partially cook the chicken in the oil.  Once they have cooled, place in a freezer bag.  To cook frozen chicken,  preheat your oven to 400 degrees and cook fingers 8-10 minutes on each side.  You can do this straight from the freezer without thawing.

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Is homemade worth it?

2 chicken breast = $1.00
1 cup self rising flour = $.10
1 1/2 Tablespoons salt = $.03
1 Tablespoon garlic = $.09
1 teaspoon onion powder = $.02
1 teaspoon pepper = $.01
1 cup buttermilk = $.25

So, one recipe of chicken strips costs $1.50 to make.  If you buy chicken by the pound, this could be $3.00 a pound.

Where we live, we can buy frozen chicken fingers for $1.40 a pound, already breaded and ready to cook at a discount/overstock store.  They do not taste as good as the homemade ones, but they are a lot cheaper. 

If you buy Tyson or another frozen brand at the grocery store, you will pay $6.99 for 1 1/2 pounds of chicken.  So one pound of Tyson chicken fingers costs $4.66.  It is cheaper to make homemade than to buy these.

Summery
Tyson chicken fingers = $4.66/lb
Homemade chicken fingers = $3.00/lb
Discount chicken fingers = $1.40/lb

Taste wise, however, I like the homemade ones much better than the frozen ones.

Yeast Rolls

I found this recipe on the blog, Sweet Tea and Cornbread.  It is by far the best and easiest yeast roll recipe I have tried.  The rolls are light and fluffy and really require little hands on work.  I took half a recipe to a gathering the other day and every one was eaten!

Yeast Rolls
Ingredients

6 cups all purpose flour

1 package yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

1/2 cup warm water

2 cups milk

3/4 cup oil

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Warm milk in microwave for 5 minutes, let cool.
2. Sift 5 cups of flour into a large mixing bowl.
3. Dissolve yeast in the warm water.
4. Add oil, sugar and salt to the milk and mix together.
5. Add the milk mixture into the flour.
6. Add the yeast mixture to the flour.  Stir it all together.
7. Coat the top of the dough with a thin layer of oil.
8. Cover with cloth and let rise for 2 hours or until doubled.
9. Sprinkle 1/2 cup flour onto counter or pastry cloth.
10. Put dough on top of the flour and cover with the other 1/2 cup of flour.
11. Knead until the dough forms a ball.
12. Roll the dough 1/4 inch thick and cut the rolls using a small or medium sized biscuit cutter.
13. Melt 1 Tablespoon of butter in each of your 4 round cake pans or 2 Tablespoons of butter in 2 9X13 pans.
14. Line the rolls in the pans, but not touching.  They will need room to rise.
15. Allow rolls to rise for at least 30 minutes.
16. Bake in a 425 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes.
17. Brush the tops with melted butter as soon as they come out of the oven.

Notes
This recipe makes 30-40 rolls depending on how large you make them.

Don't need 30 or 40 rolls?  Freeze the dough!  Once you get to step 14, stop.  Once the rolls are in the pan, you can throw them in the freezer.  Pull them out, thaw them on the counter for a few hours before baking and begin again at step 16.

I know it seems like a lot of work, but it really isn't!  There is a lot of wait time from rising, but the steps are easy to follow.

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Is home made worth it?

6 cups all purpose flour = $.60

1 package yeast = $.38

2 cups milk = $.485

3/4 cup oil = $.328

3/4 cup sugar = $.188

1 teaspoon salt = $.007

One recipe of yeast rolls costs $1.99.  When I made the rolls with my medium cutter, I made 30 rolls with a little left over dough.  So, one roll costs $.07.

Sister Schubert's rolls cost $3.99 and you only get 16 rolls.  Each roll would cost $.25.
Brown and serve rolls cost $1.50 and you only get 12 rolls.  Each roll would cost $.11

Homemade instead of Sister Schubert's
If you cook rolls once a week, and cooked enough rolls for each person to have one, you would save $.48 for a family of four.  In one month you would save $1.92.  You would save $23.94 in a year.

Homemade instead of brown and serve
If you cook rolls once a week, and cooked enough rolls for each person to have one, you would save $.20 for a family of four.  In one month you would save $.80.  You would save $9.60 in a year.

Summery
Sister Schubert's Roll = $.25
Brown and serve roll = $.11
Homemade yeast roll = $.07

Tomato Sauce

This is a recipe that I really made up myself, using tips from different sites and my husband.  My husband is the one who really taught me how to make tomato sauce, but I thought it was good, but not quite what I wanted.  I really wanted a sauce that would  taste good with anything that required tomato sauce so I would not need to remember or write down 4 or 5 different recipes.  This sauce recipe is good for spaghetti, lasagna, pizza... really everything I have put it on was good!

Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
2 cans tomato sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 can of water
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 Tablespoon oregano
2 Tablespoons basil
1 bay leaf
3 1/2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 chopped onion
1 Tablespoon butter
1 lb favorite meat for sauce

Directions

1. Caramelize the onions in the butter.
2. Brown the meat.
3. Combine all ingredients in a large pot.  Let simmer.  
4. Add to any dish that needs tomato sauce.

Notes
I let it simmer all day, stirring every hour or so.  If you do not have that long, cut the amount of water and simmer for at least an hour.  You could assemble all the ingredients the day before, cook for a small amount of time and store it in the refrigerator until you need it.  Just heat it up. Letting it sit in the refrigerator will help all the flavors blend just like cooking all day.

If I am using venison or any other lean meat, I will not drain the fat.  I think a little of the fat gives a good flavor to the sauce.  You can drain it if you want.  It is not necessary.

Have venison?  It works great in this recipe!

Don't want meat?  No problem, just leave it out!

Made too much?  Freeze it!  Use freezer safe containers or just a freezer safe bag for storing.

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Is homemade worth it?

2 cans tomato sauce = $1.40
1 can tomato paste = $.59
1 Tablespoon garlic powder = $.141
1 teaspoon paprika = $.014
1 Tablespoon oregano = $.26
2 Tablespoons basil = $.16
1 bay leaf = $.022
3 1/2 Tablespoons brown sugar = $.094
1/2 chopped onion = $.40
1 Tablespoon butter = $.0625

I bought a fresh onion for this which cost $.80.

Please note that I left off the meat from this list, since you would have to add it to a jarred sauce anyway.

One recipe of my homemade sauce = $3.13.

Please keep in mind that this sauce makes more than what is in a typical jar.  My recipe makes 1 1/2 jars of sauce without the meat, so one jar of my sauce = $2.07. 

Depending on the sauce you like, you can buy your sauce cheaper than making it on your own.  Ragu cost $1.79 at my local store, so it would be cheaper to just buy that.

Keep in mind that if you grow some of the herbs yourself, you can make a much cheaper sauce.  If you grew your own basil and oregano, that would knock off $.42 cents off the total cost.  Buying onions in season would help too as well as growing your own tomatoes.  I have not ventured this far yet!!

Summery

Homemade Sauce = $2.07
Ragu Spaghetti Sauce = $1.79

Dishes that use tomato sauce:

Homemade Pizza

Spaghetti

                                                                                                       

Pizza Rolls

Baked Spaghetti

                                                                                                        

Hot Pockets

Pizza Lasagna

Flour Tortillas

I cannot take credit for this recipe.  I found it online at the following website: Food Network.   I did make one modification which is in the recipe below.

Flour Tortillas
Ingredients
9 oz All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup Crisco
1/2 cup cool water

Directions

1. Cut Crisco into flour and salt until it resembles course meal.
2. Add the cool water while the dough is being moved.  I had to do this by hand as I do not have a mixer.  It was not that difficult.
3. Knead the dough on a floured surface until it is less sticky and easily forms a ball. 
4. Cover and let rest for one hour.
5. Divide dough into eight even portions. 
6. Each ball should be rolled out thin and will be approx. 7 inches in diameter.
7. Preheat griddle to 375 degrees.
8. Cook tortillas on each side for approx. 4 minutes.  It is ok if the dough bubbles.  
9. Let tortillas cool and sit wrapped in a damp towel.  This will keep them from drying out before serving.

Notes:
This recipe makes 8 tortillas.

9 oz of flour is approx 2 cups.  It is actually a little less than.  I did not weigh the flour and it came out fine with an approx amount.  Make sure not to do two full cups, though or it will turn out tasting like a flat biscuit.

These are best eating as soon as you can after cooking.  They will keep 2 hours at room temperature and can be reheated covered by a damp cloth.

Have left overs?  Do not worry.  You can save them till the next day or even freeze them.  If you save them, place a piece of parchment between each one before refrigerating or freezing.  Remember to reheat with a damp towel so they will not get too dry.

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Is homemade worth it?

9 oz All Purpose Flour = $.20
1 teaspoon salt = $.007
1/3 cup Crisco = $.24

So, one batch of flour tortillas cost $.447.  This means that each tortilla cost about $.06.

Store bought flour tortillas cost $1.69 for a 10 count package.  That means that each tortilla will cost about $.17.

You will save $.11 on each tortilla by making them yourself.  If you use 8 tortillas once a month, you will save $.88 a month and $10.56 a year.

Summery

One store bought tortilla = $.17.
One homemade tortilla = $.06.

Italian Sloppy Joes

This recipe is modified from one I found in a magazine.  If I remembered which one, I'd tell you, but I have had it for several years now and just can't remember.

Italian Sloppy Joes
Ingredients
2 lb ground beef
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1 cup ketchup
1 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 cup garlic butter
2 loaves Italian bread
2 cups mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. Cook meat and onions in skillet.  Drain the fat.
2. Combine beef, onions, ketchup, tomato sauce, Parmesan cheese and seasonings into large pot and mix well. 
3. Bring mixture to boil and then let simmer for 15 minutes.
4. While the meat is cooking, cut the loaves length wise.  Spread the garlic butter on the top half of both loaves.
5. Sprinkle 1/4 cut mozzarella cheese on each bottom half.
6. Spoon meat mixture onto the bottom of each loaf.  Sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella cheese onto the top of the meat mixture.  Top the sandwich with the top half of the loaf.
7. Wrap each loaf in foil and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.  
8. Cut each loaf into 8 pieces.

Notes:
This recipe makes 16 servings.

The original recipe called for 1/2 tablespoons of fennel seed.  I do not like biting into fennel, so I leave it out.

Need a garlic butter recipe?  Click HERE

Have venison?  Great!  It works just as well as beef!

Have extra meat?  No problem.  It can be frozen and used for an easy meal later on.  You can also serve it over noodles if you just want something different.

 

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How much does this cost?

2 lb ground beef = $.7.98
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped = $.10
1 cup ketchup = $.84
1 cup tomato sauce = $.40
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese = $.25
1/2 teaspoons garlic powder = $.02
1 teaspoon oregano = $.09
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning = $.05
1/2 cup garlic butter = $.55
2 loaves Italian bread = $4.00
2 cups mozzarella cheese = $2.00

This recipe costs $16.28 to make.  So each sandwich would cost $1.02

Well, I'm pretty sure you cannot buy Italian sloppy joes anywhere, since I have never really seen another recipe for it.  

If you were to make regular sloppy joes, you would pay $1 for the can of mix and upwards to $4 or more for the beef depending on how lean you want it.  Buns for sloppy joes are $1.29.   So, regular sloppy joes would cost $6.29 for the meal.  Assuming that you could make 8 sandwiches from this recipe, each sloppy joe would cost $.77.

Summary 

Regular Sloppy Joes -- $.77

Italian Sloppy Joes -- 1.02

While regular sloppy joes are cheaper, they really do not compare in taste to Italian sloppy joes. 

Biscuits

This is the biscuit recipe that my grandmother uses to make all her biscuits.

Biscuits
Ingredients
2 cups self-rising flour
1/3 cup butter Crisco
1 cup buttermilk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 
2. Cut the Crisco into the flour until it forms small pea sized clumps.  
3. Add buttermilk slowly until all the dough is wet, but not overly moist.  It may not take the whole cup.
4. Knead the down on a floured surface until it is smooth.  Only take a minute or two.  If the dough was too wet, you will need to add a little more flour to knead it without it sticking to your hands.
5. Roll out the dough until it is 1/2 inch thick.  
6. Using a 2 inch round cutter, cut out biscuits.  
7. Reroll scraps until all or most of the dough is used.  Should only have to do this twice.
8. Bake for 10 minutes, or until the tops begin to lightly brown.

Notes
Makes about 15 biscuits.


My grandmother always melted a stick of butter to brush the bottom of her pan and the tops of her biscuits before cooking.  We then used the left over butter to butter the insides when they were done.  I have stopped doing this because they seem to cook better without the butter in my pan/oven. 

Don't want to roll and cut?  No problem, just put a little flour on your hands and pinch off pieces of dough and form them in your hand.

Made too many?  Don't throw them out!  You can freeze these biscuits for an easy breakfast or  for use in future recipes.

Lactose Intolerant?  You can use lactose free milk to make these.  The biscuits will not be as fluffy.  When my grandmother made these with lactose free milk, I told her they seemed to taste more like crackers than a biscuit, but they still worked for putting jelly or sausage on!

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Is it worth making this homemade?

2 cups self-rising flour = $.20
1/3 cup butter Crisco = $.24
1 cup buttermilk = $.25

So, one recipe of biscuits costs $.69.  That means that each biscuit costs $.05

Frozen Biscuits 
Pillsbury frozen biscuits cost $2.89 for 12 biscuits. So each biscuit = $.24

Canned Biscuits
Pillsbury Grands costs $1.49 for 8 biscuits. So each biscuit = $.17. 

If we buy store bought biscuits, we usually get the canned ones.  If you make homemade instead of buying the canned ones, you will save $.12 on each biscuit.  If you make biscuits twice a month (like we do) you will save $3.60 per month and $43.20 for the year.

Summary

One frozen biscuit = $.24
One canned biscuit = $.17
One homemade biscuit = $.05

Recipes that use biscuits

Salmon Patties