Frugal In Florida

It's summertime and it's been so very HOT already ... so I'm leaning back on some of my all time favorite salads to save my butt and keep me cool. This is like my FAVORITE salad to make ... well, I suppose it's really in the top 5, I love my  steak salad  too ... and the  Olive-Y Garden  Salad, and the  Cabbage Salad  ... Anyways ... this is ONE of my favorite salads, hows that? And if you already have the chicken cooked and pasta left over, it's a no brainer! Here's what you need: Head of romaine lettuce, trimmed, washed and torn/cut into bite size pieces (if you were smart, you've already checked out the  foodsaver tip !) 1 grilled chicken breast (I generally use a leftover one) cut into bite size pieces a little bit of pasta, rigatoni or penne work best (cooked) sprinkle of fresh Parmesan cheese Cesar Dressing (I prefer Kens Light Cesar) Croutons It's so easy. Dump all in large bowl. Mix well to coat evenly. Serve. See that p...

So I had this recipe pinned for a few days, not months like some of the others ... and decided to make it at the last minute the other night ... I'm pretty glad I did, and so is Hubby! It's easy, and really, REALLY tasty! And surprisingly, I had everything on hand, even the fresh basil (I suppose you could use dried if you had to) ... 1/4 cup olive oil 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 1 tsp Dijon mustard 2 tbs (give or take) fresh basil chopped Boneless, skinless chicken breast (I used almost 2 lbs, 4 fat pieces) Additional basil for topping salad Mix together everything and let the chicken mix and mingle for a bit in the fridge. AND if you remember, set aside 2 tbs of marinade and set aside for later ... I forgot. I had to make a small batch after the fact. Grab some lettuce and chop it up. Add this to a large platter. Slice or dice a tomato or two. Leave these on the cutting board. I like mine diced. Cook up 2 slices of bacon for each chicken breast y...

Yeah, I admit it, last week's plan really wasn't spot on ... I mean, heck, who was I kidding? I knew the week could turn out to be busy AND I also knew that Hubby would be home ... so here's the truth: Sunday: chicken thighs and wedge salad Monday: leftovers Tuesday: crock pot ranch pork (which hubby could NOT find the lid so he added a bunch of liquid and they were just so so) Wednesday: ordered pizza at 9:30pm from the pool (yes, seriously) Thursday: popcorn ... and Friday: burgers and dogs on the grill. With a bunch of girlfriends. And too much beer, bourbon and vodka. Yes. That's the truth. Saturday was a night for recuperating and movies (aka, lazy) so we ordered chinese. For delivery. Anyways. This week needs to be better. That's all I can say! The grocery store shop during the week wasn't so very bad either, Publix $100 on Sunday and $30 on Friday. Monday was lots of beer and fruity stuff ... Friday was 'some' beer and hot dog, hambu...

Again ... I know, wasn't I just there?? Yes, yes, I was ... but I had a few things that must come from Costco ... us loyal Costco fans are the worse, trust me ... What was so very important? Baby Romaine. Yes. BABY ROMAINE. And a few other things :-) 6 pk romaine lettuce $3.99 5 pk baby romaine $3.99 (yeah, the price went down!) 12 pk torta sandwich rolls (for Monday dinner and lunches for the Boy) $5.99 Fresh pepperoni pizza $8.99 less $3 (for the Boy Sunday nights dinner) 5 lbs tomatoes $6.79 gallon whole milk $3.39 gallon 2% milk $3.39 twin pk fresh mozzarella $7.79 1/2 gallon sweet and spicy pickles $5.49 (Hubby said they are a little TOO sweet) Pomegranate juice $8.99 less $2.25 Mrs. Dash $4.49 2 pkgs (1 lb each) cooked bacon $12.99 each 10 lbs chicken breast (frozen) $22.99 mini babybel cheese $9.99 2 2lb precooked steak strips $12.99 each 3 lb frozen mixed berries $11.89 8 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs $16.08 Celery sticks $3.99 String chee...

It's time for another MAKE YOUR OWN post! Well, ok, so it's not from scratch. And it's probably not all that better for you  ... I KNOW it's not grain free, no need to remind me. But, it is something, that when I make it, people KNOW that I went above and beyond just opening another bottle from the pantry to serve up some ranch dressing. PLUS ... I make it a little thinner ... and it's GREAT on top of a wedge salad ... Here's how I do it ... 1 cup of plain greek yogurt 3/4 cup to 1 cup milk, up to you as to how thin or thick you want it 1 packet of ranch dressing, not the dip stuff, the DRESSING stuff (see, mine says salad dressing and DIP mix. This is fine!) NO, I did not read the ingredients ... I know it's not good, don't tell me! Add 1/2 cup milk and the powder to jar, lid it and shake it like you mean it! Add the yogurt, lid it and shake some more. Add more milk and shake til you have a consistency that you like. Lid it ...

I had this recipe pinned for a little while and decided to give it a try one day when I knew I'd have a full day of fun at the office ... We didn't eat it that night, Hubby took a little pity on me and took me out (nice guy!) so the following night, we reheated this with some mashed potatoes and whew ... it was very very tasty! Those items above? That's all you need in addition to the pork chops.  Seriously. One packet of ranch dressing One can of cream of chicken soup 1 tsp fresh garlic chopped black pepper You are chopping your garlic in mass quantities, right? I mean really. All you do is spray the crockpot with spray, toss in the chop. Mix up the balance of ingredients in small bowl and spread over the chops. Go ahead and toss in any chopped onions you see in the fridge ... Put a lid on the crockpot and make yet another mental note to find a new handle to replace the broken one ... Set the timer to low as long as it goes...