Eat @HOME August Finale & September-Menu Planning

Well, it's official...we DID IT!  We ate at home for the entire month of August! (With the exception of Eli's Birthday Happy Meal!)  Anybody else out there try it?  I think the team's favorite new meal was the Baked Tacos followed closely by Chicken Rollatini.

It was a lot of cooking, but it was SO worth it.  So much in fact that we are doing it AGAIN!  Ahhh!  We are crazy! :)  We won't be AS strict this time.  We will allow ourselves a couple of times to go and grab something if we are in a pinch.  

Honestly it wasn't too bad!  True I did complain a few times, but those were times that I hadn't planned very well.  So that was my fault. :)

So here is my Eat @HOME September Menu!!  There are a few meals still left from August that I didn't get to.  You'll also see some repeats from August because they were so yummy.  I also added a couple of brand new ones to try out! (Those are noted by the *.)  I've also added a Snacks/breakfasts/Freezer category.  These are things I like to keep on hand at various times for the boys to either add to their school lunches or to take for snack.

Eat @ HOME September 2013 Menu

1. Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Taquitos *
2. Chicken & Dumplings
3. Pancake Squares *, Eggs & Bacon
4. Navajo Tacos
5. Chicken Rollatini , Pasta, Salad
6. Crockpot Lemon Chicken *, Baked Potatoes
7. BBQ Pork Ribs, Potato Casserole, Corn on the Cob
8. Tuna Salad Sandwiches, Sea Shell Pasta Salad*
9. Baked Tacos
10. Chicken Parmesan Meatballs *, Pasta, Ratatouille *
11. Garlic Chicken with Orzo*, Roasted Carrots
12. Crockpot Rotisserie Style Chicken Breasts, Mashed Potatoes/Gravy, Corn
13. Shepherd's Pie
14. Meatloaf, Oven Roasted Potatoes
15. Meatball Subs, Caprese Pasta Salad*
16. Baked Chicken Taquitos, Rice, Black Beans
17. BBQ Chicken Sandwiches, Parmesan/Spinach Orzo
18. Chili, Cornbread
19. Pizza, Cheese Sticks, Salad
20. Spaghetti, Salad, Green Beans
21. Crockpot Hawaiian Chicken*, Rice
22. Crockpot Chicken Fajitas*
23. Pan-seared Chicken breasts, Baked Potatoes
24. Beef & Potato Hash
25. Hamburgers, French Fries
26. Pancakes, Eggs & Bacon
27. BBQ Chicken Legs, Oven Roasted Potatoes
28. Fried Chicken, Mashed potatoes, Okra

Snacks/Breakfasts/Freezer

1. Hot Ham & Cheese Pinwheels*
2. Granola Bars
3. Poppy Seed Bread 
4. Banana Bread
5. Buttermilk Breakfast Cake
6. French Bread
7. Pizza Dough

Eat @HOME August Day #27 Update-Baked Tacos

We are almost done!  It has been a long month!  As of today, the only money we have spent on eating out was about $4 for Eli's Happy Birthday Happy Meal!  For birthdays, we take them the lunch of their choice to school.  We couldn't skip Eli's special day! :)

Last night I made Baked Tacos.  They were really good!  Thumbs up from the whole team!  Well, Eli technically gave me a sideways thumb because I put too much meat in them and his fell apart! :)  Such a critic!

They were fairly easy to make.  I loved the idea of toasting them upside down on the oven rack!  Just be careful when toasting up your tortillas not to burn them.  I only burned one which is amazing!  I'm notorious for burning tortillas in my house!  I used both corn and flour tortillas.  They both turned out great.  By toasting the tortillas in the oven, it makes the base wide enough to fill them without them falling over, which is AWESOME!  

The meat mixture for this is amazing.  By adding the refried beans, you can make your meat mixture go farther.  It also bumped up the fiber and protein.  My boys didn't even know it had beans in it!  This is probably how I'll make my tacos from now on!  They are that good! :)  I highly recommend these!

Baked Tacos

Topped with some lettuce, tomato, salsa and fat free sour cream!  YUM!

Here is what my menu looks like.  I'm going to end up with some extra recipes, but that's OK.  We will just roll those over into September.

Eat @ HOME August 2013 Menu

1. Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Taquitos *
2. Skillet Chili Mac *
3. Pancake Squares *, Eggs & Bacon
4. Pan Seared Chicken with Tomatoes *, Parmesan/Spinach Orzo*
5. Chicken Rollatini *, Pasta,
6. Crockpot Lemon Chicken *, Baked Potatoes
7. Pork Loin *, Potato Casserole
8. Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Sea Shell Pasta Salad*
9. Baked Tacos*
10. Chicken Parmesan Meatballs *, Pasta, Ratatouille *
11. Honey Lime Chicken Skewers *, Roasted Potatoes with Garlic Sauce*
12. Crockpot Rotisserie Style Chicken, Mashed Potatoes/Gravy, Corn
13. Shepherd's Pie
14. Meatloaf, Oven Roasted Potatoes
15. Meatball Subs, Salad
16. Baked Chicken Taquitos, Rice, Black Beans
17. BBQ Chicken Cornbread Pie
18. Sloppy Joes, French Fries
19. Pizza, Cheese Sticks, Salad
20. Spaghetti, Salad, Green Beans
21. BBQ Pork Ribs, Baked Potatoes
22. Enchiladas, Rice, Black Beans
23. Beef & Potato Hash
24. Hamburgers, French Fries
25. French Toast, Eggs
26. BBQ Chicken Legs
27. Fried Chicken, Mashed potatoes, Okra-Jeff's meal! :)

~Happy Cooking!

Kristee

Eat @HOME August Day #12 Update

Well Eat @HOME August is STILL going strong! :)  We haven't given into temptation, not even once!  No McDonald's sweet tea, no fast food, not even donuts and juice at church.  The boys have done really well.  They haven't really complained.  They did want Gatorade at the Bridge on Saturday, but they used their own money for it! :)  Eli keeps coming up with things that I should make instead of buying.  He told me yesterday we should get some chickens so we wouldn't have to buy eggs!  Really?  As if our neighbors need another reason to be annoyed with us!  :)

We are cooking our way through our menu.  We've eaten 10 meals off of the menu so far.  Not too bad for day #12! :)

Eat @ HOME August 2013 Menu

1. Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Taquitos *
2. Skillet Chili Mac *
3. Pancake Squares *, Eggs & Bacon
4. Pan Seared Chicken with Tomatoes *, Parmesan/Spinach Orzo*
5. Chicken Rollatini *, Pasta, 
6. Crockpot Lemon Chicken *, Baked Potatoes
7. Pork Loin *, Potato Casserole
8. Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Sea Shell Pasta Salad*
9. Baked Tacos*
10. Chicken Parmesan Meatballs *, Pasta, Ratatouille *
11. Honey Lime Chicken Skewers *, Roasted Potatoes with Garlic Sauce*
12. Crockpot Rotisserie Style Chicken, Mashed Potatoes/Gravy, Corn
13. Shepherd's Pie
14. Meatloaf, Oven Roasted Potatoes
15. Meatball Subs, Salad
16. Baked Chicken Taquitos, Rice, Black Beans
17. BBQ Chicken Cornbread Pie
18. Sloppy Joes, French Fries
19. Pizza, Cheese Sticks, Salad
20. Spaghetti, Salad, Green Beans
21. BBQ Pork Ribs, Baked Potatoes
22. Enchiladas, Rice, Black Beans
23. Beef & Potato Hash
24. Hamburgers, French Fries
25. French Toast, Eggs  
26. BBQ Chicken Legs
27. Fried Chicken, Mashed potatoes, Okra-Jeff's meal! :)

Last night a made a meatloaf and some oven roasted potatoes.

I thought I'd share my potato recipe with you!  They are really easy and my team really likes them.

Oven Roasted Potatoes
*Potatoes
*Drizzle of Olive Oil
*Italian Seasoning
*Parmesan Cheese
*Salt and Pepper

Peel your potatoes, then slice thin on a mandolin slicer. (This is the one that I have.)-It's nothing fancy, but it gets the job done.
Put them in a Ziploc bag, drizzle in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  Add other ingredients to your liking.  Shake it all up.  Spread them out evenly on a baking sheet.  Bake at 450 for 15-20 minutes.

Give it a try!

Has anybody out there tried any new yummy recipes?

~Kristee

2 Days until Eat @HOME Aug. begins!!

Hi friends!  The countdown is on...2 days until Eat @ HOME August begins!

Our family is committing to eating meals @ HOME or from HOME for the entire month of August!  I know it sounds crazy, right?!  It is, BUT I'm excited to see how much money we can save!  To tell you the truth, I'm kind of excited about the challenge.  I probably won't be so excited on week #2!  :)

So who's in?  Anybody out there brave enough to try the whole month?  If your schedule needs a bit more flexibility, maybe you could do a modified version.

You could commit to:
Bringing your lunch everyday to work.
Eating @ HOME every week night.
Eating @ HOME for the weekend.
Giving up your Starbucks/Quicktrip drink stop.

The point of this isn't necessarily to "go without" but rather to help make us aware of how much money we waste because we don't plan well, or we take the easy way out!  I am SO guilty of that!  When I don't plan what to cook, before I know it the clock says 5:00 and everything we own is frozen.  DUH Kristee! :)  Or even worse, the days I just say, "forget it" and call Jeff and he stops for pizza on his way home. Guilty! :(  Please tell me I'm not alone!  I can't be the only one who sometimes fails at taking care of their family!

In case you missed it, this is my menu for the challenge.  I'll be reviewing several new recipes and sharing how my team liked them!

I hope some of you will join us! :)  If not, I hope that some of you will at least enjoy a couple of new recipes!  Comment below if you are planning on joining us in one way or another.  I'd love to know who I can complain , oops commiserate, with! :)

~Kristee

Eat @ HOME Aug.-Menu Planning

Hey friends!  I've been planning my menu for Eat @ HOME August.  I wanted to share it with you.  If you are anything like me, I love finding new recipes that are "team friendly".  I hope you consider joining in on this challenge.  Maybe committing to eating at home the entire month seems unrealistic for some of you.  I totally understand that.  So sit down and set a smaller goal, one that seems more workable for your family.  I understand how hectic life can be with work and kid's schedules.  I know for our team, it's not just about saving money, but it's also remembering to be good stewards of what we have.  :)  Too often we eat out because I just don't feel like cooking.  :(  My hope is that plenty of "teachable moments" will arise from this challenge.  We've already shared with our team what we are doing and they seem fine with it, for now!  But I anticipate some future complaining. 

Here is my menu below.  These are in no particular order.  I don't assign specific meals for a specific day.  I just compile a list of meals that I will have the ingredients for.  Doing menu planning this way, enables me to pick and choose as our schedule allows.  I usually make my meal choice the night before so I'll know if I need to set something out of the freezer.  I'm only planning for dinners.  Breakfasts are usually cereal, oatmeal, eggs, previously cooked frozen pancakes, etc.  My big boys will take their lunch to school (as usual).  I can't imagine paying $2.25/per school lunch.  Eli sometimes ate school lunch, but with two in school now-forgettabouit!  :)  Jeff & I will eat leftovers or sandwiches for lunch.

Eat @ HOME August 2013 Menu

1. Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Taquitos *
2. Skillet Chili Mac *
3. Pancake Squares *, Eggs & Bacon
4. Pan Seared Chicken with Tomatoes *, Parmesan/Spinach Orzo*
5. Chicken Rollatini *, Pasta, 
6. Crockpot Lemon Chicken *, Baked Potatoes
7. Pork Loin *, Potato Casserole
8. Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Sea Shell Pasta Salad*
9. Baked Tacos*
10. Chicken Parmesan Meatballs *, Pasta, Ratatouille *
11. Honey Lime Chicken Skewers *, Roasted Potatoes with Garlic Sauce*
12. Crockpot Rotisserie Style Chicken, Mashed Potatoes/Gravy, Corn
13. Shepherd's Pie
14. Meatloaf, Oven Roasted Potatoes
15. Meatball Subs, Salad
16. Baked Chicken Taquitos, Rice, Black Beans
17. BBQ Chicken Cornbread Pie
18. Sloppy Joes, French Fries
19. Pizza, Cheese Sticks, Salad
20. Spaghetti, Salad, Green Beans
21. BBQ Pork Ribs, Baked Potatoes
22. Enchiladas, Rice, Black Beans
23. Beef & Potato Hash
24. Hamburgers, French Fries
25. French Toast, Eggs  
26. BBQ Chicken Legs
27. Fried Chicken, Mashed potatoes, Okra-Jeff's meal! :)

*These are brand new recipes which I'll review and feature here on my blog.

There you have it!  I only included 27 meals on my menu, to allow for a few nights of leftovers or sandwiches.  I typically don't plan a ton of sides.  I'll add fresh veggies/dip, or a cooked family favorite.

I hope this helps you plan your menu for the month.  Please feel free to share your family's favorites as well.

Happy Planning!
~Kristee

Eat @ HOME August

It's coming!  A brand new challenge I'm calling "Eat @ HOME-August"!  It is exactly how it sounds, you commit to eating all of your meals "at home" or "from home".

We have done this many times before and we love to see how much money we can save.  It's been a long while since we've done this, so we thought we'd give it another try.  I won't lie, it is A LOT of work for me, since Jeff doesn't cook at all. (He can make some yummy scrambled eggs, but that's about it.)  It takes a lot of strategic planning/prepping, but it CAN be done.

We don't spend a ton of money eating out.  But we do take advantage of the drive-thru way too much.  Let's face it, it's cheap, fast, and kid-friendly.  Jeff and I do take-out after the team's in bed, a couple of times a month. We also are guilty of late night trips to Coldstone, Kokomo, or my personal favorite, In-N-Out.  $20 here and there, can really add up!

I am currently planning my menu for the month.  I'm planning for my family's favorites as well as several new recipes.  I will post my menu as soon as it's complete.  I should be done by the weekend.  I'll also be posting recipe reviews throughout the month of the new recipes I'm trying.

So who's with me?  If you'd like to join the challenge just comment below.  I figure accountability is a good thing!  Also, if you have any favorite, team friendly "go-to" meals please share them below.  This Momma appreciates all the help she can get, and I know others will too!  

I know this challenge seems a lot of work, but you can do it!  Just think of how much money you will have left at the end of the month!  CHA-CHING! :)

~Kristee