Cheap Popcorn Mix-in’s

As a mom of 4 I am always looking for a cheap snack idea for my kids. Popcorn is one of the cheapest snacks around. Not only is it healthy and affordable but in my house it’s a favorite. Here is a list of cheap mix-in ideas. Most of these ingredients are right in your cupboard making snack-time even cheaper!

Start with 8 cups of hot popcorn then toss your favorite min-in from below with popcorn:

  • Cheesy – stir in 1 env. of dry cheese sauce mix (similar to what you would find in a box of macaroni and cheese) 1/4 cup of grates Parmesan cheese.
  • Cinnamon – mix 2 Tbs. sugar and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon.
  • Hickory Bacon – mix a few strips of crumbles cooked bacon and 1/4 tsp. hickory-smoked salt.
  • Zesty Italian – stir 1 tbs. dried Italian salad dressing mix and 6 thinly slivered oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes.
  • Nutty herbed – add 1/2 tsp of each: dried basil, thyme, and rosemary and toss until well mixed. Stir in 3/4 cup chopped almonds.
  • Double Sesame – drizzle in 1 tbs. sesame oil, toss with 2 tbs. toasted sesame seeds.
  • Chocolate – toss in 2 tbs. of sweetened powdered cocoa mix(we use on with marshmallows included) and 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon.

These are just a few ideas for giving your popcorn a little kick that your kids will love. I’d love to hear about your popcorn mix-ins, leave me a comment as I’m always looking for new ideas.

October 29th, 2008 | Tags: | Category: cheap snack ideas | 2 comments

Cheap Vegetarian Meals – You got to check this out!

Cooking for a Vegetarian has proven time and time again to be a difficult endeavor. This totally applies to families like mine where only one person chooses to be “meatless” but the rest of the family is meat lovers.

Well now there’s a website that gives menu samples, ideas on what to prepare and just about anything else you need to help you cook cheap vegetarian meals for both your meat eaters and your “meatless” eaters.

The website also links to Amazon for some cheap cookbooks, e-books and just about any book you need.

Oh ya Cheap Vegetarian Meals also has a Vegetarian Thanksgiving Menu with different dish choices to help you create a Thanksgiving tradition Vegetarian style.

Here the link check it out: Cheap Vegetarian Meals

A link is also included on my Blogroll tab!

October 20th, 2008 | Tags: , , , | Category: Dream Dinners Made Cheap | One comment

Chicken and Rice Bake


Having cheap meal ideas/recipes in mind when it’s been one of those crazy days is a necessity in my house. I love a simple one dish bake. It’s quick to prepare, easy to bake and the best part – little clean up! now that’s what I’m talking about.

Chicken and Rice bake.

1 lb of chicken (any type just stay around $3.00 per pkg.)
3/4 cup of uncooked white rice, not instant rice ($0.99 per box)
1 can cream of mushroom soup ($0.50 at wal-mart)
1/4 tsp paprika (or just use your favorite all season spice)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 1/3 cup of water
1 can green beans ($0.50 at wal-mart)

Stir water, rice, soup and seasoning in shallow baking dish then add chicken. Sprinkle chicken with additional seasoning. Bake at 375 for 45 min to 1 hour or until rice and chicken are done. As the picture shows you can top the chicken with cheese and toss back in the oven for about 5 minutes to melt. Serve with green beans. Feeds 4-5 people.

October 11th, 2008 | Tags: , , , , | Category: Dinner Recipes, Casserole Cooking | 4 comments
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