What's Cookin

I am always going forward BUT I usually go backwards first especially when I tell a story. I can't just say *This is what I made for dinner* I must tell the back story first. Don't know where I got it from but that is just how I am.

So I ordered the weekend edition of the Tulsa World as a Christmas present for my husband. I am not a big newspaper reader but I have been making an effort to read it. Last week there was an article about The $5 Dinner Mom which I really enjoyed. I checked out her website and her challenge to herself was to create healthy meals for her family for under $5.

This website appealed to me for several reasons. I have been making an effort to eat healthier and most of her recipes are made from scratch. I don't think they ALL are but they don't use a lot of processed ingredients. She inspired me to be a bit more creative and not waste so much food. I might not make her recipes exactly but I do use them for inspiration.

She does make use of store specials and coupons which I don't as I am somewhat limited to Walmart right now. I used to be the coupon queen myself years ago but right now my focus is on not eating processed foods first and money savings second. I buy a lot of store brand stuff/ bulk anyways so I think I can forgo the coupon cutting for the time being.

Tonight I de boned leftover crock pot chicken that I marinated in Caribbean Jerk sauce. Sadly I saw the first ingredient was High Fructose Corn Syrup but I wanted to use up the bottle and not waste it. I sauteed white onion and mixed in the chicken.
The meat went onto rolls I had picked up on the discount rack and sliced them in half. Home made french fries (actually baked) and fresh raw peas rounded out dinner.

I don know if this meal was under $5 but I think it was for all 4 of us. I think it was pretty healthy overall and my only complaint was the sauce which was full of chemicals but I won't worry to much!