Fired Won Tons

Here is my first installment of a "budget dinner." By budget dinner, I am thinking it only takes a few, cheapish ingredients. This is one of my family faves growing up (there are 9 kids in my fam). It makes a TON, and they are sooo yummy. I guess you could get real creative and add other ingredients, but then it wouldn't really be as cheap...


Fried Won Tons

-1-2 cans Canned Roast Beef
carrots
won ton wrappers (these are typically found in the produce section by the other specialty items...)

-Grate carrots. Cook meat until tender. Mix both together. Place about a teaspoon of the filling into won tons, pinch closed with water. Make sure no meat is exposed or it will pop in the oil-and it hurts! Fry in oil until brown and crispy. Serve with sweet and sour sauce.

Tip: I like to make up a bunch of the raw won tons before I start frying them so I can keep adding them as others get done.

This is one of the best soups that I have ever made. It is so good I crave it quite often. It is pretty easy to make and it makes alot. So good, you too will crave it!

Wild Rice and Chicken Soup:

3-4 boneless chicken breasts 2 chicken bouillon cubes
2 cans chicken broth 1/2 tsp. basil
4 cups water 3 stalks celery
1 Tbsp. onion flakes

*Boil above ingredients until chicken is tender. Remove chicken and shred.

1/2 cup wild rice - in second pot, cook in 2 cups water for 30 minutes, then drain.
1 cup white rice - add to soup (raw) after chicken is done with partially cooked wild rice.
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup flour - mix with butter in separate pan until bubbly.
16 oz. half and half

*Add half and half to roux and stir until thickened. Add white sauce to soup and stir until thick and blended. Shredded chicken can be added anytime. Add milk or water to thin. This soup is pretty thick and can also be made substituting milk for half and half or just thinned down at the end.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

3 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped broccoli or fresh chopped broccoli
1/2 cup grated carrots
3 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
6 tablespoons margarine
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1 1/2 pounds Velveeta
1 pinch ground white pepper

DIRECTIONS
In a large pot over medium heat, simmer the broccoli and carrots in the broth for 15 minutes. In a separate skillet over medium heat, melt the butter or margarine, add the onions and saute for 5 minutes, or to desired tenderness.
Add the flour to the onions and stir well, forming a pasty substance. Gradually add the milk and stir until thick. Add this mixture to the broccoli mixture in the pot and stir well. Then add the cheese, stirring until melted. Finally, add the pepper. (Note: Be careful not to let the soup boil, or the cheese will break down.)

*I made this a few weeks ago and everyone loved it. I am craving it, so I'll have to make it again this weekend. After I make some of the yummy soups you all have posted!

Taco Soup

A college roommmate introduced me to this one and now it's one of my favorites. There are many variations that you can take on this one also - so feel free to adapt it with what you have in your pantry.

Taco Soup

1 pound lean ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 package of ranch dressing mix
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can black beans
1 (15 ounce) can stewed tomatoes

Tortilla Chips/Fritos
Sour Cream
Cheese

In large pot brown ground beef and onion. Drain off excess fat. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer for 20-30 minutes. Top with chips, sour cream, and cheese.

New Posting Suggestions

Hi Ladies! I love seeing all the new recipes on here but I think it's going to start getting chaotic if we are all just posting whatever recipes we want to. I was thinking we could maybe do monthly themes of recipes. That way it will be really easy to search for recipes later on!

Here's what I'm suggesting for the rest of January: Soups/Stews. Share your favorite tried and true! Since we are in the colder months this might be a good one to start with.

To think ahead for February - let's focus on Budget Meals.

And if you do try a recipe that is so fabulous that you can't wait to share it - please feel free to post. I'm just trying to get it a little more organized!

Also - what monthly "themes" do you want to see covered? I was thinking we could do desserts, appetizers, etc.

Grilled Romaine Hearts

Yes, you read that correctly... grilled lettuce. I found the recipe on the back of a package of Romaine lettuce hearts and thought I'd give it a try. To. Die. For. Not kidding...

Grilled Romaine Hearts

Romaine Heart
Olive Oil
Lemon Juice
Garlic
Salt
Pepper
Parmesan Cheese

Cut romaine hearts in half lengthwise. Brush with olive oil and lemon juice. Sprinkle with garlic, salt and pepper.

Grill only a couple of minutes on each side, until leaves start to wilt. Dust with Parmesan cheese, slice and serve warm!

** This is really easy to make on the Forman, I just don't close the lid. I particularly love this served with Salmon and Blueberry Sauce and rice pilaf. I'll post that recipe later!

Southern Fried Chicken

I am not a fan of fried chicken but my husband could live on KFC if I let him. When I found this recipe in my William Sonoma catalog I figured for his sake, I'd give it a try. It is FABULOUS!! Time consuming, but so worth it!!! The original recipe calls for a whole chicken cut into bits, I just use a few chicken breasts and cut them into bite size pieces so its more of a nugget...

Southern Fried Chicken

Several chicken breasts, cut into pieces
Salt to taste, plus 2 tsp
Fresh ground pepper to taste, plus 1 tsp
2 cups buttermilk
1-2 Tbsp Tabasco sauce
6 cups canola oil
1 ½ cup flour
½ tsp paprika

Rinse chicken & pat dry. Season with salt & pepper. Place in a large dish, cover & refrigerate for 1-4 hours. In a large bowl, combine buttermilk and Tabasco sauce, pour over chicken, coating thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate over night.

Remove chicken from fridge 30 minutes prior to cooking. Place in a colander to drain excess buttermilk from chicken. Heat oil. Combine flour, 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper & paprika. Coat chicken in flour mixture, shaking off excess. Fry in oil until cooked through.

**For crispier chicken, dip in buttermilk, then flour mixture a second time before frying.

Delicious served with corn on the cob and biscuits.