Sunday, February 28, 2010

Dinner Tonight: Chili

Our menu plan got switched around a bit this week when I got a flat tire.  I had to go get it fixed on Friday while hubby was at basketball practice, so I had dinner with my mom and grandma and pushed Friday's dinner to tonight.
I'm sure I have said this before, but one of my favorite things about making chili is how quick and easy it is.  This time I just made my regular chili recipe, which is basically just using a packet of Lawry's chili seasoning, a can of tomatoes and a can of beans.  It's simple, tasty and hubby loves it.  It would be much cheaper to use my own seasonings, but the Lawry's mix is so good that we deem it to be worth the "splurge."
One tip I suggest is using fire-roasted tomatoes instead of just regular ones.  They have more depth of flavor.  Also, for hubby's sake I puree them in the food processor and it makes the chili really smooth, except of course for the chunks of beans and meat.
We always serve chili with cornbread, made from the Jiffy muffin mix box.  My mom and grandma were saying that they used to make their own cornbread but have come to the conclusion that the Jiffy mix is just as good and probably not much more expensive than the raw ingredients you would need to bake from scratch.
Here's my chili recipe, even though I've basically detailed it above:

Chili

1 lb lean ground beef or turkey
1 package Lawry's chili seasoning (I feel it's the best and that no other packaged mix can compare)
1 can diced fire-roasted tomatoes, pureed until smooth
1 can dark red kidney beans

Brown meat in skillet, drain or pat dry if necessary.  Add seasoning, then beans and tomatoes.  Stir until combined.  Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer about 10 minutes.

See told you it was crazy easy!

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Estimated cost of meal

Beef: $1.50
Seasoning: $.89
Tomatoes: $.61 ($.86/can at Walmart, less $1/4 coupon)
Beans: $.92 (couldn't find on sale, usually can get for around $.75/can)
Corn bread mix: $.43
Egg: $.11
Milk: $.16
Cheese: $.15

Total: $4.77

Former life total: Dinner at Sonic: $14

Leaner Life Savings: $9.23 or 65%!!!

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