What We Saved This Week…

Last week I posted about how dining at home instead of going out to eat can save lots of money. I had lots of great feedback from all of you, so I thought I would do another post with the savings breakdown.

This week, instead of the estimated $61.00 we would have spent dining out once, we spent the following:

3 large chicken breasts – $6.00

1 can Evaporated Milk – $.50

1 can Cream of Mushroom – $.82

Flour – @$.18

Butter – $1.00

4 med-lg potatoes – $1.00

Baby Carrots – $1.00

Can of Green Beans – $.65

Sugar – $.15

12 oz Chocolate Chips – $1.75

Eggs – $1.00

Peppermint Patty – $.45

This was dinner and dessert enough for 3 adults and a toddler.

Here’s what we had…

The Butter Baked Chicken is a recipe out of the new Paula Deen magazine. I eyed it right away when I first got it in the mail, and it is a recipe that doesn’t disappoint. The prep time is quick and easy, although the bake time is quite long at 70 minutes. It makes for a juicy chicken, though, and the gravy makes it really good. To keep things easy on the sides, I simply chopped up the potatoes, leaving a bit of skin, and threw them in the microwave until they were nice and tender. Then I added about 3 Tbsp. of butter, a splash of milk, a dash of onion powder, and salt and pepper. This I put back into the microwave until the butter was melted, then I smashed them all together right in the serving bowl. The green beans? Well, it was a can. I opened it, added salt & pepper, a little onion powder, a little butter. Nuked it. Done. The baby carrots I sauteed with about 4 tablespoons of butter and 1/4 cup of sugar. They were sweet and delicious.

The dessert I adapted from our February Daring Baker’s Challenge – the Chocolate Valentino. This time I used 2 cups of chocolate – 1 cup of SemiSweet, 1 cup of Milk Chocolate. I melted these together with 6 Tbsp. of butter in the microwave until it was nice and smooth and shiny. I added a splash of mint extract, and then a large chopped up peppermint patty. I stirred in 3 whipped egg yolks and then folded in 3 egg whites that had been beaten until they formed stiff peaks. This I poured into a 6 inch pan and baked for 35 minutes at 375. Served with a little ice cream, this is very rich and delicious. I serve it nice and warm.

Here is the recipe for the Butter Baked Chicken. I nabbed it from the Paula Deen Site, as well as the picture. Gotta give credit where credit is due! FYI – this magazine is very good and has lots of recipes that will help you out in the kitchen – from fancy to downright comforting. Give it a try. You can order a subscription here for a mere $14.98 – otherwise, it’s $19.98. Go on – CLICK IT! You know you want it!

1⁄4 cup butter, melted
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1⁄4 teaspoons salt
1⁄8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 (15-ounce) can evaporated milk, divided
1 (4 1⁄2-pound) chicken, cut into pieces *I used 3 large skinless chicken breasts

1 (10 3⁄4-ounce) can cream of chicken soup
3⁄4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350˚.
Pour melted butter into a 13×9-inch baking dish.
In a shallow dish, combine flour, salt, and pepper.
In a separate shallow dish, add 1⁄2 cup evaporated milk. Coat chicken pieces with evaporated milk; dredge each in flour mixture. Place chicken, skin side up, in prepared baking dish. Bake, uncovered, for 35 minutes. Remove from oven, and turn chicken.
In a small bowl, combine soup, water, and remaining evaporated milk; pour over chicken. Return chicken to oven, and bake for 35 minutes longer. Remove chicken from baking dish; whisk gravy in baking dish until smooth.

I hope everyone is well and looking forward to a nice weekend!