Busy Bee in The Kitchen

One of the ways I save money is by grinding my own flour for baking.  When stores have their case lot sales, I'll buy a couple of 50 lb bags of whole wheat for under $20 each and then use them all year to grind into wholesome whole wheat and make homemade bread and other goodies with.  I do still buy white flour to use in things like cookies and other baked goods, but I buy that during the case lot sales too at about $8 for a big 20 lb bag.

Yesterday I spent the day baking.  I made a double batch of my 

Awesome Whole Wheat Bread and turned that into three loaves and 10 big cinnamon rolls.  

 I stuck one of the loaves of bread in the freezer to use next week and kept the other two out for this week's use.  The cinnamon rolls acted as an after school snack for my boys, dessert for my husband and breakfast for my boys this morning.  We still have two leftover that will be snacked on today as well.

To make the cinnamon rolls, I melted 1 Tablespoons of butter and spread that out onto the rolled out dough.  Then I sprinkled with brown sugar until it was covered lightly and then added a thin layer of cinnamon and a couple of handfuls of raisins.  I then rolled them up and cut them and let them rise in the pan.  They were then baked along with the bread for about 25 minutes.  Once they were out and had cooled for a few minutes I made a very simple glaze out of 2 Tablespoons melted butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, a dash of vanilla and a couple tablespoons of milk.  Easy, frugal and delicious!

Total cost for 3 loaves of bread and 10 big cinnamon rolls: 

About $2

While I was in the kitchen, I took out a dozen eggs and boiled them.  I like to keep boiled eggs in the fridge for quick breakfasts before the boys get on the bus in the morning.  My daughter also likes to snack on them during the day.  At under .11 cents each, they make for a thrifty handy snack to have on hand.

Total cost for 12 boiled eggs: $1.30

We had a busy night last night.  The kids wanted to head over to the library for a Planes Party at 6pm and I had a Church activity to be to at 7pm, so we quickly ate these Indian Tacos and Tostadas and were out the door.  

To make these, I found 6 rhodes rolls in my freezer, took them out and let them rise and then fried them right before serving, I also fried some corn tortillas for tostada shells.  Topped with some leftover homemade refried beans, ground venison from the freezer seasoned with taco seasoning, a little bit of shredded cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, guacamole, sour cream and hot sauce.  All that makes for a filling dinner on the cheap!

Total cost for Indian Tacos and Tostadas with leftovers for lunch: about $3

Thanks for stopping by!

Navajo Tacos

I first made these tacos a couple of years ago while my mom was visiting us. Since then my family won't eat hard shell tacos anymore! We love this recipe, they are super filling and hit the spot! Using the crock pot to cook the chicken saves time because it can cook all day while you get other things done!

Navajo Tacos Fry Bread

3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups water
vegetable oil for frying

Mix flour, baking powder and salt together well. Add water gradually making sure the dough is stiff. Let dough rest covered with a damp towel for at least 10 minutes. When ready to make tacos, pull off egg-sized balls of dough and quickly roll, pull, and on a floured surface pat them out into large, plate-sized rounds. They should be thin in the middle and about 1/4 inch thick around the edges. Using a fork poke holes in the dough to prevent bubbles from forming. In skillet, heat 1/2-inch vegetable oil. Brown dough circles on each side until golden brown. You will need to stand over the skillet and with your fork and poke at any bubbles that may come up. When golden brown, lift from oil, shake gently to remove bulk of oil, and place on paper towels to drain.
Top with your favorite taco meat and taco toppings such as sour cream, lettuce, salsa, cheese, guacamole and olives. Makes about 8.

Chicken Taco Meat for Navajo Tacos

1 whole chicken
1 taco seasoning packet
1 cup salsa
1 1/2 cups water

Place whole chicken seasoned with salt and pepper in crock pot and cover with water, cook on low for about 5 hours. When done cooking, drain the liquid and take all meat off of the bones and take a fork and shred it. Put the meat back in the crock pot with the taco seasoning packet, salsa and water. Let cook on low for one hour. Serve on top of Navajo Taco Fry Bread along with your favorite taco toppings. Serves 8.