Thrifty Meals

Winter has officially arrived!  Time for comfort foods and warm, hearty meals!  This time of year, I dust off my trusty Crock-Pot and put it in high gear!  It is the perfect solution for shorter, colder days and budget, family-size meals!

Here is my favorite “go-to” Crock-Pot recipe, shared by my great friends Leah and Beki (they’re sisters!)  It is simple, yet so filling and delicious!  Add a side of steamed carrots, green beans or salad and some bread to finish the meal!

Easy Roast Beef

2.5 – 3 lb boneless chuck roast

 1 envelope Lipton BEEFY Onion Soup Mix

Directions:  Place roast in Crock-Pot.  Shake soup mix over top of roast.  Add water about 1/2 way -3/4 way up side of roast.  Cook on high for 6-8 hours. (may vary depending on size of roast and Crock-Pot).  Sliced potatoes, carrots or other vegetables can be added during the last 30-45 minutes, to make them tender, but not mushy.

 

 Spinach Quiche  (Huge THANK YOU to Allyson for sharing this recipe!)

Ingredients:

1 frozen Deep Dish pie crust
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup flour (all-purpose)
dash of Tabasco sauce
1 box of frozen spinach (well drained and squeezed dry)
a couple big handfuls of shredded cheese
onion powder, salt, pepper for seasoning

 Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.  Whisk milk and eggs in a bowl.  Add baking powder, flour and Tabasco and stir just until combined.  Pull the spinach apart to separate.  Add the spinach, cheese and seasonings to the milk/flour mixture and stir gently until well distributed.  Pour the quiche mixture into the pie crust.  Cook for 40-45 minutes.  You might as well DOUBLE the recipe because it’ll all be gone in about 5 minutes!

(I am not an egg person–I do not eat eggs.  But this recipe is not super-eggy!  There is a good balance to all the ingredients and it is sooo yummy!) 

P.S.  You can make the quiche mixture ahead of time and FREEZE it in ziploc bags.  Then, when you’re in a hurry, just thaw one out and pour it in a pie shell to bake!  Voila–dinner in a snap!