Ham and Egg Bake

Recently I was in the middle of the week with little groceries to speak of and even scarcer time. Then I remembered the Heavenly Baked Ham in the freezer left from the holidays. With a dozen eggs and about eight potatoes for hashbrowns, I was able to throw together this meal which received rave reviews. If they only knew.


Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 12-14 minutes
Serves: 6-12
Cost: Approx. $3.00

1 dozen eggs ($.88)
12 slices of ham or deli meat ($2.00)
cooking spray

Spray the bottom of a muffin tin. Line each cup with a piece of meat. Carefully crack an egg into the cup. Bake at 400 degrees for 12-14 minutes depending on how well cooked you prefer the yolk.

You can find this recipe along with may others at The Grocery Cart Challenge's Recipe Swap.

Salmon Cakes and Honey Roasted Potatoes

It's often hard to find ways to fit healthy fish into the budget of a large family due to the price. Canned salmon coupled with potatoes is a perfect way to provide a healthy, satifying meal for under $10.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 8-10
Cost: Approx. $9.00

Salmon Cakes

3 cans salmon ($6.00)
1 cup chopped cilantro ($.50)
3 eggs
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tsp lemon juice

Remove bones and skin from salmon. Mix all ingredients together well. Form into patties and cook on nonstick griddle until golden brown and warmed through.

**These can be made ahead of time and frozen. Just reheat in the microwave and enjoy!**


Honey Roasted Potatoes

4-5 pounds potatoes cubed ($2.00)
1 onion finely diced ($.25)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup butter melted ($.25)
1 Tbsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp salt

Place potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Top with onions. Mix honey, butter, salt and sugar together well. Pour over potatoes. Bake at 400 degrees turning once for 20 minutes or until potatoes are soft.

Potato Salad

This is a great side dish served warm or chilled. Easy to make and improvise with whatever you have in your pantry. I like it as an addition to a meal that need just that one more thing to make it stretch. Enjoy!

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves:10-12
Cost: approx. $1.50

4 large potatoes peeled and diced ($1.00)
1 stalk celery finely diced
1/4 onion finely diced
2 hard boiled eggs diced ($.25)
4 slices bacon finely chopped ($.25)
1/4 cup mayonnaise

Place potatoes in boiling water and cook until tender. Drain potatoes. Add celery, onions, eggs and bacon and mash coarsely. Add mayonnaise and combined well.

Possible additions: cheese, green onion, ham....

This recipe and many others are featured at The Grocery Cart Challenge's Recipe Swap.

Homemade Hashbrowns

I have to admit that I've never once attempted to make hashbrowns from scratch. Normally, I buy them frozen, but have never truly been satisfied with the result. They seem soggy to me. The hashbrown that are packaged fresh at the grocery are too expensive for my taste. I was fixing brunch on Sunday and needed another side dish I had a few potatoes on hand and got the recipe right out to the Betty Crocker cookbook. There simply wasn't enough there- everyone wanted more. I think next time I'll make a bigger batch, cut back on the butter and use the electric nonstick griddle. This might become a lunch time staple with a little ham and cheese added.

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20-30 minutes
Serves: 8-10
Cost: Approx. $1.50

8-10 medium potatoes (about 3 pounds) ($1.50)
4 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup butter

Wash potatoes well and pare. Do not remove skins. Shred to measure 8 cups. Rinse well; drain and pat dry. Mix potatoes, onion, salt and pepper. Heat butter until melted. Pack potato mixture firmly a dn leave 1/2 space around the edge of pan.

Cook over med-low for 15 minutes or until bottom is brown. Flip potato mixture adding more butter to pan if needed. Cook about 12 minutes longer or until bottom is brown.