Food Archives - Saving Time & Money l SamiCone.com

Family Camping Like a King

June 13, 2013 By sami 1 Comment

If you follow me at all on social media, then It’s been hard not to see all the pictures of our recent family camping adventure. While I didn’t take as many photos as I typically would on a trip, everyone wanted to be sure there was photographic proof that I did in fact go camping!

While I wouldn’t exactly say we’re planning another family camping trip anytime soon, there was one element (aside from the company) that excited to me more than any other: the food.

Yes, I was most looking forward to cooking over a campfire, trying new camp food with friends and, of course, eating hot dogs and hamburgers to my heart’s content.

As I hit the grocery store the morning of our family camping trip, I had cut out a coupon for King’s Hawaiian buns. I’ve always loved their dinner rolls and I’d heard such great things about the hot dog and hamburger buns, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try them out.

Sure enough, once we got camp set up with our small group, the grills got fired up and the hot dogs and hamburgers came out!

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The hot dogs cooked quicker (obviously), so I split a hot dog with my husband because we just couldn’t wait for the burgers to get done.

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The King’s Hawaiian hot dog buns resemble a piece of thick cut bread folded in half and have that signature sweetness to it. I noticed that it paired better with some of the sweeter sausages we tried later than it did with say a hot dog or a kielbasa.

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However, the hamburger buns were the perfect combination of flavor, softness and size to hold our burger and with all its campfire fixings.

To be honest, neither buns lasted long in our camping kitchen because they were so tasty (and I’m pretty sure one of the other kids even purloined one of our hot dog buns to use for his PB&J

So as it turns out, I got to try two new things this past weekend: camping and King’s Hawaiian buns…and I’m grateful that the latter made the former a little more palatable!

King’s Hawaiian® wants to know how you bring people together. Reply below for a chance to win a $200 gift card! Sweepstakes Rules.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Kings Hawaiian. The opinions and text are all mine.

Filed Under: Deals & Freebies, Food Tagged With: camping, Family, Food, king's hawaiian

Free Orange Chicken at Panda Express- May 31st

May 29, 2013 By brenna 4 Comments

Panda Express is offering FREE Orange Chicken on May 31st from 9pm-close. All you need to do is click here and redeem the offer, you can then print it out or show it on your smart phone!

Filed Under: Deals & Freebies, Food Tagged With: econemic living, Food, free, orange chicken, panda express

Free Weekly Meal Plan: April 8, 2013

April 8, 2013 By sami

My free weekly Meal Plan is back for the week of April 8, 2013.

When I did our weekly shopping trip last week, our basket consisted mostly of fresh fruits and veggies, some deli meats and cheese for the kids lunches (salads and homemade lunchables) and some canned goods for chili, soup and crockpot meals.

I was inspired by some family favorites, as well as our weekly Paleo Meal Plan that we get from eMeals; even when the recipes aren’t exactly what I’d serve, they always provide great inspiration! And for about $5 a month, thats money well spend in my book

Here’s what we’re eating in the Cone Home this week. In an effort to keep things really simple, I’m just sharing our dinner menu, but keep in mind that when you subscribe to eMeals, you can choose breakfast & lunch menus too:

Monday: Captain D’s

Tuesday: Easy Pot Roast with carrots & potatoes

Wednesday: Potato Soup (from our Soup Swap a few weeks back)

Thursday: Gyoza with Rice & Edamame

Friday: Pizza night

Saturday:

Sunday:

When you’re trying to keep meals simple, what’s your go-to dish at your house?

Filed Under: Deals & Freebies, Food, Meal Plans Tagged With: emeals, meal, Menu, monday, paleo, plan, recipe

Easy Crock Pot Brownie Recipe

March 20, 2013 By sami

I didn’t anticipate just how many of you were intrigued by the easy crock pot brownies I made recently, so I’m fulfilling your request to share this easy crock pot brownie recipe!

I never knew you could make desserts in a crock pot, much less brownies, but my friend Matt said he had just made some amazing fudge coconut brownies (adapted from the Crockin Girls) and mentioned how easy and delicious they were. Not that I doubt his cooking abilities, but I figured if he could make crock pot brownies, anyone could

So I bribed the kids by saying if they woke up right when their alarm went off for school, they could help me make the brownies in the morning (aka lick the spoon)…it worked!

We put them on at 7am and they were done by 10 (although, I think I could have stopped them about 15 minutes earlier).

Here is what I did:

Easy Crock Pot Brownie Recipe

Ingredients:
*Box of brownie mix
*2-3 eggs (Depending on whether you want them cake-like or fudgy…we used 2)
*1 cup chocolate sauce (like Hershey’s)
*1 cup boiling water

Directions:
1. Turn crock pot on High

2. Make brownie mix according to package directions

3. Grease Crock Pot (or I’m sure you could use a slow cooker liner)

4. Pour in brownie mix

5. Mix chocolate syrup & boiling water

6. Pour over brownie mix in crock pot

7. Cook on high for about 3 hours (or 2:45)

8. Let sit for at least 10 minutes with lid off before serving

Again, my friend said he added nuts & coconut, but I haven’t personally tried anything so fancy just yet.
I did learn a few things I wanted to pass on for people wanting to try this recipe themselves. Here is my synopsis:

Benefits to the Crock Pot Brownies

*Mix, pour, cook, eat…truly so easy!
*Very hard to overcook. I realize I said I let them go a little long above, but they were still the most MOIST brownies I’ve EVER had. I NEVER know when to pull brownies out of the oven. This took all the guess work out of the cooking process.
*Again, very moist and fudgy

Critiques of the Crock Pot Brownies

*The chocolate syrup mixture seemed to settle on one side a little more than the other, and the part I let drip on the side tasted burnt
*Harder to pick up and eat than a regular brownie…much better eaten warm with ice cream & a fork (Ok, I guess that’s more of a benefit than a critique!)
*My daughter said “I like regular boxed brownies better” – but she’s not much of a brownie/chocolate fan in the first place, so I wouldn’t listen to her. Every other child at dinner DEVOURED these (and the adults too!)

Have you ever tried to make desserts in the crock pot? If so, what’s your favorite?

Filed Under: Food, Recipes Tagged With: brownie, crock pot, dessert, easy, recipe

An Easy Food Soup Swap: Talk of the Town Video

February 26, 2013 By sami

This month on Talk of the Town Appearance, I shared what my friends and I have just discovered to help cut back on our grocery budgets AND our cooking time in the kitchen: A food swap!

Since this was our first go-round, we decided to keep it easy and start with soup.

Here were the basic ‘rules’:

-Fill two gallon bags (approx 3/4 full) of soup for each family and then freeze flat

-Use the most natural ingredients possible (e.g. butter, not margarine; no artificial sweetener; no processed ingredients, etc).

-If possible, attach any necessary directions (probably not a big deal for our soup round) and add a recipe card so we can re-create your delicious offering

We did this with our small group, so at one meeting we came up with some mutually agreed upon soups to try to start out. They were:
Potato soup
Beef Vegetable soup
Chicken Tortilla Soup
White Chicken Chili
Chicken Tortellini soup
and of course, my Easy Lentil Soup Recipe

We meet every two weeks, so we decided to have everyone bring their soups to our next meeting. Taking into account that not everyone eats at home every night of the week and you’re going to want to eat some other things besides soup, we thought these would see us through about two weeks.

The beauty of this is that when you find something that’s on sale, you’re able to buy enough of it to feed all the families in your group and you don’t have to search for as many sales to fill out your weekly meal plan!

Here are some other soups we wanted to try but didn’t get assigned this time:
Pasta Fagioli soup
Italian Wedding soup
Broccoli cheese soup
Chicken Corn Chowder
Chili
Vegetable soup

Here’s the video from today’s show in case you missed it:

In our next food swap round, we’re hoping to try more main courses. We also discussed going to a restaurant supply store to get disposable food trays to freeze the dishes in.

It’s just great to know that you can spend one night cooking and end up with meals that will last your family almost two weeks! Of course the key here is to find enough people who you trust to ‘follow the rules’, deliver on time and stick with the program.

Have you ever tried anything like this?

I share my Meal Plans every week here on SamiCone.com, but keep in mind many of my dinners are based around eMeals (although they now offer breakfast & lunch plans too!).

Filed Under: Food, Recipes, TV Tagged With: Food, recipe, soup, swap, talk of the town

Eat Healthy, Spend Less, Maximize Your Food! (Fox TV/Video)

February 12, 2013 By sami

If you’re looking to eat healthy while spending less and maximizing the food you buy, then you’re in the right place!

Even if you’ve let your New Year’s Resolutions come and go, I have some simple, practical tips to help keep you eating healthy on a budget in the New Year.

In case you missed any of the tips from my Fox 17 TN Mornings segment, here they are:

*Find ways to make your food last longer
First of all, make sure you wash and prep as much of your food as you can as soon as you get home from the grocery store…after all, the easier it is to grab, the easier it is to eat! Plus, why spend the time cutting coupons and shopping sales if you’re just going to throw half of it away because you forget about it once you get home? That being the case, you may also want to consider investing in something like a FoodSaver Vacuum Sealer to fully take advantage of all those One Day meat sales we find at Whole Foods. Coming in under $75, you’ll most likely make that back in food savings within a few months.

*Make your meals ahead of time
If you plan your meals in advance (& have them ready in the fridge or freezer), or pack your lunch the night before, you’ll set yourself up for success and reduce the possibilities of food going bad. But don’t just pack your lunch, bring it in containers that keep food fresh AND make it fun to eat healthy:

Ever since we got the Black+Blum Box Appetit , my 8 year old daughter has brought a salad to school for lunch every day.

*Switch to a filtered water bottle instead of individually bought plastic bottles.
Not only will you get a better quality of water wherever you travel, you’ll also save a ton of money since bottles like this Eau Good water bottle have a charcoal filter that only need to be changed every 6 months!

*Start Juicing
Juicing is one of the hottest trends for health enthusiasts and with products like this Black & Decker Fruit and Vegetable Juice Extractor with Custom Juice Cup coming in under $40, you can easily try this trend without breaking the bank. Plus, your family will be much more likely to try a wider variety of fruits and vegetables in juice form rather than whole form. Also a great, quick way to use up fruits and veggies that are starting to turn.

*If you want to go a step further, look into a Nutri Bullet
I don’t know how I’ve made it this long without a Nutri Bullet, but now that I have one, I’m not letting it go!

I love that it’s high power blades literally pulverize whatever gets put into it, so you don’t lose ANY nutrients. It also makes fabulous nut butters and I’m sure a thousand other recipes I haven’t even gotten around to trying yet

*Cook it up & Freeze it in ‘ready-to-eat’ portions
When in doubt, throw whatever you have left in your fridge and freezer into a ‘kitchen sink’ soup in your stockpot! We’re talking chicken, veggies beans…you name it. Once it’s made, freeze into individual portions to have easy meals on hand for future enjoyment.

If you missed my Fox 17 TN Mornings segment, watch it right here:

What savings questions do you want me to answer on my next Fox 17 TN Mornings segment?

I’ve shared products I love in this post and some have compensated affiliate links, but it saves you the step of having to ask me, “Now where do I find those cool containers?”

Filed Under: Deals & Freebies, Food, Grocery, TV Tagged With: budget, eat, Food, fox, healthy, tv, video

Free Weekly Meal Plan: The “Stay Home Simple Menu”

February 4, 2013 By sami

My free weekly Meal Plan is making its 2013 debut with something I’m calling the “Stay Home Simple Menu”.

We’ve been gone on our Disney Cruise this past week and as much as we love being a family on the go, the trick to keeping up that kind of lifestyle is knowing when to simply stay at home.

When you consider that we’ve been eating a much heavier menu than we’re used to on the cruise, our plan for this week was simple: stay home and eat simply.

Total cost for the week? $63.

Keep in mind, I surveyed what we already had in our freezer and worked that in to our weekly menu. I’m also taking into consideration the meat we still have in our freezer from our local CSA.

Monday: Fried Eggs & Latkes (potato pancakes) with applesauce

Tuesday: Chicken Curry with pickled carrots and green salad

Wednesday: Hamburgers & sweet potato fries

Thursday: Taco Salad

Friday: Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Saturday: Cilantro Chicken with Roasted Veggies

Sunday: Lemon Parsley Pot Roast with smashed Sweet Potatoes

When you’re trying to keep meals simple, what’s your go-to dish at your house?

Filed Under: Deals & Freebies, Food, Meal Plans Tagged With: emeals, meal, Menu, monday, paleo, plan, recipe

Individual Veggie Lasagna Recipe: Pasta-Free, Easy & Healthy!

January 22, 2013 By sami

On my latest Talk of the Town Appearance, I shared an easy, healthy AND kid-friendly veggie lasagna recipe….oh, and did I mention it’s pasta-free?!

So even if you’re not gluten-free, you might want to give this a try. It’s also just as easy to make a full pan for dinner (or to freeze for later) as it is to make individual portions in ramekins that the kids will love.

It’s important to note that the exact recipe isn’t as important as the technique: feel free to add meat to the sauce, add or subtract veggies or even make it with pasta if you like.

Product note: This recipe will be much easier with a mandolin. You don’t have to get an expensive one (a friend found me the one below at Goodwill for 99 cents), but you can also find them at most grocery stores for under $5. It will help you create even slices that otherwise would be hard to re-create with a knife.

Bonus tip: Instead of traditional linguine or spaghetti, we also like to stack the zucchini slices after we use the mandolin and cut them in thin slices lengthwise to create ‘noodles’ that are great to eat with meatballs or simply sauté with garlic & olive oil.

Once you get your zucchini or eggplant slices, you’re going to layer them in the 9 x 13 pan. Or, if you prefer to make individual portions for the kids, you can layer them in a ramekin like so:

When adding the vegetables to the sauce, make sure to season them well. This is also the stage where you could add additional vegetables or even ground beef or tofu if you prefer:

While the sauce is cooking, prepare the cheese mixture. After you’ve combined the egg, shredded cheese, ricotta, salt & pepper, you can start creating your layers.

Start by adding water to the jar to loosen the leftover sauce and then pour over the bottom of the pan just enough to coat. Start with layering the zucchini or squash slices. Next, add a thin layer of the vegetable sauce. Then, smooth a layer of the cheese mixture. Repeat until all ingredients are gone.

Finish by covering the dish with the remaining shredded cheeses.

Cover loosely with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove foil and then broil to brown the cheese for about 5 minutes.

Let sit for 10 minutes to allow layers and flavors to set properly, then slice:

You can check out the exact ingredient list and full recipe here:

Pasta-Free Veggie Lasagna Recipe

Ingredients

1 Eggplant
2 Medium Zucchini
1 jar Marinara sauce (with garlic, onion & peppers if possible, or some combination of)
1 package frozen spinach (thawed)
1 package frozen bell pepper & onion blend
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
4 oz shredded parmesan cheese
1 container (16 oz) ricotta cheese
1 Egg
1 T Italian Seasoning
1 T salt

Cooking Directions

(Day before preferably): thaw and drain spinach
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Using a mandolin (or sharp knife), evenly slice thin strips of the eggplant or zucchini (whichever vegetable you prefer to use for your \'noodles\'). Set aside.
In a large pan on medium, heat olive oil then add chopped garlic as well as peppers & onions. Sautee for 5-7 minutes until soft. Add jar of sauce and combine with veggies. Once incorporated, add thawed spinach, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Bring to a simmer than cover and let sit over med-low heat for ten minutes.
In a medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, egg, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and 1 cup of the parmesan cheese, along with salt & pepper to taste. Set aside.
In a 9 x13 baking dish, ladle in your sauce until bottom is covered. Then add a layer of veggie \'noodles\'. After that, spread a layer of the cheese mixture and then cover that layer with more sauce. Continue to repeat each layer until you reach the top of the dish.
On the very top, cover the last layer of sauce with the remaining shredded cheese. Lightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until heated through thoroughly. Remove the foil for the last 5 minutes of baking to brown the cheese. Let rest for a little while after pulling out of the oven so that the cheese doesn\'t run everywhere when it\'s cut!

One of the things that makes this recipe so easy is taking advantage of all the help you can, especially when it comes to pre-chopped frozen vegetables like the ones I used courtesy of Whole Foods Market Green Hills (Nashville). Their 365 Everyday Value brand makes it easy for anyone to get great quality vegetables, including organic, at an amazing price (under $2 a bag).

The Whole Foods 365 Everyday Value brand goes beyond vegetables and includes everything from Spices and Syrup to Olive Oil. Check out my video series if you’re looking for more everyday ways to save at Whole Foods!

I created this recipe because our nutritionist thought it would be beneficial for our family to try following a more Paleo style diet for a little while. If you want some help with meal planning, I’m a fan of eMeals. Not only do they have every type of meal plan you can think of (choose based on the stores you shop at or based on the way you eat), but it is SO affordable and easy. You’ll find the majority of my Meal Plans are based around eMeals dinners (although they now offer breakfast & lunch plans too!). Plus, save an extra 15% off right now with the code NEWYEAR.

I hope this recipe has inspired you to try something new with your family in the New Year!

Filed Under: Food, Recipes, TV Tagged With: gluten free, lasagna, pasta, recipe, talk of the town, veggie

Best Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes

November 21, 2012 By sami

Photo Credit: SimplyRecipes.com

If you’re looking for the best Thanksgiving turkey recipes to make your Thanksgiving dinner extra special this year, look no further! I put my personal virtual assistant,Time Dog, to the task of finding the best Thanksgiving turkey dinner recipes around the web, and they delivered!

Whether you’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner for the first time at your house, or simply want to shake your standard turkey recipe up a little bit, why not try one of these turkey recipes and let me know if you think they deserve the title of “Best Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe”!

Best Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes

Butter-Basted Roast Turkey with Mushroom Gravy (from delish.com)
Apricot-Glazed Turkey with Fresh Herb Gravy (from delish.com)
Citrus-Marinated Turkey (from delish.com)
Southwestern Rubbed Turkey
Herb-Roasted Turkey
Apple-Shallot Roasted Turkey
Lemon-Garlic Roast Turkey and White-Wine Gravy
Roast Turkey with Pears and Onions
Smoked-Paprika-Rubbed Turkey with Madeira & Shallot Gravy
(All the recipes above are from Delish.com)
Maple-Roasted Turkey with Sage, Smoked Bacon & Cornbread Stuffing (from CookingChannel.com)
Homestyle Turkey, The Michigander Way (from AllRecipes.com)
Mom’s Roast Turkey (from simplyrecipes.com)

Which of these turkey recipes sound the best to you?

Filed Under: Food, Recipes Tagged With: best, dinner, recipe, Thanksgiving, turkey

Thanksgiving Dinner Tips: How to Save Time & Money!

November 20, 2012 By sami

Wondering how to save time and money on your Thanksgiving dinner? Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching, but I have some great tips that can still help you save where you can so you can spend your time AND money where you want…which should be making memories with your family reflecting on all our blessings this Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving dinner will look a little different for our family this year since we’re putting our best foot forward to eat healthier than ever. So I approached my friends at Whole Foods Market Nashville since I already love their 365 Everyday Value brand for saving on staple pantry items. But they also had some other great values I wanted to sprinkle in to my list below that everyone across the country can take advantage of.

So here are my best Thanksgiving dinner tips to help you save both time and money that I shared on Fox TN Mornings in case you missed any of them:

1. Take stock of what you already have
- Make sure you’re not buying duplicates of things you already have in your pantry. However, this is also a great time to stock up on some pantry staples, like baking supplies, to see you through the next 6 weeks.

2. Don’t be afraid to buy Pre packaged goods
-You don’t have to make everything from scratch! Items like stuffing mix, canned pumpkin or cranberry sauce are great items to help jumpstart your Thanksgiving meal.

3. Shop for the dessert
-If you want to make the meal, then why not let someone else make the dessert? I had heard nothing but raves about Whole Foods’ pies, so I had to check them out for myself. A lot of families have food allergies, so I was thrilled to discover that not only does Whole Foods make a Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pie, but I also found a dollar off coupon for it in the current Whole Deal too! I’m also a sucker for a berry pie, and I found a Vegan berry pie for only $7.49! Dessert is also a great option to ask guests to bring if you want to have a broader variety of desserts.

4. Don’t Cook Twice
-While it’s fun to be in the kitchen making family favorites, you don’t want to spend ALL your time there on Thanksgiving…and you certainly don’t want to be there the day before and the day after too! So don’t forget to have a meal ready in the freezer for dinner the night before so you won’t have to cook 2 days in a row. You may want to consider picking up a Whole Foods Family meal (which ranges for a family of 4 from only $12.99-$14.99 and includes a huge salad as well!) or even make a simple breakfast for dinner.

5. Use the crockpot
-When you can, use your crockpot to free up oven space and save on energy. This is a great option before the meal for things like mashed potatoes and/or tracy, or better yet, immediately after your meal to make a yummy pot of turkey soup to eat on Black Friday!

6. Make Clean-up Easy!
-My least favorite part of any meal is cleaning up afterwards!Two easy ideas to try this Thanksgiving is to:
—A. Make sure to line your pans with foil and/or parchiment paper so you don’t have to do a lot of scrubbibg afterwards or
—B. Consider renting linens & glasses – It’s not that expensive and you don’t have to clean them upwhen you return them!

7. Let Someone Else Cook for You!
- If you can’t manage to invite yourself to someone else’s house this Thanksgiving and don’t want to eat out, skip the work and let someone else cook for you! Many restaurants will provide ready-to-eat meals with all your holiday favorites. Whole Foods also has a holiday menu that will save you about 30% over buying the turkey and side items individually.

You can even watch how our family celebrated Thanksgiving a little early thanks to a ready-made turkey dinner from Whole Foods Market Nashville.

Filed Under: Deals & Freebies, Food, TV, Whole Foods Tagged With: dinner, Money, Thanksgiving, time, Whole Foods

Family Camping Like a King

Free Orange Chicken at Panda Express- May 31st

Free Weekly Meal Plan: April 8, 2013

Easy Crock Pot Brownie Recipe

Easy Crock Pot Brownie Recipe

Benefits to the Crock Pot Brownies

Critiques of the Crock Pot Brownies

An Easy Food Soup Swap: Talk of the Town Video

Eat Healthy, Spend Less, Maximize Your Food! (Fox TV/Video)

Free Weekly Meal Plan: The “Stay Home Simple Menu”

Individual Veggie Lasagna Recipe: Pasta-Free, Easy & Healthy!

Best Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes

Best Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes

Thanksgiving Dinner Tips: How to Save Time & Money!

Watch My Adventures:

Keep up with me on Instagram: @TheSamiCone