Fruit Salad

1 small jar of cherries, drained, cut into halves/fourths

2 apples, cored and chopped small

2 bananas, peeled and sliced

grapes, as many as you like, cut into halves/fourths

(optional) 1 or 2 cans of mandarin oranges

mini colored/white marshmallows, a handful or two

8 oz or less whipped topping

Mix them all up and serve 1/2 cup at a time. Will last in the refrigerator for a few days.

Purchase what you can on sale. Sometimes fruit can be found real cheap or even free at farmer’s markets if you go about an hour before closing time. If you can do this, it will be a truly frugal meal.

Serve as dessert, a snack or a side dish.

Banana Smoothie

 Blend:

1 small banana

1/2 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt

1 tsp wheat germ

milk, until the consistency you like.

Banana Peanut Butter Smoothie

1 small banana

1/2 cup low-fat vanilla or chocolate yogurt

1/4 to 1/2 cup peanut butter

milk, to the consistency you want

Spaghetti Meal

enough spaghetti for your family

1 can corn

1 can peas

1/4 to 1/2 pound ground beef, or the same amount of chicken/turkey (not ground)

1/4 cup each of shredded mozzarella and mild cheddar cheeses

1 tsp to 1 tbsp for each person: parmesan cheese

Split the pasta between each person.

Top with some corn, freezing the remainder to use in a recipe later on.

Top with some peas, freezing the remainder to use in a recipe later on.

Top with meat, freezing any leftovers to use in a recipe later on.

Top with cheeses.

Serve with a salad or garlic bread.

This can be a frugal recipe, depending on how much you have to spend on the ingredients. Purchase what you can on sale, store brands, etc. We usually use whole wheat pasta which is a but more expensive than white.

Ice Cream Float

This is simple.

Put 1 or 2 scoops of vanilla or another kind of ice cream of frozen yogurt into a glass. Tip the glass on its side a bit and add root bear or cream soda.

Children also like this with fruit punch. You could use sherbet instead.

Banana Peanut Butter Milkshake

1 small banana

1 to 3 scoops vanilla or chocolate ice cream

1/4 to 1/2 cup peanut butter

milk, to the consistency that you want

Frugal Popsicle Ideas

You can make popsicles from these drinks by simply puring them into popsicle molds you can purchase for $1 per set at a dollar tree, making these very frugal treat for everyone. Pull them out whenever you here the ice cream truck approaching.

lemonade

iced tea

100% fruit juice, no sugars added

coffee

I guess that you can also use mixed pudding.

Maybe you can add fruit.

Chocolate milk?

Has anyone tried either of these? What were the steps and the results?

Lasagna Roll-Ups for the Freezer

 Sauce:

1 large can of tomato soup

2/3 can of water

1/2 to 1 pound browned ground beef. Heat and cool.

Cook up as many lasagna noodles as you will need. Do not cook all the way, as they will be put into the freezer and cooked again later. I usually end up having to cook more. It depends on how much cheese you roll up in each.

Filling, Mix up:

I tub cottage cheese

1 tub ricotta cheese

and as much of the following as you like: Shredded mozzarella and mild cheddar cheeses, and dried parsley.

Lay out a noodle and place as much cheese as you want in it. Roll it up and set on  plate. Repeat for the rest.

Wrap 2 roll-ups in plastic wrap, doing this until they are all wrapped in pairs.

Fill a plastic snack size baggie with sauce for each pair. Freeze leftover sauce in quart size freezer bags in amounts you need for pasta sauce.

Put as many ’sets’ as you can in each gallon size freezer bag. A set is a pair of roll-ups and a bag of sauce.

To cook:

Thaw as many roll-ups and bags of sauce that you will need. Place roll-ups on a baking sheet and pour sauce over them. Bake at 350* to 375* for 25 to 30 minutes.

Serve with salad and a slice of garlic bread.

These fillings, if made right, are very filling. Each person will only need one.