What goes great with a rainy day?
Soup!
Vegetable soup, actually.
Last night I took my first stab at homemade chicken broth. I simmered the leftover chicken breast bones with salt for a couple of hours on medium low. It was incredibly easy to do, not sure why I’ve never done it before.
The soup also featured a frozen vegetable soup mix.
I think the key to a good budget-friendly meal plan of healthy eats is having a good mix of fresh veggies and frozen. The frozen vegetable soup mix was $1.59 and included a medley of 6 different vegetables. It added a great variety of vegetables, without adding a hefty price tag.
The broth, vegetable mix, onion, beans, oats, and can of tomato went in the pot, then up to boil and back to a medium simmer for an hour.
We now have soup for days. Pretty good soup, too. Oats are always a great addition because they add a bit of chew and thicken the soup up a bit. If you’re looking for a good grain to add to your soup, oats are a cheap, easy alternative.
vegetable soup:
- pinto beans: $0.91
- frozen vegetable mix: $1.59
- canned tomatoes: $0.80
- oats: $0.28
- broth: (chicken price was included in last night’s meal)
- 1/3 onion: $0.41
- Total: $4.07
I would say I had about 1/4 of the overall meal, so roughly $1.02 for my portion.
Derek helped with the cornbread.
- Cornbread mix: $0.53
- 1 egg: $0.14
- 1/3 cup milk: $0.08
- Total: $0.75
I ate a good 1/4 of the cornbread (more than what’s pictured below) for a total of $0.19.
After dinner (and the rain stopped) we headed to the bowling ally for date night.
The first game started out AWESOME.
But went south from there.
Eh. It didn’t get much better than that. I think instead of feeling “warmed up” my arm just gets tired.However, Derek was on a roll. 4 strikes in a row?! He was on fire!
Almost forgot lunch!
Derek and I made random leftover salads.
- cheese: $0.33
- romaine lettuce: $0.25
- cucumber: $0.38
- lentils: $0.10
- green beans: $0.35
- tomatoes: $0.20
- hummus: $0.30
- Total: $1.91
Man, this post feels rushed – sorry about that! I think that just means I’m in need of some sleep.
Good nIght!
I’m participating in the #SurviveOn35 Challenge with Anytime Fitness and FItFluential. Check out THIS POST to learn more.
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Bowling is so much fun! Sometimes I turn the bumpers on so I get an advantage over my boyfriend sometimes.
I’m a cheat, I guess…haha!
Erin @ erinberries recently posted..Another Day in the Life of Erin
I totally feel you on the bowling thing. Sometimes I get lucky and do well, but most of the time my arm just gets tired and I end up throwing the ball ridiculously. One time I had a friend teach me how to curve the ball…that must have been an interesting sight.
Gabby (Quest for Delicious) recently posted..Life changer
I love how budget friendly soup is! And adding oats to soup? Might be genius. I haven’t heard of that before but I was so excited when I went to the bulk bins on Friday and got nearly 2 lbs of oats for under $1!!!
Katie @ Talk Less, Say More recently posted..Life Is Short
I’m really enjoying reading up on your experiences with Survive on 35- so much so that I’m going to participate in a similar (personal) challenge when I get home from vacation:-).
Sarah Koller (@SarahYFB) recently posted..An Interesting Story
Oats in soup? Say what? Interesting. One of my new favorite soups has bulgur in it. Deelish! Oats are probably more cost effective, though.*
Army Amy* recently posted..Vitamix Strawberry Yogurt Freeze
I never thought to add oats to soup, that’s a great idea! and I LOVE bowling! I’m so awful at it but it’s so fun!
I haven’t been bowling in a really long time. I should change that.
Also, a pressure cooker makes making broth and super REALLY fast and easy. Always nice to save on cooking gas/electricity and still have tasty food.
Oh goodness, I haven’t been bowling in years! Must have been a fun night
I never thought of putting oats in soup before – that’s actually a really good idea! I don’t like putting pasta in soup because I feel like it gets too soggy, so I usually tick with rice or barley – oats would be a nice change.
Sam @ Better With Sprinkles recently posted..Livefit – The Slightly Hungover Edition.
“Chicken stock comes from the bones and gristle of the chicken; on the other hand, chicken broth is made from the meat.”
Read more: Difference Between Chicken Stock & Chicken Broth | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_7854228_difference-chicken-stock-chicken-broth.html#ixzz21NmE6JM1
You’re a nicer fiance than I am–Seth and I have been bowling together exactly once. I didn’t find out til we got there that he used to play every week during high school, so he’s like ridiculously good. Let’s just say that I am way better at the Wii version…
That soup mix looks so handy! Yet another reason I miss Publix…
BroccoliHut recently posted..Baby Marge.