Atlanta's Frugal Mom

Although we still have some warm days ahead, the cold autumn weather is peeking around the corner. The other day, I simply couldn’t get my fingers to warm up, so I knew it was the perfect night for soup! So, to the pantry I headed for inspiration, where I found a box of orzo. Lo and behold, the box had a simple recipe for chicken orzo soup. Naturally, I had to take the recipe and tweak it to make it my own. ….and because it forgot to mention garlic in the ingredients. The best part of this chicken orzo soup? Not only did everyone eat it, but they all said they LIKED it! That’s an extremely rare occurrence these days, so I’m claiming this as a victory, which means I’m sharing it with all y’all!

You may recall, my family and I gave up meat for Lent this year, so I’ve been on the hunt for creative ways to keep dinner lively.  I can’t really say how I came up with the idea for chipotle tofu burritos, other than just to throw together some common ingredients and enjoy.  ….and that’s basically what I did, y’all. Ok, so it really started out when I bought chipotle-flavored tofu because it was BOGO at Publix and because there was a Berry Cart deal for $1 rebate on it.  …and I built a mealtess dinner around that one sale item, based entirely on what I already had in my pantry and fridge. To my delight, every one of my family members ate their dinner, even my picky kiddos.  Ok, so the boy choked his down, but he *did* eat it.  It may or may not have required a little come-to-Jesus convincing, but once he tried it, he decided they “weren’t bad.”  sigh   Chipotle-Flavored Tofu Burritos (1) package Nasoya baked tofu, chipotle flavor – sliced in to...

This post originally appeared as a guest post on another site about two years ago, but that site is no longer around. :/ SO, I’m re-claiming it and adding it to my Picky-Tot Pleasers series.  Lemme know what’cha think!   Call me Popeye.  What can I say?  I love to cook with spinach.  Up until recently, it’s been in just about any dish I made with chicken or ground turkey.  However, I crossed the line the other morning when I (deliberately) baked spinach in to my pancakes.  That’s right, my daughter and I made spinach pancakes.  On purpose.

So I’m really loving my Vitamix these days.  Juicing for breakfast, and sharing with my son.  (Say goodbye to his multivitamin!)  Warm Vitamix Chicken Tortilla soup on a cool evening.  And now, Vitamix Applesauce , with a twist. As you may recall, my goofy kids enjoy applesauce and frozen peas.  I don’t know why, they just do.  I’m not complaining, since they don’t normally volunteer to eat anything green.  So, when I set out to make Vitamix appleasauce, I was determined to fuse other healthy foods in to the mix as well. Here’s what I did: I found a bunch of pre-sliced apples on clearance at Kroger, so that’s what I used.  You can use whatever kind of apples you have on hand, but I recommend you stick with the sweeter, rather than tart apples.  Also, I use all organic ingredients whenever possible. First I made  a batch that was JUST apples, lemon juice, and cinnamon.  I used too much cinnamon, and my daughter was not a fan.  So I made another batch,...

Vitamix. Chicken. Tortilla. Soup. Recipe.  Well, first, I have to brag.  My husband is -without a doubt- the luckiest sunnuvagun I know.  He was perusing through Goodwill a while ago, and found a variable speed Vitamix blender for just under nine bucks.  Yep.  A true-to-life Vitamix.  For nine bucks!! We immediately put it to use, playing around with different fruit and veggie combos.  And then we stumbled upon this recipe for Tortilla Soup.  The rest -as they say- is history.  I’ve been making -and thoroughly enjoying!- my mom’s chicken tortilla soup recipe for a few years, even though I know it’s more “comfort” than “healthy.” To be honest, when we first made this soup, I was skeptical.  But once it was made, I was hooked!  And my recipe for the baked tortilla strips compliment it nicely, too! “Vitamix Chicken Tortilla Soup” This is based heavily on  The Blender Lady’s  recipe for Tortilla Soup, but I had to tweak to make i...

Ok, just putting the words “chicken” and “tortilla” together make me salivate.  So, when I had the opportunity to create two different versions of chicken tortilla soup , it was like sensory overload, y’all! First, I wanted to share the recipe my mom has been making for a few years.  I’m not going to lie, it’s not the healthiest recipe, but OH-MY-GOODNESS!  Is it ever so delicious!  Talk about “comfort food” – this one is packed with “comforting” goodness in every bite! When you’re done with this one, check out my Vitamix recipe for chicken tortilla soup , too! “My Mom’s Chicken Tortilla Soup”

I seriously heart smoked salmon.  Like borderline addict love it.  This oh-so-fancy smoked salmon and arugula flatbread is one of my favorite dishes to order when we manage to sneak out to a nice restaurant without kiddos.  Unfortunately, that happens never like twice a year, and that’s just not often enough for me.  Did I mention how much I love smoked salmon? Anyhow, after making the ghost pizzas with the kiddos for Halloween, I realized there was a leftover tube of pizza dough, and I had a smoked-salmon-withdrawal-induced stroke of genius.  I could just make my own flatbread at home!  Duh, right?  I’m super cheap and make copycat restaurant meals all the time, so why this never occurred to me, I don’t know. It’s awesome.  You’ll love it.  I promise. Smoked Salmon Flatbread Ingredients: 1 tube prepared pizza dough (in the canned biscuit aisle) 8 ounces cream cheese (whipped is easier to spread) 1 Tbs minced garlic Juice of 1/2 lemon 1 Tbs chopped fresh ...

I don’t eat a lot of meat.  I like meat, it’s just that my body is not a big fan of it.  Maybe I’m missing some important enzyme or something that helps me break it down.  That would be my luck.  Anyhow, I tend to eat very little meat to keep from having a crazy, messed up gut all the time.  Well, except for bacon.   Because it’s bacon, duh. So since I don’t eat a lot of meat, I get my protein from other places.   Like chickpeas!   Of course, I don’t just eat them plain (boring!), I like to mix them in with different dishes.  I threw this particular salad together the other morning to have for lunch, and ended up eating it for 3 days!  It makes a lot more than you would think. 🙂 Marinated Zucchini and Chickpea Salad 1 medium zucchini, halved and sliced 1/2 cup thinly sliced onion 2 cups chickpeas (if canned, rinse well first) 2 roma tomatoes, sliced into strips 1/4 cup chopped roasted red pepper 2 Tbs olive oil 2 Tbs lemon juice 1/2 tsp sugar salt an...

If you haven’t heard of eMeals, you are SO missing out!  It’s a meal planning service that makes my life so much easier on busy days.  I’m lucky enough to be working with them as an ambassador, so I get to share some of the awesome food we make along with the recipes so you can try them out at home! Each week you get a new set of recipes emailed to you, complete with a shopping list and easy-to-follow directions.  They have an awesome app you can use that makes the shopping and preparation fast and simple.  No need to print anything or make a list on a separate sheet of paper!   eMeals offers 12 different dinner plans to choose from, and you can even customize them specifically for the store you shop at the most!  We’re currently using the Mediterranean plan, though I’ve tried out Clean Eating, Classic, and Simple Gourmet in the past as well, and they’ve all been fantastic.   It’s less than $5.00 a month for the yearly membership , and tru...

Meatloaf has always been one of my favorite dishes, but it can be pretty, well, meaty.  Several years ago I started adding lots of veggies into my meatloaf recipe and my family loves it!   Red Gold Tomatoes sent me a variety of their canned tomatoes to try out earlier this month, and I just knew their  Diced Tomatoes with Basil, Garlic & Oregano  would be the perfect complement to my vegetable meatloaf recipe.  This week, I picked up all the ingredients I needed for meatloaf from Aldi and with the added touch of the tomatoes, and our grilled vegetable meatloaf burgers were delicious! Grilled Vegetable Meatloaf Burgers Ingredients: 1 zucchini, chopped 1/2 bell pepper, chopped 1 cup finely chopped carrots (I use my 3 cup food processor ) 1/2 cup minced onion (Yep, food processor again!) 1 can Red Gold Diced Tomatoes with Basil, Garlic & Oregano (drained and chopped, save liquid for sauce) 2 eggs 2 cups dry oatmeal 1 lb pork sausage 1 lb ground beef Directions: 1.  Mix all ingre...

Fourth of July is just around the corner, and if you’re a regular reader of my blog you know that I have been sharing all sorts of fun red, white, and blue recipes over the last few weeks.  Today’s post is a roundup of fun patriotic recipes that are perfect for your holiday get together! Red, White and Blue Patriotic Party Foods 1.  Pigs in a blanket – These are pretty simple.  Just make them like usual, then brush with a little bit of food coloring before baking.  We used blue, but you could do red as well. 2.   Two step cupcakes – Cute and tasty, these cupcakes can be made by little ones in just a matter of minutes! 3.  Dipped strawberries – Another really easy treat, these strawberries are just dipped in white chocolate and blue sprinkles. 4.   American flag pizza – Sometimes it’s nice to have something more filling than finger foods, and this pizza makes a great centerpiece for your holiday party table too! 5.  Fruit salad – Blueb...

Last week I shared a recipe for a cute red, white, and blue layered party punch for kids , and it was so popular that today I’m sharing another drink that’s just for grown ups!  It fits right in with the patriotic party theme for the upcoming 4th of July holiday, and I’ve got two versions for you: one for a casual cookout and another for a more formal get together.  They both have the same exact ingredients, they are just prepared a little differently.  Check out the recipe below!   Red, White and Blue Parent Party Punch and Martinis Ingredients: 2 oz vodka 6 oz mandarin orange sparkling water (I used Clear American) 1 Tbsp grenadine Ice Fresh blueberries on a skewer for garnish Parent Party Punch Directions: 1.  Mix vodka, sparkling water, and grenadine in a 16 oz glass. 2.  Fill with ice to the top. 3.  Garnish with blueberry skewer and a cute straw (if desired) Red, White and Blue Martini Directions: 1.  Fill a shaker with ice. 2.  Pour in vodka and sparkling w...