When school started up in September, my
sister and I were brainstorming ways that we could save on time during the
week, and we came up with the idea to meal swap one meal a week with each
other. It was brilliant because we got homemade meals that were Weight Watcher
friendly, it wasn't much more work to cook for an additional 2-3 people, and we
got to take one night off cooking every week.
So I thought we were brilliant, but then we become beyond brilliant! After weeks of
difficulties finding time to swap meals, buying the wrong things in bulk, and
then having to write down the instructions so the other person knew how to cook
the meal, we came up with a better idea: pick one day a week to go grocery
shopping together, buy double the menu for the week, and cook a week's worth of
WW meals together!
So our experiment went something like
this: we were able to cook FOUR homemade dinners that are less than EIGHT
Weight Watcher Points-Plus each, in TWO hours for $47 (so, $94 total for me and
my sister, split in half...and includes the disposable pans)! Granted, it
took some time on my part to plan, make out the list, calculate the points, and
buy everything at the grocery store, but thanks to me, you can do it in about
half the time, because I've already sorted through the recipes for you!
So, here's how our Four Dinners for
Under $50 Experiment went...
Day One:
Japanese-Rubbed Roasted Chicken with Bok Choy and Carrots
Looks good, right? Well, it
wasn't very good and it was a lot of steps, so scrap this recipe and trade it
for this recipe:
Effort Meter (1 to 5):
2
Delicious Meter (1 to
5): 4
Weight Watcher Points:
About 6 points for 4oz with substitution (Sub the 3/4C Honey for 1/4C)
Ingredients:
1 whole raw chicken
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 TSP salt
1/2 TSP pepper
1 TBSP garlic salt
2 TBSP thyme
1-2 C chicken broth (make this from the neck if you like)
1/4 C honey
1/2 C peeled and sliced shallots
1/2 C white wine
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen peas
1
small
lemon, thinly sliced
How to make it ahead of time:
Prep
the chicken by rubbing it in the olive oil, and then pat with salt,
pepper, garlic, and thyme. In a separate dish, combine broth, honey,
shallots, wine, peas, and lemon. Refridgerate seperately until ready to
cook.
When ready to cook:
Roast
the chicken at 375 for 1-1/4 hours. Drizzle with a small amount of
honey over the chicken and roast an additional 5 minutes. Ad pea/broth
mixture to roasting pan and roast for 10 minutes. Remove peas with a
slotted spoon.
Day Two:
Effort Meter (1 to 5): 2
Delicious Meter (1 to 5): 4
Weight Watcher Points: 8 POINTS PLUS for a 4oz burger on a whole wheat bun
Ingredients:
1 Pound of Ground Turkey
1/4C Chopped Onion
2TBSP Soy Sauce
2TBSP Chopped Cilantro
1 Clove Garlic
Salt and Pepper (to taste)
Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns
Cilantro, Onion, and Sirachi Mayo (to dress the burger)
How to make it ahead of time:
Combine
turkey, onion, soy sauce, cilantro, garlic, salt and pepper together
and mix with hands. Form into burger patties and separate layers with
wax paper.
When ready to cook:
Grill
or pan fry burger patties until fully-cooked. Dress a bun with Sirachi
mayo, cilantro, onion, and even stone ground mustard if you like.
Serve with cut potatoes lightly sprayed with olive oil and dusted with
panko bread crumbs. Cook potatoes on 425 until crunchy.
Day 3:
Ancho Chili Steaks with Black Beans and Southwest Salad
Effort Meter (1 to 5): 1
Delicious Meter (1 to 5): 5
Weight Watcher Points: 6 POINTS PLUS for a 3oz of steak
Ingredients:
2-4 Steaks (we used sirloin but you could even use a cheaper cut, like flank steak or tri-tip)
2 TBSP Ancho Chili Powder (I could only find Ancho Pepper so I used that and cut the pepper in half)
2 TBSP Paprika
1 TBSP Ground Cumin
2 TSP Oregano
2 TSP Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 TSP Ground Black Pepper
Half a Onion, Cut it large pieces
1 Can Black Beans
1 Bag of Southwest Cabbage Salad
How to make it ahead of time:
In
a bowl, mix together Ancho Chili spice (chili powder, paprika, cumin,
oregano, cocoa and black pepper). In a large ziploc bag, add steaks and
drizzle with a light coating of olive oil. Add Ancho Chili spice and
onions, close the bag and massage into steak using the bag.
When ready to cook:
Remove steaks and shake off
access marinade/rub. Grill steak on a BBQ to your desired doneness. You
can put the onions in tin foil and grill those as well. Serve over a bed
of black beans and with a Southwest Cabbage Salad.
Day 4
Quinoa Mac and Cheese with Chicken and Broccoli
Effort Meter (1 to 5): 3.5
Delicious Meter (1 to 5): 3
Weight Watcher Points: 7 POINTS PLUS for 1/4 of the pan
Ingredients:
1-1/2 TBSP Oil
2 C Cooked Quinoa (I used the wild rice blend from Costco)
1 Head Fresh Broccoli (cooked)
1 C Sliced Mushrooms
12 Oz Cooked Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
1/2 TSP Salt
1/2 TSP Pepper
1-1/2 C Chopped Onion
6 Cloves of Garlic
1/2 C Skim Milk
2-1/2 TBSP Flour
1-1/2 C Chicken Broth
1/2 C Parmesan
1/4 C Lowfat Mayo
2 C Sharp Cheddar (shredded)
How to make it ahead of time:
Add cooked quinoa, cooked chicken, steamed broccoli and mushrooms to a casserole pan. Set aside.
In
a medium saucepan over Med-High heat, add oil, onions, and garlic. Cook
until transparent. Slowly stir in a mixture of the milk and flour to
avoid clumping. Add chicken broth, salt and pepper. Remove from heat and
add Parmesan, mayo and cheddar with a whisk. Pour mixture over the
quinoa/chicken/veggie pan and cover with tin foil and refrigerate (or
freeze) until ready.
When ready to cook:
Bake at 400 until warm in the middle (about 25-30 minutes).
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