Infant Yogurt drops

My 9 month old is a darling, bright-eyed, drooling, toothless munchkin!  He is also a bottomless pit!  That kid can eat!  When I found this recipe for the infant yogurt drops I was thrilled!  And, these aren't made with real dairy so they won't spoil.  Did he like them???  What do you think?

Ingredients:
1c powdered milk
1/4c formula
1/2c juice
1/2t vanilla
2t corn starch

Directions:

Mix powdered milk, formula, and juice, and vanilla in a pan and heat over medium heat until it forms a thick paste.  

Reduce heat to low and add corn starch.  Cook for 3 more minutes stirring constantly. 

Put paste into icing bag or ziploc bag with cut tip and squeeze out drops onto wax paper.  

 Place in fridge to cool for then sit out in room temperature until dry-at least 6 hours.  Store in air tight container.

Be creative and enjoy!

 

STATS:

better? my older kids hate these, I think because of the formula, but I don't think they're that bad and my baby LOVES them!  I love that you can customize these to your babies favorite flavors and formula needs! *check*

healthier? These are healthier if your baby has issue with dairy but I have to admit the commercial ones are healthy!  I made these more for our next point...cheaper.

 cheaper?  1 4lb box of dried milk is around $8 so 1c is $.50.  Formula obviously depends on the type but for a 24oz can of Parent's Choice formula the amount of formula used for this recipe costs $.56.  A bag of Gerber Graduates Yogurt Melts is $4 for a 1oz bag!  Crazy!  That's 1/4c!!  This recipe made 1 1/4 cup for $1?  Amazing!  *check*

Cream of Chicken Soup

So many of my quick go-to recipes call for cream of chicken soup!  Its such a helpful pantry item but helpful panty items add up quick!  My amazing sister has easy crock pot cooking down to a science and uses cream of chicken soup a lot!  She asked me to figure out how to make this homemade so she could help that expense.  So Joslin....here it is and you won't believe how easy it is!


This is equivalent to 1 can of soup

Ingredients:
1T flour
3T butter
1/2c chicken broth
1/2c milk
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
You're going to start with a butter heavy basic roux so-Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. When melted, whisk in the flour and continue whisking until smooth and bubbly.


Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the chicken broth and milk.  If you don't have chicken broth just use water and chicken bouillon according to directions. 

Return to heat and bring to a gentle boil stirring constantly until the soup thickens.

Add salt and pepper to taste.


 Ideas:
Pour over boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped vegetables, and place in crock pot with italian dressing mix.  Serve with pasta and a green salad.

Be creative and Enjoy!

 STATS:
better? I love the fresh, natural taste.  It tastes like creamy chicken soup and it's definitely not gelatinous by any means!  *check*
healthier?  this recipe in made of all ingredients from your pantry or fridge.  No added salt and preservatives.  *check*
cheaper? with a coupon or on sale 1 can of cream of chicken soup is $1.  We made it for pennies!!  3T butter = approx. $0.24 *check*

Ranch Dip Mix

I swear my girls would drink ranch dressing if I let them.  Don't get me wrong, I love me some dip and chips and the combination of the love of this flavor... the homemade Ranch Dip Mix!

mix together:
2/3c dried onion
1/3c dried parsley
2T salt (I like it salty but you can decrease the salt to 1T for a low-sodium option)
2t garlic powder

store in a air tight container (I use a mason jar)

To make ranch dressing: Mix 2T of dry mix, 1c mayo, 1c buttermilk-see below
To make ranch dip: Mix 2 T dry mix, with 1c sour cream

Be Creative and Enjoy!

STATS:
better? Honestly, this is the best dip and dressing I've ever had!!  It's so good! and I can't believe how simple it is! *check*
healthier? Sadly, these simple ingredients still require lots of huge words no one can pronounce to put them on your shelf!  This has none of that and you can control the sodium! *check*
cheaper? 1 packet or 2T is $2.19 at Walmart.  This makes 8 times that for pennies!  I had everything in my spice cupboard so it cost me nothing!  *check*     


Need Italian Dressing Mix??????




Don't have buttermilk laying around?  (who does?!?)  My friend who is a GENIUS baker taught me this little trick!  Check out her amazing blog for the BEST baking recipes ever-Seriously, the best!  www.fredellicious.blogspot.com



Buttermilk: Combine 1T white vinegar and 1c milk in a bowl and let sit for 5 min.  It will get nice and chunky and there you have...BUTTERMILK!  Too easy :)

 

Italian dressing Mix

My all time favorite Italian dressing is the packet mix from Good Seasonings.  It has such good flavor!  Well...in true Better Healthier Cheaper fashion- I give you Italian Dressing dry Mix.  This is great because you can EASILY make a large batch, keep it in your spice cupboard, and have it on hand, ready to use for dips, dressings, or recipes! 

Mix together:

1T garlic salt1T onion powder
1T white sugar
2T dried oregano
1t ground black pepper
1/4t dried thyme
1t dried basil
1T dried parsley
1/4t celery salt
2T salt

makes 1/2c dry mix

Store in a tightly sealed container;  I used a mason jar.

To make a dressing:  whisk together 1/4c white vinegar, 2/3 cup oil (I like olive oil), 2T water, and 2T dry seasoning mix.

I love to mix this with 1 can of cream of chicken soup-or even better homemade cream of chicken soup, throw it with some frozen chicken in the crock pot and serve with pasta for dinner!

STATS:
better? This stuff is delicious!  The dressing is flavorful and I love that I can use it for other things too! *check*
healthier? Good Seasons, in particular, lists a few ingredients that I can't pronounce-never good, and it lists "natural flavors" which is debatable whether or not this includes the dreaded Msg depending on the source.  So I'd say *check*
cheaper? At Walmart 4 packets are $5.75 or $1.44 per packet.  Each packet is 2 T of seasonings.  This recipe makes the same as 4 packets (8T)  I had all of the ingredients in my spice rack so I spent NOTHING!  *check*

Need Ranch Dressing Mix???