Looking in your pantry

The last couple of months, we have tried to make a conscious effort to really look at what we need before we go shopping. It's hard to resist great sales, but we've been able to cut back on our spending, by not allowing ourselves to become caught up in buying something, just because it is on sale. We have also become creative with what we have in our pantry. A tasty & filling casserole that we concocted is:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

1 Cup of Basmati Rice - uncooked, prepare as per the directions, try adding black pepper, garlic powder and chili powder and margarine to the rice as the water is boiling.

1 Can of Red Kidney Beans - drained

2 Cups of Pace Chunky Med Salsa

1 Lg Can of Sliced Black Olives - drained

Grated Cheese - we used Shredded Tex Mex

Once the cooked rice has sat for 15 mins, combine in a large casserole dish all the above ingredients, except for the grated cheese. Mix the ingredients in the dish. Add the grated cheese evenly over the top of the mixture and bake at 375 degrees until the cheese starts to melt and brown. Remove from oven.

Let stand for 2 minutes and then serve.

Another tip, is to use any boxed cakes mixes in your pantry, follow the directions, but instead of making a cake, pour the batter into muffin tins and bake accordingly and there you have muffins to take in your lunch for the week.

To make canned cream of mushroom soup a little different, we add cooked peas and corn to the soup as it's heating up (along with the milk to the canned soup) add some Basil, Oregano and black pepper and once the soup is completely heated and we pour it into soup bowls, add some croutons and some shredded cheese to the top and there you have a new twist to plain old mushroom soup.

To add some zing to your mashed potatoes, as you are mashing the potatoes, if you have any creamy dressing (such as Creamy Ranch or Creamy Caesar), that is about to expire soon, add some to the mashed potatoes and voila - some great tasting mashed potatoes.