Frugal Fridays With Jen- Slow Cooker Meals

We have been doing pretty well with not eating out. I've been planning meals, planning for tired evenings with quick go-to meals (eggs and toast anyone?), and using my slow cooker.

It's an especially attractive option now that Ohio is getting cold and frosty.

Pictured is my latest experimentation: Baked Potato Soup
This was quite easy to make, and quite cheap for 8 servings. The only change I made was adding 1.5 cups of cheddar cheese, using only 5 potatoes, and reducing the red pepper to taste. I calculate that the entire batch cost me only $1.25 to make! That's $0.16 per serving! The cream cheese I got for $0.25 each, the potatoes were $0.50, and the cheese I got for free in a super deal this summer. I used half a piece of bacon for a garnish and chives from my own plant. If you have an O'Charley's near you, it tasted a lot like their Loaded baked Potato Soup.

I paired this with some copycat Cheddar Bay Biscuits. These turned out fantastic as well and took about 10 minutes to mix up.

Some other lovely gems I am trotting out:

French Onion Soup
A bag of onions is $2, and I got 32 oz of broth for $1 on a deal recently. $2 worth of wine (which is really worth it for the taste) means less than $5 for 4 servings. We usually eat it without the bread and cheese.

Mac n Cheese
Who knew this could be made in the slow cooker? I scored a major deal on pasta this week with free Ronzoni whole wheat pasta and Smart Taste for $0.49 each. I still have 10 bars of cheese I got for free in my freezer and, with the addition of milk, these could easily end up being $1.50 for 6 servings, or $0.25 per serving. The price equals what I could get boxed mac n cheese for, but who wants to eat the powdered stuff when you can have the real deal, minus all the artificial colors?

Boston Baked Beans
This is the perfect time to whip out some of those beans I cooked in my slow cooker and froze for the future. I follow the recipe I linked, but instead cook it on low all day while I am at work. This recipe is also less than $5 for at least 6 servings. I am weird and enjoy eating this cold the next day for lunch. Don't forget the Beano!