Thrifty Thanksgiving

Today’s Thrifty Thanksgiving recipe is for a Thanksgiving favorite: Mashed Potatoes. With all the cheese sales that happened this fall, you should have plenty of cheese in your fridge or freezer. Potatoes are fairly inexpensive and you should have many of the other ingredients on hand.

Fresh & Frugal: Cheesy Mashed Potatoes

INGREDIENTS

2 pounds red skinned or Yukon gold potatoes, peeled (optional) and cut up
1?2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup shredded American or cheddar cheese
Milk (optional)
Chopped Green Onion (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a covered large saucepan, cook potatoes in enough boiling water to cover for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender. Drain.
Mash with a potato masher or beat with an electric mixer on low speed.
Season with the salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. If necessary, add a small amount of milk for desired consistency.
Grease four 10- to 12-ounce individual casseroles or custard cups or a 1- to 1-1/2-quart casserole dish.
Spoon potato mixture into prepared casserole.
In a chilled medium bowl, beat whipping cream with chilled beaters of an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form (tips curl over).
Fold in cheese.
Spoon cheese mixture over potatoes.
Place casserole(s) on a baking sheet.
Bake, uncovered, about 20 minutes or until lightly browned and heated through.
If desired, sprinkle with additional black pepper or chopped green onion.

Makes 4 servings. To make this dish ahead of time, just do steps one through six. Then cover and chill.

Less Fresh – More Frugal: Betty Crocker Boxed Potatoes

INGREDIENTS

Betty Crocker Boxed Four Cheese Potatoes
1 1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup hot water
2 tbsp. butter or margarine
Freshly ground black pepper (optional)
Chopped green onions (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat milk, hot water and margarine to a rapid boil in 2-quart saucepan
Remove from heat.
Stir in 1 pouch potatoes with seasoning just until well blended.
Let stand about 1 minute or until liquid is absorbed.
or smoother potatoes, whip vigorously with fork. For stiffer potatoes, let stand 3 to 5 minutes. For extra-creamy potatoes, stir in more milk 1 tablespoons at a time.
If desired, sprinkle with black pepper or chopped green onion.

COUPONS TO SAVE MORE

$.50/2 Betty Crocker Potatoes coupon (SS 10/3)
$1/2 Land O Lakes Butter coupon (SS 10/24)

Find more Thrifty Thanksgiving Recipes from“Cents”able Momma and Bargains to Bounty.

Recipe and image from Better Homes & Gardens.

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Thanksgiving is right around the corner and last year I got tons of emails from readers asking for advice on how to host the holiday on a dime. I wrote a post last year with a few tips but I thought this year I’d take it a little further. I teamed up with two other bloggers to bring you some frugal recipes that you can make for your own celebration or take to someone else’s.

All the recipes I will post will need minimal ingredients, use things you likely have on hand and/or require ingredients that are inexpensive to buy. Hopefully these will give you some ideas to host a Thrifty Thanksgiving while still setting a beautiful table.

Fresh & Frugal: Parsleyed Green Beans

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 pounds green beans, washed and both ends trimmed
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tsp. fresh garlic, finely chopped with pinch of salt
2 Tbsp. chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Flat-leaf parsley (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Fill large pot with water; bring to rolling boil.
Add 1 tablespoon salt and the beans.
Cook, uncovered, for 5 to 8 minutes or until tender but still vibrant green and slightly resistant to the bite.
Drain beans; immediately submerge in bowl of lightly salted ice water to stop cooking and set color.
When thoroughly chilled, drain well.
In a wide skillet heat butter over medium-high heat until hot and foaming.
Add beans. Cook, tossing often, until heated through.
Sprinkle with garlic and parsley, a generous amount of salt, and a few grinds of black pepper.
Cook 1 minute longer, tossing frequently to distribute flavorings and avoid burning the garlic.
Sprinkle with additional parsley.

Serve immediately. Makes 6 to 8 servings. To make this dish ahead of time, just do steps one through five. Then cover and chill up to 24 hours.

Less Fresh – More Frugal: Green Bean Casserole

INGREDIENTS

1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cans green beans
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon soy sauce
Dash ground black pepper
1 1/3 cups French Fried Onions

INSTRUCTIONS

Stir the soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, beans and 2/3 cup onions in a 1 1/2-quart casserole.
Bake at 350°F. for 25 minutes or until the bean mixture is hot and bubbling.
Stir the bean mixture.
Sprinkle with the remaining onions.
Bake for 5 minutes or until the onions are golden brown.

COUPONS TO SAVE MORE