Food Bytes: Package, Package, What’s in the Package?

Part Three of my Food Bytes series about eating good food on a budget.  See the introduction, Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four.

Most of the time, you don't want to know what is in the package.  High fructose corn syrup, artificial food coloring, high sodium and other yucky stuff lurks in many packages.  To clarify, I never want to give the appearance that I'm a food snob at all.  Part of the reason we avoid many foods is because I have blood sugar issues, and I have found that eating certain things either helps or aggravates the problem.  I would rather make foods from scratch many times simply because I can control what goes into the finished product.  This doesn't happen with pre-packaged foods.

Below are some of the packaged foods I buy as helpful cooking tools.  Yes, I know you can make many of them homemade, but in the 5 months I’ve been a full-time chef (LOL) I’ve discovered that everyone has different priorities in the kitchen.  Some people have the time, talent, and desire to make everything from scratch.  Others have no time, talent, or desire to do so, and they live on Hamburger Helper.  I think I fall somewhere in the middle, and that’s where the items below really come in handy. 

Soups:  I buy cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soups from Aldi.  They’re cheapest there, and they work for me.  One of my “must have brand name” concessions is tomato soup.  My tomato soup must be Campbells, and has to be made with milk.  It’s one of my comfort foods, and you don’t mess with comfort foods. 

Salad dressings:  In our fridge right now we have Italian, Ranch, Raspberry Vinaigrette, and Creamy Parmesan.  Anyone want salad?  We do eat salad often, and go through Ranch dressing very quickly.  Ranch is actually on my list of “Learn to Make From Scratch Items.” 

Pasta Sauces:  I know, I know, if anyone makes anything from scratch it has to be tomato sauce right?  Well, I tried, and you know what?  I like store-bought better.  *gasps of horror* Our favorite is Francesco Rinaldi, and since the giant we-have-everything superstore sells it for $1.22 a jar (cheaper than the $1.50 Ragu, mind you) and I can pronounce and recognize every single ingredient on the label, we don’t mind a bit.  Our favorite alfredo sauce however, is Ragu’s garlic parmesan.

Off-brand Macaroni and Cheese:  When I make mac and cheese,  I make it from scratch, but when I make one of my most favorite meals in the whole world, I use store bought mac and cheese.  (See below for the recipe.)

Snack foods:  Popcorn.  No, that is not a typo, or me forgetting to finish the category.  We seriously don’t buy snack foods.  Not only does it saves us a bunch of money, it’s also healthier.  We’d rather have a piece of zucchini bread than a handful of chips any day.  We’ll eat chips and store-bought cookies if we go out to eat, or if we’re at a church function, we just choose not to buy them for ourselves. 

Bits and Pieces:  Some other things we buy are Bacon Pieces, not Bacon Bits, mind you, but bacon pieces for mashed and baked potatoes, as well as one of the macaroni and cheese recipes (the “from scratch ones”).  I love, love , love French Fried Onions.  I use them in a ton of things- hashbrown casserole, the amazing mac and cheese recipe below, smashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and more.  Can’t live without these, really.  By the same token, Dried Onion Soup Mixes can be found in my pantry often.  I love to make French dip sandwiches with these.  I'm sure I'm forgetting some others, but these are my basic, go-to convenience foods. 

Do you make any of the above items from scratch?  Care to share any recipes or tips?

Mac n Cheese Plus

1 box mac n cheese (plus 1/4 c. milk and 4 Tbs. butter)

2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1 cup chopped onion

Veggie Options: slice carrots, broccoli, red peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, etc.

(We usually add carrots and broccoli, but feel free to add more favorites!)

2 cloves chopped garlic

1 cup+ french fried onions

Preheat oven to 350. Make mac n cheese according to directions.  Meanwhile, in a skillet cook garlic and onions until tender.  Add chicken and veggies and heat through until veggies are soft.  Mix the completed mac n cheese with the chicken and veggies in an oven-safe casserole dish.  Add french fried onions on top (as many or few as you want) and cook for 10 minutes.  

Photo credit: Tomato Soup