I absolutely love chicken. It's my favorite source of protein, hands down. A lot of people get tired of eating the same old chicken entree - and who can blame them? I used to think chicken could only be roasted or fried, with a dash of season salt and black pepper. I'm so glad over the years that I've proven that mentality wrong! Paired with sweet or savory spices, chicken is my go-to everytime. One of my favorite things about chicken is how budget friendly it is.

1. Want to make a bold dish - swap a cut of chicken in for beef or pork as is called for in your recipe. I match boneless with boneless, bone-in with bone-in. Some of my favorite swaps include: Pulled Chicken Sammies, chicken tacos, and chicken and biscuits.

2. Chicken pairs well with most fruits for awesome kebabs, sizzling stirfries, and wings that make your heart sing! Some of my favorites are chicken "burgers" topped with grilled pineapple rings, Indonesian Chicken with Honey and Garlic, and Thai Mandarin Chicken Stirfry. I haven't yet tried chicken dish with fruit that I didn't like - kids love it, too!

3. Soup and salad. I can think of no other protein base that goes so well into either salad or soup, let alone both. From fancy grilled chicken salads to the humblest of chicken soups, this piece of poultry packs a powerful punch in the flavor department. With bone-in pieces of chicken, you can stretch your dollar even further, and when making soups - stretch the flavor further, too!

4. Chicken as a component in casseroles, pastas, rice dishes, etc. A little of this bird can go a really, really long way. One chicken breast can provide enough meat for 2-4 servings when worked into a pasta sauce, as a primary ingredient in a casserole, and when shredded/cubed into a rice dish. When you do this, let the side dish take center stage as your entree and pair it with a hearty salad. That is a easy supper that's good for you and light on your wallet, too.

5. Spices, marinades, and sauces. Chicken with gravy over potatoes, chicken marinated in teriyaki (or any fruit-based marinade), chicken seasoned with basil, garlic, and onion - any favorite spice combination or flavor mix that you love - you will love it on chicken. I like to pair in smoky elements in chicken (cumin and hickory seasoning, anyone?) for an unexpected twist on a classic chicken dish. If you need inspiration - check out ethnic cooking. Chicken seems to be the favored poultry for many nationalities, if you need some flavor inspiration.

Tell me - what's your favorite chicken dish?

To give some desserts an elegant, flavorful finish without spending lots of money, keep these simple essentials on hand: powdered sugar, cinnamon, instant coffee, nutmeg, ginger, and cocoa powder.
For a spiced powdered sugar, simply mix 1 C. powdered sugar with 1 to 2 tsp. of any spice or instant coffee. This is sure to impress!

And to turn this into a glaze, add 1-2 T. milk and a 1/4 tsp. of your favorite extract, liquer, or flavor.

For years, oatmeal raisin cookie have been a favorite of mine, but my father used to tell me they were good, but that they were missing something. While digging through the spice cabinet on Christmas season, about 10 years ago, I noticed something called rum extract. Instantly intrigued, I had to smell it. The dark, buttery, rich scent had me hooked - so it went in the cookies....and the missing ingredient had finally been found. If you like a rich, full-flavored cookie, I think I have one for you to try:

1 stick margarine
1/2 C. unsweetened applesauce
1 heaping C. brown sugar
1/2 C. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. each vanilla and rum extracts
1 3/4 C. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
3 1/2 C. oats
1 C. raisins

Heat oven to 350. In large mixing bow, beat margarine, applesauce, and sugars til creamy. Add eggs and extracts - mix til well blended. In separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, spices. Slowly add dry ingredients to the large mixing bowl - stirring til well blended. Stir in oats (I do this by cup-full), stir in raisins.
Drop cookies by spoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 9-10 minutes for soft cookie 13-14 minutes for crunchy cookie.

For other variations try:
Swap golden raisins for regular and add in 1/2 tsp. ginger(with the spices), 1 C. dried cranberries, 1/2 C. chopped walnuts = Christmas Oatmeal Cookies
Swap our raisins for 1 C. chocolate chips and 1/2 C. toffee bits = Chocolate Oatmeal Crunch Cookies
Add dried cherries (1/2 C.), 1/2 C. dried pineapple = Fruity Oatmeal Snackers
Add 1/2 C. dried apple or pear (rough chopped) and 1 tsp. ginger (with the spices) for Autumn Oatmeal Cookies

4-6 lbs. chicken, bone-in works best (dark or white meat)
3-4 cloves garlic
1/4 medium onion

Put chicken, onion, and garlic into crockpot, cover with water and cook until meat starts to fall off the bone. (About 6-8 hours on low).
Drain off water into large bowl (and save to use in place of store bought chicken stock/broth), remove skin and bones. With 2 forks, gently pull the chicken apart.

Meal Ideas:

Add BBQ Sauce and serve as Pulled Chicken (great for sammies).
Add in some tomato sauce, garlic salt, onion powder, and taco seasoning for Chicken Tacos, Chicken Enchiladas, Chicken Quesadillas, and Chicken Burritos.
Serve over pasta.
Mix with cooked, diced potatoes as a hash
Use in place of lunchmeat
Add to broth, with noodles and veggies for homemade chicken noodle soup
Add into boxed pastas/rices/potatoes, for an entree on a side-dish budget!
Make mashed potatoes, make packaged gravy mix and add in chicken. Serve chicken in gravy over potatoes.
Makes a great pizza topping.

This freezes very well, and helps out in a pinch when you didn't plan dinner or forgot to thaw something. Instead of buying pricey cans of chicken breast meat, this is a great, cheap substitution.

Basic Bars

1 box any flavor cake mix, except pound and angelfood cake
2 eggs - minus 1 yolk
¼ C. each unsweetened applesauce & any liquid (water, juice, coffee,etc)
1/3 C. brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. extract, any flavor (or mix and match your favorites)
½ C. nuts, chips, or fruit (dried or fresh/frozen)

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 13x9” pan.
Mix well all ingredients, spread evenly in pan.
Bake 24-27 minutes, cool and cut.

You can frost them or dust with powdered sugar, but I seldom do – these go great with anything.
My favorite variation uses: vanilla cake mix, coffee, brandy extract, and cappuccino chips for Latte Bars!
Another popular variation: lemon cake, lemonade, lemon extract, and almonds and coconut stirred in.
Always the crowd pleaser - vanilla cake mix, apple cider, rum & almond extract, raspberries and white chocolate chips - Yummy White Chocolate Berry Bars

Basic Substitutions:

Butter - substitute an equal portion of unsweetened applesauce
Ground Beef - substitute an equal amount of ground turkey
Egg - substitute 1 T oil, 2 T baking soda, 1 T. water
French onion soup mix - substitute 1 T dry minced onion & 1 1/2 tsp. beef bouillon
Chicken broth - substitute equal amount of water with 1 chicken bouillon cube (per cup)