Gourmet on a dime

Yes, okay, so I hear there is a recession...does that mean we must starve and eat mediocre meals? I think not! I find it thrilling to attack a challenge based around financial dilemmas, so this should be a fun journey.

In order to start things off with a bang, let's talk about recipes at home that are "O So Simple" but "OHHH SO GOOD". If you are a seafood fan, this recipe will delight your tastebuds and your clock. It's a lovely dish called Shrimp Corn Chowder with cornbread muffins.

Before hitting the grocery store, you must arm yourself with the budget friendly knowledge to make this all work. Sit down at your computer, or even with your newspaper, and find where the deals are for this particular recipe. By the way, I use my free newspaper that is delivered weekly with mostly sales ads and a food section. Most grocery stores will have their weekly ads online as well.

Here is what you'll need to serve 4:

1 lb of medium sized frozen cooked shrimp (frozen is much cheaper!) that has been deveined and tailess

1 8 oz pack of soft cream cheese (make it fat free if you are dieting)

3 cans of Potato soup (grocery brands are cheaper, low sodium is best)

2 cans of sweet golden corn (again, grocery brands are cheaper)

1 can of creamed corn

milk (use soup cans to measure out 2 cans of milk)

cayenne pepper (just a couple of dashes)

2 teaspoons of chopped garlic (you can buy the jar of garlic already chopped or use freshly chopped garlic)

salt & pepper

Jiffy Muffin Mix

1 Egg (for jiffy muffin mix)

Time: 20 minutes!! Excellent taste and super easy to clean up as well.

**Let cream cheese sit out to soften up for a few minutes prior to starting**

For the Jiffy muffins, please prepare first as directed on the box and allow them to sit while you start the soup.

For the soup, first you will sautee the garlic cloves and cayenne pepper with a small amount of butter for a couple of minutes to bring out the flavor. Then add the potato soup and milk and bring to a slow boil. Mix 2/3 of the cream cheese as soon as it begins to boil. After the cream cheese is mixed in well, add the shrimp and corn (do not drain corn first) and mix together. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes tops (do not overcook shrimp!) and add salt & pepper to taste.

While the soup is simmering, pop the Jiffy Muffins in the oven and set the timer as directed.

Finally, sit down and enjoy a delicious gourmet soup that was easy to prepare and easy to clean up after! Now you have time to do that workout you've been thinking about since January 1st ;-) Or, you could just read a good book! After all, this meal should have cost you less than $10 if you followed all the directions for how to make it cheaper, so you can afford a new book to read.