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Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Works For Me Wednesday: Hospitality on a Budget

As many of you know, we are on a pretty tight budget right now since we are not currently hosting a student. However, when Dave told me that his school was arranging meals for one of his student's family after the death of her father, I signed up anyway. For one, she has the same last name as my maiden name. But, the main reason is that scripture tells us that when one part of the body of Christ mourns, the whole body suffers with it. I know that one meal can't take away the pain of losing a father and a husband. But it is a tangible way to be the hands of Christ to this family. I enjoy cooking and baking, and I really feel like I should use those gifts to the glory of God despite a tight budget.

So, here's the meal I came up with -
Grilled Chicken Alfredo Pasta
-I used chicken that was bought last week when it was $1.99, I had a coupon for the chicken, and I had a $10/$50 coupon for my entire purchase. The pasta was free or cheap (I'm not sure exactly which box I used). I seasoned the chicken with McCormick's grill mates bought at Publix on BOGO with a coupon. I made the Alfredo sauce myself versus purchasing more expensive ready made sauce.
Focaccia Bread
-I made this from scratch.
Green Peas
-I was going to use green beans that I bought on manager's special at Kroger, but they looked a little rough when I opened the bag. So I chose peas instead. These were $.89, and I used a $1.00 coupon, which means I had $.11 of overage.
Brownies
-I made these from a mix that I bought for around $.20.

I encourage those of you on a tight budget like me to consider ways that you can still exercise hospitality and use the gifts that God had given you for His glory.

And last but not least, here's Alexa "helping" me cook dinner last night.

3 comments:

Marlene McGarrity said...

Although I am not cooking, I wanted to tell you how inspired I felt by your post.

I read and re-read your words:

"the main reason is that scripture tells us that when one part of the body of Christ mourns, the whole body suffers with it."

So you probably thought you were just sharing a recipe with us, but I appreciate the lesson learned.

EmilyV said...

Thanks for commenting queenoftheclick. I'm glad someone benefited from my post.

Gretchen said...

Awesome ideas. I hopped over from Shannon's blog. You're so right. It's not what it costs, it's that we're sharing of ourselves.

Blessings.