Chili Casserole

Well since the grocery budget is a sore subject in this family I am trying to figure out how to make cheap cheap meals while not depriving us of vegetables. Last night I made what I call a Chili Casserole and surprisingly everyone gobbled it up. I guess you could also call it dinner in a can, but I don't feel too bad about it. I came up with this on my own so feel free to change it to suit your family's tastes. Here is the breakdown of ingredients and cost:

Chili Casserole by Shannon

2 cans of Pork and Beans (.58 each)

1 can Diced Tomatoes (.57)

1 ear of corn (.25)

1 package of Crescent Rolls (1.50)

1/2 tsp. Chili Powder

1/2 tsp. of ground Cumin

1/4 tsp. Garlic Salt

1/4 tsp. Pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large casserole dish empty 2 cans of Pork and Beans, draining the juices from one can. Drain half the liquid from the tomatoes and add to the dish. Add in chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Add corn (I used one ear of corn I had precooked, chopped and previously frozen. You can use a small can of corn instead.) Stir together. Unroll the entire package of crescent rolls together and lay on top of the mixture. If you are like me and all of the rolls broke apart by themselves just layer them on top of the mixture. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes or until the top of the casserole is golden brown and the mixture is bubbling. Garnish with sour cream, cheese or green onions if desired.

Serves 5-6

I also chopped up half a head of lettuce (.78) to serve as a salad. Add a glass of free water and there you go, a dinner for 6 for under $5.

I'm not sure of the exact cost of the spices but most people will have these on hand. If not, your local dollar store should have a good assortment of quality spices. If I had a can of sliced olives on hand they would have gone in very nicely with the mixture, but I didn't so just throw in whatever sounds good to you!