Dinner Recipes for $500 Monthly Meal Plan

Last week, I shared with you how my family grocery shops for the month at a $500 budget.  You can read that here as well as get the grocery list HERE 

Today, I want to share all of this month's dinner recipes in one post.

Dinners 

1. Burrito bowl (beef, beans, rice, greens, and salsa)
2. Sauteed chicken breast, roasted sweet potato, and seared Brussels sprouts
3. Hamburgers and sweet potato fries
4. Roasted chicken breast, rice, and roasted asparagus
5. Steak cubes, roasted potatoes, and roasted broccoli
6. Baked fish, quinoa, and steamed snap peas
7. Hashbrown omelet and bacon 

Burrito bowl (beef, beans, rice, greens, and salsa)

My kids and husband love this simple recipe, everyone can personalize their own bowl!  It is easy to make and makes plenty for a crowd. It also freezes and reheats well, so you could make a batch for your whole work week of lunches or dinners.

Burrito Bowl

Serves 5

Ingredients
2.25 lean ground beef (I used 90% lean)
2.5 cup cooked rice (I use white Minute Rice)
2.5 cup cooked pinto beans (you can also sub black beans)
15 tbsp salsa
10 tbsp plain, fat-free Greek yougurt
taco seasoning - you can buy it or HERE is my recipe from scratch
*optional toppings: shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, sour cream, diced onion, diced bell peppers

Directions:
Brown beef with taco seasoning. Cook rice and beans. I do my rice in the microwave as directed and my beans in the crockpot all day. HERE is the recipe for how I do beans in the crockpot, just stop at the refry part. I freeze extra beans for future use.

On a place or bowl, layer 1/2 cup cooked rice. Then top with 1/2 cup cooked beans. Top with 6 oz beef taco meat, 3 tbsp salsa, and 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt. Finish with toppings as desired but be sure to count those in!

Nutritional stats per serving

499 calories
52 g protein
46 g carbs
9 g fat

Sauteed chicken breast, roasted sweet potato, and seared Brussels sprouts

Roast sweet potatoes (1 per person) in the oven at 400*F for an hour. While those were roasting, we tossed halved and trimmed (about a pound) Brussels sprouts with vegetable oil along with a little salt and pepper. 

Then cube up the chicken breast (1 breast per person) and saute it with a bit of ancho chile seasoning (we picked up from Sam's Club) until cooked throughout. 

Heat a cast iron (or very heavy) pan to almost smoking hot, and place sprouts cut side down. Turn heat to medium, and flip after about 3 minutes. Cut side should be charred. Cook the other side 3-5 minutes until tender and charred.

Nutritional stats per serving 

1 large (approx 1 cup) sweet potato, 6 oz chicken, and 1 cup brussels sprouts

322 calories
40 g protein
44 g carbs
4 g fat

Hamburgers and sweet potato fries

I have discovered the secret to the best sweet potato fries of your life. Yep.


I like to serve them along side a burger, re-made in a bit more healthy way. I do a 4 oz 85% lean beef patty (320 cals) on the George Foreman grill, then top with mustard and veggies on a sandwich thin (100 cals). So you can do a burger and large helping of these fries for 540 cals! (You can also sub a turkey patty for the beef and save another 120 cals!)

The Best Sweet Potato Fries Ever

Serves 3

The stuff

3 medium sweet potatoes, sliced into fries
1 tbsp corn starch
1/2 tbsp paprika
1/2 tbsp cinnamon

What you do

Preheat oven to 400*F and spray a cookie sheet with nonstick spray. Toss fries in corn starch and spices in a Ziploc baggy or bowl. Spread out into a single layer on the cookie sheet. Bake for 45 minutes, tossing them halfway though.

Nutrition Stats

Per serving (1/3 fries recipe and beef hamburger)

• Cals- 539
• Carbs- 48 g
• Fat- 24 g
• Protein- 35 g

Roasted chicken breast, rice, and roasted asparagus

Serves 4

The stuff

4 medium chicken breasts, approx 2 lbs uncooked weight
2 cups rice, cooked

1 bunch asparagus1 tbsp paprika2 tbsp sweetener of choice, I used granular stevia2 tsp onion powder1.5 tsp salt1 tsp chili powder 

What you do

Preheat oven to 400*F and spray a cookie sheet with nonstick spray. Toss chicken  in spices in a Ziploc baggy or bowl. Spread out into a single layer on the cookie sheet. Bake for 45 minutes.

In another cookie sheet sprayed with nonstick spray, coat the asparagus with a little oil, salt, and pepper. Roast alongside the chicken for the final 15 minutes.

Nutrition Stats

Per serving (6 oz chicken breast, approx 12 asparagus spears, and 1/2 cup rice)

• Cals- 305 cals
• Carbs- 29 g
• Fat- 5 g
• Protein- 40 g

Steak cubes, roasted potatoes, and roasted broccoli

Serves 4

The stuff

Beef eye of round roast or steaks, cubed, approx 1.5 lbs uncooked weight
8 red potatoes, washed and larger ones cut in half

1 pound broccoli, cut into florets

vegetable oil
salt and pepper

What you do

Preheat oven to 400*F and spray a cookie sheet with nonstick spray. Spread potatoes out into a single layer on the cookie sheet. Bake for 1 hour. Turn potatoes halfway through.

Heat a dutch oven over high heat. Put a little oil in the bottom to coat, then drop steak cubes to sear for approximately 3 minutes. Turn steak onto opposite side for another 3 minutes. Cover with lid, then place into oven with potatoes.

In another cookie sheet sprayed with nonstick spray, coat the broccoli with a little oil, salt, and pepper. Roast alongside the potatoes for the final 15 minutes.

Nutrition Stats

Per serving (4 oz steak cubes, 2 small potatoes, and 1 cup broccoli)

• Cals- 391 cals
• Carbs- 32 g
• Fat- 4 g
• Protein- 52 g

Baked fish, quinoa, and steamed snap peas

Serves 4

The stuff

6-8 white fish fillets, I used tilapia but anything works
1 cup quinoa, cooked

1 bag snap peas
lemon pepper seasoning
salt and pepper
butter or margarine

What you do

Cook quinoa according to package. Preheat oven to 400*F and spray a cookie sheet with nonstick spray. Thaw fish in sink of water then spread out into a single layer on the cookie sheet. Sprinkle with lemon pepper seasoning. Bake for 15 minutes.

Put snap peas into bowl, cover with a place, and place in microwave for 3-4 minutes. Toss steamed peas with a little butter or magarine and salt/pepper.

Nutrition Stats

Per serving (5 oz tilapia (about 1.5 fillets), 0.5 cup snap peas, and 1/4 cup quinoa)

• Cals- 221 cals
• Carbs- 19 g
• Fat- 4 g
• Protein- 29 g

Hashbrown omelet and bacon 

This recipe is one of my favorites. Both my kids and my husband like it too. It is easy to make for a crowd and just as easy to make for one. It also reheats well, so you could make a batch for your whole work week of breakfast.

Hashbrowns Omelet

Serves 1

Ingredients
0.75 cup shredded potatoes (can use dehydrated potatoes)
2 oz deli ham, cut into ribbons (could sub deli turkey or chicken too)
1/4 cup cheese (I used cheddar)
0.75 cup liquid egg whites or egg beaters

Nutrition Facts per Serving
This is for omelet only, I usually add a bacon for 45 cals ;)
Cals: 379

Fat - 11 g
Carbs- 23 g
Protein - 41 g


Hope this helps you plan for some great dinners, and maybe you will consider seeing if you can stretch your grocery shopping to biweekly, maybe push it back to 3 weeks, and then maybe a month! Get the monthly shopping list HERE - http://venuscrossing.blogspot.com/2016/06/monthly-meal-plan-and-grocery-list-for.html

X- Liss