Barbecue Chicken and Twice-Baked Potatoes (remember, this serves 2 adults and 2 children dinner AND lunch the next day!)
1lb boneless, skinless chicken breast ($1.88)
1 small bottle barbecue sauce ($0.39)
6 baking potatoes ($1.60)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar ($0.62)
1/2 cup sour cream ($0.25)
1/4 cup margarine ($0.05)
Canola or Olive oil
Salt
Place chicken in slow cooker, pour barbecue sauce over chicken, and cook on low for 8 hours. You can pull it apart with a fork after several hours, just to make sure the sauce cooks into all the chicken, but this isn’t necessary…the chicken will be falling apart after 8 hours anyway!
Preheat oven to 450. Coat baking potatoes in oil and sprinkle with salt; use a small knife to poke several holes in each potato to allow steam to release during baking. Place on a large broiler pan and bake for an hour to an hour-and-a-half, depending on size of potatoes. You want the skin to be crispy, and the inside cooked through. Remove potatoes from oven, slice open and allow to cool for 30 minutes. Scoop out the inside of the potatoes and place in a large mixer bowl. Add cheese, sour cream, and margarine; mix with mixer as if you’re making mashed potatoes – HIGH speed for fluffy potatoes!! Take mashed potato mixture and place in a gallon-sized zipper bag. Snip off one corner of the bag, and pipe into potato skins. Place in oven at 350 degrees for around 20 minutes. Because twice-baked potatoes are so labor intensive, I usually do a HUGE batch and freeze them…they can be baked from frozen at 350 in about 45 minutes.
Serve with salad or frozen broccoli for a little green. Tonight we’re having bagged salad – they were on sale at Kroger for $1.50 per bag!
Total cost, before green veggies:
$4.79
