Raise your hand if you STILL have the free Mayonnaise in your pantry from the Target sale last year…. come on, be honest! 
Here’s a super easy and YUMMY recipe for homemade basil/italian ranch dressing that you can make with that mayo:
You will need:
1 cup of Mayonnaise
1 tsp. White Vinegar
3-6 Tbsp. milk
Chopped fresh or dried basil leaves
Garlic Powder
Any other spices you want to add in (I added parsley and italian seasoning too)
Mix it together and you have a great salad dressing! The cost was extremely minimal since I got the mayo for free. I’m guessing around 10¢-15¢? Last night at dinner my oldest said, “Mom, this dressing is better than the ones you can buy!” What a great compliment! So yes, it’s kid-friendly too.
To go with our salad I made chicken and couscous. Couscous is one of my favorite starch dishes because it only takes 5 minutes to cook! I’ve used couscous instead of rice for Chinese food, instead of pasta for Italian food, and instead of potatoes too! I first found out about couscous when I went on the South Beach Diet a few years back. It was one of the only “pasta-type” foods you could have on the second phase of the diet because it has such a low number on the glycemic index.
You can buy couscous in boxes or plastic containers at just about any supermarket, but I prefer to buy it in the bulk foods section of Whole Foods or Central Market (much better price) and put it into a jar of my own.
I had several cans of Cream of Mushroom soup left from when they were 12¢ at Target, so I added a can of soup to a pot, along with 2 cans of water and let it boil. Then I added about 2 cups of couscous, let it return to a boil, put a lid on it, and took it off the burner immediately. It’s ready in 5 minutes!
I heated up some grilled boneless/skinless chicken breasts that I had cooked the night before (got them for $1.98/lb which is about the highest I will pay for non-organic Boneless/Skinless chicken) and mixed it in with the couscous after the 5 minutes were up.
My kids ate up the couscous/chicken combo and my husband loved it too. I personally wasn’t incredibly impressed with the flavor, so I think I’ll add a few more spices next time I try this dish.
All in all everything cost under $4 (all of the veggies were from a produce co-op that we pay $10 a week to be part of)!
Now it’s your turn! What kind of recipes did you come up with to use with your deals? Please link directly to your recipe below.
I also highly recommend heading over to $5 Dinners’ Bargain Meal Of The Week page where she categorizes meals by different store deals!
Can you tell us more about this veggie co-op? How does that work?
.-= chirky´s last blog ..Gemma =-.
Ooooh! Ooooh! I still have the mayo
I thought I was the only one… whew! Lol! Your “meal deal” looks yummy!
.-= Amy @ Amy Loves It!´s last blog ..Thinking Ahead with Life Insurance =-.
I still have Mayo but not from the Target deal!
My husband is still asking me what I’m going to do with all of it….will def be trying to make my own dressing! 
Yesterday for lunch, my 3 and 5 yr old helped me use up some stock/bargain food. We used the Pillsbury Italian Loaf I got b1g1 at Lowe’s Foods, Land O Frost sandwich meat from BiLo $.14pk, and Sargento Cheese from Harris Teeter. We layered turkey and ham on the rolled out loaf, then a layer of cheeses, rolled, then baked. The kids loved it, I’m sure it didn’t hurt that they helped make it.
Can you tell a little more about produce co-op? What do you get for your $10 a week and how can i find one?
That looks super yummy! I think I’m going to have to try the dressing recipe! What a great idea!
.-= Rachael´s last blog ..Meals With My Deals: Chicken Corn Chowder =-.