I’ll be publishing this new feature on Frugal Upstate occasionally-read about my participation at: What Are Walmart Meal Solutions?
Mmm. Good!
Featured Walmart Meal Solution:
Manwich Original Sloppy Joe 26.5oz $2.12
Great Value Hamburger Buns 12oz $1.06
Kraft Velveta Shells & Cheese 12oz $1.70
Bush Baked Beans (Original Flavor) 16oz $.94
Meal: $5.82 + cost of 1 lb meat
That’s a pretty good price for a very quick and easy meal. Sure, you could probably get the ingredients cheaper with coupons and shopping around, but when you are stressed, dinner is out of control and you are seriously tempted to run through the drive-thru. . . well, this is a lifesaver! You can just run into your local Walmart, grab the Meal Solution items (all located together in a nifty display), a pound of ground beef, pop through the express lane and be on your way home.
You know me, I always like to give you all some variety-so let’s play with this menu a bit! What are some ways we can switch up this meal solution to make it work for your family?
1. If time is not a problem and you want to save more money you could make your own Hamburger Buns, Crock Pot Macaroni and Cheese, Baked Beans or even Sloppy Joes.
2. Sloppy Joes aren’t limited to just ground beef! Substitute in ground pork, chicken, turkey, venison, tofu or TVP (texturized vegetable protien).
3. Use up leftover cooked meat instead of fresh & ground-just chop it up and add it to your sauce!
3. Add some variety to that Velveta Shells and Cheese! Stir in some salsa for zip, or add some cooked peas, broccoli, carrots or even green beans to get your kiddos (or husband *cough*) to eat their veggies.
4. Not a fan of hamburger buns? Try serving your Sloppy Joe mixture over toast, biscuits, rice, pasta or a baked potato!
5. Round the meal out with a green vegetable (did you hear that mom?*) or a salad.
So what are your ideas? How would you take this Walmart Meal Solution and make it your own?
*note: My mom always insists that every dinner has to have a green vegetable. If you served wax beans, she’d insist you also needed something green. I love you Mom.
Disclosure: This post is part of a series of Meal Solutions with Walmart that some of my fellow Walmart Moms (Heather of Domestic Diva, Denise of Wholesome Mommy, and Lori at My Wooden Spoon) and I are participating in. Walmart has provided me with compensation for these posts. My participation is voluntary and opinions, as always are my own.
I’m looking for a frugal/homemade solutions comparable to Tilex or Arm & Harmmer’s “Clean Shower”. They are everyday shower sprays and I love just spritzing versus wiping down the ceramic tiles! Has anyone come up with a frugal solution? thanks!
I can buy generic sloppy joe mix for $1 a can, and love it! We like it over rice as well as over hamburger buns. I think it would also taste great if you were to substitute shredded beef or pork (leftover from a roast) in place of the ground beef.
Where are the vegetables? Mac and cheese is nothing but carbs and wouldn’t the baked beans be considered a protein? I do like sloppy joes, though, and they would be good (and the meal healthier) with a vegetable (maybe some canned carrots–either plain or with butter/margerine and a touch of sugar and cinnamon) and a bag of salad. The total cost and time involved would be about the same….