My Top 9 Recipes of 2018

As for year-end lists, my Top 9 Recipes of 2018 is one you can really sink your teeth into. And all of my top picks are deliciously cheap to make. Just click on any recipe name to see the original 2018 blogpost for tasty photos and my money-saving tips, and be sure to play any embedded video below. The ranking order is random and not by delectability, so go ahead and dig in!

1. Country Gravy with Sausage
Let's start with a Southern breakfast I had as a child, Country Gravy with Sausage. Rich creamy gravy studded with breakfast sausage over hot biscuits are a heavy lift, but oh so satisfying. I also add eggs over-easy to mine.



2. Cherry Pancakes
On the flip side fresh fruit for breakfast is my preferred start of the day. I can't wait for cherry season and when it comes I slice and pit fresh ones for Yogurt with Cherries and Cherry Pancakes.



3. Spinach and Cheese Omelet
It only takes an extra minute of sauteing spinach and you have the makings of a delicious Omelet. I take it a bit over the top with the addition of cheese.



4. Avocado Toast
Here in California avocados are everywhere, even drooping from neighborhood trees. And while Avocado Toast has been played to death on local menus, there is a reason...it's freaking good! Nothing to this recipe, the hard part is picking an avocado that will turn rich and creamy. Click on the recipe name for my avocado picking tips.



5. Mom's Shrimp and Rice
If you are a frequent visitor to my food blog, you know when Mom is in the kitchen the sparks will fly and a delicious homemade recipe is always the result. I grew up in a small town where my grandfather worked as a shrimp boat captain, so you know Mom's Shrimp and Rice is the real thing and deserves to be a Top 9 Recipe every year!



6. Chicken & Tuna Salads
This is a 2fer Top 9 Recipe using canned tuna or poached chicken to make mayo-creamy salads. I like my Loaded Tuna Salad with the addition of sliced green olives and a chopped boiled egg, I think you will too.



I enjoy a bit of crunch with my Chicken Salad. Fresh chopped celery is added along with typical mayo and mustard, pickle relish and chopped onion. And I like to serve it between a sliced toasted bagel -- soooo goooood!



7. Mushroom Cream Soup
Cold days and nights are perfect for my Mushroom Cream Soup. I use heavy cream for the recipe, but if you want a lighter vegan version just click here to see it. I'm not sure why, but all kinds of mushrooms have been showing up at my local 99c only Stores, including Shiitake, Portabella, and Oyster mushrooms. You can use any local shrooms you get on sale with my recipe, even plain white button mushrooms.



8. Lamb Curry with Vegetables
This Top 9 Recipe is not for the faint of palate. Pungent lamb is combined with a spicy curry sauce, but with my addition of fresh veggies, the strong flavors are softened. So I think anyone can enjoy the recipe.



9. Turkey Carnitas
Mexican Pork Carnitas are the norm, but lately, I've noticed a Turkey version at my local Latin Market, made with turkey thighs and legs, and I thought to make my own version. Carnitas are for tacos and burritos, and this recipe is a tasty take on my local taco truck favorite. If you have pork dietary restrictions, then this recipe is for you. Serve it at your next party and it will be a favorite for your guests, too.



It has been a fruitfully abundant year of recipes here at the Cheap$kate Chateau. I did the heavy lifting for you, so now all you have to do is pick a recipe link and save yourself some hard-earned cash by trying out any of the above. And if you have a favorite recipe of mine, then leave a comment to share.

And make sure to keep checking in here from time to time. I create yummy-looking blog posts with a dollop of humor, and while my tastes are cheap, my recipe flavors are top shelf !

Loaded Tuna Salad - Video Recipe

I'm called "The Tuna Mouse" at home because of how quickly a Loaded Tuna Salad just seems to vanish!

The extra briny olives give color and the salty taste goes well with sweet bread and butter pickles. Mixed into canned tuna, for a rich flavor, are chopped eggs and mayo.

It's one delicious concoction that fits snuggly into pita bread or bread roll, fills a pitted half slice of ripe avocado, or scooped on a green salad. All all the ingredients I find easily at 99c only Stores and the Dollar Tree!

Click on any photo to see larger.

The addition of green olives makes this Loaded Tuna Salad extra unique. It's quite easy to find them at my local 99c only Store and Dollar Tree markets. You can use the plain type or ones with pimentoes.

Eggs are still cheap these days, I get an eight-count container at my local Dollar Tree. I use one whole boiled egg, chopped. This ingredient is optional and okay to leave out.

You can use a little chopped pickle, or just go with pickle relish, which I always have a half-used jar left over from hot dogs, way back on a refrigerator shelf.

I also add finely chopped onion to my Loaded Tuna Salad, but leave it out if you don't care for the taste of raw onion.

Mustard and Mayo are cheap if you have a Dollar Tree or 99c only Store in the 'hood. Hey, even Grey Poupon shows up on my 99c only Store shelves every once in a while. Okay to use any favorite mayo, including Miracle Whip or vegan mayo.

The main ingredient, canned tuna, is a cheap$kate staple in my kitchen pantry. I usually get "Chunk Light" tuna in water. I use two small cans for this recipe. "Solid" canned tuna is more expensive because it is a solid hunk of tuna and almost twice as much the amount as "Chunk."

Make sure not to mistakenly get tuna in oil, unless you like it that way. Also, drain the tuna of water, so Tuna Salad doesn't get all soggy and mushy.

The basic recipe is good for other canned fish like salmon, or chicken, too. So get out the can opener and twist off a few condiment jar lids and mix up my tasty and Loaded Tuna Salad.

Loaded Tuna Salad - VIDEO

Play here, video runs 1 minute 36 seconds

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients

• 1 can of solid tuna in water - about 6 ounces, or 2 cans of "chunk" tuna. Drained.
• 1 boiled egg - peeled and chopped.
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion - red, white, green or yellow onion.
• 1 tablespoon green olives chopped or sliced - with or without pimento.
• 1 tablespoon sweet relish - okay to use chopped pickle.
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise - add more or less to your taste.
• 1 teaspoon regular or dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste - I find canned tuna salty enough, so I usually leave out salt.

Directions
Set aside 1 boiled egg (15 minutes at low boil) to cool.

 Fine-chop onion. Roughly chop green olives and a pickle (if you don't have pickle relish.

To a bowl add drained tuna, along with peeled and chopped boiled egg, chopped pickle (relish,) green olives and onion.

Add one tablespoon of mayo at a time to reach desired creaminess. As you mix all ingredients and taste. I like a little black pepper to season my Loaded Tuna Salad. I find there is enough salt from canned tuna.

Serve in pita or regular bread. Delicious as an appetizer with crackers or add a scoop to an avocado half, or fave salad.

How about a Loaded Tuna Melt? Just add a slice of cheese to Tuna Sandwich, and brown it with melted butter in a stove top pan, just like you would a regular Grilled Cheese Sandwich.

It's okay to leave out some ingredients. The main ones are tuna, mayo and pickle relish.

Lazybones shortcut

Pita Tuna Melt

This hot pocket of oozing cheesy goodness is a warm welcome on a wintry day. You know how this Chef likes pita bread. Just see my Pita Pizza recipe. I've recently found whole wheat pitas on sale at 99c Only Stores and blocks of Colby cheese. And throw in my wife's tuna salad recipe and you have a great combination of a Pita Tuna Melt.

Pita bread grills quickly and it's thinness makes quick work melting sliced cheese. Toasted whole wheat pita is more flavorful than normal plain pita, and holds-up stuffed -- no tuna salad squeezing out of all sides like regular toasted bread.

I've kept Pita Bread in the refrigerator for 3 weeks at a time, and they take-up very little room . A quick toasting softens them up.

So next time you have a yearning for a tuna salad, give the Chef's Pita Tuna Melt a try.

Directions
Make your favorite tuna salad recipe or use my wife's, just click here to view (maybe leave out the green olives?). On a stove top grill or pan, over medium heat cook pita stuffed with cheese and tuna salad. Lightly brown on both sides of pita bread until cheese is melted.