Meatballs and Rice

This is one of the easiest dinners that doesn't come out of a pre-packaged box.

Meatballs and Rice

3-4 Serving Cooked Rice

1 lb Ground Beef (Thawed)

2 Tablespoons Dried Onions

5 Crackers (Crushed)

1 Egg

Salt and Pepper

1 Brown Gravy Packet

Cook rice and gravy according to the package instructions.

Mix ground beef with egg, crushed crackers, dried onion, and salt and pepper. Use your hands (or a cookie scoop if you hate touching raw meat like my husband) to form the beef mixture into 12 balls. Place the balls in a small, glass dish.

Cover the dish with wax paper and cook in the microwave on high for 7-8 minutes. Cut one of the meatballs to check for doneness. 

Serve  alone or with steamed veggies.

*Note:  this meal can be made gluten free by ommitting the crackers and using a gluten free gravy mi. One of the sister missionaries assigned to my ward is gluten free and this meal worked great when they came over for dinner.

Intro to The Pantry Prowler

The quick version: The Pantry Prowler is a cooking blog based on simplicity and the basics. No off the wall ingredients, no giant mound of dishes, no steady stream of wasted food.

The long version: I love to cook and eat. What I don't like is buying expensive ingredients to be used for one dish, finding a great recipe only to realize I only have half the ingredients on hand, and feeling like I need an entire squad for the clean-up. The recipes in this blog use inexpensive, versatile, ingredients with a long storage life. They are perfect for singles, couples, and families who enjoy delicious meals without much planning, time, or hassle.

This is my pantry:

It includes mostly the following: 

• Pasta of various sizes and shapes
• Canned beans, fruits, veggies, and sauces
• Cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soup
• Cereal
• Snacks

My cupboard contain mostly the following:

• Basic baking ingredients (i.e. flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cooking oil, cocoa, etc)
• Peanut butter
• Potatoes (whole and instant pearls)
• A small collection of spices (i.e. cinnamon, garlic, onion powder, parsley, etc)
• Bread
• Tortillas
• Rice

In my fridge and freezer:

• Milk
• Juice
• Butter
• Sour cream
• Shredded cheese
• Frozen veggies
• Frozen ground beef
• Frozen chicken breasts

As you can see, I buy very basic food items, and I have found and created so many recipes utilizing very little that isn't listed above. This blog will showcase these recipes.