For dinner last night, I decided to look for a way to combine some money-saving with a fun family activity that Little Girl could play a big role in completing. Pizza seemed like the perfect solution. It's one of our favorite meals to have when we're looking to treat ourselves and is simple enough to make that I could include my daughter in every step of the process. Best of all, the entire pizza cost only about $4 to make!
I started by grating the cheese and making the sauce before Little Girl got home from school. I grated about 1 1/2 cups of fresh mozzarella cheese and about 1/2 a cup of fresh parmesan cheese. I later found out that I grated WAY too much, so you could easily get away with 1 cup of cheese total.
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| Grated cheese, sauce, and crust mix, all ready to go! |
Once Little Girl got home from school, I made the dough for the crust. I had purchased a Betty Crocker mix at the grocery store for $1.29 and it was easy-peasy to make - just add warm water, mix, and let stand for about five minutes.
After letting the pizza dough stand, I stretched it out onto the pizza pan, put the sauce on it and then let Little Girl go to town with the cheese and pepperoni. She took her job very seriously and was committed to making the best pizza ever. I'd intended to take a picture of her topping our pizza pie, but Little Man started complaining that he hadn't had his dinner yet.
Once it was topped, into the oven it went and we had a delicious homemade pizza ready for dinner in only 15 minutes! Again, my apologies for the lack of a "finished product" picture - Little Man would wait for his dinner no longer so Hot Husband ended up finishing off the pizza and slicing it up for everybody while I fed Little Man.
All told, I think my plan was a success. I had a few minutes of special time with Little Girl while also teaching her a bit more about meal planning and preparation and we had a delicious dinner that didn't hurt our pocketbook.
What's your favorite meal to make to save money and involve the kids?
Sounds like so much fun. We always let the kids help us when it comes time for dinner or lunch. We have the plan when they become twelve they will plan one meal a week which we will teach them to cook. That way they can learn how to cook.
ReplyDeleteIt's so important for them to understand their way around the kitchen. I love your plan for giving them some responsibility for the family meal as they get older - it'll set them on a good path for independence. Hope you're having a great day!
DeleteMany people are reluctant to make pizza at home. They are afraid that their pizza will not taste good, or think the task of making dough is too daunting, or don't have enough time. Many times the issue is not whether the pizza tastes good or not, it is simply the convenience provided by home delivery.
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