Feeding 10 People Cheap: Going Old School

Pigs-in-a-Blanket with Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

I like to feed my friends when they come over. One of my regular guests are K and J along with their 4 children. When they come to visit it means I need to figure out what we are eating for dinner and how I can feed all 10 of us (my family of four) on a limited budget. I also want to be able to feed the kids some sort of vegetable. I know how picky kids can get so I like to find things that vegetables can be hidden in.

Last night, K and J came to visit. We had a great time. I decided we were going to go old school for dinner and make pigs in a blanket and homemade mac & cheese. It turned out to be the perfect dinner and fairly cheap. 2 packs of hot dogs costs $2 since my regular grocery store was having a 12 for $12 special, 2 boxes of Rotini for the same price, 3 bags of shredded cheddar cheeses for $5 (sale 3 for $5), 2 cans of crescent rolls   for $2 (sale again, I love sales), and a package of fresh broccoli florets cost $1.50 for an approx. total of $12.50 to feed 10 people. Not too shabby.

And the kids loved it. I don't know many kids who don't like hot dogs or mac & cheese. Putting them together was a great dinner for everyone. The kids kept coming back for more of everything. And no one complained about the broccoli in the mac & cheese.

We have done several meals with K and J on a budget. I'm sure there will be many more but for now the easiest meals we have covered included spaghetti and meatballs, lasagna, mac & cheese with ham, home made pizzas, beef and chicken tacos, and our latest dinner pigs in a blanket w/ mac & cheese.

I wonder what we'll have next time they come over. Perhaps, I'll have to treat them to a vegan or vegetarian meal just because it will be different from the norm and change things up a little.