Bargain Meal of the Week 1/28/10 - Fast Creamy Tomato Penne

It's time for another week of Bargain Meals! Erin over at $5 Dinners (a great read!) is hosting a gathering of bloggers all over the Internet, creating frugal meals straight from the sales circulars of their favorite stores. Check it out for even more inspiration. I contribute every week for the current sales at Publix, which run from Wednesday to the following Tuesday. Keep in mind that you do not need to purchase two of a product to get the buy one get one price. Publix marks down their products to half price for the BOGO deals.

I discovered this recipe a couple of weeks ago as we began the Eat from the Pantry Challenge. I had a lot of ground pork in my freezer. I also seem to have collected quite a bit of high fiber pasta. Now I know it is much better for you than your plain white pasta, but I have had a real hard time putting it into my favorite recipes. The texture is grainier, and I just didn't want to ruin my favorite dishes. Thus, I knew that I had to find a brand new dish to use it in so I would not be comparing it to the original. This one is it! I don't even notice that the pasta is different, and it tastes great! You can use regular pasta in it as well. The pork produces a mild flavor and does not taste too "porky" if you know what I mean. It is also super fast to cook, which is great when you have limited time! I would make this again even if the items were not on sale.

Items on sale that can be used in this meal:

Sargento Shredded Cheese 5-8 oz $2
-.40/2 Sargento Natural Shredded Cheeses, 5oz+ SS 1/24
-.55/1 Sargento Shredded Cheese Nov. or Dec. All You Magazine
Final Price: $1.45 -1.60

Prego Pasta Sauce 24 oz, $2.49 BOGO
Final Price: 1.24

Ronzoni Pasta 12-16 oz, $1.39 BOGO
(excludes Lasagna, Manacotti, and Jumbo Shells)
-$1/2 Ronzoni Healthy Harvest pasta SS 1/10 (regional)
-$1/2 Ronzoni healthy Harvest pasta printable
-.75/1 Ronzoni SmartTaste Pasta SS 12/6
(probably not these varieties, but just in case)
Final Price: Free - .69

(not sure which sour cream would be cheapest so I included three possibilities)

Breakstone Sour Cream, price unknown
-$1/2 Breakstone's Sour Cream, any 16 oz+ - 01-24-10 SS
-.55/1 Breakstone's Sour Cream, any 16 oz+ - 01-24-10 SS
Final Price: Cheap

Daisy Brand Sour Cream, price unknown
-.60/1 Daisy Brand Sour Cream, any 16 oz. + - 12-13-09 SS
Final Price: Cheap

Organic Valley Sour Cream, price unknown
-$1/1 Organic Valley Cottage Cheese Or Sour Cream, Any (Organic Valley Website)
Final Price: Cheap

Ground Pork usually runs about $2 per lb. (if you don't see it out, ask the butcher)

For onions & bell pepper, use $1 off $5 Produce Purchase printable (Food Lion), particularly if you have other produce items to purchase.

Fast Creamy Tomato Penne
from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 1 (16 ounce) package penne pasta
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 large white onion, chopped
• 1/2 large green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 pound ground pork
• 1 (16 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
• 1 cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2. Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and bell pepper until soft, about 5 minutes. Add ground pork, and cook until evenly brown. Drain excess fat.
3. In a large pot, heat spaghetti sauce until bubbling. Stir in pork mixture, pasta and sour cream. Cook until heated through, about 5 minutes.

Top with shredded cheese, optional.