Chad's Chow Down 

The shelf-stable version: a jar in the pantry that replaces every can of cream soup. This is the make-ahead cousin of my Cream of Anything Soup. Mix up a jar of this, stash it in the pantry, and you've always got a can of cream soup ready to go. No fridge, no butter, no half-cans going bad. It's cheap, it keeps, and you control what goes in it. Portion it into bags with the directions on a label and it makes a great gift, too. Prep: 5 min · Cook: 5 min per batch · Makes:

One pot, a pound of meat, a box of pasta, and dinner for under $6. This is the kind of dinner that feeds a crowd and doesn't wreck the grocery budget. I made this batch entirely from Aldi ingredients for under six bucks, and it made a big pot. It's just as good the next day, and you can stretch it by adding more pasta and sauce. Prep: 10 min · Cook: 35 min · Serves: 4–6 Ingredients 8 ounces pasta, any shape (I used cavatappi) 1 pound ground meat: Italian sausage, beef, tu

Canned biscuits, rotisserie chicken, one pot — slick dumplings in 30 minutes. This is the shortcut version of a Sunday classic. Canned biscuits get rolled thin and cut into slicks, then cooked right in the broth, where they puff up and thicken everything as they go. Rotisserie chicken means nothing to cook from scratch. Real comfort food on a weeknight. Prep: 10 min · Cook: 20 min · Serves: 4 Ingredients 4 cups chicken stock 1 (10.5-ounce) can condensed cream of celery so