Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Southwestern Potato Hash with SPAM

The past week, we had a few unexpected expenses pop up.  Unavoidable expenses.  Also, we've been spending more money on entertainment lately.  More than we are used to.  Because of that, I decided that July is going to be another clean out the pantry and freezer month! 

I know, you've heard me say it before.  I really need to get Joe on board with this plan since he is the one that does the grocery shopping.  I really have to get him to stick to the list and not buy anything extra.  We can't skip the store completely since we'll need milk, bread, fresh fruit and vegetables.  We'll also need diapers since Grace has no interest in being potty trained yet.  More on that in another post! 

After checking out Debbi Does Dinner...Healthy & Low Calorie (one of my favorite resources for tasty recipes), I decided to give her Southwest Potato Hash recipe a try.  I had most of the ingredients on hand and what I didn't have, I replaced with a couple of other items I thought would be great additions to the recipe. 

Since I already had a meatless meal planned for this week, I worried that Joe wouldn't be thrilled with this meal.  I didn't have any bacon or sausage to serve on the side, so I was really happy to find a can of SPAM in the back of the shelf where I keep the canned tuna fish and chicken.  I tease Joe for buying SPAM, but really, it's NOT that bad! 

With the addition of the SPAM, this is most definitely a Clean Out the Pantry sort of meal! 



Southwestern Potato Hash (with SPAM)

Ingredients:
  • 2 cans (14.5 oz each) whole potatoes, drained and diced
  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 1 can (15 oz) Southwestern Bean Salad, drained
  • 1 small can Mexican Style Corn, drained
  • 1 can (12 oz) Hickory Smoke SPAM, diced
  • 1-2 Tbs. vegetable oil
Directions:
  • In hot oil, cook the diced potatoes and onion to desired crispness.
  • Remove from pan and set aside.
  • Add SPAM to the pan, and again, cook to desired crispness. 
  • Add potatoes back to the pan with the SPAM, stir until combined.
  • Add the bean salad and corn, stir until combined. 
  • Cook until heated through.
Notes:
  • I served this for dinner last night with eggs (egg beaters for me and over-easy for Joe) and watermelon slices. 
  • We both agreed that the hash mixture would be great served on a wrap.  Either with the eggs or without. 
  • The Southwestern Bean Salad, made this recipe super easy since it's already seasoned.  I drained the broth/sauce from the salad before adding the beans to my pan, but the next time I make this, I'll be using some (if not all) of the sauce for some extra flavor! 
  • We're pretty new to the Southwestern Bean Salad.  I found it in the bean aisle of the Giant where we normally shop a couple of months ago.  Before that, we've never heard of it.  This is our second time using it and we really like it!  I provided the link, in case it's new to you, too! 
  • For a light dinner (or even lunch), reheat the leftover hash and serve on top of a big chunk of iceberg lettuce.  Use your favorite salsa instead of salad dressing!  (I just ate this for lunch and it's AMAZING!  Sorry, no pictures, I was really hungry and ate it too quickly!)
  • Don't care for SPAM?  You can easily replace it with crumbled bacon, sausage or diced ham.  Or simply leave it out to make this meal completely meatless! 
  • After dinner, Joe got up, took another spoonful of the hash and said that I should definitely make this again! 
Calorie Count: 
  • Total Calories = 2371 calories
  • 8 servings @ 296 calories each

I'll be linking this recipe to the following blog carnivals and linky parties: 






6 comments:

Adena said...

Thanks for coming by and visiting my blog. I try not to keep those Goofy Cake bars around the house either. In fact, after hubby left for work (will be gone for about 2 weeks), I threw out the leftovers so I wouldn't eat them!! Are you still doing your weight loss challenge? Good luck. Come back and visit and read about mine (didn't eat any of the bars while losing LOL). I am stuck about 1/2 way to goal, need to get motivated and back on it again. Nice to 'meet' you.

Miz Helen said...

Hi Alison,
Our Pastor at church just loves spam and I am going to make you recipe for him. He will think he is already in heaven! Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and hope to see you again real soon!
Miz Helen

Debbi Does Dinner Healthy said...

What a great way to clean out the pantry!! I know what you mean, we've been spending way too much too and I've been trying to get rid of stuff out of the freezer! Nice use of spam, I don't think I've had that since I've been in college, the kids love ham so it's a staple around here, I guess I would just never to think to buy Spam. Glad you liked it!

Alison said...

@Adena
Yes, I'm still working on the weight loss. I had a couple of bad weeks but started fresh yesterday! I'll be back over soon to check out how you're doing!

Alison said...

@Miz Helen
Awh, thanks Miz Helen! I sure hope your pastor will love it!

Alison said...

@Debbi Does Dinner Healthy
Joe does the shopping and every couple of months he buys SPAM. I used to tease him for buying it, but really it's not too bad. But I do think it's a "guy thing"! My parents used to make it for us for breakfast when we were camping since it didn't have to be refrigerated (or put in the ice chest) like other breakfast meats.

We have noticed though, it's not cheap like it used to be. (Like everything else.)

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