Frugal Cooking
Desserts For The Perfect Frugal BBQ

Frugal Cooking for a BBQ is fairly straight forward but desserts can be a little trickier as they have to be kept fresh and not melt in the summer heat.

Plus you have the problem of not everyone liking fruit and trying to provide a variety of tempting desserts that will keep both the adults and children happy. These few suggestion should start you off and may even spark some of your own ideas.

Frugal Cooking Desserts

No barbecue would be complete without something a little sweet to finish the meal, especially if you have guests. I always like to give two options for desert and my favorites are:

Fruit Kebabs

Buy Tin Peaches halves, pear halves and pineapple cubes
Chop Fresh Banana into thick pieces
Thread fruits onto kebab skewers and brush with cranberry sauce and mixed spice
Cook on BBQ, turning frequently and brushing with more cranberry sauce as required, until the fruits are warmed through.
Can be eaten on their own or with a little low fat natural yogurt on the side. These look so impressive but are really a great frugal dessert perfect for the barbecue.

frugal cooking picture by stijn.declercq.

picture by stijn.declercq. on flickr.com

Bread Pudding with Dried Cherries

This is great for using up dry slices of bread and can be baked in the oven while your guests are outside eating their main course.

Slices of dry bread (approximately 5 cups cubed)
3 large eggs
1-1/4 cups sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-1/4 teaspoons nutmeg
1-1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups skim milk
1 cup dried cherries
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Low-fat vanilla frozen yogurt (optional)

Grill the bread over Direct Medium heat until toasted and grill marks appear, about 2 minutes, turning once halfway through grilling time.

Cut bread into cubes and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs until frothy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugar, vanilla, nutmeg, cinnamon, and melted butter.

picture by Chefelf on Flickr.com

Beat until well blended. Add milk, and then stir in dried cherries and lemon zest. Add bread cubes and toss until mixed well. Let rest for about 45 minutes, patting the bread down into the liquid occasionally.

Transfer bread and egg mixture to a 5 x 9-inch loaf pan. Place pan in center of cooking grate and grill over Indirect Medium heat for 50 to 60 minutes or until top is well browned and puffy. Slice and serve warm with low-fat frozen yogurt, if desired.

Thanks to www.weber.com for this recipe

Rice krispie Squares - A easy to make sweet dessert that the kids will love.

6 cups (7-1/2 ounces) rice kripies (or similar) cereal
3 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Plain or milk chocolate

In large bowl melt chocolate over a saucepan of hot water

Add butter and cereal and mix together

Spoon out onto a lined baking tray. Make sure the mixture covers the bottom and is about 2 inches thick.

Place tray into fridge to set

Once set cut into squares.

To make them a little more summary, strawberries cut in half can be placed on top set in a dab of strawberry jam

Final Frugal Cooking Tip

For a truly outdoor frugal cooking experience don't be tempted into buying paper cups and plates for your BBQ. It may save a little time on the washing up but in my experience they never really hold up to being carried around and either disintegrate of allow food to roll off easily.

Plus the expense of buying these items every time you eat outside is certainly not very frugal. Instead invest in a cheap plastic set, they are far more resilient and can be used over and over again.