Grocery outlet haul

Grocery outlet haul

kippers  .99

Bittersweet chocolate .99

Chocolate pudding mix 3/1 

Taco kit 1.00

Blue cheese and Italian dressings .99

Sliced cheeses 2.39

Greek yogurt 2/1 

Regular yogurt 3/1 

Savings 27.91 

Meal plans for week of December 12-18

Monday

1. Porcupine meatballs ,
2. Rice
3. Green beans 
4. Salad

Tuesday 

1. Pizza 
2. Salad 

Wednesday 

1. Macaroni and cheese (scratch) 
2. Mixed vegetables ( broccoli, carrots, cauli 

Thursday 

1. Chilli 
2. Beer bread 

Friday

1. Stuffed green peppers. 
2. Rolls 

Saturday 

Family party 

Sunday 

1. Pork chops 
2. Stuffing with cranberries and apples 
3. Vegetable salad 

Notes :   

The most prevelant  question I get is do  you eat fresh fruits and veggies.    

The obvious answer is yes.   Do we eat food from mars!   Not quite.   Food from mars is anything that we didn't have in our tables in the 60s.   Ok, we do eat hummus.   We just eat plain good food.   Getting exotic  is a good way to bump your food bill up drastically.    Stay down to earth.   

Right now , we have apples, oranges, bananas, cranberries, blackberries and raspberries.   Peaches in jars,

We have cucumbers, romaine, tomatoes, carrots, celery, potatoes. Onions, broccoli, and radishes. 

We eat well.   We eat normal foods.   I try to watch our salt, sugar, trans fats, hydrogenated oils, hfcs, and a lot of preservatives.   I cook scratch often,  

We don't eat expensive foods.   Beef is limited to about once a week.   We eat vegetarian twice a week.   Processed meats are limited to once a week, or less.    

I use every available means to legally buy food for 1/2 price or less.   Coupons, ibotta, free downloads, sales. Combining  sakes and coupons,   

And, that's how you eat well on 4.00 a day,   Almost every town, or nearby town has discount stores or bulk stores,   You just have to find where they are around your town .   Seattle does not have the cheapest prices.   I watch a lot of food hauls on u tube for research,   There are websites that tell you what prices are  in your area at different stores.   Favado is one of them.    Ask someone that has a lot of kids.   Step out of your comfort zone and look.    You might just be surprised.   

Fred Meyers ad for TOMORROW -not!

There was no ad his week at my source.   I checked my other siurces and they aren't there either.   Sorry.  

We did go to Winco yesterday,  
we spent 46.69 which included a taco rack for two dollars.  

Parm cheese 2.68 less 1.00  coupon 1.68 for a 2 cup container.  
Sparkling coders 1.38 ( Christmas breakfast treat )
Gouda cheese 2.68 pound
Naval oranges .58
English cucumber .88
Green peppers  .48
Apples .78
M and M chips ( Christmas baking) 1.40
Taco shells 1.00
Mini marshmallows. .96 ( Christmas baking )
Belgian waffle mix ( Christmas ) 1.88
Olive oil 8.98
Chicken granules 1.32
Large bottle salsa 4.44
Potatoes 1.98

Notes
A lot of this was Christmas cooking I usually don't buy,   Inalso replentished  the olive oil because I filled the counter bottle with the last of my stock.  Olive oil can't be held too far into the future.  
I also replaced our salsa supply and chicken granules for mixes.  

Last night we had homemade refried beans, Spanish rice, and tacos with hard shells.  

Homemade refried beans can be cooked in a slow cooker, but I like using the pressure cooker better.  
Pinto beans, salsa. Onion, mild  chilies. Taco seasoning , and water or stock (vegetable or meat ) .
When cooked, remove beans from the bowl using a slotted spoon or spider and place on food processor and process until the consistency you desire.  We like our a little lumpy.  Add bean juice as needed.   You can also use a potato masher if you don't have a food processor.  

We

Suddenly Saturday

We wanted to make a couple of Photo calendars for Christmas presents.  I started a week ago and got it all loaded onto the computer and sent to Walgreens.   The code fir the week was for 1/2 price.   I got a phone call.   The printer was  down and they were waiting for the part.  I got a second call. The part  was shipped to the wrong address.    Their  computer  dumped the file.   So, a week later in the middle of the night, I imput another calendar.  Within a few hours of the store opening, ingot an email telling me it was done.  By this time, the 1/2 price codes were gone.   My husband asked if we could still have the 1/2 price code because it wasn't our fault the printer was down.   They gave him 2/3 off. It pays to ask.   This is a learned attitude.    Before we were married, he didn't know what a garage sale was, or there was  was such a thing as a otc generic medicine.   

It never hurts to ask-- nicely helps.    

You can greatly improve your quality of life, if you buy your needs at the RBP.   Consider buying some thing used.   That vase on the dining room table doesn't look any better of you buy it at the goodwill than it would have of you bought it  at home goods. One note, you are buying as is,   Check things very carefully.  

Thanks for stopping by.

Freddies ad next .  

5 reasons to stock.

It snowed today.  Not bad, it won't last long.   We still could get around.   But, sometimes  it isn't  that easy on this part of the country.  We live pretty much  at sea level.   To go anywhere, you have to go up hills.  It snows so seldom, that unless you have amoeroemsktu to ski or family the othermsode of the mountains,  You don't necessarily prepare to drive in snow.  

Five reasons to stock.  

1. If I don't want to drive in weather, be it rain or snow, I don't have to go to the store. Or, if I  have a sick child or am sick myself, I can just stay home.   
2. It saves a lot of money to assess what your needs are and buy the things you eat on a regular basis on sale or on bulk at the lowest possible price.   
3. Instead of making meal plans and hoping you remember everything you need to put on the grocery list, and forgetting the grocery list on the computer stand, you know well before you go to the store, what you are going to buy.  - a protein if it is a RBP, fruits and vegetable in season, any stock item you are low on, and  dairy.   If you don't need canned goods, you can shop the perimeter of the store.   Fast in   and fast out.   
4.  Driving to the store every day or so is exoensive on  wear and tear in your car and gas.   You are better off soending that time scratch cooking and saving more money and eating more healthy avoiding preservatives.   
5. There is a certain amount of satisfaction knowing you aren't gong to starve anytime soon.  It gives you a sense of security and self sufficiency.  There's nothing quite as stress relieving as knowing you can feed your family no matter what happens.   

Alberways

We finally got Alberways ad.    QFC is the same as last week.  

Naval oranges .59
Eggs .99 @@ - note there is a digital coupon for QFC to make them .79
Kellogg cereals 1.99@@$$
Classico 1.79 $$

About it.   Not many bargains.

Healthy and three squares

First of all most children  eat lunch at school that are on snap.    We happen to send lunch with granddaughter because she goes to two schools.  

Breakfast is a bowl of oatmeal, cooked from scratch in the microwace and a banana.   The oatmeal costs  .10 and a banana costs .12 for a quarter.   - seven days is 1.75 - based on Costco prices.   The dime was when oatmeal was ten dollars for ten pounds,   It's now 8.00.   Bananas are 1.39 for a three pound bag that many times is 3.5 pounds.  

A breakfast English muffin with a fried or scrambelled egg would be about .21.


Lunch :   Hummus and crackers and or veggie sticks, a piece of fruit. A bottle of water or herbal tea.  


Snack - air popped popcorn.  

Dinners are mapped out on other blogs.    A cheese pizza from scratch is a dollar.   You can add veggies and be well under.  

Homemade soups are well under a dollar for several servings.   Bread sticks are about a quarter for a full cookie sheet minus somemherbs.  

All the dinners on my blog cost out to average less than five dollars for four people. Most less.   It's when o add a fish or steak that is higher, but some more inexpensive meals average it out.  

When I had teen boys, I always had certain foods that they knew they could eat all they wanted to if they were hungry,   With my son  it was beef and bean burritos , popcorn, peanut butter and jelly , and  the veggie sticks in the fridge.  

It's nit what you eat, as much as finding the RBP ( rock bottom price ) on the things you eat on a regular basis.   Once you identify what those are, find who has the cheapest prices.   Buy any non perishable staple item, onkymat a RBP and buy enough to last you until it goes on sale again, or to last you a specific amount of time, when the shelf gets low, start watching for a sale.  

I have target process ( nothing to do with the store with the red balls ) if something costs more than my target price, I have to have it really bad and there isn't a substitution for it.

Use coupons, use a web site like Ibotta.   Learn prices and develope recipes that use inexpensive sources of protein.   We dont eat much  steak, lobster, asparagus, .....

Meat : I try for two dollars a pound,   I can get Foster farms for a dollar  for whole chickens and 128 for split breasts.  I de-bone the breast to make boneless, skinless chicken breast and cook the bones for stock and harvest the meat for tacos or a cassarole.  

Ground beef for 7 percent fat is about 3.28  if it isn't and I can find any other piece of low fat beef, I grind our own - or,mrather, my husband does it,  LOL.

Pork loin is about two dollars a pound on sale.  

More information other posts.  

Note I wrote this blog to help people eat healthy as they can on a foirmdollar a day budget.  Many use it for hacks and ideas for a different dinner.  I don't have ads because I just want to help.  


Hope this helps.

PBS take on feeding the hungry

I just read a piece in Facebook about the "new White House's take in food stamps and kids getting free lunches at school.....Ryan seems to think  it's deplorable.  

 It's a passion of mine,    I don't think any child should go hungry.  Children should not suffer the insecurity of having no food in the cupboards.   I can't feed every child, but I can teach people how to stretch their dollar, eat square meals and not junk food and always have food in the pantry.    I can't seem to get anyone to help me spread  this word.   I think the minimalist movement thinks that having more than two tubes of toothpaste in the cupboard ism"hoarding". The television show, like the couponing show has given people the wring impression.   It is reality tv: it's greatly exaggerated to keep you watching,    It's NOT real.    

Groceries on the cheap is a different way of purchasing  food.    It works.   We eat well on three dollars a day,   We don't eat creamed chip beef on toast, or rice and beans every day,   We don't eat a hamburger meal box , or top ramen and potato chips for dinner.    Last week we had wild caught salmon with lemon  sauce, rice medley, and gingered  carrots.   Last night we had homemade pizza with red peppers, mushrooms, black olives and pepperoni.    The day before we had quiche with sausage and mixed berry compote.   

The last three months, I spent  61.00 and change a week on food, average for three of us.   I'll admit I'm not feeding teenagers, but I have maintained a pantry on that money too.    It can be done.   It can't be done without effort, but I can be done.  

Yesterday I spent three hours on kitchen management,    It was more intense than I usually do, but I had mixes to make and a more labor intense meal plan this week.   I usually have a few easy Peasy  meals.    I also filled the olive oil bottle, the soap bottle, cleaned a cupboard. And grated parm cheese while things were cooking and loaded the dishwasher.   It should take about four hours a week to meal plan, study the ads, shop, use a rebate tool, and prep.    The reward is eating better for less, less preservatives, fat, salt, and sugar, and teaching your children that food doesn't come out of a box.    

Happy 😊  eating!   

Happy 😊 Wednesday

Happy Wednesday.  
We did not get any ads yet, QFC is the same as last week and I didn't get Alberways.   There are good coupons on coupons.com.

Kitchen management is a tool that enables you to cook more efficiently and hekos to make the hectic dinner hour a little less hectic.    Basically you set aside a block of time when it isn't hectic to prep anything that can be preped  ahead of time.  

1. Clean out the fridge and pull anything that is close to loosing its prime.   Check pull dates so that you can incorporate it into the weeks meals,   Waste not, want not,  
2. Go over your meal plans and adjust if you need to.  It helps of you have a list of things that use things that are typical must use ups- like sour cream  in this house. 
3. Jot down things that need to be prepped on each meal.   And group them.   We hacemcarrots in the menu a couple of times, so I'll slice carrots and pit them in a container.  Refried beans can be made a day ahead.  Pizza crust and bread sticks can be made together, so that tomorrow's soup and bread sticks are well on their way to becoming a meal.  
4. Make any mixes you need to replenish.  Doing one a week makes light work.   
5. If you have children, let them help with anything they can do.   Small children can help with anything that doesn't involve sharp or hot.   My granddaughter is 4. She can butter and season the French bread.  She can pulse the food processor and make bread crumbs.  She can stir. She can roll pizza crust and fill the pizza with some supervision.  It's good for their  self image, theyncan kearn to wash their hands and use proper heigene,  and eventually, they will be able to cook a meal on their own.   Even small children can work at something.  It keeps them out of trouble while you are cooking  and engages them.   I saw a u tube where even two year olds were taking the seeds out of squash.   

If you can be efficient, you can spend less time cooking scratch and your food will be healthier, and you can make time to coupon and plan trips to make bestmuse if your food budget.   You get paid for shopping wisely with savings,  you don't get paid for cooking -- unless you count happy  tummies! LOL. 

Budget

Our average amount spent in the past three months is 63.00 a week including building the stock,   That's about three dollars a day per person,   Last night we had lemon glazed salmon, rice medley, and ginger carrots.


Fred Meyer ad   TOMORROW

Avacados or mangos .99
Oranges .69
Ground turkey -Foster farms

Kroger Cheese - variety of packages   4/5 a -- 2.50 a lb if you buy 8 ounce packages
Sour cream / cottage cheese 4/5@@
Barrilla pasta  1.00
Dijorno pizza 4.99 -$$ buy 2. Get one free coupon on coupons,com
Kroger sliced ham  1.49
Apples 1.49
Berries 2/4
Romas .99

Notes :
Please note : cooking on the cheap does not mean you have to eat unhealthy foods.
Heritage farm poultry products  are Tyson.  
There is tsp in some cold  cereals.  We used to sell tsp at the paint store to clean.   It's highly toxic when used as a cleaner.   The FDA says it s water solvable salt and Safe in small quantities.    You be the judge.
There is wood pulp on Parmesean cheese product.   Don't buy cheese in a can.

Quick!

It's that time of the year when your busy life just got busier.    Decorating, wracking presents, parties, kids Christmas programs.     If you have really easy and inexpensive dinners up your sleeve. Life just got a bit easier.

1. Quiche  aka impossible pie.   The bisquick or Betty Crocker on line has many recipes.   Last night I used akreadyncooked sausage, some cheddar cheese  and the egg mixture from the cookbook.  An 8 X 8 pan makes serving  easier.   Add some fruit as a side.    Time - 10 minutes non passive time. Cooking ground meat, bought in bulk and de- fattimg it saves time and is more healthy.   
2. Foster farms chicken nuggets can be cheap when you have coupons and sales.   Add French fries or tater tots and a salad.    
3. Tacos can be a fast meal when you already have the meat cooked on bulk.    That andnhest in microwave while you chop lettuce , and dish cheese and tomatoes.    
4. Bake hard rolls ( dollar store ) , better than bouillon with hot water in sauté pan.   When bit, add meat for a few seconds - more time can  be disastrous!  simple garden salad.   
5. Right now, digiorno pizza is five dollars at Freddies.    There is a coupon for buy two, get one free at coupons .com.      Makes the pizza $3.33 each. Shouts decorare the  tree party to Me!  Lol.  

Dump cake

Peach dump cake

1  large can peaches, drained, reserving liquid into glass  measuring cup.  
1 - six ounce package raspberries.
1 yellow cake mix, about 15 ounces
1stick butter.  

1. Place drained peaches and raspberries in greased 9 X 13 pan,   
2. Add 1/2 tsp of cornstarch per cup of peaches to reserved juice,   Stir to dissolve cornstarch,   
3. Pair into pan.  
4. Sprinkle cake  mix over filling
5. Melt butter in microwave, pour over cake mix.    
6. Bake at 350  for 40-45 minutes, or until cake is done,   

Serve with whip cream or ice cream,    

1. 
   

Sunday meal plans

Yesterday, imcleaned oit the freezer in the fridge and cleaned the food storage cupboard, shelf.   ( along with cutting off all the old lights off the Christmas tree because they wouldn't work anymore.    We need a new Christmas tree, but I'll wait until next year.    Maybe after Christmas sales.  

I digress

Meal plans

1. Tacos, refried beans, Spanish rice 
2. Pizza 
3. Garlic potato soup -- dump recioes 3 in 1'cookbook , bread sticks 
4. Tuna casserole. Peas and carrots . Rolls 
5. porcupine   meatballs, salad 
6. Mac n cheese, glazed carrots 
7. Breakfast 4 dinner 

1. Taco meat is already cooked on the freezer, refried beans from scratch to be made in slow cooker or pressure cooker, Spanish rice is rice with salsa.    Lettuce, cheese tomato.    
2. Homemade pizza crust - coupons,com has pepperoni coupon, pepperoni is sometimes at the dollar store.  I haven't matched that brand yet. Pizza sauce also at dollar store, put on ice cube tray and freeze and pull out what you need,   
3. Garlic potato soup.    Done on stove, total time - 40 minutes.    Bread sticks are From pizza dough 
4. Tuna cassarole, drained tuna, peas and carrots frozen, himemade white  sauce mix,   Noodles.   
5. porcupine  meatballs are meatballs with rice.    Tomato and cucumber salad on lettuce 
6. Mac and cheese made with white sauce mix , glazed carrots.   
7. Make muffins,    

Pork roast

Pork roast is one of the bulk meats that I have on my rotation list.   In order to maximize economy  and minimize work time, buy meat on bulk, enough for a months worth of themdays you will  eat that meal.   In other words, if you will eat pork once a week, you want to buy enough for four meals.  

A pork loin is one of the meat I buy in a rotation basis,   We have three meat eaters on thenfamiky, so I buyna half loin when it it less than two dollars a pound.  You can cut he ends that aren't perfectly flat and make stew meat for stew, meat pie, or tacos.   Then slice some pork chops, that leaves  a roast.   I use leftover roast for sandwiches.  


Slow cooker Roast Pork Loin

• 2 lb pork roast 
• 1 T dry onion 
• 1 small can of diced tomatoes 🍅 Undrained 
• 1 small can diced green chillis 
• 2 T brown sugar 
• 2 teaspoons taco seasoning, 
• 1/2 tsp better than boullion or beef granules 

Place roast on skow cooker 

Combine ingredients and pour over roast.  

Cook on lownfor 8-10 hours or until Pork is tender and tests done,   

Easy.    Add rice and a vegetable or salad 

Book reviews !

I bought two cookbooks this week.   Both are dump cookbooks.    Some of them  use a lot of premade  canned ingredients.  Don't let that turn you off, you can always substitute them for scratch,   Often with little to no effort.  

The basic idealology is that theyncook in one pot or slow,cooker,or...and save time.   These days, there are recipes for just about any mixes you might use in a regular basis on the Internet.  Making them can be a good REAL math teacher for children or grandchildren.   Knowing fractions and converting to cups etc is a good thing to know.    I read years and years ago that by,now, we would be taking vitamin pills instead of eating.   Didn't Happen!    Don't think it Ec DR will.   Eating is a social and primal instinct.

Dump Dinners by Cathy Mitchell - 250 recipes. Kohls with a 20 percent discount. 7.99.  Last I checked, it was double that on Amazon.  

Lots of quick tips to get you out of the kitchen faster.    Recipes I had forgotten .  It's always,nice to change things up and cook something different or forgotten.  

• Mushroom rice pilaf 
• Porcupine meatballs - my mom used to make them 
• Crunchy cracker stuffing ( crackers getting stale?) 
• Several quiches - good brunch dishes 
• Apple coffee cake - no cans here.   
• Chicken, bacon and ranch pizza 
• Chilli Mac 
• Chicken broccoli and rice 

The only thing I should tell you is that there isn't a picture for every recipe.   You'll have to use your imagination.    If something doesn't sound good to you, don't make it,   If it has a very expensive slice in it, try leaving it out or skip the recipe.

Favorite Brand Name Dump Recipies , 150 recipes - about twelve dollars at Amazon.    

Dump soup, cakes, and dinners.    

As the title implies, many are recipes with premade  things,    As before, you can sometimes easily adapt.    

 A lot of dump cakes. 

A lot of chicken recipes 

 Marvelous soups to satisfy the most picky gourmet.   

A lot of gourmet type  recipes. Not all of them take a box or can.    All are fast and easy. 

Note 

I take no money for this blog.   I am not sponsored by anyone.  The opinions are just that, my opinions.    I am here solely to help people eat well for less.   A lot of people , it was being reported to me, were finding it hard to eat on a meager budget.    I learned how and are passing on my knowledge.   On the process, I am  finding readers that read this because they like the hacks, or finding out who has the cheapest turkey, or or something different to cook for dinner.   

Thanks for stopping by 

 

  

Getting it all together.

getting groceries for 1/2 to 3/4 off takes a bit more time than running to a store and buying what looks good to you.  Mind you , there is, nothing wring  with that method is you can afford it,   But, if you are feeding your family as well as you can in three or four dollars  a day, it takes some planning and usually shopping more than one store.  Shopping two stores give you the luxury of two sets of produce to find the best prices and quality. And two sets of good prices on the stock items you use in a regular basis.  

Making a penciled in meal plan first and noting what you will need to complete your meals is a good first step along with a quick read to the sale ads.  I have a form that speeds up the process.  

Go shopping with a list of things  you need and the things that  you need to add to your stock.   Get on and get out. It helps  to go to the same stores so you have a good idea of where things are so that you aren't wasting time looking for things. If you don't have a dog, don't go down the dog food isle,   Skip to the next isle.    

My average cart load is about 25-45 dollars.    I buy for three of us,  

The only  time it is necessary to spend  any time planning your trip is when you are doing an extremes coupon thing with a   buy Four, save four  type of sale.  Then, sometimes you can get as much as seventy eight percent off.   That takes matching the things you need with coupons and or a basket coupon,   Basket coupons usually require a specific minimum purchase total.   Going over hat figure is not  to your advantage.

After spending a little more time planning and shopping, you can make up the time by cooking  more efficiently.

Planning a shopping trip saves money, efficient cooking saves time,   

• Go over your meal plan and jot down what prep you will need.   Note the things that you can do buy bulk prepping,   For example, we are going to have gingered carrots one night, and chicken pot pot one night,   Both require sliced carrots.   I can break out the veggie slicer and slice them all.   They are ready for me in a deli container when I need them.   
• You can Prep veggies and clean them with vinegar water all at the same time.   You set up once.   And clean up once.  
• Dinner can be a matter of putting dinner in the oven or slow cooker and walking away.    
• You can prep that,nights dinner while you are cutting veggies.   Then it's a matter of putting it in the oven or microwave and you're done,    

A hour or two of Oreo can save a lot of time during the hectic dinner hour,   Rarely do I need to spend more than fifteen or twenty minutes cooking dinner, sometimes it's closer to ten.    

When cooking dinner, look at your plan,   What takes the longest time to cook.   What can you "set it and forget it." .   Do the longest cook time first.   Plan meals so that the whole meal isn't labor intensive.    If the main dish is labor intensive, pick easy sides that can be prepped during kitchen management day or prepped while the main dish is cooking.   

Alberways ad and QFC

There is a digital download  to your card for

Buy 50-99.99. Get 10 percent
Buy 100.00- 149.99 get 15 percent
Buy 150.00 or more get 20 percent,


They, however do not have a lot of special buys,

Top round London broil 2.99. A pound,  

Mandarines 2.99

Milk1.99@@
flour 1.99@@

Coffee 5.99


That's about it.   If you aren't going to be able to use the digital coupons, it's not that good.
Milk and flour are the same price at Fred Meyer.   I got pork chops for 1.50 a pound,  they were more like pork steaks. The ones that are cut from pork loin are better.   Some people, however, like the bone on.

It still remains that Fred Meyers and Winco are better prices.    A lot is cheaper at Winco, but certain things are better traditionally at Fred Meyers.

• English muffins are always 1.67 for a very large bag.    
• Canned diced tomatoes are frequently .50 
•  Milk is a dollar on a rotation basis.   
•  Vegetables are cheap, but so are some of Winco s 
•  Pasta goes on sale frequently , more than Winco

•   Chicken 🍗 breast with ribs , Foster farms,  it was running around a dikkardollar,  the last time I got it , the price was 128.   Still cheaper than the six dollar a pound boneless , skinless chicken breast.   

Winco has cheaper

1.  Black olives. 
2. Green chilies
3. Pasta sauce 
4. Meat

1. Buns 
2. Instant potatoes 
3. Frozen potatoes 
4. frozen veggies 
5. Bread
6. Bakery specials 
7. Meatballs.   

QFC


Peppers  99
Ham, spiral cut 1.69
Oranges .77

Buy 4. Save 4
Orowhear bread 1.99
Butter 1.99
Kroger ice cream 1.98
Sausage 1.99
Sparkling cider 1.49
Berries 2/4 ----cheaper at fm
Pears .99

Costing meals

Costing out a batch of pizza dough.  Crust is flour .16, yeast .015 cents.   Water, salt, too small to cost, and 2 teaspoons  of olive oil I'm guessing to be .05.    Total cost.  .22.   Add 1/5 of a pizza sauce can at a dollar ( dollar store) .20, and a cup of cheese 🧀.50.   .92.  

When doing your kitchen management, set aside things in a freezer bag that go on your pizza.    Put veggies on one bag and cooked meat in another.    (Or separate bags.  ).  For very little money you can feed your family their most favorite meal for next to nothing

Pepperoni is a dollar at the dollar store for the same brand that is 1.69 at Winco,   Probably more at other stores.  You can a,si add veggies that you have or ham cubes, or canned, drained diced tomatoes, sausage, olives ( sliced olives are cheapest at winco .58.

You can use bits of things saved and cover a pizza for little money.  

Granddaughter loves to help, of course, the pepperoni just might be placed in the shape of a happy face?    LOL.

Actual time making bread dough is about ten minutes tops.   It takes a standing time in between the actual time of making dough and patting or rolling it into the pan or into a circle of you have a pizza stone.  

Kitchen hacks

It's  kitchen management day, so I thought I would share some kitchen hacks that make getting food on the table a little easier.   You are more inclined to cook scratch if it's efficient and easy.

1. Meal plan.    So much time is saved not worrying about whars for  dinner.  You can look at it first thing in the morning, or the night before and act accordingly.  Do you need to take anything or take something out of the freezer or prep anything ? 
2. Of you make something daily or almost daily, leave a measuring cup in the canister.   It takes a half a cup to make oatmeal in the microwave.  You just save a step.  
3. Having a container or crock on the counter with utensils saves looking for something in a drawer,   It's at your fingertips.   
4. A tray with  the things you use everyday is also  a help.  If you have a small kitchen, make it a  small tray.   Olive oil in a bottle with a bar stopper, or I've seen a condiment bottle , a small set of mesinplaus bowls, salt and pepper.   
5. When baking, gather all the ingredients and place them on a tray.  Take them off the tray when you use the item, and place it on the counter.   You never have to wonder did I use that already or not if you get interrupted.   Like that's ever going to happen ??   It also saves steps.   
6.  Putting all of one kind of thing in the fridge saves time looking for something.   An organized door shelf is a great help.   Dairy on one shelf.  
7. Develop a personal cook book of recipes your family likes and that are easy and quick.   You can use a binder, dividers, and plastic sheet protectors.    All easy to get at the dollar  store or goodwill.  
8. Recipes that you use real often can be placed with a clip ok the fridge.  If you don't like looking messy, out them in the side.   You can copy pages out of a book or the instruction manual for an appliance.   
9. Batch cook bulk meat when it's on sale at a RBP.   Ground meat makes, meatballs, taco meat, crumbles, Salisbury steak.   Portion control and freeze.   Make enough to serve that meat a certain amount of times for a month,    Already cooked meat saves a lot  of time at dinner time. You can. For instance, put speghetti sauce on to cook, add meatballs and let simmer after you pit the pasta on to cook.   I cook the pasta on the microwave, no stirring, or watched pot.   Salad ingredients can be cut and washed on prep day, and bread can go on the oven while everything else is cooking.   In our house, my granddaughter is responsible for the bread.  She's out of trouble while I cook the rest and dinner is parcially made and she's learned something.    
10. Using your meal plan affords you the luxury of prepping anything hat can be prepped during one session.   If you are going to have veggie sticks at a meal and want to put some in a child's lunch, Oreo all of them at the same time and place me in a container,  it's faster when you do. I'll cooking and prepping,  everything is out and you can do one cleanup.    When it's dinner time and hectic, dinner is made in a matter of mo items and you have time to relax or supervise home worl or just listen to how work or school went for your family members.    

 

Meal plan

meal plans for week of November 28

• Beef barley soup ,   Parmesan peppercorn French bread
•  Pizza , green salad 
• Mac and cheese , peas and carrots 
• Chicken pot pie 
• Steak . Oven roasted russet potatoes. Gingered carrots.  
• Baked salmon w lemon sauce. Rice medley, minted peas 
• Breakfast 4 dinner

Notes : 

1) beef cubes were on sale for 3.28 a pound at Winco.   Cutting them in smaller cubes and portion controlling the larger package saves money and waste.   Making smaller batches if you have a smaller family helps too.   Bread can be made in bread baker. Often you can get them cheap at thrift stores.   Or use a standard French bread recipe and add grated oarm and cracked oepper ( 3/4 teaspoon for a large loaf) . Beef barley soup has stock, carrots ,celery onion, chopped garlic and meat cubes.  Cook in pressure cooker or slow cooker.  An hour before serving, add the barley and a grated russet potato .  If using the pressure cooker , switch to skow cooker  mode.  

2) homemade pizza crust, pizza sauce can be made by using part of a small (8 ounce) can of tomato sauce and adding Italian veggies, using a couple of  spoons  or so of pasta sauce if you are having pasta soon.   Or, pizza sauce is a dollar at  the dollar  tree and you can freeze it on ice cube tray and dump the cubes in a freezer bag.   Take out what you are going to use.   To thaws quickly on the counter, or you can defrost it in the microwave a few seconds.  The brand at the dollar tree kids at many grocery stores for 30-150 percent more.    Add veggies or olives of choice.   Pepperoni is also at the dollar store, major brand.   Sometimes you can find coupons,   

3) peas and carrots frozen have been on sale lately and there are coupons for them.   So much for the argument that the only thing that has a coupon is junk food.    Lol.  Mac and cheese is scratch.   Macaroni in the blue box is at the dollar store. The most you should pay is a dollar.   Often with sales and coupons it can be as low as thirty eight cents.   

4) chicken pot pie.   Frozen chicken breast, cut in cubes, peas, carrots. Potato, cream sauce (scratch) -top with a pie crust or bisquits.   

5) grilled steak ( Winco had it for three dollars a pound ) , oven roast wedges of russets with olive oil , sea salt and pepper.    Sea salt is the pink stiff and is at the dollar tree for a fraction of Costco's offering,    Cook sliced carrots, add butter and a little ginger.   

6) bake salmon, season rice is a homemade mix of rice , chicken s tock, and herbs.   

7) breakfast 4 dinner,   Eggs continue to be cheap.   Some lady back east found them at Aldis for .28 a dozen,  a dollar for 18 os the best I've seen in the PNW.   Berries are really cheap at Fred Meyers his week.   Add pancakes, waffles, or English muffins (.cheapest  at Fred Meyers) and you have balance.  

When making meal plans, a guideline is a protein, a starch, and a vegetable.    Your plate should be 1/4 protein, 1/4 starch  and half vegetables.  Aim to maintain balance.