The basics

Late start, it was a long night.
 OK.  Back to the basics, again. I have been doing this for a year.  I usually do a basic overview the first of the month.  I have been posting the basics in detail all month. The basic of groceries on the cheap is taking an methodical approach to buying your food.

It takes  a three pronged approach.

1. Planning and organizing 
2. Shopping wisely
3. Cooking from scratch

PLANNING AND ORGANIZINGN

• First, gather seven recipes for dinner that use low cost sources of protein.  Start with seven and expand to 14 so that you have a variety of meals.  

• Make a list of the staple items that you buy frequently.  These should be non perishables that you can stock.  In our house that would be beans, refried beans, pasta sauce, pasta, mashed potatoes, canned diced tomatoes, a few tuna, salmon and green beans and corn and a few chicken noodle soup.  
• Start a data base on your stock items. You should have  10-15 items.  you are going to record, the item, the size of the package, the store, the date, and the price you paid for it, coupon!  

          Pasta, 16 ounces

           Date.                       Store.                         Price.             Coupon                Net

          6/5/13.                      SAFEWAYS.             .88.                1.00/2                 .38

You can use a tablet or a spread sheet.  The idea is to find the rock bottom price for your item.  Stores operate on a 8-12 week cycle.  You, like playing the stock market, want to buy low and eat high.  NEVER get stuck paying full price.  The difference between buying 1 can of pasta for 1.59 and buying two cans for 1.54 is getting two meals instead of one.  you are going to stock the items on your list.  If  I use something once a week, I stock 24, if I use it once a month, I stock 6.  by doing that, I almost never get stuck paying full price, and I could skip shopping and survive if I needed to.  

• This is new, I just started trying to incorporate some couponing into  the mix.  Rarely , do I find a coupon for real food.  But there are some out there.  I don't want to spend a great deal of time couponing.  but, I have been taking an additional 6.00 or so off my bottom line.  That is approaching ten percent.  If I wouldn't normally buy the product, I don't entertain a coupon unless it makes it free or dirt cheap.  
• Check couponconnections.com ( in the Seattle area) for coupon match ups.  If you can download a coupon, or if you already get the paper, clip what you would normally buy.   Don't want to spend more time on couponing than it takes the coffee to drip in the morning!  ...note: if you are not in Seattle, there are other websites that include your area.  Do a web search.  

SMART SHOPPING

• The first issue to address is smart shopping does not include snack foods..what my mom used to call peanuts, popcorn and crackerjacks ! LOL.   just basic food.  popcorn is a good snack food of it is air popped.  As is a piece  of fruit or some cheese and crackers.  snack foods can take up to  twenty percent of your food budget.  That s  a good place to start cutting.  Basicly many of them are empty calories-- lots of carbs with little food value.

1. The nuts and bolts-- When you get the store flyers, take a piece of paper and divide it in quarters.  Label each quarter with a name of a store.  Now, write down anything in the ad that is on your stock list at a good price, and anything in the meat and vegetable/fruit line that is a good price.  Now, cross off anything you don't need to stock now, and anything that is a lower price elsewhere. 
2. Clean your fridge and make a note of anything that should be used soon and what you have to make meal sides.  Pair them with what's on sale to round out a tentative meal plan.  
3. Add anything you need to replace to your grocery list.   IE: I have hot dogs, I need buns and coleslaw .  We need salad fixings for Speghetti.  When you are up and running, you should be able just to buy one meat item in bulk that's at a rock bottom price, and fresh fruits and vegetables to round your meals.  By buying one bulk meat a week and buying enough for a month, you can rotate your meat and never pay full price.  
4. pick the TWO cheapest grocery stores that week.  Plan your trip adding any other errands you need to make to use the least amount of gas.  Bring your ads, your coupons, your list and any list from your reward cards and a cooler.  
5. Go to the store, buy what's on your list, and get out.  The longer you spend in a store, the more you will spend. don't pick up anything you don't intend to buy.  
6. When you get home, jot down 7 meal plans from what you have and have bought. use the oldest perishables first.  I use a matrix of 2 beef, 2 chicken or pork,  2 vegetarian, and  1 fish.  
7. Dinners should average five dollars a dinner. 

COOKING FROM SCRATCH

• Batch cooking is a way to save time in the kitchen.  you buy one meat in bulk when it is at it's lowest price, and cook and portion control it for meals.  you can get a months worth of food in your regular fridge freezer.  Make a couple of hours time when the house is less hectic, and you save a lot of time when the hectic dinner hour rolls around.  Save a few no Brainer meals for the days you know are going to be especially hard.    Hamburger, roast chicken, pork loin, and roast beef work well for this,  lately, I haven't been doing much roast beef, I haven't found a cheap enough sale.  
• Basicly, to make 1/2 price meals, and be able to feed a family of four for 75.00 a week. You need to make 5 dollar dinners.  Meat( protein) should average 2-3 dollars a meal.  
• The slow cooker is your best friend.  many recipes are put there, you can put dimmer I'm the crockpot in the morning and have dinner waiting for you  you when you get home.  
• Tacos, hot sandwiches from the meat you have batch cooked, and pasta are all meals that go together in a flash. 
• Check a precious post for my recipe for No Brainer Pasta.  It is my answer to a Hamburger Meal Box.   Better, because you have more  nutrition and more product.  Cheaper, because it is cheaper per serving, and faster because most of it is passive cooking.  Please read my blog on dissecting a hamburger meal box, it is a real eye opener.  
• Bottom line is that anything that is premade and boxed is off the table, with a few exceptions.  Scratch cooking doesn't have to mean that you slave over a hot  stove all day.  there are a few things that are ready made that are either cheaper, or are not practical to cook from scratch.  Beans have a short fridge life.  if you get them cheap enough , canned ones are a better buy without waste,  I don't make tortillas or refried beans.  Instant mashed some times of the year are cheaper than scratch.  When I can get tomato roasted red pepper soup from Costco, it is cheaper than scratch.  

I guess I have bombarded you with enough.  If it all seems overwhelming, take it one step at a time. . If some part of this just isn't your bag, think of the savings, if that isn't motivation consider deligari g it to a family member that is more suited to the task An older child can do more than you think and they will be learning good life's lessons.  

Thank for stopping by

Please share 

Jane 

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Saturday

Saturday, the one day a week that I get a hot cup of coffee!  Its beautiful and peaceful here, and I have to do the business books and get the clothes replaced for the boat.  My husband emptied the  chest of drawers to be washed .  I have gone down two sizes since last summer, so I have to restock from home and  wash what I can still wear.  I batch cooked all yesterday morning into the afternoon.  Our meat is cooked and ready to go and plenty left over for the house sitter.  Batch cooking means that dinner will  be a snap tonight.

My daughter thinks I should address the issue of special diets.  I think the first question is , are you on a special diet because it is the "in thing" to do, or is it because the doctor says you have an health issue.
Most of the time, you can buy regular food and make healthy choices to accommodate your diet.  healthy doesn't have to be expensive.  I buy whole wheat products, and defat my meat, and live on a low carb diet.  Low sugar, low fat, and low salt doesn't mean that you have to buy all the items in the grocery store that claim low xxxxx.  Some of them have chemicals that aren't good for you in the first place.  It's clueless to me why if something is the "in" diet, suddenly everything has No xxx. On the label even if it never HAS  had that xxxx in it.  They use it to raise prices. If it is special, it  must cost more.

If you are a vegetarian , you don't have to buy the vegetarian equivalent of meats.  Our doctor would prefer that the baby not have soy based equivalents.  Soy is one of the crops that failed, and is going to continually get more expensive as we work through the effects of the drought.  My fear is that after the drought, the suppliers will assume we are used to paying high prices and inflate the prices for more profit.

There are grains and rice and beans that make for whole protein.  If you insist on buying the fake stuff, PCC is less expensive than some other stores, probably because they have more volume.  if you can make do with things from the chain stores, you will be better off if you are trying to make it on SNAP.  Quinoa ( I'm probably spelling it wrong) is at Costco and is a whole protein.  Rice and beans make a whole protein. Eat a lot of fruits and veggies and supplement.  My daughter eats a lot of Mexican.

There is a web site that has coupons for alternative foods.  Stacy talks about in her video.  Stacymakescents,com.

 I have  to admit, I am clueless on gluten free.  I assume that you can just eat no bread or pasta.  We pretty much lived on meat and vegetables when we were kids,  Thats what my dad liked.  If you avoid bread and pasta and get your starch from rice?  And buy a minimum of alternative thickening agents etc.  Obviously, the least amount of specialty products would keep your costs down.  My  normal budget is about half of the normal amount of the SNAP base for thrifty cooking. That leaves  you a little wiggle room.

Basicly, SNAP is based on regular food for a minimum cost diet.  They are talking meat, veggies, and grains.  There  is no room built in for specialty foods at an inflated price.  If  you choose or your health issues dictate you eat a specialty diet, you have your work cut  out for you.  I balance the vegetarian and my diabetic diet, but my daughter buys her own fake food.  There are some meals that she can eat too, or that I can make and pull her portion out and add our meat.

I'm not trying to be mean, the reality is , if you are on SNAP, your budget has no room for specialty foods.  you are going to have to work hard to incorporate regular foods that meet your criteria into your meal plans and use a minimum of specialty foods or find them at a reduced cost.  Most diets can be adjusted by using regular foods or some specialty items  are the same price.  As a diabetic, I just eat foods that aren't on my diet in moderation.  It s not what I can't eat, it's how much of it I eat... A full serving or a teaspoon! LOL.


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Jane

Finally Friday

It is  Friday and the weekend chores are here again.  I grocery shopped on Wednesday and Thursday because we have a project we need done this weekend.  I need to roast off a chicken and cook a marathon batch of ground beef for our vacation.  I intend to get food ready and frozen so that I can make easy meals.

I have a 2 foot square kitchen and have to cook for a vegetarian and a semi vegetarian as well as us.  It's a challenge.  I have to cook one thing at a time.  I plan to do taco night and some foil pouches.  That way, I can put what everyone wants to eat in their packet and have my husband cook them on the BBQ....and no washing dishes in a teacup of water! LOL.  Salmon will work for one day.  Everybody eats salmon!  Speghetti!

1. Taco night
2. Chicken Alfredo packets
3. Hamburger stew packets
4. pizza
5. Salmon 
6. Soup and sandwiches
7. Speghetti 
8. Sloppy joes

That does it 8 meals that are camping, boating friendly with 1.5 vegetarians.

There  are a lot of meals that with precooking meats, can be done easy and quick.  there is no need to slave over a hot stove if you don't want to.  It just takes a little planning.  Having a plan keeps you off the what's for dinner stressor when everything is frozen.  if you precook meats, frozen is not a problem.  You can thaw and reheat taco meat in a few minutes.  While it is thawing, you can chop tomatoes and lettuce and get out the grated cheese.  Open a can of refried Beas and get it ready for the microwave.  In fifteen minutes flat, you can have dinner on the table.  

Meals from the ads

1. Hot dogs, coleslaw, French fries  --I buy only Nathan's or Hebrew national hot dogs.  Coleslaw was a buck at SAFEWAYS and French fries are at the dollar store.  
2. Pizza pork chops, orzo, green beans -- crockpot fare!  Betty Crocker web site.  
3. Roast chicken , orzo, spinach salad -- chicken was a buck at IGA
4. Tacos, refried beans -- good ground beef is 2.99 at SAFEWAYS
5. Tomato  basil blue cheese soup, toasted cheese sandwiches. Jello parfait
6. Mac and cheese, peas and carrots 
7. Salmon, pesto potatoes, mixed California veggies with parm.  - calif veggies are at dollar store.  

That about it.  The salmon is well above the five dollar mark as well as the hot dogs.  The Mac and cheese and tacos and tomato soup  and chicken bring the average down.  

Thanks for stopping by
Please share

Jane

Buying food and being poor.

 I hate that word poor.  My young son went to school where someone told him that they were rich and that we were poor.  I told him we were rich in what counted.  When there is a lot of love in a house, you are rich.  he promptly told my dad that he and gram were rich.  my dad said, oh I wouldn't say that!  My son  countered to his grandfather that his mom said that if there was a lot of love in a house, you were rich.  Grandpa  replied, well if that's the criteria, she's right!


I entered into a discussion on food and the poor.  The consensus was that the kids that were poor, only could eat canned and processed foods, frozen chicken parts etc.  That mindset is the misinformation that I am trying to dispell on my blog.  You can eat low fat  meats and fresh vegetables and fruit on SNAP. .  You just have to shop smart and budget.

 It is true that you probably can't have all the FREES.  The sugar free,salt free, gluten free, and whatever free that the latest fad is. I'm not so sure they are all they are cracked up to be.  The jury is still out on Organic.  That's a discussion to have with your health care professional.  .

 You can certainly eat things in moderation and eat a balanced varied diet on a low income budget.  I certainly wouldn't feel deprived because I could not afford all the FREES.  Unless you have serious health problems , Most of us need a balance of salt, sugar ( or carbs) to be well.  The key, in my opinion is moderation.

It is  sad that so many are like the woman I ran into that was feeding her children A hamburger meal box and sugar loaded drink boxes and fruit cups for dinner.  That's  why I started my blog.  If you have good shopping skills and a desire to feed your family well on a small budget, you can do it.  The problem I have is reaching the people that need the information.  No child should be eating top ramen  and potato chips for breakfast, lunch and dinner and no child should wake up to no food in the house.

Lately I have been bombarded with third world countries trying to send me spam.  I  JUST want to help people, either get through a tough time, find a different recipe, or a new way to be more efficient in the kitchen.  I don't have any fancy degrees, I just have lived through it and want to share what I learned by  reading everything I could find to read.  I never got food stamps, but I remember a month that I spent 25.00 on food for the two of us, and we still ate balanced.  We looked forward to Sumday dinner at Grandparents home.  LOL.

Every first of the month I go over the basics for anyone new.  if anyone has an idea of how I  can reach more people, please let me know.  There is a comment section below.  You don't even have to leave your name !

Thanks for stopping by

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Jane

Dinner in a flash. 5 buck dinner alert

I went grocery shopping yesterday.  I went to our local IGA because they were having their grand opening and had low prices.

I got a chicken (.99) pork chops 2.31 for four) and some minute steaks.  Also veggies and fruit.  Total 30.00 and change.  Imstill have a few things to pick up from SAFEWAYS, but I should be well under my budget.

Today I made the pork chops in the crockpot.  It was a pizza pork chop recipe from Betty Crocker.  If you go on Betty Crocker website, there is a place where you can "google" your ingredient s and they will display recipes.  The total cost for the dish is  4.10  I have enough sauce left to make pizza sauce.  ( in the freezer.). I used  one of the baby's cups from her fruit cup treats she takes to school.
You could use an ice cube tray.

pork chops 2.91
Pasta sauce .77
Onion .20
Orzo .49

Total 4.37less pizza sauce .27 equals  4.10 add bread.50 and green beans  .33 and it totals 4.93.
It took me almost no time.  And when I get home from work, dinner will be made.  My husband gets the pleasure of smelling it cook all afternoon, LOL.

Thanks for stopping by.

Jane

my read on the ABC s of freezer cooking

I bought the ABCs of freezer cooking.  It came today.  It will take me longer to earn the 5.90 that it costs than it did for me to read it.  I wouldn't recommend anyone spending their hard earned money on it.
 I also bought Don't Panic, Dinners in the freezer!  it, on the other hand, is very informative with wonderful recipes and full of information and a conversion chart to multiply recipes.  Each recipe comes in single, double, and triple batches.  

Betty Crocker Dinners is free on line and has delightful recipes.  Some are over budget, but can be adapted to fit specific needs.

Thanks for stopping by

Jane

Most common mistakes

I have been watching grocery hauls on the Internet. Mostly young gals are doing them. I am beginning to see a picture that is all telling.

The most common mistakes grocery shopping to be on the cheap instead of spending the whole paycheck are

1. Buying  8  gallons of drinks.  Buy tea bags, herbal if you wish, and some crystal light type mix at the dollar store or big lots.  Water is a good hydrater.  .  Buy a lemon to add a slice to it and chill it.  
2. Buying ready made mixes and meats.  Take on one meat at a time, and learn to cook it.  The savings are remarkable.  If you don't have the pans to cook it, go to the goodwill and find one.  if you don't have a roasting rack, pile rough chopped carrots / and or potatoes or onions  on the bottom, and roast your chicken on top.  
3. Buying tons of junk foods.  Buy popcorn it's cheap and relatively healthy.  The savings more than make up for the price of an air popper on sale.  I got mine for 14.00.  
4. If your passion is sweet, find easy and inexpensive recipes for brownies or another cake or cookie.  There is a recipe on the Internet for a mixture of 2 cake mixes that cooks in a few in the microwave.  Or make muffins or quick breads.  They can be healthy and satisfy your sweet tooth.  
5. Not Sticking to your meal plans and not thinking things out. don't come home without the things you need to make them or you have wasted your time and need another costly trip to the store.  
6.  The worst mistake is to go to the store hungry, with screaming kids that need a nap, and buy 
7. anything in the store that looks good to you.  It's stressful and expensive.  you shouldn't come home broke and ready to drop from the grocery store! LOL  

Take a look at your grocery receipt and break it down as to how much is drinks, how much snack food and desert, and how much fruit and veggies.  The most percentages should be fruit and veggies and proteins.  Less than ten percent should be snacks and drinks.  

Thanks for stopping by

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Jane 

The ads

This weeks ads

First, Rite Aid has folders and maxwell house coffee for 6.99 with a dollar reward on it.

@@ means coupon. C.com means there is a coupon at www.coupons.com

QFC
B utter 2.00
Yoplait 10/5. @@c.com .40/6
Tomatoes .99
Rasp. 2/5
2 lb mini carrots 2.00

Buy 4
Dryers 2.49
DiGiorno 4.99
Morning star 2.99
Hillshire farm lunch meat 2.99@@c.com .55

Crest toothpaste 10/10 @c.com .50
Buy 10. Get 5 free
Corn **
Royal tomatoes
Manwich
Bc Mac & cheese **
Hunts tomato sauce
Tuna
**corn and Mac and cheese are cheaper at dollar store and big lots.  Corn at big lots and Mac at dollar store.
Note: there are coupons at coupons.com for many of the mega deal product

IGA Market Fresh
Chicken .99
Can't elope 2/3
Grapes 1.79
Bottom round 2.99
WF frozen veg .99
Cheese 4.49@ limit
IGA tomato sauce .60

ALBERTSONS
SAT ONLY
chuck roast 2.49

BBQ sauce .99
Strawberries 3/3.88
Fuji apples 1.00
Mushrooms 1.00
Broccoli 1.00
Baby carrots 1.00
Eng cukes 1.00
Romaine 1.00
Nalleys chili 1.00

TOP
Grapes 1.49
Blues 3.98
Celery .89
Roma's 1.00
Lean ground beef 3.49 ****. See SAFEWAYS JFU

SAFEWAYS
90 percent hamburger 2.99
Yoplait 10/5@c.com .40/6

5 dollar FRIDAYS
Hillshire farms / Oscar Mayer lunch mea
Tilipa
Blues strawberries 2/5
Rasp 2.00
Peaches 1.99

That's about it.


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Jane

Planning your trip

I don't want to spend more than an hour to plan  my shopping trip; a half an hour is better.
I have tried to be methodical about it.

1. Before the ads come in the mail, check couponconnections.com to see where the coupon matchups are.  If you are not in Seattle, look for people in your part of the country.  Stacymakescents.com is a resource if you are in the south.  Snoop around the Internet and find someone in your area.  
2. Clean the fridge and note what needs to be used up and any staples you are short of ( eggs, milk, sour cream etc.  ) 
3. When you get the ads, take a sheet of computer paper, mark it in quarters and top each quarter with a store name.  Go through the ads and write down anything on your stock list that is a rock bottom price.  Note it on your data bank.  Mark any of the perishables (meat and veggies) that is a good price.  Cross off anything that is a higher price elsewhere and anything you have enough stock of.  I post this, which only works if you are in Seattle.  
4. Pick the best two stores on your sheet.  
5. Pull the coupons you have for the match ups that  you will use.  
6. Gather your list( or mine that has been marked up by you) , your coupon folder or envelope, the ads, and your just 4 you if you have one.  
7. Plan your trip so you don't waste gas.  Add any other errands that you need to do.  
8. Go to the stores, get in, buy your list, and get out.  the more time in the store, the more you will spend.  
9. Stick to your list. Only add something  you might have forgotten to write  down or an un-advertised special that you really need or is too good to pass up. one time I found a whole bag of mixed peppers for .25 cents.  I took them home and cut them in little pieces, flash froze them and we had pizza toppings and colour in our pasta for months! I am notorious for forgetting the hotdog or hamburger buns.  I really don't want to pay 3.00 for them. 
10. If you have children , try to arrange some kind of babysitting.  Trade with a friend, take them to grandmas, leave them home with dad, anything that works.  You can do a better job if you don't have distractions.  Multi tasking is too hard and stressful.  

This may sound  overwhelming, but take one number at a time. With some practice, you will get to the point where you can do it in a half hour or less.  

I am doing this blog to help people .  Who can't use a few more cents sin their pocket at the end of the month.  I have been finding toothpaste for free often.  I am hoarding it so I can take it to the women's shelter.  my husband jokes that I will be the toothpaste fairy!  LOL. If its free, why not spread the wealth! LOL. 

Thanks for stopping by

Please share so I can help more people.  

Jane 

PS

A survival recipe found in a cookbook on line, check it out in the sample at amazon.com.  The recipe is copywriter so this is the best I can do for you.  Our Favorite Freezer Friendly Recipes is the name of the book.

Pepperoni  and cheese quiche.  Fast, easy, and 1.42 to make.  Add a salad of lettuce and any veggie
you have around and you are still under two bucks.  Pepperoni is .50 at the dollar store with a coupon.
Buy two, get a buck off.

Psycology of Retail

As I have said before, the retailers have spent considerable money to research our habits and find ways to get us to spend more money.

Advertising multiples, when you can only by one item is one trick they use. Because something is 3/1.00 doesn't mean that you have to buy three.

The longer you spend in a store, the more money you will spend. That's why some retailers change things aroumd frequently. Costco is notorious for it. If you have the mind set that you are on the clock and want to get the most bang for your buck, you'll spend less time. It's a game. I want to save as much as I can in the least amount of time.

Impulse buying is the retailers profit. They figure that 70 percent of what we buy is impulse. Often it is the most expensive things in the store that. you don't really need. We want the retailers to prosper but they can do it on someone else's dime who can afford it more.

Create your own path through the store, if you don't need anything in an isle, don't go there. The true necessities are on the outside perimeter of the store.

Sometimes, what is truly on sale isn't the featured items up front.

Exercise the hands off rule. Studies say that if you touch it, you are most likely going to buy it.

It's a well known trick that if prices have to increase, the manufacturers will reduce the size of the package instead of outwardly increasing the price.

Know your prices, the bulk isle isn t always the cheapest price.

Keep in mind that foods are sold other places other than grocery stores. Many time you can find overstocks at the dollar store, big lots, Bartells and almost anywhere. Keep your eye open, and know your prices.

Pick your grocery store based on the prices, not how friendly the clerks are or how fancy the store is, or how uncrowded it is. think about it, there is a reason why the store is crowded. Either they have just forecasted that dreaded S word, or it's because they have the best prices. You go to the grocery store to purchase your food.

Stores charge manufacturers slotting fees. Basically they charge rent for the eye level shelves. You can just bet they are going to pass on the cost. Look UP and DOWN for the best buys.

Thanks for stopping by

please share

Jane

Extreme couponing

I ran down to the antique mall and did some things I needed to do.  Then I went extreme couponing.

I got 15.00 worth of stuff for 2.00.  For an 87 percent savings.

Toothpaste
Hefty slider bags for granddaughters Lunch.
2 pepperoni s


Just a note

Jane

Monday Madness

We made it through another week.

My  daughter bought turkey bacon....Turkey is one of the  cheapest meat in the grocery.  It was 8.00 a pound.  This is a case where buying regular  bacon and using it in moderation is a better choice.
Why is it that they put LESS something in a product and charge MORE money.  It doesn't seem logical.  LOL

Yesterday we why for a walk before dinner.  Dinner was late and we had pizza and salad.

I have been researching cook for a day and eat for a month.  I went to a class years ago.  I haven't the stamina for this norm but there are people that it makes sense for.  One lady does it because she has three children under six and dinner time was meltdown time.  It was easier for her and could spend the time with children.  Engaging the children in a quiet activity would be good too..

Having a stock ahead means you can add the few items you need new and still have money to fill in and take advantage of rock bottom prices on staples.

Instead of all day cooking, I choose go batch cook meat.  Using the slow cooker makes sense to effect a quieter dinner time as well.    I used to set aside some meals for our widowed  mothers as well.  If they didn't feel like cooking, all they had to do was  heat something up.  It's hard to cook some things for one person,

Another idea I just remembered.  If you are making a dish that your family likes, make a double or triple batch and freeze the leftovers.  Freeze item  in a freezer bag and lay it flat on a sided cookie sheet until it freezes.  It makes your bag flat and takes less room in the freezer.
You can get a months worth of meals in a refer freezer.

I purchased the ABC s of freezer cooking.  The new word for marathon cooking.  I'll give a review when I get it from Amazon.  Another good book is Don't panic, dinner is in the freezer.


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Jane.

Stacymakescents.com

I ran on to a video on u tube that covers anything you ever wanted to know about couponing. she is from the south, so not everything she says holds true in  the pacific nw.
I checked out her website.  She had a guest recipe contributor,  she is toting 6 meals under 100.00 in the crock pot.  Her name is KM Logan and has a book on Freezer cooking.  I think that freezer cooking is a new way to say marathon cooking, cook one day and eat the rest of the month.   Her recipes are worth looking at on Stacy's website.  Just remember you can use bone in chicken breast, and most mixes can be made from scratch or the ingredients substituted for mix.  Italian dressing is on an earlier blog, as well as ranch dressing.  I am assuming when she calls for a bottle of dressing, she is using a small bottle.  Look for veggies and dry potatoes at the dollar store or big Lots.
I think with some savvy shopping, you could get this down to 5 dollar dinners.  You could also use cooked chicken and cut the cooking time.

Thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane

Happy Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day !

Yesterday we had BBQ chicken thighs, potato salad, corn on the cob and mixed berries.  I bought a bulk package of chicken thighs when I shopped.  We had Chicken Alfredo one night, and BBQ chicken, and I still have enough to have chicken and noodles another night from a 6.5 pound package of chicken thighs purchased at .99 a pound.

Buying meat in bulk and batch cooking makes it easier at meal time and is less expensive.  You can freeze part of it so that you aren't eating a meat until you are sick and tired  of it. You can buy a batch of something that is in a  really good sale, batch cook it, and use 1 or 2 meals and freeze the rest.  pull out the things that you bought the previous weeks and you have balanced meats, but at a lower cost.

Almost any meat works for batch cooking.  Chicken leg quarters work, as well as breasts and whole chickens.  Whole chickens on sale are about 1/2 the price of a deli chicken.  NEVER buy a chicken under 3 pounds.  Your ratio of bone to fat breaks even at 3 pounds.  Otherwise you are paying for too much bone.  between a four and five pound chicken is the best.

Ground meat Is the simplest, a very versatile meat.  Meatballs, meatloaf, taco meat, crumbles, patties, Salisbury steak!  If good hamburger is not cheap enough,,consider grinding your own from a less expensive cut of meat.

A pork loin or tenderloin is another option. Imslice pork loom thin for BBQ pork sandwiches.

Roast beef  can be eaten for a roast beef meal, and then sliced for sandwiches.  Roast Beef is becoming almost cost  prohibitive.

My mix for meal plans is probably different than yours.  Try for a variety of meats to be balanced.

2 beef
2pork or chicken
2vegetarian
1fish or seafood

Variety in your meat selection gives you balance.  Every other day someone comes out with a XXXXX meat is not good for you,  I don't quite buy all of that..  Variety at least gives you a bit of all meats,  For, , next week "they" will change their mind! LOL

I keep clams, shrimp, tuna, and salmon along with some white fish.

In order to have five dollar dinners (average) you need to keep the protein at 2-3 dollars.  If I spend a lot one dat ( shrimp will take me over the top) I schedule eggs another day, or so,etching else that is low cost protein.  Maybe burritos with rice, beans, and a little leftover meat!  


Thanks for stopping by

Please share.

Jane

Alternative stores buys

My daughter and I went to get a sandbox.  We stopped at Big Lots ,  green giant corn was .33.  Chocolate wafer cookies were  1.00.

Rite aid had up rewards on dental hygene   stuff.  Along with coupons. I got two toothpastes and a 3.99 mouthwash for 2.64.

That's my BIG shopping dAy!   LOL



Jane

Suddenly Saturday

Saturday, and it is beautiful in the Pacific  Northwest.  Certainly,  a good gardening day.

On  to the topic of today.

The  goal in stockpiling,is to get to the point where you can only buy the specials that are rock
 bottom prices that you may need to fill on the holes in our stockpile, and the perishables you need to fill  in  a balanced meal plan.  It won't happen on a day, or even a week.  Just plug away at it as you find rock bottom prices on the staples your family eats  often.  One item at a time.  Sales go in 12 week cycles, and somethings are at a really rock bottom price once on a blue moon.  When that happens, stock up to the max of your level.  I try for a six month supply.It makes it easier  to make sure that you don't run  out and be forced to pay full price for something. That dreaded F word....FULL PRICE.  LOL

You don't have to be rich to do this, just smart.  Making some changes in the things we buy  and the way you buy your food makes a tremendous difference.  It makes no difference in your budget if you buy 1 can of pasta for 1.59 or two cans for 1.57. But ,  it makes a difference that you can eat twice instead of once!

Saving money on food has a snowball effect.  The money you save from one thing, means you can buy another on sale, and that savings rolls over to another sale and soon you have a stockpile.  Soon, you don't have to go to the store if you don't want to, or can't for some reason.  You have food in the pantry at the  end of the month.  It's a very  good feeling.

Tracking your prices gives you a good idea when your staple items are at a rock bottom price.

Pasta.   1 lb boxes

Date.                       Where bought.                         Price.             Coupon?              Net cost
6/10/13.                      SAFEWAYS.                       .88.                 2/1.00.                .38

You can run a spreadsheet, or use a small book that you can carry in your purse or coupon binder or box.

You will probably have 10-15 items on your staples list.  I have an idea on some things, and some things are traditionally  cheaper at some stores.

Catsup is always a buck at the  dollar store. Duh?!
I find tissue at the dollar store, but sometimes I find it cheaper at the Big Lots. big lots does not take coupons, dollar store does.  Big lots also doesn't take snap and dollar store does.

Coffee and cheese is always good at Grocery Outlet.  Coffee because it is cheaper, and cheese because it is cheaper sometimes and there is always a wide variety of cheeses, some unusual.

WinCo has a tremendous bulk food isle.  Some canned goods are cheaper and they have a wide variety of Mexican foods.

Costco is our place for bisquick, toilet paper, laundry soap, and some over the counter drugs our doctor has prescribed.  It is also cheaper on some fruits , especially bananas and I get brown and serve baguettes, because they are better and cheaper than their counterparts at the chain stores.
I keep them in the fridge and they keep a long time.

Big Lots has tomatoes  in a pinch.  When they have 20 percent sales, they are cheaper.  Also,
sometimes tea.

Our staples list

Tuna. Some
Salmon some
Diced tomatoes
Refried beans
Beans
Pasta
Pasta sauce
Green beans. Some
Corn. Some
Chili. Some
Chicken noodle soup. Some
Instant mashed potatoes
Rice. Some
Tomato paste some
A few cake mixes

I keep a few of the things that are marked some.  I usually keep a cake mix and a couple of brownie mixes.  the other things I keep a six months supply.  If I use the item once a month, I keep 4-6.  If I use it weekly, I keep 24.  I keep a bin of pasta.  Pasta has a very long shelf life.

Things like mayo and catsup, I keep one ahead.  I don't want to run out of something in the middle of cooking.

Thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane

Freaking Friday

It feels weird that I am not doing the marketing today. We are all creatures  of habit.  

I watched a u tube seminar last night. It was on couponing and meal plans.  It could have been a boring , but  her sense of humor was delightful.  One thing resonated with me.  She was describing the difference between stockpiling and hoarding.  When you buy low and buy enough to last you until the next sale, you are stockpiling.  When you buy to be buying and buy things you don't use and at a quantity you can't use in your lifetime, that's hoarding.  

Last  night we had Chicken Alfredo and mixed vegetables.  It took me about 15 minutes , non passive time.  I put the pasta in the microwave and went out and talked to the neighbor..  I like quick, tasty meals, especially after I worked the second shift.  Cooking meat ahead makes dinner time cooking a lot less hectic.  Cooking is a lot less stressful  if there are  no time constraints on you.  

Pasta 49

Sauce .50

Chicken 1.50

Mixed veggies .75

Milk .12

Cheese.50

Bread .72

Total. 4.58

The basis for 1/2 price groceries is five dollar  dinners. Breakfast and lunch will take care of themselves as long as you keep to scratch cooking and 1/2 price shopping.  breakfast can be 

Banana  bread or muffins, or oatmeal with raisins or craisens, or yogurt and toast, an egg muffin made with biscuits.  Lunch is leftovers, a sandwich...1/2 price cold cuts, or tuna, or egg salad or a salad from the night before with hard boiled eggs.  I like cheese, whole wheat crackers and an apple . 

Basically, you

• Buy in season.  It tastes better, and it is cheaper.  
• Buy what is TRULY on sale, Not everything on the grocery ad is really on sale.  
• Know your prices, what is rock bottom.  Track your main grocery items. 
• Strive for 1/2 price there is a lot of difference between 2.20 and .38 for pasta.  The same brand. Pasta has a 8 YEAR shelf life.  
• Stack coupons when it makes sense.  I won't spend a lot of time couponing.  A few minutes a week can make a difference. Any more than that and you aren't getting paid enough.   If I spend ten minutes and save 6 dollars, I am making 36.00 an hour.  Since we don't buy a lot of ready mades and rarely is there a coupon for meat and veggies, any more time than that would be counterproductive.  
• Sometimes, bread is cheaper at the grocery store, but most of the time it is cheaper at the bakery outlet, especially the specialty items.  I don't have time to make bread.  It would be cheaper.  When I made sour dough bread, it didn't get eaten fast enough, so I quit.  It's not a savings if it goes on the garbage!

Thanks for stopping by

PLEASE SHARE WITH A FRIEND. If they share and they share......

Maybe I can help more people.  

Jane

Peanuts, popcorn and .........

While doing my many hours of research while being laid up, I ran on to an interesting statistic.  Twenty percent of the average grocery bill is for snacks.  If you really pay attention to the ads on tv and analyze the coupons being put out there , a lot of them are bidding for your snack food dollars.

If you spend your snack food dollars for building stock, you will be better off.  Air popped popcorn is a really good inexpensive snack.  Add some garlic powder or parm cheese if you want a different flavor...or any other flavor combo that the chips of the day are using.

Yesterday, I did our marketing alone while  my husband was at work.  I went to three stores in an hour and a half.  I , according to the receipts, saved 46,46, and 44 percent.  I stocked.  What I stock this week, might not be what I stock next week. I pretty much stuck to real food, as opposed to junk food and non food items.

 ALBERTSONS has dairy at rock bottom prices. Enjoy them while you can, the effects of the drought  have only just begun, the price of dairy is probably going to skyrocket..  It's not something you can stock, and non fat dry milk is really pricy...a lot more than regular milk. Like a box  of milk at Costco is 40 dollars.  Cheese is eight dollars a brick some places.  you can freeze grated cheese.  Meat you can compensate with other sources of protein ....a little in a casserole.  I suspect that like our great grandmothers and grandmothers during WWII and the Great Depression, we will adapt and survive.  That is  how we got red velvet cake!!!  There is a group of  videos on U tube about cooking during the depression.  It's a hoot!  

I got excited over .12 yogurt and .38 cent pasta, not to mention .77 pasta sauce...talk about rock bottom prices!

If you haven't guessed, this blog is about groceries on the cheap.  I started out trying to teach people on SNAP to stretch their food dollars.  No kid should have to eat top ramen and potato chips for dinner and no kid should have to get up to the insecurity of no food in the house.  I have found out that more people have been reading because of tricks to get out of the kitchen faster, or seeing a new or old recipe they had forgotten as well. In these times, it is relevant to us all.  Who doesn't like a bargain!!!!?  

The basis of this is to buy low and eat high, kinda like playing the stock market .  Buy quantity of things you use on a regular basis when they are a rock bottom price, enough to last until they go on sale again.  lately, I have been trying to add coupons to the lowest price-- Thus .12 cent yogurt and .38 whole grain pasta.  Never pay full price for anything.  you can cut your food bill at least in half.
I do this without eating junk food or a lot of boxed meals.  Quick scratch cooking and cooking ahead compensates for convenience food.

This does take some prep time before you shop. I do some of it for you, but only you knows what your family wants to eat.  After your initial organization is done, it should take you a normal amount of time to shop.  Probably less time if you  are a meal at a time shopper.

Thanks for stopping by

Please share with a friend.

Jane

4+1=5. four people, one meal, five bucks.
Better, Cheaper, Faster

Coupons to match the ads

Here are coupons to match the good buys this week.  
Happy Saving. 

Albertsons
Tillamook yogurt.  Coupon in paper is for .24
                               Coupon on coupons.com is for BOGO - limit two. 
                               Makes them .12 each. 

Safeways
Barilla Whole Grain Pasta
                                Store coupon  .88
                                Coupon from Coupons.com 1.00 off two
                                Net cost   .38


QFC
Hormel Entrees on Buy 4
                               Store price 4.48
                               Coupons.com coupon 1.00 off
                               Net price 3.48
Some of the varieties are not the best tasting , in my familes opinion.  we like the beef tips.  
A 5 minute meal with instant mashed potatoes and a vegetable and/ or salad.  At the cost of
beef , the price is not bad. 

Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage  on Buy 4, mix or match
                                Store price 2.99
                                Coupon from previous Red Plum  .75
                                 Nets 2.24

Hope this helps someone.  Every little bit helps.  

Thanks for stopping by

Jan

The Ads

The ads for this week

TOP
Milk 2.49
Country ribs 1.99
Romaine 2.00 we only
Strawberries 2/3.49

Newmans own sale coupons
Pasta sauce 2/3
Dressing 2/5
Salsa 2/3
Popcorn 2/3
Pizza 3.99
Canned veggies  .69 @@@@
10 lb leg quarters .99 lb

ALBERTSONS
Corn 6/2
Cantaloupe  2/3

Hunts pasta sauce .77 buy 10
Milk 1.77@
Cheese 4.99@
Yogurt .24@
Ice cream 2.49@
Sour cream .99@
Butter 1.69@
Grapes 1.99
Strawberries 2/5
Plums 1.99

QFC
tomatoes .99
Grapes 1.28
Eggs (18) 1.99

Buy 4
Ice cream 2.49 buy 4
Nutrigrain bars 1.99
DiGiorno 4.99
Morning star farms 2.99
Tide 5.49
HORMEL entrees 4.48
Smoked sausage 2.99

Week end only
Strawberries 3/5
Pork loin 1.79
Butter 1.88
------

Hebrew national 2/7
Blues 5.99. 18 oz
Chicken breasts 1.49

SAFEWAYS
JUST FOR YOU 5 dollar Fridays
SUB 5.00
Boston cream cake
Strawberries 3/5
Newmans own entrees
------
Jfu
Muller yogurt -free

Chicken .99
Corn 6/2
Kraft singles or cheese sticks  BOGO
Kens  dressing BOGO
Pasta .88@@@


@@@@needs coupon

This is a tough one this week.  I'll have to do some analyzing.  Some of these have coupons that work with them from the red plum and the ss this week.

Remember to check coupons.  Couponconnections.com on the Seattle area.  Cross off anything more expensive elsewhere, and anything you don't need.

Thanks for stopping by
Please share

Jane

Internet Ideas

I have been looking at the Internet a lot lately.  If I have  free time or don't feel good..all that yard work played havoc with my back.  LOL.

I saw a lot of garbage, and recipes for stuff  I can't imagine eating...how about kippers on top of spaghetti?   Trust me, his dollar store meals are not 1/2 as good as mine by anyone's criteria.

There, however was a little girl, I wish I could remember her name, that was showing meals that you could make and freeze for a quick meal instead of buying the frozen counterparts.

She made pasta and veggies and chicken.  She flash froze the veggies with bottled Alfredo sauce, and flashed froze the chicken  alone, and the pasta again with sauce.  Each on a foil lined cookie sheet one layer thick.   After  an hour, she broke the sheet of food apart and put it in meal sized bags.

She also made pizza, par baking the crust and filling it with her toppings, then cutting it I to wedges and wrapping it individually.  My guess is that you could make whole pizza, but if there are only one or two of you, the first option would be more efficient.

maybe her name was  Divascancook.com ?

She had some good ideas mixed in with a little youthful anticks..

I just found Depressioncooking with Clara on u tube.  It's a hoot.  She is 91 years old, recanting times of the depression and cooking for her probably great grandsons.  Fun.


Thanks for stopping by

Jane

Terrific Tuesday

Tuesday , the ads come out tonight in the mail.  The coupons came out in the Sunday paper.  I understand from researching, that if you wait a couple of weeks, you are better off matching coupons with sales.  Many of the coupons are for ready mades and non food items.  I am choosing to choose my coupoms wisely.  I'm not buying just because there is a coupon or something is free.

Saving money at the grocery store is more about putting good nutricion on the table for less than the stats say you need.  it's about providing your family an adequate, nutritious diet for less.  By cooking from scratch, shopping to maximize savings, and planning, it can be achieved in less time than you think.

Batch cooking enables you to save time and clean up and buy meats when they are at their lowest in price.  You can portion control the meat and have less waste.  When it is time to cook dinner, the major time consuming part is already done, and your dinner time is less hectic.  There are videos on u tube about cooking once for a month of dinners.  Some of them set aside a specific meat or dish for a given day of the week.  My mother did that for a time.  We could tell you what day of the week it was by the dinner that was cooking on the stove.  It got rather boring, and only lasted a few months.  Now, my aunt that lived four doors down made cookies every Tuesday, we NEVER got tired of that !
It  was soo unfortunate that we just had to pass her house on the way home from school!!! LOL  LOL

The only thing wrong with writing a blog, is that you don't ever know your demographics,  I don't know who is reading.  Are they people that are victims of the recession?  People on SNAP, retirees, young mothers? People  that just want to get out of the kitchen faster or try a new recipe???

Tonight we tried chocolate waffles.....with bacon and mixed berry compote.  Yumm
I got the recipe from a Betty Crocker post!!!!

Thanks for stopping by

Jane

4+1=5

better, cheaper, faster!!!

Monday madness

It's Monday again, funny how that works, another week looms.  I have been spending my free time watching blogs about cheap food.  there are not many about good food, cheap.  It is frustrating seeing all the cut your grocery bill in half, when I already do that without coupons.  Either Washington state is a lot more rigid on their coupon policies, or they have all changed because people were taking advantage.  Clearing the shelves without regard to other shoppers is rude.
None  the less, these women are getting 15000 hits a day.  I was excited to get 10000 in a year ! LOL
I don't know how to reach more people.  I am trying to take a practical approach to this.


Onward, my focus this month is going to be to add a few coupons on top of good sales to kick up the savings a notch.  Another challenge is to see how low I can get the basic hie gene necessities, since SNAP only covers food.  I have got toothpaste for as low as free.  on to deodorant, toilet paper, and soap.

Progresso recipe starters are 2/1.00 at the dollar store.  There are .50 coupons, but they don't work at the dollar store...darn.   I have used the cheese one, it was pretty good,  I added more cheese to bow ties and peas.  it was a very quick meal when things went  a rie at our house.  Having some items that save the day is important, it is better than the drive through or ordering pizza.  I also have the challenge of cooking with one pot at a time I'm a two foot square kitchen on the boat.  Drastic times call for drastic measures.  I cook normal foods on the boat, many go out for dinner every night.  Some convenience saves my day and a lot of money.

Betty Crocker has some really good recipes this week.  Check out their website. I will try the beer bread!   Beer bread pizza sounds really good too.  If you don't like alcohol, you can always use no alcoholic beer.  There are a lot of other really good recipes too.

When I shopped, I mostly bought fruits and vegetables.  We are paring down our stock of meat.  Yesterday, we went to a BBQ, so I didn't cook.   Have three more days left to cook.  I did the math, one day we go to Happy Hour with friends, two days I work the late shift.

1. Hot dogs, corn on the cob, mixed berry fruit cup
2. Chicken and sausage couscous
3. Pasta skillet

Chicken and sausage couscous 

1/4 pound chicken pieces, cooked

6 ounces fully cooked sausage , cut into bite sized pieces

2 stalks celery, cut into small chunks

2 carrots, cut into slices

1-1/3 cups chicken broth

1 cup couscous

1/2 red pepper, sliced

1 cup chicken broth

1T cornstarch

Place sausage in skillet with a little oil.  Brown meats about 5 minutes.  

Add carrots and celery to skillet, cover and cook until soft 3-5 minutes

Cook couscous,  bring 1-1/3 cups broth to a boil.  Stir in couscous, cover and remove from heat.  

Let stand. 

Add chicken and red pepper to skillet.  Stir fry until red pepper is soft.  

Mix remaining chicken stock with cornstarch.  Add to skillet.  Stir fry until  sauce is thick.  

Serve meat and veggies over couscous.  

Pasta skillet

1 cup seashell pasta.  ( cooked and drained)

3/4 pound ground meat, cooked

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 can chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup beef stock

1/2 tsp cinnamon 

1/2 tsp garlic 

1 cup frozen green beans

2 ounces feta cheese ( if desired)

Add all Ingredients to a skillet, except pasta.  Cook until  frozen beans are done.  

Add pasta to skillet and stir.  

Garnish with feta if desired.  

Notes:  meat was cooked ahead when it was on sale for 2.99 a pound.  Pasta was .50 a pound.  

Tomatoes are .67 when TOP has them on sale. 

Feta  cheese is often cheap at grocery outlet.  last time I got it with sundried tomatoes.  

 Thanks for stopping by

Jane

PLEASE share.  

What's wrong with this picture?

not to be critical, but this gal doesn't have a clue.

Meal Plans

Hot Dogs
Pasta
Pizza
breakfast
Steak um sandwiches

I'm over budget, I spent 51.00

grocery Trip
Watermelon, cut into cubes in a plastic container
Tomatoes on the vine
24 bottles of water
12 cans of ginger ale
16 steak umps
2 baby cans of kitty food
White bread
8 rolls of paper towels
1/2 gal milk
ready made chicken breast strips
Ready made sliced apples in a bag
1 dozen eggs
Head of lettuce
2 - 8 ea tubes of  drink gushers
2 ears of corn
16 bottles of Gatorade

I'll let you You imagine what they are going to eat, I'll bet they will be well hydrated!


Thanks for stopping by

Jane

Saturday

First a little housekeeping.  Dollar store dinners was a challenge.  I have eaten the potatoes and the frozen veggies from the dollar store.  They are good.  A lot of the dry goods are the same brands that are at the regular chain stores.  Some are cheaper, some are not.  I have not eaten the meat or fish from the dollar store, so I can't offer an opinion.  of course, the dollar store does not have perishables( fresh fruits and vegetables).  I don't think I would use the dollar store as my main food store.  LOL  This  was an experiment .  I always get French fries and pepperoni from the dollar store and their mixed veggies are good.  The same brand is 1.25 elsewhere.

The dollar store has a variety of things that are necessity items, but cheaper.  It's like what we called the dime store when I was a kid.  We had Woolworth's and Sprouse Ritz. I probably spelling it wrong.  Then came the 88 cent store.  A product of inflation, we have the dollar store.  The dollar store accepts coupons.  Because everything is a dollar, if you can do a match up with the correct sizes, some things can be free or near free.  You  cannot extreme coupon at the dollar store, they will only take four coupons at a time, it is my understanding. but, FREE is a  VERY nice word to the budgeter.  I got toothpaste for free, and I got sandwich bags for 1/2 price.  our granddaughter is small and she brings lunch to "school".  The quart bags we were sending in her lunch were too wasteful.
While, it isn't a food item, (SNAP doesn't pay for personal hygiene necessities. )If you can get them for free it is best.  I have purchased toothpaste for free or near free.  I am next going to tackle deodorant and toilet paper.  Watch for coupons and sales or the dollar store, and try to match them up.  This state doesn't allow overages and double coupons for what I can tell, so it might be a challenge. If someone finds it, please let the rest of us know.  There is a comment section below.


If you have the luxury of a variety of stores to shop at, then why not take advantage of that.
I wouldn't  recommend driving miles and miles, but planning your trips to group other errands works.
I stock, I don't buy 1 thing a week.  That being said, I would not stock anything that I haven't had before or that I didn't have storage for.

It's  a trade off, you find storage someplace in your house.  My dad always built a storage room in the basement in every house we ever lived in.  the trade off is that you  never have to run to the store or borrow from the neighbor something because you are in the middle of cooking dinner  and don't have something.  And, more to the point, you never have nothing on the house to eat and you are prepared for an emergency...be it you're too sick to get to the store, or an act of God has made the store inaccessible.

Last  night we had bean and rice burritos with leftover pork tenderloin.  That way, I could make some with meat, and some without.  That was three days on a pork tenderloin.  The tenderloin costs 7.50 divided by three makes 2.50 per meal for meat.

1. Pork tenderloin with potatoes and vegetable.  
2. BBQ pork sandwiches, German potato salad
3. Burritos

To  make five dollar meals, you have to average two to three dollars a meal.  If you hit the three dollar mark often, you are restricted to the starch and veggie for the meal.  You need to get in at least five servings of fruits and veggies a day.  We often use fruit as a desert.  Sliced bananas or strawberries with chocolate topping is a favorite.  As is bananas with butterscotch.  Or strawberries with cream.  I make a banana bread from Betty Crocker on line, that has oatmeal, bananas and blueberries in it.  It is really fast, easy, and inexpensive.  Bananas  are cheapest at Costco.  Do not buy organic bananas.  All bananas are organic and it is a rip off in my opinion.  I have heard experts say the same thing.  

Thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane

Dollar store dinners

Now, after I got a tube of toothpaste from the dollar store for free, I have purchased nine toothpastes for a total of two dollars.  All of them are either Colgate or Crest.

I went virtual shopping via my notepad.  I forgot to bring my electronics, so I did it the old fashioned way.  It was my challenge to make a good meal from the dollar store for my five dollar criteria.

I found

1. Meatballs, ziti, pasta sauce, and mixed California vegetables.  --5 bucks. (Two pkgs meatballs)
2. Chicken strips, French fries, regular mixed vegetables,  - 4 bucks ( using a pound of strips
3. Tilapia,  sweet potatoes, corn, and red peppers.  5 bucks (a pound of fish)(rice*) 
4. Bean and rice burritos with cheese.  ( beans and rice scratch 1 lb for a buck each) tortillas 1.00. Cheese 1.00, salsa .  5.00.  * enough rice for the fish dinner. 

. Four dinners for 19.00 with beans and salsa left over.

I found (some items are cheaper on sale elsewhere) but, my criteria was a meal from the dollar store.  I did not include normal staples like butter, catsup, etc.

Chicken breast strips 8 ounces

7 ounces of meatballs

4 ounces of tilapia

16 ounces Calif  blend veggies

Brocolli

Peas

Mixed veggies

French fries

Onion rings

Sweet potatoes, corn and red pepper medley

Sargento cheese

Mashed potatoes

Uncle Ben's  rice blends

Noodles

Ziti

Elbow Mac

Raw rice
Raw beans

Zatarans

Tortillas 

Pasta sauce

And some other  mixes I wouldn't buy, personal preference

Thanks for stopping by

Jane

Getting started

I thought I would write about getting started.  Most of us don't have a lot of excess money hanging  around.

The term stockpiling conjures up the image of hoarding food all over the house.  Actually, stockpiling is buying your food at the lowest price and buying enough of it to cover yourself until you can find it at a rock bottom price again.  I try for a six month supply.  By the time it goes on sale again, I still have some and can add enough to fill myself in.

I only stockpile the foods on my most frequently used list.  My stock list .  Most people have  10-15 items  they use frequently.  You track these prices for the lowest price.

If you cut out the pop, and junk food and start buying one thing at a time, the next week, buy another thing on sale. Or on sale cheap with a coupon.  This snowballs and soon you only have to buy perishables until a sale comes along.  You will find you are spending far less than you did before and still have a pantry full of food.

Today I went to QFC and bought perishables that pretty much were on sale.  I bought 2 pounds of butter, 1.97 cent berries, apples, etc.  I bought a 1.00 crest toothpaste, because with a coupon, I got 2 free.  That's three tubes of toothpaste for a buck.  That averages me 8 toothpastes for 2 dollars total.

Tommorrow,  I will hit SAFEWAYS.  they have mayo for 2.22. Just 4 you.  I am at the end of my bottle, so I will replace the pantry one.  I always keep ONE of catsup, mustard, and mayo  type of thing so I can't run out in the middle of dinner.  Otherwise, of I use something weekly, I keep 24.  If I use something monthly, I keep 4-6.  Sales run an 8-12 week cycle.  If you watch for coupons for the things you buy and track the sales prices, you will see a pattern and take advantage of the rock bottom price.

Think about it, if you are playing the stock market, you want to buy low and sell high.  You are buying at rock bottom, and eating at high prices.  Adding the perishables at lowest market prices and you have a winning ticket! LOL

This week there is not a lot of things to stock on. Butter can be frozen and it is 2  bucks at QFC.  The toothpaste at QFC with a coupon is a stocker.

Last two weeks were better weeks to stock.  Top had beans and tomatoes for .67.  ALBERTSONS had pasta and cake mixes for .49.  With coupons, I  got two cake mixes for an  average of .07 cents.

Thanks for stopping by,

Please share

Jane

Safeway I missed

SAFEWAYS has a dairy thing.  Buy 15.00 worth of dairy items on their list and get 5 bucks off.  That's 33 percent.  Be careful of  the brick cheese it's 5 bucks for ONE pound.  There are other buys though.

Terrific Thursday

Since I have been stuck in bed some of the time these last  two days, I have been reading and watching every thing I could on saving money at the grocery store.  After our housing costs and transportation and medical, food is the most expensive thing that we buy.

I thought what one woman said on the TODAY show was very telling.  She said, if you don't think that saving money at the grocery store is important, you ain't been broke enough,  That is paraphrasing, but the message is there.  Most of us don't waste food, but, why waste money?  if you pay 1.00 for something you can get for .50.  You have wasted .50.  On the time thing, if you can make more money elsewhere, go for it.  But there have been times that I have save the equivalent of 212.00 an hour.  Nobody ever paid me 212.00 an hour! I am semi retired.  I don't want to go to work anymore than I am already.  If I had children, I probably wouldn't want to spend any more time away from them.  They can learn cutting skills, math skills.  And if they reap some of the savings in the form of a new pair of shoes they want or a vacation they normally couldn't take, they will see the merits of their  effort.  A lesson well learned.

 Have heard a lot of things that I can believe are true, but one thing that resonates through.  If you are happy about a product, e mail them, sometimes they will send you coupons.  if you are unhappy about a product, e mail them, they will send you coupons.   Emailed a company because I got a box of cookies that had no cookies in 1/2 of it.  They sent me a coupon for four boxes of cookies free.  I did the same with a can of  green beans that was not full.  I called them.  they would rather give you product than loose your loyalty.  I am not brand loyal.  if I know a brand is not good quality, I will not buy it, but among the brands that are good, I'll buy the cheapest one at the time I need it.

Off the soapbox. LOL



Eating on the cheap doesn't have to mean you are not going to eat well. Looking at upscale eating establishments menus can give you all kinds of ideas for new dishes.  Many are on line.

Stuff a chicken breast, add mushrooms to a gravy, stuff salmon.  it's their trick to make it look like you are eating a large portion of protein, when in realty, you have a 3 or 4 ounce portion.

Thanks for stopping by

Jane

Toothpaste coupon alert

QFC has crest toothpaste for a buck.  In the red plum flyer that came in the mail with the ads, there is a coupon  for  2 dollars off of three tubes.  That makes three tubes of toothpaste for a buck.
I know the extreme componers pay zero, But, I Have only made that happen once.  That would make my average of 8 tubes .25 each.  I think that it is a pretty good price for a no  double coupon state .

Thanks for stopping by

Jane

Wednesday

It's Wednesday and I don't have to go to work thanks to my husband who volunteered to work all day.  The fact that the construction project down there is in full swing might have something to do with it and the fact that the doctor said that I should not lift anything over 15 pounds and rest.

On to the subject at hand...

Today I am going to clean the vegetable drawer and make salads.  I have a pork tenderloin to roast off this morning so that I can have dinners together all week.  Yesterday I  made a slow cooker of soup so that dinner was ready when I got home from the hospital.  Planning ahead makes it easier to
 Manage dinner in hectic times.

Planning my grocery trip is  next of the agenda.  It is a small one because we don't need much and there are not many stock items if we did  need them.  If I didn't have stock on hand, I would go to the bakery outlet and WinCo.  The only match ups coupon wise that I found is I have two dollar coupons for Pizzeria Pizza , that makes them 3.00.  A good lunch or fall back on meal.  Hillshire Farm lunch meat is 5.99 less discount for SAFEWAYS just 4 you is 3.99.  I have a coupon for .55 off.  Making itm3.44.  That still makes it 3.44 a pound.  I have not checked if you can  stack these coupons.

I have spinach...there is a recipe on Betty Crocker  for Mac and cheese with spinach and bacon.
Corn on the cob is cheap and in season,  It will make a good addition to my pork and meat.
ALBERTSOMS has eggs for .88, a good time to make a quiche or Italian pie.  breakfast for dinner.  Yoplait is .50 at ALBERTSONS.  Remember, just because they suggest you buy a large quantity, doesn't mean you have to buy that many to get the price.  That is a ploy to get you to buy zillions of the product.  It's only necessary when you see buy 10 , or Buy 5 mega vents.

Beef chuck roast is 2.99 a pound, a good time to make hamburger.

Formula for dinners. Ours  may be different from yours.  I try to maintain a variety of meats /proteins to keep everybody happy and healthy.

2 beef
2 pork or chicken
2 vegetarian
1 fish or shellfish.

1. Pork tenderloin , corn on the cob, spinach salad 
2. Chicken pot pie, strawberry shortcake
3. Bow Ties mac n cheese with bacon and spinach
4. Breakfast for dinner 
5. Salmon, rice, salad
6. Hamburgers, salads
7. Tacos, refried beans 

Thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane 

4+1=5. Four people, one meal, five bucks

Better, Cheaper, faster

Next time, I am going to challenge myself to make a dinner from the dollar store!!!

the ads

SAFEWAYS

TOP SIRLOIN OR SIRLOIN TIP B1G1
Pizza 2/10. Di jiorno
Grapes 1.99
Peppers 2/1
Corn 5/2

ALBERTSONS

Eggs . 88
Pizza single serve 4/888. Do jiorno
Yo plait 20/10
Garden salads . 88
Pic sweet vegetables,1.25**
Hills hire farms lunch meatn5.99
Lettuce .99
Brocoli or caulk .99
Oscarnmayer meats 1.99
Strawberries 2.49

TOP
SPINACH.79
Blues 4.79
Milkn2.50@@
Butter 2.50@@
Grapes2.00

 QFC
Johnsonville brats 3.99
Broccoli or caulk .99
Dijourno 4.99
Rasp or blues 1.97
Cheese 4.99
Oscar Mayer lunch met 2/6
Celery 10/10

IGA

Blues 3.98
Butter 1.98
Eggs .88
Mayo .98
HORMEL turkey ham.99
Yo plait 10/5



Notes. The same,frozen veggies are a buck,at the dollar,store.
Note there are the same items on sale for different prices.

Be sure to mark off anything that is cheaper elsewhere, and anything you don't need.
It's not a food week to stock up.  It's a good week to get your necessities and save for another week.
This works if you have built a stock.

Thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane

Terrific Tuesday

Yesterday was an alternative shopping day.  We went to goodwill where I picked up a cute shortfall for granddaughter.  Mom doesn't think it was so cute.  And a couple of books for her.  

QFC netted food for the boat stock at a 64 percent savings.  We watched as 32.00 went down to 12.50.  On to big lots for my husband to get hot pickles.  And the dollar store where I netted 80 percent off.  Pepperoni was buy 1, get one with a coupon.  7 dollars worth of pepperoni was a buck.  Steam vegetables were a buck, 3 dollars at the Q.  Lemonade was a buck but I can't remember how much it is at QFC.

All together less than twenty dollars!  Good prices paired with good coupons.  Big Lots does not take SNAP.  A

On another note, I went over budget this week, but stocked some staples and the boat.  I am taking care of some health issues this week, and don't expect to shop next week at all to compensate.  I should finish the month ok. 

One of my friends brought me the coupons from her Sunday paper.  I pulled everything I thought I might use.  A lot of it was for stuff I don't buy.  I am rapidly seeing where you never should have to pay for toothpaste .  It is really easy to find coupons for .75 and a dollar.  The dollar store takes coupons, the Big Lots doesn't.  I am told that Grocery Outlet doesn't either.  I suspect that  Winco doesn't either.  

A lot of newspaper coupons are for non food items.  I have been averaging six bucks a shopping trip, and while six bucks are definitely worth it, I am not going to spend a lot of time on this endevour.  

Back to basics.  There are still a lot of meals that can come in at five dollars.  When I price  a meal, I don't count anything less than 2T.  I count everything that is real food in my total budget.  

Breakfast for dinner is a good way to make a quick cheap meal.  What kid wouldn't like chocolate waffles and turkey bacon and a yogurt and fruit parfait for dinner.  Plenty of protein, fruit and a carb or two and dairy.  

Pizza and green salad is another kid favorite.  

Tacos, refried beans, and salsa rice is another.  ...beans were .80 at big lots .  Salsa was a buck at QFC with a coupon.  There are also la Victoria coupons for tortillas on line.

Chicken and noodles and Mac and cheese are more kid friendly meals well under five dollars.  Frozen veggies are always a buck at the dollars store.  DUH.  And they were a buck at QFC this week.  

Meat balls can be made from ground beef, or from a mixture of meats,  done ahead, and frozen.  Walnut sized ones thaw quickly and can be made into a variety if dishes

• Meat ball subs
• Meat balls and spaghetti
• Meat balls with white gravy over rice
• Meat balls with brown gravy over noodles or mashed potatoes
• Meatball soup

Does anyone have any other ideas for meatballs?

Thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane 

4+1=5. Four People, one meal, five bucks

Better, cheaper, faster

Drought and prices.

Last years drought has only just begun to effect food prices, mostly beef and dairy.  It will continue to effect us through 2013.  I am seeing cheese prices double what it was last year.  I have a stock in the freezer of grated cheese.  I have better luck freezing grated cheese.
Corn should remain seasonally cheap, buy field corn is expensive, driving up the cost of meat.  ( feed) .  I am stocking accordingly when I find staples cheap.  I want to maintain my 70.00 a week a long as I can.

Beef has doubled already.  I suspect we will find that pork follows.
I also suspect that like our grandmothers before us, we will adapt to meet our needs!  Red velvet cake was an invention out of necessity during WW2.

Just an update.  My info is from the USDA..

thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane

Foil packets

This is the second time I have done this blog today.  The first one fell apart!  LOL
So much for doing a blog at three in the am.

I have done blogs on foil packets before.  The kids love them,  they are like camping out;and moms like them because there are no dishes.  They are a good way to do dinner ahead and not have to cook in a hot kitchen.  They can be cooked in a oven or on the BBQ.  You can use up leftovers and tailor each persons packet to their taste.

I'll try to cut and paste a previous post.


Veggie Chicken Packet.
uses bone in chicken breast. Sometimes I have purchased them for 1.25 a pound.

For EACH packet

2 T instant rice
1chicken breast 1/4, or about 4 punches. ( the size of the palm of your hand.
1/ cup sliced carrot
2onion slices, separate into rings
1/4 cup peppers, sliced thin.
1 T water
1 T w sauce
2tsp soy sauce
1 T butter

Place rice in the center of a 14 inch square piece of foil
Top with chicken and veggies
Mix liquids together
Pour over chicken.
I would cup the edges of the foil first.
Dot with butter.
Fold foil around chicken and seal.
Place n baking pan and bake at 350 for 65-75 minutes or until chicken is done.
Open foil carefully, there will be steam!!!


I know the purists would say that I am filling the landfill, you can use used foil.

It would be a good recipe for a busy day. Even a older child or a culinary challenged spouse could put the packets on pan and get them started in the oven. LOL

You could also use already cooked chicken and shorten the time. Yhen you would just worry about how long the rice and veggies would take to cook. It would really be fast if you used leftover rice, maybe even finely chop the pepper in with it. I have a thing about white food. It needs colour. LOL

There is an earlier post on foil packets. It's a good thing to do when you are working late and you can fix them ahead for someone else to shove in the oven. Kids like the packets...it's like camping.

There are a lot of foil packet meals on the Betty Crocker website that are updated with more
sophisticated flavors.


Basically you take a 12 in square piece of foil ( or splice two smaller ones together) and layer

Starch
Meat
Veggies
A gravy or some kind of liquid.

Wrap the foil around the dinner and seal.  Make individual packets.  The foil becomes your dish.
Bake at 350 to 400 until done.



I started this blog to help people cook good nutritious meals on a tight budget. it came to my attention that some people on SNAP were running out of money before they ran out of month. we eat on about 1/2 of the USDA statistics for a thrifty plan. It is doable. no, we are not on SNAP. In the process, I have learned that other people that want to get out of the kitchen faster because they have busy lives and people that like trying a new recipe like it as well. It can't help anyone if they are not motivated to try. Not having food in the house at the end of the month should be motivation enough. It doesn't make your child or children feel secure when they know the cupboards are empty.

thanks for stopping by

Please share. Comment!?!

Jane

Sunday

Sunday already.Yesterday I went to Costco wholesale to get a few staples that I get once every year or more.  I buy salt in 25 pound bags.  It's 4 bucks and lasts us forever.  ( my daughter makes paint for the preschoolers.  ). I usually use sea salt for cooking, but use regular salt for baking.

I researched some Couponing  web sites , some of them are actually practical combining sale
Prices  with coupons for actual food instead of ready made stuff and a zillion cleaners I don't use.
I'm not paying for coupons, and I am not spending a lot of time looking for them.  I want my prep for shopping to be less than a half hour.

on to recipes

Pork Diane

Sauce
1 T water
1 T white wine
W sauce ( a splash)
1 tsp lemon juice
1tsp Dijon mustard

Mix sauce ingredients together.

Pour over cooked pork roast or chops.  Garnish with chives or parsley.

Note if I didn't  have wine, I would use apple juice or more water.


Asian Pork Wraps

7 inch flour tortillas

3Tcold water
2T soy sauce
1T corn starch
1tsp sugar
1/4 tsp minced garlic

3/4 pound pork loin or tenderloin
Cooking oil

3 cups coleslaw mix ( cabbage with carrot )


Warm tortillas in foil in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes
Mix sauce ingredients together.

Cut pork slices into thin strips.

Stir fry pork in cooking oil until no longer pink.
Set to side of pan.  Put sauce in center of pan and cook until thick and bubbly .  Cook 2 minutes longer.  Add cabbage mixture and stir to coat with sauce.

Place pork mixture on the middle of each tortilla and wrap like a cone.   (Wider at one end than the other.



NOTES
Pork tenderloin was 3.19 at Costco wholesale.  Grated cheese was 2.54 a pound.  I have seen cheese for 4.00 a pound lately.

My granddaughter saw the watermelons at Costco and declared that they were an apple.   If it is round and edible , it's an apple!! LOL

Brown and serve baguettes were like .73 each.  French bread is getting pricy.  I keep them on the fridge, they last a long time along with the flour tortillas.

I also got coffee syrup ,    Italian sodas are one of the only treats that I can have as a diabetic.  Sugar free syrup, water and milk.


That's about it...enjoy!  

thanks for stopping by
Please share

Jane

Suddenly Saturday

It's Saturday already and May is history.  I haven't depleted the stock that much.  I'll try again in June.
I really haven't bought meat in weeks, but have stocked a few things that were super rock bottom prices.  Limited myself to five each.

I deleted a post with the hopes that I could slow down the spam I am getting.  It didn't work. The Winco vs Costco post is gone.

On to the purpose of this blog.  I have just posted the monthly blogs this month on the basics.  the shopping part is there.  The cooking from scratch is a learned talent that if you don't already have it, it happens one recipe at a time.   There are a lot of no brainier recipes out there that are simple and fast.  We all live in a busy world, if you have children it is usually more busy this time of the year with  school ending for the summer.

There are a few inexpensive tools that make life easier.  I love my microwave pasta cooker.  It is about ten dollars.  You can make pasta in the microwave by putting the correct amount of water in this plastic oval bowl with your pasta, putting the bowl in the microwave, and turning the microwave on.  Then you can go about and make your sauce, salad and bread.  It drains with the aid of the lid.  one bowl to wash.

The next indispensable things  in our house is the slow cooker, the food processor, and the microwave.

I have been finding slow cooker recipes on the Betty crocker web site. Many of them look and sound really good.  Www.bettycrocker.com/ recipes

When I get home from the grocery stores, I keep track of my spending on a spread sheet.

Week 1        SAFEWAYS.      ALBERTSONS.     Winco.               Total
Week 2

If you don't have a computer, it is easy to do with a piece of lined paper, a straight edge, and a calculator.

You can get the gist of it.  Then I can add the total of the weeks and divide the total by four to get my average amount spent per week.  I'm still sitting about 70.00 a week, and have built a good stock.  This week I spent 50.00 and at least twenty of it was stock.

Making a meal plan is one of the best ways to keep on track.  It's too easy to fall off the meal train if you don't have a plan.  You don't have to necessarily eat a particular meal a particular day, but have a list of seven meals as a guide to follow.
Develop your own formula.  In our house it is

2 beef
2 pork or chicken
2 vegetarian
1 fish or shellfish

1. I'm diabetic and eat just about everything, my daughter is vegetarian, my husband only wants to ear meat, and my granddaughter is semi/ vegetarian.  It all works.  Specialty diets don't have to derail your budget.  

Look in your fridge and make a note of what needs to be eaten.  Can you make something with it?  Banana bread, waffles, salad?  Pasta sauce?  
Look at the ads and see what looks good that is on sale cheap.
Incorporate what you have with what is on sale and pencil in a plan.  All you have to do is list 7 main dishes.  Most people know what to add to them and pair the same thing every time.
how classic in this country is spaghetti with red sauce , green salad, and French bread.
I buy baguettes at Costco, brown and serve they price out at about .95.

I have sausage crumbles, hot dogs, pepperoni, eggs, chicken parts and bones, meatballs, shrimp,
Vegetable pasta sauce, cheese, taco meat, pork roast slices off the top of my head.

1. Hot dogs , German potato salad, carrot and celery sticks
2. Pork slices, stuffing, broccoli salad 
3. Chicken pot pie, turtle pudding 
4. Tacos, refried beans, lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, sour cream
5. Spaghetti with veggie sauce, salad, bread
6. Roasted red pepper and tomato  soup with blue cheese and basil soup, cheese, crackers
7. Salmon, green beans, baked potatoes. 

This makes for a balanced variety of foods. 

Thanks for stopping by

Please share

Jane