Food Co-Op Basics.

In each state you have farmers or at least farm dealers.  The basic idea of the Food Co-op is buying the food directly from the farmers instead of through the grocery store.  You get quality food for a little bit over cost.  The more co-op participants there are the cheaper the prices get.  You don't get to pick what is in the harvest that month, but you know there will be varities of meat, fruit, vegetables, and grains.  They change every month depending on which crop is doing well.  

Step One: Go to this website if you live in Utah: Utah Food Co-Op.  If you live out of state find your food co-op here at The Food Co-Op Directory.   You can peruse and learn more about the food co-op. 

Step Two: If you're interested click here to figure out how to order.  There are many pick up sites.  In Utah there are at least 30, you should be able to find one near you.  Make sure to write on your order form which pick up site you're ordering to. You can call in your order or print and mail in your order.  They will send you a follow-up email when they have recieved your order.  Your card or check will be processed at that point (to pay the farmers)

Step Three:  Make sure you show up to get your order.  If you don't pick up your food they don't get it to you, they donate it to local shelters.  The pick up sights have specific times for pick up. 

Step Four:  Bring a laundry basket, box, huge canvas bag or another big holder to carry all your food.  They don't bag them for you, you need provide a way to bring your food home.  At the pick up center they will have a reciept of your order and will double check on exiting that you aren't taking more food than you paid for.  

Step Five:  The food co-op asks you to donate 2-4 hours of community service a month in order to participate in the co-op.  This can be church volunteer hours, other community organizations, or actual volunteering time with the food co-op (bagging rice, counting vegetables, processing orders, etc)

Step Six: Grab the food co-op newspaper when you pick up your food.  It will have the next months order form and some pertinent information.  

Step Seven:   Enjoy your food!  Nummy! Tell everyone you know about the food co-op!  The more people that are invovled the cheaper the food!!  

Did that answer your question Ashlie?

Great Website

This blogsite has tons of free give-aways. I just ordered 6 free, personalized Valentine's cards. Scroll down for that offer. It really works.

http://hail2thesnowqueen.blogspot.com/

January Food Co-op

I paid $49 for the following:

• 1lb. Top Sirloin Fajita Strips
  
• 2 lb. Package of Chicken Drumsticks
  
• 2 lb. Sirloin Pork Roast
  
• 1 lb. Lean Ground Beef
  
• 2 lb. Rice
  
• 2 loaf Artisan Wheat Bread
  
• 11 Fuji Apples
  
• 11 Pears
  
• 10 Oranges
  
• 2 Romain Lettuce
  
• 7 Red Bell Peppers
  
• 10 Tomatoes
  
• 4 Avocados
  
• 1 Head of Cauliflower
  
• 2  l2lb. Bag of Carrots 
  
• 34 oz Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  

That's it!! $49!!!  Buying the same amount from the grocery store would equal and possibly surpass $80.  Do it!! Do the food co-op for February.  The deadline for your order is Feburary 6th.   This month:

The Standard Share  ($35-$46 retail)  $23

2 lb Chicken Breast 1 lb Pork Spare Ribs

1 lb Beef Stew Meat 1 lb Lean Ground Beef (85/15)

Fresh Fruits (3 varieties)

Fresh Vegetables (5 varieties)

Artisan Wheat Bread

16 oz Rice

Half Share  ($21-$27 retail)  $14

2 lb Chicken Breast 1 lb Beef Stew Meat

Fresh Fruits (3 varieties)

Fresh Vegetable (4 varieities)

Artisan Wheat Bread

16 oz Rice 

Harvest Share ($21-$26 Retail) $14

Fresh Fruits (3 varieties) Fresh Vegetables (6 varieties)

Artisan Wheat Bread 16 oz Rice

There are some add-ons you can also buy.  Last month I ordered a Standard Share and a Harvest Share.  They were selling Extra Virgin Olive Oil for $7 so I bought that too!!  It's worth doing the food co-op.  They have them in every state (I listed a directory on the side) also, if you're in graduate school or on government assistance for any reason they said they take food stamps as payment.  Totallly worth it!  I wasn't able to pick up my food because I was at an adoption class, Amanda did it for me.  I'm hoping she'll do her inaugural post and explain how the food co-op pick up works.  

 

YAY for groceries that will last me three weeks!!!

Diapers

QUESTION.....
Have any of you ever tried the Costco/Kirkland brand of diapers? If so, what is your opinion of them?
We just got over trying LUVS brand and they were awful. Max's diapers were always leaking, and he was going through a few outfits a day as a result. We switched back to Huggies. I'd like to try the Kirkland brand, but I don't want to buy a huge box if they don't work.

Don't Throw Away Today's Junk Mail!

I realize this post is only good for those of us that live in Utah... however...

There is a huge cereal sale at Macey's this week.  Boxes from $1.50-$2.00... but... you need the in-ad coupon, so don't throw it away!!   Plus, the eggs Natalie talked about a few posts ago are still on sale this week at Macey's for $14.  

Albertsons has a huge "buy one get one free" section this week in the ads, also.  Check it out.  :)

Homemade Laundry Detergent

I have often seen recipes online for homemade laundry detergent and wondered if they would actually work. I decided to give it a try. Most of the recipes I have seen are for liquid detergent, and you have to keep it in a very large bucket and stir it before each use. I didn't want to bother with all that hassle, and I don't have space in my laundry room for a huge bucket of liquid. However, I recently ran across a recipe for a powdered detergent, which I will show here.

I have used it (6 loads), and it works really quite well. To test it out, I did a load of laundry, planning to check every item before I put them into the dryer. I even left a big chocolate smear on my daughter's favorite blanket and didn't pre-treat it with anything. It came out perfectly clean! It smells good when you take it out of the washer, but after it has been through the dryer, there is not a perfumed smell to the clothing. I figured, give it a try. If it doesn't work, then (as long as you check your items before they go in the dryer), you can always re-wash them with store-bought detergent.

The entire process took very little time. I would say it took about 20 minutes, and that was partly because I was unsure how much bar soap I needed for 2 cups, so I had to keep chopping and measuring, and partly because I couldn't find a lid for my container! It would be even more time efficient if you doubled the amounts and made more, therefore only making the mess once, but I wanted to make a small amount to see if I actually liked it before I made a huge quantity.

THE MATH:I did the math on it and here's how it breaks down. I know that some people count their "time" as a factor, but I think you can only count your time if you could have actually been making money at the time you made it, meaning that if you have a job during the day, I don't think you can count your time as $15 per hour if you are home from work. Does that make sense? So I didn't account for any time involved.

The borax was $3.69 for 9.5 cups, which comes out to $1.17 for 3 cups needed. The washing soda was $3.19 for 55 oz, which comes out to 94 cents for the 2 cups needed. The baking soda was 79 cents for a 1 lb box, and you need 2 cups, so that is 79 cents. The Fels-Naptha soap cost me $1.09 per bar, and I used 1 bar plus about 1/3-1/2 of another bar. So it came out to about $1.64 for the soap. The total cost then, was $4.54 for the ingredients used, and it made enough soap for 72 loads of laundry, using 1/8 cup each time. That comes out to $0.06 cents per load. Now, I paid full price for the ingredients I bought, so if you could find the borax and washing soda on sale, you could get the price per load to be even cheaper.

Compare to (prices at amazon.com):

Powdered Tide at 26.85 for 120 load box = $0.22 cents per load

Powdered All at $6.91 (40 load box) = $0.17 cents per load

Powdered Gain at $14.62 (80 load box) = $0.18 cents per load

INGREDIENTS AND DIRECTIONS:

Here's what you will need:

3 cups of Borax

2 cups of Washing Soda

2 cups of Baking Soda

2 cups of grated Fels-Naptha soap (or other laundry soap). You need about 1 1/2 bars.

A grater (or better yet, a food processor with a grater attachment)

If you are unfamiliar with Fels-Naptha soap, it is the brownish bar that your grandmother or mother used to use to remove stains. You can find it in some grocery stores on the laundry aisle. Just look up high, out of the way. You can also purchase it at Amazon.com. Here is what it looks like:

Unwrap the bar of soap and cut it into pieces that will fit into your food processor. (Or grate it by hand if you don't have one).

Grate it using the grater attachment. It only takes a few seconds to be completely grated. It will look like pieces of plastic cheese. (sorry for the shadow of my thumb in the picture). I then dumped out the grated soap and removed my grater attachment, replacing it with my regular chopping blade. Then I let the chopping blade run for about 1-2 minutes, until the grated soap was turned into tiny little pellets. You don't have to do this, I just thought it might help the soap to dissolve faster.

From there, measure the soap and combine it with 3 cups borax, 2 cups washing soda, and 2 cups baking soda.

Stir well to combine and pour into a container with a tight fitting lid. I used an empty #10 can with a plastic lid. Clean up was easy. I put everything in the dishwasher and cleaned it really well. After all, it's just soap!

To use, measure 1/8 cup of detergent and add to water in your washer like regular detergent. (Note: for high-efficiency washers, you should probably cut this amount way down. I don't have a he washer, and they do have different detergent requirements.) I measured 1/8 cup (which is about 2 tablespoons) and then drew a with a permanent marker to mark the "fill" line. I didn't believe it was enough. It was hard to not add more detergent because it looked like so little compared to the store brands. But it actually worked great! And by using less chemicals, you are helping to protect the environment!! (Of course, that's why we're all pinching pennies, right?? LOL)

Fun Website

Check it out: http://www.skiptomylou.org/
She has a lot of inexpensive and cute crafts. You can make a lot of them with your kids. She even has printables that are fun to print and create.

Powdered Eggs on Sale!!

I know you might not be too excited about a sale on powdered eggs. Sometimes, though, we end up running to the store just for milk and eggs, and then we blow our budgets on other stuff while we are there. And...this is an awesome price. I first tried these powdered eggs out last August. They work really well. You just add 1 TB of dried egg powder to your recipe and then add 2 TB of liquid (water, milk, just increase whatever the recipe calls for). That's it. Great for cookies, breads, etc. I will say that my cupcakes didn't quite fluff up like they do if I use regular eggs, but they were fine and it saves you a trip to the grocery store to just get eggs!

I went to Macey's grocery store last night (Associated Foods here in Utah) and they had the Morning Moo Dried Whole Eggs for $14.59. That is $9.80 off the regular price of $24.39! The package says that it contains 226 tablespoons, and one TB = 1 egg, so that comes out to $0.06 per egg, or 77 cents per dozen. When you figure that regular eggs are around $1.25 or so per dozen, that's a savings of 48 cents, or almost 39 percent savings. The sale runs through Tuesday, January 20, 2009.

If nothing else, you could split a container with a friend and try them out. It would only cost you about $7.50 each that way, and you could see if you would like them. That's how I first tried them out, and they have been very handy to have in my pantry!

Old Navy Sale

Old Navy just started their 50% off clearance sale. Today I bought Max's winter clothes for next year. Sound ridiculous?! Not if you can buy a pair of cords for $1.50, a long-sleeved t-shirt for $2, or a coat for $6.50. I can usually buy all of his clothes for the next season for under $40. They also have great deals on everything. In the men's clothes they have slacks for $6.50 and sweaters and dress shirts for $3.50.
Here is a link to print out a coupon for $10 off a purchase of $50 or more: http://southwest.com/landing/old_navy_coupon.pdf

*The sale prices don't ring up until you are being checked out. Some items may ring up as 75% off the clearance price.

An X-box can save you money?

Okay.. this might sound crazy, but just hear me out.  This is only frugal IF

• you already own an xbox 360
• you already subscribe to xbox live
• you have internet at your house

If you are cool with those, read on...  Van and I are the worlds most awful DVD returners.  The redbox always costs us more than $1 because we never return it on time.  So we find a lot of our random cash each month is going to pay Redbox.  However, Netflix and Microsoft just hit a deal.  You can now stream Netflix immediately through your Xbox to your TV.  We pay $4.99 a month and can watch unlimited movies, TV shows, documentaries, etc.  There ya go.  I rent a few movies a week for Jaylee and Van and I have watched at least one new show a week since we signed up.  We're renting movies but staying inside.  And since we haven't seen a lot of movies since our kids were born we still have a lot to catch up on!  It's great.  I'd highly reccomend it. 

We're going to get rid of cable when we move for grad school, actually we're going to get rid of TV altogether but we're going to keep the Netflix on the the x-box.  It'll be entertainment for the entire family.  Woo woo.  

FREE OFFER: Suze Orman's 2009 Action Plan

I am not a huge fan of Oprah Winfrey (no offense if you are). Occasionally I catch her show, and the one I did catch recently was a good one. The financial planner Suze Orman has written a book called "Suze Orman's 2009 Action Plan." You can download it for FREE from Oprah's website, but you have to act quickly. This offer expires on at 11:59 PM CT on Thursday, January 15, 2009.

Suze said on the show that 2009 has different financial advice that has been available in the past, because of the financial crisis that evolved in 2008. Just passing it on, in case you are interested!

Resourceful Recipes - Part 10, Leftover Veggies & Meat

Ideas for Using Up Leftover Vegetables and Meat:
1) Dish up portions onto microwave or oven safe dishes and make "TV Dinners." These can be frozen and heated up on nights when you are short on time.
2) Make stew.
3) Make "Leftover Vegetable Casserole." (recipe below)
4) Cut leftover roast into strips or cubes, stir into leftover gravy and serve over mashed potatoes, noodles or rice.
5) Cut meat into small pieces and stir-fry with raw vegetables.
6) Cut leftover roast into bite-sized pieces and freeze to use later in a beef stew.
7) Make "Meat and Potato Casserole" (recipe below).
8) Keep a container in the freezer for a "stock pot." Add leftover vegetables to it. Keep a separate container for leftover meat liquids or broths from cooking. When you have enough, use your stock pot as a base for a nutritious soup.
9) Pack leftover mashed potatoes in a round container and refrigerate overnight. Dump from container, slice into 1" slices, and fry. Turn once like a pancake. Serve as hashbrowns.
10) Use leftover mashed potatoes to make "Shepherd's Pie." (recipe follows)
11) Shred leftover roast or save cooked hamburgers & crumble to use as sloppy joes. Meat can be frozen to use at a later date.
12) Shred or puree leftover veggies and freeze in ice cube trays. These can be added to spaghetti sauce, soups, etc. for added nutrition and to sneak them past a picky eater.

Recipe for Leftover Vegetable Casserole:

Use chicken, ham or a can of tuna fish. Add 8-12 oz of cooked noodles or corkscrew or elbow macaroni. Leftover vegetables could be carrots, corn, peas, etc. Combine these ingredients with a can of cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup. Place in a casserole dish and top with bread crumbs, potato chip crumbs, or frozen onion rings. Heat at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes or until warmed through.

Recipe for Meat and Potato Casserole:
1 3/4 lbs. pork or beef roast
1 cup stock or bouillon
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
2 TB flour
4 potatoes
dash of salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups milk
1/4 cup grated cheese

Saute onion in butter. Add stock, chopped garlic, and meat. Thicken with flour. Cook and mash potatoes (or use leftovers). Add salt, eggs and milk. Place meat in casserole dish. Cover with potatoes. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of grated cheese. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.

Recipe for Shepherd's Pie:
1 1/2 lbs. hamburger
1 TB dry onion or 1 chopped onion
1 can string beans (or leftover green beans)
1 can cream of chicken or mushroom soup OR 1 can tomato sauce + 1 TB chili powder
Mashed potatoes (leftovers)
grated cheese

Brown hamburger & onion; drain. Put in casserole and add layer of beans. If using soup, only drain half the liquid off of the beans, or add 1/2 cup water. Spread soup or tomato sauce over meat and beans, then spread potatoes over the top. Bake uncovered for 25-30 min. Add cheese the last 5 min. of cooking.

Resourceful Recipes - Part 9, Old Cottage Cheese

Ideas for Using Up Old Cottage Cheese:
1) Add it to pancakes or waffles.
2) Mash, spread on a slice of bread, sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar and broil until hot and bubbly. Serve with juice for a yummy and healthy breakfast.
3) Make "Carefree Promises" (crackers). See recipe below.

Recipe for Carefree Promises:
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup margarine
1 cup creamed cottage cheese

In a bowl, mix flour and salt. Cut in margarine and cottage cheese with a pastry blender. Wrap dough in waxed paper and chill at least one hour. Roll out to 1/8" thickness on a floured board. Cut out with 2" cookie cutter and place on ungreased baking sheet. Prick with a fork. Bake at 450 degrees F for 10-12 minutes. Makes about 100 crackers. Try using various seasonings for a change, like chives, dill, sesame seed, onion, garlic, etc.)

Resourceful Recipes - Part 8, Old Bottled Fruit or Jam

Ideas for Using Up Old Bottled Fruit or Jam:
1) Make "Spoiled Fruit Cake". (recipe below)
2) Make "Spice Cake." (recipe below)
3) Use old jam to make "Old Jam Cookies." (recipe below)

Recipe for Spoiled Fruit Cake:
4 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 tsp. salt
3 tsp. cinnamon
3 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cloves
1 quart fruit
1 cup oil
1 egg
3 1/2 tsp baking soda

Mix together in a large bowl: flour, sugar, salt and spices. In blender, combine fruit, plus the juice, egg, and oil and blend well. Add half of the dry mixture & blend. Then add baking soda. Be careful, as this will foam up. Add to the other mixture. You may add raisins, chocolate chips, or nuts, if desired. Bake in 3 loaf tins or a 9x19" pan at 325 degrees F for 1 hour.

Recipe for Spice Cake:
1 tsp. baking soda
2 cups fruit, drained
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cloves
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
nuts and raisins, optional

Mix baking soda with fruit and let stand while you sift the dry ingredients together. Add oil, eggs, vanilla, fruit and nuts. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 40-60 minutes.

Recipe for Old Jam Cookies:
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup jam
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup nuts

Beat shortening, jam, egg, vanilla, flour, baking soda and salt with electric mixer. Add chips and nuts. Drop onto greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes.

Resourceful Recipes - Part 7, Old or Over-Ripe Fruit

Ideas for Using Up Old Fruit:
Obviously-- throw away any fruit that smells bad, has been stored too long, is moldy or slimy!! Use your judgement!
1) Leftover pumpkin from Jack-o-Lanterns can be pureed to use as canned pumpkin in bread or cookies.
2) Old or over-ripe apples are good in an "Upside-Down Cake." (recipe follows)
3) Make fruit leather.
4) Over-ripe bananas can be mashed & frozen to be later baked into bread or added to muffin recipes.
5) Fruit purees can be substituted for fat in many recipes.
6) Prepare gelatin with fruit juices instead of water.
7) Mash and mix into pancake batter.
8) Zucchini (yes it is technically a fruit) can be grated and frozen, then later used in casseroles and soups. Great way to store it for later use when it is so plentiful in the summer. Grate the zucchini, then steam blanch it before freezing.

Recipe for Upside-Down Cake:
Cut apples into slices and layer to cover bottom of cake pan. Sprinkle brown sugar on top of apples. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Make a cake following the directions on the cake mix box, and pour batter over apple mixture. Bake according to directions on the cake mix package. Serve warm topped with whipped cream.

Resourceful Recipes - Part 6, Stale Cold Cereal

Ideas for Using Up Stale Cold Cereal:
1) Use corn flake crumbs in dessert, crumb crusts, or as a topping on casseroles.
2) Use flakes to make "Ranger Cookies". (recipes follows)
3) Use Cheerios to make "Chocolate-O Bars". (recipe follows). Click here for more recipes using Cheerios. You'll be surprised at what you can make!!
4) Use Chex to make chex mix or any of the wide varieties of recipes they have on their website.

Recipe for Ranger Cookies:
1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 beaten eggs
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups oats
2 cups wheat flakes
1 cup coconut

Cream shortening and sugars. Add eggs. In separate bowl, combine baking powder, salt, baking soda and mix well. Then add to shortening mixture. Stir in vanilla, oats, flakes and coconut. Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet, or roll into walnut-sized balls. Flatten slightly with a glass and bake them at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes. Makes about 4 dozen.

Recipe for Chocolate-O Bars:
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 (6 oz) package of chocolate chips
1 tsp. vanilla
4 cups of Cheerios

In saucepan, heat corn syrup to boiling. Remove from heat and add chocolate chips and vanilla. Stir until chips are melted. Add Cheerios and stir until well coated. Pour into a greased 9x9" pan. Allow to cool for 1 hour. Cut into bars.

Resourceful Recipes - Part 5, Leftover Cooked Rice

Ideas for Using Up Leftover Cooked Rice:
1) Add rice to pancakes or waffles.
2) Use in soups or casseroles.
3) Stir-fry with vegetables and meat for fried rice.
4) Make "Glorified Rice" by adding rice and fruit (pineapple, bananas, peaches, etc.) and whipped cream. Serve cold.

If you have additional ideas for any of these leftover recipes, please add them!

Resourceful Recipes - Part 4, Leftover Cooked Cereal

Ideas for Using Leftover Cooked Cereal:
1) Add to hamburgers or meatloaf
2) Make "Ginger Softies" (recipe follows).

Recipe for Ginger Softies:
5 1/2 cups sifted flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 TB ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup molasses
1 & 1/2 cups cooked oatmeal, cooled
Raisins, if desired

Cream shortening and sugar. Add eggs. Add dry ingredients alternately with molasses. Stir in oatmeal and rest of ingredients. Blend well. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Work with half of dough at a time. Turn out onto floured board. Roll to 3/8" thickness. Cut with a cookie cutter. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for about 12 minutes. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Resourceful Recipes - Part 3, Stale Cake & Cookie Crumbs

Ideas for Using Up Stale Cake:
1) Crumble and use as a base in desserts as you would vanilla wafers or graham cracker crumbs.
2) Use it to make a trifle. (recipe follows)
3) Use it to make a rich and decadent bread pudding.
4) Cut it into small pieces and freeze them in an airtight container. Use as a mix-in when making homemade ice cream or just add to a softened store-bought vanilla ice cream.
5) Remember that you can put your stale cake crumbs into an air tight container or Ziploc bag and freeze for later use.

Recipe for Trifle:
2 (3 & 3/4 oz) packages of vanilla pudding (not instant)
About 3/4 of an angel food cake (or other white cake)
1 or 2 cups of fruit (can use leftovers)
2 cups whipping cream

Fix pudding according to the directions on the package. Allow to cool completely. Whip 1 cup of cream and fold into pudding. Layer in bowl (preferably clear glass bowl so you can see the layers). Tear half of cake into bite sized pieces. Put in bottom of bowl. Sprinkle with fruit juice to make the cake more moist. Spoon a layer of pudding over the cake. Put about 1 cup of fruit next. Repeat layers of cake, pudding and fruit. Top with another layer of pudding. Smooth and garnish with whipped cream. Refrigerate and serve cold.

Ideas for Using Leftover Cookie Crumbs:

1) Use as dessert crumb crusts, like you would graham crackers or vanilla wafers.

2) Crumble and use as dessert toppings.
3) Remember that you can put your stale cookie crumbs into an air tight container or Ziploc bag and freeze for later use.

Resourceful Recipes - Part 2, Bread Crumbs

I hate that the ends of bread go to waste, or maybe my kids take one bite of a roll or something. I keep a ziploc bag or an old bread bag in my freezer. Whenever there is a piece of bread that is not going to be eaten, I add it to the bag. You can cut off the eaten portion (& throw it away!) if you know your kids aren't sick or didn't touch the roll at all. When the bag starts to get full, I take the bread out and spread it on a cookie sheet. I bake it at a high temperature (oh maybe 425 degrees F) for about 3-5 minutes, just long enough to toast the bread. Watch it closely so it doesn't burn. Then I take the toasted bread out and turn it into bread crumbs with my food processor. After all is finished, I separate the crumbs into individual ziploc bags of about 1 cup or so each. They are then ready to go when I need them for something. I should probably add this to the other post, but it is handy to have this stale bread bag in the freezer if you are going to go feed the ducks at the local pond. I always feel guilty when my husband uses a perfectly good bag of bread!

Ideas for Using Up Bread Crumbs:
1) Stir into melted butter and use as toppings on casseroles.
2) Use as an extender for meat loafs and hamburger patties.
3) Soften with part of liquid and use as part of flour in pancakes.
4) Make Bread Crumb Cookies. (recipe below)

Recipe for Bread Crumb Cookies:
1 1/2 cups raisins
2 cups water
1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
4 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp baking soda
2 cups bread crumbs
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
nuts, if desired

Boil raisins in water for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add shortening and sugar. Cool and add eggs and crumbs. Mix well, then add the rest of the ingredients. Drop onto greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.

Resourceful Recipes - Part 1, Stale Bread

I found some papers my mother-in-law had given me some time ago. These are recipes from ladies in her church who lived through the Great Depression (or had parents who did), so some of them may seem a bit extreme, but they certainly are not wasteful! I will add them as different posts, so it won't be quite so long. I have not tried them out, so if you do, please comment on what worked or would be a better suggestion! If I get time to try some of them out, I will try to come back and post a picture.

Ideas for Using Up Stale Bread:
1) Make into crumbs. Store in the freezer.
2) Cut into cubes. Season and toast in the oven for croutons.
3) Make French Toast.
4) Pieces of stale bread can be used as a thickening agent in soups and gravies.
4) Make Bread Pudding (recipe below).
5) Make Cinderella Bars (recipe below).
6) Feed the ducks with it. :)

Recipe for Bread Pudding
Tear apart into a bowl: 4 slices of stale bread or 4 hands-full of coarse bread crumbs
In another bowl, combine:
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
dash of salt
1 cup of canned milk
1 cup boiling water

Pour over bread and let soak for 10 minutes. Butter or grease individual baking dishes and spoon bread mixture into them. Sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar. Bake at 375 degrees F for about 25 minutes until puffy but "set". Serve for dessert with cream or for breakfast with milk over the top.

Recipe for Cinderella Bars
Remove crusts from 6 slices of stale bread. Cut into 4 fingers each. Dip into sweetened condensed milk (also known as Eagle Brand), and then roll in coconut. Bkae at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes.

Memberships

I need some opinions. I have had a Sam's Club membership for the last 9 years. It expired this past weekend and I am on the fence on whether to renew or not.

I have been looking into getting a Costco membership instead. Both Sam's and Costco are the same distance from my house just in different directions. I just can't decide if one is better than the other. So I am wondering what is your opinion? Do you like one over the other? Is there a reason behind it? What is your suggestion?

Some time and money..

Last night as I was making dinner, I realized something. It may be something you have already thought of or done, but for me it was a lightbulb going on.

I have been buying my hamburger meat in bulk for awhile. I wait for sales and buy those huge packages. When I get home, I usually figure out what a pound is, divide it up and freeze it flat so it will stack. That is a great and wonderful idea. But then last night as I was making a hamburger casserole, I was thinking that something so simple takes a bit of time and uses multiple dishes. So I figured.. why not brown all the meat at once, then divide it and freeze it? Then when I need browned meat I can just pull one out and thaw it. I usually do a menu ahead of time, but now I am going to attempt to do 2 or 3 week menu's so I can see how many times I would use browned meat. If you are already browning it for one meal and using a pan, why not brown it all and then you won't have that extra step later on. I am all about saving time these days, so it sounds like a wonderful idea to me.

First Frugal Challenge

How many of us actually KNOW the contents of our food storage/pantry?  If you do, you get a gold star.  Me? Not so much.

For example...

This week I was planning on buying a whole new package of gallon freezer bags because I was CERTAIN I was out of them (had been using quart size for about three weeks and was done. done. done. using quart size)  Well, the time came to pick them up and money ran a little tight, so I bought the food over the ziplock bags.  When I came home and was putting food away in our food storage area I was moving things around to better organize it... and viola!  What's in there?  TWO unopened boxes of gallon bags.  Yup.  I would have bought something I already had.  I've done this before with brown sugar, jello, crackers, yeast, etc. 

How often do we buy things we already have in our pantry?  

More than we should.   

This month's challenge:

By the end of the month: Go through your entire pantry, kitchen cupboards, and food storage area cataloging EVERYTHING in it, however you want.  Once you KNOW what you have you can start COOKING with what you have instead of continuing to buy things that you don't necessarily need.  Trust me, it's going to save you and me a lot of money.  

You in?  I am. 

Homemade Baby Food

When Max hit about 4 months, I realized how EXPENSIVE baby food is! 50 cents for one bottle sure adds up quick. Well, I wasn't about to pay that much for every meal, so I decided to make my own baby food. I don't think it even dented our budget. It was super easy...everything I made could be frozen and stored for 2-3 months. I usually made one new thing a week to add to what I already had. I froze each thing in ice cube trays, popped them out when they were done, and stored them in the freezer in labeled ziplock baggies. Here are a few of the things that I used:

Steamed veggies....peas, carrots, broccoli....pretty much anything works. I steamed, pureed, and froze each one individually to check for food allergies.
Libby's pumpkin pie filling....On the inside of the package it says that it is thoroughly cooked and great for baby food. I bought the big cans, took out enough for a few days, and froze the rest in individual servings.
Squash and sweet potatoes: I don't think anything is better for your baby than this. I baked them in the oven until they were super soft, pureed them with a little water, and put them in the freezer.
Split pea and lentil soup: great protein sources.
Meats: this wasn't a big hit with Max (no meat ever has been), but an easy mix-in with veggies or rice cereal. I just cooked the meat until it was done and then pureed it with a little water and put it in the freezer. Sounds gross, but it works :-).
Apples: peal, core, and slice the apples. Place in a saucepan with a little water. Cook until super soft. Puree.
Mashed avocados, pears, or bananas.

Anything, really, that you are having for dinner...just be really careful that you don't add salt to what you are going to be pureeing for the baby.

For more ideas, here is a great website that I've used a lot:
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/

Split Peas and Lentils

Last year I (re)discovered two wonderful things: split peas and lentils. I love them because:
They are both a great protein source (20 grams of protein in just one bowl of split pea soup).
A bag of either is less than 2 bucks.
They are a great addition to your food storage.
They puree great to make baby food. Rice cereal thickened them up a bit. *Just make sure to leave the salt out of the soup that you are pureeing for the baby....you can pour the soup into an ice cube tray to freeze into single-serving portions.
Either soup freezes well....make a big batch and have a few ready-made dinners to pull out of the freezer.
A bowl of lentil or split pea soup is perfect for a winter day.
Here are two of my favorite (and easy) recipes:

Split Pea Soup:
http://food.realsimple.com/realsimple/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1166928

Lentil Soup:
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/favorite-lentil-soup?autonomy_kw=lentil%20soup&rsc=header_1

Tip: We like to top these soups off with a dollop of plain, fat free yogurt and a little parmesean cheese. Corn bread or garlic bread on the side completes the meal.

I Love Thermos!

My husband works in an office on a large floor of a six-story building. On each floor there is a break-room with tables, a refrigerator, etc for the employees to eat their lunches. There is, however, only ONE microwave per floor. This causes quite a bottleneck at the noon hour, and standing around waiting for others to heat up their lunches takes away from his ability to get stuff done, especially when they bring microwave dinners that take 7-10 minutes (yes, someone does do that). He mentioned this to me one day, and I went to Target and bought this:

This is an awesome thermos. It is made by "Thermos" and it keeps food hot for 10 hours! It keeps stuff cold too. It holds about 2 cups of food, which is about perfect for the main dish. To increase the heat-holding ability, you heat up some hot water and pour it into the thermos and let it "preheat" for about 5 minutes. During that time, I heat up leftovers and get the rest of his lunch ready. Then dump out the water (or use it to make hot chocolate in another thermos) and fill with the food. I send him with a lunch box with other items in that can stay in the fridge, like applesauce or fruit salad, or maybe just a banana, along with some breadsticks or something.

I know that not everyone needs something like this, because they might have access to a better break-room situation. However, some people work construction or are on the road during their day and could easily have a hot lunch ready to go in the car, without access to a microwave. The thermos was $19.99 and I got it in November 2008. I know that's kind of expensive, but in about 4 lunches of being frustrated that he couldn't use the microwave so he went for fast-food, it paid for itself. It does come in various sizes, so you could get a larger or smaller one, depending on what you need.

I have the smaller versions for kids and my kids use them to take hot lunch to school (like spaghettios or macaroni and cheese). If you do this, make sure you use plastic silverware so you don't scratch the finish on the inside of the thermos. The kids' versions were about $12, but I think they have been worth it. If you were heading up to the slopes for a day of skiing or even wanted something *cold* during the summer months, this thermos would work.

They have versions for babies too, but I haven't purchased those. Might be really nice to have the food jar to keep stuff hot/cold on the go.

And, as long as I am doing my own little commercial for Thermos, we also have the beverage bottles, and we have one leak proof travel mug, which keep hot chocolate nice and hot for a long time, or keep drinks cold as well. Definitely an item where the name brand is worth its weight. I have also seen these products at Wal-mart and Shopko, but Target had the widest selection, at least in-store. Click the links to see what they have available.

Stretch Your Lipstick

Most of us have lipstick lying around that is all but gone or we decided we didn't like the color, texture, etc. Some lipsticks are really expensive, so here's a way to stretch them out longer: turn them into lip gloss. Here's what you do. Dig the remaining lipstick out of the tube. I used a steak knife because it had a sharp point and it worked pretty well.

In a microwave safe container, mix the leftover lipstick with an equal amount of petroleum jelly. (You could use more jelly if you want a little lighter color and to stretch your lipstick even further).

Melt it in the microwave for about 1 minute, stopping about every 20-30 seconds to stir with a stick or small spoon. Remove from the microwave and pour into a small container. Be careful if you use a glass jar like I did. It was really hot. This is what it looks like when it is melted. Use a small rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the jar. I poured mine into an empty Savex container, but you can purchase little containers at a beauty supply store.

Allow it to cool and you're done! The entire process - start to finish-- took about 2 & 1/2 minutes, counting the microwave time. It made about a half a container of lip gloss. You could also use this idea for lipstick that you bought but don't like because it is too intense. You could experiment by using more jelly than lipstick to see if you could tone it down, or you could mix 2 colors together. After all, if you aren't going to wear it because the color is too intense, what have you got to lose?

I saw this idea in the book "The Complete Tightwad Gazette" by Amy Dacyczyn. I was skeptical and didn't think it would actually work, but it did!

No More Lost Gloves

I am tired of replacing gloves for my kids. My husband hates the cheap gloves because they soak up water quickly and the kids end up with cold, wet hands. Good gloves aren't cheap, but kids lose gloves. It's kind of part of their job as kids. Here's my twist on the old "mittens-on-a-string" idea:

My kids have the kind of coats that have a fleece jacket as a lining. The jacket can be removed and each worn separately or together for extra warmth. To keep the jacket sleeves in place and prevent bunching and twisting, there is a little flap with a snap sewn to it. This flap goes through a little loop on the jacket sleeve. I took a piece of 6" long (1/2" wide) elastic from the fabric store, the kind used in waistbands, and hand-sewed it to the inside of each glove. (Other widths would be fine). If you can sew on a button, you can do this project. You will need a needle, some thread, scissors, and perhaps a thimble. Depends on the muscular strength of your fingers, I suppose. (I know you are tired of all my sewing posts, Lori, so drop off your gloves and I'll hook you up).
Then I snapped the flap from the coat through the loop. That's it. I used elastic because it would be stretchy and the kids could comfortably pull on the gloves to put them on. The gloves just hang on their coats all the time and they know where they are. Added bonus: if they get mixed up with somebody else's gloves, you'll know which ones are yours, for sure!

If you don't have this type of coat, you could sew two snaps onto a strip of fabric, and sew the strip to the inside of the coat sleeve.

It has worked now for two winter seasons, and we haven't lost any gloves. Another bonus? The gloves keep the elastics on them and can be passed on down to my other kids when my older kids outgrow them.

Total project cost: A bundle of elastic is about 99 cents for 1.5 yards, and it would do about 4.5 pairs of gloves, for about 22 cents a pair. (You'd need about 12" per pair).
Annual savings? Well, at $12 -14 a pair, you do the math!

Ziplock Bags!

My sister-in-law (who one day I'll convince to blog with us) is this amazing super saver shopper. Love this girl, she always hooks me up with the coolest sales/random money saving things.   She found a store in Pleasant View, UT that specializes in Humanitarian Projects.  They also have a store in Provo, UT.  They sell their items individually and everything is super cheap, especially their ziplock bags.  

Here is their website:

Mandalay

their ziplock bag prices:

ZIPPER SEAL BAGS 

2 GALLON BAGS   $6.25/100 or $49.00/1000

1 GALLON BAGS   $4.25/100 or $33.25/1000

6" x 9" BAGS    $1.60/100

3" x 5" BAGS    $0.60/100

 

NEW SLIDER ZIPPER SEAL BAGS

2 GALLON SLIDER BAGS $15.00/100

1 GALLON SLIDER BAGS $12.00/100

They have other great deals, but this is definitely the best.  

Hot Baggies

This post may seem a bit odd, but I have been racking my brain trying to think of stuff to post. This is a "hot baggie" (or whatever you want to call it). It is a piece of flannel filled with either regular rice or corn feed (the kind used to feed chickens).

Here's what you do: Put it in the microwave for about 1:30 to 2:00, and it will get nice and hot. Then you can snuggle under a blanket or put it under your covers for a toasty warm bed when you go to sleep. I am posting this, knowing it may not be the most frugal thing out there, but perhaps it could save a little (and it's cozy anyway). The instructions to make one are down below.

1) You could use it in your beds at night and then turn the thermostat down more while you are sleeping. They stay hot for quite a few hours when they are kept under blankets. Really, they do.

2) You do not have a need for an electric blanket, so you can save money by not using that (if you use one). Besides, it is safer because you won't have a risk of fire. Also, hot baggies can be used by people who are on oxygen, and electric blankets cannot, (so while this is not a frugal tip)- it may apply to your situation if you are oxygen and cold all the time.

3) NOTE: If you have babies or toddlers, I would not turn the thermostat down and use this in your bed instead. They don't stay under the covers like everyone else does, and they can't spread out a blanket if they are cold. So, I'm going to have to wait a few years for that one.

4) You can give a couple to your neighbors as a gift at Christmastime, with a cute poem or saying. Cheap, non-fattening, and doesn't promote tooth decay. Gotta love that.

Here's the poem I gave out when I did this for neighbor gifts in 2004. I wrote the poem, so no violations of copyrights or anything. You may use it if you like.

'Tis the season for hustle and bustle
Which gives a good reason to ease a sore muscle.
The miracle contents of this sack
Will please and soothe your aching back.

Just heat by microwave two minutes on high
And then for one hour kiss sore muscles good-bye!
Or take it along when you go see the lights
To keep out the chill of Jack Frost’s cold bite.

Store a sack in your freezer where it’s out of your way
And when your head is throbbing at the end of the day
You’ll be amazed at how it can relieve your stress
When you have a splitting headache & just aren’t your best.

I hope this Christmas season fills your heart
And your New Year gets off to a wonderful start.
I treasure your friendship at this Christmastime
And send warmest of wishes to your house from mine!

5) They can also be kept in the freezer and used for headaches, etc. but they don't stay as cold or cold as long as a store-bought ice pack does.

6) They have a lot of other uses, including relieving stomach cramps, sore muscles, children's "I'm feeling sick" complaints (sometimes), and they can travel in a stroller under blankets to keep your kiddos warm while you go see the Christmas lights, or for a walk. I'm sure you can think of other uses.

Here's how you make one: You cut a rectangle of flannel. Whatever size you want, really. Mine are about 9.5" x 6" finished. Fold in half right sides together, sew up the 2 sides, leaving one end open. Turn right side out. Press and turn under the raw edges of the unfinished edge. Fill with rice or chicken feed. Sew opening shut. Viola! You're done. (Note: You don't have to use flannel, but it works the best.)

You can purchase corn feed/chicken feed at a local farmer's store, like IFA (Intermountain Farmers' Association). It comes in a 50 lb. bag for about $5. Not bad. If you don't want to make a lot of them and don't want a 50 lb bag of chicken feed lying around, then split it with someone or just use regular plain old rice from the grocery store. That's it. Pretty simple. If you experiment with some other filling, let us know if it works!

One more thing.... the bags made with chicken feed kind of smell faintly like burned popcorn at first. Once the moisture in the corn is cooked out by your microwave as you use the bags a few times, the smell will go away. It's not offensive, but if you are super sensitive to smells, you may want to just use rice. They don't smell.