Attn Lessismore

[Aqua Blue]

OOps, I meant lessisbest, sorry I would really appreciate if you would respond to this thread with how you keep your food bill at such a low amount. Any tips, thoughts, menus, etc would be a big help. I need to get that area more under control and your seem to be a wealth of info. Actually anyone else can chime in too.:D!Splat! Thanks.

[lessisbest]

Home Food Storage is my key to having a $125/month food budget for 2 adults (food storage similar to what the LDS Church teaches - they have the information and methods free of charge on-line, and adjusted it to our particular likes and needs). I've always bought ahead when I found a bargain and always maintained at least 3-6-months worth of food. When the economy went crazy and they reduced the workers where hubby works by 50% and he received 3 cuts in his salary, I focused on these three levels of food storage using a $200/month food budget, and it took me 18-months to complete this task. I figured if we had enough for that "rainy" day, we could meet our bills and not worry about where the next meal comes from. If you want more information and inspiration, check out The Prudent Homemaker - http://theprudenthomemaker.com/, and especially her story: http://theprudenthomemaker.com/live/eat-for-less

I focus on INGREDIENTS, not convenience foods, and make my own "convenience" foods and mixes (but I've done that since I was married - 1971 - as a practical money-saver). Make all our breads and baked goods from scratch - before going gluten-free and the nearly 2-years since going gluten-free. I mill all my own flours, and have for over 25-years. I make all our cereal products (both hot cereal and cold). Commercial cereal is the biggest rip-off in the store at something like 19-cents of grain per box. Look how much you pay for the package and advertisement.

I stick to whole foods as much as possible (nature's original "fast" food), and choose nutrient-dense foods over empty calories. I do have a small garden and I forage any free food I can find. Even though I'm a certified home canning instructor, I no longer do home canning since I believe it's too expensive, due to the cost of utilities, for food that has so little nutritional value. I'm saving my money to purchase a home freeze-drying machine. I do, however, dehydrate a lot of food and food bargains (like frozen veggies). I don't have a stand-alone freezer, just the freezer on my side-by-side refrigerator/freezer. I only purchase food when it's at a rock-bottom, stock-up, price, I try never to pay full price for anything. I keep waste to a minimum since wasted food is the most expensive we buy.

Level 1: 72-hour Emergency Food. Foods from all the food groups that don't require heating and refrigeration. We've used this kit of food during an ice storm when we were without power for a prolonged period of time, and we live in tornado alley, so try to stay prepared with food and water for emergency use. All food in this kit gets rotated out like all the food in storage. I usually restock this when school starts when I can find many of the single-serving foods (typically used for lunch boxes) are on sale.

Level 2: Pantry Storage. This includes 6-12-months worth of food I normally use to prepare meals, ingredients for baking, spices, leavening, jam, condiments, etc.
When I had this level of food in place, I was spending 70-80% of my food dollars replacing food, or building food in Level 3.

Level 3: Long-term Emergency Foods - enough for 6-12 months (most of this is in #10 cans and has a long shelf-life. Freeze-dried meat, vegetables, fruit. Powdered milk (which I've used exclusively since 1981). A large complement of dried grains/beans/seeds. Coconut oil. All these foods get rotated into the kitchen pantry on a regular basis.

Tips:
--Tomato Powder - by using tomato powder I can make tomato paste, tomato sauce, tomato juice, pizza sauce, and any kind of red sauce for pasta. I can even make bbq sauce and ketchup by adding a few ingredients from the panty. Now I have one product that has multiple uses so I save money and space.

--Powdered Milk - when purchased in bulk amounts (bucket) will always save you money per gallon of milk over store bought milk. I usually make one milk purchase each year and enough for a year. Occasionally I will buy Morning Moo's Whey Based Milk Substitute when they have BOGO sale in #10 cans, and that is what I share with our adult children when they "shop" at our house. We use Morning Moo's because it has less lactose than regular milk for the lactose-intolerant family members.

--I have used real kefir grains to make kefir (using reconstituted powdered milk) for over a decade. Kefir is similar to yogurt, only much easier to make and better for you. I use it as a substitute for buttermilk, cream cheese, sour cream, and plain yogurt. You can drain it like yogurt for kefir "cheese".

--At one time my food budget was enough to purchase grass-fed beef and free-range chickens. This was especially true when the garden was in full swing and I really didn't buy many groceries, unless they were stock-up bargains. I would save my food budget to buy better quality meat, but alas, the last few years that hasn't been possible with cost increases. I use $10/week for meat purchases. I usually try to stay around $2/pound as much as possible, but no matter what the cost-per-pound, I don't exceed my $10 limit. If I can't find a meat bargain I'll save the money for another time when I do find one.

--Mix high-costing protein (meat) with low-costing protein (eggs, beans, meat extenders). You can't "stretch" protein by adding a lot of carbohydrates and still get a serving of protein. Tuna, when you figure it by the pound is NOT a meat bargain. A 69-cent can of tuna = $2.21# for meat, which is over my $2 per pound goal. In order to "stretch" the expensive protein, tuna, I will add egg or beans to get more servings of protein out of it without adding carbohydrates (e.g. rice, pasta) because most people consume far more servings of carbohydrates than they need already. I might serve a half-serving of meat (1-1/2 oz.) + beans in a Tuscan Chicken recipe in order to still get a whole serving (3-oz.) of protein. Before going gluten-free, I would make "wheat meat" (aka seitan or gluten) and would mix the grain-based protein with ground meat (50/50) to make a complete protein.

--Overeating anything is wasted food. I teach nutrition classes and have always been a stickler for portion control. For our daily meal plans I follow the old Basic-4, and have been using it as a guideline for meal planning since the 1970's.

Bread & Cereal - 4 servings daily (ours are all wholegrain)
Fruits & Vegetables - 4 servings (or more) daily
Meat or Meat Alternative - 2 servings daily
Milk/Dairy - 2 servings daily
I also add a small serving of some kind of nuts each day, and for the most part, dessert is some kind of fruit.

I don't make a menu for each day, but I do follow a theme for each day of the week, and meet the food requirements found in the Basic-4.

Monday- Big Meal - Usually includes a large cut of meat, or enough individual pieces to use for several meals, sandwich meat, and sometimes a portion for the freezer. If there is a meaty carcass or cooking juices, they are used for making soup/stock/broth.
Tuesday - Leftovers - May or may not look like the meal from the day before. It may be leftovers from a previous meal or something found in the freezer.
Wednesday - Stir-Fry - A great way to use of small amounts of any kind of meat, as well as fresh or frozen vegetables.
Thursday - International - Which usually means something using a tortilla or pasta.
Friday - Vegetarian - A good way to save on meat.
Saturday - Soup and/or Sandwich - Soup is generally made with leftovers and stored in the freezer in user-friendly amounts. A sandwich can be anything from Sloppy Joes to Lettuce wraps.
Sunday - Homemade pizza. A great way to use up small amounts of veggies and almost any kind of meat. During hot weather, and when the garden is in full swing, this is usually a dinner salad.
Other themes that would also work: casseroles, crock-pot, something easy, something new, grill/BBQ, comfort/traditional.....
Nearly every dinner provides for lunches as well. I try to make 3 new recipes each week.

I like the theme method because I can change any one day for another, or leave any day out without messing the whole thing up. The freezer is my "friend".

[catherine]

Great, super helpful post, lessisbest! Thanks for the info, and thanks for the question, Aqua Blue!

[lessisbest]

These are tips I've collected over the years and have used in a number of food and budgeting classes, in no particular order.


-Buy seasonal foods. I save a budget amount from my grocery money to stock up on nuts when they go on sale after the holidays. If you use condiments, stock-up during the “grilling” holidays (Labor Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July) when they are sold as loss-leaders.

-Increase the time in the kitchen, not the time spent at the store. I like KIND bars, so I make them myself for a fraction of the price, and I make mine much smaller so they last longer.

-Compare prices and unit prices. A block of cheese is generally less per pound than shredded cheese and cheese slices. You CAN use your own shredded cheese to make a grilled cheese sandwich and leave the processed cheese spread slices at the store. If you use shredded cheese instead of a cheese slice, you will find you can use much less.

-For every set of hands it takes to prepare your food, it will cost more. Which means, buy whole apples, not ready-to-eat apple slices in the produce section.

-Buying whole grains/seeds/beans is much less expensive than buying them processed into flour, baked goods, snacks….. Buy lettuce and cabbage by-the-head, not in the bag already washed or shredded.

-Use whole popcorn kernels and a popcorn popper instead of microwave packets.

-Buy family-size packages of meat and portion them yourself.

-A FoodSaver WILL actually save you money and time in the kitchen and is a good investment.

-Make sure coupons actually save you money. Try to stack savings when using a coupon. Use it when the item is also on sale, or it includes a rebate. Avoid purchasing something just because you have a coupon. Make sure it's something you actually use on a regular basis.

-Ditch the bottled water, single-serving sizes (unless for the 72-hour kit), snack foods (unless you make them yourself).

-Eliminate convenience foods. If you normally use pancake mix, make your own mix or simply make a recipe of pancake batter. The same ingredients that go into making a pancake mix can also be used for many other things, while pancake mix typically makes pancakes/waffles.

-I store and use powdered eggs. When the price per egg for fresh whole eggs goes up in the winter more than the price of powdered eggs, I’ll use powdered whole eggs. Have the ingredients for an egg substitute on hand (like flax seeds and chia seeds) for when you are out of eggs.

-Eat a healthy, decent-sized breakfast.

-Eat lower on the food chain. Choose food that is recognizable AS food and minimally processed.

-Eating out is a HUGE budget leak.

-Avoid high-priced items. Better yet, grow your own. When I first purchased amaranth, it was a high-priced item. The next spring I planted a small number of seeds from the health-food store purchase. I had enough amaranth seeds from 12-plants to last us for 2-years of breakfast food, flour, added to quick breads instead of expensive poppy seeds….

-Eat less.

-Cook less, and when you do cook, use methods that use less energy – e.g. Solar Oven, Thermos Cooking, One-Pot Meals, Slow-Cooker, etc.

-Use the less-expensive version of everything.

-Save parings from vegetables to make vegetable stock.

-You can reduce the amount of sugar in many baked goods by 25% and not alter the end result. The fat in a recipe can also be reduced.

-Make your own: potato chips, hummus, jam/jelly, shredded cheese, yogurt, fruit roll-ups, sprouts,….

-Have a target price for many of the foods you purchase. Keep track of prices by keeping a Price Book. If you don’t know the lowest price, you will certainly end up by paying more.

-Choose food with a long shelf life. Flour keeps well for about 12-months, wheat keeps for 3 decades.

-If fresh produce is expensive, use canned or frozen.

-Cut and grind your own mean if it will save money to do so.

-Choose more meatless meals. Have a baked potato and toppings night, or a soup and bread night.

-Check out turkey thighs for a meat value. Ground turkey is also now less expensive than ground beef per pound, and can be used in almost any recipe like ground beef.

-Eat soup.

-Buy a whole boneless pork loin and cut your own chops.

-It will appear that you have more meat if you chop, crumble, cube or shred it.

-Use dried onions as a pantry staple rather than fresh onions.

-Measure, don’t guess.

-Have breakfast for dinner one night a week and use less meat, or go meat-free.

-Choose recipes with only a few ingredients.

-Analyze each expense, watch the scanner and check the receipt for errors.

-Eggs are one of the less expensive options for complete protein.

-“Shop” at home first. Know what you already have on hand or what you normally keep in inventory.

-Look for food that costs $1 or less per pound. Pay for food, not packaging.

-When you purchase food by-the-pound, choose the most pieces of fruit. If it comes pre-packaged in a bag (e.g. 3-pounds of apples for one price), be sure to weigh the bags because they are often heavier than 3-pounds – get the largest number of fruit in a bag. We usually consider one piece of fruit a “serving”, so when you buy bananas, choose the smallest bananas and you will get more per pound. If you must buy large bananas, consider ½ a banana a serving.

-Choose high-fiber foods and you will feel fuller longer: corn, mushrooms, apples, pears, berries, peas, oranges, dried figs, legumes, bamboo, whole grains. Use nuts, including nut meal/flour and nut butters.

-Save your trimmings (vegetable, meat, beans, grains, etc.), and use for broth, soup.

-Bread heels/crusts/broken pieces can be used to make crumbs (dry or fresh) and can be used to make cookies, brownies, pancakes/waffles, not just croutons and dried bread crumbs.

-Remove little $ wasters…. If you can’t use something in a timely manner, figure out an alternative, such as getting an ingredient like chopped green pepper at the salad bar rather than buying a whole pepper that you might not use.

-If money is tight, purchase a large bag of frozen mixed vegetables. Divide it by the different vegetables, and leave a small portion mixed vegetables. Now you only need to purchase one bag instead of 4 or 5 bags.

-Buy in bulk when possible.

-Know “good” carbs from “bad” carbs and choose more good than bad.

-NEVER run out (home food storage), and if you do, make-do.

-Pay for better nutrition – e.g. black rice instead of white or brown rice, chia seeds, flax seeds, cacao nibs….

-Eliminate health offenders.

-Identify budget killers – snack food, single-servings, sugary, high-fat, empty calories.

-I store the “Seven Survival Foods” grains, legumes, seeds for sprouting, fat, salt, sweetener, and powdered milk, and can use them to provide any meal of the day.

-Your cart should have at least 5 colors of food.

-Shop the perimeter of the store. If you must purchase something from the middle isles, the food should contain fewer than 4-ingredients. More than that and it quickly falls into being a non-food. Foods with more than 25-ingredients: Reese’s Puff Cereal (27-ingredients), Cheez Whiz (27-ingredients), Frozen Blueberry Eggo’s (29-ingredients), Snicker’s P. B. Candy Bar (30-ingredients), Nutri-Grain Strawberry Yogurt (56-ingredients), Morning Star Farms Chik’n Nuggets (59-ingredients), Lunchable Ham & American Cracker Stackers (61-ingredients), KFC Chicken Pot Pie (more than 100 ingredients).

-Frozen meals should stay in the freezer isle. If you need them for convenience, make your own.

-ALWAYS pay for your food with cash.

-Be thankful. Gratitude turns what we have into enough.

[Tammy]

That's a great list

[domestic goddess]

Thank you, Less







Thank you, Lessisbest, for your comment on gratitude. I find that is something that is often missing when people are trying to cut their food spending. Too many people look at it as a hardship, and are constantly glum about it. We've had good times and not-so-good times, as has everyone, but I always try to stay upbeat about even the bad times. If we only have popcorn and water in the house for dinner (and that has never happened) there are always people who have less.
My problem is that the rest of my family really can't deal with the notion of stockpiling food. There shouldn't be more than what we need for one week, according to them. Sometime I'm going to do that, and see how long it is before they are going out to buy stuff! But if I am not extremely vigilant, they will throw out perfectly good food because it is "too much". I can't tell you how many times I have gone to make something, knowing that I have all the ingredients, and find that they threw it out 2 days before. It is really annoying, and I have announced to them all that I was going to make such and such a treat for us all (it is always a treat I use in my moan) but I can't do it because a key ingredient is missing. Often dsil will say that he threw it out because it had been in the cupboard "a long time", which is about 2 weeks to him. I have to find some better hiding places! But it isn't my house so there is only so much I can do. Part of the problem is that this house has no pantry, but I am going to be seeking out other hiding places.

[frugal-one]

-A FoodSaver WILL actually save you money and time in the kitchen and is a good investment.

I have one to go out for my next garage sale. I have never used it and wonder why you consider it a good investment? Perhaps, I should try it out?

[Teacher Terry]

We only grocery shop 1x per month & that has saved us lots of $. The only exception is picking up a few perishables like fruit, milk, etc. I just get creative with the pantry.

[lessisbest]

-A FoodSaver WILL actually save you money and time in the kitchen and is a good investment.

I have one to go out for my next garage sale. I have never used it and wonder why you consider it a good investment? Perhaps, I should try it out?

I'm on my third FoodSaver. I purchased my first one used in 1986 (it was a demo. unit) and use them every day. I have it out on a baker's rack with the bags, Universal Lids, and some of the small containers and canisters in a decorative basket I use for food storage. The FoodSaver goes hand-in-glove with home food storage. If I used it for nothing other than vacuum-sealing dry goods purchased in bulk in canning jars, it would be worth the cost. Once I open a #10 can of freeze-dried food I portion it between canning jars and vacuum-seal a canning lid on it with the FoodSaver. I purchase powdered milk by the bucket - enough for a year - and I vacuum-seal it in 1/2-gallon canning jars to extend shelf-life. If it's a food that is moved from the food storage room in the basement to the pantry, I'll replace the canning lid with a FoodSaver Universal Lid (more convenient to get into and reseal than a canning lid) or a regular canning lid and ring or a plastic jar lid - depending on how quickly the food will be used.

There are 5 deadly enemies for your food storage:
1) Heat
2) Light
3) Moisture
4) Oxygen
5) Insect Infestation

When you store grains/seeds/beans (and other dry goods) in vacuum-sealed canning jars/canisters/bags, you will automatically eliminate the potential for insect infestation due to the oxygen-free storage. I have adjusted shelves in my pantry so they are narrow enough to place one canning jar on it's side and you can see the lid from the front of the shelf. Now I don't have jars 2 or 3 deep, just one jar deep. I have spray-painted my canning lids with chalkboard paint and I write the contents of the jar on the lid with regular chalk or (liquid) chalk markers and can quickly see what's in the jar. Not all jars in my pantry are vacuum-sealed, but most foods that aren't used quickly will get vacuum-sealed to extend shelf-life. If you live where it's humid, vacuum-sealing your food will keep it from absorbing moisture.

Meat is the highest priced food I purchase and I vacuum-seal it to prevent freezer burn, and it will also store much longer in the freezer. I portion soup/chili/stew into user-friendly amounts in plastic storage containers. When they are completely frozen I pop them out of the plastic containers and stack the "cubes" into a FoodSaver bag and vacuum-seal shut. Now I can use the storage containers for something else. I also portion meaty pasta sauce, ground meat base mixtures, shredded meat, and portioned raw and cooked meats destined for the freezer either in plastic containers, or in portions in a small zip-lock snack-size bag, and vacuum-seal them in a FoodSaver bag. I make "sausage" with ground turkey and spices, and precook 2-3 pounds of it. I portion enough for breakfast-for-2 in a zip-lock snack bag and vacuum-seal all the zip-lock bags into a FoodSaver bag. I may only make this a couple times a year. I also make my home-grown potatoes into freezer mashed potatoes and freeze them in user-friendly amounts. I may only make mashed potatoes a couple times a year, once after I harvest potatoes from the garden, and a second time when I can purchase potatoes on sale - BOGO. I dehydrate my cooked sweet potatoes on fruit leather sheets and blend the crispy dry sweet potatoes into sweet potato powder - just add water - because I don't have enough room for them in my freezer.

I also make cooked beans and rice, frozen fruit and vegetables (commercial or not) and portion them into FoodSaver bags for storage. When you lay the bags flat (opening to the side), you can make a flat bag that I "file" in plastic totes in the freezer. I can flip through the grains/beans/fruit/veggies and take out what I need. If I need a smaller amount, just open the bag and give it a tap and the food will break into individual pieces so you can measure out what you need. Then just reseal the bag shut. For things that you want in individual pieces (like blueberries, grains, etc.) I'll quick-freeze them on a cookie sheet, then place in a FoodSaver bag in a single layer (bag opening to the side), then seal the bag shut.

I also have a number of silver serving pieces I store vacuum-sealed in FoodSaver bags so they are oxygen-free and don't tarnish between uses.

[awakenedsoul]

I do most of the things lessisbest mentioned. It has cut my grocery bill in half! I'm also spending very little money on meat and poultry now. Instead, I am buying soup bones in bulk, and storing them in the freezer. I have a few large mugs of the bone and vegetable broth each day. Today's batch has ox tail, beef knuckle bones, and barley.
My orchard saves me a lot of money, too. Fruit was my biggest grocery expense. Now I buy it in bulk for $1.00 a lb. at our organic co op. In the winter, I don't need to buy much...I grow a lot of citrus.

[Aqua Blue]

Thanks for all the tips. If you think of more, keep them coming please.

[flowerseverywhere]

Can you detail how you make "sausage". I make an excellent sausage soup and like it on pizza or with eggs and would love to mix my own if I knew how. ESpecially since I would know what was in it.

Your tips are great. I wanted to add that one thing that is important is learning how to make food flavorful. It is pretty easy to grow various herbs and use spices. For instance, on thanksgiving we oven roasted butternut squash with garlic and pepper, it was sensational. Soups and savory beans go a long way to providing flavorful and satisfying meals. I always have a batch of sprouts to add to soups, stews and stir fries. I also have sourdough always brewing.

keep the suggestions coming.

[Blackdog Lin]

What a great discussion! Thanks lessisbest and everyone.

[lessisbest]

[QUOTE=flowerseverywhere;191418]Can you detail how you make "sausage". I make an excellent sausage soup and like it on pizza or with eggs and would love to mix my own if I knew how. ESpecially since I would know what was in it.

QUOTE]

Funny you should ask.... I took a sausage making class at a hoity-toity kitchen supply shop, and after all the training decided to use the KISS method because they got all giddy about spice and meat mixtures, different grinds, and mixtures from different parts of the world..... Anyway, I mix ground turkey (can be dark and light mix -which has a little more fat - or breast meat-only - which has less fat and you may need to add some fat. You can find recipes on-line, but I just mix the ground meat with "Breakfast Sausage Seasoning Mix" from The Spice House ((http://www.thespicehouse.com/), or look at other sausage mixtures there and at Penzys (https://www.penzeys.com/) and often you'll find a meat market with their own mixtures that can be really good. You can also grind your own turkey, especially if you can find it less per pound than ground turkey. Turkey thighs have a lot of flavor if you grind them for sausage. Just remember to remove the skin. The skin is where the bacteria harbors, as well as fat, so don't grind it into your ground turkey.

I have to make my sausage very lean and very mild flavor (avoid garlic, black pepper, red pepper flakes) due to post gallbladder dumping syndrome. I know, it doesn't sound like much, but it's a better alternative than nothin' >8).

[lessisbest]

*Tip from “Cut Your Grocery Bill in Half” by Steve and Annette Economides on the topic of EGGS:
Given the small difference in average liquid volume between medium and large eggs, always check the price of medium-size eggs. When the price difference is less than 5-cents per dozen, buy the larger size. If greater than 5-cents, buy the medium eggs.

*If your grocery store offers small and large carts, use the smaller cart as much as possible. If you are only getting a few items use the hand-basket. When carts doubled in size people bought 19% more. Add to that using a credit card for the purchase, you can add another 8-12% (and even more if you carry a credit card balance). In a study by Cornell University – “When shoppers used credit cards, they bought more unhealthful “vice” foods than they did “virtue” foods. Researchers suggest that you’re less likely to impulsively buy junk food if it means parting with a hundred dollar bill than swiping plastic."

*The more people purchase, the more they consume (over-eating). Remember when pop/soda came in a 6-pack and how long that lasted, then 12, and now 24….. That is a good example of yesterday’s luxuries or treats becoming today’s necessities. If you want to shed some weight, buy and prepare reasonable amounts of food from all the food groups (NO, mac and cheese is NOT a complete meal) and use a small plate to serve your meals on. Overeating anything is a waste of food and $$$.

*When possible, avoid the produce section where they use a mister to keep it “fresh”. Reach in the back where the mister doesn’t reach the produce. Misting actually adds to the weight and produce will mold and rot quicker.

*French and Italian Bread are essentially the same thing, check for the lowest price, not the country. Check out the recipe at The Prudent Homemaker - she makes a loaf for 25-cents. http://theprudenthomemaker.com/french-bread

*Most meat markdowns are between 8-10 a.m.

*Check the deli counter at your favorite grocer because they may reduce sliced deli meat by 25-50% at 7 or 8 p.m. in order to move it out of the deli counter at the end of the day.

-Did you know you can bake potatoes in a slow-cooker? Fill the cooker full of potatoes and use them for potato salad, fried potatoes/hash browns, etc…. You can even rice or mash baked potatoes like you would boiled potatoes. Make them into freezer mashed potatoes and place them in user-friendly amounts in freezer containers or zip-lock bags to use later. http://www.ehow.com/how_4938015_bake-potatoes-crock-pot.html

-What can you make with 5-pounds of flour….
A 5# bag of flour equals approximately 18-20 cups.
-Loaf of bread – 3-4 cups
-12 muffins – 1-3/4 cups
-8-10 pancakes – 1-cup
-3 dozen cookies – 2-cups
-2 c. = eight 9” tortillas
-2-2-1/4 c. = 5 servings of noodles
-2 c. = 12-20 biscuits
-1 c. = recipe of crepes
-1-1/2 c. = 8-inch Wacky Cake
-Pizza Crust – 1-1/2 to 2 cups
-1 c. per cup of homemade baking mix http://yesterfood.blogspot.com/2013/08/homemade-baking-mix-bisquick.html

*Go meatless at least one day a week. Meatless options...
-Baked potato with toppings
-Veggie and Cheese pizza
-Grilled cheese sandwich , nochos, quessadilla
http://damndelicious.net/2013/09/01/loaded-nachos/
-Eggs or breakfast favorites
-Grilled veggies
-PBJ sandwich roll-ups
-Dinner Salads
-Taco Salad with vegetarian chili
-Spaghetti with Marinara Sauce
-Raw veggies and dips
-Vegetable soup

-Only purchase what you need – but everyone can justify nearly anything….

-Only buy what you can pay for.

-Only buy after you’ve compared prices. Make yourself a Price Book: http://organizedhome.com/kitchen-tips/make-price-book-save-money

-Only compare yourself TO yourself – not the “Jones”. It may go a long way to saving you money.

-Did you realize the first bottled water was EVIAN, which is NAÏVE spelled backwards. Ditch the bottled water.

-Save energy and time, make 60-Second Pasta. Soak pasta 8-hours in water. When ready to cook, drop into boiling salted water for 60 seconds.

-Make your own French fries and sweet potato fries. These numbers come from an article from local.com 9/29/11.
Small fries ($1) at McDonald’s
McDonald’s own their own potato farms, so they pay about 75-cents for 10# of potatoes. That small portion of fries you paid $1 for costs them about 1-cent to make. They are making a 1,000% profit!!! You can make your own for about 20-cents per serving.

I’ll also add, you can also make your own potato chips and tortilla chips for much less.

[catherine]

There should be some way to "stickie" this thread for easy reference--is there, Alan? There's so much great information in just a few posts.

Thank you, lessisbest. Great new information, great reinforcers of behavior simple livers might already be practicing, and great motivation.

[Aqua Blue]

lessismore, would you post how to reconstitute tomato powder for tomato sauce and also how you make catsup and bbq sauce from it? I know you posted making tomato sauce somewhere, but I couldn't find it and I would appreciate having it on this thread. Any other hints you, or anyone else has would be greatly appreciated. My New Years goal is to improve in this area. Thanks

[ToomuchStuff]

There should be some way to "stickie" this thread for easy reference--is there, Alan? There's so much great information in just a few posts.

Thank you, lessisbest. Great new information, great reinforcers of behavior simple livers might already be practicing, and great motivation.


Couple of things, one is at the top of this thread, there is a rate this thread thing, using it tend to be good on threads about FAQ's and such.
Also there is the thread tools, where you can email this thread to yourself (to remember) or subscribe to this thread (think of it as user profile bookmarks).

[MaryHu]

Back when we used to eat more meat I used to make my own Italian sausage. I made it so lean I had to oil the pan I cooked it in! Here's the recipe I used from a great old (1979) cookbook called "Make Your Own Groceries":
3 1/2 lbs boneless pork butt
Enough extra fat if necessary to make a 2 to 1 lean to fat ratio (needless to say you don't have to observe that ratio if you don't want; I certainly didn't)
2 or 3 tsp fennel seeds
2 to 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 TB Salt (can be reduced if desired)
3/4 tsp pepper
1 to 2 tsp red pepper flakes for hot sausage if desired
Grind the meat, blend in the spices and shape into patties. Let sit in fridge for a day or 2 for the spices to permeate. Freezes well.

For breakfast sausage:
2 1/2 lbs boneless pork butt
Enough extra fat if necessary to make a 2 to 1 lean to fat ratio
2 1/2 tsp sage
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp EACH pepper & marjoram
1/2 tsp savory
1/4 tsp nutmeg
4 TB water
Grind meat and mix in spices and water, shape into patties, let sit in fridge only 1 day before using. Freezes well.

There are also recipes for keilbasa, bratwurst and chorizo

This is a great cook book. It has many recipes for make your own convenience foods. The ones I have tried really taste true to original. My copy is well used!

[lessisbest]

lessismore, would you post how to reconstitute tomato powder for tomato sauce and also how you make catsup and bbq sauce from it? I know you posted making tomato sauce somewhere, but I couldn't find it and I would appreciate having it on this thread. Any other hints you, or anyone else has would be greatly appreciated. My New Years goal is to improve in this area. Thanks

The instructions on Pure Tomato Powder (The Spice House), but the ones I've used (including from #10 cans) work about the same.

Paste - 3 parts water with 1 part tomato powder
Sauce - 4 parts water with 1 part tomato powder
You can make it any thickness or richness you like, but the above ratios are a good place to start.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For 1/2 c. tomato sauce: 1/8 c. (2 T.) tomato powder + enough water to equal 1/2 c.

For BBQ sauce and catsup, find a recipe (on-line or in a cookbook) that uses tomato sauce and/or tomato paste as it's base and just make the base from tomato powder.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You can also dehydrate tomato skins from fresh tomatoes (great use for them when you can tomatoes and have to remove all those skins before processing them) to make tomato powder. Dehydrate the skins in a dehydrator at 125°-135°F until crispy dry. Place the dried skins WHOLE into a jar with a tight-fitting lid and store them in a dark, cool, location. Do NOT crush them into a powder until you need it. There aren't any ingredients in it to keep it free-flowing and you will have a powdered tomato "brick". When you want to make it into powder, zap it in a coffee/spice mill for a few seconds. This type of tomato powder is not as rich as commercial and requires more to reconstitute. Use a 1:1 ratio for paste and 1 part powder to 2 parts (1:2 ratio) for sauce.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To make pizza sauce (enough for one 12-inch pizza):
Mix 1 T. tomato powder with enough water to make a thick sauce (3-4 T.). Add a little sweetener (honey, sugar, etc.), a little vinegar, and a good pinch of salt. Add Italian or Pizza Spices to taste.

[frugal-one]

Back when we used to eat more meat I used to make my own Italian sausage. I made it so lean I had to oil the pan I cooked it in! Here's the recipe I used from a great old (1979) cookbook called "Make Your Own Groceries":
3 1/2 lbs boneless pork butt
Enough extra fat if necessary to make a 2 to 1 lean to fat ratio (needless to say you don't have to observe that ratio if you don't want; I certainly didn't)
2 or 3 tsp fennel seeds
2 to 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 TB Salt (can be reduced if desired)
3/4 tsp pepper
1 to 2 tsp red pepper flakes for hot sausage if desired
Grind the meat, blend in the spices and shape into patties. Let sit in fridge for a day or 2 for the spices to permeate. Freezes well.

For breakfast sausage:
2 1/2 lbs boneless pork butt
Enough extra fat if necessary to make a 2 to 1 lean to fat ratio
2 1/2 tsp sage
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp EACH pepper & marjoram
1/2 tsp savory
1/4 tsp nutmeg
4 TB water
Grind meat and mix in spices and water, shape into patties, let sit in fridge only 1 day before using. Freezes well.

There are also recipes for keilbasa, bratwurst and chorizo

This is a great cook book. It has many recipes for make your own convenience foods. The ones I have tried really taste true to original. My copy is well used!


Book sounds interesting... who is the author? Thanks!

[MaryHu]

The author of Make Your Own Groceries is Daphne Metaxas Hartwig. There is a sequel: More Make Your Own Groceries by the same author.

[jody]

This is such a great thread I'm bumping it up front for anyone that missed it the first time around.

[TVRodriguez]

I'm on my third FoodSaver. I purchased my first one used in 1986 (it was a demo. unit) and use them every day. I have it out on a baker's rack with the bags, Universal Lids, and some of the small containers and canisters in a decorative basket I use for food storage. The FoodSaver goes hand-in-glove with home food storage. If I used it for nothing other than vacuum-sealing dry goods purchased in bulk in canning jars, it would be worth the cost. Once I open a #10 can of freeze-dried food I portion it between canning jars and vacuum-seal a canning lid on it with the FoodSaver. I purchase powdered milk by the bucket - enough for a year - and I vacuum-seal it in 1/2-gallon canning jars to extend shelf-life. If it's a food that is moved from the food storage room in the basement to the pantry, I'll replace the canning lid with a FoodSaver Universal Lid (more convenient to get into and reseal than a canning lid) or a regular canning lid and ring or a plastic jar lid - depending on how quickly the food will be used.

There are 5 deadly enemies for your food storage:
1) Heat
2) Light
3) Moisture
4) Oxygen
5) Insect Infestation

When you store grains/seeds/beans (and other dry goods) in vacuum-sealed canning jars/canisters/bags, you will automatically eliminate the potential for insect infestation due to the oxygen-free storage. I have adjusted shelves in my pantry so they are narrow enough to place one canning jar on it's side and you can see the lid from the front of the shelf. Now I don't have jars 2 or 3 deep, just one jar deep. I have spray-painted my canning lids with chalkboard paint and I write the contents of the jar on the lid with regular chalk or (liquid) chalk markers and can quickly see what's in the jar. Not all jars in my pantry are vacuum-sealed, but most foods that aren't used quickly will get vacuum-sealed to extend shelf-life. If you live where it's humid, vacuum-sealing your food will keep it from absorbing moisture.

Meat is the highest priced food I purchase and I vacuum-seal it to prevent freezer burn, and it will also store much longer in the freezer. I portion soup/chili/stew into user-friendly amounts in plastic storage containers. When they are completely frozen I pop them out of the plastic containers and stack the "cubes" into a FoodSaver bag and vacuum-seal shut. Now I can use the storage containers for something else. I also portion meaty pasta sauce, ground meat base mixtures, shredded meat, and portioned raw and cooked meats destined for the freezer either in plastic containers, or in portions in a small zip-lock snack-size bag, and vacuum-seal them in a FoodSaver bag. I make "sausage" with ground turkey and spices, and precook 2-3 pounds of it. I portion enough for breakfast-for-2 in a zip-lock snack bag and vacuum-seal all the zip-lock bags into a FoodSaver bag. I may only make this a couple times a year. I also make my home-grown potatoes into freezer mashed potatoes and freeze them in user-friendly amounts. I may only make mashed potatoes a couple times a year, once after I harvest potatoes from the garden, and a second time when I can purchase potatoes on sale - BOGO. I dehydrate my cooked sweet potatoes on fruit leather sheets and blend the crispy dry sweet potatoes into sweet potato powder - just add water - because I don't have enough room for them in my freezer.

I also make cooked beans and rice, frozen fruit and vegetables (commercial or not) and portion them into FoodSaver bags for storage. When you lay the bags flat (opening to the side), you can make a flat bag that I "file" in plastic totes in the freezer. I can flip through the grains/beans/fruit/veggies and take out what I need. If I need a smaller amount, just open the bag and give it a tap and the food will break into individual pieces so you can measure out what you need. Then just reseal the bag shut. For things that you want in individual pieces (like blueberries, grains, etc.) I'll quick-freeze them on a cookie sheet, then place in a FoodSaver bag in a single layer (bag opening to the side), then seal the bag shut.

I also have a number of silver serving pieces I store vacuum-sealed in FoodSaver bags so they are oxygen-free and don't tarnish between uses.


This is so useful! Thanks, lessisbest! DH bought a FoodSaver, and I tried it out, but the resealable bags didn't seem to work very well, imo, so I relegated the machine to the closet. I think I will try again, using only the original sealable plastic.

[TVRodriguez]

This is such a great thread I'm bumping it up front for anyone that missed it the first time around.
Thanks, because I DID miss it first time around. Lots of great ideas.