WHAT YOU WILL FIND HERE:
super salads
choose a challenge
frugal suggestions
recipe resource
seasonal fruit & veges
save at supermarkets
low GI recipes
money shortage
Super Salads: healthy, often vegetarian, salads can make a very frugal meal. Especially if you grow herbs or rocket or cherry tomatoes at home.
Do you know that a chef's salad basically means using whatever items you have left in the fridge or pantry? Sounds better tha salad from leftovers! ...
Read full article at All Things Good.
What's in Season? Your Fresh Fruit and Veggie Guide - Northern hemishpere
Bill Granger's Melt & Mix Banana Bread - makes two loaves
MONEY SHORTAGE
Having a bit of a money shortage lately and scrounging for cash, to feed my family of teenagers - Hungry people teenagers - has given me a different viewpoint on food. read full story at All Things Good
SUGGESTIONS - yes they are only suggestions - you might think they are crazy john!
Replicate fast food meals at home. We all know fast food and eating out can be expensive but maybe you just love bacon and egg muffins so make sure you have the ingredients available to make them at home. Make pizza at home - try fresh basil, cherry tomatoes cut in half and sliced bocconcini.
Our current family favourite is chicken chilli wraps.
Did you know Oprah packs her own lunch and saves her unused toast?!!!
Reclaim meal time - gather around the family table to share a meal.
Money saving tip : make a weekly menu. When you start ask everyone to write down their top 5 meals and 1 meal they could cook (or help cook). Save time and money by choosing the meals that everyone enjoys. In our house it is mexican, roast, spaghetti, salad, homemade pizza, stuffed potatoes, a deli plate and barbque. From the foods needed make a shopping list. Don't forget breakfast, lunch and snacks.
Eat delicious home cooked meals.
Money saving tips : Freeze any left overs for quick easy lunches at work
Freeze left over wine - instead of throwing it away - to use in sauces such as tomato and mushroom pasta sauce
Buy all the milk you need in one shop from the supermarket. Make sure you check the use by dates. Don't forget to buy a long life milk in case you run out.
Cheapest foods are definately grains such as rice, pasta and beans. The good news is that they are good for your health as well. The GI rating is low on pasta and beans and basmati rice.
What we need are some great recipes : Low GI Recipes of the Month
Suggested recipe books to borrow from the library:
CHALLENGE: LOWER YOUR Grocery Spending
1. Keep your grocery bills from about 3 or 4 weeks if you don't already have a weekly budget in place. Work out an average.
2. Try and reduce your grocery budget and eat healthy meals. Take a long term approach and try to reduce the bill each week.
HOW?
There are probably two ways you can come at this:
1. Where you shop. You could shop around if you have time and only eat what is cheap and in season. You could try a different shop or buy in bulk. Shop at cut price supermarkets like Cosco or Aldi or your cities equivalent.
2. What you buy. You need to make a weekly menu and stick to it for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. We found that one of our best savings was when we decided to swap fizzy drinks for water.
CHOOSE A CHALLENGE
No take away food for 2 weeks
Shop only once a week for food
Bake a cake from a recipe not a a packet
Eat only home prepared food for a month
Take home prepared food to work for lunch for a week
Make a food budget and stick to it for 2 weeks and then review how you went
Cut back on consumption and be healthier too... Cut Back on the Soda
This is one of the main ways our family saved money off the weekly food budget.
Eco friendly waste free lunches are frugal Read full story
TRADITIONAL BREAD AND BUTTER PUDDING
This is a great frugal food if you need to use up old bread or milk about to pass it's use by date.
Ingredients
4 slices of bread (any kind)
Butter to spread
2 1/2cups of milk
4 eggs, 1/2 cup sultanas or raisins, 1 tspn vanilla
cinnamon, nutmeg and caster sugar
Directions
Butter the bread, and cut into cubes. Place into a greased overproof dish. Warm the milk and vanilla to almost boiling point. Add eggs and whisk in the warm milk. Pour the mixture over the bread. Bake at 180C/350F for 30 minutes, or until set and lightly browned. Serve with or without maple syrup.
USES FOR STALE BREAD
Bread and butter pudding (recipe above).
French toast.
Jaffles.
Toasted sandwiches.
Bread crumbs stored in fridge for later use.
Feed the birds.
