February Receipts

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 Before I type in what I spent on what, where and when for February.  I need to give you a little background.  We were gone the first week filming for the 700 club.  I still purchased pretty much the same because I buy for storing in the pantry not for what we eat right away.  It was a particularly good month for sales and I took advantage until the last week. 

I went to the store more frequently than normal in February as I took advantage of the sales and to help replenish our fridge after being gone for several weeks in a row.

I had money left this month  and decided to save it in an envelope for August when I plan to make a bulk food order.  I will pinch off a little each month until then so I have the extra cash to spend come time.

I recommend $50 per person per month and for our family that’s $350 a month.  It’s a comfortable level for us, we did it for $200 a  month a little over a year ago during a time of lengthy unemployment.  So at $250 a month I can buy several treats and this month those included canned wheat Grand’s biscuits and breakfast sausage.  I normally don’t have those items on hand, but at this stage in my pregnancy it was nice to have a treat and save some preparation time.  It’s interesting to note, that after a meal with those items none of us felt well and my 7 yo vomited in the night.  I had to remind mysel fthat there’s a reason I normally pass those items by even when they are a good deal.

2/5/11  Costco

Jonagold apples 2 flats–$3.99 each ($.79 a lb)

Honey ham lunch meat (treat) $8.99

Mini Bell Peppers $3.99

10 lb bag of chicken breasts $19.99

4 lbs of butter $9.69

Fresh broccoli florets $4.49

5 lb organic frozen green beans $5.79

2 gallons of skim milk $2.31 each

Roasted red pepper hummus (treat) $4.99

Colby Jack 2 lb Brick $4.89

5 lbs of Turkey Burgers (treat) $9.99

Total with tax $89.87

02/05/2011  Price Choper

4 boxes of Barilla Manicotti shells (on sale for $.69 off and I bought extra to freeze casseroles for after the baby comes) $1.50 each

6 pkgs lowfat Turkey Hot Dogs (Treat!  ON sale and wanted these for Valentine’s Day and bought extra to freeze for later.) $.68 each

4-1.5 lb packages of 93% lean ground turkey Regularly $3.50 onsale for –$2.00 each

9lbs of Pork strips for BBQ @ $1.00 a lb

2 jars Pace PIcante Sauce Sale $1.48 each

3 Nufchatel Cheese bricks onsale $.69 each

Valentine Candy–$4.00

2 boxes of wheatable crackers on sale–$$1.48 a box

Total with tax:  $51.76

02/11/2011 Price Chopper

4 KoolAid Packets for Valentine crafts–$.60

2-12 oz  links Turkey Sausage (like Keilbasa) on sale $1.98 each

6 pgs of 12 oz breakfast sausage links on sale $.78 each

8 lbs of chicken tenders $2 a lb

4 Cans whole wheat grands biscuits–$.98 each

Marichino Cherries (for Valentine’s Day) $1.49

Chili Powder $1.49

2 heads of cauliflower $.98 each

Total with tax $37.42

02/14/2011 Aldi

2 boxes of bran flakes–$1.69 each

24 cans of tomato sauce $.25 each

10 lbs of potatoes $.299

10 lbs of naval oranges $3.00

4-1 lb bags of baby carrots $1 each

3-1.5 oz of ground turkey $2.49 each

Bananas $1.30

2 cans of Rotele tomatoes $.49 each

2 cans of Refried beans $.65 each

4 cans of Black Beans $.55 each

4 cans of tuna–$.52 each

Velveeta style cheese $3.69

2 cans of mandrain organges $.49 each

2 boxes of Microwave popcorn (treat) $1.49 each

6 boxes of mac and cheese (treat) $.29 each

2 cans of chili powder $.99 each

Lite pancake syrup (treat) $1.29

2 boxes of “cheerios” $1.59 each

2 cans parmesan cheese $2.29 each

2lbs of Fresh red grapes $1 a lb

2 bags of frito style cornchips (treat) $.99 each

2 gallons of Skim milk $2.88 each

Mustard $.69

5 lbs of sugar $2.39

Strawberry Jam $1.49

Red pepper flakes $.99

Pepperoni $1.99

2 cans of Chunk Pineapple $.98 each

Total with tax $85.08

02/17/2011 Costco

6 Romaine Hearts $3.49

5 lbs shredded mozzarella cheese $9.99

2 gallons of skim milk $2.31 each

64 oz of plain yogurt $3.99

Tortilla Chips $3.39

Total with tax 27.79

02/15/2011 Nature’s Pantry

1 lb Vital wheat gluten $4.83

4.7 lbs White whole wheat flour $4.73

4.3 lbs of barley $6.16

2.4 lbs of spelt $4.33

1.6 lbs of buckwheat $2.87

1.2 lbs of rye berries $2.86

Total with Tax:  29.89

2/19/2011 Aldi (quick run to grab some stuff for a friend’s party)

onions $1.49

sweet onions $1.49

teriyaki sauce $.99

2 pks pf crescent rolls $1.29 each

Total with tax $6.85

Total for the month:  $328.85

March 2011 Menu

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I’m going to have to write today’s post in 2 parts.  I promised a few of you to post what I spent this month on groceries, where I spent it, and what I bought.  I’ve had all the info for a week now, but I’ve been procrastinating the post.  It’s feels really personal, but if it will help you, I’m wiling to share it.  That will be part two.

Today is the last day of February and if you don’t already have your March menu written, it’s not too late. 

Click here to download and print the 2011 Menu Calendars

Here’s what I’ve planned for Dinners:

1.  Tuna Casserole, Peas, Home frozen peaches

2.  Burritoes, corn and rice

3. Slow Cooked Salisbury steak, steamed broccoli, salad

4. Homemade Pizza

5.  Egg burritoes, pears

6.  Pot Roast with carrots and potatoes, green beans, fresh rolls and salad

7.  Shepherd’s pie (with leftoevers from potroast), cornbread

8.  Date Night (Darren and I eat out twice a month on our date night.  My cousin fixes dinner for our children those nights.  The in between nights I babsit and cooker for her family.)

9.  Jack Mackerel Patties, Twice Baked potatoes, peas, salad

10.  Slow Cooker Lasagna, green beans, garlic bread, salad

11.  Tacos

12.  Biscuits and gravy, fruit salad

13.  Slow Cooked Creamy chicken and rice, steamed broccoli, fruit salad

14.  Italian Meatbal subs (I froze a huge portion of Italian meatballs last month.), Veggie Sticks with dip, baked cinnamon apples

15.  Slow Cooker Spaghetii and Meatballs (more of those frozen meatballs), garlic bread, green beans, canned pears and salad

16.  Creamy potato sou0p, blueberry scones

17.  Fish Sticks, Macaroni and cheese, peas (This is our traditional St. Patrick’s day meal.  The only day of the year I buy Fishsticks.  My daughter (11) told me it was her favorite holiday because of this meal, bwa hahaha.)

18. Homemade Pizza

19.  Slow Cooker Chicken Veggie Alfredo, Salad

20.  Roast Chicken with carrots and potaotes, fresh rolls, salad

21.  Chicken enchiladas (with leftover chicken from the night before.)  Rice, refried beans, peas

22.  Date Night

23.  Turkey burgers, baked potatoe wedges (like steak fries), steamed Normandy Vegetable blend

24.  Chili (with cinnamon rolls if I have the energy)

25.  Tacos

26.  Creamed Eggs over biscuits, sauteed Lamb’s quarter, beets

27.  Slow Cooked Beef Topped Bean enchiladas, brownies (For the basket dinner at church.)

28.  Ham and cheese stromboli (Using the same dough as our pizza crust), fruit wedges, salad

29.  Frito Pie (or other Mexican type casserole), baked cinnamon apples, salad, Steamed green beans–cookies (When we babysit for all the kids, I make dessert.  Those are the only nights we have dessert.)

30.  Chicken Noodle soup (I take out 2 cups of the cooked chicken to freeze for a later dish.), blueberry muffins

31.  Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta, mixed vegetables, salad, applesauce

Now I’m off to start the kids on school, clean out the freezer, wash my dishes, and mark garage sale items.  I’ll post part two when that is done.

 

Preserving the Harvest

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I save a bundle on my food budget by preserving garden or low-cost purchased produce.  Proper preservation prevents vitamin loss and spoilage.  The three basic types of food preservation are drying, canning, and freezing.  Some foods (like apples, onions, potatoes, and winter squash) can also be preserved for a few months in their fresh state in a dark, dry, cool environment (like a basement or cellar.)

Many foods can be preserved in more than one way. I keep Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving
on hand to help me decide what to do and for the best instructions available.  This is what I try to do each year:

Can green beans, apple sauce, pears, and jam.

Freeze okra, beets, corn, peaches, blueberries, pumpkin puree, shredded zucchini (for baking), and lamb’s quarter.

Dry strawberries, apples, onions, peppers, and herbs. (I don’t dry every year–it’s more of a treat for us and is hard to do in our humid Missouri climate.)

This sounds like a lot, but I only tackle one at a time, which makes it more doable.  Each produce item harvests at a slightly different time which keeps the tasks spread out.

Here are some links to past Grocery Shrink articles about preserving:

Freezing Corn

Pumpkin Puree

Lamb’s Quarter

Freezing Peaches

Applesauce

Final Thought:  Most people think of home gardening when it comes to canning and freezing food.  But there are other ways to get quantities of food to preserve.  A friend of mine volunteers at a local food pantry.  At the end of the day, they send with her what the visitors don’t take.  She takes it home and cans and preserves it.  A dear family from church has pear and apple trees in their yard and they can’t use all the fruit.  They call me every fall after they have picked to take what they can’t use.  My mother in law has also purchased large boxes of produce from Amish food auctions for preserving.  I like to buy my pumpkins from local grocery stores and farmer’s markets after Halloween.  They have lots of life left and are great for making into puree.  You also might advertise to care for gardens during the summer as people vacation.  Ask in pay for the ripe produce you harvest during the vacation.  It keeps the plants producing and reduces pests for the owner and you get fresh food for the labor.

Really, final thought:  You can also preserve fresh produce by freezing it already prepared.  We like to freeze zucchini muffins and pumpkin bread for a quick thaw and eat breakfast or for unexpected company.  You can also freeze vegetable lasagna, veggie pancakes, marinara sauce, and veggie rich meatballs.

Saving Seeds

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Quality seeds can get expensive, but if you purchase heirloom seeds you can save seeds from year to year and never buy that variety again.  Imagine how much money this saves for just a little effort!  If you’d like to save seeds from your garden vegetables, look for seed varieties that say open-pollinated or heirloom.  Avoid seeds labeled as hybrid as the seeds from these plants won’t be true to the parent plant.  When in doubt, ask before buying.

Some types of plants, squash for example,  require another plant for fertilization.   If you have more than one type of plant (say zucchinni and yellow squash), they will cross pollinate to create an unknown seed.  You can prevent this by only growing one type of these plants (there are 4 different families of squash that generally don’t cross-pollinate), building a fine net shelter for them to prevent insects from cross-pollinating, or by hand pollinating them to reduce the chance that the wrong plant will pollinate it.  If neither of these options sounds appealing, you can plan to just buy the seeds for these types of plants and save the seeds from the easier savers.

Here’s a list of seeds that are self-pollinating for easy seed saving: beans, peas, lettuce, most tomatoes, eggplant, some peppers

Seeds that might cross-contaminate if another variety is nearby:  corn, squash

You can also prevent crossing by checking out the scientific names of the plants.  Plants with the same name will cross.

You should select your most beautiful, healthiest, tastiest plant to save seeds from.  Tie a little ribbon around it, or the piece of fruit that you want to save seeds from.  Allow that fruit to become fully ripe (or a little past) before picking to make sure the seeds are mature.  There are 3 methods to saving seeds: 

1.  Allowing seeds to dry on the plant

2.  Removing seeds to dry in the air

3.  Fermentation

Want to know more?

http://www.virtualseeds.com/seedsaving.html

http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles/clay56.html

http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles/clay51.html

http://www.northerngardening.com/LSseedsavg.htm

http://www.kidsgardening.com/growingideas/projects/aug04/pg1.html

Planning a Garden

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As with anything, planning a garden is key to the success of the project.  If you know me well, you know this is backwards thinking for me.  I’m a doer, not a planner.    Details tend to slow me down.  But if planning helps me get the most from my grocery dollars then it will help me save gardening money too.

I’ve been at the kitchen table today trying to figure out many snap together garden kits I should purchase, and been making a list of seeds to buy.  This little panicky feeling came over me at the same time, wondering if all those expensive seeds would fit into the number of garden squares I could afford.  As I was doing a little research, I realized there was a mathematical way to know if it would all work out.  Make a plan!

There were so many things to think about that I soon got overwhelmed.  Then I put the steps in this order.

1.  Divide your paper into 3 columns

2. In the first column, write down the vegetables that your family enjoys most (or will use).  Cross out the ones that won’t grow in your area.

3.  On the left, star the vegetables that you would like to can, freeze, or dry for use all year.

4.  In the second column write down how much a week of that vegetable you use.  For example, we eat about 2 quarts of green beans a week. 

5.  In the third column multiply by 44 to find out how much you need to preserve for the year.  (I subtracted 8 weeks of fresh produce use from the 52 weeks of the year.)

6.  Use this chart  from the KSU extension center to know how many seeds to buy/ plants to plant.

7.  Once you’ve done that, you’re ready to design a home for all those plants.

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I found this beautiful garden plan from Heart of Wisdom.  It’s worth the click over to her blog for more planning tips.  She used a 30 day free trial of the GroVeg software to make this beautiful plan.  I just signed up for my free trial and it is a lot of fun.

Another good source for learning to plan a garden is from My Squarefoot Garden.  She uses Excel to build a visual plan and also has examples adn tips on her site for making a winning plan.

If you aren’t convinced squarefoot gardening is for you, Better Homes and Gardens has an article to help you plan any style of vegetable garden.

More Seed Starting Ideas

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I had convinced myself it was okay not to garden this year with a wee babe due on planting day, but after I found the snap together square foot garden boxes at Sam’s Club, I’m thinking again. 

I had also told myself not to bother trying to start seeds indoors again, since all previous attempts had flopped because of insufficient light.  Then I got my Family Fun Magazine in the mail.  They showed a child starting garden seeds in a plastic baseball card organizer. (If a child can do it…right?)  He filled the pockets with seed starting mix and pushed a seed in the top of each one, then used suction cups to attach it to the sunniest window.  Here’s a photo of one unfilled to help illustrate.  Since they are pressed up right against the glass, low light isn’t much of a problem anymore.

I can see two possible problems here:  1.  There are no drain holes to help prevent overwatering (but then I wouldn’t want them to drip down my window! and 2. What if the suction cups decide to let go?  Ooh, that could get messy.  I’m headed to Hobby Lobby with my coupon for card sleeves anyway.  I’ll let you know how it goes.

This blogger uses ziploc bags to start her seeds and a commenter said she attaches her clear baggies to the window with suction cups too.

I hesitate to even show you these since they are so awesome, yet I can’t find them for sale anywhere.  These containers are called, Windowherbs by Zodesign, and were designed so you could grow an entire herb garden indoors.  I wonder how lettuce would do in them during the winter?

Square Foot Gardening

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Crazy busy is all I can say!  I’m on my way to my midwife appointment which are everyother week right now and chiropractor in between.  Pretty soon I’ll be over there every week and it’s feeling like a little much.  But I have many friends who are in much worse shape than I am and I’m so blessed with a DH that can work from home on the days I go to the doctor, so childcare isn’t  a problem.  But that’s not why I popped in today.  It’s to give you my favorite links on Sqarefoot gardening!

I’ve had many lovely tips pointing me to square foot gardening for small spaces, and it is one of my favorite gardening theories.  I really recommend the new revised edition of Mel Bartholomew’s book Square Food Gardening.   It has tips in it that make the idea more doable for those of us not physically able to double dig a garden by hand.  I also found out that Sam’s Club now carries snap together square foot gardening kits at the best prices around.  I don’t have a membership, but I’ll be calling my friends that do for a tag-along trip!  Without further rambling, here are my favorite links to help inspire, plan, and execute an effective garden:

Sample Gardens with a sprinkling of how to:

http://www.homeschooling.net/blog/square-foot-gardening/carrots-really/

http://www.homeschooling.net/blog/gardening/square-foot-gardening/

http://www.homeschooling.net/blog/gardening/a-new-way-to-garden/

Building your own

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-to-build-your-own-square-foot-garden-in-10-easy-steps/

Buying ready made:

http://www.orcaboard.com/page/DPDL/CTGY/RB

http://www.easygardenbox.com/garden_box.asp

http://www.kareelanegardens.com/shop/page/1?shop_param

*** (best price includes shipping!) http://www.samsclub.com/sams/shop/product.jsp?productId=prod1170390&iid=Category|TOPSELLER|Gardening|Greenland%20Gardener%20Raised%20Bed%20Garden%20Kit

Gardens for Small Spaces

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If you have a porch, balcony, deck or patio, it’s possible to have a vegetable garden–even if you don’t have any yard space.  Our yard is so small that I grow my vegetables in flower beds.  I don’t even want to take up enough space for a square foot garden, because I want to leave as much as possible for the children to play.  Here’s a photo of my garden space:

I know many of you have even less space than I do, and it’s amazing what can be grown in containers!  Here’s are a couple if inspirational youtube videos.  The one change I would make is to use Mel Barthalowmew’s mix of 1/3 compost, 1/3 coarse vermiculite, and 1/3 peat moss instead of soil.


Another interesting small space idea is growing potatoes in a container garden!  This is something I’d really like to try.  Diane from Lovetolearn.net has great instructions here.

It’s time to start seeds indoors

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As you can imagine, a great way to save on food costs is to keep a small garden.  The Grocery Shrink Ebook has charts in it to tell you how much of each type of plant to grow to be completely self sufficient for the year.  But even just a salad garden will help.   If you are short on space, stay tuned.  We’ll talk about your options another day.

My favorite place to shop for seeds is Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.  All their seeds are heirloom which means you can save them from this year’s plants to grow again next year.  The company is run by a young homeschooled family, and they’ve grown the company from a small Missouri based company to stores in California and on the East Coast.  I also like to buy from our local bulk seed store,  Antoines.  They have a great selection (most are heirloom), good prices, and they weigh everything on antique balance scales.  I love it!  They are also a great resource for herbs and spices.  They have an online order form, but the best experience is to visit their store in Independence, MO.

I’m not a seed starting genious, but I have friends who are!  They all use a method similar to the step by step tutorial here.  My cousin, Rachael, has a black metal shop shelf with aquarium lights strapped to the underside of the shelves.  She makes gorgeous plants in that.   If you can start your own seeds, you’ll save a bundle, but even if you’re like me and have decided to buy plants from those more capable, you’ll still save.

I realize that I have readers from several different countries and planting zones, but if your growing season is roughly April through mid-October, then start your seeds now!

15 Minute Meals

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Note:  This post is full of links to more information.  Try right clicking on the link and selecting “open in new tab” so you can come back to the original article easily when you are ready.

Everyone has days that are packed so full you don’t have time to cook a decent meal.  The normal solution is to grab some fast food.  I’ve done it when we could afford it, but it wasn’t the healthiest alternative.  We’ve already talked about some mixes to have on hand for viable alternatives to eating out.  And there are some easy recipes that come together in about 15 minutes if you keep the right pantry ingredients on hand. 

When I’m stressed, I can usually get a main dish on the table, but sides dishes are another story.  I found some coping strategies that help me fill our table in no time. 

It helps to have a lettuce salad always prepared and ready to put on the table.  Check out this post for how to make it last:

Other fast side dishes I keep on hand are:  frozen veggies (just warm to serve), cottage cheese, home canned unsweetened applesauce, pineapple in juice, and whole wheat day old buns kept in the freezer (butter, sprinkle with garlic salt and parmesean or mozzarella and broil for 2 minutes for fast garlic bread.)

Here are some main dish pantry meals I always have on hand for a fast meal:

Spaghetti (just whole wheat pasta and jarred sauce.  Warm and serve.)

Tacos (I keep homemade taco seasoning ready to go, shredded cheese, lettuce, tortillas (in the freezer), and salsa.)  It’s just brown and season the meat, warm the tortillas throw everything on the table and eat!.)

Grilled Burritos:  When my freezer is filled with sale priced or homemade tortillas, there are lots of options!  I also keep canned refried beans on hand for emergencies, though like to make my own.  Here’s a post about how to make these yummy burritos fast.

Mackerel Patties:  Inexpensive but super healthy canned fish star in this fast dish!  There’s even a how to video at the post here.

While dinner is often the eating out monster, breakfast can be tough too.  Click here to read about how to make perpetual breakfast batters to always be ready to cook and eat on the run.

And if you are partial to Egg McMuffin Sandwiches, you’ll love the 90 second breakfast recipe here.