Since I was new, a guy was helping me get my food boxed up (it is on several tables and they give you a little checklist to gather your share).  He more or less took the list and took over, until the matronly “over-seer” said to him, “I told you to help her, not do it for her.”  I am rather bent out of shape about his help at THIS moment, because I just realized that I did not get ANY of my tomatoes.  If I’d been doing it myself, we all *know* that I would have my six, juicy tomatoes.  I could really use them, too, because I used my last tomato making Spanglish sandwiches this morning!  Ugh!!

Moving along…this month’s share was:

Standard Share

• 2 8oz. top sirloin steaks
• 4 5oz. pork chops
• 2 lbs. chicken legs and thighs
• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 1 lb. rice (white or brown)
• 1 loaf Stoneground’s artisan wheat bread
• 3 lbs. yellow onions
• 6 lemons
• 8 apples
• 1 cantaloupe
• 3 red bell peppers
• 1 romaine lettuce
• 2 avocados
• 6 tomatoes

And it looked like this (forgive the flashed-out quality of the photos, please; I was in a hurry):

Sadly lacking tomatoes!

Romaine & Artisan Wheat Bread

Brown Rice

Yummy fruit!

Mmmmmeat!

The Standard Share, in most of its glory!

Again, this was all for TWENTY-THREE bucks.  Not too shabby, eh?

Write while the heat is in you.  The writer who postpones his thought uses an iron which has cooled to burn a hole with.  He cannot inflame the minds of his audience.

Ladles and jellyspoons, I do not want to attempt to burn a hole with a cool iron, so my previously promised post is going to be a shell of what I originally planned.  The fact of the matter is that two whole weeks seem to have escaped me, so I’m just going to pick up from today, rather than where I left off.  Mea culpa.

So, without further ado, The Frugal Bird’s Condensed Version of Part Two: Why I Am So In Love With Smith’s, I Just Might Marry It

I shopped at Smith’s for Thanksgiving last year and it was like running into an old flame.  I was intrigued, and, well, pleasantly surprised by my experience.  I hadn’t shopped at Smith’s in a few years and had been doing 99% of my grocery shopping at The Walmart (yes, The).  I figured that the one-stop-mega-humungo-emporium would naturally offer the best prices for all of my food needs.  My visit to Smith’s that November (initially planned to pick up produce items The Walmart couldn’t provide) showed me that I *wasn’t* getting the best prices or grocery variety that I could.

I left the store that day thrilled with the Fresh Values savings *and* that I had found everything I needed.  I even told my husband that it would be worth it to make the drive two cities north to shop there.  However, it was winter and I was tired and lazy, so it wound up being another of my abandoned ideas.

Until my trip on the 16th.

Equipped with my list and envelope of coupons, I entered the store.  I immediately found ALL items I was looking for, at or LOWER than the price I had down.  The trip was easy (with the exception of my baby having a complete melt-down because I was shopping during nap time) and I saved TONS of money.  How much, you ask?  Between coupons, sales and Fresh Values, I saved 26% of my bill! That’s over a quarter of the money I would otherwise have spent sitting cozy in my bank account.  Now, I know that through becoming a coupon goddess you can save way more, but I was quite pleased with my transaction, my $0.10 fuel reward and to see that I am just 54 baby points away from a $10 certificate.

Because the baby had a breakdown in the store, I never made it to Macey’s or Albertson’s, but that’s okay.  When I take my next shopping trip (within the next week or two), I will try to time it so that my dear husband can stay home with the baby so I can hit up those two stores.   My mental opinion of Albertson’s is that it is over-priced, and my opinion of Macey’s is that it is a bit of a PITA (pain in the arse)–much like Ream’s–but I’m willing to give them another shot.

Overall, though, I think I will make Smith’s my primary grocery store.  I am just pleased as punch with my experience there!

Pinching Your Pennies (PYP) is a website that goes through the deals, ads and specials for your grocery stores and matches them up with coupons (both online and Sunday inserts).  You can search by store and see how to get the biggest savings from couponing by using them on SALE items.  They have links to printable coupons and specify what date the newspaper coupons came out (Red Plum, SmartShopper and Procter & Gamble are the inserts referenced).  They also have forums, price lists, and YouTube instructional videos on the hows and whys of couponing.  The site is based in Utah, but they are also set up in Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Kansas and Virginia.

I went through their lists for Macey’s, Smith’s, Albertson’s, Reams and Walmart, looking for the best prices, deals that had coupons I could obtain and, most importantly, items that I actually need and can plan meals around.

Part One: Why I Will Not Go Back To Reams

I’ve never been in love with Reams.  They are sort of disco and I’ve heard a number of sketchy things about them (adding a % to your total after everything is run up, etc).  However, after seeing that they had *great* prices on pork roast, chicken drumsticks and a few produce items (medium hass avocados for $0.59? I must be dreaming!) I decided that it would be worth it to add a stop in my Grocery Store Adventure.

First, let me tell you that there is a possibility that the prices for my particular store are just different than ALL of the other stores in Utah.  At least, I’ve got that idea in my head for some reason…

Okay.  So I went in on Saturday, March 14th, armed with my shopping list and relevant coupons, excited to get some awesome groceries (that I have planned meals around).  I headed over to the produce section and picked up a 15-pound bag of potatoes for $1.99.  Score!  I had potatoes on my “no specific store” list, so this was an awesome find.  Then I started looking for the produce items I’d seen on PYP.  I found many of them, but the prices were often NOT what was listed online.  They had large avocados and small hass avocados (for $0.89 each), but no medium–and *definitely* none for $0.59!  The picnic pork roast was supposed to be $1.29 per pound, but they didn’t have ANY in their meat department.  I found another pork roast that wasn’t *that* much more expensive, but it was still very frustrating to be looking for things that weren’t there.  The chicken thighs and drumsticks for $0.99 per pound?  Also a no-go.  Lemons for $0.20 each were actually 3/$1.00.  Meadow Gold pints of milk were $0.69 NOT $0.39.  Bacon was $0.30 more than stated.  In fact, the only two items that a) I could find and b) were actually being sold for the amount stated on PYP were Roma tomatoes and celery.

I left without purchasing everything on my list–the only things I was really happy about were the potatoes and a case of beans at $0.59 a can (I got black, red, kidney, and garbanzo).  I wandered around the store struggling to find what I wanted; I was frustrated, to say the least.

So, unless I can confirm with the store ahead of time that they do, in fact have a specific item and yes, it is being sold for x dollars, I don’t think I’ll be going back.  I’d rather spend my time (nearly an hour) and money (about $28.00 for food items) somewhere that doesn’t make life more difficult than it has to be.

Coming soon: Part Two: Why I Am So In Love With Smith’s, I Just Might Marry It

I ordered one Standard Share, which, for $23.00, includes the following:

• 2 8-oz Top Sirloin Steaks
• 4 5-oz Pork Chops
• 2 lbs Chicken Legs and Thighs
• 1 lb Lean Ground Beef (85/15)
• 3 varieties Fresh Fruits
• 5 varieties Fresh Vegetables
• Stone Ground’s Artisan Wheat Bread
• 16-oz Rice

Soooo…I pick up my order on Saturday, March 28th between 10:30-11:30 am.  Yay!  This is really *such* an amazing value!

I haven’t been following my meal plan exactly, as I have stretched leftovers a bit further than I’d anticipated, and I had an unexpected dinner with my brother and his wife last week.  Roast Chicken was “scheduled” for Friday night and by Monday I had decided to adapt the meal for that grand turkey breast that had been waiting so patiently for preparation.  (It needs mentioning that I did, in fact, pull it out of the freezer on Friday and put it in the fridge to thaw out. )

My usual method for “Roast Chicken” night is to turn on the oven, break out the roasting pan, dress, roast, baste, roast, baste, roast, baste for approximately an hour.  I’ll admit that I was feeling lazy, but I also wanted to try something a bit different since I was dealing with a different bird (and only a portion of a bird, at that).  Soooo…I had my dear husband pull the slow cooker down and got to work!

Perfect, Slow-Cooked Turkey Breast

• 1 thawed turkey breast, rinsed and patted dry, pop-up timer removed
• 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-2″ pieces
• 2 celery stalks, rinsed and cut into 1-2″ pieces
• 1 yellow onion, quartered
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Garlic powder

I drizzled the EVOO (ugh, apparently Rachael Ray prevails!) on the bottom of the Crock and made a bed for the turkey out of the cut-up veggies.  In order to have a wonderfully seasoned turkey, I separated the skin from the meat and rubbed the salt, pepper and garlic powder directly on the breast as well as on top of the skin.  I put the bird on his veggie bed, set the Crock to HIGH and put the lid on.  After about 45 minutes to an hour I added approximately 16 ounces of water (filling the Crock Pot about halfway) and left it to do its thing.

With about an hour left of cooking time, I started my sides (glazed carrots, whipped potatoes and stuffing).  Once I had those all going I transferred the turkey breast to a sheet pan (lined in foil) and popped the birdy under the broiler for about fifteen minutes to crisp up the skin and give it a lovely brown color.  While the turkey browned (I kept a close eye on this, by the way) I made a PERFECT gravy out of the liquid left over in the Crock Pot!  I removed the vegetables and what fat/miscellaneous turkey bits I could.  Then I whisked in flour to thicken.  Easy peasy!  I didn’t even have to add any more salt or pepper.  It was a beautiful color and tasted divine!  My son ate ALL of his food, and it’s normally a bit of a battle to get him to finish his dinner.

Yesterday my husband had leftovers for lunch and I put the turkey back to work.

I boiled the daylights out of the leftover breast along with more of the same vegetables, salt, pepper, garlic powder, cayenne pepper and poultry seasoning.  I left the pot uncovered so that it would reduce and really concentrate the flavors.  After about an hour I removed the turkey and pulled the meat from the bones.  It was SO much easier than picking the meat off of a chicken!  I pulled off enough for dinner and put the rest in the refrigerator.

Dinner last night was soooo easy and delicious!  I put a can of rinsed black beans and a drained can of sweet corn in a large skillet and added the shredded turkey.  I seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder and cumin.  Heat through, over medium to medium-high heat, stirring occasionally.  I used the mixture as a filling for Turkey and Black Bean Wraps!  I decided to try out the Spinach Herb tortillas that have been staring at me (in the same “I’m waiting for you” way the turkey did), and they were quite tasty–and didn’t actually *taste* like spinach at all.  I served my son his wrap plain, but added some chunky salsa to mine.  I totally spaced out cheese, but will be sure to add it for my lunch today!  The brilliant thing about these wraps is that you can totally customize them to your taste!  Add sour cream, guacomole, whatever turns your key!

Tonight I will be adding the remaining shredded turkey back to the stock with the same veggies and some egg noodles for Turkey Noodle Soup!  Perfect for this cold week in Utah!  (Excuse me, Spring, but WHERE ARE YOU?)

So there you have it!  By tossing a turkey breast into a slow-cooker, I have meals lined up (lunch and dinner) for three-plus days!  Each meal is distinct in its style and flavor, so it doesn’t feel like the Same Old Leftovers.  I may even reserve a bit of the turkey (since there is still so much left over) for some shredded turkey sandwiches!

Meet Clara. She’s a 93 year old great grandmother. She’s also the host of one of the most compelling things I’ve ever seen on the internet.

Clara was a young woman during the years of the Great Depression. During those years, she learned a lot of survival skills – among them was the ability to create a tasty meal for the absolute minimum cost.

Today, Clara’s a spry ninety three year old who is still able to get around in her kitchen and is also a good storyteller, so she’s sharing her stories and her Depression-era recipes on YouTube.

There are currently ten videos in Clara’s YouTube channel – the four below were highlighted by The Simple Dollar:

Clara’s pasta with peas is a very clear example of the simplicity of these Depression-era meals. It simply consists of a simple stew (just water and milk as the liquid backbone) of potatoes, onions, peas, and a bit of tomato sauce (with some salt and pepper) cooked together with pasta, providing you plenty of nutrients – and it’s incredibly cheap. Her tip about saving energy (and money) by simply turning off the heat and letting the pasta finish cooking from its own heat is excellent, too. The highlight, though, was Clara’s tale about Depression-era bootleggers hiding illegal liquor in the garage of her neighbors.

Clara’s depression breakfast is actually more of a snack, as it consists of very simple sugar cookies (flour, eggs, and sugar) which you can dip in coffee, which she demonstrates how to make in a Depression-era coffee pot. She also goes through a bunch of old photographs and tells a number of wonderful stories about her family and friends, providing visual glimpses into the Depression and pre-Depression eras.

Clara’s peppers and eggs is actually an incredible breakfast, one that I’ve come to enjoy. It’s about as simple as it sounds – she’d just take bell peppers (saving the seeds for next year, of course) and slice them, then cook them along with scrambled eggs with some toast on the side. She also tells tales of how people swapped food (especially in schools) and the prevalence of home canning and basic farming (chickens, for one) during the Depression. This video actually has a second part, where Clara makes a very simple homemade bread from flour, water, and yeast.

Clara’s poorman’s feast consists of lentils, rice or pasta, salad, and inexpensive cuts of meat – steaks that were cut very thin to make them stretch. She tenderizes the meat by soaking it in lemon juice and olive oil and fries it and simply boils the lentils and rice together to make a healthy backbone. For the salad, she recommends fresh endive and drenches it with olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano, and lemon juice.

If you liked these videos, be sure to check out Clara’s other videos on Depression Cooking–I know that I will definitely be trying some of these out!

**The Simple Dollar (Trent Hamm) offers up his work to the public domain; to be freely reprinted, reposted, edited and SHARED.  Thank you, Trent!

Dear Friends,

In my last Food for Thought, I told y’all to eat beans and rice at least one meal a week to stretch your grocery dollars. Today, I want to show you how to spice up and season that lowly beans and rice dish so you can enjoy several different ethnic (styled) dishes. These are representations of this type of cooking, not the actual authentic versions.

First off, cook up a batch o’ beans. Use something like white beans, pintos, red beans or even black beans. Doesn’t matter; we’re going to use them up a bunch of ways. Secondly, make your rice. Needs to be whole brown rice. I prefer long grain brown rice, some people like a short grain rice. Just make sure it’s brown rice so you get the nutrition! How do you cook beans and rice? Look on the back of the packages to each of them…you’ll get all the info you need. The important part is getting them cooked.

Okay, you’ve got a big batch o’ beans and a big batch o’ rice cooked, right? Now let’s look at all the possibilities:

Mexican-Style Beans and Rice
Jamaican-Style Beans and Rice
New Orleans-Style Beans and Rice
Southern-Style Greens, Beans and Rice
Indian-Style Beans and Rice

For ease of accomplishment, these “recipes” are servings for ONE. Multiply as needed. One serving equals 1 cup rice, 1 cup beans. You can bag these beans up in freezer quality bags and freeze in serving sizes (either individually or enough to serve your family) if you want. You can do the same thing with the rice. Once you have all those beans and rice packages, here’s what you can do when you thaw them out. Remember, these are servings for ONE…multiply them out as needed to serve your family:

For the Mexican-Style Beans and Rice: Serve the rice and beans plain with salsa, sour cream, grated cheese over the top and a quesadilla on the side.

For the Jamaican-Style Beans and Rice: In a saucepan over a medium heat, add beans, add 2 tablespoons of coconut milk, a pinch of thyme, a clove of crushed garlic and heat through till warm and bubbly. Serve over rice with chopped green onions on top.

New Orleans-Style Beans and Rice: In a skillet, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat and saute 1/4 cup each: onion, green bell pepper and celery. Add 1 clove crushed garlic, 1/8 teaspoon thyme. Mix this into the beans and serve with a bottle of Tabasco or other hot sauce.

Southern-Style Beans and Rice: In a skillet, add 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat. Add 1/4 cup chopped onion, then add 1 cup chopped frozen greens. Add 1 clove crushed garlic, a pinch of thyme and salt and pepper to taste. Add 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth. Add 1/2 cup beans and simmer till greens are tender. Serve over rice.

Indian-Style Beans and Rice: In a skillet, add 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat. Add 1/4 cup chopped onion, 1/4 cup chopped tomato and cook till tender. Add 1 clove crushed garlic, 1/4 teaspoon ginger, 1/4 teaspoon cumin 1/4 teaspoon curry powder. Add the beans and simmer for five minutes. Serve over rice with chopped cilantro on top.

There you go…how’s that for Easy Button easy! Enjoy!

Love,
Leanne Ely
www.savingdinner.com
follow me, www.twitter.com/savingdinner

As I adjust my meal plans to stretch my dollar a bit further, I’ll have to incorporate some of these ideas!  And hopefully I won’t have to splurge on a Glade candle to burn afterwards! 

As someone who gets overwhelmed easily and was definitely not Born Organized, I really think that if I can *stay on the wagon* and get my house, heart and habits in order I will be able to, you know, FLY.  *cough*

Okay, so I think it is a bit cheesy.  However!  What I am doing obviously isn’t working, so I’m going to give it my all.

The first baby step is shining my sink:

GV Thick & Creamy Macaroni and Cheese: $0.64
Fresh Green Beans: $0.33
Fresh Broccoli: $0.69
Red Bell Pepper: $0.75
Fresh Basil: $0.96
Tax: $0.22
Total: $3.59 ($1.19 per person)

I didn’t include the cost of 1/2 cup milk or 1/4 cup butter for this recipe, simply because I didn’t buy either of those ingredients on my last shopping trip and don’t have a receipt for the amount!  I have had such a hate-hate relationship with shopping (not to mention the fact that I’m a total homebody) that I’ve been having my husband pick up milk on his way home from work (yes, in the middle of the night).  Since I’m back on the menu-planning wagon, my husband shouldn’t be having to brave the Walmart at 1:30 am anymore.  Everyone wins!

I didn’t make a protein dish to accompany this meal, but was definitely satisfied anyway!

I think my biggest problem is that A) I don’t have a fax machine, B) I hate making phone calls–especially to place orders, C) I’m incredibly lazy when it comes to putting things in the mail.  I’ve decided that this month I am going to suck it up and give it a try (although I’m not sure which ordering method I’ll use).

From the co-op’s website:

You can buy quality, healthy food for up to 50% off retail from the Community Food Co-op. Each month, we select about 15 items that you’re most likely to buy at the grocery store — mostly fresh fruit, vegetables, staple items and frozen meat. Then through collective purchasing, we order mass quantities of these items at very low prices. Our food will come from the same wholesalers that supply your local grocery store, so you can expect the same quality. The food will NEVER be donated, out-dated, or damaged.

This month’s order form can be found here.

Another thing I will have to consider is how I will work the foods available into my menu plan.  I made a basic, four-week menu plan based on meals that my family and I enjoy and that are, primarily, inexpensive.  I’ll have to go over what foods I will be ordering from the co-op and switch some meals around to make it work.  With the amount of money I can save by ordering this way, it’s definitely worth rearranging my plan.

Part of being frugal is being flexible.  Even though I like everything to be A Certain Way, I am learning to let go of that a little bit for the sake of saving money.  It will be good for my pocket and my mind!