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The challenge we all face daily
Every day we face the same challenge – feeding our families well on a tight budget. We all know how hard that can be (am I the only one who had to crack open my daughter’s piggy bank to buy milk at the end of the week? Didn’t think so). So what’s the solution? If feeding your family GOOD food is a concern then convenience foods are out of the question. Manufacturers make convenience food cheap only one way – cheap ingredients laced with additives to enhance the flavor of the cheap ingredients! But kids like that stuff, right?! So the goal is good quality food that kids will eat – but that is cheap, easy to make, and nutritious at the same time. Impossible? Not at all! Read on for some kid tested tips and great ideas that won’t sink your budget!
The basics of feeding a family on a budget
There are several strategies that can get you closer to your goal – use one or all! The more of them you use the more you will save!
#1 - Cook meals from scratch
I once told a lady in a grocery store (as I grabbed a boxed cake mix from the shelf) that cooking from scratch for me meant scratching the box to get it open! The lady laughed, my kids groaned, my mind went back to the days when I really did cook from scratch. My mouth watered as I remembered the simple yet tasty meals I prepared. I kept a lot of homemade snacks around for the kids, and they always had a friend or two in tow when they asked for one! My house was the most popular stop in the neighborhood for the kids at snack time!
So how had I done it? I had no more or less time than I do now. I had fallen into the convenience food trap. Let’s face it – ready made meals are garbage. Sure they are fast and easy to get on the table – but so is a handful of weeds you pull from your yard – yet you wouldn’t feed you kids THAT would you? NO! Because it isn’t good for them! Neither is processed food!
Leave the processed food and ready-made meals rotting on the grocery store shelves where they belong! We have to realize that cheapest isn’t always best. It may seem like the cheapest option but when you look at the labels, you'll find you're getting more chemicals for you money than anything else! You really aren't getting good value for money. Even when you do get “beef” or “chicken” the parts of the animal they use to supply that are not anything you would feed your family on purpose!
So if quality is a concern than processed food is not cheap at all. It is a mirage! When they say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day for you child they don’t mean pop tarts! There is a very well documented, long established link between what you feed your children and how well they perform in school! You can’t run a brain without good fuel! We all want to feed our families good food so they can excel at school and at play but to do this you need to ditch processed food and get cooking!
‘Nuff said!
#2 - Plan meals and leftovers ahead
If you have a list of at least twenty meals your family loves than you can shop armed with the knowledge that, no matter what you find you can make your family happy! If you also arm yourself with a good list of the sales that week you can plan ahead to take advantage of those items – and save a ton! I also use coupons. Between the two of them I can afford to feed my family good food well below convenience or fast food costs! But to do that you have to plan! I guarantee you that one hour spent looking at grocery sales and ordering or cutting out coupons will make you MANY times your normal hourly wage in returns.
I have always had a pantry and a chest freezer to store extra items. I can’t tell you how many times we have had a bad month and those two have saved us! So if you are going through a lean time check your pantry, your cupboards, and your freezer. Is there anything in there you forgot about that you could make? I would sometimes have what I called a “crazy quilt meal” which consisted of bits of whatever we had on hand. They were usually things that did not traditionally go together but I presented it in a fun way and the kids loved it!
It was the same way with “leftover day.” We would warm everything up and set it on the counter “buffet style” and have our own fast!
#3 - Use a price book
This is a very useful tool. When something goes on sale it may not really be a good sale. If you jot down what you usually spend on something you will know whether to stock up or just buy for the week. A price book is simple to set up, yet it does take a bit of time. I guarantee you it will be worth its weight it gold when you are through though! You know what they say, Knowledge is power – and in this case – knowledge is money saved!
#4 - Try Batch Cooking
Let’s see, it is called “once A Month Cooking,” “Batch cooking,” ”Freezer finds,” “Frozen Assets,” call it what you will – but it is a fantastic way to cook now matter what! The premise is very simple; make at least one additional meal to be eaten at a later date with the one you are making now. So you can make a double batch – or a months worth at a time – it’s that simple! If you make “planned leftovers” and freeze them, one each day for a week, you have one weeks worth of meals – and you get a week off from cooking dinner!!
#5 - Avoid wasting food
If you have made anywhere from a little to a lot of extra food – it is a good thing! Don't throw it away or give it to the dog! Most foods will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge (not fish or seafood though!) and can be used again (think “leftover Buffet day”). Keep any extra food in Tupperware container in the fridge – and keep away from any raw meats or eggs.
If you only have a small amount of food left, say enough for one person to have a serving of each item get a Tupperware divided dish and make up a plate. Then freeze it for an instant “TV dinner” later in the week – or take it to work for lunch!
Make sure you heat leftovers in the microwave until they are hot all the way to the center – and don’t reheat more than once!
Shopping tricks and tips
Understand supermarket tactics
Supermarkets are merchandising machines. They are set up to get you to buy more than you intended to – and to pay more than you realize! Expensive items are stocked at eye level while cheaper alternative are stocked on the lower shelves. I know it sounds trite, but it is very true - never go shopping when you're hungry. Even when I do it I am still telling myself – I shouldn’t have done this – I buy too much!! Leave the kids at home if possible and allow plenty of time to make an informed decision on each item. It is far better to spend one or two concentrated hours at the grocery store once a week than to make a mad dash four or five time a week!
Generic and discounted items
If a generic alternative is available for something I use, say mayonnaise, I always try it. But if it is not comparable in flavor to the original I will stick with a brand named product until I find a suitable generic alternative. But it needs to be said, I always try a new generic – just in case. I want to save money, but I also want my family to enjoy eating – I am NOT willing to make them choke down food they hate just to save a few pennies!
I also like to buy discounted items, meats especially. I either cook them immediately and freeze in meal sized Tupperware containers or I use them in the next day or so. This works well for produce too. I will get apples and stew them for apple sauce, just make sure to clearly label those Tupperware containers. Apple sauce and gravy look a lot alike when they are frozen! Trust me, I know!
Local meat and produce markets
I knew a lady who went to the butchers and bought a side of beef, all cut up, every year when she got her tax refund. It gave her meat for the whole year for her family, and the price per pound was amazingly low! She kept them fed well on steaks and chops at less than ground beef price! If you can’t use a whole side yourself (even in a whole year) go in with a friend – or several friends!
Likewise, in the summer our town has a wonderful produce market. I go there and stock up on bushels of this that I will cook, or at least blanch, and freeze in Tupperware in handy meal sized portions. It is like having my own frozen foods section – right in my own home! Not only is it convenient, but the food is better quality, and a lot cheaper!!
Pick your own
I remember as a child going strawberry, cherry, apple, and peach picking with my family. We brought home our bounty and made jams, pie fillings, and wonderful things for the freezer and pantry! What a fun time it was – and we always had the highest quality foods on hand! Make it a family day and even the kids can pit cherries or cut strawberries – or just empty the trash! It is a great way to save money, make wonderful food, and family memories at the same time!
Eating healthy while experimenting
Using more beans and lentils
We have all heard it many times – but yet we don’t really take it to heart. Beans, lentils and pulses are all excellent forms of protein and way cheaper than meat and poultry. They are also very tasty! To keep your food bill low try incorporating a pea soup, or bean dish, flavored with meat. Try new recipes on your family until you hit a winner! Then guard those recipes like the gold that they are!
My husband loves meat, but even he loves my chili! Just between you and me there is precious little meat in it – it is mostly a mélange of different beans, but all he tastes is the beef – so he eats healthy and doesn’t even know it! Give it a try!
Breakfast for dinner
You can also try the breakfast for dinner approach. Breakfast foods are notoriously inexpensive and easy to prepare. Make yourself a good BASIC MIX and keep it on the shelf in a Tupperware container ready to pop out and whip up a quick batch of pancakes or waffles in a flash!
Pasta please!
Finally, pasta with meat sauce is good – and cheap too! I chop up my beef and mix it into the red sauce so it gives the appearance (and taste) of more meat than is really there. Also, tuna, chicken, and turkey in a casserole or sauce over pasta are winners too!
Try the home grown approach!
I always had a garden when I lived in New York. Since moving to Texas I have not had as much luck. But if you live in a climate when even a small container garden is an option – go for it! I just LOVE gardening! If space is an issue try growing only those things which would be most expensive to buy – like specialty lettuces and tomatoes. If you can only grow a few things you can make a pact with several friends. Each of you could grow one or two items in gross quantities which you agree to split up equally come harvest time. That way everyone benefits!
While growing your own is by far the cheapest way to get your fruits, berries and vegetables make sure you don’t go overboard in the garden department of your local home improvement center. You can spend more money on “needed” supplies and plaster gnomes than you would save by growing your own produce! But, if it turns from a hobby into a passion – go for it! Just keep it to a manageable level!
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