Contributed by: FrankRyan owner of the website CookToSave.com

There are three popular methods of freezer cooking that can save a family money.  There are many benefits to freezer cooking.  Some benefits include preserving perishables and reducing waste, having ready-made meals in your freezer when you are tempted to order out, and maximizing time with the family by cooking less often.  Fully cooked meals can maintain their texture and taste in the freezer for up to three months.  Uncooked, ready to go meals, like marinated meat can be frozen without degradation for up to six months.  Different methods can optimize for busy schedules or tight budgets and any family can find benefits in one of the methods mentioned below.

Once a Month Cooking, also known as, OAMC is a way of making meals ahead of time and freezing them for later use.  There are several ways to adopt this system into your family.  The phrase once a month cooking was made famous by a book entitled Once-A-Month-Cooking by Lagerborg and Wilson.  Their book is worth a buy at Amazon for beginners, the information inside is valuable to anyone looking into getting involved in this type of cooking schedule.   OAMC, in its purest form, involves a family preparing 30 meals within one weekend each month, or mini-sessions where 14 meals are made in one day.  The benefits are having only one weekend of dirty pots to clean and a highly detailed dinner schedule.  For the family that eats take-out regularly or is rushed to find time for dinner, this is an excellent program.

Another method of freezer cooking is for seasoned deal seekers.  “Assembly Line” cooking, as seen on websites like www.cooktosave.com, takes perishable loss leaders from your local grocery store and assembles them into several meals in one day to be enjoyed or prepared for another day.  Assembly Line cooking turns your kitchen into a family assembly line.  Examples are finding over-ripe bananas at the store for less than $0.25 a pound and turning them into 30 chocolate covered frozen banana popsicles,  buying 20 pounds of pork loin at $1.67/lb and making breakfast sausage, burritos, kebobs, steaks, and Weiner schnitzel.    For the family that likes buying large quantities of loss leaders and getting the best price for their meals, this is their perfect match.

The third and easiest method of freezer cooking is called “Feed the Freezer”.  These ideas incorporate making double or triple the amount you usually make for dinner and putting the additional meals away in the freezer for a later date.  When planning to make lasagnas, stuffed shells, chili’s, or other easy to freeze casseroles, make two or three dinners instead of one and freeze the additional dinners.  Try searching any recipe site on the internet, like www.allrecipes.com for the keyword “OAMC”, to find recipes that are freezer friendly.   For the family that wants to make their food dollar stretch a little more than usual and have one of two meals in their freezer this is an easy adoptive plan.

However a family chooses to adopt a make ahead style of cooking, there are savings to be had.   An extra stand-alone freezer in your home can save $1,000 or more per year on a family food budget.

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Tags: Bulk Cooking, Bulk Shopping, Feed The Freezer, Freezer, Freezing, Frozen Food Month, March, Meal Planning, OAMC, Once A Month Cooking, Stockpile
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The prices of ground beef can be pretty high with non-sale prices in some areas as high as $5.00 a pound. Good sales can be few and far between but if you are willing to put a little effort into saving on meat you can shave some of the cost on ground beef.

1. Invest in a meat grinder. You can find a hand cranked meat grinder for about $30 retail or if you have a Kitchen-Aid stand mixer you can purchase a very nice meat grinding attachment for about the same price. Also check thrift stores, consignment shops and eBay for a deal on used meat grinders.

2. Watch for rock bottom prices on whole cuts of meat. This week my local store had rump roasts for $1.99 a lb. which was much cheaper than the $3.99 for pre-ground beef.

3. Purchase whole cuts of beef in bulk as your budget allows. With the sale price of $1.99 I went ahead and bought 3 large roasts at around 5 pounds each.

4. Grind your meat and package for freezing. First cut your meat into chunks small enough to fit in the grinder and follow the manufacture instructions and grind it up. The instructions for the Kitchen-Aid attachment says to grind the meat twice. Then package your meat for future use. Use quality freezer bags, vacuum sealer bags, or freezer containers to freeze your raw hamburger meat. For easy meals you may wish to brown some ground beef and freeze crumbled unseasoned or seasoned (think taco meat) for meals. Additionally you can pre-make meatballs and meatloaf too and freeze it for easy meal preparation.

In all grinding and packaging your own beef only takes 20-30 minutes and can the cost of the meat grinder can easily be recouped after just a few pounds of grind at home beef!

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Tags: Cooking, Cooking & Kitchen Tips, Frugal Living, Ground Beef, Hamburger, Kitchen-Aid, Meat, Meat Grinder, Meat Prices
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Last week I gave you some ideas to help you keep your finances healthy through the New Year, and this week I’ve got some tips to keep your body humming along too.

A full 30% of Americans resolve to lose weight in the New Year.  If keeping that resolution were easy, we wouldn’t be at the top of the list in worldwide obesity.   Let’s throw out those worn out excuses, and find some inexpensive options to help you keep your resolve this year.

I don’t have the money for healthy food.   Yep, I know things are tight.  And I do know that organic, fresh food can sometimes seem out of reach.  But there some economic alternatives for the frugal consumer.

* Check your local farmer’s market.  Not only do you find local harvest there, but they oftentimes have a bumps and bruises section in the market where they keep items that are still consumable, but just not as attractive as the other produce.  It might be the apple with a slight bruise or the funny-looking bell pepper, but these items are super deals that allow you to eat frugally and well.

* Be willing to work a little with your produce.  Buying your items in the hull or with the peels still on (in the case of carrots) will cost you a little time, but you’ll save big bucks at the checkout.  Already prepped produce is a super time-saver, but by putting in a little elbow grease and time yourself, you’ll save money.

* Eat what’s in season.  Apples are great right now.  Oranges too.  All kinds of greens can be found for reasonable prices.  Winter squash won’t bust your budget either.  And don’t be afraid to try something new.  There are some great recipes on hotcouponworld.com for preparing your new find, and if you don’t see something that whets your appetite, ask away!  With close to 110,000 members, Hotcouponworld folks are happy to help you prepare those new veggies and fruits.

Ok, so we’ve got the fruits and veggies, but what about meat?  No way can I afford $5/lb for meat! Here is where investing a little time in you comes in again.  You are worth it!  Put your frugal hat on, and get cracking, checking sale ads.  If you don’t get the newspaper or your ads aren’t delivered in your mailbox before the sales start, don’t worry.  You can access store ads and good deal alerts on hotcouponworld.com!

* Boneless skinless chicken is a great meat to eat on your diet.  It’s so versatile, you can prepare it a ton of different ways.  This time of year, savvy stores will run buy one, get one specials to get you in the store.  But here’s where we take it a step further – and these tips apply to all fresh meat products you’ll need.

* Find out what brands of meat your store carries.  These companies may put out coupons for their products!  Check out the Hotcouponworld Coupon Database.  Enter the brand that you’re looking for to see what coupons are available.  Combine your coupons with a buy-one-get-one sale, and you’ve got a super meal at a rock-bottom price.  When you find the deal, stock up!

* Check to see when your store marks down meats.  These meats are still good for consumption, but they are nearing their ‘sell-by’ date.  Meat IS still good after that date, but you must eat it immediately or freeze for later use.  It’s not uncommon to see packages of meat marked down by $2 or more, making them a super deal!

Hey, these are good ideas! Is there a way to cut prices on bread too?  Absolutely.  There are coupons out most of the time for whole grain sliced bread, so check the coupon database at hotcouponworld.com for your favorite brands.  If you’re an artisan bread fan, check your local bakeries and the bakeries in the grocery for marked down items.  Again, these are still good for consumption; they may have been a leftover package from the day before, or perhaps they were in the oven a bit too long.  But they’ll normally be anywhere from 50-75% off the regular price.  When you find something you like, stock up on it.  Bread freezes wonderfully.

Like I said before, I know times are tough for many of you right now.  But that’s no excuse not to treat your body and your family right, feeding them with good healthy food to nourish them, body and soul.  On a limited budget, and with a little effort and forethought, you can afford those healthy foods that will help you and your family to keep those weight loss resolutions.   Get shopping, and good luck!

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Tags: Bread, Chicken, Coupon Database, Farmers Market, Freezing, Fruit, Meat, Produce, Vegetable, Weight Loss
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Any way you slice or dice it, there are lots of ways to turn your leftovers into culinary delights. You’ll save you money in the long run by finding creative ways to cut the waste in your kitchen! Take a look at these five items:

Bread: In my mind, bread is anything made out of flour. The heels of loaf bread can be easily used to make croutons, be toasted for French onion soup, or in our house, we simply spread the peanut butter on the heel side and flip the softer bread side out so the sandwich looks like a sandwich. There are five of us and hamburger and hotdog buns come eight to a package. Use the leftover buns for garlic bread to serve with another night’s meal. One package then covers two nights worth of meals and the buns don’t go moldy in the breadbox.

Meat: You’ve got a half a steak left over from dinner; by itself, it won’t make a meal. If you’re like my family, half a steak is tossed in a ziplock bag and gets lost in the back of the fridge. Instead, chop it up and use it in a steak and egg omelet for breakfast or as a soup/stew starter for another night’s dinner. Or put it in a plastic container, top it with frozen mixed veggies and freeze for a lunch you can reheat at work.

Vegetables: You cooked a pot of green beans that didn’t get finished at dinner. Don’t toss them. Either put freeze in a Ziploc, or keep a big Rubbermaid container in the freezer for veggie orphans. When the container has enough assorted vegetables, make a veggie and rice soup, or use the vegetables for stir-fry.

Milk: Not enough left for a glass in the bottom of the jug? Don’t pour it down the sink. Put it in a zip-seal bag and freeze it for sauces and cream soups. When you’re ready to use it, melt it right in your pan from a frozen state—no need to thaw.

Eggs: Even if you don’t use all your eggs before the expiration date, they stay fresh for quite a while. Crack them in groups of three, scramble and freeze in a plastic bag to use later. Most cake and brownie recipes require three eggs so you can thaw the eggs in the plastic bag under cold running water in a matter of minutes. Or, thaw and scramble for breakfast.

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Tags: Cooking, Frugal Living, Left Overs, Leftovers, Meals
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If you planted a garden this past spring, you probably got to enjoy juicy tomatoes, crisp lettuce, and crunchy cucumbers.  In an expensive summer of high food prices your garden probably saved you more than a few dollars. And with all the food recalls we keep hearing about, knowing your food came out of your own garden probably gave you a little peace of mind.

But if you got a late crop and have more produce than you can possibly eat before it spoils, there are some things you can do to preserve your hard work and enjoy the bounty from your garden well into the winter.

Check out this site from Oregon State University, it’s one of the best resources online for food preservation on the web.  You can even get support from their hotline through October at 800-354-7319. This site has facts to guide you through freezing, drying, canning, smoking, and pickling the fresh goods from your garden.  Another good site you can check out is PreserveFood.com.

Stretch the produce by mashing tomatoes to freeze for sauces; drying and bottling herbs for cooking; cutting up or pureeing squash for soup; or grating zucchini and freezing for breads and muffins.

You don’t have to be Martha Stewart to get the knack of preserving food.  And with a few must-have tools like a food dehydrator, some zip-seal bags, and a roll of freezer paper, you’ll capture the maximum value from your garden and save money this winter.

Get cookin’ with these easy recipes:

Layered Vegetable Pie

Spinach Salad Dressing

Easy Garden Bake (Bisquick Heart Healthy Recipie

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Tags: Cooking, Cooking & Kitchen Tips, Frugal Living, Produce, Recipie, Vegetable
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If your favorite way to enjoy summer is grilling on the BBQ, don’t fret! You’re not relegated to endless nights of hamburgers and hot dogs because meat prices have gone crazy. In fact, there are all kinds of great deals out there to keep your grocery budget in line while enjoying gourmet delights on the grill.

Shop Early: Most stores have a policy about moving meat products quickly. Many butchers will immediately mark down yesterday’s meat before they start packaging for the day. The savings can be as high as 50 percent off the last marked price. If the meat was already on sale, the daily markdown savings can be as high as 75 percent off full retail!

Shop Late: Those morning markdowns are great, but most butchers would love to sell everything before going home at night. If there’s lots of meat in the case, I will routinely ask for a discount for taking large quantities home where I’ll further cut and wrap it myself. This is particularly true for bulk ground beef, which I’ve picked up for under 99 cents per pound as a reward for wiping out the entire case.

Buy bulk: Most meat departments have a cut/wrap free policy. If you buy the whole pork shoulder or rib roast rack, the store will cut it into the size and cut type you’d like. The savings can be as high as 40 to 60 percent higher than buying the smaller pack of the same item. Pre-marinate and freeze in zip-seal bags for later use.

Use a coupon: If your area stores offer coupons for $5 or $10 off a specific purchase amount, use them for buying meat, spending only up to the value required on the coupon. This gives you an additional 10 to 20 percent off your purchase.

Keep freezer supplies and a good knife on hand: You’d be amazed what you can do with a London broil on sale for $1.99 per pound. A four-pound piece can be easily turned into stir fry or fajita strips and stretch across five meals. Pork rib chops for $1.49 per pound can be braised, stuffed or sauced for a quick dinner. And beef ribs for 79 cents per pound can be served up with coleslaw, corn and watermelon for the perfect summer meal outside. And of course, there’s nothing wrong with the occasional burger or dog!

Any way you grill it, summer is a great time to cook outside, but it doesn’t have to bust your grocery budget.

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Tags: Barbeque, BBQ, Bulk Shopping, Grilling, Shopping Tips, Summer, Summer Grilling
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