Jan 13, 2013 |
Where do I start? January’s almost half over. WHAT?! Am I the only one doing a head-turn at that statement? I hope not!
The last week had its Ups and Downs. I would expect nothing less, as life is proving itself more and more to be a teeter-totter. But I’m having a lot of fun learning how to balance each valley and peak. Just because there’s highs and lows doesn’t mean one has to be exclusively good or bad. There’s a little bit of everything everywhere. And each day, life is becoming more fascinating to me as I learn what makes it tick.
The same morning that Amy wrote this wonderful article
By Amy Zillner of the Hesperia Star
I narrowly escaped a wrong-way driver who came within inches of a head-on collision with not only myself, but the car next to me. It was a not-so-subtle reminder that all things are fleeting.
It was my first full week of work since before the holidays. And cold! Winter decided to stay around for longer than just a few hours. Thursday brought a day of inconsistent snowfall, and Friday left with a stunning winter sky.
Snow in the Foothills
Winter Sunset
I’ve been able to share my Meal Plan with many readers, and that excites me. Not just because of what it means to me as a Writer, but also because the feedback has been so encouraging. Whether its emails through Kickstarter or Blog comments or Facebook notifications… I can’t begin to express my gratitude for all your support and encouragement.
And now, this week’s Recap:
On January 6, Slow Cooker Turkey Chili was on the menu. But as you know from last week’s Recap, I made the Baked Frittata instead.
On January 7 & 8, there was still leftover pizza and frittata in the fridge. Dot spent Tuesday out and about, and had dinner elsewhere.
Rather than make the Slow Cooker Turkey Chili later in the week than planned, I froze the meat and prepared to move on to the next dish on calendar.
Here’s where I confess to cheating on my Meal Plan: on Wednesday I treated myself to breakfast from McDonald’s.
My Favorite From McDonald’s
I’d been exhausted from the holidays, and feeling run down. As much as I praise my Meal Plan and frugal budgeting, my body was asking for this food. You know those moments before you get sick when you crave certain flavors? This was it. I indulged with $5.38 and treated myself to a warm breakfast. It got me through the day and when I came home, I made Potato Chip Casserole.
Potato Chip Casserole
This is another family favorite. While Dot crushed the bag of chips, I mixed the soups and milk. Half an hour later, we were enjoying this salty, crunchy, meaty hot dish while talking about our day with each other.
It’s so fun to cook together and eat together. I love these times with my daughter. I absolutely love them and I absolutely love her!
On Thursday, we ate dinner at Mutti’s again as my cousin Betty came to visit with two of her friends. They’re from Wisconsin, and driving around the country. This delightful trio regaled us with their travel stories and photographs. Mom made the delicious Texas Hash, and her guests were delighted enough with the recipe to buy the last copies of the first edition of my Cookbook! (Thank you, Betty, Pat and Marge!)
Dot went out with friends on Friday, leaving me to scrounge for a few snacks as I wasn’t hungry enough for a full meal.
On Saturday, I attended a Writer’s Club meeting with Amy (the aforementioned reporter), then met Dot at Mom’s to watch the Green Bay Packers… let’s not talk about that any more, shall we? Thanks. We helped Mom clean up her leftovers and didn’t get home until nearly 9 o’clock.
That means I’m nearly a week behind on my cooking, but a week ahead on the Plan. What I didn’t make last week, I’ll make this week, and next.
For the remainder of this month, I have everything I need except milk. We’ll have more Ratatouille, Veggie Pizza, Potato Chip Casserole, Texas Hash, and the Slow Cooker Turkey Chili.
So. What’s on your plate?
What are some of your favorite recipes?
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
Jan 12, 2013 |
This wonderfully simple recipe is salty, crunchy, meaty, and filling.
My Mom’s recipe calls for tuna but since Dot prefers chicken.
Add a dash of salt and pepper when it’s ready… there’s nothing like it!
Potato Chip Casserole
INGREDIENTS:
1 bag (12 oz.) potato chips, crushed
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup, undiluted
1 can Cream of Chicken soup, undiluted
1/2 soup can of milk
1 can (12 oz.) chicken or tuna
Mix all ingredients together. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
It’s that simple, and even more delicious!
~Happy Eating!
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
[Like this recipe? Want more like it?
Pre-order your copy of The Unemployment Cookbook here.]
Jan 6, 2013 |
I admit, when I wrote my Meal Plan post, no matter how intensely I want to prove the worth of The Unemployment Cookbook, a tiny part of me thought I’d cave and order a pizza or grab a hamburger for lunch within the first week.
It’s not that I want to deceive anyone. But I like fast food. It doesn’t always agree with me, and I’ve learned to order without onions or special sauce when I need to. Yet now and then, I really enjoy my flame-broiled red meat. And if I found a few extra dollars in my wallet, I’m more likely to enjoy a Starbucks than buy a bag of vegetables.
I’m happy to say, six days into the New Year and new eating plan, I’ve stuck to it. It’s so much more than just satisfying. It’s like acing a test after a year of just homework. Not only have I loved cooking and baking this week. I’ve also enjoyed sharing my savings and recipes with others.
Imagine my surprise on New Year’s Eve when I received a tweet from WinCo Foods: they stumbled across the link to my WinCo Wins post, and thanked me. They thanked me.
I took the nudge and posted the link on their Facebook page. It took just 15 minutes for them to respond by asking if they could share my savings tips with everyone. They actually said, “Would you mind…” As if I could possibly say “no”…
So now, I’m not only accountable to my family for my cooking. I’m accountable to you, my wonderful Blog readers. And WinCo followers. And, yes, to the Cookbook itself.
In keeping with my Plan, I came home on New Year’s Day and put a double batch of Ratatouille in the Slow Cooker.
In the Slow Cooker
It filled the Slow Cooker. So much, that the lid wouldn’t sit flat for the first 20 minutes. But, oh, what a delicious smell! When it was ready, I had the first bowlful.
The aromas, the steam, the flavors… I wish there was internet magic that could let you indulge in this wonderful dish.
Ratatouille
I immediately put half into my freezer for later this month. Then I took half of what was left and put that portion in the fridge. The remainder is what we had for dinner January 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. There was still two servings left! I put those in the freezer for February.
Friday night I topped a frozen pizza crust with a little spaghetti sauce, half of the refrigerated Ratatouille, and the 4-blend shredded cheese.
Veggie Pizza
How hearty and delicious is this?!
The Meal Plan called for us to have Baked Frittata on Saturday morning, that would also provide leftovers for dinner.
Unfortunately, my furnace broke down for the second time since Christmas and I had trouble learning to work the new thermostat. It’s incredibly easy. That was my problem. I’m so used to technical issues and Steps 1 through 3 and whatnot… I couldn’t grasp the idea of “Arrow Up” and “Arrow Down” and nothing else. Well, it took the better part of the morning, but I figured it out and now Bedford Manor is once again cozy and enjoyable.
Yesterday was also a big day for Cheeseheads: the Green Bay Packers were hosting the Minnesota Vikings for the playoffs. Anyone will tell you: I am a huge Cheesehead. I’m from the Midwest, so I love all the teams from Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. But when it came down to it, I had to root for my Packers. So of course we found ourselves at my Mom’s house, enjoying her cable TV and, deliciously, her dinner.
She made Taco Soup. It’s one of the recipes she provided for The Unemployment Cookbook. And can I just say… it was good. Better than good. It. Was. Amazing.
Taco Soup
And don’t you just love her soup bowls? These are so on my Christmas wish list for next year!
After Church this morning we stopped by her house for lunch. Hey… she’s one person with a gallon or more of soup. We’d hate for it to spoil if she couldn’t eat it all. (We’re only thinking of you, Mom…!)
Finally this evening, as Dot was heading out with friends, Mom came over to my house and I repaid her Kitchen Kindness by sharing my Baked Frittata. I just scrambled eight eggs with a little milk, drained the last of the refrigerated Ratatouille, and added about 1/2 cup of the shredded cheese mix. Less than an hour later, we were at the dinner table.
Baked Frittata
The photo doesn’t do it justice. We topped it with a dollop of the spaghetti sauce. After two servings each, there’s still over half of it left. That’s breakfast and lunch for Dot tomorrow, and dinner for the both of us tomorrow night.
According to the Plan, I should have the Turkey Chili in the Slow Cooker right now. But with this wonderful leftover begging to still be enjoyed, I won’t have to make the Chili until Tuesday.
That sets back my Meal Plan by two days. Yet another boon for the savings book. Since half the Ratatouille and spaghetti sauce are now in the freezer, that means I’ve fed my family for five days (I won’t count the one day we spent at Mom’s) for $11.65. And I still have a dozen eggs and half a gallon of milk in the fridge.
Breakfast? Packs of instant oatmeal or a cup of Malt-o-Meal. For lunches, I’ve taken fresh-cut vegetables and Campbell’s Soup at Hand. Dot’s been enjoying small frozen foods we stocked up on: mini corn dogs and personal pizzas. The total cost here isn’t more than $5.00.
That’s not bad for feeding both of us, and sometimes company, for nearly a week. In fact, I think those savings are downright delicious!
How do you save money in your Kitchen?
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
[To pre-order your copy of The Unemployment Cookbook, click here.]
Nov 25, 2011 |
Dear Black Friday Retailers…
You disappoint me. I used to get up early. I mean, early, to shop with a friend. It was fun, exciting. Special.
But this year you have invaded my holiday. Many of you have opened your doors at a ridiculous hour. Causing your employees to choose between sleeping or celebrating. All so you can line your pockets and your CEO’s get a bonus.
Will these hourly employees see a bonus? Will they even get a raise? Will the Seasonal Employees keep their jobs after the New Year? Prob’ly not.
Do you care that most have family functions? Obviously not.
You offend me with your so-called “Holiday Spirit”. Christmas is not, repeat: not about the money. At least it shouldn’t be. But you think it is. You think it’s only about the money. Don’t pretend you are doing me a favor by dramatically lowering prices one day a year.
If your super low sales prices can sustain you through your “holiday season”, I don’t understand why you don’t keep the prices low all the time. Then perhaps people would shop more regularly. Then perhaps you would have regular income and could afford to hire more permanent help. Then perhaps those people would pump their paychecks back into the economy. Then perhaps the economy would recover more quickly.
If you can afford to lower prices the day after Thanksgiving, why can’t you lower prices on May 10th? Or August 5th? That would be doing me a favor. Or is it that you just don’t want to?
Don’t pretend you’re doing me a favor by opening up so early. Keep your doors closed til 4 a.m. Friday. Let people have the chance to enjoy time with their family and loved ones and get the sleep they need to work a ridiculously busy shift afterward. Let people have a day off without worrying about cutting their visit short, or worse, not being able to travel at all due to time constraints. That would be true “Holiday Spirit”.
It is mean, hurtful, and insensitive to take a beautiful holiday like Christmas and use it for your personal financial gain. Worse, you’ve now encroached on Thanksgiving.
But since you’re not worried about offending me, I guess you won’t mind that I won’t be shopping at your stores any time soon. I’ll be celebrating on Small Business Saturday: my locally owned and operated stores that care enough about their staff to close on Thanksgiving, and to offer good discounts throughout the year. Sure, they’re understaffed and don’t have ten thousand of the same item to sell within the first three hours. But they do have something you don’t: My business.
Insincerely yours,
Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
DISCLAIMER: I wrote this post on Wednesday. On Thanksgiving Day, my daughter and I arrived at my mom’s down the street to find my brother had driven down to surprise us for the weekend. He recently moved five hours away and is in search of a Home Goods Store. So on Black Friday, we will be riding along with him to the closest location, which is 45 minutes away from here. I can’t convince him to come back down next week to avoid Black Friday, or even shop somewhere else. I don’t plan to spend any money, and we’re not leaving at the crack at dawn. In fact, we’re just going “along for the ride” so to speak, in an attempt to spend more time with him before he leaves… and drive Mom crazy with our over-talking, loud-laughing, sibling banter. And maybe a Christmas sing-along or two. … He’s already been warned that he’d best not get me to compromise my anti-spending stance… but if he wants to spend money on us, hey. That’s his call. Welcome home, Bro. ;)
Aug 18, 2011 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
This couponing gig is more fun than Disneyland!!
Okay, so on my second day of couponing, I first started by getting organized. I went to the local office supply store and spent less about $14 to get small plastic envelopes and one big one, and a pack of labels.
I came home and sorted my coupons and fliers. I now have categories for: Specific Stores (department stores like Kohls or Payless Shoes), Pet Care, Restaurants, Dairy/Meat, Canned Goods, Refrigerator/Freezer, Beverages, Desserts/Sweets, Condiments, Snacks/Chips, Cereal, Toiletries/Hygiene, Household Items, and Receipts.
The big envelope holds the small envelopes and the weekly store fliers. I. Am. Ready!
After checking in with my Coupon Coach to verify my strategy, I headed off to the local Walgreens. Walgreens is a beautiful place. A land of free-flowing sales and wonderfully attentive clerks. A cool, clean atmosphere. And best of all, sales.
Walgreens doesn’t require a Club Card to get their bonuses. They’re available to everyone, all the time. The trick to working them is to know ahead of time what you’re looking for.
If you read my post last week, Nail Polish: If You’re a Guy, You Just Don’t Get It, you’ll understand my excitement at paying just $0.88 for NYC nail polish at Winco. Obviously I’m not into spending much beyond that. But when it’s right, it’s right. And there I was at Walgreen’s, ad in hand, looking at Revlon nail colors. I bit. I bought.
I made four transactions tonight. Four wonderfully successfully cheap transactions. For being my second day of couponing, I call it a huge success!
First, the nail polish. $4.00 plus tax. But I got $3 RR (Register Rewards) back.
Second transaction: Two deodorants on sale, 2/$5.00. I used the $3 RR from above, so only paid $2 plus tax, AND got back $3 RR again.
Third transaction: Two bags of Brach’s autumn mix candies, 2/$3.00. I used the $3 RR from #2, no tax, and got back $1 RR. Can you imagine? THEY paid ME $1 to take the candy!
Fourth transaction: 12 rolls of Cottonelle toilet paper, on sale for $5.00. I used a $1.00 store coupon, $0.75 manufacturer coupon, and the $1.00 RR. Walgreens will let you stack coupons for the same item, as long as your total items equal your total coupons. Meaning, because I had two Toilet Paper coupons, I needed two items in this transaction. So I picked up a $0.49 Snickers bar. The toilet paper cost me just $2.25 plus tax.
All told, I purchased $23 worth of goods for less than $10 Out Of Pocket. That’s “OOP” in coupon lingo. Another important word in the Couponing World is “Stockpile”. As in, I now have 12 rolls of toilet paper in my stockpile cabinet.
Hey. It’s a (cheap) start. Egypt wasn’t saved in a day. The point is, it was saved.
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
