food savin'

Last week I purchased a FoodSaver. I've been wanting one for a long time and with berry season starting next week (hopefully!) I thought it was a good time to finally get one. I spent yesterday afternoon vacuum sealing all kinds of things -rice, almonds, green tea, bread crumbs, chicken....anything that could be vacuumed sealed. Food savin' is fun! :)

I spend a lot of time shopping for bargains at the grocery store. A few years ago I found a couple of sites that really motivated me in this area and taught me how to make the most of my dollar at the grocery store - Laine's Letters and Like Merchant Ships. I've learned how to shop by the grocery store ad and now I often shop at both grocery stores in town to pick up the deals. I clip coupons when I find them. Our Sunday paper doesn't have much for coupons in it so my savings aren't substantial but every little bit helps. It's been great to learn so many tips and tricks and it's fun when you find a really great bargain. I look at it as a challenge every week to come in at my budget.

One of my favorite tips that I used to never do was to look for manager's specials or reduced for quick sale items in the meat department. There is usually something marked down. I like to pick these items up and then freeze them right away in the correct portion size for our family meals for later use. Now I'll be able to vacuum seal them and not have to worry about losing them in the freezer and then end up throwing away freezer burnt 'savings'! When I menu plan for the week I often 'shop' from the freezer and plan our meals around the items that we already have. My grocery lists are usually just extra things that are required for the meals and loss leaders to stock the pantry and freezer and of course produce and other staples that get purchased on a weekly basis.

If this is something that interests you I'd encourage you to head over to Meredith's blog and start reading her archived posts on 'food from afar'. One of my favorite series of posts that she has done is a week of cooking on a 1950's budget menu.