Tag Archives: inexpensive

#NationalPumpkinDay

Happy #NationalPumpkinDay!

It seems like everywhere I turn, there’s something pumpkin flavored or pumpkin spiced something. I used to think this was such a novelty, but now it’s almost overboard! I’m admittedly a huge pumpkin-spice latte fan, from Starbucks. I went to get one at the beginning of the season though, and it was $6. $6. $6! For a coffee.

I thought that in honor of #NationalPumpkinDay it’d be appropriate to give you all a homemade pumpkin spice latte recipe that you can make on your own for considerably less money.

This recipe, from Betty Crocker, makes 10 servings of pumpkin spiced lattes! Perfect recipe to finish a fall dinner party and serve with dessert.

In a slow cooker, mix the following ingredients, and whisk until well combined: 5 cups strong brewed coffee, 4 cups milk (2% or whole), 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream. 1/4 cup canned pumpkin, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, stirring once after the first hour.

THAT IS IT. Serve in mugs and top with whipped cream if desired!

How amazing is that? So easy, all inexpensive ingredients, and made in a slow cooker, no less – couldn’t be easier or less expensive. Enjoy!

Free Sample Concentrate 128

Did you know that when you buy any kind of ready-to-use cleaning chemical at the store, that they are 95% water? News to me!

Concentrate 128 is a concentrate cleaning product that relies on you to dilute and mix on your own. They are taking an initiative to go green by using this concentrated product – just think about how much money and resource that’s been wasted on shipping water back and forth around the country!

Concentrate 128 is a powerful, peroxide cleaning solution that cleans any surface not harmed by water, from windows to floors – it’s up to you! It can be used in spray bottles, mop buckets, carpet extractors, etc. It’s 100% biodegradable AND cost efficient. Since it is so highly concentrated, one quart of Concentrate 128 can make up to 128 courts of all purpose cleaner at less than $0.05/quart – hence the name!

Get a free sample of Concentrate 128 here and let us know what you think!

Freezer Meals: Week 11

Back to basics here, everyone! I have three VERY different, but VERY delicious freezer-friendly meals today to make your life just that much easier. Don’t forget that when you try these out, give us your feedback! Did you add extra ingredients, leave some out? Do you think the cooking time should be increased, decreased? Do you have different ideas on how to allow this to keep for longer in the freezer? We want to hear everything, big or small! Comment section is there for YOU.

First things first, I wanted to talk about frozen pizza. We’ve all been down this road. They’re easy, they’re good, and they’re terrible for you. The ingredients in these if you check out the box are truly brutal, and it’s tough to feed your family something that seems so unhealthy and chemically-laden. Solution is here! Make your OWN frozen pizzas, recipe courtesy of IntentionalByGrace.com. Here’s how she does it:

Frozen Pizza

Frozen Pizza [http://intentionalbygrace.com/homemade-frozen-pizzas/#_a5y_p=3296016]

  1. She makes her own pizza dough. You could store buy (I know that a lot of grocery stores sell raw pizza dough), but this is more cost efficient, and you’ll know exactly what you’re putting into it, which is only 8 ingredients, and nothing funky: water, yeast, honey, olive oil, salt, flour, italian seasoning, and garlic powder.
  2. Once you’re all set with mixing and letting the dough rise, preheat the oven and cook the pizza dough WITHOUT toppings for about 7-8 minutes to allow for a good base to build on.
  3. She makes her own sauce too! Who’s shocked?! You can, of course, use store-bought, but I love love love the idea of knowing all of the ingredients you and your family are eating. She simply uses tomato paste, sauce, water, garlic powder, basil, parsley, organo, thyme, salt, papper, olive oil, honey, and Parmesan cheese. The full recipe is in here and can be made in a stockpot or crockpot. Once done – this sauce is totally freezable – simply put in a tightly sealed plastic bag.
  4. Pizza topping ideas: since we’re freezing, use things that will freeze well. She recommends cheese, pepperoni, pineapple, onion, chicken, ground beef or turkey, green onions, olives – most things do freeze well, so go with your standard toppings!
  5. Once your pizza is assembled, wrap each pizza with plastic wrap and finish with foil. The foil allows easy writing to label which toppings are on which pizza – love it!
  6. To cook, preheat your oven to 425, remove all the wrap, place pizza on a pan, and cook for about 15 minutes. Simple!

Next up…Slow Cooker Tuscan Stew from Sweet Peas and Saffron. With the weather getting a bit cooler, I crave soup, and it’s one of my absolute favorite things to make since it’s easy, inexpensive, and I can eat it for days. It’s one of the only foods where I can say with all confidence that the leftovers are better than fresh! That overnight in the fridge or freezer really just must enhance all the flavors – blows my mind every time. Here’s a new recipe that I found that looks so comforting and delicious – cannot wait to try. Sometimes a beef stew is almost TOO hearty, so I love this chicken-based spin.

Slow Cooker Tuscan Stew

Slow Cooker Tuscan Stew [http://sweetpeasandsaffron.com/2014/09/slow-cooker-tuscan-chicken-stew.html]

Simply add boneless chicken thighs, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, tomatoes, potatoes, chicken stock, tomato paste, white wine, and fennel seeds into the slow cooker and cook for 4-6 hours. Just before serving, mix cornstarch and water together, and add in balsamic vinegar, rosemary, and salt – throw combination into the soup. Serve with crusty bread or a side salad! This sounds soooo good. If you want to freeze this prior to putting in the slow cooker – easy! Just get your ingredients together, defrost, and dump.

I’m dying to use my slow cooker more (she notes that she uses a 5 quart one) and this sounds like a great, easy opportunity to play around a little bit.

This stew looks chunky and hearty and perfect to fill up my family on a cold, cozy night! Enjoy!

Next and last…Healthified Kale and Portobello Lasagna. When I think about freezer meals, my mind immediately goes to lasagna, and then I think, ugh, not healthy enough. I always miss a more veggie-laden meal. But the Food Network puts such a healthy, unique spin on freezable lasagna! I can’t wait to try this recipe.

Healthified Kale and Portobello Lasagna

Healthified Kale and Portobello Lasagna [http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/healthified-kale-and-portobello-lasagna-recipe.html]

This only takes about 25 minutes of prepwork, and execution of the layers is almost exactly like putting together a more standard lasagna dish. Puree roasted red peppers, oregano, salt, pepper, and sugar in a food processor until smooth. Mix together mozzarella, ricotta, and egg whites in a separate bowl. Heat and saute portobello mushrooms and kale with red pepper flakes and set aside.

In a baking dish, start layering! Sauce, lasagna noodles, cheese mixture, kale and mushroom mixture. At this point, you can freeze if you so please! Plastic wrap + tin foil to make sure this lasts as long as possible. When you’re ready to cook, thaw, cover with aluminum foil only, and bake for about 50 minutes on 350. Then sprinkle with some additional mozzarella and cook uncovered until bubbly. Yum!

Enjoy these! Let us know how they go!

Make #NationalCoffeeDay Every Day

Happy Tuesday! I hope you’re all enjoying the #NationalCoffeeDay freebies! I know I am – I just headed to Dunkin’ Donuts and got a free medium iced coffee – easy! I was certainly not the only one to know about the deal. The line was long, but it moved fast.

Unfortunately, #NationalCoffeeDay can’t be everyday, so I can’t get free coffee every day. That being said, I waste SO much unnecessary money on iced coffee. I’m addicted. I always tell myself that I should be making it on my own, and doing some research really confirmed that. This seems SO easy.

Join me in making your own iced coffee! Don’t be intimidated. FrugalBeautiful makes iced coffee easy with their recipe that I found this morning. I’m inspired!

Things you need:

  • Coffee grounds of your choice
  • A jar
  • A strainer

Directions:

  • Measure our 6 ounces of coarsely ground beans with 6 cups of cool or cold water. Use a large pitcher, or a mason jar, combine, and seal. Shake the mixture to make sure the grounds don’t lump together.
  • Leave your coffee mixture out for a few hours (overnight, if you can)
  • Strain the mixture, preferably with a strainer, or even a coffee filter
  • Pour over ice and add your milk/sugar of choice!
  • Store any leftovers in the fridge.

Truly that easy – I need to try this! I can’t imagine how much money I’d save.

#NationalSmoresDay

Happy Monday, Everyone!

Another week, another opportunity to share some fun, inexpensive recipes, deals, giveaways, and more.

It just so happens to be #NationalSmoresDay today. S’mores scream summer to me – brings me back to my own summer camp days as a child! There’s nothing more fun than finding the perfect stick and toasting (or burning) a marshmallow to gooey perfection. Result = a messy, delicious, delicious treat that will have you asking for ‘s’more!’

Unfortunately, we don’t always have a crackling fire in front of us – lucky for you, we have so many mainstay s’more substitutes that are JUST AS GOOD as the real deal, and just as fun to cook indoors!

S’mores Bites

smores_bites

S’mores Bites [http://thefirstyearblog.com/smores-bites/]

The First Year Blog has an awesome recipe for these mini bites – they’re perfect for a quick dessert or even to bring to a party! Here’s the lowdown: all you need to do is crush up graham crackers, and incorporate powdered sugar + butter as a base. Divide them up into a 24 cup mini muffin pan. Bake for 5 minutes. Then pop in a rectangle of chocolate, and place a marshmallow half inside as well. Pop in the oven and bake until softened. Personally, I like a little brown on my marshmallows – solution: throw on the broiler for about a minute! Cool and serve. They’re so cute + so easy. Enjoy!

S’mores-Dipped Strawberries

smores_dipped_strawberries

S’mores-Dipped Strawberries [http://www.bombshellbling.com/smores-saturdays-smores-dipped-strawberries/]

Bombshell Bling has such a crowd pleaser with this one! I don’t know about you, but my entire family looooves chocolate covered strawberries. This recipe takes things even a step further, and couldn’t be easier. Melt some marshmallow fluff and get dipping! Lay on wax paper to try. Then, same story with chocolate. While still hot and melty, dip into some graham cracker crumbs and lay to dry. Voila!

S’more Stuffed French Toast

smore_stuffed_french_toast

S’more Stuffed French Toast [http://www.heathersfrenchpress.com/2014/07/smore-stuffed-french-toast.html#_a5y_p=2342038]

Oh boy, here we go! S’mores for breakfast! Heather’s French Press has a killer recipe that we won’t even pretend is remotely healthy. It’s pretty easy – grab some honey wheat bread, and spread one slice with chocolate spread (whether this is Nutella or melted Hershey’s is totally your call!) and the other slice with melted marshmallows. Sandwich them together and dip the sandwich into egg, milk, cinnamon, and vanilla (just like normal french toast!) and griddle until golden brown on each side.

So there you have it – these are all cheap, easy, and sure to please the family. Enjoy #NationalSmoresDay!

TOP CHEAP EATS!

Besides basic bills and the mortgage, my most costly expense is definitely food. I’ve been asked several times to do a post on my top ‘cheap eats’ – so here you go! Enjoy, and remember, cheap does NOT have to mean fast food!

1. EGGS – eggs, eggs, eggs. I cannot stress enough how inexpensive (even buying organic) eggs are while still being incredibly easy to make AND make a variety of recipes with. Hard boiled eggs? Easy breakfast, egg salad. An omelette? Make it for breakfast or dinner, throw in the kitchen sink. Poach an egg? Throw it in ramen, top a boring salad, eggs benedict. Scramble some up, make a sandwich, a wrap. Anything – my absolute favorite!

eggs

Eggs

2. RICE & BEANS – super easy, super filling. Buy either in bulk to save extra, canned beans work just as well. Throw them together and throw in anything else you may have, leftover meat or fish, some spices, peppers, onions, tomatoes – sky is the limit.

rice_and_beans

Rice and Beans

3. BAKED POTATOES – russet or sweet, these are extremely low cost – microwave or roast these in the oven, split open, and go to town. I generally keep frozen veggies on hand – broccoli and cheese is a favorite. Throw in some beans for a more protein packed meal. Go to town on this, the world is your oyster.

baked_potato

Baked Potato

4. TUNA – maybe we all aren’t tuna people, but I sure am. I absolutely love tuna – top a boring salad with it, throw it on some toasted bread or a wrap, etc. My guiltiest (yet still cheapest) pleasure is tuna noodles. Boil some noodles (whole wheat for some extra health), add a can of cream of mushroom soup, a little bit of cheese, tuna, salt + pepper. Thank me later.

tuna

Tuna

5. LENTILS – similar to dried beans, you can buy lentils in bulk and save a ton of money. Lentil soup is one of my cheapest cost meals and lasts me almost an entire week sometimes. Here’s my favorite recipe from my favorite, Ina Garten: Ina Garten’s Lentil Soup

Lentils

lentil_soup

6. ROTISSERIE CHICKEN – though maybe one chicken won’t feed your entire family – you can do a TON with one rotisserie chicken and stretch it’s limits (not to mention, you don’t have to cook the chicken! Major time saver). Pull all the meat from the bones and make individual pot pies or a casserole. My favorite (surprise, surprise) – rotisserie chicken noodle soup. Couldn’t be easier – some onions, carrots, and celery + broth + noodles + spices and you are good to go. Done! Anything leftover? Make chicken salad for lunch tomorrow.

rotisserie_chicken

Rotisserie Chicken

7. PASTA – I know, I’m treading on the edge of unhealthy here – BUT, pasta is possible to do healthy too. Whole wheat noodles? Frozen shrimp? Ground turkey? Frozen veggies? My favorite? Pasta salad. EEEEEE.

pasta

Pasta

8. CORN – I know this isn’t a full ‘meal’ – but corn is SHOCKINGLY inexpensive, and perfect in the summertime. Grab some fresh corn on the cob and grill, boil, or bake for the perfect side dish. Go traditional and add butter, salt + pepper, or mix things up! Mexican corn is one of my new favorites.

corn

Corn