More Frugal Fun at the Grocery Store

Hi everyone!  I hope you are all keeping warm these cold days & nights?  We’re doing fine here on the Prairie Farm.  Our new windows still are amazing in the way they keep out the cold drafts!  But now we can really feel the lack of good insulation in  the living room and kitchen walls.  Brrr~~ 

I’ve been continuing with my 7-9 hours of sleep per night and I’m trying to get in at least 3 times of sewing/quilting each week.  Just today I downloaded some audio books into iTunes to put on my MP3 player when I’m doing handwork.  Currently I’m listening to “Enchanted April.” 
I’m also trying to read a little every evening.  And I am watching at least a little tv with my Farmer (his favorite form of relaxation) or play some Kinect bowling and not spend as much time on the computer.

With the start of a new year, the economic news and some changes in our farming practices, I’ve been thinking of more ways I can save money.     

One way, is by playing the coupon, loss-leader game at the grocery/discount stores.  Last month, I saved $27.37 by getting the loss-leaders, price matching and coupons. 

Some examples:
Loss-leader Sales
Hormel Thick-cut bacon, less than $3 per pound.
Betty Crocker Family-sized Brownie Mix, 89¢  (woo hoo!)
Store brand Dry Roasted Peanuts, $1.69
Crystal Farms shredded cheeses, 8oz, $1.39 (great price, so I got a lot!)

Coupons
Hershey’s candy bars, BOGOFree:  saved $1.48 and got 2 FREE!
Ziplock sandwich bags: $1.00 off 2 packages
Contact solution 2-pack: $4.00 off pack
Rayovac D Batteries, 6-pack: $1.00 off multi-pack


Price-matching
Russet baking potatoes: 59¢ per pound, saved $1.11 on 3.6#
Land O Lakes Milk, 1/2 gal: $1.39, saved $1.20 on 2 and $1.00 C on 2 containers
Crest toothpaste, 6.4 oz: 99¢, saved 40¢, $1.00 C (FREE!)
Old Orchard frozen all juice: $1.00, saved 48¢ on 4
Orowheat Bread: $1.99, saved 50¢
Hefty garbage bags: $5.99, saved 90¢ PM and $1.00 C

I saved $4.59 in price matching and $11.95 in coupons alone!

During last month we took the opportunity of a little extra in the budget funds to stock up on pantry staples.  We purchased that $1.39 cheese, unbleached flour, sugars, ziplock bags and toilet paper.  All items I can store for several months and they will be available for leaner times later this year.

On Monday this week as I mentally took stock of my pantries before the “Major Winter Storm” set upon us. I decided we were stocked up except for Half-n-Half for my coffee.  So, I did a little price-matching on sale items that would be going off-sale on Tuesday.   I got the following: Yoplait yogurt for 50¢ each and with a 40¢ off on 6 coupon
Era laundry soup, 96 loads, price-matched for $8.69 (Very good price, normally I pay $10.88)
Fresh asparagus (regularly $2.94#) price-matched at $1.79#
Heinz Ketchup, 40oz, $1.69 (was on sale for $1.98)
Pepsi products, 12-packs, $2.50, regularly $3.98 and I was able to get the “throw backs” made with real sugar for this price.

That was a savings of $10.08 on price-matching and coupons.  Plus I saved the ads for the Era and Pepsi products and will get more before those ads expire.  Of course the store I price-match at **cough** (wal-mart) **cough** has a tendency to pull items with too large of a price difference off the shelf and then say they are “out.” 
It pays to check all the ads as the Era was at a big box “lumber” store and the Pepsi at a higher-end discount store (did that make sense?? )

(oh, and guess what one thing I forgot to pick up at the store... yes, the Half-n-Half!! >_<  )

And while I’ve been doing a bit of grocery shopping, at the same time, I’m shopping my pantry and freezer too.  Our chest freezer is almost bare!  We bought a hog from a co-worker and our beef goes in to be butchered in 2 weeks, so we want to eat all the remaining meat.  Right now I have 3 packages of pork chops, 3# of sausage, 4# of ground beef and 3 packages of short ribs, plus several chickens, some fish, 1# of bacon and a few packages of leftover spiral ham.  My upright freezer is full of cheese, some easy lunch items (ravioli, chicken strips) and frozen fruit, veggies and chicken odds and ends to make stock.
Our pantry has a nice variety yet and I want to use up the canned goods I bought last fall and start to bring in some new stock.

Also I’ve been buying a few more staples in bulk, such as Real Maple Syrup, EVOO and vanilla at the natural foods store.  I get my eggs there from the bulk cartons too.  I filled 2 containers of EVOO (5.46#) for $8.49#.  Seems high but this is cold-expressed oil and always tastes fresh.
I also got a little over an ounce of crystalized ginger for $1.17 ($14.59#)  The same amount (or less) in the small jars at the grocery stores was over $7!  I’ll be going back soon for more eggs and I need cayenne pepper.  I’m eager to see the price difference on that!

I know this is a long post with a lot of numbers.  I didn’t write it to brag, but to encourage you to read the ads, cut the coupons, read the saving blogs and start cutting that grocery budget.  Create a pantry (even a small one) and start saving for a small chest freezer. 
Remember that “Mega Winter Storm”.... a friend of ours in Missouri shared a photo of the empty bread aisle at his local Wal-mart.  I read several other friends status updates on needing to go get “supplies” just a day after the storm passed here. 
I’m not belittling anyone, but just want to pass on some peace of mind.  If your pantries are well-stocked with easy to prepare foods and the ingredients to make staples (like bread), you won’t have to worry about being snowed- or iced-in. Then you can concentrate on filling water jugs, maintaining an alternate heat source and light sources. 

Just a little wisdom, I’ve learned through the years, living on the Farm.


And just in case anyone is looking at those candy bars, brownie mixes, soda with a critical eye... what can I say... it’s mid-Winter and my Farmer has a sweet-tooth. 

Stay warm and safe, my Puffins!

Hugs
K~

**Thrift comes too late when you find it at the bottom of your purse.  ~Seneca

It was Amazingly Good! Pan-sauted Chicken Breasts with Pan Sauce

Sorry... no photos.  It smelled too good, I was too hungry (little to no lunch) and it was 8:30 p.m.  No natural lighting.

But let me tell you what I did and you can recreate it yourself.   This is a dish you want to start in the morning for the evening, but no worries... the morning prep is super easy.

That is... if you remembered to take the boneless chicken breasts out of the freezer the night before.  If not,  take them out now, put them on a metal baking sheet or cake pan.  The metal surface will dispel the coldness and the chicken will defrost faster.  (I do this all the time with frozen food.)

When the chicken breasts (2) are thawed, rinse or don't, it's up to you.  Mine were very fresh... had just picked them up from the organic producers that day and I had just cut up the chickens, so they were already rinsed.

Take a gallon ziplock bag and dump in a tablespoon or so of Canadian Steak Seasoning (black pepper, onion and garlic minced and dried), then a couple of tablespoons of kosher salt.  Add 2-3 cups of water and seal the bag.  Double check the seal.  You'll see why..... now shake or squish the bag so the salt dissolves.  (see why you want that seal, Sealed!)  Add the chicken breasts.  Place the brining chicken bag in a bowl and place in the fridge.  See!  That part was easy-peasy.

Later on or the next day (I left mine brining for 18 hours because I was too lazy tired to cook these.  Then I dumped out the brine and left the bag open just an inch and left it in the fridge for another 24 hours.  Again... I was not in the mood for cooking chicken on the chair painting evening.  Too hot and humid.)

Ok.... so you can do like I did OR you can dump off the brine and proceed as follows:

Pat the chicken dry.  Dedge in flour seasoned however you like.  I added a couple of good shakes of Goya brand Adobo seasoning(found in the Mexican/Latin foods part of your grocery) to mine.  Heat a medium frying pan.  Do not use a non-stick pan.  We want fond to form, Puffins.  When the pan is heated, add a tablespoon of vegetable oil.  Let the oil get good and hot, but not smoking.   Add the coated chicken breast, skin-side down.  Let brown until nice and golden.  Turn over and let the second side brown. 

After both sides are browned, turn the burner down a bit and let the chicken cook.  If you see things are getting too hot and too cooked and the fond (the dark brown stuck-on bits of goodness in the bottom of the pan) is in danger of burning, add some water to the pan, clap on the lid and let it simmer.  You may have to add more water if your lid is not a tight seal for the pan.

When the chicken is cooked through, remove from the pan and set aside to rest.  Add 2 cups of liquid to the frying pan.  You can add just water or like me, add some chicken stock.  Stir the bottom of the pan with a flat edged spatula or wooden spoon to get all those yummy fond bits dissolved and incorporated.  Turn the heat to simmer and let the liquid reduce to a cup.  While it's doing this, add whatever other seasonings you want.  I added some dried thyme and a teaspoon of white wine vinegar for some brightening.  When the liquid is reduced and somewhat syrupy, add a Tablespoon of butter in 3 pieces.  Stirring to incorporate as it melts and thickens the sauce.  Turn off the heat, stir in any juices from the chicken plate.

and there you go!  Chicken with Pan Sauce.  I also made some rice in my automatic rice cooker (LOVE this appliance!)  1 cup regular white rice (NOT Minute Rice), 2 cups chicken stock, some dried mushroom slices and some dried leeks and a splash of EVOO.  Pushed the button and let it cook while I did the chicken and sauce.  It all got done together.  Add in a green salad and a glass of wine and you have an easy-peasy Delicious dinner in under an hour.

(Now, I know you really good cooks are rolling your eyes are me now.  This is beyond easy for you.  But I am a Farmer's Wife.  My normal type meals are basic beef and potatoes.  Sauces are not there unless you count the occasional gravy or spaghetti sauce or pizza sauce.   I was proud of myself for recreating this meal from a vague memory having made similar dishes out of my Cook's Illustrated books.  Somewhere along the way, the basic "formula" stuck in my head.  And boy is my tummy ever glad!)

Another nice thing about this meal is that it was all from my pantry.  As in no special buys this week.  Rice and chicken stock are always staples.  I just picked up my annual organic chicken order on Thursday.  I made the dried mushrooms and leeks from some that were destined for the garbage at my grocers.  I got them at a very reduced price, trimmed and sliced and dried in my dehydrator.  They add wonderful flavor to rice, soups, eggs (reconstituted first before adding to eggs).  

So Puffins... are you a cook by the book person or do you have all the formulas memorized so you can be creative or is every meal an adventure at your house as you just dump and stir and see what you get?  I'd like to know.   :oD

Hugs!
K~

**  "One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating."  ~Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story

Can you Can-Can?

Susan at The T-Cozy asked in a recent post, if anyone canned fruits and vegetables anymore?  Do We??!! 

I canned 18 half-pints of sweet pickle relish last evening from too-big cucumbers my dear neighbor gave me.  I juiced a flat of her tomatoes and have that freezing in some retangle-shaped pyrex dishes to use in chili this winter. 

I'm watching the pear trees around here and hope to can Farmer-dear some pear halves or else I'll dry some slices. 

And then this fall I need to make some apple pie filling and can it and also make some apple butter and applesauce. 
These fruits usually come to me for free also and I hate to waste anything like this. 

I haven't done much drying this summer simply because there hasn't been much to dry.  And my jars of dried foodstuffs are pretty full right now.  I'm watching my basil and thyme plants and will be sure to harvest them before the first frost.  I love the dried basil I did the last 2 years.  It smells so fresh whenever I open the jar.
I'll probably be drying onions when we pull those from the weedy garden. 

Not a huge amount of preserving going on here but enough.  It's another of my Simple Pleasures.  :)

What about you dear Puffins?  Do you "can" or is that for old women back in the 40s?  Would you like to learn how to can/preserve?  Is there a need, still, for these skills in this day?  

I'm interested in your thoughts.

And to firmly establish my identity with the Old-fashioned Ladies.... I'm off to sew on my quilt blocks. 

Hugs!
Kay~

** "I got the blues thinking of the future, so I left off and made some marmalade.  It's amazing how it cheers one up to shred oranges and scrub the floor."  ~D.H. Lawrence

More Pantry Challenge Meals

I'm having so much fun with the Pantry Challenge that I think I will continue it for another month. Anyone else thinking the same thing?

This week has been 99% pantry meals. I apologize right now for the lack of photos. It just was not the week for them. The websites below will have photos but I just cooked and ate.

First was wonderfully delicious meal came from the blog "Living Dangerously While Eating". Tammy made a Seafood Bisque ala Paula Dean. I love creamy soups and I love seafood and just happened to have some bay scallops in the freezer. I'm not a fan of scallops just sauteed or in pasta, as I am shrimp, but they were awesome in this soup. Tammy might have been smarter and healthier in her version, but I only have real butter and EVOO (organic) and real half-n-half here, so that's what I used. And do you know how thrifty and chef-like I felt using my own home-made chicken broth in this. :o)
Thanks again for posting this, Tammy!



Another oh-so-yummy meal was Pan-Seared Thick Strip Steaks with Red Wine-Mushroom Pan Sauce from Cook's Illustrated May 2007. Filet Steaks from the freezer, a one-glass bottle of Shiraz, a few quartered Baby Bell mushrooms, that home-made chicken broth and a shallot. OH MY Stars!! Along with bag salad and a baked Yukon Gold potato. (All produce was purchased recently, but the other ingredients were pantry/freezer-stash.) Now that was great Pantry Eating!
(And yes, I am a CI junkie..... the bound yearly editions, a cookbook, the website, the emails and the television program. I can't help it...I don't like recipes that fail. I'm a by-the-book cook until I get the concept down in my head.... then I can wing it.)

The last Pantry meal was too simple for words.... Spicy Beef Nachos. I know.... from serious foodie meals to this? Considering the Blue-eyed Farmer was having issues with a calf and a prolapse and the vet (I'll spare you the details), I did a quick and easy and comforting meal.

Basically this was a pound of our ground beef, a package of taco seasoning (or the equivalent if you make your own and I should make some more!), nacho cheese....(yes the stuff in the big can from Sam's Club....what can I say, He likes it and it makes great nachos, of course), black beans (or any beans you like), salsa, sour cream, jarred pickled jalapenos, shredded sharp cheddar, shredded lettuce and green onions & tomato if you have them... I didn't.
Oh and the chips!
Brown the beef, and make the taco meat according to the package. Heat the beans and nacho cheese. Open the jars, containers and bags of toppings. Once the meat and cheese are cooked & heated, it's just a matter of layering however you want. I went for traditional that night while the Farmer did Naked Nachos (chips on the side).
Extreme comfort food, that was much needed.
Again, the produce (lettuce) was a recent purchase (severe price mark-down as it was almost past use date, but no ick factor yet and that was 5 days ago), but all else was freezer/fridge/pantry stash.

Not a main dish but a dessert/goodie I took to church last Sunday was Pecan Tarts. Everyone has eaten these or at least heard of them. Basic cream cheese-based crust dough, with a chopped pecan pie filling, baked until done. Again, all "pantry" stash. And too good!

Next on the menu is Chili Soup for our church's chili cook-off. I have no great expectations of winning but hope they like the soup. I think I've posted my basic recipe, but if I find I haven't, I'll do it next week. (NOTE to Self: I need an index here of my recipes. This summer!)

Also on the list is Shredded BBQed Pork using a pork roast and the last package of spare ribs. This recipe is for the slow-cooker. The recipe was in our local newspaper and the story featured the blogger from "crockpot365.blogspot.com". Since I found the recipe on Stephanie's website, I'm not going to post it here. Just click on the link above. I have all the ingredients except Tabasco Sauce, but I have Chilpotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce and that will provide any extra needed kick.


Another pantry stash-busting project is to make bread and I want to play with the dough, trying a slow, cool first ferment. Someone just hide my King Arthur Flour catalog and don't let me log onto their website. Oh my..... SAF Yeast (great stuff-- so much better than Red Star or Fleschman's); Espresso Power for extra UMPH in chocolate recipes; something called Cinnamon Filling mix..... I have such a craving for Cinnamon Rolls; a dried fruit mix of moist dried apricots, raisins, pineapple, dates, and cranberries -- OH MY! And all those are free shipping this weekend. I think I can justify buying them.... I'm doing RAB* this year. But that's a post for another day.....

And also for another day is a Milk Chocolate Caramel Tart from the Feb10 Bon Appetit magazine. Valentine's Day IS coming soon.....

*Random Acts of Baking

What is cooking in your kitchen this week?

Hugs
K~
**Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. ~Plato

Pantry Cooking

I'm not sure if you remember, but I'm doing a Pantry Challenge this month. We're trying to only buy dairy, produce and loss leaders at the store and eat out of the pantry and freezers.

Some recent meals have included a new recipe for Vegetable Beef Soup (Cook's Illustrated recipe ), Meat Loaf & mashed potatoes, Pigs in the Blanket made from little smokies and canned biscuits, el-cheapo Helper boxed dinner, Pancakes and bacon and a fast lunch of frozen fish portions, oven fries and oven onion rings.

Sides have included the purchased produce: bag salad, bag baby spinach, carrots, bell peppers, potatoes in various forms, mushroom & leeks.

We've been eating apples (produce buy) and applesauce from the pantry for dessert & snacks.

I've been making our bread and desserts from pantry items and searching the freezers for remembered ingredients.

Recent purchases have been the produce, milk, cheese, cereal for Dh, and more flour.

I need to use up more pudding mixes, jello packets, and some mysterious bags of something in the freezer.

All in all, I'm rather pleased at our efforts. It's been freeing to not have to scour the ads for sales beyond the produce and dairy.

How are you doing on the Pantry Challenge?

Hugs
K~

** "Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods; good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts!" ~James Beard