Week of 4/16/2008

The Skyrocketing Cost of Food and How To Fight It

The statistics are out. The prices of milk, eggs, meat and produce have reached a 17-year high. In addition, gas and heating oil are gobbling up more of our available cash. So what's a home cook to do?

If you comb through your monthly food budget, you're sure to find a number of budget busters. Are you guilty of shopping at multiple stores, overbuying, eating out frequently, buying organic or gourmet, shopping too often? Any or all of these can do seious damage to the food bill.

In a recent challenge, four families were asked to cut their food bill by at least 20% in one month's time. On an average, the families were able to save 30% by applying some basic fundamentals of a frugal cook:

• Always know what's for dinner. Since dinner is usually a family's main (and most expensive) meal, planning for it makes sense. If you need help, The Six O'Clock Scramble is and online meal planning service that includes a weekly shopping list to avoid overbuying or shopping too often.
• Use coupons and/or supermarket rewards cards. Coupons are a no-brainer and rewards cards can also save extra dollars. 
• Watch weekly ads for specials. Keep an eye on the newpaper each week for items on sale that are on your grocery list. Find your local supermaket online and check their ads. 
• Use leftovers for lunch. Leftovers are great for lunch but there are a hundred ways to use leftovers at other times. Check out The Leftover Chef  for recipes.
• Reduce the number of times you eat out. Sure it's great to let somebodyelse do the cooking, but it's also expensive. Reduce food costs by limiting the number of times you eat out. When you do, find cheaper places to dine. Happy hours have become the great dining deal of the day. Instead of Ruth's Chris, think Applebee's

Check out more was to save on groceries at SaveMoneyOnGroceries.com.

Week of 4/23/2008

Garden Party

It's Spring, or at least in some parts of the country it is. That means lawns will need to be mowed and gardens will need to be planted. Here are a few tips that could save you money this year.

1. When you mow, leave the grass clippings on the lawn. They will hold moisture and reduce the amount of watering needed.

2. Save coffee grounds and eggshells. If your soil has a low acid level, adding coffee gounds will correct it. Crushed eggshells help to aerate the soil.

3. Whiteflies can play havoc with geraniums, dahlias and a host of flowering plants. Mix a teaspoon of dishwashing liquid with some water in a spray bottle and spray plants every two weeks to keep them free of whiteflies. Aphids are another garden pest that can be kept at bay by planting nasturtium plants throughout the garden. They keep aphids from munching on your other plants.

4. Use empty egg cartons to start a dozen seedlings instead of buying starter plants. Use 1-gallong plastic milk jugs for a mini-greenhouse. Cut the bottom off, remove the cap for ventilation, and place it on the ground over a small plant. It will protect the plant from frost and animals.

5. Prevent weeds from growing by covering soil with dampened newspaper. It works just like mulch, but it's a lot cheaper, and because it is biodegradable it will desolve into the ground.

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