Making our fancy coffee, teas, smoothies at home saves us a bundle. We got a little milk frother wand ($15) that textures the milk perfect for lattes etc. We use big jars to make our own cold brew coffee and iced green & hibiscus sun tea, so refreshing, healthy, and cheap!
Great article, Wendy! Lots of thought and great ideas inside. I really appreciate it.
One nut I have yet to crack in the food purchasing world is the portion sizes in most grocery stores. I don’t know what it’s like where you are, but here all meat and produce comes bunched together in amounts you’d use in a 4-person meal. Since I have a 2-person household, there are always leftovers of ground beef, chuck, chicken breast/thigh/tenders, and the never-less-than 4 pack burger patty. (I know I could save there too by just making them). But in any event, it’s challenging for me to buy more than I use simply from the habit of going to the store for typically one meal at a time, but ending up with 2. Sounds stupid to write it down but whatever, it’s true. I seem to end up pitching the other half of the 4-portion more often than not, wasting half my purchase. To add to the problem, neither me nor my spouse care for leftovers much. BTW - it’s always the proteins that get me, the veggies work fine in 4-person batches. Proteins seem to go bad so fast, especially beef where I live.
Chuck the extras in the freezer?! I even freeze things like chopped onions and herbs when i have too much. I buy bread buns berries and baked treats on sale and freeze 'em up in smaller portions we defrost as needed.
I shall refactor that into the final book pre publishing Rick. Ive added your notes to my margin text. So Ill make sure the stuff you mention gets put into the final product.
Super good piece. All the more useful as tariffs affect what is available and at what price. Good for you.
Making our fancy coffee, teas, smoothies at home saves us a bundle. We got a little milk frother wand ($15) that textures the milk perfect for lattes etc. We use big jars to make our own cold brew coffee and iced green & hibiscus sun tea, so refreshing, healthy, and cheap!
As always, helpful and outstanding :D
Great article, Wendy! Lots of thought and great ideas inside. I really appreciate it.
One nut I have yet to crack in the food purchasing world is the portion sizes in most grocery stores. I don’t know what it’s like where you are, but here all meat and produce comes bunched together in amounts you’d use in a 4-person meal. Since I have a 2-person household, there are always leftovers of ground beef, chuck, chicken breast/thigh/tenders, and the never-less-than 4 pack burger patty. (I know I could save there too by just making them). But in any event, it’s challenging for me to buy more than I use simply from the habit of going to the store for typically one meal at a time, but ending up with 2. Sounds stupid to write it down but whatever, it’s true. I seem to end up pitching the other half of the 4-portion more often than not, wasting half my purchase. To add to the problem, neither me nor my spouse care for leftovers much. BTW - it’s always the proteins that get me, the veggies work fine in 4-person batches. Proteins seem to go bad so fast, especially beef where I live.
Chuck the extras in the freezer?! I even freeze things like chopped onions and herbs when i have too much. I buy bread buns berries and baked treats on sale and freeze 'em up in smaller portions we defrost as needed.
I shall refactor that into the final book pre publishing Rick. Ive added your notes to my margin text. So Ill make sure the stuff you mention gets put into the final product.
I'm big on freezing batch leftovers like chili for when I'm busy or just don't feel like cooking. It's like ordering takeout, but cheaper.