Frugal In Florida

It's been a few months since I've hit up Costco ... but there were a few things I needed  and well, I just took it upon myself to make the run last Saturday morning. Of course, the phone call from Hubby "We have a showing this afternoon!" cut my trip short so I will probably be hitting that store up again soon ... I stuck with the plan for the most part. A few things were NOT really shown and those items have the everlasting * next to them! Here's what we got and I'm hoping I have the bulk of my stuff for the month! 5 pounds New York Strips $41.53 (note, I butterfly these (all the way through) so they are thinner and then freeze half for later, so basically I feed 8 total) Chuck Roast $22.34 ... not sure how many pounds but a lot! ($3.99 per pound) Wild Planet Tuna $14.99 *Bumble Bee Albacore Tuna $13.89 *Brownie Brittle $6.69 24 hard boiled eggs (cage free) $6.99 3 pk of large chunky guac $10.69 5 pk baby romaine lettuce $3.99 3 pk Aidels chick...

You do know that I buy my ground beef from The Fresh Market on Tuesdays because it's $2.99 per pound for 85/15, right? I mean, heck, that's a STEAL now days! Beef is EXPENSIVE anymore! So, when I go every few weeks, I buy about 8 to 10 pounds of the stuff. Which, now that I'm on a stricter food budget of $125.00 a week, I've really got to watch what I'm buying! AND THEN ... I found Aldis ground beef: That's pretty good pricing for 90/10 and 93/7 ground beef, don't you think? The 73/27 is WAY better than the $3.59 I saw it for at Publix recently! Just for the record, Hubby prefers to mix one pound of the 73/27 with the 90/10 or even the 85/15 as it makes for a juicier burger. So ... yes, I stocked up on some of this too the last time I was at Aldis ... and NOW, what to do with 8 to 10 pounds of beef?  I am not a proponent of cooking it all up at once like some do ... I mean, heck, some days we want burgers, other days, tacos, and then of ...

After holding out for quite a few weeks and doing a little comparison shopping on the side at the local grocery stores, the Boy and I headed to Costco early on Saturday morning ... My main mistake was taking him with ME! Uggg. We did get some good stuff that we needed/wanted at a way reduced price compared to the stores locally ... such as the Brown Basmati Rice ($3.99 per bag in all the stores) for $11.49 for a 6 pk. Um, hi, that's like half the price ... and I never see a sale on this stuff. I did buy quite a few things that were NOT on the list ... and didn't pick up a few things that were ... the cart was overflowing and for that reason alone, I'm glad the Boy came along, he got his workout pushing that thing through the crowds ... Here's what we got: * 2 bottles of Kirkland brand Golden Margarita Mix (premixed WITH tequila) $9.99 each ... this is definitely the same stuff as the Golden Margaritas I buy for $19.99 a bottle ... SOLD from here on out! (yes, ...

One of the key things about being frugal is the ability to improvise. Well, sort of ... I planned on making a little veggie and chicken stir fry ... I had some chicken that I was thawing and was going to use up some of the frozen veggies from the mammoth bag taking valuable space up in the freezer ... But I ALSO had some chicken and gouda sausages that I took out a few days ago ... (didn't happen, didn't cook anything last week, not ONCE) And mushrooms I picked up on Friday to do shrimp skewers (see comment above, didn't happen). And a red pepper that was bought to do the oriental cabbage salad thingy ... it's starting to go squishy in areas (again, see above, DID NOT HAPPEN). AND the rest of a LARGE onion (I only needed a little bit for the Chicago Dogs) that was seeping fumes into the fridge through it's plastic bag ... Ahhh...what the heck, lets just fire up the grill and cook it ALL. Yes, I knew it was 8pm on a Monday night. Put chicken br...

Hubby is traveling Monday, Tuesday and gets back late on Wednesday. Sonny Boy's 19th birthday is Monday. Not that it 'matters' so to speak as he's in Orlando and I'm not. Just telling you. Princess is 21 on Thursday. Where did the 21 years go?? I am meeting her and a girlfriend of mine for the yummy prickly pear margaritas at Canyons . It's time for her to be introduced to the chicks top pick. So it's really a limited 'cooking' week for me! I had taken shrimp out on Sunday morning anticipating making Bangin Shrimp but we ended up trying out a new wing place after picking up the Christmas tree (we need to get wings for the Boat Parade Party this weekend ... our old place is closed). Since it was late (like 4'ish) we just skipped dinner so to speak. I will have to hit Costco this week one night after work. Need to get foods for the party, and I also want to get milk, cream, 1/2 and 1/2, lettuce, and a few other things (lunchmeat, carnation,...

That's the only way I can describe the freezers and pantry at the moment. I've been really reducing my grocery shopping (the amount of stuff I buy, not necessarily money out) ... so we are pretty much dried up on the snacks and such. I mean, shoot, the one shelf is normally stuffed with chips, breads, and other junk snacky types of foods. But since Sonny Boy hasn't been around, and all the boys with him (and girls) and Princes is working odd hours, we've pretty much cleaned out that shelf and just not bought any more ... which is ok because we ARE trying to eat healthier. So when I got the text message from our friends that they had 10 'plump' b/s chicken thighs, and would we like to grill them up at our house and hang out for a bit, I had a slight anxiety attack. What to serve for snacks? What to serve as a side. I mean, this is like an hour notice after a BUSY day. We said YES (of course) and hurried up to finish our projects in process (Hubby hanging...

Its a once in a blue moon type of thing for me to say that I made a casserole. But today, I did. But it's not for us to eat at the house. It's for Hubby to take with him to the office tomorrow. He has a new employee who JUST moved here from the other coast, and he thinks the guy is flat broke and living in his car til his wife comes and a few paychecks roll in. That makes me sad. Very very sad. But there is hope in that Hubby must be coming around and be a little more sensitive =D which is a joke, yet not really. Anyways. When we made dinner Saturday night, he insisted that we double the meat for the grill and made an extra side dish. To take to work "as leftovers" and to tell the gang that it's too much food for us at home. Hmmm. That's pretty nice honey. This morning, we were talking about the status of chicken in the freezers and if I wanted to make some more stuff. Hmmm...How about a casserole type thingy? He just looked at me, well, because,...

Oddly enough, was the crockpot, Hubby, and chili. We've had a rainy blustery weekend. As in, nothing is being done outside (til today, late Sunday, finally calming down!) So after we did the new TV and digital cable box installations (um, nothing is easy in this house, ok?), Hubby went and dug out the BIG crockpot, 2 pkgs of ground beef from freezer, a bag of diced onions and a bag of green peppers (also from the freezer), chili beans from pantry, a few cans of tomato sauce from the pantry, a can of roasted tomatoes, and various spices and whipped up a chili in the crockpot. Sweet. And then, texted Princess and told her to be sure to stop at the store and buy a gallon of 2% Publix milk and 2 bags of frito corn chips, ORIGINAL. See, with Princess, you have to be specific, as in 2% and ORIGINAL, otherwise you will get something totally different :) Anyways. That's Sunday's meal. Woohoo. He did that Saturday and I'm set for Sunday. Princess, overload on the frito...

I live in South Florida and we pretty much grill all year long. Except of course, when there's a hurricane coming (we do that like the DAY the warning comes out to cook up all the meat 'just in case') ... but I guess because we both grew up in the Midwest, Summertime definitely equates to more grillin'. Lately, it seems every Friday, I am making the same thing, which is not to be confused with the same 'old' thing ... because most of us (ahem, with the exception of one boy) enjoy it and we eat it all up. Chicken and grilled veggies. Specifically, boneless, skinless chicken thighs AND onions, peppers and mushrooms. Uh huh. And if I'm really on top of my game, I go for the skewers ... because everything taste better on a stick, don't you agree? Oh wait, do we need a recipe? Really? Ok. Here it is: Boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into about 2 inch pieces Handful of mini sweet peppers, sliced in 3 pieces (cuz they are small) Onion,...

I work full time and then toss in the gym a few nights of the week and it's pretty hectic at times around here. Granted, the Animals are old enough to fend for themselves, Hubby knows how to cook and well, if you are that hungry, MAKE SOMETHING. But, I'm still a mom at heart and WANT to feed the kids a nourishing meal at the end of the day. Plus I still like the thrill of feeding Hubby something he enjoys ... what can I say. Off subject: just what the heck will I do when they move out (kids)??? Anyways. I don't do freezer cooking per se because I don't have any room in the freezers to really do so. Trust me, once those babies are near empty, that will be my next project! I AM a big fan though of pre-planning and prepping.  You know, prepare salads for the week, prep the rest of the veggies and so on. Menu Plan. One of my favorite things is just fill the grill up. Sometimes, it's just a matter of grabbing a few packages of meat with a small variety like th...

Ahhh, I'm in for such a RUDE awakening tomorrow afternoon. My boss comes back from being OUT for over 10 days. The other boss has been gone since last Thursday. I've really enjoyed the QUIET time (at the office no less!) and have gotten a LOT of work done without interruptions ... ahem. Seriously, lots and lots of work. It's been nice to see progress. And of course, I've been able to leisurely surf the net and browse at my convenience. And I found a pretty neat, informative, motivational and inspiring blog ... I'm only on page 14! Mom On A Mission . Seriously. The chickens. The camping. The cooking. The FREEZER cooking. The recipes. And on and on! I want to go home, whip out the stockpile of ziplocs and have at it! Woohoo!! Yes. I know. We all do little things with the freezer to get a little ahead of the game. Yes, I am having Tacos tonight. It's in the fridge, thawing. But she has a PLAN! A real bonafide plan! :) I'm thrilled .... I...

Seriously, I sometimes think these other kids don't have food in their house. I say that jokingly but then again, maybe not. Anyways. Summertime is upon us. That means kids are in the house. And for me, that means older teens. Teens that should know how to prepare something healthy to eat instead of a bag of chips. I do try to make it a little easier. Afterall, I am a full time working mom AND dedicated to being healthier with trips to the gym (although not as consistently as I'd like) ... so here are a few things that I try to keep on hand: Fruits  - strawberries, blueberries, grapes, melons, whatever is on sale. I don't do a whole lot of apples (most kids don't like them "as much") ... if I get good oranges, they will be devoured, but we are picky on oranges around here. Veggies - lettuce (if I'm ahead of the game, shredded/sliced thin for sandwiches encourages them to use it), sweet peppers, sliced, celery, carrots (sticks), pickles and other...

I'm still not quite sure what we were "celebrating" but I had a house full of teens Saturday with a little advance notice (thankfully!) The Rock Stars did a photo shoot at noon and were to be back in a few hours. Umm, teenspeak means we don't know how long that really is. Regardless, I headed to Aldis early and wanted to stop at Walmart and GFS too ... but midway into the trip at Aldis, Hubby called that he needed me to stop at the auto store on the way home. Crumb. That meant he was at a standstill doing work on my truck. So I didn't do Walmart (jalapeno plant shopping, that's all, honestly) and rushed the Aldi trip (forgot coffee and a few other things, oh well). Stopped at auto store and picked up what he needed and rushed through GFS and got 2 bags of precooked and seasoned buffalo chicken wings ($9.99 each, which think about it, cooked weight is 5 lbs for $2 a pound?!) and a 5 lb bag of oranges for $5.99. Came home, gave Hubby his part to finish h...

Uhhh...so we've sort of, kind of fell off the menu plan this week (see the past 3 days of pantry challenge !) and last night, after Hubby had a huge green salad with the works and I had my nachos, Sonny Boy strolled by and asked what was for dinner? (!!!!????) ... somehow this kid gets his timing JUST RIGHT. Told him to fend for himself. Soup? Grilled Cheese? Mac and Cheese (freezer) etc. No, no and NO. He wanted Spaghetti. Not the short noodles. Not the curly ones. Don't even think of them funky bowties ones mom. The long stringy ones. You know, that you have to twirl around your fork? Oh. Ok. Hmmm ... I have NO SPAGHETTI left. How about some lasagna? That was on the menu plan :) So, now I have to "watch" for a decent sale on spaghetti to buy a few boxes. Ho hum. If that's the worse of this pantry challenge, I'm in!

For those of you who follow along, you probably figured out (or even read) that I am NOT a huge veggie person. Matter of fact, I used to hate anything that called itself a veggie and then some.  But as I've gotten older, and since I quit smoking, I make every attempt to at least try to eat some veggies...and wouldn't you know it, sometimes I surprise myself! Mushrooms are one of those times ... Here's what you need for a super easy side dish (goes excellent with steaks but even chicken or pork will work well too!) Shrooms ... sliced or whole (I leave them whole unless they are super large) Cesear dressing (I use Kens Steakhouse Lite ... been the tastiest so far) Toss shrooms in a ziptop. Add dressing, don't make them swim, but enough to coat. Let them marinate for 30 minutes to a few hours. Obviously, the longer they marinate, the more concentrated the flavor becomes so use a little caution. When ready to cook, tear a big sheet of foil, fold up edges to make a ...

In relation to my thoughts on going back to monthly menu planning and bi-weekly shopping, I've come up with the following quick ideas for dinners. Yeah, there aren't alot of side dishes and/or veggies listed, truthfully, those just aren't as important, I can always toss in some frozen veggies on the side! 1. BLT's 2. Quesidialla and black bean soup (a favorite - just had last night!) 3. Garlicky chicken and rice 4. pot roast (crockpot) with mashed taters and gravy 5. cuban pork and beans with rice 6. hot browns 7. taco soup 8. tacos and nachos 8 baked tater with works 9. spinach stuffed chicken breast 10. spaghetti and meatballs 11. chicken cesar pasta salad 12. chili cheese dogs with oven fries 13. burgers (sliders, whatever) 14. hot dogs (brats, sausage) 15. pizzas 16. pork chops and scallop taters 17. cubano sandwiches 18. pressed sandwiches (any kind) and pasta salad 19. baked tater soup 20. chili 21. grilled cheese and tomato soup 22. chicke...

Ok, if you've been reading me for a while, you know I have a weakness for Burger King ... specifically in the mornings on my way to work when I'm tired, had too much too drink, hungry or just generally don't feel well. I always, always, ALWAYS buy the same thing ...  A number one value size with a coke. For those who do not frequent BK often (GOOD FOR YOU!!) that would be a sausage patty, egg, cheese croissant, side of hash round things and a small coke. Total cost? $4.24 now. Was $3.89. Before that, a few years ago it was like $2.99 total. So it's expensive. And the coke is usually flat. And the hashbrowns are cold. Just cruddy stuff, but fills my tummy in a time of need.  And don't even ask me about the calories and the fat content. Well. Check this out:  I figure that cost me about $1.05 at the MOST.  The little can of soda? 7.5 oz, 90 calories. The bread? Pepperidge Farm Sourdough, B1G1F, $3.59 (2 loaves), eggs are $2.99 for 3 dozen and cheese is t...

This is what happens when you are running late with dinner and a favorite show is coming on in minutes: Sandwiches, or as the kids corrected me: hoagies!

Easter is right around the corner. Really, 3 days away. Have you all been planning and shopping and preparing yet? I haven't! Well, not that I really need to. We don't do the usual big fanfare brunch/lunch/dinner type of thing. Afterall, we live in South Florida and the weather is just B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L! So that means outdoors. Sometimes boating. Sometimes just floating in the pool. It always means a friend or two or even 10 will be over at some time during the day. And the grill is usually involved. Along with a few cocktails. Then I've got the 2 picky kids. Even as teens. AND I used to be pretty picky myself (note: once I quit smoking, my tastebuds changed. Hey. That might be why the waistline did too?) So we normally made a little more fancier food than everyday but nothing like a big whole ham or anything. Plus, it was only the 4 of us eating and that's alot of left overs. We HAVE done the honey baked ham thing in previous years, but with the prices getting higher...

Has anyone seen this show about Hoarders ? I find it a little repulsive (ok, a lot, it scares me) but when they show the food hoarders, I get really freaked out because I can really see how that can happen! Then the good ole pioneer woman got eaten up by her pantry in which I could totally relate to. I had just cleaned out the bottom shelf of my pantry, and much to my dismay, I had 15 bottles of A1 Steak Sauce. We don't even really use that stuff! And some of it had a sell by date of 2007. Which of course, I insisted must have been past it's date when I purchased it because I CAN NOT imagine that I purchased it over 2 years ago. Ugggg. Currently, I am on a self imposed limited shopping plan. My freezers (all 3) are bulging. I have NO room for anything. Sure, with the limited shopping, I have made little nooks & crannies to stuff little things into, but don't be buying no 10 lbs of chicken or any solid hunk of frozen something as there is NO room. My pantry and overf...