Cost of food can take up a large part your budget. One way to cut down on how much you spend on food is by preparing meals yourself instead of eating out on a regular basis. Here are some ideas to help you keep your food within budget.
Simplify Lunch
Commit to eating sandwiches for lunch every day. Sandwiches are a cheap and relatively healthy food, which can also be versatile. They are also easy to make the night before if you aren't going to be home for lunch and need to bring it with you.
Plus, we have a great cheap Flowers bread store in Opelika where you can get good bread at a fraction of the normal cost. I personally like to go once every couple of weeks and stock up all the bread and buns I will need. I then put all but one loaf into the freezer and just pull it out as necessary. Bread freezes very well and thaws out as fresh as when you put it in. Which leads me to my next thought...
Freeze your Food
What is so hard for me about cooking is the time takes to cook every single day. So I've found that there are certain foods I can prepare large portions of and freeze it in daily portions. When I do a lot of meals this way I end up with a freezer full of frozen dinners at my disposal, but I only had to cook for a day to eat for a month. There are many books on how to accomplish this and what recipes freeze better than others. You can check out the Auburn Public Library to research it without having to invest in the book yourself.
- Super Suppers - A company that helps with the prepare and freeze dinners idea. I have never tried them, but seems worth looking into. Check out there website at www.supersuppers.com.
Ah, the old stand by...Spaghetti is one of those delicious foods that most people like to eat and is cheap to make. Here is my grandmother's spaghetti recipe:
In one large pot bring water to boil...add noodles...boil
until noodle sticks to wall...drainIn a separate large saucepan brown 1 lb hamburger meat with chopped onions and chopped bell pepper...drain grease....add 1 can tomato soup and 1 can cream of mushroom soup and seasoning (usually I put in oregano, basil, sage, & pepper, but any italian seasoning will do)....simmer while the noodles are boiling. After noodles have been drained cover them with the sauce....ENJOY!
Tortilla Soup ~ Recommended by Katherine
1 can Texas ranch style beans
1 can black beans
1 can corn drained
1 can rotel mild
1 can hominy drained
1 can chicken broth
1 can chicken and wild rice soup
1 can chicken breast rinsed
Add altogether in big pot cook, simmer for 30 minutes. Serve with crushed tortilla chips and grated cheddar cheese on top. Cook.easy. done! Makes more than one meal.
Information based on personal experiences and may change without knowledge of this webdesigner. If you find any incorrect information on this page or would like to add an idea that I've missed please email Frugality@frugalauburn.com