Saving On Real Food

Saving on Real Food: Don’t Fall Into the Trap

May 1, 2012

Once again, I need to listen to my own advice here…

There is something to be said about convenience foods. Even convenience real foods.

How many of you (like me) have fallen into buying?

baby carrots
apple slices
shredded cabbage or lettuce
boneless chicken
shredded cheese

If you chop, shred, and debone your own food, you will save money most of the time! (So it is battle. Do you have extra time or extra money?)

I buy boneless chicken and shredded cheese. But I now prefer my fruits and veggies whole, so I can be the one to wash, slice, or chop!

What other convenience real foods do you buy or see in the stores?

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Saving On Real Food: Use the Coupon Database

April 27, 2012

So, you aren’t going to find many coupons for produce. They do come around, but not very often…

There are coupons for many organic items though, especially dairy items.

Look at this coupon database link where I searched “Organic” coupons. When I wrote this post, there were 4 pages of coupons. That is a whole lot of savings on organic items!

Keep in mind, “organic” doesn’t necessarily equate to real food, but some items are definitely what I would consider real!

What “real food” coupons have you found recently?

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Saving On Real Food: Farmer’s Markets

April 20, 2012

Real Food

Not all produce is created equal and not all farmer’s markets are created equal either. I encourage you to look around and find the one in your area with the best produce, prices, and selection.

Why visit the farmer’s markets?

You are supporting the local community and farmers.
You can get produce fresh from the farm.
You get a great selection of fresh produce.
Many offer organic offerings: ask or check the signs.
At the end of the day, sometimes you can get a bargain. (Ask!)
Produce is often as cheap as your grocery store and tax is usually included in pricing.
You can often find eggs, beef, pork and other local items from farmers too!

Want to read more about Saving On Real Food? Check out my other posts in this series.

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Saving On Real Food: A Book Review and Giveaway!

April 17, 2012

This review and giveaway came just at a perfect time, because I think it fits perfectly with my Saving On Real Food series!

April from An Apple a Day Wisdom contacted me last week to check out her new e-book Don’t Compost It, Cook It. It is on special this week for $3.99.

After reading her book, I realize just how much food I throw away that I could be eating in another form. It only makes sense that to save money on real food, you need to use every last bit of what you buy!

April’s book contains more than 20 recipes for different items made from what many would call scraps of food! My favorite one after a glance was a recipe for potato skins. I am definitely guilty of throwing away my potato skins, when I could be making a yummy snack out of them! (I need to think about buying organic potatoes though, if I am going to eat the skins more often…)

Anyway… I would recommend this book to anyone trying to get more out of their produce grocery budget. I know I will be trying out some of the recipes this summer!

Giveaway:

One lucky reader will win an e-copy of April’s book, Don’t Compost It, Cook It.

Enter:

1. Leave a comment telling me something you throw away that you would like to find a way to use.

2. Sign up for daily emails from Coupon Teacher (leave a second comment).

U.S. Only. 18 and up. This giveaway will end on 4/21/12 at noon EST, and a winner will be randomly drawn. I will email the winner, and they will have 48 hours to respond.

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Organic Gardening Magazine $4.99 (Today Only!!)

April 14, 2012

This one is perfect if you read yesterday’s post on Gardening.

Today only, subscribe to Organic Gardening Magazine for only $4.99 per year (61% off)! You can order up to 4 years at this price! Just enter coupon code COUPONTEACHER.

This offer expires at Saturday 04/14/12 11:59 PM EST EST.

See another magazine you want? You can always use coupon code COUPONTEACHER to save an additional 20% off of any other DiscountMags.com magazine subscription too!

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Saving On Real Food: Grow a Garden

April 13, 2012

Real Food

I feel like a hypocrite typing this post.

I am not growing my own garden this year, and I did not last year. However, I have grown a garden, and my mother-in-law has taken my former garden over. Boy does she have a green thumb!

Your first year of growing a garden is sort of trial and error, and sometimes it can be expensive. We found that our costs decreased a lot the 2nd and 3rd years. (Please don’t let any up front costs discourage you from trying.)

You don’t HAVE to buy a tiller. You can rent or borrow one. Or you can plant in containers. Be creative.
You control what you plant and if you use chemicals. You can be as organic as you want. Even if you are not, you know what has been done to the plants.
It takes time, but provides good exercise. There is just something satisfying about the sweat you produce when working in your garden. The fruits of your labor taste even better.
A package of seeds is inexpensive. You can grow a whole mess of green beans from one little packet. Just think of how they taste!