Saturday, September 29, 2012

A RE-USE IT PROJECT: Citrus Vinegar

I know y'all love re-use it projects; in fact my Hockey Stick Muskoka Chair post is the most-viewed one on this blog almost every week! (And no, I don't normally talk like a Southerner, but hey, I've just finished a novel set in the South so it must have rubbed off on me ::grin::)

As fun as re-use projects can be, they can often take a fair amount of time to complete. No so with this one! It's practically effortless, which is my kind of project. Not only that, it's a way to squeeze a second use out of something you'd normally toss in the compost bin: your citrus peels (pun fully intended!)

Here's everything you need:
White vinegar
Leftover lemon, lime and/or orange peels
A quart/litre sized Mason jar with lid

I keep a perpetual jar of this stuff going in my pantry. Simply fill the jar about 3/4 full with vinegar, then add citrus peels as they happen to become leftovers in your kitchen (stop adding more once the jar is full!) Let this steep for a week or two after the final addition of peels. You'll end up with something that looks alarmingly like you might find it on Hannibal Lechter's mantle:

Once it's done "brewing", carefully pour the liquid into a clean Mason jar or spray bottle (a funnel makes this job a lot easier). And voila! Homemade citrus vinegar, a cheap and natural disinfectant/deodorizer.
 

How to use it:

This is a great disinfectant spray for many types of surfaces: kitchen counters, that nasty area around the toilet, etc. If you have cutting boards that you've used to cut up meat, rinse them, then spray some of this on them afterwards and let it sit a few minutes before you wash.

If you normally add vinegar to your dishwasher in the "rinse agent" dispenser, you could use this instead to give it a citrus-fresh boost.

I also use this to spray down my yoga mat after hot yoga classes (I hang it out on the clothesline and spray it down, then let it drip dry).

Do you have a favourite use for leftover citrus peels?

For more re-use it projects and ideas, click HERE to see all my posts on this topic.

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Wednesday, September 26, 2012

My Favourite New Gardening Trick of 2012


I love having a vegetable garden, and I'm so grateful we've managed to carve out the space for one in our tiny urban backyard. Although I've been growing some of my own food for about 15 years now, I'll admit I don't have the greenest of thumbs - so I'm always thrilled to discover a food-producing plant that will thrive under my care.

This year I finally got around to trying out a little trick I'd heard about ages ago: regrowing grocery store purchased green onions in my garden. As you can see from the above photo, it worked like a charm! My little army of onions all grew robustly, and yielded us many times over the original purchase of green onions. Even better, I had constant access to freshly cut green onions whenever I wanted them. They are one of those foods that doesn't store all that well in the fridge, and even using this trick to make them last longer doesn't compare to cutting them fresh off the plant whenever you want some!

How to do it:
When you're using your store-purchased green onions, use only the green part. Save the bottom white part with the roots intact. Now all you need to do is plant this green onion "stub" in your garden - bury it just deep enough down that the roots are fully covered and the rest of the onion stub stands up firmly in place. 

Remember to water regularly, and soon you should notice the green part of the onion starting to regrow itself. Pretty cool, huh?

When you want to harvest some green onions, simply snip off the green parts, leaving the lower white portion intact (like you did before you planted them). They will continue to regrow themselves indefinitely (mine are still going strong after several shearings).

For those of you who don't have a garden, I'm pretty sure this would work if you planted them in a pot and stuck them in a nice sunny window.

Have you successfully regrown any type of grocery store produce? If so, I'd love to hear the details, so please share in the comments.

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Monday, September 24, 2012

Weekly Menu Retrospective #81

Welcome to my weekly roundup of the past week's eats. I prefer to report what we ate in the last week, rather than what we're planning to eat in the coming week. Why? The reason is pretty simple: although I usually have a general idea of what we're going to eat in the next week or so, life often unfolds a little differently than planned, and I adjust my menu plan on a near-daily basis to accommodate leftovers and other not-possible-to-plan-ahead circumstances. I find this is the easiest way to ensure that I minimize our family's food waste. I'm also willing to admit that I'm a rather spontaneous cook, given to preparing foods that strike me as the most appealing thing to eat right here and now!

If you'd like a whole book full of inexpensive, quick and kid-approved recipes,
check out my book, Cheap Appétit : The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible) on Amazon (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Amazon UK) and Barnes and Noble.  It's gotten multiple 5 star reviews!! I've included page references to recipes that are in the book in my menu plans so you can locate them quickly. For more details about the book, go here.     

Breakfasts:
Granola (p. 92), Spiced Pear Oatmeal Muffins*, Morning Glory Muffins (p. 98), peanut butter toast

*I took some overripe pears and cooked them down into "pear sauce" the same way you'd make applesauce, then used them in an applesauce oatmeal muffin recipe

Lunches: 
leftovers, sandwiches  

Dinners:

Monday: Barbecued Pork Chops with Spicy Rub, Cheesy Vegetable Casserole (p. 203)

Tuesday: Everything-But-the-Kitchen-Sink Lentil Soup (p. 162), Garlic & Cheese Biscuits (p. 213)

Wednesday: Pad Thai

Thursday: Lemon & Garlic Chicken, leftover Cheesy Vegetable Casserole

Friday: Make-It-Your-Way Potato Hash (p. 140)

Saturday: Broccoli, Bacon and Mozzarella Egg Puff (variation of recipe on p. 181)

Sunday:  Sausage and Millet Stuffed Red Peppers (recipe coming soon!), green beans, Magic Cookie Bars (made with homemade condensed milk)

In keeping with my local and organic challenge, I'd also like to note the local and/or organic items on this week's menu:

Organic: coconut (in granola), coconut oil (in granola), canola oil, raisins (in granola), sunflower and pumpkin seeds (in granola), coconut milk

Local: potatoes, carrots, onions, apples, pears, broccoli, cauliflower, ground beef, chicken, pork chops and sausage (from VG Meats), honey (unpasteurized), milk, eggs, sour cream  

Local AND organic:
sesame seeds (used to top bread loaves), oats (in granola), millet, green beans, red peppers, green onions, herbs and cherry tomatoes from our backyard garden

For more great meal ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.com.
  
Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

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Thursday, September 20, 2012

Frugality, Perfectionism and Self-Worth


It's been pretty zany around here of late and my regular readers may have noticed that I haven't been posting as much in the last couple of months. There have been a variety of reasons why our family life has seemed more harried than usual; however, one of the major ones is that my younger son decided to go to school this year. Even though I've been a mom for almost 15 years, this is the first time I've ever had a child in school and it's been a huge transition for all the members of our family. In some ways, helping my nearly thirteen year old settle into eighth grade seems to be taking up more of my time than homeschooling him did!

All that is to say that our household has been more chaotic than it has been in a while. Along with the chaos has come the feeling that I've been letting a few things slide more than usual. What I've realized is that I've felt guilty on a number of occasions because I haven't been at the top of my game in all things frugal. That also made me think about the fact that what I share here on the blog is usually "all the things I did right" and I don't often share about the things that don't quite work out so well. That probably makes some people feel like they could never measure up to my frugalista standards (or those of other frugal bloggers).

I've also been reflecting on how easy it can be for those of us who consider ourselves seasoned frugalistas to derive part of our self-worth from how well we manage our households and how little money we spend on food, clothing or any other category of purchases. It starts to become a problem when every purchase and expenditure is evaluated to see if it is as low as it possibly could have been, and if we didn't get the best deal possible every time, we feel "less than" those other frugal folks.

I think it's important to remember that frugality is a means to an end, not the end itself. Yes, there are times when the budget is tight enough that every penny does count. Even then, if your grocery budget is $350 a month, and you accidentally overpaid for a couple of items, there are plenty of ways to balance that out and keep your overall grocery expenses within your budget. For a lot of frugal folks, there may be more leeway in the budget, they just don't like to pay more than necessary - or perhaps they're setting aside all that money they save for a special goal, such as a big trip. Whatever the reason, does it make sense to feel miserable when you're less-than-perfectly frugal? Even if you didn't wring the most out of *every* dollar possible, you're still making your money go much further than most people do. Isn't that worth acknowledging and celebrating even if your (not nearly as frugal) neighbour scored a better deal on toilet paper than you did?

Dare I share some of my recent less-than-perfectly-frugal moments?

I haven't been nearly as rigorous as usual about cleaning out the fridge and I found a couple of science experiments at the back of the fridge, as well as some bordering-on-unidentifiable nasties in the crisper. Yes, I hate food waste and I could beat myself up about that. Or I could remind myself that our family wastes only a tiny percentage of the food that a typical North American family does, and realize that we're actually doing a great job overall.

I didn't tend to my veggie garden as well as I usually do this summer, and therefore my yields are in general not as good as they could have been (although we also had drought-like conditions which certainly played a factor, too). In my eagerness for a cup of fresh mint tea, I also started cutting my mint too early in the season and as a result it languished in a barely-growing state all summer. I did, however, plant a vegetable garden in the first place, thus having *some* homegrown goodies rather than none. I also made two new discoveries: a wonderful, high-yielding and tender variety of green beans, and the fact that it's possible to regrow store bought green onions, which worked fantastically well and kept us supplied with fresh cut green onions for much of the growing season.


We missed the August 50% off day at Value Village, which is where we usually buy all our fall and winter clothing. I haven't even gotten around to doing a proper inventory to see what we need yet! And it looks like there won't be another 50% off day until December. This means we might have to pay a bit more for the boys' clothes than usual this season. Again, I can chastise myself about that, or I can remember that we've spent very little on clothing so far this year, and we'll probably still be able to come in under our $400 a year clothing budget. The boys don't need a ton of new items and even though we will probably have to pay a bit more on a per-item basis, we are still spending far less than the average family and sticking to our annual budget.

On another clothing-related note, I never got around to mending several articles of my boys' summer clothing, items they may well have outgrown by next summer. While it would have been great to have these items in the rotation and get more wear out of them, both boys survived just fine without these items.

I didn't shop yard sales as aggressively as I usually do this year. As a result, my gift cupboard is not nearly as well stocked as it normally is at this time of year. This will either mean I need to get creative with homemade gifts, keep an eye out for clearance sales, or spend more than I usually do on gifts for upcoming birthdays and Christmas (likely a combination of all three). While it's more comforting to know I already have appropriate gifts safely tucked away, I can likely come up with some budget-friendly gifts that won't cost too much more than I usually spend.

I didn't do much "bargain hunting" for back-to-school supplies. Since it was my son's first year at school, I wasn't quite sure exactly what he would need in the way of school supplies. I had the basics I knew he would need (pens, pencils, pencil case, etc) pulled together with items we already had around the house, and bought a couple of other core supplies (like paper) on sale, but decided to wait on stocking up on further supplies until I knew the specifics. As a result, I missed out on some of the back-to-school deals; however, I didn't end up buying anything unnecessary and that might have ended up costing more in the long run - I'm honestly not sure!

It seems to be human nature to focus on the areas where we didn't quite measure up, rather than celebrate the things we did achieve - all those leftovers that got so creatively used up, the year a great Christmas was pulled off with practically no cash, and the trash-to-treasure makeovers of curbside finds get forgotten the minute we feel we're not living up to our own expectations.

Why do we do this to ourselves? The choice to live frugally should be approached with joy and creativity, not in the spirit of keeping score to see who is the "better" frugalista. I think it's time we all gave ourselves permission to be a bit less "perfect" and a LOT less stressed! The world will keep on turning, even if we stocked up on peanut butter at a less-than-rock-bottom price.

Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

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Monday, September 17, 2012

Weekly Menu Retrospective #80

Welcome to my weekly roundup of the past week's eats. I prefer to report what we ate in the last week, rather than what we're planning to eat in the coming week. Why? The reason is pretty simple: although I usually have a general idea of what we're going to eat in the next week or so, life often unfolds a little differently than planned, and I adjust my menu plan on a near-daily basis to accommodate leftovers and other not-possible-to-plan-ahead circumstances. I find this is the easiest way to ensure that I minimize our family's food waste. I'm also willing to admit that I'm a rather spontaneous cook, given to preparing foods that strike me as the most appealing thing to eat right here and now!

If you'd like a whole book full of inexpensive, quick and kid-approved recipes,
check out my book, Cheap Appétit : The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible) on Amazon (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Amazon UK) and Barnes and Noble.  It's gotten multiple 5 star reviews!! I've included page references to recipes that are in the book in my menu plans so you can locate them quickly. For more details about the book, go here.     
Breakfasts:
Granola (p. 92), Aloha Muffins (p.99), Chocolate Zucchini Muffins (p. 114), peanut butter toast, blueberry clafouti

Lunches: 
leftovers, sandwiches 

Dinners:

Monday: Cabbage and Beef Soup (p. 167)

Tuesday: Chickpeas with Potatoes and Peas (p. 138)

Wednesday: Italian-Style Baked Pasta (p. 172), peas

Thursday: Leftover Buffet

Friday: Breakfast for Dinner (bacon, scrambled eggs, toast)

Saturday: Spicy Chicken White Pizza

Sunday:  Hamburgers, Easy Oven Fries (p. 194), peach crisp

In keeping with my local and organic challenge, I'd also like to note the local and/or organic items on this week's menu:

Organic: coconut (in granola), coconut oil (in granola), canola oil, raisins (in granola), sunflower and pumpkin seeds (in granola)

Local: potatoes, carrots, onions, zucchini, peaches, pears, sweet peppers, ground beef (from VG Meats), honey (unpasteurized), milk, eggs, sour cream  

Local AND organic:
sesame seeds (used to top bread loaves), oats (in granola),  cornmeal, green beans, green onions, herbs and cherry tomatoes from our backyard garden

For more great meal ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.com.
  
Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

Click HERE to follow me on Twitter

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Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Five Favourite Fall Recipes From My Book

Now that the crisp nights and cooler days are here, we've started to enjoy some of our favourite fall recipes - the comforting soups, stews and casseroles that we wouldn't contemplate eating in the middle of a summer heat wave but that we eagerly embrace once the temperatures start to drop. Here are five of the recipes from my book that I'm happy to be making again:

Pork and Apple Stew (p. 156)

We're still waiting for some local apples, with fingers crossed. The apple crop was badly damaged this year by a late spring frost and I don't yet know how the pick-your-own farm we always go to has fared. Aside from a fresh-off-the-tree apple, this stew is one of the dishes I most look forward to at the start of apple season. It's such a family favourite that heated arguments have been known to break out over who gets the last bit of stew in the bottom of the pot :)

Spicy Peanut and Tomato Soup (p. 163)
 
I find some people are hesitant to try this recipe, with its combination of peanut butter, tomatoes and spices. I hope you'll give it a try, though - everyone I know so far that's tried it has raved about it. It's also one of the quickest and easiest to prepare recipes in my book, perfect for a night when you need to get dinner on the table ASAP! I usually serve this with a hot pan of cornbread on the side.

Apple and Bacon Baked Beans (p. 177)
Yep, more apples! This spin on the traditional baked beans is always greeted with enthusiasm. It also makes a large potful, so it's one of the few dishes for which I can bank on having leftovers (and they taste even better the next day!)

Moroccan Chickpea Stew (p. 159)
Another quick-fix dish, its combination of chickpeas and vegetables in a spicy tomato sauce is surprisingly satisfying.

Tex-Mex Shepherd's Pie (p. 173)


My spin on the classic comfort food! I think I'm going to have to start doubling this recipe as my two ravenous teen boys would happily polish the whole thing off themselves.

What are some of your favourite fall dishes?

Reminder for local readers: If you're reading this in your email or news feed, I wanted to make sure all my local readers know about my upcoming book signing and presentation. It's TONIGHT at 7 p.m., at the Westdale branch of the Hamilton Public Library. I'll have copies of my book available to purchase for $15. I hope some of you will be able to join me!  

Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

Click HERE to follow me on Twitter

Click HERE to like Abundance on a Dime on Facebook and get updates and tips on living frugally

Click HERE to like Cheap Appétit on Facebook and get updates and tips on frugal eating and cooking

Monday, September 10, 2012

Weekly Menu Retrospective #79

Welcome to my weekly roundup of the past week's eats. I prefer to report what we ate in the last week, rather than what we're planning to eat in the coming week. Why? The reason is pretty simple: although I usually have a general idea of what we're going to eat in the next week or so, life often unfolds a little differently than planned, and I adjust my menu plan on a near-daily basis to accommodate leftovers and other not-possible-to-plan-ahead circumstances. I find this is the easiest way to ensure that I minimize our family's food waste. I'm also willing to admit that I'm a rather spontaneous cook, given to preparing foods that strike me as the most appealing thing to eat right here and now!

If you'd like a whole book full of inexpensive, quick and kid-approved recipes,
check out my book, Cheap Appétit : The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible) on Amazon (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Amazon UK) and Barnes and Noble.  It's gotten multiple 5 star reviews!! I've included page references to recipes that are in the book in my menu plans so you can locate them quickly. For more details about the book, go here.     

Breakfasts:
Granola (p. 92), Aloha Muffins (p.99), Orange-Pineapple Muffins (p. 100), scrambled eggs and toast

Lunches: 
leftovers, sandwiches 

Dinners:

Monday: Steak Fajitas, Creamy Cucumber Salad (p. 205)

Tuesday: Tex-Mex Shepherd's Pie (p. 173)

Wednesday: Thai-Style Peanutty Pasta (p. 147)

Thursday: Make-It-Your-Way Potato Hash (p. 140)

Friday: Spinach, Bacon and Mozzarella Egg Puff (p. 181)

Saturday: Tuna-based variation of Cheesy Mac and Beef Skillet (p. 148)

Sunday:  Crispy Parmesan Chicken with Milk Gravy (p. 186), mashed potatoes, carrots, Chocolate Mousse in a Minute

In keeping with my local and organic challenge, I'd also like to note the local and/or organic items on this week's menu:

Organic: coconut (in granola), coconut oil (in granola), canola oil, raisins (in granola), sunflower and pumpkin seeds (in granola)

Local: potatoes, carrots, onions, zucchini, peaches, pears, corn,  sweet peppers, steak and ground beef (from VG Meats), honey (unpasteurized), milk, eggs, sour cream  

Local AND organic: sesame seeds (used to top bread loaves), oats (in granola),  green beans, green onions, herbs and cherry tomatoes from our backyard garden

For more great meal ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.com.
  
Reminder for local readers: If you're reading this in your email or news feed, I wanted to make sure all my local readers know about my upcoming book signing and presentation. It's THIS WEDNESDAY, September 12th at 7 p.m., at the Westdale branch of the Hamilton Public Library. I'll have copies of my book available to purchase for $15. I hope some of you will be able to join me!  

Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

Click HERE to follow me on Twitter

Click HERE to like Abundance on a Dime on Facebook and get updates and tips on living frugally

Click HERE to like Cheap Appétit on Facebook and get updates and tips on frugal eating and cooking

Friday, September 7, 2012

Fall Harvest Frenzy!


I'm sure I can't be the only one who has a love-hate relationship with early fall. On the one hand, the weather is often some of the best we'll get, with the more hot and humid midsummer temperatures giving way to cooler nights suitable for snuggling under covers and afternoons that are sunny and pleasantly warm without being stifling. On the other hand, it can be one of the busiest times of year in our household. All the wonderful fall harvest is coming in, which means I need to get a lot of food frozen and canned in a few short weeks!

So far, I've gotten about 10 litres of salsa (with local tomatoes, sweet peppers and jalapenos), one batch of zucchini relish, and one batch of sweet pickles canned. I have some concord grapes in the freezer that I want to make into jam (it's the thought of skinning all those grapes that's been holding me up!) and I have a wonderful-sounding Carrot Cake Conserve recipe passed along from a friend that I want to try. Depending on how the local apple crop has fared (a late spring frost killed off many of the blossoms), I may or may not be canning some applesauce. I also got three batches worth of strawberry jam and one of saskatoon jam put up earlier this season.

My freezer has already started filling with grated zucchini and sliced sweet peppers, and I've got more of both in the fridge waiting to be processed and packed into bags for the freezer. It's really wonderful to be able to pull out those local peppers in the middle of winter to toss into a soup or stir fry (not to mention the fact that the imported ones on offer in the winter are often $3.99 a pound or more - yikes!) I'll also tuck a few Roma tomatoes into the freezer. They can be frozen as-is in freezer bags, then when you want to use them, simply thaw, slip off the skins, and chop. They are great for my West African Baked Beans and would also make a great addition to winter soups and stews. Depending on how much space I have left in the freezer, I may also blanch and freeze a few heads of cauliflower, which is great in cauliflower-cheese soup and Cheesy Vegetable Bake.

What's on your fall preserving list?

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Local & Organic Challenge: Six Months In


As most of my regular readers will be aware, about six months ago (when my book launched) I issued myself a "Local and Organic Challenge", to see how much local and organic food we could include in our $400-a-month food budget (that's for a family of four, which by the end of the month will include two teenage boys, both of whom have voracious appetites).

As it turns out, we've had quite a bumpy ride in many respects these past few months, but even so, we've made quite a lot of progress with the Challenge.

Looking at foods by category, here's a rough update of where we are now:

Grains: We have organic (and locally grown) oats and cornmeal, organic quinoa, millet and popcorn. All of these are from an Ontario supplier (Oak Manor) who purchases from Ontario growers when possible, although it's not guaranteed that the products are locally grown. We purchase all of these items through the Ontario Natural Food Co-op. When purchased in bulk, the prices are comparable to conventionally grown items from the grocery store. I've also bought Que Pasa organic tortilla chips when they go on sale for a treat (they are actually less expensive than the national brand conventionally-grown tortilla chips).

Meats and Alternatives: We've now started buying the majority of our meat from VG Meats. They raise their meat using sustainable practices (animals are pastured, etc). In June, we purchased an 80 pound freezer order (mixture of beef, pork and chicken) for a fantastic price (more details here). We do need to make a special trip to get to their store as it's fairly far from our usual stomping grounds, but since we are buying in bulk we will only need to go there about three times a year or so. We've been buying Oak Manor organic seeds (sunflower, pumpkin and sesame) through ONFC, and the bulk pumpkin seeds are actually cheaper than conventionally grown ones from our local bulk food store. We have also bought some organic white beans through ONFC (although I wasn't thrilled to see they were from China, as there are plenty of bean growers here in Ontario.)

Dairy and Eggs: All of our dairy products are Canadian, and some brands are Ontario-produced - I'm doing my best to buy those ones when they're on sale! I have been buying Organic Meadow milk (Ontario produced) to make yogurt most of the time since I started the challenge. Most of the eggs sold around here are locally produced (the organic ones are definitely out of my price range right now - I'm hoping my city will decide we're allowed to keep backyard chickens sometime soon!)

Fruits and Vegetables: Between my backyard garden, my produce coop, and all the locally grown goodies in the stores during the growing season, it's been pretty easy to include a lot of locally-grown produce over the last few months. We've eaten local lettuces, Swiss Chard, green onions, spinach, strawberries, rhubarb, peaches, raspberries, saskatoons, corn, cantaloupe, zucchini, sweet peppers, broccoli, hot peppers, tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, onions and herbs. Local pears and apples will be coming into season now and we'll likely be heading to a pick-your-own apple farm soon. A lot of local crops were damaged this spring due to a late frost, and others were hit by drought this summer, so unfortunately there is less availability of local produce this year than normal (There were no local cherries this year, and I'm not sure how well the farm fared where we usually pick apples; two years ago they lost 60% of their Empire crop, which is our favourite apple). I've been buying organic bananas most of the time as they only cost about 25% more than conventionally grown ones at my neighbourhood grocery store. I've also been buying organic unsulphured raisins and organic coconut through ONFC (buying them in large quantities has helped keep the unit cost down).

Oils: I've been buying Spectrum organic coconut oil (great for popping popcorn!) which is a good price at a nearby grocery store, and organic canola oil through ONFC.

Our average grocery bill during this time has been just a hair under $440 dollars. Yes, it's a bit above my $400 goal, however, the growing season months are where we typically have higher grocery bills anyway, as we're stockpiling (canning and freezing) lots of seasonal produce. Right now I have plenty of sweet peppers and zucchini tucked away in my freezer, as well as some local berries. I also have 10 litres of salsa (made with local tomatoes, sweet peppers and jalapenos) and a bunch of pickles and zucchini relish canned as well.

Overall, I'm pretty impressed with where we are at so far, especially considering our grocery bill is half the average for a family of four here in Ontario. I'm not sure how many more changes we'll be able to make in the next six months. My boys are both eating like crazy these days so it's been a challenge to keep our food budget on track while still making sure they're getting enough to eat. Of course, I'm always keeping an eye out for new food sources, so there's always the possibility we will track down some great new food deals in the coming months. There is also a local cooperative grocery store in the works right now, and that should be another great option once it comes into being (although it's probably still a little ways off from becoming a reality - I'll know more soon as I'm planning to get involved as a volunteer in helping it get off the ground!).

Reminder for local readers: If you're reading this in your email or news feed, I wanted to make sure all my local readers know about my upcoming book signing and presentation. It's on Wednesday, September 12th at 7 p.m., at the Westdale branch of the Hamilton Public Library. I'll have copies of my book available to purchase for $15. I hope some of you will be able to join me!

Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

Click HERE to follow me on Twitter

Click HERE to like Abundance on a Dime on Facebook and get updates and tips on living frugally

Click HERE to like Cheap Appétit on Facebook and get updates and tips on frugal eating and cooking

Saturday, September 1, 2012

Where Have All the Yard Sale Reports Gone?

I know many of you that look forward to my weekly yard sale reports are probably wondering why there haven't been any for quite some time. In fact, the last report I posted was way back on June 30th!

I have still been getting out there most weekends (although there have been a few rainy Saturdays) but I've been coming home empty-handed. Last weekend I hit seven yard sales and didn't bring anything home, and that's been fairly typical of what's been going on in yard sale land for me all summer. At this point in my life, I'm pretty discerning about what I choose to bring home. In another month, both of my boys will be teenagers and the days where I'm in the market for all those "little kid" items so readily available on the yard sale circuit are long gone. We also don't need much in the way of general household items. I have a few specific items on my wish list (such as more cast iron cookware) but there are not that many things I'm on the lookout for. I always keep an eye out for men's clothing (especially now that my boys are wearing men's small sizes!) and giftable items to stow in my gift cupboard (meaning stuff that's in brand new condition and that I genuinely believe someone on my gift list will love to receive). Other than that, and my weaknesses for baskets, books and Pyrex cookware, there are not all that many things I am apt to hand money over for right now.

What all this boils down to is that this is everything I brought home since my last yard sale post:


And I actually found all of these items on the same week in the middle of August:
A "make-your-own-lip balm" kit for $3.00 (which ended up becoming a birthday gift for my 11 year old niece) and 6 plastic Mason jar lids for 10 cents each (these are hard to find and are very handy when you're using Mason jars for general food storage purposes). I also scooped up a blender for $3.00. You may recall that our trusty old Osterizer bit the dust after 20 years of service. We hadn't been able to find a suitable secondhand replacement and finally broke down and bought a new blender a couple of months ago (on sale for half price, with Canadian Tire money). Unfortunately, we have been less than thrilled with it, and the base (the part that holds the blade) has already cracked. Yes, I need to check to see if it's still under warranty, but when I saw this Cuisinart one I figured a backup plan for $3.00 would be a good thing (it actually runs quite well and I like it better than the one we bought new - argh!)

I'm hoping there will be a resurgence of good sales for September and October (I often do some of my best yard sale shopping at this time of year) although I may decide not to do another report until the end of the month unless I find something particularly fantastic.

Grand total spent: $6.60 for 8 items or 83 cents an item.

P.S. If you're reading this in your email or news feed, I wanted to make sure all my local readers know about my upcoming book signing and presentation. It's on Wednesday, September 12th at 7 p.m., at the Westdale branch of the Hamilton Public Library. I'll have copies of my book available to purchase for $15. I hope some of you will be able to join me!
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