Freezing Potatoes

What Do You Do With A 50 lb Bag Of Potatoes?

Found a great deal and bought a bag of potatoes for $7.97 ($0.16/lb).  Bought it and stored it in our basement thinking they would last for a while.  We made mashed potatoes, BBQ baked potatoes, and potato pancakes.  Unfortunately, our basement must be too warm with the wood stove down there so at the end of two weeks our potatoes were sprouting.  : (  We decided to try and freeze them after blanching them for 5 minutes in boiling water.

CONCLUSION:

Success!
They cook up beautifully into mashed potatoes when
thawed and cooked until tender.  : )

Replacing Butter With Margarine

Butter is expensive and we tend to use a lot of it so I have been trying to think of ways to cut back.  We use it in a lot of dishes so it would be next to impossible to cut out.  I hate the thought of using margarine but the container said "cholesterol & trans fat free."  Its only for a year.  Will it kill us?  After researching it online, I don't think it will.  I still prefer natural foods over man-made so we'll get back to butter as soon as we can.  : )

Here is what the Mayo Clinic has to say about it.

1 lb of butter from Aldi is $2.29
2.6 lbs of margarine from Aldi is $1.79

We are going through 1-2 lbs of butter a week in things like mac & cheese, grilled cheese sandwhiches, toast, mashed potatoes, etc.  I think 2 tubs of margarine will last us the entire month.  We shall see.

Homemade Pizza

For a detailed cost analysis of baking ingredients click here.

Cost Analysis For 2 Homemade Pizzas:
$0.03 For 1 Packet Of Yeast
$0.23 For Flour
$0.10 For Sugar, Salt, & Oil
$2.05 For 2 lbs Of Mozzarella Cheese
$1.00 For 100 Slices Of Pepperoni (50 Per Pizza)
$0.16 For 4 oz Pizza Sauce
$0.10 Onions, Green Peppers, Scavenged Toppings
Total Cost:  $3.67

$1.84 Per Pizza!

Pizza Crust Recipe

1 package regular or quick active dry yeast

1 cup very warm water (105-115 degrees) - I just wait until my sink water is the hottest it'll go

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp veg or olive oil

2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose or bread flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water.  Stir in oil, 1 cup flour, sugar, and salt.  Beat until smooth.  Stir in remaining flour, plus a little more if needed, to make dough easy to handle.  Turn dough onto lightly floured surface, knead five minutes or until smooth and elastic.  Place in greased bowl, turn dough ball over so greased side is up.  Cover with damp towel and stick in your oven with ONLY the oven light on for 30-40 minutes or until almost double.  

Voile! Enough dough to make 2 large pizzas. :) Just roll or smoosh out with your fingers.  Brush crust with butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and garlic salt.  Bake for 5 minutes.  Layer toppings and return to oven until cheese is completely melted.

It was DELICIOUS!!

Baking From Scratch - Cost Of Ingredients

Does baking from scratch really save all that much money once you factor in the cost of all the ingredients?

Cost Of 1 Cup Of Self-Rising White Flour:

How Many Cups Of Flour Are In A 5 lb Bag?
Answer:  15 Cups

1 Bag Of Self-Rising Flour From Aldi (5 lbs) Is $1.39
$0.092 Per Cup
$0.28 Per Pound
$0.02 Per Ounce

1 Bag Of All-Purpose Flour From Sam's (50 lbs) Is $12.98
$0.086 Per Cup
$0.26 Per Pound
$0.0175 Per Pound

The flour from Aldi is cheaper because it includes rising agents.
A cup of flour costs $0.09.

Cost Of A "Packet" Of Yeast:

1 Packet Of Yeast = 1/4 Ounce = 2 1/2 Teaspoons

2 lbs Of Fleischmann's Yeast From Sam's = $4.38
2 lbs = 32 oz = 128 "Packets" = 320 Teaspoons
$0.03 Per Packet
$0.01 Per Teaspoon
A packet of yeast costs $0.03

Potty Training

In order to save $500 in diapers next year, we have decided to try and potty train our 18-month-old daughter.  We didn't potty train our last two daughters until they were 3 since we could easily afford disposables and they didn't "seem interested."   I thought 18-months was too young to start toilet training, but check this out...In the 1950, almost a 100% of children wore cloth diapers and 95% of these children were trained by the age of 18 months.  In the 1980s, about 50% of children wore cloth diapers, while the other 50% wore disposable diapers and only about 50% of the children were potty trained by the age of 18 months.  Today, almost 90-95% of children wear disposable diapers and only about 10% of children are potty trained by the age of 18 months.  Today, the average age for potty training is about 30 months with the age ranging from 18-60 months.  -http://www.pottytrainingconcepts.com/A-History-of-Potty-Training.html

For our first week, we dedicated ourselves to "potty bootcamp" for our little enlistee since everyone is out of school and able to help.  She will be 18-months-old on New Year's Day 2011.  We are using the Fast Track method which basically consists of letting her run around without underwear and setting a timer for trips to the potty.  After 6 days, she seems to understand the basic concepts of "wet" and "dry."  She usually says "stinky"  as she is going or just after.  By the end of the week, she was making it in the potty about 75% of the time when taken and set on the toilet.  She is yet to self-initiate, but hopefully that will come with time.  : )

Here is a flow chart with the basic method:




Potty Training Boot Camp

Official Results From The Diaper Diaries:

We have officially given up all disposable diapers from day #1.  She wears plastic pants or cloth diapers at night and when we leave the house.  We try to keep her bare-bottomed during the day so she can get the full effect of her accidents.  : )  We started on December 20, 2010.

After 1 Week:  Going in the potty about 50% of the time she is set on it.  Says "stinky" after accidents 80% of the time.  Not self-initiating before she needs to go.

After 2 Weeks:  Making it to the potty about 75% of the time.  A couple accidents a day.  At the end of two weeks she stayed dry during church, said "stinky" and went in a new bathroom!!  Horray!!  She is wearing cloth diapers at night.

After 3 Months:  Total regression.  Never stays dry.  Does not let us know when she needs to go.  We have decided to wait a few months and try again.

Freezing Milk When It Is On Sale

I recently found milk for $2.19 at an Aldi across town.
I bought 4 gallons and put them in the freezer after
removing about a cup of milk to allow for expansion.

As we thawed the frozen milk we noticed that it had
busted a crack in the bottom of the container and
was leaking all over the fridge.  It took ALL DAY
long of sitting on the counter to thaw enough
to put into a new milk container.



Conclusion:
Milk will have to be transferred to other smaller
containers before freezing.  We will have to plan
ahead to thaw milk in time to use it.

eBay For Extra Cash

I sold my first item on eBay in 2005.  Since then, I have achieved Top Rated Seller status with a positive feedback score of over 1100.  However this is no longer a viable source of income since I am out of things to sell and do not have the cash to purchase anything else at this time.  : )

How I got started on eBay...
The first thing I ever sold on eBay was a diaper cake!  Ever heard of one?  : )  A friend of mine, who knew my interest in interior design and party decorating, told me I should figure out how to make diaper cakes and sell them online. Having never seen a diaper cake before, I googled "diaper cake" and the first thing to pop up was instructions on how to make one! At first I was skeptical since they looked easy enough for anyone to make...how could I sell something you could easily make yourself? I went ahead and made one, photographed it and put it on Ebay. It sold for an astronomical amount of money (when compared to what I had in the cake)! I began thinking this might be the perfect opportunity to start a business from home doing something I really enjoy. I made up several more cakes, put them on Ebay, and they did very well! They were selling faster than I could make them. Within a few weeks, I opened an Ebay store, set up a UPS business account, learned how to take professional product pictures, and started making and listing inventory as fast as I could. Without much effort on my part, a local Babies R' Us featured me in their Baby Expo and gave me exclusive rights as their official diaper cake designer! In September, a stronger online presence was achieved with my own e-commerce website. I never dreamed I would find something I enjoy so much and actually make money doing it!  Unfortunately I spent money faster than it was coming in (trying to expand too quickly) so after I was $10k in the hole, I sold the business to pay back the debt.  It was taking too much time away from my family anyway.

How you can get started on eBay...

All you need to get started is an eBay and Paypal account, a digital camera, & access to a computer with internet.
First Timers:

1.  Set up an eBay and Paypal account (both are free).  Remember to create an eBay ID that makes sense, is professional and related to what you are selling.  For example; “bigdog1982” is not as professional as “debbiescollectables.”  If you already have an eBay account you can change your eBay ID.
2.  Purchase enough items on eBay to get a feedback score of 10.  This is crucial and skipping this step will result in listing difficulties as well as minimal (if any) sales.  There are lots ideas of what you can buy to get started.  You can buy e-books and coupons for as low as a penny.
3.  List your item for 30 days as a "buy it now" with a  "best offer."  It will cost you $0.50 per listing.
4.  Price your item so that you will not lose any money on fees/shipping.  Use this handy calculator to find out what your final eBay and Paypal fees will be after your sale.
5.  Print a shipping label online through eBay and ship your item IMMEDIATELY.
6.  Leave positive feedback for your seller the day after you ship.

More Tips:

-Open an eBay store if you have more than 50 items to sell or if you plan to do this long-term.  Cost for a store is $15.95 per month and saves you a bundle on listing fees.
-Photograph your items as professionally as possible.  Use a solid color background & good light.  Take pictures from every angle.  Include every detail.  Crop and edit your photos to make them as clean and sharp as possible.  I use a free photo editing software from Google called Picasa.
--Order free shipping supplies from USPS and/or purchase shipping mailers here (bid on the $0.99 auctions until you win one with a unit price of $0.25 or less per mailer)

-Be as honest as you can in your listings and describe any flaws.
-Offer a return policy.
-Always include delivery confirmation with your shipping.
-Keep track of your sales so you can see what works and what doesn't.
-Use a free auction templates such as this:  http://www.freeauctiondesigns.com/

Helpful Links:

How to sell used clothing on eBay

Boneless/Skinless Or Whole Chicken?

Ever wondered if it is really cheaper to cook the whole chicken
or just grab a bag of boneless/skinless breasts?
Does it save money to debone it yourself?

For my control I am using Aldi Frozen chicken.

When calculating meat prices,
it is important to calculate it based on usable meat,
rather than the weight of the package before cooking.
A 3 lb bag of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
cooks down to 1 lb 10 oz of usable meat.

Frozen Whole Chicken $4.74 for 5.5 lb Chicken

Bag Frozen Boneless/Skinless Breasts $5.99 For 3 lb Bag

Bag Frozen Boneless/Skinless Thighs $4.99 For 3 lb Bag

After cooking the meat in a slow cooker,
cutting it up and putting it in a Ziplock bag, here is the yield:

Whole Chicken (5.5 lbs) = 1 lb 10 oz usable meat
3 lb Bag Frozen Breasts = 1 lb 10 oz usable meat
3 lb Bag Frozen Thighs = 1 lb 7 oz usable meat

Whole Chicken = $0.18 per ounce
Chicken Breasts = $0.23 per ounce
Chicken Thighs = $0.22 per ounce

Cheapest Chicken I Have Found To Date:

In January, Food Lion Had Chicken Leg
Quarters On Sale For $0.49/lb

$4.90 Per Bag (10 lbs Chicken Leg/Thigh)
Cooked 4 Pieces (Little Less Than 1/2 The Bag) In Crock-Pot
$1.96 For Crock-Pot Worth Of Meat
Got 1 lbs 7 oz Pulled Meat Off The Bones ( FULLY COOKED)
$0.09 per ounce!

Baby Food

Goal: Reduce The Cost Of Baby Food For An 11-Month Old

Which is cheaper?

The frozen green beans were the winner! The girls and I noticed how much fresher they looked, too! I cooked them in the microwave and then used a food processor to make puree them. To make them the consistency of baby food, I added 1/2 cup of water per 3 "jars."

We successfully used homemade baby food until our little girl transitioned to table food.

Homemade Laundry Soap

Goal: Cut Down On Laundry Expenses

Laundry detergent, Oxiclean, & fabric softener were taking a big chunk out of my grocery budget, so I tried finding a way to clean clothes for less. I'm pretty picky about the way detergent cleans (and smells), so I had been using Gain powdered detergent, Oxiclean for stains, and Gain liquid fabric softener. Our family does at least 10 loads of laundry a week, so this was adding up to be quite an expense!

Here is a link that describes the savings in detail
(scroll to the bottom of the page).
It is estimated to cost $0.1 per load with this recipe!

Homemade Laundry
Soap Recipe

1/3 white bar soap such as Ivory, Dial, Fels Naptha

½ cup washing soda

½ cup borax powder

~You will also need a small bucket, about 2 gallon size~

Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts.  Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel. You use ½ cup per load.

Here are detailed pictures of the process:

http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/laundrysoap2.htm

IT WORKED!! I LOVE IT!!

I have been making my own laundry soap for 3 months now and I am very happy with the results. I make a huge batch of soap once a month and store it in old detergent containers. It is not difficult and only takes me about 15 minutes.

I bought the washing soda & borax
from alice.com for $7.50 including shipping.
You can also find the washing soda at ACE Hardware
& the borax at Wal-Mart.
I used dial soap since that is what we use
in the shower and I had some sitting around.
I poured the mixture into
old detergent containers. : )

I use vinegar in the rinse cycle to eliminate
odors and keep clothes fresh & soft.

I still use bleach and Oxiclean occasionally
for tough stains.

*UPDATE*

As of February 1, 2012 we will have successfully used homemade
laundry soap for eighteen months.  It works fabulously for us!