Chocolate-Zucchini Muffins

August 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment

(Makes 12 Muffins)

These muffins are DELICIOUS! NO Eggs or Oil! To learn some other ideas for Zucchini, Check out “How to save a FORTUNE with Zucchini.”

Ingredients

  • 1¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour
  • ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa
  • 1¼ tsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 whole banana, mashed
  • ½ cup raw sugar
  • ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • ¼ cup plant-based milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup shredded zucchini
  • ½ cup raw sugar (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease muffin pan and set aside. If using paper liners, lightly spray inside of liners with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon together. In another bowl, cream mashed banana with applesauce and sugar (use extra 1/2 cup for a very sweet, dessert-like muffin). Add in soymilk, vanilla, zucchini and any other optional add-ins you might like such as vegan chocolate chips or chopped raw walnuts. Stir until evenly combined. Add flour mix to wet mix in 3-4 batches and stir until just combined. Spoon batter into greased muffin pan and bake 18-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

THANKS to Happy Herbivore for this terrific recipe!

 




Filed Under: Stretching Your Food Dollars, Tips&Tricks

Stretching Your Milk Dollar

July 5, 2012 By 3 Comments

One Gallon of Milk = Two Gallons of Milk!

Milk prices are SOARING, Here are two tips to help you save some Moolah!

Cut it in half: I have been doing this for years now! I buy, (Or get FREE with coupons and sales) 2% or Whole Milk, and break it into two gallons. We have always drank 1% or skim milk, so diluting the above two, it tastes the same! I personally prefer to use filtered water from our Brita Filter.
** Please note this will change the vitamins and supplements per serving.

Freeze Milk: Found a really good price? STOCK UP! Freeze your milk! You can freeze it for up to three months. It will expand by 9% so make sure to remove about a cup and half before freezing. It will turn yellowish when frozen, but when you thaw it, it will go back to white. Skim and 1% freeze better then whole or 2%. IT TASTES THE SAME!

 


Filed Under: Stretching Your Food Dollars, Tips&Tricks

Stretching Your Money Buying Meat

July 4, 2012 By 3 Comments

Where I live here in Texas I do not have a store that doubles coupons and
recently our meat market closed due to the economy…so I have really had to watch sale
prices and save money where I can.

So for the 4th of July my local grocery store had large briskets on sale for
$1.98/pound while the ground beef was $2.99/pound or higher.
Since we are just a family of 4, don’t cook  a large brisket very often,
and use ground beef in A LOT of different dinners here
is what I did:

My store has a meat department where they
were able to grind up the brisket and
separate it into about 1 pound packages.  So by buying the brisket and having
it ground I saved about $1.00 a pound.

Just wanted to share because I was not aware that this could be done!

Filed Under: Stretching Your Food Dollars, Tips&Tricks

Kids Cooking with Clippie – Stuffed French Toast

June 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment

 

  • 4 slices cinnamon raisin bread (can use any bread)
  • 1/4 cup Cream Cheese Spread
  • 8 slices  Deli Fresh Honey Ham
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 Tbsp. milk
  • 2 tsp. sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. maple-flavored or pancake syrup

 Instructions:

1. SPREAD cream cheese spread onto 2 of the bread slices.

2. TOP with ham; cover with remaining 2 bread slices. Lightly press edges of each sandwich together to seal.

3. BEAT eggs, milk and sugar with fork in pie plate or square baking dish until well blended.

4. DIP sandwiches in egg mixture, turning over to evenly moisten both sides.

5. SPRAY large nostick skillet with cooking spray; heat on medium heat (adult assisted). Add sandwiches; cook 2 min. on each side or until golden brown on both sides. Serve with syrup. Makes 2 servings, one sandwich each.

COUPON MATCH-UP

$0.55/1 Kraft Indulgence Cream Cheese PRINTABLE

$0.75/1  Cacique or Ranchero Cream Cheese PRINTABLE

$1/1 Organic Valley Eggs 1 dozen or 2-6pks PRINTABLE

 $0.35/1 OR $0.50/1  Eggland’s Best Eggs  SS insert 1-29 (exp 6-30)

$0.75/1 Egglands Best Cage Free Eggs SS insert 1-29 (exp 6-30)

$1/2 Country Kitchen Bread PRITNABLE

$0.40/1 Pepperidge Farm Bread (fresh bread aisle) SS insert 4-29

$0.55/1 Village Hearth Bread PRINTABLE

$1.50 Sara Lee pre-sliced Meat PRINTABLE

 $1/1 Bar-S Deli Shaved Meat  PRINTABLE

Hormel Natural Choice Deli Meat PRINTABLE

 $1/1  IHOP at Home Syrup RP insert 4/15

$0.75/1 Cinnabon Syrup PRINTABLE

$0.55/1 Land O’ Frost Bistro or Deli-Shaved Meat PRINTABLE

Filed Under: Coupons, Latest Coupons, Stretching Your Food Dollars

Newspaper Tip -Waukesha/Milwaukee area fans

June 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Admin Shelly here , and I wanted to pass along a HOT newspaper tip for all our fans in the Waukesha County area.  I am not positive if the Milwaukee area fans have this paper as well but I wouldn’t hurt to look at your local gas station or grocery store.

I recently learned that you can buy The WAUKESHA FREEMAN paper on Saturday !  This paper is only $1 and comes with ALL posted under are sneak peek previews .

I used to get so frustrated because I have a paper hoarder in my area and she would BUY all the Freeman’s from the gas station right up the road from my house .   Since Saturday is my out and about day , I now get them at Pick N Save (when I shop for double daze) .

 

 

Filed Under: Miscellaneous, Stretching Your Food Dollars, Tips&Tricks

Last Drops of Wine – Secret Tips

June 7, 2012 By Leave a Comment


Last Drops of Wine – Secret Tips

Have a nice bottle of wine , but not enough for a full glass of wine?
I found some unique tips so that you do not waste those last tasty drops!

⚜  Pour into a freezable plastic bag or ice cube try and use for a marinade later ⚜

⚜ Add a splash to your cooked pasta and top with Parmesan cheese  and fresh herbs ⚜

⚜ Use red wine as a skin toner ⚜

⚜ Place the leftover in a spray bottle and “wash ” your veggies.  It will kill E.Coli and Salmonella ⚜

⚜ Make your own red wine vinegar, and you can keep refreshing the bottle ⚜

⚜ Makes a great base for homemade jelly, what would be better than wine jelly toast with coffee? ⚜

Filed Under: Around the House, Stretching Your Food Dollars, Tips&Tricks

I’m NOT average!! And that’s a GREAT THING!!

May 17, 2012 By 2 Comments


Did you know,
The US Department of Labor estimates that the average family of four spends $8,513 per year on groceries, or about $709 per month.

I, Sarah, have a family of five, and I spent NOWHERE NEAR that in the last year, thanks to coupons, store matchups, and of course the help of this page!! I have been couponing for a little less than a year, and have been saving my receipts. I added them all up last night, and was BLOWN AWAY at how much I saved!!

I shop weekly at Piggly Wiggly and once a month at Walmart to pick up things that have not been on sale. I also shop once every other month for meat at my local grocery store.

I spend an average of $100 a month at Walmart, and $50 every other month on meat. That adds up to $1,500 a year.

Now for the amazing part: In the last year at Piggly Wiggly, I have spent $879.58, and saved $1508.51!!
So all added up, I have saved an average of 63% at Piggly Wiggly, with the retail before coupons and sales being $2,388.09.

(pic above, retail $120.89 spent $10.35)

So in the last year, I have spent for a family of 5, ONLY $2,379.58!!
That is $6,125 UNDER the National Average!!
And this includes going through 2 gallons of milk A DAY!!
(Walmart 2% milk retails for $3.68, adding up to an astonishing $2,686 a year!!
That is what I spent before couponing on milk ALONE!!)

(pic above retail $57.81 spent $16.28)
(pic above retail $112.50 paid $27.90)

So for people who are just starting out, it is SO WORTH the time and effort put into couponing!!
And don’t be discouraged if your savings aren’t always amazing, I have plenty of trips where I save around 40%, but believe me, THOSE ADD UP!! In the beginning my husband thought 40% wasn’t worth the effort, but after telling him last night what I have spent, and more importantly SAVED in the last year, he is seeing it in a whole new light!!
I am also blessed with a store that doubles, but even without that, you can save money!!

I also plan on sharing this post with all my non couponing friends, who thought I was wasting my time…. And I will be smiling ear to ear ;)
I wanted to share this with you all, because I KNOW how overwhelming starting out can be!!

It is DEFINITELY worth it for me,
it has allowed me to remain a stay at home mommy to three amazing children <3

WANT TO LEARN TO COUPON? Join Me on the Facebook page I Admin. at
Wisconsin Coupon Clippers (Nationwide) HERE
or our Blog
Midwest Coupon Clippers HERE

 

Filed Under: Stretching Your Food Dollars, Tips&Tricks

Shop the Sale/Coupon Cycles

April 23, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Shop the Sale Cycles at YOUR Grocery Store

Do you buy your groceries as you need them? Or do you shop your stores Sale Cycle? Have you noticed in your couponing efforts, certain coupons come out at certain times of the year? This is a GREAT example of how the stores sales run also. Certain sales, at certain times of year!

If you understand how the Stores Sales Cycles work which usually pair up pretty good to the Coupons that are released, you will be able to build a  nice stockpile in no time!

Currently as I type this, It is almost Summertime, Which means Coupons for Condiments are coming out soon, (Ketchup, BBQ Sauce, Mustard, etc.) which is good for my family, because we only have three bottles of  BBQ Sauce left from last Summer. Did I mention all the BBQ Sauce I bought through out last summer I did not pay ANYTHING for, and in fact many were $$MoneyMakers$$ when I paired a good sale with a Doubled Coupon.

YOU CAN DO THIS ALSO! Start shopping the Sales/Coupon Cycles and you will save a GOOD AMOUNT on your Groceries each year!

January: January is usually the Month for Diet and Health and Wellness! You will see a lot of Diet Foods, Granola, Vitamins, etc. January is also Super Bowl, Which means you will find Coupons for Dips, Chips, Crackers, etc. With it being the Winter Months, you will also still see Hot Beverage Coupons, like coffee, tea, hot cocoas, and so on.

February: February is a HOT MONTH! Valentines Day, National HOT Breakfast Month, and National Canned Food Month! Expect to find Chocolate Coupons, Waffle, Breakfast Sausages, Aspirin, and lots and lots of Canned products, Fruits and Veggies especially.

March: March is National Frozen Food Month and time for SPRING Cleaning! You will find a large variety of Frozen Meal Coupons, Pizza, Frozen Veggies, Popsicle and More. You will also find many Cleaning Supply Coupons and sales to match. GREAT time to stock up on these if you have the room! Watch your sales, and you can get them for next to NOTHING!

April: April is a little slower when it comes to coupons! You will see some Egg Coupons, Candy Coupons, Organic Foods and Kosher product coupons, but when it comes to April, it is a slower month for Coupons.

May: MAY IS HOT! You will start to see the Condiment Coupons, Sun lotion Coupons, Bug Spray Coupons, Soda and bottle water coupons, WAIT THERE IS MORE… Hamburger and Brat Coupons (Grilling time) baked beans, hot dogs, paper and plastic plate coupons! You get what I am saying! It is also Cinco De Mayo, so watch for Tortilla and Salsa Coupons. I LOVE MAY COUPONS!

June: June is National Dairy Month. It is time for Milk, Cheese, Ice Cream, cottage cheese, and many, many more. These items are a little harder to stockpile…but REMEMBER you can freeze Milk and Cheese!

July: July is a continuation of June. A LOT of meat coupons, condiment, items like that. GREAT time to have a FoodSaver on hand!

August: August means BACK TO SCHOOL, which means you will find GREAT Sales on School Supplies and even Coupons to use on them! At these prices it is the perfect time to stock up for the year! Let’s face it, those pencils the kids go through FAST! Back to school also means “Lunch box” items go on sale! Juice boxes, Snack Packs, Peanut Butter, Fruit Snacks, and so on.

September: September is a continuation of Augusts Back to School sales, AND lets add Tomato Items. Spaghetti Sauces, Soups, Canned Tomatoes.  Time to stock up for those colder days and be ready to make Spaghetti and Chili!

October: October means it is time to get ready for the baking season! During October you will see lots of Sugar, Flour, baking powder, baking soda, etc. Coupons. You will also start to see Gravy Coupons, Stuffing Coupons, more of these starting to pop up.

November: November is the time for Seasonal Sales and Coupons. Baking items, Holiday Foods, Crackers and Snacks, Turkey, and more. (IF you are going to stock up on Flour, FREEZE or Refrig. it to keep away the pantry moths)

December: In December you are still going to see the “Holiday” sales, but you are also going to start to see cold cuts, soda coupons, and “celebration” type sales and coupons start to come out. I always stock up on my chips and jars of dip during this time.

Filed Under: Coupons, Latest Coupons, Organizing, Stretching Your Food Dollars, Tips&Tricks

FAST Ham Pot Pie-Piggly Wiggly Sale/Coupon/Recipe Matchup

April 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment


Fast Ham Pot Pie

(To View the Entire Piggly Wiggly Sale Match Up Click HERE)

Ingredients

2 (9 inch) unbaked pie shells
• 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1- 1 ½ cup cooked, chopped ham meat
• 1 can vegetables, drained (mixed, or ½ can carrots, ½ can beans) Whatever you choose
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 cup chunk potatoes

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Place one pie crust in an ungreased pie dish.
2. In a medium bowl, mix the cream of mushroom soup and milk. Stir in the ham, potatoes and vegetables. Pour the mixture into the pie crust in the dish. Top with the other pie crust, and seal the crust edges by crimping with a wet fork.
3. Bake in the preheated oven 45 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown

Coupon/Sale Matchup

Cook’s Ham Shank Portions, Water Added, 10-11lb Average $0.69/lb LIMIT 1
(with separate $25+ purchase and coupon)

Deans Gallon Milk on sale $2.69

Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom or Chicken Soup 10.75oz $.89
Use $.25/4 from 4/1 SS
Final Price $.86 each or .77 each doubled

Betty Crocker Specialty Potatoes, 4.5-6.6oz select varieties $.99
Use $.50/2 from 3/25 SS
or $.50/2 PRINTABLE
Final Price $.74 each or $.49 each doubled WYB2

Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crusts 2ct $2.99
Use $.50/2 from 4/1 SS
Final Price $2.74 each or $2.49 each doubled WYB2

Del Monte Canned Vegetables 11-15.25oz(Excludes Peas) $.99
Use $1/4 PRINTABLE
Final Price $.74 each or $.49 each doubled WYB4

Filed Under: Coupons, Latest Coupons, Piggly Wiggly, Store Match-ups, Stretching Your Food Dollars

How to save a FORTUNE with Zucchini

February 28, 2012 By 2 Comments


How to save a FORTUNE with Zucchini

Want to save a FORTUNE on your grocery bill EVERY year, and get healthier? PLANT SOME ZUCCHINI! My freezer is full year round! Chopped Zucchini, Shredded Zucchini, Zucchini Boats! Did I mention I have a separate chest freezer JUST FOR Zucchini? It is SUPER easy to grow, does not need a lot of watering, and let me emphasize again HOW MUCH IT WILL SAVE YOU ON YOUR GROCERY BILL!

First, let me explain the benefits of this amazing vegetable! The dietary fiber in zucchini helps lower cholesterol, it helps prevent cancer, it is GREAT for prostate health, it is an anti-Inflammatory, it helps prevent heart attack and stroke, it helps lower blood pressure, and it is high in manganese. (Get more details here)

Now let me explain how it is going to help you save on your grocery bill! I add zucchini to pretty much ALL my dishes! I replace half of the ground beef in a recipe with zucchini, I add it to my soups, I even add shredded zucchini to my mashed potatoes & brownies. The great thing about Zucchini is it takes the taste of what you are baking or cooking! You are going to use less meat in your hamburgers, meatloaf, chicken tacos, whatever you are cooking…THROW IT IN!  You can make YUMMY bread with shredded zucchini and even make Zucchini Crisp. (Tastes just like apple crisp)

So get out there, buy a packet of Zucchini seeds for $.99 and get your plants growing! That one time $.99 purchase years ago, has saved me thousands over the last few years! (When I clean my zucchini’s I dry some of the seeds and use them the following year)

Filed Under: Family Savings, Gardening, Stretching Your Food Dollars
« Older Posts