Two Frugal Cats

  1|  A Simple Scratch Made Christmas Lunch By taking advantage of grocery store sales, the pantry, and my price book, I was able to concoct a hearty Christmas Lunch for seven with plenty of leftovers for about $40. Be sure to check out my post that breaks down the menu and food costs. 2|  Yep, Not a Meal Plan in Sight So many leftovers in fact, that I didn't even bother with a meal plan for this week, especially since Friday was New Year's Day (a work holiday for us).  Leftovers were primarily served as-is, the only leftover transformation was the picked bits of the whole chicken were used to make a pesto chicken dish. I also made a quick Gnocchi and Sausage dish for work lunches to use up the last of the heavy cream. Is not meal planning always frugal? Absolutely not! In some cases though, it allows you to get creative with leftovers or pre-prepped foods. Plus, the mental break is always welcome too. 3| Post-Christmas Deals I stopped at Walmart and Marden's (a lo...

As the reality that winter has made it's stalwart appearance here in Maine begins to sink in, so does the craving for rich, comforting food. This week's meal ended up (unintentionally) being quite pasta forward, but still nicely varied. Chicken Breasts Stuffed w/ Spinach, Cream Cheese, & Bacon This Sunday we spent the day playing catch-up on a few projects (I'm looking at you, dust bunnies under the bed). Included in these projects was taming the fridge jungle that consisted of leftover produce, berry-container mountain, a huge family pack of chicken, and half a packet of bacon. Mini Chocolate Cake So what did I do to tame the fridge jungle? Here's a quick rundown: Two bags, about 12 yellow and orange bell peppers became: Sliced peppers for a chicken fajita dish later in the week Diced peppers for salad  Minced peppers for a "lazy lasagna" dish for later in the week Minced peppers for turkey meatballs 3 quart bags of diced peppers for the freezer 6 mini cu...

This week, instead of highlighting five small acts of frugality, I thought I'd share with you one of my favorite frugal kitchen tools - the cotton flour sack towel. These towels are nothing fancy, plain white, medium weave, 100% cotton, and lint free. They are not very expensive, a pack of 12 will run you about $10 - $15 online or in a club store such as Sam's. If you are looking to reduce your paper towel usage in the kitchen, these are a great investment. So what's so special about a simple, cheap cotton towel? Their versatility! I use these towels for just about any kitchen job I can think of, except for exceptionally messy or greasy situations. Folded and Waiting for Hot Jars of Pickles 1| Drying Dishes & Wiping Counters Super absorbent, these towels work great for drying dishes and counter tops. Many of our dishes are hand wash only, so we spread one of these towels out on the counter to pile clean wet dishes on. The thin fabric dries quickly and does not retain wa...

1| I Received Many Items from My Generous Aunt    One of my Great Aunts is in the process of moving and downsizing. In exchange for assistance in packing and running errands, she gifted me many quality pieces of kitchen ware and some food that she no longer had the ability to cook. I'm glad I can give her items a home where they will continue to be used and loved. 2| I Switched Cat Litters We've been using Arm and Hammer Clump and Seal Slide for our two cat's litter boxes for the past two years. Recently it jumped significantly in price and was also removed from Chewy's auto-ship discount. I did some research and found another clumping litter that had decent reviews. Chewy even had an extra 20% off coupon for it. Ebisu assisting me while I work from home. 3| Speaking of Cats Grayson is fed a special wet food to prevent crystals in his urinary tract. The brand we've been feeding him crept up another two dollars per case, so I made the switch to a different prescripti...

1| Those Who Pick Together, Stay Together?! This past weekend Ben and I picked 25lbs of strawberries from a local PYO farm. Both of our mom's accompanied us for a fun morning activity. It took us about an hour to pick about 55 pounds total. We combined our purchase to get the bulk special price of 15% off the $2.95/lb price, so we ended up paying $2.53/lb. Now yes, I regularly am able to get fresh strawberries for $1/lb at Papa's Produce, but we like supporting local, and you can't beat fresh off the vine! (Last week I featured the Strawberry-Top Simple Syrup in my Frugal Friday post, but I thought the strawberries deserved their own highlight). 25lbs of Strawberries, Let the Hulling Begin! 2| I Canned A Lot of Jam The majority of the strawberries we picked made their way into preserves. This year I did two types of strawberry jam, one with pectin, one without, strawberry rhubarb jam, strawberry syrup. I also preserved 6 half-pints of cherry jam from cherries that I picked...

So uh, the 4th of July being on a weekend meant Friday off from work, which meant strawberry picking, which lead to a marathon day of canning - you see where this is going. I forgot it was Friday! 1| It's Pesto Time! Pesto made from the spinach, basil, and parsley that we grow in our garden is one of my favorite parts about summer, and probably those most cost-saving items that our garden produces. Two gallon sized bags of basil and two gallon sized bags of spinach, plus a handful of parsely and some stray swiss chard made approximately 10 cups of fresh pesto. Easily worth $50 if you were to go out and buy it from the deli or store shelf.  I expect we will have enough basil to make more later this summer after my plants recover from thier first major pruning. 2| I Save Small Jars to Freeze the Pesto In While I have an abundance of canning jars, I still like to save small glass jars that we get from various condiments to store our pesto in.  Pesto ready for the freezer. 3| Stra...

This week was busy with some unplanned family events, but better late than never! 1| A Well-Stocked Freezer to the Rescue  I was asked to make a few meals for a family member in need. I pulled all the ingredients I needed from the freezer and churned out two casseroles, a blueberry breakfast cake, biscuits, and burritos. I did make a stop at the store for a few items, eggs and tortillas just in case. I also had to send Ben down the road to the gas station to pick up some milk as mine was sour when I opened it. Oops! Overall very little out of pocket and many mouths fed! 2| I Remembered My EZ Pass I carpooled with my mom to help a relative pack their apartment. We used my EZ Pass to save on tolls, made sandwiches so we didn't have to eat out, and had a great time catching up. 3| I Was Gifted A Set of Corelle Bowls My Aunt who is cleaning out her apartment gifted me her Corelle nesting bowls that she no longer used. They just happened to be in a print that I was coveting! 4| Wood Spl...

Frugality takes on various forms big and small. The purpose of five frugal things is to highlight the little day to day frugal choices or opportunities that we are presented with, along with the occasional big one. I Cleaned the rotating vacuum head and washed the filters. Our vacuum works hard keeping up with all the hair in our house, so it deserves a spa day every now and then. It also helps to protect the integrity of the motor. Used leftover paper plates and cups saved from our wedding two years ago. This cuts down on the dishes we need to wash while the septic is out. I saved the ribbon from the welcome back cookie at work. I keep a little stash of collected ribbon and twine to tie of gifts with. Went to a yard sale on Saturday where I scored a full set of vintage Oneida silverware with a pretty floral pattern that is very similar to our current Oneida rose pattern. The silverware was 10 cents each. The seller also included a small basket and small servings spoons for free. It...

"Five Frugal Things" was a concept popularized by The Non-Consumer Advocate , and has become a feature on many other frugal minded blogs, such as The Frugal Girl . The concept of Five Fugal Things is to reflect on five things every week that were frugal choices in our lives. These examples are meant to encourage others to share their own Five Frugal Things, share ideas, and normalize the concept of frugality. I hope you join in! Here they are! Used the last of some whole milk that was too far gone for drinking to make cornbread. Kept an eye on my "junk email" account and snagged a Chewy coupon for free litter when I bought a certain brand of cat food, which I had already planned to order next week. 40lbs. of free litter! Used leftover marinara sauce from a takeout order earlier in the week for dipping some date-night calzones. Heated it up and brought it from home (we got takeout calzones and enjoyed them at the nearby park). Picked up a few small organizing contain...