I am thrilled to introduce today’s Guest Blogger to you! My sister, Mandy and her husband Jake live in TN, with their sweet 4 1/2 month old Brooklyn. Mandy suffers from multiple food allergies and wanted to start a blog on how to eat gluten-free while on a budget. Sensitive and Centsible is up and running and she is doing a fabulous job!
I will be featuring many of Mandy’s recipes here on the blog, as I know many of you suffer from food-allergies as well. In fact each Friday, I will be sharing Mandy’s Foodie Friday Gluten-Free recipe with you, so stay tuned!
In the meantime, please head on over to check out Mandy’s Blog, Sensitive and Centsible.
Guest Post
12 Ways to Stretch Your Grocery Budget Without Using Coupons:
Although we all want to spend less at the grocery store, one thing I have found out is that I can’t always find coupons for all of the items I want to purchase. While having coupons might be ideal, it isn’t always possible. However, there are still many ways to save money on groceries, even if you never use a coupon. If you are able to use coupons along with these suggestions, even better. But, if you either can’t use coupons or just don’t want to bother with it, here are some tips that can help you stretch your grocery budget.
1. Keep it simple.
While we all want to be the next Martha Stewart and serve our families five course meals every day, for most of us, this isn’t practical. Most times a simple meat, starch and vegetable will suffice. As Americans, we really do overindulge far too often. While there is nothing wrong with “getting fancy” with our meals, the cost of multiple items to choose from adds up quickly. So, for the majority of the time, keep it simple.
2. Make a list.
Nothing is worse to me than feeling unprepared when I go to the grocery store. I often end up with random items (Brussels sprouts, anyone?) that don’t really go with anything else I bought. When I go to the store, I try to have meals, snacks, and personal items planned out so I can shop quickly and not pick up items that are unnecessary. This will not only save you time at the grocery store, which is a real plus especially if you have children in tow, but also save you money on items you don’t really need.
3. Don’t shop hungry.
Try to not ever go to the grocery store when you are hungry. The temptation to make impulse purchases is even greater when you have an empty stomach. Everything in the store is made to look as enticing as possible anyway, but pair that with a growling stomach and you have a recipe for disaster. Try to at least eat a snack before going shopping to stave off the impulsive buys. (There is a reason the candy bars are by the checkout.)
4. Shop your pantry first.
Before planning your menu for the week, take a look at what you already have in your pantry and freezer. Maybe you have a box of rice–perhaps plan on a stir-fry for that week. Leftover bag of mixed vegetables in the freezer–think about making some soup. You may be amazed to find out how you can stretch what you already have in your house.
5. Buy things that are on sale.
When planning for the week, take a look first at the store’s sales flyer to see what are the best prices that week and then plan your menu. Even without using coupons, you can save a lot of money if you buy the items that are buy one get one free. One thing I love about the stores in Tennessee where I shop is that when they have a BOGO sale, I can buy just the one item on sale for 50% off.
6. Shop produce seasonally.
One department that we use a large portion of our grocery budget in is the produce department. Unfortunately, there are not often coupons to pair with produce. A great rule of thumb is to try to buy the items that are in season. For example, in February and March, strawberries are usually on sale, in July, tomatoes…and so on. The great thing about this is that when you buy the items that are in season and on sale, they are usually also at their tastiest.
7. Plan leftovers.
A great way to save yourself some time and money is to make meals that can give you “planned leftovers”. Perhaps a pot roast one night can be made into shredded BBQ beef sandwiches the next night. Or leftover grilled chicken one night can be used for chicken tacos the next. Get creative and you can transform the ingredient and save yourself some time and money. Of course, the other obvious way to use leftovers is just to have the item more than one night. If your family is not big on eating the same thing two nights in a row, then freeze the meal (if that works for it) and bring it out later in the week.
8. Go meatless.
I know a lot of men are not big on dinners without meat, but going vegetarian for a meal or two is a great way to stretch your grocery budget and it is helpful for your waistline as well. We generally have pasta at least one time a week. Although gluten-free pasta is not cheap, it still makes for an economical meal. And, if you really need some “meaty-ness” in your pasta, mushrooms make a great addition to spaghetti sauce without all the fat of beef and many health benefits.
9. Buy generic.
I know, I know, the store brand doesn’t have the pretty colors or attention grabbing jingles to sing as you load it into the cart. But, often the quality will be equal to the name brand. There are exceptions of course. There are certain items that we don’t buy the generic of simply because they don’t taste the same. Pick your battles where it matters.
10. No deal is a good deal if you won’t use it.
I know sometimes just seeing something marked down “CLEARANCE” in big bold letters, makes me want to drop it in the cart without thinking it through. “Wow, I can save 75% on hog jowls!” Seriously, if it is not something that you know someone in your house will eat, don’t waste the $.55 on it. This goes for new products as well. If you buy 4 boxes of a new cereal because it is half off but after one bowl gets eaten it sits in your pantry for weeks, it was not really a great deal.
A personal example of this is that there is a certain kind of bread my husband loves to eat that we get at the bakery of our store. (Yes, he eats gluten.) Sometimes, I have “cheaped out” and gotten a different pre-packaged kind of bread because it was on sale, and without fail, it will sit on the counter uneaten. He is not a demanding eater and this is one item he really enjoys. So, I “live a little” and get the kind of bread that I know he will enjoy and the product will be used even if it costs a little more.
A way to make sure that we get maximum use out of this little splurge is that I will often freeze half of the loaf of bread and take it out when the first half is almost gone. This makes certain that the bread stays fresh since it doesn’t keep nearly as long as packaged bread, and there is only one of us eating it. A great use for older bread is also to make french toast of it. Breakfast for dinner is another great way to stretch your budget a little farther.
11. Buy less but buy quality.
I know this might sound like a contradiction, but I would suggest that you buy the best quality that you can. Sure, you can get a huge bag of chicken legs for a cheaper price, but how much better to get some hormone-, antibiotic-free chicken that doesn’t have a lot of solutions added to “enhance” the flavor. (So, what does chicken really taste like, then?) As the saying goes, “You get what you pay for”. This applies to food as well. I would rather pay a little more for quality foods that I put in my body than to cheap out and spend the money on medical bills because I didn’t treat my body with respect.
12. Try to make it last one more day.
A great tip I have found is to try to stretch what you have one day farther than you think the groceries will go. Maybe you planned for 5 days worth of meals, try to make it to 6. There is usually something you can make out of what is in your pantry–even if you just go light for dinner and have a cereal and fruit night. If you have one unplanned day a week that adds up to 52 days in a year and a lot of savings.
