With the trend of energy conservation shooting to new heights along with our technology, occasional re-evaluation is necessary. Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs for short) may last longer, be more energy efficient, but there are some things many people don't know about them.
Price versus Cost to Operate
CFLs are getting much more affordable as time goes on and the process becomes streamlined. At the time of this post, they cost about $2.50 or so for an average 13 watt bulb. Due to their low wattage, they are becoming much more popular. About 20-25% of a home's electricity usage comes from lighting, and when you go from 60 watts to 13 watts, that is a dramatic change to your electricity bill, which is about 21% difference in lighting alone.
Mercury
As wonderful as it sounds to have a much lower cost to operate, CFLs are notorious for containing mercury, a poisonous metal. Most CFLs also contain argon gas, phosphor, and titanium dioxide, none of which are nearly as bad as mercury. The mercury found in these bulbs are is often times vaporized, and when the glass breaks, it can be seen as a powder. They can contain as much as 5 milligrams of mercury per bulb.
Disposal
While the idea of cleaning up a poisonous mess of mercury can be daunting, it is doable. Many packages for CFLs do not include the necessary procedures to clean up. You need a pair of cleaning-grade gloves, duct-tape, plastic zipper baggies and a box. Put on the gloves, stick down the duct tape to the powder and glass, cut it off and drop it into the zipper baggy. Repeat as much as necessary, but do not use a broom - you will disburse the dust even more and possibly inhale it. Do NOT throw it away - take it to a local recycling center.
Other Options
If CFLs sound too dangerous to you, here are some other options for lighting, and while some may be too expensive, they are much safer alternatives.
Incandescent
The tried and true incandescent light bulb may not be cost effective in the long run, but they do not contain mercury. Unfortunately, they are to be phased out and may not be available in the future due to government mandates.
LED
LEDs are more expensive, but contain no mercury, and are also brighter, come in far more colors, and are cooler to the touch. They also use around 6 watts for the same light you would get out of a 40 watt bulb. This is less than even CFL bulbs, and the process of making LEDs has been around for much longer.
Halogen
These are more expensive than the LEDs. They are much brighter and have more power than all other lighting options, but are primarily used on vehicles, outdoor lighting and construction lighting. Halogens use similar wattages to their incandescent counterparts and also produce a lot more heat due to how they work.
What do you think of CFL bulbs?
Saturday, August 17, 2013
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Committing to Saving Money (and Yourself!)
It can be difficult to find every nickle and dime, and sometimes it can be even harder to find the motivation to even try. Here are a few suggestions to make the attempt a little more endurable.
Being Grateful
Being aware of what you already have can make the draw of buying new things a lot less tempting. It is much harder to forget that you have tomatoes growing on the vine already when you're walking down the aisles of a grocery store and see them on sale for a few cents less than last week, because you're getting them for a much smaller cost, and often taste much better than anything at the store.
Pride is Not a Sin!
Did you manage to save a few extra dollars on groceries this week? Feel free to celebrate! Be proud of your accomplishment; tell neighbors, friends, family members or even the postal workers. Keeping up morale is incredibly important when it comes to making any lifestyle change, and knowing that you can step up and do the little things will help immensely when you start leaping the big hurdles.
Situational Awareness
A lot of times, we humans tend to lose perspective on important things in our lives. We sometimes also see the fact that we have a coupon and feel the need to use it right away, whether or not we need whatever it is that is begging to be purchased. Do you really need to try that new cereal so badly or are you getting it just because you have a coupon? Think before you act - it is one of the most important things to do, and that's why so few people do it.
Mindful Relationships
The draw of therapy is much smaller when you have deep friendships with those around you to whom you can confide in. Be aware of all those who don't care about your efforts or continually attempt to undermine them, and seek those who listen and try to help. Life is too short to waste on people who don't care.
Sweet, Sweet Green
Sometimes it can be difficult to really wrap your head around how much money you're saving. Try using cash when you pay for items so that you can physically see it and feel how much lighter your wallet gets when you go to the store. You could also go to the bank and check your savings account and ask to take it all out, roll in it, and put it back in, just for fun.
Have any feelings about saving money that you'd like to share?
Being Grateful
Being aware of what you already have can make the draw of buying new things a lot less tempting. It is much harder to forget that you have tomatoes growing on the vine already when you're walking down the aisles of a grocery store and see them on sale for a few cents less than last week, because you're getting them for a much smaller cost, and often taste much better than anything at the store.
Pride is Not a Sin!
Did you manage to save a few extra dollars on groceries this week? Feel free to celebrate! Be proud of your accomplishment; tell neighbors, friends, family members or even the postal workers. Keeping up morale is incredibly important when it comes to making any lifestyle change, and knowing that you can step up and do the little things will help immensely when you start leaping the big hurdles.
Situational Awareness
A lot of times, we humans tend to lose perspective on important things in our lives. We sometimes also see the fact that we have a coupon and feel the need to use it right away, whether or not we need whatever it is that is begging to be purchased. Do you really need to try that new cereal so badly or are you getting it just because you have a coupon? Think before you act - it is one of the most important things to do, and that's why so few people do it.
Mindful Relationships
The draw of therapy is much smaller when you have deep friendships with those around you to whom you can confide in. Be aware of all those who don't care about your efforts or continually attempt to undermine them, and seek those who listen and try to help. Life is too short to waste on people who don't care.
Sweet, Sweet Green
Sometimes it can be difficult to really wrap your head around how much money you're saving. Try using cash when you pay for items so that you can physically see it and feel how much lighter your wallet gets when you go to the store. You could also go to the bank and check your savings account and ask to take it all out, roll in it, and put it back in, just for fun.
Have any feelings about saving money that you'd like to share?
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
All 'Bottled' Up: Creative (And Cost-Effective) Uses for Pesky PETs
Concern for the environment is growing rapidly with the increased use of plastic worldwide. The production of the average plastic bottle uses up a third of its volume in petroleum. If we find ways to use the plastic around us that already exists, it's at least a little less that will end up in landfills.
Here are some ways we can use plastic bottles and save a little money along the way.
Planters
A few cuts can turn a bottle into a useful seed-starting device or even make a new home for a beloved house plant. Wash the bottle thoroughly and take off the cap. Cut the bottle in half a bit above the half-way mark, then make a few vertical cuts along the bottom cut to make the next step a little easier. Flip the top half upside-down and press it into the bottom half until the mouth of the bottle is just touching the bottom. Add soil, plants, water and you have yourself a new planter without the cost.
Pin Cushions
Remember the cap you took off in the previous project? You'll need it for this one. A few scraps of felt, thread, needle and scissors will make a cute little pincushion. Cut two circles of felt, one for the top and the other for the bottom. Cut a strip of felt about twice as wide as the cap and wrap it around the cap itself, making a loop around the rim. Trim the felt as close as possible, then stitch the edges together tightly. Stitch the bottom circle to the loop at the top of the cap, then stitch the other circle half way around the open end. Add stuffing, stitch it closed, and you're ready to pin.
Funnel
Bottles make fantastic make-shift funnels. Wash the bottle, cut the top off right after the curve, take off the cap and you're ready to pour. This works for almost every bottle type.
Flowers
There are a lot of creative ways to make flowers from bottles. Cutting the top off as you would for a funnel and making a few cuts toward the center and bending them out can yield a nice star-burst: round off the corners and you've got a flower. You can also use different cuts to make the petals pointy, wavy, or however you'd like - the possibilities are endless. This is a great craft to do with kids and painting them different colors can be a lot of fun.
Solar Still
Here is another fun project to do with kids: building a small solar still from trash. Wash two plastic bottles of similar sizes. Spray paint one a matte black and drill a hole large enough to put a bit of tubing through in both caps. Use a bit of plumber's putty to hold the tubing in place. Fill the black bottle about half-way with dirty water and screw both lids on. Put the black bottle in a sunny location and slightly higher than the clear bottle. If you can, keep the clear bottle in a shady location - this will help speed up the condensation process. In a few days, you should have clean water in the clear bottle.
Light Bulb
This is great for a garden shed: fill a two-liter bottle with water and add a cap full of bleach. Screw the cap back on and wrap duct tape around the lid to keep it safe from breaking down from sunlight. Cut a hole in the roof of your shed and use weather-resistant materials to hold it in place. Sunlight is now refracted through the bottle and brightens your shed.
Know of any other great ideas for using plastic bottles? Let me know in the comments!
Here are some ways we can use plastic bottles and save a little money along the way.
Planters
A few cuts can turn a bottle into a useful seed-starting device or even make a new home for a beloved house plant. Wash the bottle thoroughly and take off the cap. Cut the bottle in half a bit above the half-way mark, then make a few vertical cuts along the bottom cut to make the next step a little easier. Flip the top half upside-down and press it into the bottom half until the mouth of the bottle is just touching the bottom. Add soil, plants, water and you have yourself a new planter without the cost.
Pin Cushions
Remember the cap you took off in the previous project? You'll need it for this one. A few scraps of felt, thread, needle and scissors will make a cute little pincushion. Cut two circles of felt, one for the top and the other for the bottom. Cut a strip of felt about twice as wide as the cap and wrap it around the cap itself, making a loop around the rim. Trim the felt as close as possible, then stitch the edges together tightly. Stitch the bottom circle to the loop at the top of the cap, then stitch the other circle half way around the open end. Add stuffing, stitch it closed, and you're ready to pin.
Funnel
Bottles make fantastic make-shift funnels. Wash the bottle, cut the top off right after the curve, take off the cap and you're ready to pour. This works for almost every bottle type.
Flowers
There are a lot of creative ways to make flowers from bottles. Cutting the top off as you would for a funnel and making a few cuts toward the center and bending them out can yield a nice star-burst: round off the corners and you've got a flower. You can also use different cuts to make the petals pointy, wavy, or however you'd like - the possibilities are endless. This is a great craft to do with kids and painting them different colors can be a lot of fun.
Solar Still
Here is another fun project to do with kids: building a small solar still from trash. Wash two plastic bottles of similar sizes. Spray paint one a matte black and drill a hole large enough to put a bit of tubing through in both caps. Use a bit of plumber's putty to hold the tubing in place. Fill the black bottle about half-way with dirty water and screw both lids on. Put the black bottle in a sunny location and slightly higher than the clear bottle. If you can, keep the clear bottle in a shady location - this will help speed up the condensation process. In a few days, you should have clean water in the clear bottle.
Light Bulb
This is great for a garden shed: fill a two-liter bottle with water and add a cap full of bleach. Screw the cap back on and wrap duct tape around the lid to keep it safe from breaking down from sunlight. Cut a hole in the roof of your shed and use weather-resistant materials to hold it in place. Sunlight is now refracted through the bottle and brightens your shed.
Know of any other great ideas for using plastic bottles? Let me know in the comments!
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Creative (and a little crazy) Ways to Save
Cut out most of your big expenses but still need a little help? These tips can help in some creative (and some unexpected) ways.
1. Mend and/or Make your Clothes
Did you know that the world's clothing and textile industries made around $3 trillion in 2011? That's a lot of money! The average American family spends about $2,000 a year on just clothes, so if you can mend it and save yourself from buying a new blouse, that's an extra $30 you don't have to spend. If you repair more than a few articles of clothing a year, you can save even more. Making your own clothes can take a bit of practice, but there are a lot of patterns and different kinds of cloth available, and often times it's cheaper to make your own clothes than to buy them, even on sale.
2. More Money, Less Lawn
Depending on where you live, having a lawn can be extremely expensive, especially if you are the sort to obsess over every dandelion and clover that dare rear their flowery little heads. Watering, seeding, reseeding, pest control and herbicide usage to keep lawns perfectly manicured cost Americans an average of $40 billion a year. There are many ways to help reduce the cost in sweat and dollars.
Trees cast shade on both the lawn and homes, which can be beneficial especially in hot summers. Fruit trees are even better, because you can harvest from them and save on fruit or nuts that way. Planting drought-resistant grasses can also be beneficial, since they require less watering than traditional grasses. Weeds have many benefits to lawns: deep-rooted dandelions bring moisture to the surface for grasses to drink and clover affixes nitrogen to the soil and helps grass stay a rich green color. If you don't like your lawn at all, you can always put in a garden instead. Even large gardens require less water than pure lawns.
3. Consider The Necessities
This section is especially for the ladies. Feminine hygiene products have always been a nearly over-looked section of the budget, but there are ways to cope. Before industry commercialized the use of widely-available pads and tampons, there were other methods that were used and cost much less, and many have been vastly improved today and are reusable. Silicone and rubber cups are available, and you can get reusable pads and tampons, or even make your own. Patterns for making pads and tampons are widely available and are machine washable depending on the type of cloth used.
4. Craft it Up
Spending too much for party favors at the dollar stores? An hour or two of thoughtful preparation can save hundreds or more a year. There are hundreds of craft ideas and ways to spice up the party without breaking the bank. A little paper and a pair of scissors can make a plastic parade into a much more hand-crafted and earth-friendly clean-up. For winter parties, snowflakes and snowmen can be made with simple white printer paper folded properly and cut. Cocktail parties can be flamboyant with neon origami, and Hawaiian barbeques strung with cut paper flower garland. The possibilities are endless.
5. Entertainment on the Cheap
Need a break? Cut back on the stress and the budget. The price of cable has skyrocketed, but an amazing amount of television shows and news can be viewed online for free or for an inexpensive monthly fee, and can be viewed at any time with fewer advertisements. Movie night can consist of a rental and a bowl of fresh, air-popped corn. If you really want the theater experience, consider going during matinee times for half-price tickets, or even going to a drive-in. If you're an adventurous gamer, many games can be found online for cheap or in stores used for less than new price. Movies can be found this same way. If you're looking for more traditional entertainment or ways to bring the family together, try board and card games. Puzzles can offer a great deal in collaborative working rather than the competitive nature of many games. Simple games like Go Fish and Old Maid are great for younger children and can even be fun for adults. Mancala is another good one for kids because of the fun beads and simple rules, and can help them learn counting, but be sure they don't try to eat the pieces!
6. Re-use Containers
Do you buy pasta in the jar? Keep the jar! There are many containers that can be simply washed and reused over and over again, including but not limited to: jam, pasta and pickle jars, cottage cheese, yogurt and whipped cream plastic containers, as well as some others. Cans from industrial canned goods should not be reused for food, because once exposed to air, many foods can easily react with the metal.
All containers should be thoroughly washed in hot, soapy water before being used for other food items. Glass containers can be especially useful for brewing sun tea in various quantities. I usually use two tea bags in a quart jar filled nearly to the top with water and leave it in the sun for about 3-4 hours, depending on how sunny and hot the day is. The darker the tea, the less time needed to leave it in the sun. Once the tea is ready, I remove the tea bags and add sugar to taste, screw the lid back on and give it a good shake, then leave it in the refrigerator to cool. You can also use the jars to mix salad dressings, hold broth or a number of other mostly-liquid items. Containers from dairy products can be used for nearly hundreds of uses from holding leftovers to being used as bowls for eating directly out of, to hold craft items (like buttons, beads, spools and more) or even to make crafts from. Industrial cans can be used to hold mostly dry and craft items like markers, pens, feathers, and more. They can also be decorated, painted and turned into crafts themselves.
Do you have more fun and crazy ways to save some money? Feel free to share them in the comments below!
1. Mend and/or Make your Clothes
Did you know that the world's clothing and textile industries made around $3 trillion in 2011? That's a lot of money! The average American family spends about $2,000 a year on just clothes, so if you can mend it and save yourself from buying a new blouse, that's an extra $30 you don't have to spend. If you repair more than a few articles of clothing a year, you can save even more. Making your own clothes can take a bit of practice, but there are a lot of patterns and different kinds of cloth available, and often times it's cheaper to make your own clothes than to buy them, even on sale.
2. More Money, Less Lawn
Depending on where you live, having a lawn can be extremely expensive, especially if you are the sort to obsess over every dandelion and clover that dare rear their flowery little heads. Watering, seeding, reseeding, pest control and herbicide usage to keep lawns perfectly manicured cost Americans an average of $40 billion a year. There are many ways to help reduce the cost in sweat and dollars.
Trees cast shade on both the lawn and homes, which can be beneficial especially in hot summers. Fruit trees are even better, because you can harvest from them and save on fruit or nuts that way. Planting drought-resistant grasses can also be beneficial, since they require less watering than traditional grasses. Weeds have many benefits to lawns: deep-rooted dandelions bring moisture to the surface for grasses to drink and clover affixes nitrogen to the soil and helps grass stay a rich green color. If you don't like your lawn at all, you can always put in a garden instead. Even large gardens require less water than pure lawns.
3. Consider The Necessities
This section is especially for the ladies. Feminine hygiene products have always been a nearly over-looked section of the budget, but there are ways to cope. Before industry commercialized the use of widely-available pads and tampons, there were other methods that were used and cost much less, and many have been vastly improved today and are reusable. Silicone and rubber cups are available, and you can get reusable pads and tampons, or even make your own. Patterns for making pads and tampons are widely available and are machine washable depending on the type of cloth used.
4. Craft it Up
Spending too much for party favors at the dollar stores? An hour or two of thoughtful preparation can save hundreds or more a year. There are hundreds of craft ideas and ways to spice up the party without breaking the bank. A little paper and a pair of scissors can make a plastic parade into a much more hand-crafted and earth-friendly clean-up. For winter parties, snowflakes and snowmen can be made with simple white printer paper folded properly and cut. Cocktail parties can be flamboyant with neon origami, and Hawaiian barbeques strung with cut paper flower garland. The possibilities are endless.
5. Entertainment on the Cheap
Need a break? Cut back on the stress and the budget. The price of cable has skyrocketed, but an amazing amount of television shows and news can be viewed online for free or for an inexpensive monthly fee, and can be viewed at any time with fewer advertisements. Movie night can consist of a rental and a bowl of fresh, air-popped corn. If you really want the theater experience, consider going during matinee times for half-price tickets, or even going to a drive-in. If you're an adventurous gamer, many games can be found online for cheap or in stores used for less than new price. Movies can be found this same way. If you're looking for more traditional entertainment or ways to bring the family together, try board and card games. Puzzles can offer a great deal in collaborative working rather than the competitive nature of many games. Simple games like Go Fish and Old Maid are great for younger children and can even be fun for adults. Mancala is another good one for kids because of the fun beads and simple rules, and can help them learn counting, but be sure they don't try to eat the pieces!
6. Re-use Containers
Do you buy pasta in the jar? Keep the jar! There are many containers that can be simply washed and reused over and over again, including but not limited to: jam, pasta and pickle jars, cottage cheese, yogurt and whipped cream plastic containers, as well as some others. Cans from industrial canned goods should not be reused for food, because once exposed to air, many foods can easily react with the metal.
All containers should be thoroughly washed in hot, soapy water before being used for other food items. Glass containers can be especially useful for brewing sun tea in various quantities. I usually use two tea bags in a quart jar filled nearly to the top with water and leave it in the sun for about 3-4 hours, depending on how sunny and hot the day is. The darker the tea, the less time needed to leave it in the sun. Once the tea is ready, I remove the tea bags and add sugar to taste, screw the lid back on and give it a good shake, then leave it in the refrigerator to cool. You can also use the jars to mix salad dressings, hold broth or a number of other mostly-liquid items. Containers from dairy products can be used for nearly hundreds of uses from holding leftovers to being used as bowls for eating directly out of, to hold craft items (like buttons, beads, spools and more) or even to make crafts from. Industrial cans can be used to hold mostly dry and craft items like markers, pens, feathers, and more. They can also be decorated, painted and turned into crafts themselves.
Do you have more fun and crazy ways to save some money? Feel free to share them in the comments below!
Saturday, July 20, 2013
Eating Yourself into Debt? Try These Tips!
Every single day, the United States throws away anywhere between 25%-40% of our food. No wonder so many of us are in debt! When the average person spends about $150 a week on food alone, there are a lot of reasons to reconsider how your food is used, or in some cases, abused.
Here's some tips and tricks for saving yourself some dough... literally!
1. Eat Leftovers
I know this one is kind of a no-brainer, but really! Leftovers are one of the things people throw out the most. Most of the time, the issue isn't the food itself, but the way it's prepared, but leftovers don't have to be dull or boring. Here are some ways to spice them up:
Soups and Stocks
Chicken Bones and Skins
You can use them to create chicken stock. Just toss them into a big stock pot along with celery, carrots, onions, parsley, salt and pepper, then add water enough to cover. Bring to a boil, then immediately bring it back down to a simmer for a few hours. Your house will smell of your mom's home made chicken soup. You can use this technique with any bones and skins you have on hand, but you might want to use different kinds of veggies in the stock, depending on the type of animal the bones came from.
Pot Roast
Got a pot roast laying around? Turn it into soup! Cut the roast into inch-sized cubes and toss them into a stock pot with chopped onions and a little more water than to cover. Bring it to a boil and add egg-noodles and you're good to go once they cook up. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Wilted Veggies
And what do we do with these? You guessed it! Cut out the bad parts of your old veggies and taste to make sure they're okay to go into your soup. Chop them up to size and toss them into water and boil. You can add stock or water only, or pop open a can of veggie juice to pour in. A good combination I've experimented with is tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms and onions. If you're not too confident with the mixture, don't worry, at least they weren't fresh veggies and you can always try again. Experimenting with food can be fun!
Main Courses
Chicken Enchiladas
This twist on an old favorite is simple enough to do and much less time consuming than doing it from fresh. If you have a chicken or chicken pieces from a few nights ago, some soft tortilla shells, enchilada sauce and nice Mexican cheese then you're good to go. Using your fingers or fork, shred the chicken as finely as you'd like. Put down a layer of cheese onto the tortilla in a line, then chicken, then more cheese, then roll the whole thing up and lay it into a sauced-lined baking dish. Do as many enchiladas as you'd like, then smear the tops of them with more sauce and a layer of cheese. Pop them into a hot oven until done and you've got some delicious Mexican without the price of going out.
Pulled Pork
Got a pork roast or some pork chops? Just shred them up and pop them into a crock pot for a few hours with BBQ sauce and you've got pulled pork. Can you say 'easy'?
Desserts
Fruit Pies
Is your fruit bowl drawing bugs? One of the best ways to use up a lot of fruit is to put them in a pie or cobbler. Get a pie shell ready and prepare your fruit for deliciousness. Basic ingredients for fruit pies are the shell, sugar and fruit. Mix the sugar and fruit and put them in the shell and bake for around an hour. Your house will smell great and your family will be glad the flies are gone.
Freezer Pops
A little cool goes a long way to using up those extra bits of fruit. Get out your ice pop maker or an ice cube tray. Cut your fruit small, add sugar and enough water or milk to blend it well, then pour right into the trays and freeze for a few hours. These are a great treat in the summer months.
There are literally hundreds of ways to re-use leftovers and these are just a few examples.
And now for tip number two!
2. Use Kitchen Scraps
A lot of what we throw out is in scraps as well: vegetable and fruit peels, seeds and stumps. Here are some creative ways to use those bits other than tossing them down the disposal or trash.
Banana Peels
Acne, wart removal, shoe shine, silver polish, teeth whitening and more are all things banana peels can do. Just give whatever you're using them for a rub from the inside of the banana peel and they should be good to go. They're also fantastic to toss into your compost pile or garden if you keep one, since they're naturally high in potassium.
Potato Peels
These are still edible! Mix them with a bit of oil, salt and pepper and toss them onto a baking sheet, crisp them up and they are a much more nutrient-rich version of potatoes. Plus, no preservatives! They also make a great addition to compost.
Oranges
You can zest them before you juice them and keep dry it for other recipes. Peels (with the zest intact) can be used to deter cats (they HATE citrus!) until they dry out. The dried peels can also be used in pot potpourri and smell wonderful.
Grow from Seeds
A lot of scraps include the seeds, many of which are viable and can produce food of their own. Avocados, oranges, lemons, limes, tangerines, and many many other seeds can be grown. I myself have grown 3 lemon trees from seed and look forward to growing more.
Grow from Scraps
You can use some kitchen scraps to grow more food. Pineapple, onions, potatoes, celery and some others are able to grow just from the roots or tops of the plant. With pineapples, you can just twist the top off and pull of about 2-3 layers of leaves and just set it in some soil securely. Water it and watch it grow! Green onion bottoms can be cut from the leaves (the green part) and just pop the root sections into the ground and voila! More greens for free. Celery bottoms are the same.
Egg Shells
Egg shells can be rinsed and turned into art as well as a calcium supplement for your garden. Be sure to use warm water and be sure to get out all the egg-white free of the shell before using for either of these projects.
A small note: Most vegetable scraps can also be used for compost. Using meat scraps can draw pests and contribute to the creation of microorganisms like e coli.
3. Storing Food
Finding a great deal on produce or meat can be wonderful, but figuring out how to deal with all the extra food can be daunting. The refrigerator can only fit so much, and unless you have other ways to store food or are a Tetris genius, you could be drowning in rotten veggies within a few days.
Freezing
One of the most common and simplest ways to store food is to pop it into the freezer. This is easiest to do with meats that are already packaged, but a little harder for fresh produce. For most fruit and veggies, chopping them up and putting them into freezer bags is perfect. With a little work, you could save a few dollars by finding produce on sale instead of buying them pre-frozen.
Leave it Out
There are quite a few food items that can be left out without them going sour right away. Most fruits and vegetables are like this, but many should be used quickly before they draw fruit flies. Potatoes, onions, pumpkins and most winter squashes can keep for weeks or even months just by leaving them out. Some veggies, like carrots, celery, green onions and cabbage can draw flies much sooner. Be aware of what can be left out of the refrigerator or kept inside.
Canning
Heating foods and putting them into jars is something your grandmother did, but it is still just as useful today. Creating jams, jellies, sauces and more can be a very rewarding experience as well. There are a few things to remember, however, to keep the canning process successful:
Sanitation
Keep all lids and jars sanitized. This can be done in many ways: boiling, baking, and washing. It might be best to do at least two of them, just to be safe.
Amounts
Be sure to have exactly, if not more, jars and lids as you need to can your food. If you don't then you will end up wasting at least a little more food than you'd hoped.
Process
Know what process you're using before you start. There usually is a lot of heat, measurements and timing involved in canning and being familiar with all parts of the process before you begin can help tremendously.
Dehydrating
One method of storing food is fairly ancient, but is still very viable. Dehydrating vegetables, meat and fruit is a simple and very long-term way to store food. A properly sealed jar or bag of dehydrated foods can keep for a year, if not longer. There are many different kinds of dehydrators available, and you can even try making one yourself, but when first starting out it can be helpful to have a factory-made one first, merely for consistency's sake.
4. Grow a Garden
Even having a few pots of fresh herbs on hand can save some money. Buying fresh herbs every time you cook can get very expensive quickly, but most recipes don't take much and letting the rest rot in your fridge can be annoying. Having a small herb garden can help freshen up your window sill as well. If you are new to the idea of growing food instead of flowers, it isn't too much different. There are pests to watch out for and watering to do, and just as much weeding, but at the end of the day, home-grown tomatoes taste so much better than store bought. Give it a try and save a few dollars.
Have any tips you'd like to share? Hop on down to the comments section and share them!
Here's some tips and tricks for saving yourself some dough... literally!
1. Eat Leftovers
I know this one is kind of a no-brainer, but really! Leftovers are one of the things people throw out the most. Most of the time, the issue isn't the food itself, but the way it's prepared, but leftovers don't have to be dull or boring. Here are some ways to spice them up:
Soups and Stocks
Chicken Bones and Skins
You can use them to create chicken stock. Just toss them into a big stock pot along with celery, carrots, onions, parsley, salt and pepper, then add water enough to cover. Bring to a boil, then immediately bring it back down to a simmer for a few hours. Your house will smell of your mom's home made chicken soup. You can use this technique with any bones and skins you have on hand, but you might want to use different kinds of veggies in the stock, depending on the type of animal the bones came from.
Pot Roast
Got a pot roast laying around? Turn it into soup! Cut the roast into inch-sized cubes and toss them into a stock pot with chopped onions and a little more water than to cover. Bring it to a boil and add egg-noodles and you're good to go once they cook up. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Wilted Veggies
And what do we do with these? You guessed it! Cut out the bad parts of your old veggies and taste to make sure they're okay to go into your soup. Chop them up to size and toss them into water and boil. You can add stock or water only, or pop open a can of veggie juice to pour in. A good combination I've experimented with is tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms and onions. If you're not too confident with the mixture, don't worry, at least they weren't fresh veggies and you can always try again. Experimenting with food can be fun!
Main Courses
Chicken Enchiladas
This twist on an old favorite is simple enough to do and much less time consuming than doing it from fresh. If you have a chicken or chicken pieces from a few nights ago, some soft tortilla shells, enchilada sauce and nice Mexican cheese then you're good to go. Using your fingers or fork, shred the chicken as finely as you'd like. Put down a layer of cheese onto the tortilla in a line, then chicken, then more cheese, then roll the whole thing up and lay it into a sauced-lined baking dish. Do as many enchiladas as you'd like, then smear the tops of them with more sauce and a layer of cheese. Pop them into a hot oven until done and you've got some delicious Mexican without the price of going out.
Pulled Pork
Got a pork roast or some pork chops? Just shred them up and pop them into a crock pot for a few hours with BBQ sauce and you've got pulled pork. Can you say 'easy'?
Desserts
Fruit Pies
Is your fruit bowl drawing bugs? One of the best ways to use up a lot of fruit is to put them in a pie or cobbler. Get a pie shell ready and prepare your fruit for deliciousness. Basic ingredients for fruit pies are the shell, sugar and fruit. Mix the sugar and fruit and put them in the shell and bake for around an hour. Your house will smell great and your family will be glad the flies are gone.
Freezer Pops
A little cool goes a long way to using up those extra bits of fruit. Get out your ice pop maker or an ice cube tray. Cut your fruit small, add sugar and enough water or milk to blend it well, then pour right into the trays and freeze for a few hours. These are a great treat in the summer months.
There are literally hundreds of ways to re-use leftovers and these are just a few examples.
And now for tip number two!
2. Use Kitchen Scraps
A lot of what we throw out is in scraps as well: vegetable and fruit peels, seeds and stumps. Here are some creative ways to use those bits other than tossing them down the disposal or trash.
Banana Peels
Acne, wart removal, shoe shine, silver polish, teeth whitening and more are all things banana peels can do. Just give whatever you're using them for a rub from the inside of the banana peel and they should be good to go. They're also fantastic to toss into your compost pile or garden if you keep one, since they're naturally high in potassium.
Potato Peels
These are still edible! Mix them with a bit of oil, salt and pepper and toss them onto a baking sheet, crisp them up and they are a much more nutrient-rich version of potatoes. Plus, no preservatives! They also make a great addition to compost.
Oranges
You can zest them before you juice them and keep dry it for other recipes. Peels (with the zest intact) can be used to deter cats (they HATE citrus!) until they dry out. The dried peels can also be used in pot potpourri and smell wonderful.
Grow from Seeds
A lot of scraps include the seeds, many of which are viable and can produce food of their own. Avocados, oranges, lemons, limes, tangerines, and many many other seeds can be grown. I myself have grown 3 lemon trees from seed and look forward to growing more.
Grow from Scraps
You can use some kitchen scraps to grow more food. Pineapple, onions, potatoes, celery and some others are able to grow just from the roots or tops of the plant. With pineapples, you can just twist the top off and pull of about 2-3 layers of leaves and just set it in some soil securely. Water it and watch it grow! Green onion bottoms can be cut from the leaves (the green part) and just pop the root sections into the ground and voila! More greens for free. Celery bottoms are the same.
Egg Shells
Egg shells can be rinsed and turned into art as well as a calcium supplement for your garden. Be sure to use warm water and be sure to get out all the egg-white free of the shell before using for either of these projects.
A small note: Most vegetable scraps can also be used for compost. Using meat scraps can draw pests and contribute to the creation of microorganisms like e coli.
3. Storing Food
Finding a great deal on produce or meat can be wonderful, but figuring out how to deal with all the extra food can be daunting. The refrigerator can only fit so much, and unless you have other ways to store food or are a Tetris genius, you could be drowning in rotten veggies within a few days.
Freezing
One of the most common and simplest ways to store food is to pop it into the freezer. This is easiest to do with meats that are already packaged, but a little harder for fresh produce. For most fruit and veggies, chopping them up and putting them into freezer bags is perfect. With a little work, you could save a few dollars by finding produce on sale instead of buying them pre-frozen.
Leave it Out
There are quite a few food items that can be left out without them going sour right away. Most fruits and vegetables are like this, but many should be used quickly before they draw fruit flies. Potatoes, onions, pumpkins and most winter squashes can keep for weeks or even months just by leaving them out. Some veggies, like carrots, celery, green onions and cabbage can draw flies much sooner. Be aware of what can be left out of the refrigerator or kept inside.
Canning
Heating foods and putting them into jars is something your grandmother did, but it is still just as useful today. Creating jams, jellies, sauces and more can be a very rewarding experience as well. There are a few things to remember, however, to keep the canning process successful:
Sanitation
Keep all lids and jars sanitized. This can be done in many ways: boiling, baking, and washing. It might be best to do at least two of them, just to be safe.
Amounts
Be sure to have exactly, if not more, jars and lids as you need to can your food. If you don't then you will end up wasting at least a little more food than you'd hoped.
Process
Know what process you're using before you start. There usually is a lot of heat, measurements and timing involved in canning and being familiar with all parts of the process before you begin can help tremendously.
Dehydrating
One method of storing food is fairly ancient, but is still very viable. Dehydrating vegetables, meat and fruit is a simple and very long-term way to store food. A properly sealed jar or bag of dehydrated foods can keep for a year, if not longer. There are many different kinds of dehydrators available, and you can even try making one yourself, but when first starting out it can be helpful to have a factory-made one first, merely for consistency's sake.
4. Grow a Garden
Even having a few pots of fresh herbs on hand can save some money. Buying fresh herbs every time you cook can get very expensive quickly, but most recipes don't take much and letting the rest rot in your fridge can be annoying. Having a small herb garden can help freshen up your window sill as well. If you are new to the idea of growing food instead of flowers, it isn't too much different. There are pests to watch out for and watering to do, and just as much weeding, but at the end of the day, home-grown tomatoes taste so much better than store bought. Give it a try and save a few dollars.
Have any tips you'd like to share? Hop on down to the comments section and share them!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)