How to Find Cheaper Produce

If you’ve been around the produce section of your local grocery store, then it’s not a secret that food has gotten outrageously expensive! Getting inexpensive produce is not as impossible as it might seem, and you can avoid paying full price for the fruits and vegetables on your meal plan. Here is how to find cheaper produce no matter when you’re looking!

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6 Tips for Reducing Food Waste

The amount of food waste the average family wastes each year is higher than most of us would like to own up to. Now that the teens and young adults have moved out and left the nest, it can feel like you still need to make those massive family dinners for five even though your family has shrunk. Here are my secrets to help you avoid food waste as a smaller family and help you avoid wasting both food and money!

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Save Money on Groceries with These Money-Saving Tips

Are you looking for one of the best places to start when it comes to buying at a discount? One of my best money-saving tips is to shop at Grocery Outlet first! They have so many great deals and resell items at their rock bottom prices. You can find name brands and seasonal items at unbeatable prices and expensive organic and natural food for a fraction of the cost! If you’re looking for some tips to help get the best bang for your buck, here are my top tips for shopping at grocery outlets.

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Is a Meal Subscription Service Budget-Friendly?

I've always been pretty budget-conscious, especially when it comes to one of our family's largest expenses: food. Food costs have gone up since the late 90's when we first got married and I started paying attention to a grocery budget, and our life has changed a lot in the past two decades since we've established our family. If you are like me, you get ads and coupons and bloggers/influencers telling you all about meal subscription services. I often entertain the idea when I get those coupons for $100 off! or 17 free meals, could you be getting a break on your food budget by using them?  I'm breaking it down for you and helping you decide if a meal subscription service is worth it for your budget-conscious family.

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How to Build a Beautiful Charcuterie Board on a Budget

Charcuterie boards are so popular and trending right now, and for a good reason! If you're ready to create one on your own, there are ways to build a charcuterie board on a budget. These simple tips will give you a board full of great food while staying within your allotted food budget as well. It might look like an expensive appetizer to serve, but that doesn't mean that it has to be!

Here are some simple tips on ways to create a charcuterie board for a low price.

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Jumpstart January the Pantry Challenge

Happy New Year! Can you smell that fresh start? New Year's resolutions get a bad rap, but the few I have started with intention and realistic goals, have been the ones I have kept. In fact, 12 years ago, I made the lamest New Year's Resolution {I say lame because everyone makes this one!} and I've kept it all these years later! My hope with these monthly money-saving challenges is that you will find practical ways to make small changes because small changes add up to big changes in the long run. Want to get started with our first Jumpstart January challenge? Come check it out!

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Cheesecake Factory Copycat Chicken Chipotle Pasta Recipe

This chipotle chicken pasta packs a little spicy kick and mixes the most delicious flavors together in a creamy sauce. It's a simple pasta recipe that is a pretty good Cheesecake Factory Copycat. This recipe will become a family favorite for those weeknight meals.

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The Easiest Homemade Stuffing Recipe

This easy stuffing recipe will compliment nearly any meal, but especially the biggest meal of the fall season! If you've never made homemade stuffing, don't be intimidated. This recipe is just about as easy as they come!

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A Grocery Stockpiling Guide: How and When to Save

Creating a grocery stockpile in your home is a great way to help you save the most on your grocery purchases. Making your own at home stockpile will ensure you’re always paying the rock bottom price and that you have plenty of food on hand in case of an emergency or unexpected event that keeps you from the store. Here is a grocery stockpiling guide to help teach you how and when to save. 

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Pineapple Chicken Stir fry

Have you found yourself eating from home more often? One of the changes we implemented early on was to try new recipes. Before our local library closed, I checked out a few cookbooks and we started earmarking pages of recipes we wanted to try. We've eaten a lot of new meals, and the teenagers have taken on cooking more often {it's part of the mom instructed home ec course I'm teaching here}. An overwhelming favorite is Chinese food. Orange chicken, hibachi {on the griddle!}, and stirfry of all kinds. I'm sharing a new favorite, this pineapple chicken stirfry your family will love!

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Oreo Pumpkin Patch Chocolate-Dipped Cookies

It's that time of year when the pumpkin-spiced everything starts coming out. I do love a good themed snack or dessert item, so why not create something "pumpkin" themed everyone will love for fall? These chocolate-dipped Oreo pumpkin patch cookies are easy to make and so fun to share. They will be requested at all your fall parties and gatherings. 

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Mini Beef and Veggie Personal Pot Pie Recipe

There is getting to be a little crisp in the air, and it's about now that I start to fall back on those comfort foods. Seriously, nothing says fall like a warm homemade pot pie. Why not make these personal mini-sized beef and vegetable pot pies for dinner this week? You can double the recipe and freeze them for dinner on one of those busy weeknights. Read on for the recipe and some quick and easy variations.

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Honey Coconut Oat Homemade Granola Bars

Have you ever made homemade granola bars? They aren't as hard as you might think. Granola bars are a staple in our kids lunches and when we are on the go {which, to be honest, is most of the time!}. When you make homemade granola bars, you know exactly what is in them. Most of the commercial granola bars we buy at the grocery store are loaded with sugar. You control everything inside and as you get more comfortable with the recipe, you can add or subtract ingredients so you can make it your own. I've got my basic honey coconut oat granola bar recipe you can try today. They take as little as 10 minutes to prep and 25 minutes to bake. You'll have a healthy snack ready in no time!

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5 Easy to Grow Veggies to Plant in Early Summer

I'm not much of a green thumb but I do like to garden and I've learned a thing or two by trial and error. Our spring weather is fairly mild here in Seattle, and I like to plant my vegetable garden mid to late April. I am a no-fuss kind of gal. I plant hardy plants that I know I can grow year after year. These 5 easy to grow veggies are the perfect plants to start in early summer or late spring to give you a jump start on the gardening season and help you get some freshly grown food on your plate before you know it!

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Blackberry, Kiwi and Chia Pudding with Granola Recipe

Chia seeds aren't just for those furry little chia pets you find as a gag gift. Nope, they are popping up everywhere as a superfood you shouldn't be ignoring. Chia seeds actually have three times more iron than spinach, twice as much potassium as a banana and are a great source of fiber. They are a small but mighty seed and you are going to want to come up with more ideas on how to incorporate them into your daily diet.  Speaking of diet, if you are looking to watch what you eat, chia seeds can help you feel full longer since they absorb 10 times their weight in water. This blackberry, kiwi and chai pudding with granola is a great way to try load up on those superfoods. 

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5 Easy Hummus Appetizers that Will WOW a Crowd

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Boar’s Head for IZEA Worldwide. All opinions are 100% mine.

Hummus is the go-to snack that I like to have on hand any time there is even a slight chance I might be entertaining. It's one of the most versatile foods known to man. Hummus can be eaten plain or as a single ingredient in a variety of appetizers. It will even make you seem exotic and worldly when you serve it. Like you have a refined palate. People love a good appetizer and you can wow them with these 5 easy hummus appetizers that will make you look like a professional chef. The most difficult decision you'll have to make is to decide which flavor of hummus to use! My favorite Boar's Head Hummus comes in 13 delicious flavors!

The key to happy house guests is to provide them with a variety of appetizers to snack on. To be honest, I'd rather snack on a bunch of small plates of food rather than a heavy meal. Appetizers are kind of my favorite food group. If you tell me you're hosting an appetizer-only dinner party, I'm all in!

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Instant Pot Beef and Bean Chili made with Dry Beans

One of my all-time favorite comfort foods is chili. I love all kinds of soup, but chili in particular because you can load it up with all kinds of great stuff and try so many different variations of it. One of my favorites is adding spaghetti to it. I think they call that Cincinnati chili. Chili is also a great dish to take to a tailgate or a potluck. Since this beef and bean chili can be made in the Instant Pot, it makes it easy to make in a hurry {with dry beans even!} and take with you on the go.

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Garlic and Lemon Roasted Cauliflower Rice Side Dish Recipe

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Cooked Perfect® Fire Grilled Chicken for IZEA Worldwide. All opinions are 100% mine.

It's always been important for our family to share a meal together, but as the kids get older and older and their activities start filling up the calendar, it gets harder and harder to squeeze in this family time. We've managed to make this a priority though with quick and delicious weeknight meals that take under 30 minutes to make. If I can multi-task and help with homework or housework during the cook time, even better! This garlic and lemon roasted cauliflower rice with Cooked Perfect Fire Grilled Lemon Herb Chicken is the perfect weeknight meal that has become our family's favorite! It takes less than 5 minutes to prep and 25 minutes to cook leaving you time to do the important stuff, like spend time with your family. 

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Homemade Chipwich: Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches

Ice cream is my love language and summer is the perfect time to speak it. I also love chocolate, so what better way to combine all my loves and create these homemade Chipwich ice cream sandwich cookies I remember loving as a kid. Not only are these homemade Chipwich sandwiches easy to make, they are also pretty much everyone's favorite. Nothing beats a homemade chocolate chip cookie except maybe when it's sandwiched with some ice cream in the middle and then rolled in chocolate chips. Come check out this easy recipe.

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Quick Pickle Recipe

There are so many fresh veggies growing right now that are available in your garden or at your local market. One of the best parts of summer is cool, briny pickles straight from the fridge. Canning has always intimidated me, and I'm all about being as efficient as possible so I love the idea of anything quick. Like this quick pickle recipe. Bonus, this recipe works great when adapted for a variety of vegetables. I've got a few variations just for you. Come check it out!

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