Budgeting with Barbara

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Groovy Grapes

My friend, Trina, and I recently planned an afternoon of “play” with our boys. Besides swimming, hiking, biking and wrestling, we spent a lot of time eating. Wow. Boys can sure consume a BUNCH of food! During the food prep/planning, Trina and I somehow got our wires crossed and both ended up bringing grapes. Consequently, we still had an unused package of them by the end of the afternoon. No worries. We simply rinsed them off, put them in a Ziploc bag, and popped them into the freezer. Three days later, when we got together again to hang out, we snacked on the frozen grapes throughout the day-delicious! Our children even put them in their water glasses. Fun!

The grapes were sweet, delicious, and icy cold. And much less expensive (and more nutritious) than other popular frozen treats. Perfect for a hot summer day!

Let’s Talk Berries

Let’s talk berries!

Recently, I found an incredible deal on blueberries at my local Safeway store. They were selling four pounds of berries for just $7.99! Not bad, when you consider that just yesterday I saw that one quart was selling for $5.99!

Needless to say, I bought the berries (in fact, I purchased two boxes, for a total of 8 pounds!) Now, what to do with all those berries? I’ve found that there are several different choices. This time, I opted to rinse them all, lay them out on old towels, and then pat them dry with paper towels. (Remember to use old towels, since the berries will stain.) Then, I laid them in single layers in 9 x 13 pans and set them in the freezer. After a few hours, I removed the berries, separated them into portion-sizes, sealed them in freezer plastic bags, and placed them back in the freezer.

Another option: freeze the berries in portion sizes without rinsing them, then rinse them as you use them (also helps to thaw them out).

* Remember that your local farmers’ market often sells fruits and vegetables for 50% less than you will find at a supermarket. Want to find a farmers’ market near you? Log onto LocalHarvest.org. Enjoy the last of berry season!

The Return of Budgeting with Barbara

Oh, dear! It’s been such a long time since I’ve written to you! I’m sorry for my (unscheduled/unplanned) hiatus! I have been dealing with a series of “life events” and am just now getting grounded again. Thanks for your patience!

Anyway, when I left off (oh-so-long-ago!) I was going to write up my simple homemade marinade for several readers who asked for details. I had purchased an inexpensive cut of steak at a fabulous discounted price, and decided to soak it in marinade overnight to help tenderize it. My marinades are rarely measured, and usually a bit different each time, but I’ll share my recipe “foundation” with you. Play around with it! Add or subtract ingredients to fit your tastes. It’s easy, fun… and inexpensive!

For this particular marinade, I used a couple of glugs of Yoshida’s Original Marinade and Cooking Sauce as a base. I buy it in the huge bottle at our local warehouse for a pretty good price ($ 6.54 for a 56 oz bottle). Then I added 2 big squirts of Honey Dijon mustard, two spoonfuls of Apricot Preserves, 2 glugs of Mandarin Marinade, 2 tsp. of crushed garlic, and pepper to taste. (I purchase the mustard, preserves, marinade and garlic all at our local bakery outlet for a fraction of the typical cost.)

Combine all ingredients (either in a baking dish or in a Ziploc bag). Add meat to coat, and refrigerate. I generally marinate it for at least 6 hours, sometimes overnight.

This is just one of the typical combos I like to use… how about you?
What ingredients do you like to use when marinating?

Budgeting with Barbara: Steak Doesn’t Have to Be Expensive to Be Good

I bought 2 ¼ pounds of Beef Round Tip Round Steak the other day from my local Safeway store. It was on sale, and then an additional 30% off the discounted price. (I love the clearance section in the meat aisle –I purchase approximately 70% of my meat from there.) Because it was an inexpensive cut of meat, I decided to soak it in my homemade marinade overnight to tenderize it. The next night, I broiled the steak, and then cut it against the grain into thin strips. It was mouth-watering tender and delicious! My boys ate their steak plain with a side of leftover rice and fruit salad. For my dinner, I added steak strips to a fresh spinach salad and my husband ate his portion fajita style. Easy!

Everyone ate heartily, and there was even enough left over for lunch for my boys and me the next day. The total price I paid for 7 portions of steak: $6.24. (Just .89 per serving!)

Saving Money on Water Bills

I was sifting through a compilation of on-line tips the other day and came across one that was definitely worth sharing. So how DO you save money on your water bill?

Submitted by David R., Massachusetts:

“My kids were always running the water at full blast while doing dishes, brushing their teeth and doing other chores at the sink. It was difficult to get them to remember to turn off the faucet when not needed, so I slowed the flow by turning down the shut-off valves under each sink. I found that you can adjust for more or less flow by turning on the water all the way at the sink and then slowly turning the shut off valve towards the off position until you get the desired flow. If the shut-off valve for the shower is accessible, you can slow down that flow the same way. My water bill has decreased significantly since I slowed the flow.”