Some thrifty tips for stretching food dollars

Got this from a friend in my email.

Some thrifty tips for stretching food dollars

Grow your own food-eat all of the plant except for the nightshade plants-potatoes, peppers, and tomatoes you can eat the whole plant-the leaves make yummy greens-the stems can be chopped, boiled and eaten or peeled and stir-fried.
When you grow cabbages and you take big one grown on the plant-leave the plant in the ground- it will grow lovely satellite sprouts that are tender and delicious when steamed.

Use the whole cauliflower you buy at the store the core is tasty if cooked along with the florets,also the leaf parts are eatable and fill of fiber. Cauliflowers are 3-4 dollars now-eat it all -it will be great in soups where it will cook tender.

Plan your leftoversI hate to throw away foodLately I'm saving all the left overs for making soupe which I freeze so that I'll have food when the food gets so pricey we can't buy all the delicacies we enjoy now.

I quit buying the throw away things and buy reusable productsI have lots of old raggy rags for instance to use for small spills and messes and I make big tote bags for carrying things. Now I just need to get my husband to carry the bags for groceries-he does the shopping.....

Plan your meals and only cook as much as you need for each meal, it will help cut down on waste. If you have leftovers either package for lunch the next day or put them into the freezer for a quick meal for when you don't feel like cooking, even if it's only a single serving of something.

Stretch your meals by adding a bread product along with extra vegetables. Make more casseroles or soups to use up leftover bits of meat and vegetables.

If you do cook too much and don't eat the leftovers the next day, try having a buffet on Friday night. Pull all the week's leftovers out, heat them up, and let everyone pick what they want. Make a different/special dessert, something different than you would serve on any other week night that way they won't feel like they are eating the same things again.

Try making some homemade granola, it's cheaper than store bought and tastes much better. Use it as cereal, sprinkle it in yogurt or over ice cream for a treat.

When I have left over vegetables I like to put them in a bag and freeze them. I just keep adding them until I have enough to make some soup out of it.

I always put oats in my ground beef. It makes it go twice as far, just adding half to 3/4 a cup and a bit of water.

Also, left overs are great to make pizza with. Try different things. A crust, some garlic, oregano, your left overs and cheese, and you have a meal.

My mom did that too. I only do that with meat loaf. She would do the oats or grind a potatoe and ionion and mix that in.

kasilofhome wrote:My mom did that too. I only do that with meat loaf. She would do the oats or grind a potatoe and ionion and mix that in.

A potato is a good idea!
You know, I keep a package of instant potato flakes just for the purpose of thickener. It comes in very handy to quickly thicken a soup or gravy. I have also grated a potato or 2 into my chili before, to help it thicken.