The price of eating at home

My family likes to eat well. We appreciate good food! We are pretty lucky to be able to afford to eat things like Sashimi (raw fish minus the boring cold rice), Lobster, Shrimp, and many other goodies that can seem pricey. We are far from rich, but I realize there are some that are less fortunate, and have little or nothing to eat. If I think about the cost of eating out, and we do not eat out often, I cringe at the prices in restaurants. Most of the food at restaurants are over cooked. Steaks, tuna/salmon, lobster tail, shrimp etc. It always tastes better when I cook at home. I got two, two packs of lobster tails at Sams for 20-25 dollars. (and when on sale, I get them at the seafood store fresh). Sams has really nice size tails. Twice the size you get at the seafood chains, and only about 10.00 each. Add a bag of shrimp for the family, 2 lbs peeled, cleaned tails on uncooked, 31-40 shrimp for 12.86 (divided by say 36 average in a bag, they come out to 35 cents each). I always price down food I buy like this. So you get 8 shrimp scampi for 2.80 on the side. A baked potato and broccoli (broccoli is 4.88 for a big 3 lb bag, divided by 5 because I get at least 5 sides of broccoli out of that bag, at least, it comes out to costing 97 cents to feed the whole family, divide that by four servings, 24 cents). red potatoes are 6.37 for a 10 lb bag... you get about 20 potatoes in that bag (i weighed a few potatoes to figure it out) comes out to 32 cents each. it would be 13.36 per person for that feast at home, that is around 25 dollars at red lobster and it would be cooked to our liking, no pricey drink costs, no tip....just good food cheap, and the bonus, I know what is in it, I made it healthy and I can count the calories in it myself. Our lobster tails were so meaty, we did not finish them last time and had the leftovers for breakfast! The only time I care to eat seafood out, is on vacation, because its my vacation too, and I don't cook on vacation! We also know that the food is safe, my husband and boys love to eat Sushimi, mostly raw salmon, red snapper and tuna. I order it from the seafood place, sushi grade, so I know its fresh, and I dont' mind them eating it. (they have had hep shots lol). We also love ceviche, which needs to also be bought sushi grade, no matter what fish you are using.

Check your receipt!

When you go to the grocery store, check your receipt! I am really bad at that. My sister, shops several times a week in small quantities and she checks hers all the time and finds discrepancies all the time too.

The other day, she was at my favorite grocery store, Giant. I like it because the produce is almost always fresh (or looks it lol), and they sell boars head lunch meat, which is pricey but sliced fresh...note: Redners sprays their pre-sliced lunch meat with water every morning to "fluff it up" I know this because Boars head will not sell to Redners because they do that. I know the regional rep for boars head...insider tip.

Anyway, and example of what my sister found out was.....Giant had flags at their Arnold bread saying it was on sale 2/$5. I know it did, because I just bought that brand the day before. She did not see the sale price reflected on her receipt, so she went to customer service. The gal did not want to honor it and said, yeah, we know the sale price flags are still there, we let them up all the time, its too much trouble to take them down and they will go on sale again eventually. She demanded a manager. The manager told the gal to give her the sale price, but that isn't the point...we all, as shoppers, think that is on sale and buy it. If we don't check our receipt, we pay full price and don't even know it. It's very deceiving. I always shop for a week and get way too many things to remember every sale price, and am bagging at check out, so I can't always watch the cash register monitor.

I am going to start going to the grocery store twice a week so I can get a better grip of what I pay and when I am being ripped off. I can also have fresher produce if I go more often. I read in my old Betty Crocker recipe book that you are supposed to go twice a week. With gas prices, its not always convenient, but I can swing it.

I have a good mind to call a news channel to do one of those undercover investigations.

More on the upside down tomato plants

For more pics and instructions, see Feb. 12th blog entry, link to it below.

http://margaritastewart.blogspot.com/2009/02/upside-down-tomato-plants.html

Although I would never do this type of tomato plant, if you do it, my husband had an idea, to take off the lid when you turn it over to hang, and plant some herbs in the top too. you would have a tomato plant coming out the bottom and plants on top too. We also thought about putting a coffee filter with a small hole for the tomato plant so the dirt didn't come out. My husband is a painter so we have paint buckets coming out of our ears. I have friends who plant stuff in paint buckets on their patios. You can decorate them with mortar and gems, stones, tiles, broken plates, etc.

a little housekeeping humor

Good Housekeeping Tip

Another Maxine Tip

Always keep several get well cards on the mantle... So if unexpected guests arrive, They will think you've been sick and unable to clean!

Pillow Cases

Pillow cases are really strong and can be useful for many things.

I have seen people make aprons, tote bags, drawstring bags, dog beds, etc.

I always handed my kids a nice pillow case for their trick or treat bag, you won't believe the weight those things can hold in candy! lol. I buy them at sams in a big 12 pack and have them on hand for the kids friends too. You know there is always that kid that comes over to go along trick or treating without a bag lol. Use as is, or decorate a white one with ghost face.

They are great as covers for heating pads, beach totes. They are handy laundry bags when the kids go to a sleep over or for vacation, to keep the dirty/clean organized.

You can also decorate them, and use them as gift bags. The recipient can reuse them, save the world! lol.

this is a great little tutorial for making this pretty pillowcase tote, which you could use as a grocery bag or anything! http://blog.creativekismet.com/2007/10/27/pillowcase-tote-tutorial/

Great Depression Cooking with Clara

I came across this beautiful woman today, Clara. She is in her 90s and has you tube videos of her cooking secrets from The Great Depression. She tells great stories of life during the depression while she cooks. Check her out! She is so cute!
http://www.youtube.com/user/DepressionCooking
Here is her blog also.
http://depressioncooking.blogspot.com/

They even have a website where they sell Dvd's of her.

http://174.129.234.45/Depression_Cooking/Welcome.html

NO YEAST SOURDOUGH BREAD

http://www.maryjanesfarm.org/Recipes-Patterns-Instructions/no-knead_bread.asp

This is a great link to the info from MaryJane's farm magazine on making sourdough bread with ONLY flour and water!

Its healthier and easy to make. It's a Sunday start bread, if you are going to follow her directions so be ready to start on a Sunday and take only a min each day!