couponing

have you ever been behind one of those crazy couponing ladies at the grocery store. you probably found yourself really irritated - "why is she doing so many transactions?", "is she seriously buying 16 boxes of cereal and 16 boxes of granola bars?", "how many coupons are in that stack?". then remember how her total went down and down and down... and then you felt jealous instead of irritated?

i'm one of those crazy couponing ladies. i'm not going to try and convince you that everyone should coupon, but i figure if i can make you a little jealous you might at least think about trying it. :) one of the greatest highs (natural only... no idea what an unnatural one feels like but i promise you this is much better) i've ever had is getting food for free or ridiculously cheap.

what i paid for the above items (per item) at albertsons (keep in mind some of this isn't a usual purchase for me - but poptarts, hot dogs and capri suns are great camping food and we went camping a few times recently!):

item	regular price	sale price	i paid
kelloggs fruit loops	$ 3.69	$ 2.00	$ 1.00
kelloggs frosted mini wheats	$ 3.49	$ 2.50	$ 1.00
oscar meyer franks	$ 3.99	$ 1.50	nothing
cool whip	$ 2.19	$ 1.00	nothing
nutrigrain bars	$ 3.69	$ 2.50	$ 1.00
poptarts	$ 3.49	$ 2.50	$ 1.16
kraft salad dressing	$ 3.49	$ 1.99	$ 0.50
kraft 8oz cheese (block & shredded)	$ 4.99	$ 2.00	nothing

i paid $28 for over $270 worth of groceries! that's over 90% savings!

do i have your attention now? here's the idea:

• buy things that are on sale with the coupons available
• use a website like grocerysmarts.com to match coupons with sales in your area

it isn't brain surgery. the website does it for you! it's definitely the easiest way i can think of to obtain 30 free bags/blocks of cheese. :)

happy... happier shopping is in your future! give it a try!

discovering your dollar store

when i moved less than a year ago some other frugal ladies from church introduced me to something i now rely on weekly for my cooking ventures: the 99 cents only store. this amazing dollar store sells nothing for more than 99c and they have some great fresh produce, some of which i definitely can't find cheaper anywhere else. here's a list of some of the things i've found there (over the course of time - not all in one trip):

• 2 pack of red/orange/yellow bell peppers
• container of mini bell peppers - multi colored and just red
• 3 pack of green bell peppers
• 2 lb bag of peaches/plums/nectarines
• 2 lb bag of dole bananas
• 6-8oz container of raspberries/blackberries/blueberries
• 3 pack hearts of romaine lettuce
• 5 lb bag of potatoes
• 3 pack of mangoes
• 3 pack of avocados
• 3 lb bag red/yellow/white onions
• 2 lb bunch broccoli/cauliflower
• 2 pack of large cucumbers
• 8 oz package of brown/white/baby bella mushrooms
• 2 pack of portobello mushrooms
• 2 lb bag carrots
• 6 pack roma tomatoes
• 1 pint cherry/grape tomatoes
• bagged organic spinach
• 4 pack large bunches of cilantro
• bag of green onions

i've also found some other non-produce items that i've been happy to find there too:

• 1 lb lasagna noodles
• bottle of oyster sauce (for asian cooking... see my asian label for more)
• 4 pack unsweetened applesauce/berry applesauce (good baby food to go)
• gerber meals for toddlers - 3 for $1
• boxed gerber granola bars - 3 boxes for $1
• wheaties fuel cereal
• large bag twizzlers nibs (confession - i love these)
• jelly flops (real jelly belly jelly beans that are funny shaped or stuck together)
• 6 pack large pita breads

i've been really happy with the quality of nearly everything i've bought from my dollar store. my hearts of romaine are even fresher and last longer than the ones i buy at other stores.

and of course i love that shopping at my dollar store makes meals like the one below possible. we loved this salad at our house - and it is as beautiful as it was delicious. packed full of beautiful (and usually) expensive veggies, this one is a keeper as long as my dollar store keeps providing bell peppers. :)

thai peanut noodle salad

find recipe here at our best bites

(i left out about 1/3 cup olive oil, though!)

just for fun, a few other great non-food items i've found at the dollar store:

• halloween costume stuff (including really cute wings - usually so expensive!)
• nick jr and disney books (like diego, backyardigans, disney princesses, etc.)
• awesome coloring books (discovery channel, disney)
• silk flowers
• picture frames

so discover what dollar stores are near you - you never know what you'll find!!

homemade baby food

big sister who likes to eat watermelon in the back yard = happy little brother who sneaks it while mom isn't looking :)

i make my kids' baby food when they start eating solids. it isn't difficult in the slightest, but it is certainly more time consuming than pulling it off the shelf and dumping it in your cart.
so is it worth it? here are a few numbers that will prove just how worth it it is:

• with my $200 a month food budget (+$40 for longer term storage/bulk items) i have $7/day to feed my family. a very cheap 4 oz jar of baby food costs $0.42. my 7 month old could easily cost me $2.52/day to feed. ahhh!!! imagine when he's pushing a year. i once calculated that my daughter would be costing me $4/day in baby food at her peak if i bought it.
• my baby food jar equivalents: i can make 4 0z of carrots for $0.10, 4 oz of peas, green beans or sweet potatoes for $0.22, 4 oz acorn squash for $0.26 and that isn't even with sale prices. during peach season when peaches are on sale for $0.50/lb you can make peaches for pennies.
• it's really easy to mash a banana yourself with a fork. why buy it in a tiny cute bottle? my buddy happily downs a banana every day for breakfast.
• oatmeal cereal: $1.50 for a box of oatmeal cereal? just put some oats through your blender.

stuff i don't make:

• applesauce: there is nothing magical about baby applesauce. it's just apples. and why make your own? wal-mart brand unsweetened applesauce is $1.86 for 50 oz. that's $0.15 for your 1 jar equivalent.
  
• rice cereal: i don't have a grinder and i can't "iron fortify" it at home so this is the one true baby food item i buy.

so how do you do it? it's easy - i just use www.wholesomebabyfood.com as my home base and go from there. i feel like a baby chef when i whip up a little dessert for my little man to follow his peas (applesauce + sweet potatoes + cinnamon + rice cereal = dessert!) - it's so fun and he loves it! use their recipes and freeze in ice cube trays. each cube is 1+ ounce. cover with saran wrap and then put the cubes into big freezer bags when frozen solid. and don't forget to reuse your freezer bags!




and here's my funny little squash face. this was the the mad face he made if we didn't get the squash in his mouth fast enough!!


i also make my own baby wipes... but that isn't a food recipe! i swear by them. want my recipe? email me at skinnybovineskitchen@gmail.com!

recipe of the week: jalapeno pico burgers with homemade guacamole

this is hands down my husband and i's favorite way to eat a cheeseburger. we try and replicate it at restaurants, but it is always better at home. if you love spicy food you'll love this burger. it's fabulous. pair it with oven fries and some corn on the cob for a perfect dinner.

and notice the recipe for homemade guacamole - it contains the secret to perfect guac. getting a big clump of onions always ruins guacamole for me and onion salt isn't the same, but my friend maggi taught me the secret to fix that in college. you need the onion and its juice for perfect guac. see how below.

jalapeno pico burgers with homemade guacamole

hamburgers, grilled at home
buns
cheese of choice (really good with cheddar or pepper jack)
jalapenos (from the bottle)
homemade guacamole (below)
fresh pico de gallo
extra cilantro
tomato, lettuce or other desired burger toppings

put burgers together as desired with above ingredients. (if you spread the guac nice and thick on the bun and then put the jalapenos, pico and cilantro right on top of it it usually stays together pretty well!)

homemade guacamole

avocados
roma tomatoes (optional)
an onion (yellow or white)
garlic salt
lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste if desired

peel, pit and mash avocados in bowl or tupperware (keep a pit to leave in with leftover guac - it keeps it from getting brown as easily). chop a roma tomato or two (or however many you like), leaving middles out, and add to avocado. slice onion in half and then use a spoon to scrape the onion into the bowl, allowing juice and flesh to fall from the onion. alternate adding scraped onion, garlic salt, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste until your guacamole is exactly how you like it! some people like more/less onion so there is no exact science here. just bust out some chips and try it as you go. mmm....

splurge night: part 2

on to the 2nd type of splurging - budgeted splurging (click here if you missed the first type). eating wouldn't be fun if you couldn't use some pricier, more fun ingredients once in a while. here are my guidelines for making your splurge night still budget-friendly:

• plan ahead - if you're going to have a budget splurging meal, plan ahead for it and each extra cheaply the rest of the week to compensate. also, if you plan ahead you can get things for your splurge while they are on sale. (ex. we love the french dips recipe below, but i don't buy the roast unless i can get it for $1.79/lb or less and i try and find the pepper jack on sale as well)
  
• stay in your budget - splurging shouldn't have to mean buying the most expensive ingredients out there, just something you don't normally buy. and put it in the budget. if your food budget is a little tight that month, find another category to squeeze it into. i'm infamous for filing yummy, splurge ingredients into my date budget or my miscellaneous category.
• have a date/fun budget - sometimes the splurge we want is a saturday night with no cooking - we'd rather someone else cook and clean up. so we have a date budget and that way we can have eating out be a budget-friendly splurge.

this is probably our favorite budgetary splurge. we love, love, love these sandwiches. i never liked traditional french dips, but these are fabulous.

french dips
ala my bff maggi

my french dip decided to fall apart for the picture... but man, was it good!!!!!!

1 package onion soup mix
1 package zesty italian dressing mix (or homemade mix here)
a roast

put roast in crock pot. fill with water. pour in mixes. heat on high. it is done when it falls apart. (depends on your crock pot and the size of your roast.)

serve on yummy french rolls (don't go stingey here - get good ones!), broiled in the oven to toast with pepper jack cheese on them (broil with the cheese on them). carmelized onions are also delicious on them. dip in the juice from the crock pot.

splurge night: part 1

"to splurge or not to splurge? - that is the question."

answer: "splurge, definitely splurge."

having posted my things never to cook with, i figured i should follow up with a little bit of rationality. a fairly darned disciplined healthy eater, even the skinny bovine splurges pretty regularly. but i think that is the fun of eating healthy (besides feeling way better), you have lots of room to splurge! the key is having guidelines.

since i'm a healthy and budgeted cooker, there are 2 types of splurges at my house. here are my healthy splurge guidelines (stay tuned for my budget splurge guidelines soon!):

• set boundaries - this means sticking to my list of things to never use for the most part. there are plenty of other things i love to use in cooking that aren't particularly good for you though. ex: coconut milk (curry. mmm.), creamy soups (made with milk of course, and maybe a tablespoon or two of butter). see one of my favs below. we love, love, love this soup at our house.
• know yourself, know your goals - if you're trying to be disciplined and maintain your weight, go ahead - splurge once a week! if you're trying to loose a little, make it once every other week. if you want to loose a lot, make it once a month. we all deserve a reward for our discipline.
  
• only make enough for that meal - it's splurge night. not splurge night + leftovers for the next 2 days. have your splurge and then get back to your best habits in a hurry. :)

here is one of my favorite (fairly un-) healthy splurges. like i said, we just can't get enough of this soup. definitely not one of my worst splurges, but i definitely don't make it once a week! :)

parmesan corn chowder
adapted from allrecipes.com (here)
pic from allrecipes.com
4 servings

2 cups water

2 cups diced peeled potatoes
1/2 cup sliced carrots (i use 1 cup carrots and no celery - just a preference)
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour (i use whole wheat)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 cups milk
1 (14.75 ounce) can cream-style corn
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1. in a large saucepan, combine the first five ingredients; bring to a boil. reduce heat; cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until vegetables are tender (do not drain).
2. meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt butter. stir in flour, salt and pepper until smooth; gradually stir in milk. bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. stir into the vegetable mixture. add corn and parmesan cheese. cook 10 minutes longer or until heated through.

always say never

i know, the saying is "never say never", but i'd argue that you should "always say never" to cooking with certain food items. and here's why:

• heavy cream - it's just plain bad for you. all possible nutritional benefits are outweighed by its bad-for-you-ness. it is extremely high in cholesterol and saturated fat. yikes. even if you love a recipe using heavy cream, try a substitute - milk, ricotta cheese to make pasta creamy, cool whip on your pie. i promise. it's worth it.
  
• bacon - it's not in the meat group. it finds it's position in the food guide pyramid right at the top - in the "fats, oils and sweets" category. so, i guess that would qualify bacon as a "fat"? do you really need any more convincing? if you have to, use turkey bacon... and only do it once a year.
• shortening - again, it's high in saturated fat and cholesterol. not to mention, if i were to imagine the consistency of liquid fat, shortening would be it. yuck.
  
• vegetable oil - not made of vegetables. read more about my opinion on this here. choose something better. you can do it. i believe in you. this isn't as hard as you'd think. my husband just realized last week we don't have vegetable oil and we've been married for almost 4 years.
  
• butter in excess - i love cookies. i even love to put butter on my toast. but drenching anything in butter is bad. popcorn. pasta. potatoes. rolls. even vegetables. break the habit.
  
• soda - drinking soda is the best way to gain weight, become dehydrated, loose bone mass, rot and discolor your teeth. does this sound like a good idea? do a test for me. for one week drink water in place of soda and let me know how you feel. you'll be surprised. (and yes, i drink it on special occasions. i'm not crazy!)
  
• fried food - another confession - i love french fries almost as much as i love my husband. sorry hubby. :) but i will never, ever, ever, fry anything in my home. ever. and i don't order fried anything else at restaurants. you can bake, grill, sautee lots of things. no more frying. i even make baked french fries at home to kill my cravings. they are delicious!

that's not a long a demanding list, right? just a few minor changes and you can "always say never" to these icky ingredients/foods, too.

here's a great recipe to try. baked, not fried, chicken parmesan and it was the most delicious chicken parmesan i've ever eaten. visit meghan's blog, you're gonna bake it after all, for this and other great recipes. (and the panko bread crumbs in this recipes are perfect. totally worth it. try an asian market - way cheaper than the progresso brand version at the grocery store.)

the rating system

fairly early in our marriage, we instituted a rating system for my cooking at my request. now, this may sound masochistic to some of you who aren't confident in your cooking yet, but i wasn't confident in my cooking at that point either. consider the following benefits of instituting your own rating system:

• it can help your cooking confidence - it will help you realize your strengths and your weaknesses in cooking so you can magnify the 1st and work on the latter.
  
• you'll never make anything (twice) your husband doesn't like - i would hate to love something and find out after years of making it once a month that my husband only thought it was a 5 out of 10. bummer.
  
• it gives you a goal - it's no fun to just cook day after day and never have any feedback or anywhere to improve or anywhere to go. i had a week of all 9's once. it was amazing!! what a cooking rush. i felt totally motivated to keep creating.
  

in addition to the benefits above, here are a few tips for creating a rating system:

• have tough skin - just because your husband didn't love something you cooked doesn't mean he doesn't love you. he just didn't like that dish. it's okay - just make something different tomorrow!
  
• make your system consistent - my husbands 1 to 10 system is based not just on taste, but on how often he'd like to eat it. sushi is a 10 for him and he'd eat it every day (and no, i've never gotten a ten - he's totally obsessed with sushi), but i've gotten lots of 9's that i think hold their own against sushi. :)
• ask for the rating, and then for feedback - it helps you learn to take constructive criticism. i love to ask my husband what i could do to make an 8 into a 9.

i've been really craving asian food for some reason (making my hubby thrilled to say the least), but i've never really cooked anything authentically asian until this. it was so worth the extra ingredients i bought (and will definitely keep using - i'm hooked!). this one got a 9!!

chicken lo mein
mostly based on recipes here and here
4-6 servings

marinate 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast sliced into small pieces in the following for at least 1 hour:
3/4 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/8 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
1 tablespoon chicken broth

sauce:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/4 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

3/4 lb linguini pasta, cooked
2 tablespoons fresh minced garlic
crushed red pepper (optional)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups broccoli florets
1 red/orange bell pepper, chopped
4 green onions, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
(change up the veggies according to what you have - you can use anything that sounds good. mushrooms and snow peas are two others i'd suggest)
1 1/2 tablespoons oyster sauce
cornstarch
1 teaspoon sesame oil


1. after marinating chicken as instructed above, combine all sauce ingredients in a medium bowl. in a separate small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch with some of this mixture and slowly add to the bulk of the mixture, stirring well. set aside.
2. heat 1 tablespoon olive oil with a dash of crushed red pepper (optional - may leave out or adjust depending on how spicy you want it) in a wok or large saucepan over high heat until it starts to smoke. add the marinated chicken and leftover marinade from chicken and stir-fry for 4 to 5 minutes, or until browned. add your garlic and veggies (the ones above or your choice) to wok. mix well and then stir fry veggies for a few minutes.
3. add the reserved sauce mixture and oyster sauce. simmer until the sauce begins to thicken and veggies are steamed to your liking (i like them crisp tender, about 3+ minutes). when veggies are done, you may add a few teaspoonfuls of cornstarch to thicken sauce.
4. add the cooked pasta and 1 teaspoon of sesame seed oil over the top of the pasta. toss gently, coating everything well with the sauce.

sneaky meatballs

i love to sneak things into meatballs because you can't even taste it and then you're getting a delicious extra veggie. try these! one my mom used to make and one of the only homemade meals i made when i was single in college. ha!

porcupine meatballs

i used spinach in the sauce this time and actually didn't like it! just put it inside the meatballs.

1 lb ground turkey (or lean ground beef)
1/3 cup uncooked white rice (add a small extra handful if you're using ground turkey to help it stick together better
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
a few dashes of pepper
some grated zucchini or finely chopped spinach (how much depends on you!)
2 cans condensed tomato soup
1 cup water
chili powder, garlic salt and cumin to taste

1. combine turkey, rice, onion, 1/4 cup water, salt and pepper. mix well. add spinach or zucchini and mix again.
2. shape this mixture into 1 inch meatballs. you should have 15 to 20.
3. combine tomato soup, 1 cup water and seasonings to taste in a large pot.
4. add meatballs to pot. bring to a boil. reduce heat and simmer (covered or almost covered - depends on if covering it makes it crazy boil for you like it sometimes does for me) for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
5. serve over a yummy grain - i like to serve it over rice, but it would probably be yummy over egg noddles as well.

feeding healthy babies

my friend kelli has an adorable 1 year old, about 1 1/2 weeks older than mine. she requested a post on feeding our little people healthy foods, so here's what i have learned in 1 year of trying to feed healthy foods to my highly-opinionated munchkin.

my spaghetti monster. yes, those are peas she's so happy about. read more under "be sneaky" below.

• make your own. this is my one budgeting tip. when mine was tiny i used this website to make pureed foods. now that she's older i still make everything i feed her. and don't buy expensive baby-brand snacks. they love cheerios... and don't forget to wait for sales! :)
• start with veggies, then move to fruits. it may help them develop a like for the non-sweet stuff first.
• try, try again. don’t let a bad reaction to a specific good food keep you from trying the food again. wait a week or two and then try it again. their bad short term memory may mean they forgot they didn't like it!
• try different consistencies or serving styles. for example, my daughter wouldn't touch mashed bananas, but she loves feeding chunks of bananas to herself. same goes for other typical baby foods - carrots, peas, green beans, pears, peaches, apples - maybe they don't like it mushed, but they may like it in little chunks later.
• wait on things you feel strongly about. since tiny ones aren't supposed to have whole wheat yet, i waited to give emery bread with any consistency until she was almost one. that way, she didn't get hooked on white before she tried the good stuff.
• strive for variation. you wouldn't like a whole meal of just pears would you? neither does baby. :) change from day-to-day as well so they don't get bored of the good things they like.
• if they have a good favorite - work it. i know i can always get in at least 1 fruit a day because em loves bananas. that's fine - a banana a day is great for her so work it!
• be sneaky. i recently discovered emery loves noodles with pasta sauce... and that she doesn't notice if it's actually 1/2 pasta and 1/2 peas under that sauce. see the happy spaghetti monster above. she also loves cheese, so i'll melt cheese on stuff so she'll eat it.
• feed them new things first, when they are hungry. if they really won't eat it, give them something else.
• steer clear of sweets. the sooner they realize they are around, the sooner they'll want to eat just sweets... just like their moms. :)
• have their eating influence yours. make things that are baby-friendly for dinner that you can all benefit from. cook so that they are getting the nutrients they need and your get yours too. they love being "big" and having what you have for dinner and you'll love not having to cook something else. ex. pasta and sauce (sneak in peas and/or spinach), quick cream cheese and spinach pasta, shepherd's pie, chicken noodles and mashed potatoes and my next recipe of the week - black bean tortilla casserole. em scarfed it down. stay tuned!

and yes, here's me... the skinny bovine, herself, actually making an appearance on her own blog. i got bored with my hair last week and cut my bangs. i haven't had many comments from friends... i'll assume the worst. any feedback??... anyone?? :)