Money Saving Tips

• The Crain Family from Mesa, Arizona sends in a money saving tips for those who have little ones. The Crains wash and reuse the plastic containers that fruit such as Gerbers 4-pack Stage 2 & 3 come packaged in. The resealable lids make them great for snacks later like cereal, etc. when the kids are out and about or in the stroller. You won't have to waste money buying small containers and you won't feel bad if they are lost or you end up throwing them away.
• Lee Ann Reiners of Cambridge Springs, Pennsylvania uses squeeze margarine containers to freeze water and juice in. She then uses them to chill her picnic cooler. As the drinks melt, they can be consumed.
• Heidi Coeler from Thousand Oaks, California has an ingenious way of recycling burnt garlic bread. Heidi scraped off the black burnt part and grated the rest to make flavorful breadcrumbs.
• MC of Dallas buys large packages of ground round (5 lbs. or more) on sale and boils most of it, adding chopped onions and a few carrots and garlic powder to the liquid, (or whatever else is on hand). After it's cooked, usually about an hour, MC drains the beef and runs it through the food processor a little at a time to break it up, leaving in the carrots and onions. Bag in small freezer bags to have the perfect amount for tacos, sloppy joes, spaghetti, or any other recipes that calls for ground beef. The bags store stacked flat I the freezer.
• Dottie from Pensacola, Florida wrote in with another use for the plastic bags from cereal boxes. Use them for coating or breading chicken or other meats and vegetables to be fried. The bags are sturdy enough to handle the job and it's much neater than dredging.
• D. Giller finds it handy to carry a couple of cans of evaporated milk on camping trips when making pancakes or waffles or any other recipe that calls for milk. Mix half milk and half water to use as a milk substitute in recipes. Covered tightly it last longer in the fridge than regular milk.
• Mich from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania has the scoop on how to make your sun-dried tomatoes in the microwave: Slice ripe tomatoes thinly and place on a microwave safe plate and cook for 45 minutes on 30% power. Store dry in a plastic zipper bag or in a jar covered in good olive oil.
• J.M. Campbell from Fort Myers, Florida writes in with this frugal idea: Save and rinse the plastic bags from your cereal boxes to use for convenient and cost free freezer wrap. Works especially well for meats. Waste not--want not.
• From Forva: When you buy a peppers (any color) or even onions, and you end up with a little or a lot left over, cut them into slices for stir-frys, or little bits for flavoring recipes, adding to sauces, dips, salsas etc, and freeze. I use the plastic take-away containers that salads are sold in. A chunk breaks off the frozen whole easily, giving you access to a small amount should you need it. The vegetables don't need to be thawed before use.
• Reduce fat, increase fiber and save money by replacing half of the ground beef or poultry in a casserole or meatloaf recipe with brown rice, bulgur, or cooked and pureed dried beans.
• Make your own superfine sugar (especially handy for decorating cookies) by whirling granulated sugar in a blender or clean spice/coffee grinder.
• Do you have fruit in your kitchen that's ripening quicker than you can eat it? Puree it and use in smoothies or as a topping for ice cream, pancakes or waffles. You can also freeze the purreed fruit in a plastic freezer zipper bag and use it later on.
• Need whipped cream but don't have an electric mixer? Put the cream in a bowl with a tight lid (Tupperware works well) and shake vigorously until whipped.
• Make your own sun dried tomatoes - Turn oven on lowest setting. Halve or quarter tomatoes and sprinkle with equal parts salt and sugar. Bake until shriveled and slightly tough - about 12 to 14 hours. Store in the refrigerator or you can freeze for later use. You can also store in oil, in the fridge.
• To make quick garlic butter, squeeze a clove of garlic through a garlic press with a small amount of butter for perfect garlic butter for some quick toast or to season veggies, fish, chicken or whatever!
• Before discarding your empty mustard jars, get a little more out of it by making a tasty salad dressing. Depending on how much mustard is left in the jar, add about 3 or 4 tablespoons olive oil and 2 or 3 tablespoons vinegar (red or white wine vinegars work well), and a clove or two of minced garlic. Season with salt and pepper, and shake well. You'll have a wonderful mustard vinaigrette is.
• Disposable water bottles make great dispensers for salad dressings, oils and sauces.
• Use a grocery bag lined with several layers of paper toweling to substitute for a salad spinner. Put lettuce into bag, close then spin it around in a circle a few turns until the greens are dry and ready to dress.
• Use a muffin tin to substitute for individual ramekins when making individual quiches or frittatas.
• Buy butter or margarine on sale and freeze for future use. The higher the fat content in dairy products, the better they freeze. Milk products that are under 40% butterfat will separate, but heavy cream does well. You can freeze butter with no texture changes, but remember, fat can go rancid even in a freezer, so never keep it for more than a few months.
• Before you juice a lemon, lime or orange grate off the outermost part of the rind and freeze in a zipper food storage bag. When a recipe calls for zest, just pull it from the freezer.
• Peter from Queens New York says he always saves bacon fat in the fridge. Peter uses the bacon grease to baste roasting chickens or turkeys, to add additional flavor when frying, he even adds it to potatoes when mashing. While it may not be the healthiest practice in the world, bacon fat does pack a powerful flavor punch, and as Emeril says "Pork fat rules!"
• To get the last bit of shortening from the can, fill with boiling water and let cool. The shortening will rise to the top and harden, when it can be easily removed.
• A frugal tip from Louise Harvey of Chicopee, Massacusetts: "I save the crumbs from bags of chips (potato chips, tortilla chips etc.) and use them for breading meats or fish, topping casseroles, in meatloafs or just about any other place you would use breadcrumbs.
• If you have a recipe that uses just egg whites, you can refrigerate the yolks for later use by storing them, unbroken, in a small bowl, covered with cold water for up to two days.
• The end of a clean, empty 10 oz. can makes a handy cookie or biscuit cutter.
• Save money on chocolate! Shop the after holiday sales (Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, Mother's Day, Halloween, etc.) when seasonal candies are often marked down by 50% or more. If you buy good quality chocolate, you'll save a bundle and be bale to use it for cooking or recipes.
• Mary Hasche, from Wisconsin suggests that if you have leftover scalloped potatoes, use them as a base for cream soups.
• Gloria Mencio from Waterbury Connecticut says for inexpensive flavored coffee just add ground cinnamon to the top of grinds before perking.
• After squeezing lemons for cooking, freeze the rinds. Whenever you need freshly grated lemon zest, you can grate it from the frozen lemons. Saves a trip to the store or buying a lemon just for a small amount of zest.
• Kaz B from Melbourne, Australia says an economical way to buy pasta sauce is to buy a generic brand economy size of your choice and decant into single serve freezer containers and defrost in the microwave before use.
• Meriel from Milwaukee, Wisconsin has a frugal way of making use of lemons or limes that are past their prime. "Squeeze limes or lemons that are starting to get too old and freeze the juice in small containers. When you need a tablespoon of juice pop it into the microwave and you are ready to go."
• Chris, a Fabulous Foodie from Pleasant Hill, California likes to buy ground beef in bulk, and then separate it into 1-pound portions and freeze. Chris suggests browning the ground beef first before freezing; then you can just pull it out of the freezer to use for tacos or anything else that's easy!
• Make your own "instant" oatmeal by running regular oatmeal in a blender. Blending makes the oatmeal the same as "instant."
• Placing sugar cubes in cheese containers helps keep cheese mold-free.
• Wrapping celery in aluminum foil when putting it in the refrigerator helps keep the freshness for weeks.
• Freshening dry and hard lemons is effortless by placing them in a hot oven for a few minutes.
• Using leftover wine is a snap if you freeze it into ice cubes and use them as part of the liquid for casseroles and sauces.
• The folks at the Reynolds Kitchens sent in this handy tip for reviving day old tortillas. Place tortillas on a large piece of waxed paper, fold the open edges to make a packet and microwave on high for 15 - 35 seconds. They'll be almost as good as fresh made.