How We Cut Our Food Bill

A few years ago when Kevin and I became serious about our finances, setting a budget, reducing our debt, and living within our means, I put together a couple of documents about how we choose to save money. A few years ago I did the post How I Reduced My Energy Bill so that friends could reference some of the things we had done. Recently, budgeting and finance have become a hot topic in our circle of friends and one asked for the document I put together about reducing our food bill. So here is the information, posted to the web so we can spread the love.

Disclaimers

1. We are a family of four with two preschoolers. At this time, we are not feeding teenagers. While I feel like the little monsters eat contantly, I know teenagers are another ball game. However, we share food; we have people over often, we take meals to families, we go to potlucks and parties.
2. I am a full-time home maker. It is my full-time job to stretch our dollars (and often pennies.) When both parents work outside of the home, they are forced to pay for many conveniences that I have the luxury to avoid. Currently, I have time to prepare meals at some point during the day for us to eat that evening. I have time to make things like bread and cookies from scratch.
3. Many of the things I do may not work for every family. However, shopping smarter is the main point.
4. We don't eat solely organic, but try to avoid the dirty dozen. On our journey to eat real food, it was more important to me to start eating fresher foods than organic and grass fed. Organic is better, but more expensive. We buy very little packaged/processed/canned food.
5. I believe in natural, unprocessed foods including limited whole grains and beans. Boxed mac and cheese is cheap, but not worth the price for your health. I use real butter, uncured meats, whole fat dairy, and many other things people often avoid.

General Notes

1. First, we stopped eating out. If we do eat out, which is rare, we split a meal. Not only is this cheaper, but it's better on our waistline. Meals at restaurants are too big and often not very healthy. We skip the special beverage and drink water. Our typical splurges include Chipotle and In-n-Out.
2. We always pack lunches. Kevin takes a lunch to work everyday, never wasting leftovers. If the kids and I are going to be out for any length of time, we take a meal and and/or snacks. Trips to the zoo, the park, road trips, the drive-in, etc. Food out is over priced and highly processed.
3. I do a big shopping trip every two weeks and doing a midweek run out to pick up things we need or are on sale. I plan at least 8 cooked meals every two weeks. I don't cook every night. We eat leftovers or I make leftovers into another meal. For example; on Tuesday we had roast beef with vegetables. On Wednesday we had barley stew with the leftover beef. If we aren’t going to get to the leftovers, they often end up in the freezer, not the trash. Don’t over buy fresh items; you’ll end up throwing them out.
4. Plan meals based on what you have that needs to be used up, or is on sale. Check your freezer and pantry. Avoid planning meals based on what you have a craving for; the items may not be on sale or even in season. I try to make sure every dinner has a protein and two vegetables.
5. You pay for convenience. This isn't a bad thing, as long as you are aware of it. Be aware of the things that could take just a few more minutes that you can save on.
6. I make a lot of things we eat from scratch; bread, cookies, granola, chicken broth, hummus, pizza. You don't have to go to this extreme, but be aware of what you buy that is conveniently packaged. Frozen meals are rarely healthy. Chips and crackers can be put into Ziplock bags. A 100 calorie pack is never as healthy as an apple. Cookies can be made in a bar pan and cut in squares saving time. A pot of oatmeal for the family only takes a few minutes more than 4 individual bags of instant oatmeal. Additionally a large pot can be made on Sunday and individual bowls reheated throughout the week.
7. I freeze just about everything; leftovers, broth, casseroles, ceans, meat, bread, fresh lemon juice, cookies, waffles, fruit and some vegetables that are in season, grated cheese, pizza dough, half jars of marinara sauce, buttermilk. I often double a recipe and freeze half. This is especially good for nights you know you won't have time (or energy) to cook.
8. I watch printed advertisements at grocery stores but stick to the ones that are on my typical routes. I don’t have time/energy/gas to shop multiple grocery stores each week. Winco is out of my way but worth the drive twice a month. I stock up when things are an amazing deal, often freezing or canning extra.
9. I clip coupons, but I don’t go to extremes. I use the coupons on things I would normally buy and try to use them when things are on sale. 
10. I do my primary shopping at Winco. First, their prices are extremely lower for often the same brand I purchase at large chains. Second, I buy a lot from the bulk bins. I have to have my own storage containers but I save hundreds by avoiding paying for the packaging.
11. We pay the warehouse membership. For us, the amount we save is worth the price of the membership. I get a lot of our food at Sam's club; milk, butter, eggs, cheese, fruit, veggies, meat and fish.
12. I carry my own reusable bags. Many stores offer a discount for each one. It adds up. I also think it's better for the environment.

Poultry and Meat

1. I stopped buying (as much) boneless/skinless chicken breasts. We make casseroles, enchiladas, salads, etc. and boneless/skinless is very expensive. I buy whole chickens at the grocery store when they go on sale and freeze them. I cook the whole chicken in the crock-pot with onion, carrots, garlic, and celery. After pulling all of the chicken off, I throw the carcass and skin back in the pot, add some water, and cook it for about 12 more hours. I strain it all and freeze the stock in 2 cup measurements. I use the stock to cook rice, put in soups, and many other recipes. Sometimes, for convenience, I buy a rotisserie chicken for dinner. I often freeze the carcas until I can throw it in the crock pot to make stock. I also keep a container in my freezer of kitchen scraps to cook with the carcas; tops of onions, celery, and carrots.
2. For grilling and roasting I buy bone-in split chicken breasts. They are more work, but worth the price.
3. I rarely buy lunch meat. We eat leftovers for lunch. It's cheaper and I rarely waste food. If I do buy lunch meat (on sale and with a coupon) I freeze half to make sure it doesn't spoill.
4. When eating/cooking bacon, I always cook the whole pound and freeze what we don't/shouldn't eat. Half strips can be pulled out and chopped for salads, pizza, or other recipes as needed. A little bacon flavor goes a long way. I also save the fat from my uncured bacon. I keep a jar in the frige and add strained fat to the jar in the freezer. When the jar in the fridge is empty, I move the jar from the freezer and start a new one for the freezer. I use bacon fat in anything where I would normally use butter or oil but want more flavor; pancakes, waffles, biscuits, quiche crust, eggs, roasted potatoes.
5. When turkeys were super cheap at Thanksgiving, I bought two extra. Turkey isn't my favorite, but I don't mind it in casseroles and enchiladas. I usually stock up on corned beef in March when it is cheap

Breads/Grains/Dry Goods

1. I buy from the bulk bins and probably cut my grocery bill in half. I have to provide my own storage containers but I save hundreds by avoiding paying for the packaging; flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, baking chips, corn meal, salt, spices, pasta, beans, rice, oatmeal, cold cereal, dried fruit, nuts, honey.
2. My mom gave me a bread machine and I started making my own breads; sandwich bread, dinner rolls, breakfast breads, etc. I usually freeze half of it for another time. There are no preservatives in the fresh bread and it doesn't last as long as store bought.
3. I make pizza dough at least twice a month. I have a lot of recipes that call for pizza dough. If I don't make 2 pizzas (which I usually do so we can have leftovers) I freeze half of the dough. We haven't bought pizza (fresh or frozen) in over a year.
4. I make my own granola bars. Less sugar. No preservatives. Cheaper.
5. I make granola. I use this recipe as a start but usually add more nuts (whichever ones I have on hand) and ground flax seed. Kevin likes it on yogurt, I like it with milk.
6. I buy fiesta or family packs of flour tortillas and freeze them in smaller portions to pull out as we want them.
7. I started soaking and cooking my own beans. They are high in protein and fiber. I can cook up as much as I want and they freeze well in the bean broth. I can pull out frozen beans to put in soups or on salads. I make my own refried beans and freeze them or make burritos to freeze for lunches when there aren't any leftovers. I make my own hummus. We sometimes add beans to ground meat to stretch the meal.
8. Boxed rice mixes appear to be cheap but when you have your stock you made from chicken bones and some chopped onion you store in the freezer, it's healthier and cheaper to make from scratch and takes the same amount of time. Reduce some of the broth and add salsa for a Mexican flavor.

Dairy/Eggs/Refrigerated Goods

1. I buy 2 pound blocks of cheese to last me two weeks. To prevent cheese from molding, don't touch it; pull the wrapper back little by little. Avoid grating from the block; cut off what you want grate. If your cheese does get a little powdery-white in places, just cut it off; don't throw out the whole block! Trust me; the mold taste will not spread like it does on other foods. Cheese is an aged food and has quite a long shelf life if unopened. It's the exposure to air and other surfaces that cause it to mold. Taking the time to grate your own cheese saves a lot of money, and doesn't have the additives that shredded cheese does. Seriously, read the ingredient list on shredded cheese. If you are lucky, it will be potato starch instead of cellulose. Once grated, cheese freezes very well. I buy the 5 pound block of mozzerella and grate the entire thing using a shredder attachment for my Kitchen Aid mixer. I freeze it in gallon size ziplock bags to use for pizza.
2. I buy 32 ounce containers of yogurt instead of individual containers. This is especially helpful for Littles who don't eat the entire container of an individual serving. If I want to take some with me, I put it in a travel container. I often buy plain yogurt. I can flavor it with fresh fruit or jam or use it to replace sour cream. I have made yogurt, but prefer the convenience of the store bought.
3. I make my own dips and salad dressing. Huge savings and less preservatives.
4. I buy 36 eggs. I often make a quiche, baked egg dish or large pan of scrambled eggs for Kevin to eat on during the week.  These store well in the refrigerator or freezer and reheat easily. They are great for a breakfast on the go or a high protein lunch.
5. I make my own biscuits; it’s really just flour, baking powder, salt, and milk. I just drop spoonfuls onto a baking sheet. Much cheaper and healthier than Pillsbury.
6. Refrigerated cookie dough has a huge mark up. You can freeze unbaked dough; you don't even have to roll out little balls like they do on Pinterest. You can freeze a large chunk and thaw in the refridgerator.
7. I make cinnamon rolls using my bread machine and freeze half a batch for a later use.
8. We stopped using flavored coffee creamers. Not only are these filled with tons of ingredients I can't pronounce, they aren't cheap. We use good 'ol half and half which costs about a $1 for the pint and some raw sugar.
9. I buy a small block of feta (or other soft stinky cheese) and crumble it myself instead of buying it already crumbled saving money and avoiding added "anti-caking" incredients.

Produce

1. Heads of lettuce are cheaper than bag/box mixes and last a lot longer in the crisper.
2. I started a garden this year. I tried very hard to use all of the tomatoes without wasting them. Besides fresh salsa, tomato pies, salads and more, I made spaghetti sauce and froze it and canned 12 jars of crushed tomatoes. I have only done this once, but maybe again next summer.
3. I find it better to under-buy produce and head to the store again later, than to over buy and throw food out. This most often happens with produce. If you plan meals before or while you shop you will be less likely to over buy.
4. Carrots keep for a long time in the crisper. Because I typically grocery shop every two weeks, the carrots allow for a fresh vegetable at the end of the shopping period. Additionally, carrots in bulk are a lot cheaper (often less than a dollar a pound,) than peeled and ready to eat. I peel and cut carrots into sticks and store in an air tight container to munch or bag up for lunches.
5. Buy produce that is in season. Here in sunny Southern California, we grow a lot of produce year round and prices of some things don't usually change but by a couple of pennies; lettuce, summer squash, broccoli, bananas, potatoes, onions. But some do; most of your fruit, corn, tomatoes, avocados, winter squash. When at all possible stock up/freeze/can the seasonal. I buy double of needed berries when they go on sale. We eat half and I freeze half for later. Lily loves to eat blue berries and sliced strawberries right out of the freezer. Great for smoothies or baking. Free is always better, but when pears were 3 pounds for a dollar I bought a bunch to make jam and to can. Now that fresh pear prices have gone back up, I pull a jar from the pantry to eat. Canning does take time, but is very easy. I made applesauce when apples were on sale in the fall. When corn was 5 to 10 cents an ear, I bought a bunch, cooked it, removed the kernels from the ears, and froze them in quart size bags. We throw it in soup, chowder, salad, corn bread, and corn cakes.
6. I stopped buying prepared or processed potato products. Potatoes can be cooked in the microwave, oven, Crockpot, or boiled. Frozen potatoes are very over-priced. A 5 pound bag of Russet potatoes at Winco is less than $1.50.
7. When chopping onions, I chop extra, place a thin layer and freeze in a ziplock. If I need just a little bit of onion for a recipe, I can break off a section from the frozen square.
8. If it's free, I will find a way to use it. My mother-in-law gave me a lot of lemons a few summers ago. What I didn't use, I juiced and froze the juice in 1 cup increments (mostly for lemonade) and ice cube trays for smaller amounts.
9. When the bananas have turned brown and no one will eat them, I peel them and stick them in a freezer bag to pull out later for breads, muffins, pancakes, smoothies etc.
10. Because I shop for 2 weeks at a time, we often eat fresh the first week and frozen the second week. Other fresh vegetables that last until the second week are carrots, sweet potatoes, and fall/winter squash.

Beverages

1. Alcohol is a rarity saved for special occasions typically with guests.
2. Soda is also a rare treat, usually bought in 2 liter bottle so that when it is gone, we don't just go open another can.
3. We drink water. It's good for you. We drink Brita at home and buy pre-packaged bottles for on the go. We try to fill up our reusable bottles.
4. We occasionally drink iced tea or homemade lemonade from those free lemons from my mother-in-law.
5. I hardly ever buy juice. It has a lot of sugar. Even natural sugars in fruit is still sugar.
6. I do occasionally buy a Starbucks beverage with my allowance (or a gift card,) but it is rare. We splurge and buy K-cups for the Keurig since Kevin leaves the house two hours before I even get up.

Snacks

1. We are trying to purchase less and less pre-packaged foods as they are not as healthy and can be expensive. However, as much as I have replaced snacks with nuts, fruit, and some veggies, my kids love crackers. I have found that many store brands taste (almost) the same as the name brand. Except Goldfish . . . no one seems to have mastered the copy of that recipe. However, I often buy the family size and rarely an individual size unless traveling.
2. I try to keep fruit that can be picked up to go quickly; bananas, apples, and oranges.I keep snack veggies like bell peppers, carrots, blanched asparagus, and sugar snap peas chopped and easy to grab or bag up for on the go.
3. I buy snack bags to hold nuts and dried fruit and make up my own trail mix.
4. We pop our own popcorn. Our favorite topping is brown sugar dissolved in butter with a dash of cinnamon. Garlic salt is another favorite.

Real Food and Hobbies

What started out as a way to save money has completely changed how we eat. I guess it began when Lily started eating solid foods and I started making her food. I could not believe how expensive pre-made baby food was. If I could save that much money on baby food, how much more money could I save if I made food that was typically conveniently packaged or pre-made? I know the concept sounds simple, but this is coming from the woman who before college didn't know you could make brownies without a box mix. Jiffy isn't the only way to get corn bread, cinnamon rolls didn't have to be popped out of a card board tube, pumpkin doesn't have to come in a can, and green beans could actually be bought fresh. Who knew? The list goes on and on. I know, I know. Craziness!

The first step was probably baked goods. My mother gave me her bread machine and I began making yeast breads for the first time. Did you know yeast didn't have to be purchased in individually measured packets? I didn't.

There was a time when I thought it amazing that you could buy pre-made pizza dough at Trader Joe's. Now, I make our own. I was truly shocked at how easy it was. Granted, I still cheat and let the machine do the kneading and rising. It's about working smarter, not harder, people. Today we have upgraded to whole wheat - we love it!

Pie dough was always purchased in preformed pie shells in the freezer section. If I was feeling really ambitious, I bought Pillsbury which I actually rolled out and pressed into my own pie pan; which before now I only ever had a leftover tin from Marie Callendars. And while I have yet to actually make a dessert with my pie shell, last week our lovely whole wheat pie shell turned into a quiche with spinach, asparagus, mushrooms, and blue cheese. (Very similar ingredients to the pizza above which we had the night before.)

Later, after adding new foods to our diet, and trying all kinds of new recipes, I made pita bread. I was shocked to find it was just as easy as pizza dough (and the same recipe with less oil.) It was so fun to see them puff up in the oven and form their delightful little pockets. Maybe I'll even bake them again for some yummy chips to go with our homemade hummus.After the baked goods came the garden. Not big for a first year. One beef tomato plant, one cherry tomato, a handful of pepper plants, and a random eggplant bought by mistake. But for a newbie, we got a bumper crop of tomatoes. After looking up all kinds of recipes for lovely summer dishes, my mother and I canned about a dozen cans of crushed tomatoes and froze some homemade marinara sauce. I have been using them all winter!

This fall and winter I got an awesome deal on apples and made some apple chips and canned up some sauce. Here is the little wooden stand my father-in-law made me to use my grandma's apple corer-peeler-slicer. Lily eats the sauce in her oatmeal almost every morning.

But my newest addition to our homemade list of goodies, was homemade yogurt which I incubated in a camping cooler in my downstairs shower. The other day our insurance company came by for a home inspection and looked at me a little odd when I explained why the cooler was chillin' in the shower. Kevin is still getting used to the taste of plain yogurt without all the additives that come in his little yogurt cup with the blue foil lid, but I strain off the whey a little to make it creamy like a Greek yogurt and top with fresh fruit and a touch of honey.

But Bekah, what is the point of this post?
First, it is to share how good I feel about feeding my family real food with ingredients I know and can pronounce. No artificial colors, flavors, or sweeteners. No preservatives. We eat more vegetables than I ever thought possible and there are only three of us. Lily is learning that fruit is a treat, and vegetables come with every meal. We talk about the food we buy at the store and the farmers markets. Oranges, strawberries, 'cados (avocados,) and broccoli are her current favorites. She may always favor the tortilla chip or the wheat cracker, but I typically don't have trouble getting her to eat her veggies, including the brussel sprouts, and she always gobbles up her fruit. I am showing Lily how to protect the body God gave her with the food He has given us; which Coke and Capri Suns are not included in.

Second, and not any less important is that after 30 years, I have finally found my hobby! I love trying new recipes and making healthy meals to stay within our tight budget. This means remembering to soak the beans the night before I want to cook them, remembering to start the dough in time for pizza that night, and setting a timer so my yogurt doesn't sour in the incubator. All things I have learned from experience. But I am having so much fun, and let me tell you, scrap booking in it's height of popularity was never this enjoyable for me. I wake up in the middle of the night thinking about recipes I want try. I rush through the bathroom cleaning, probably not doing as good a job as I should, because I want to get back in the kitchen. I let laundry pile up. And once or twice, I have put Lily down for a nap early so that I could finish a project. It's a blast! I may not always have this much time, but I am enjoying it while it lasts.

We Be Jammin' - Part Two

When I turned 30 someone asked me how I felt. I told them it wasn't that I felt old, I just felt that the speed at which I was turning into my mother had kicked into high gear. Maybe it was when I quit my job. Or maybe the cloth diapers. Or maybe when I took over the bread machine. Whatever it was, I have become my mother. It's not a bad thing, just a fact.

When I was in junior high, my mom and a girlfriend of hers starting make jam, jelly, and pickles. They were simply wonderful. And while I'm sure she gave them away, we had a go to stock in the pantry that was wonderful; triple berry jam, spiced peach, spiced pear, and grape. One day I will tell you all about camping pies made over the campfire with butter, cheap white bread, and homemade jam. They are amazing.

This summer when my mom started sending me pictures of her amazing blackberry harvest, I started to reminisce of triple berry jam made with blackberries, strawberries, and raspberries. When I told my mom, she offered to share her harvest (she brought me 3 quarts) and told me we could make jam when she visited this summer. It technically would be fall, but it was still over 100 degrees here in Sunny SoCal.

I'm actually not a fan of raspberries (at all) so I opted for blackberry-strawberry with the strawberries we picked up at the Kaiser farmers market. They were the sweetest I've had all year. And Lily is a huge fan, gobbling them up faster than I can cut them.



Oh, the smell of the cooking sugar and berry concoction was just divine! I opened a jar as soon as mom left (not sure why I bothered sealing it) and devoured it all by myself in 5 days. Mom made a couple of batches to share. I, on the other hand, will probably be hording the blackberry for myself. The peach, the pepper, and the strawberry-peach can be used as gifts.



We made a lot of jam in two days (maybe 3, I can't remember.) You really only get 5 or 6 jars per batch.

After mom left I tried a batch on my own. Spiced peach. It didn't set as well; I think because the peaches were frozen. I'm sure it will get eaten. It tasted good to me.

We'll be trying spiced pear next week. I have over 20 pounds of pears in my refrigerator as I type. I might even try some canning.

I am my mother and I love it.

We Be Jammin' - Part One

I planted my first garden this year. Some of it didn't work out too well; the squash and I weren't friends. But peppers, tomatoes and I have been pals since May. I'm not sure why, but I had great success with thw tomatoes and peppers; good soil, good light, super easy plant, not totally sure. But I've had a blast this summer and the plants are still going strong. Except for the cherry tomato plant that was trampled by 5 different dogs this past week. But until recently, I've had tons of cherry tomatoes.

I've had a blast cooking with everything. We done a couple pasta salads with the cherry tomatoes but our favorite has been the roasted garlic and tomatoes on flat bread (or ultimately, thin pizza dough.) We've done fajitas with the garden peppers., both tomato and watermelon salsa with the jalapenos, tomato pie, jalapeno-cheese bread, BLT's, and lots of garden salads. But I still had a lot of peppers and tomatoes left.

When my mom came down for a week after Lily's birthday, I told her I wanted to make jalapeno jelly. I said jelly, but what I really wanted was Harry and David's Pepper and Onion Relish. But we (and by we, I mean my mom) found a recipe for Sure Jell Hot Pepper Relish. It may not be Harry and David, or $6.95 a jar, but I think it is wonderful! I took my first jar to a party last night, spread that bad boy over some low-fat cream cheese and served with wheat crackers. Today I ate the leftovers for lunch. It was so good! I really was surprised at how flavorful it was.

It's not as spicy as I would have liked it so I am excited to try a new batch. I am also nervous to do the jam alone. Having mom here with me, and two in the kitchen allowed for us to get the batch done during second nap!

I was also trying to come up with ways to use up all the tomatoes I had. I already had a bunch of spaghetti sauce in the freezer so we ended up simply canning crushed tomatoes.

It really wasn't hard, but is a little time consuming as the tomatoes needed a boiling water bath for 35 minutes. However, the jars of crushed tomatoes will be perfect this winter with my favorite crock pot recipes!

Grilling With A Twist

Summer has barely begun and we haven't even hit 100 degrees yet, but I couldn't stand the thought of turning my oven on. But dinner had already been pulled out of the freezer and I didn't want the peppers to spoil so stuffed bell peppers it had to be. So I grilled them!

They were awesome! I think they were even better than when I made them in the oven.

It was so nice we had dinner outside. Bug bounced around during dinner,

then played around with Daddy. We had a wonderful family dinner on the patio relaxing and enjoying each other.

Waste Not, Want Not

I hate throwing out food. On Monday nights, Kevin begins to empty the house trash to take the cans to the street and asks me to go through the refrigerator to throw out any bad food. Before I quit my job I felt like we threw food away all of the time. We ate out more and leftovers would go bad. Or we would forget about the leftovers all together. Cheese would mold. Broccoli would turn yellow. Half gallons of milk would expire. But since being home, I have become much more diligent about buying what we need and using everything we have. (Probably because I am now very aware of every dollar we spend.) Thus, I have become very resourceful and quite creative with our meals (if I do say so myself.) This week was a huge win for me in using leftovers, and I felt the need to share it with the world.

My story actually begins two weeks ago. Whole chickens were on sale for 75 cents a pound and I picked one up to roast on Saturday morning. I had visions of roasted chicken sandwiches for lunch on Sunday. I dressed the chicken with butter and seasoning, and stuffed that sucker full of onion and garlic. The kitchen was just beginning to smell wonderful when the power went out. We had been having some crazy wind and I expected it to come on any minute. After 20 minutes of waiting, I knew I was going to have to cook this guy somehow. Luckily, I have a gas stove. I pulled out my stock pot and somehow got the guy in it. I pulled out our lighter and lit the stove. I added a bunch of veggies, some sea salt, and I simmered the sucker until he was done. The power was off for an hour and a half and I'm glad I didn't lose the chicken completely. I pulled all the meat off and threw the bones and skin back in the pot to simmer and make some chicken broth. Frustrated that I didn't have a juicy roasted chicken, I chopped the meat and stuck it in freezer so I could use it for casseroles and such. Then I froze lots of chicken broth.

My "should-have-been-roasted-had-to-be- boiled" chicken. And yes, I take pictures of my food often sending them to my husband or mother.

On Friday night we had grilled chicken and corn on the cob while we were in Solvang visiting with my family. My parents lovingly sent the leftovers home (two big chicken breasts, and two ears of corn) with their poor, destitute children so they could have food to eat. I took the corn off of the cob, chopped the chicken, added some onion, chilies, tomatoes, black beans that I had soaked the night before, and threw it in my home made chicken broth. I picked up some cilantro and served it with sour cream. It was probably one of the best soups I have ever made. We had it on both Monday and Tuesday.

On Wednesday, I made pulled BBQ chicken to take to a potluck and of course, brought home the leftovers. So tonight, Friday, I made some pizza dough in my handy-dandy bread machine. To the leftover chicken I added some chopped bacon, sauteed onions, more sauce and some of the leftover cilantro from Monday and made mini calzones. Except I didn't have any mozzarella so I don't know if it can be considered a calzone. We didn't miss the cheese and it was just a tiny bit less fattening.

My little calzones, baking away.

But Thursday's meal takes the cake . . . or pie, rather. I made my very first chicken pot pie. I pulled some of that chicken out of the freezer as well as some more chicken broth. I had potatoes, carrots, celery, and onion on hand as well as half a bag of frozen peas. Using my Betty Crocker cookbook from 1952, I made a gravy for the very first time. I also made my very first pie crust. Two recipes, actually, as my mixture ended up being too big for just one pie. It wasn't amazing and there is definitely room to improve the recipe but I loved making dinner from everything I already had on hand. (Except for the flour I had to borrow to make my gravy.) And I have another pie in my freezer!

It's a small thing but I am enjoying cooking more and more. I am using flour and eggs like crazy but it's worth it. Especially if we eat it all and I don't have to throw any of it out!

All That I Knead Recipe

Just for you Sherry :)

Honey 'N' Oats Bread
Bread Machine Magic by Rehberg and Conway

1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup buttermilk (plus 2 tablespoons for Welbilt/Dak machines)
1 egg
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups bread flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons honey (I will probably double this next time)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Light crust setting

Quitter

Every year before Parent's Night at Hapgood Elementary School, Mrs. Heron asks her second grade class to pick the coloring picture of the job they want to have when they grow up. Coloring pages of Precious Moments are strewn upon the work table. The are boys in over sized firefighter and policemen hats, girls in nursing hats, and boys with stethoscopes around their necks. Little Rebekah picks the picture of the girl with her puppy and a mop; her hair is in a bandanna. Ultimately, it is the picture of a maid. But to Rebekah, it is the only picture that she could find to represent what she wants to be; an at home mommy.

I have always wanted to make a home and raise my babies . . . full-time . . . and nothing else. When Lily was first born we weren't sure this was going to be a reality for our new little family. It is not something that works for every family; both financially or for the sanity of a mommy. But it is something I've always wanted. In fact, on my very first date with Kevin I told him that all I've ever wanted to do was to be at home raising my children to love the Lord.

Through some planning, much prayer, and a wonderfully supportive husband, starting tomorrow I will be home with our Lily Bug.


I'm not going to lie, it was ultimately an easy decision. It was however, not easy to leave CBU. I came to Riverside in 1999 to attend California Baptist University and through a friend and my sister, I got a job as a student worker in the financial aid office. In January 2003, I started full-time as the receptionist, got stuck and somehow became the associate director. It is really the only place I have ever worked; except for the 6 weeks at the Cold Stone in Kihei, Maui. I like financial aid. I liked the technical side. I loved writing reports and sorting and filtering spreadsheets! But I love my husband and my daughter more and I am excited for what is to come.



I gave my notice on January 3rd, and this past Friday the ladies in the office gave me a beautiful send off. There was a small cake reception with a giant cake. Lots of people came by to give their well wishes. I felt so loved and appreciated.


I was given many cards and gifts; daisies with notes attached, calendars with notes on how to raise a God centered family, books, magazines for all my free time (in jest of course), and a basket full of homemaking and baking goodies.

Here is Kevin modeling my new apron and matching spatulas.

CBU is full of wonderful people, many of who I will miss, but the ladies of Financial Aid have been my world. In the past eight years I have finished school, gotten married, travelled the world, bought my first home, and started my family; and these women have celebrated each milestone with me. I love them dearly and will miss them terribly.

But new and exciting things are on their way. I am so excited to see what happens next!

Oats, Peas, Beans and Barley

When I was little my grandfather would sing random songs in a deep (unnatural) baritone voice. He would draw out the words making the song much longer than it needed to be. One he used to sing all the time was a chorus that went as follows;

Oats, peas, beans and barley grow

Oats, peas, beans and barley grow

Can you or I or anyone know

How oats, peas, beans and barley grow?

From inspiration from my sister and her 2011 resolutions, I decided it was time to eat up what was in my cupboards. I bought barley a while ago to put in beef soup and decided I needed to find a way to eat it up. I began looking at recipe websites and determined it was ultimately like cooking rice. Newbies beware, rice doubles, but barley quadruples. So I sauteed some onion and the barley in some butter (you must say butter in your best Paula Dean accent), and it in chicken broth and chopped mushrooms. It was so good! It didn't get gummy like rice does, and has such a nutty flavor.

This is not the most appetizing photo, but as I was eating my leftover barley for lunch today I had to take a picture to share with you. It was just as good, if not better, leftover the next day!

Next step is to try barley as a breakfast cereal. I saw something on it in my last Martha Stewart magazine. I just have to find the magazine now . . .

Granola

As to my 2011 resolutions I made granola. I know it isn't difficult but these baby steps make me feel better about making things from scratch. I'm still working up to the cake and lasagna. With the amazing bulk bins at Winco my new favorite cereal is super cheap. The great thing about granola is it is different every time you make it. And because it isn't straight baking, I don't really have to follow a recipe or precisely measure anything. This one has oats, wheat germ, bran, almonds, walnuts, pecans, cranberries, and dried apples. It's more chewy than crunchy (I think due to the wheat germ and bran) and was wonderful on my vanilla yogurt this morning. I would even eat this with just milk! Mmmm.