FREE Snuggie!

You know you want a Snuggie, the blanket with sleeves!
Now you can have one delivered to your home for FREE!
Go HERE to order today!

New Schwans Code!

Use code M2 on any pre-order from Schwans Home Delivery to save 5% off your total order! Good for new customers, or exhisting. Go to HERE to order! Expires December 31, 2009

"Tightwad" things I don't do anymore!

Hello, blogging world! I have been offline since mid August, and finally have gotten some internet connection back! Still waiting on high speed, but even dial up is better than nothing!

So on this Labor Day, I thought I would make a post about tightwad things I DON'T do anymore..

Wash baggies--now I know most people will swear by this and tell you they save X amount of money doing it, and I did used to do it, but instead I stopped buying baggies all together. I just use "Tupperware" or whatever generic or reused plastics I have on hand.

Make my own pancake syrup--this used to be a big money saver for us, but the price of sugar has gone up so high, it is no longer cheaper to make my own than to buy generic, or use coupons.

Like wise, I don't make my own taco seasoning anymore either, simply because I buy it in bulk at Sam's for far less than buying the ingredients to assemble homemade.

Cereal Treats--3 receipes

Basic Rice Krispies, but also works great with cheerios
3 TBSP butter
4 cups mini marshmallows
6 cups cereal
melt butter, add marshmallows, stir until smooth, remove from heat, add cereal slowly, stirring well. Turn out treats into metal or glass pan sprayed with non-stick spray for best results.

Super easy, great for slightly stale cereal
Line baking sheet with foil, then add cereal. Cut generous chunks of almond bark (regular or chocolate flavor) and place on top of cereal then pop into a pre-heated oven on low heat. If you use smaller, dense cereal like rice krispies or cheerios,you can add more almond bark to make it like brittle candy.

This is my favorite to make with corn flakes, but can use any kind of cereal. If using small cereals, you may need to add more than the 4 cups recommended.
2/3 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup peanut butter
4 cups cereal
Melt corn syrup and brown sugar until it comes to a full rolling boil, add vanilla extract, then stir in peanut butter. Once smooth, add cereal. Turn out into a glass or metal pan sprayed with non-stick spray. Cut into bars and enjoy.

Thinking Twice

Lots of times when I buy my groceries, I am thinking "how can I use this in a different way/recipes?". I recently was able to re purpose a free item to make a totally different food item than it's purpose. I have been getting the Kroger Crazy Combo deals where you buy the main dish, then you get 4 free items. A few weeks ago I got the Potato Finishers in the Combo to go with the baking potatoes. Pressed for dinner ideas on grocery day, I needed a quick (and filling!) meal. I was able to use the white cheddar sauce and the shredded cheese from the Finishers package to make some home style mac n cheese, paired it with a salad and leftover 4th of July brisket and we had a great meal in minutes and were out the door to the grocery store.
Here are a few other things you can re-purpose, so don't be afraid to stock up on them!

Hot Dog buns: mini sub sandwiches, slit in half to make bread sticks for soup,salad, etc
Hamburger buns: breakfast sandwiches, nice crusty garlic bread for lasagna or spaghetti, "bagel" pizzas
Pre-made hamburger patties: pair with a brown gravy for Salisbury Steaks, bread and season for fried "steaks", or just serve them as plain grilled "steaks".
Ranch dressing: use this instead of pizza sauce next time for a tangy treat!

Got ideas of your own? Add them in the comment section!

Schwans Home Delivery Codes

Here are some of the current promotional codes for Schwans Home Delivery Food Service
Use D5 for a $5.oo discount, on any order
Use D6 for orders over $25.00 to get a FREE pizza or half gallon of ice cream
Use code 4A to recieve 5% off your total order.

Oh, and FYI, Schwans accepts Debit/Credit cards, cash or check, and they also can accept state issued food benefits.

On the top menu, they have a tab for Meals under $5.00 and a tab for $1.00 per serving.
Please note, there is a $1.00 delivery fee on all orders.

And one little "green" thing. All Schwans trucks run on propane!

CVS $0 OOP

Finally went to CVS this week! I can not tell you how long it has been since I went in there, with the exception of buying gum to get my 10ECB to print)

3 boxes of General Mills Cereal(3.00/each)
2 packs of Extra gum(1.29 each)
total=11.58
used 10ECB I got for taking a survey @ CVS Advisor Panel
$1/3 GM cereals
BOGO on Extra gum that I found loose in my binder,expiring THAT DAY!
after coupons total was:
.01
cashier told me not to even bother, he had an extra penny on the counter!