Shopping Discount Grocery

Talk about making the dollar stretch from week to week or month to month, shopping smart and buying items that you know you and your family will use and not be wasted is one way to get more bang for your buck.  One of my marketing college professor shopped at Town Talk all the time.  He told us about the prices he would pay for food and the money he saved in the process.  This guy had a salary of $100k+ a year so he really could shop anywhere he wanted.

Later on, I found out my neighbor went there as well and so I decided to go with her one day to see what it was all about and was amazed at what I was able to find at half the cost I would spend at my regular store on some items.  Now this dosen't mean I will stop shopping my local neighborhood grocery, but it allowed me to price bargain and compare.  One day on one of our grocery trips there we were able to find 3lb bag of Cuties; I love Cuties one of my favorite fruits.  The fruit was fresh and sweet at a cost of $1 per bag versus $4.99 in the regular grocery store.  Of course we both brought 3-4 bags each which we shared with our families.  Most of the items in this particular store come from some of the local upscale stores and other regular grocery stores.  The prices are reduce not because the items have expired, but other reasons like stores going out of business, overstock etc.  Whatever the case, the discount store ends up with many of these products and I go and search the shelves, refrigerated storage, and freezer for top bargain items of the day. 



Other items I have picked up are some great cheeses.  In my regular grocery I have seen the same brands priced $3 to $4 and I have paid as low as $1.99 for some very good high quality cheese.  Other items I have gotten great deals on are spices, frozen chicken breast, fresh veggies, breakfast sausage, can goods (not bend), and even household cleaners, paper goods,  and laundry detergent.  Some of these prices are the same in a regular grocery or they may be a few cents discounted so just be aware of prices and if you are getting a deal or not.  Another thing about shopping discount is the items you get this week is not guarantee that it will be available next week or the next day.  So you have to get it while the getting is good.

In shopping discount, Town Talk carry some good meat marinades, cooking sauces, all kinds of vinegars, bulk items (rice, flour, corn meal, etc) and herb olive oils at some very good prices and I get to try products at a reduce cost which works for me.  But with any food purchase you always want to check dates and if possible inspect the content to make sure its not discolored or murky looking.  Don't be afraid of shopping at discount grocery; its a smart thing to do.  It doesn't mean that you can't afford to buy, but that you are a smart and economical consumer interested in saving money wherever you can.   It took some time for me to figure this out, but I got bargin shopping down almost to a science and I love it.  Now go and find some good bargains today and save some money!

Outdoor Cooking Safety

Aww summer will be here in two more months and there will be lots of outdoor cooking going on. What would a Texas barbeque be like without a bowl of potato salad or coleslaw?  And to make sure that everyone enjoys it, you have to keep them cold.  As we get ready to fire up our grills whether at home, at the lake, or your local park we have to have some type of portable refrigration to avoid spoilage and possible food poisoning.  One of the main foods that is typically know for quick spoilage is potato salad and coleslaw! 



While both contain mayo, these salads can go bad quickly and can turn your delicious dish into a bowl of bacteria.  If you are outside the best thing to do is to keep your potato salad in a separate ice chest or invest in a portable refrigerated cooler.  Portable refrigerated cooler prices vary for inexpensive to very expensive.  Whatever you choose, be sure to review the performance of the cooler for the best results you need. 

You also want to make sure that when transporting raw meat to your cookout, you want to have it already seasoned and prepared for the grill by putting them in zip lock bags for easy carry.  For double protection, I drop each zip lock bag of meat in a clean trash bag and then ice it down in the cooler. Take extra gallon of water and hand soap to wash your hands after handling raw meats.  Hand sanitizers aren't enough when it comes to cleaning your hand from handling raw meat.



We are ready to have fun with the family and friends and keeping your food safe from spoilage makes for a great outdoor gathering.  It's always best to have your cookout remembered for good food and fellowship rather than someone getting sick from ruined food.  Happy cookout and keep it safe.
                   

Pantry Ready: Staples to keep on hand

In my last blog we talked about planning and how it is helpful in what we have to do.  Well this week we will talk about what staple items we should keep on hand in our pantries.  Keeping certain items that are used in most recipes are vital to your time in preparing a quick and easy meal.

I have included several websites to check out and some that you can print for your grocery trip to the store:

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/helpful-checklist-of-pantry-staples-714146/

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/shopping-storing/food/pantry-staples-checklist-00000000000197/index.html

http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/805755/perfect-pantry-list-for-quick-and-easy-meals

Be sure to invest in air tight containers and label your dry items like flour, cornmeal, pastas, rice, etc to keep bugs from getting in and to better organize your pantry.  An organize and well stock kitchen makes for a happy cook.  I'm very familiar with the kitchen and I still rely on using a pantry list to pick up items.  And while you are stocking your pantry, be sure to pick up aluminium pans, freezer bags, plastic wraps and foil.  They too are part of your pantry needs. 

Don't try to buy these all at one time, but purchase a few here and there and before you know it, your pantry will be pantry ready.

Planning is Everything

For me, I love to plan things out no matter how big or small the event is.  The farther the date the early I start with putting those ideas down on paper.  In preparing for holiday meals my pet peeve is to plan a month or two in advance.  That's right I said a month or two.  It allows me to make adjustments as I go, decide what my decorations will be, how much time I need to prepare, and how much I need to add to my budget. 

I use this type of planning for big dinners that include 20 or more people. Take Christmas, this is my month to host my family over for the holiday meal so before Thanksgiving even takes place at my sisters, I already know what I will be cooking. Since my husband likes to grill, he cooks all the meats and I season and prep them and make sure that he has all his resources like full propane tanks, coals, foil, pans etc. so he can get started.  Keeping him ahead of my plans makes it comforting to know he won't be dragging his feet at the last minute.
 
My family knows that I go all the way in making sure that everything is together all the way down to having enough of trash bags, hand soap, paper towels, and toilet paper.  I survey my pantry, dig out old recipes and put them with my grocery list so that I pick up everything I need.  Since timing is everything in your planning always consider the prep time on your recipes.  Getting set up is very helpful and you want to be sure that you have enough of measuring cups, spoons and any other tools you need on hand.  Once all the food purchases have been done, its time to pick up decorations for the table, candles, tablecloths, disposal plates, cups, utensils and other items Iwill need to make the house festive for the day.  Three days before I start cooking, I make a check off list.  Have you ever start cooking and forgot to fix something?  I have and it has either held up the meal or kept me in the kitchen when everyone else is sitting down eating.  The check list works great for me so that I can enjoy the feast with everyone.

Check out this site for weekly meal planning to help save you time and make room to do more fun things. http://www.mealsmatter.org/MealPlanning/MealPlanner/  Be sure to print out the conversion chart listed on the Planning Tool tab on this website. 

I have been doing this for a long time so I consider myself a pro at it.  If this is your first time, don't be afraid to ask for help from family and friends.  These type of gatherings should be something enjoyable for you and your guest.  As time goes on and you have done this for awhile, you will see that getting all these logistics together requires a well plan process.  Planning keep you organized and on track.  It also makes time in the kitchen less stressful. 

When you want to impress your family and friends with a special dinner, plan it out and not jump in feet first.  Rushing and being unprepared can cause all sort of problems and brings frustration to you.  Select a menu that is not complicated and something you can do with ease.  Don't try to cook something new that you never made for a big group.  Practice the recipe several times before you try to serve it at a large gathering.  Remember the key is to show your good cooking and planning skills and not the results of a dish gone bad.

Let me hear from you and join me as a follower me on this blog.  Hope this has been helpful to you.  Send your comments and questions and I will get back with you with an answer. 

http://www.ehow.com/way_5514569_easy-meals-large-groups.html

http://ask.metafilter.com/116203/What-are-some-good-meals-to-cook-for-dinner-partiesgroups-of-people

Tornadoes -Twisters- Texas

As many of you have heard, Texas experience the first tornadoes of the season on yesterday.  As a matter of fact the news reported about 6 -12 storms hit the Dallas-Fort Worth area.  The storms left a lot of destruction behind, but we are so grateful that lives were spared.  It's a frightening thing to see the sky go from clear one moment to dark in a matter of minutes.  But Texans know when this happen, we stop what we are doing and listen to the weather.  When you hear people in Texas say, "if you don't like the weather here, stick around cause it will change" is a true statement.  So when you are here visiting and something like this happen, don't wait to see how close it will get, run for cover.

Please see my friend's blog site The Sage Book Whisperer for more Texas Twister details.

I want to add some recipes I found that had a"twist" to it in reference to yesterdays events.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Twister-Cheddar-Rolls/Print

Cohutta Twister Recipe

Recipe

2 oz Malibu coconut rum
2 oz vodka
4 oz Tropicana Twister Orange Cranberry Clash juice
2 oz orange juice

Preparation Instructions:
Pour the Malibu, vodka, orange juice and cran-orange juice into a hurricane glass filled with crushed ice. Stir and serve.

Additional/Optional Info:

Servings: 1 person

Serve In:
hurricane glass

http://www.food.com/recipe/cosmopolitan-raspberry-twist-96210