If it's not broke, don't fix it

I love to cook, just not when I have to! If I have a menu plan, things go more smoothly and I don't feel like I'm being forced to come up with something at an inconvenient time. So I scan the cooking magazines (I'm a recipe junkie), and my trusty Taste of Home books and I make lists and I experiment.

But.

My boys prefer simple, tried and true. Don't all kids? I loved when my daughter lived here and she would appreciate a good copycat creation of an Applebee's entree or a home concocted Olive Garden pasta dish. My husband doesn't mind food like that, he just doesn't appreciate it as much as my daughter did. I know my boys don't appreciate it. They like SIMPLE.

I have decided that I won't fix what's not broken. Simple is easy. Simple is often economical. Simple is...dull, but I can adjust.

Here's what the big hits were at our house this week:

Mega hit #1: Chicken patty sandwiches (with exclamations of "MAN! Those are big buns". They were!), blackeyed peas, raw veggies, buttered noodles

Mega hit #2: Bratwurst, sauerkraut, garlic potatoes, broccoli and cheese sauce

Mega Hit #3: Lasagna, garlic bread, caesar salad

To me, I see those menus as boring. No experimentation warranted or wanted, but they received nearly unending kudos long after the last bite was taken.

A good day at Publix once again

I still find it much more difficult than a year ago to snag a good deal, but I got all of this for $25.78, and saved $44.09. It is our junk food stash, so the males in the house were thrilled. Also, note that the Stouffer's Family Size Chicken Lasagna was a dinner entree for our family of four. Tre' was not overly happy with the lasagna, but I filled in the meal with a good salad and some raw veggies, homemade bread and butter, and dessert. I could not have made the lasagna for the $4 that I paid for it, so it was a good deal and Stouffer's claims "no preservatives".

Now that we got the healthy, wholesome part of the blurb out of the way, let's talk about the not so healthy but scrumptious Boston Creme Toaster Strudels. These are definitely dangerous, and each child could probably eat nearly a box, so they are a treat. I won't be purchasing these often as a matter of self-control. They are yummy!

The Steam and Mash Garlic Potatoes, another relatively new product, were good. Normally, I would opt for real potatoes made the inconvenient, old fashioned way...but these amounted to 50 cents per bag after the BOGO sale price and coupons plus store coupons. One caution, the garlic is real, and it is pungent. My husband was not happy with his last bite of potatoes when he bit into whole garlic clove.

Here's what I got:
Family Size Stouffer's Lasagna (regular $7.19, paid $4)
Ore-Ida Steam n' Mash, 2 bags (regular $3.99 each, paid 50 cents each)
Publix Kidney Beans (my only full price item,but I was having a craving, okay?) 89 cents
One gallon of milk $3.39
Toaster Strudels, 3 boxes (regular $2.29 each, paid 97 cents each)
Luzianne Family Site Tea Bags 24 count, 2 boxes (regular $2.19 each, paid 50 cents each)
Nestle Hot Chocolate Mix, 2 boxes (regular $1.99 each, paid 40 cents each)
Green Giant Steamer Vegetables, 2 bags (regular $2.39 each, paid 19 cents each)
Kellogg's Pop Tarts, 2 boxes (regular $2.29 each, paid 67 cents each)
Totino's 40 count Pizza Rolls, 4 bags (regular $4.19 each, paid $1.10 each)
Dristan Nasal Spray (have you PRICED this stuff?! regular $5.49, paid $3.00)

I think I did well!

Time to share a money saving secret

Not that I was withholding, I had just forgotten about it until we had this recent cold snap here in NW Georgia, and I had to remember how to keep warm!



I don't live in an extremely cold climate, but we have our chilly days and it would cost me a small fortune in natural gas to heat our large home. I bought this Vornado VH2 a year and a half ago at Bed, Bath & Beyond for around $79. I use it to heat the main level of my three story home on the coldest of days. Although it is not intended to heat 1,500 square feet, it does a good job very economically. It takes about 15 minutes to get the warm air moving around enough to actually make the room feel comfortable. I especially like that it does not get hot to the touch and is safe to have around my family, without having to worry about someone getting burnt. When we need it upstairs, it's lightweight and portable. I'll most likely buy another one of these this year to keep in the basement, as it works just as well to heat the 1,000 square feet down there. No more drastic gas bills!

Be sure to note that the reviews on Amazon.com are being pulled down by people mistaking it for a very similar model, the Vornado DVH. The DVH is a cheaper model and apparently not as wonderful. If you decide to purchase, be sure to purchase the Vornado VH2.

A new trend?

The trends in retail, just as in Hollywood and Milan, are volatile. It seems that everyone and everything has its hay day, and then at the whim of public opinion they are dethroned. Remember Farrah Fawcett hair with its Faberge' Organics patronage? Everyone wanted it and who ever thought it would go out of style? What about Michael Jackson, the one gloved wonder and Madonna prancing around in her lingerie with the rat's nest, bed head, bowed up do? They were IT. And now they're not.

The same with retail love affairs. Walmart professed "Made in the U.S.A" in their glory days, now they are sold out to Chinese imports and employee rights scandals. I actually felt very sad the day that Montgomery Ward shut their doors in the 1990s. Wards was somehow woven into my childhood. Maybe it was the Christmas catalog that we would study in great detail every November. It rivaled the Sears Wish Book, and we were happy to make our lists and check them more than twice. Now there is amazon.com and eBay. How silly does it sound to shop by Blackberry? Would my mother even know what that means?

Trends. I used to be in love with Publix, the epitome of customer service, and now I'm growing disenchanted. They are still wonderful at customer service, but not as good as they used to be. Their reputation preceded them, yet they seem to be tightening their belts as much as the next guy. Case in point: cashiers that scrutinize and question every coupon and make comments with pursed lips about how much I saved. Or empty store shelves by the second day of a really good sale. This week was the clincher: another dud sales ad, even in light of a grand opening in Hixson on October 8th, and inflatable prices, depending on what's BOGO. *sigh*. I hope the love lasts.

What to do with cabbage?

For certain, it's one food item I'm not likely to grow in my container garden. We're simply not huge cabbage fans. This time of year, however, it can be an extremely frugal food, and it's loaded with fiber and a few other good for ya' things. Sometimes I just sprinkle it with a little sugar and steam it. Sometimes I will disguise it, shredded extremely thin with a mandoline and toss it into fried rice. I prefer it raw, so I make this:

Chinese Cabbage & Noodle Salad

1/2 head of cabbage, shredded thin like slaw
1 package ramen noodles (just the hard noodles)
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
green onions. sliced thin, if desired

1/4 cup oil
1 tablespoon sugar
sprinkle of seasoned salt
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1.5 tablespoons of vinegar
salt and pepper to taste


Shred cabbage. Break up ramen noodles into the shredded cabbage. Add sunflower seeds. Combine oil, sugar, soy sauce, seasoning salt, vinegar, salt and pepper in a separate bowl. Mix with cabbage mixture and refrigerate.

Oh, my!

If you do not have self-control with scrumptious food, do not make this recipe for Cashew Butter Crunch Popcorn from last week's Times Free Press insert, Relish magazine. We inherited another super huge bagful of movie theater popcorn last Sunday, and I thought I would be clever and try a new recipe that uses popcorn. Well, I don't think it was such a clever idea now. The entire family cannot keep their hands out of it. I am so fearful of overindulging the in the stuff that I sent the bowl upstairs with my husband for safekeeping!

Curiosity Under Control

This week was an exercise in self control, as we had a brand new Publix open in Hixson, TN this morning. All week, I have debated on whether I should go, or not. I've spent the past several weeks listening to Dave Ramsey podcasts, preparing for worse economic times by debating every dollar spent. You see, my pantry is well stocked, so I really don't need to go to Publix...but Publix usually has some awesome grand opening specials. And then I had to decide if the gas I'd be using was worth the 20 mile drive. I even stayed up 'til midnight last night just to see the new Publix sales ad online with its celebration specials. Would there be something in the new flyer that would cause me to have to go to the grand opening?

You know what? No. The grand opening sales were really not all that phenomenal, at least not like the grand opening in December 2007 of the store closest to me. Perhaps a sign of tougher economic times unlike 10 months ago, or perhaps because Publix is not brand spankin' new to the Chattanooga area. Either way, I'm staying home today. My curiousity is under control!

(note: I am also gearing up for the possibility of Bi-Lo offering triple coupons again soon. They seem to follow a pattern of battling the new competition in the area with triple coupon sales. I'm stashing away some extra grocery money for when that day comes!)

Melatonin Update

It's still working well! I am so impressed, after years of struggling to get to bed at a decent time so that I can wake up refreshed at a decent time. Refreshed is the key word for me. I have learned that I cannot take the melatonin until about a half hour before I am ready to go to bed. Otherwise, I am unable to keep my eyes open, even if something is really good on t.v.!

I have been waking up on my own at 7:15 a.m. and have had so many productive mornings before everyone else is up in my home. I love it, and I don't think that I will be giving up my melatonin any time soon!

Grocery Budget Breakthrough!

Finally! After months of trying to get the grocery monster under control (or should I say, The Dining Out Monster?), there is a breakthrough! Are you ready for this? $388 and some change...and that was with eating out a few times due to company and convenience. Nevertheless, I am satisfied that I am back on track with a good stash of coupons and a commitment to menu planning!

My boys have HUGE appetites, Jordan for fruits and veggies; Tre' for meat. Me? Just give me carbs (exactly what I shouldn't splurge on)!

Menu Plan Monday

A skeletal framework for this week, subject to change, depending on what I find in my freezer and my cookbooks!

Monday: Homemade pizza, raw veggies
Tuesday: Chicken and Dumplings, rolls, salad
Wednesday: Marinated steaks and rice, grilled vegetables
Thursday: Fried Rice and Egg Drop Soup, oriental cabbage
Friday: Beef Stroganoff with egg noodles, broccoli

Visit orgjunkie.com for more ideas!

12 week countdown!

I made it through September! We had out of town guests nearly every weekend, just when I was feeling like it was time to pull our lives back together with our homeschool and our budget. I love having guests, really I do, so I don't intend for what I have said to be taken as a complaint. It's not! But with the Fall season comes a renewing in our home. It is a time to turn our hearts home and focus on family and the upcoming holidays. With my sights set on the Thanksgiving and Christmas season, everything within me is screaming "Get a PLAN!" For me that means lists: lists for gifts, lists for groceries, lists for what needs to be done during which week. The countdown begins! Twelve weeks until Christmas! One of my favorite planning websites is www.organizedhome.com , with its free printables galore! Do you have a favorite holiday planning website? If so, leave a comment!

Melatonin works for me!

I have not been sleeping well for the past month or so. In part, I'm sure, because my life has been on hyperdrive. In part, also, because my eating habits have been lax in the areas of sugar and caffeine (I'll blame that on company all month!). I tend to be a night owl anyway, as does my husband...but I've decided to try to change that habit at least little. My first plan of action was to get my husband to sleep a little so we added melatonin 3mg to his nightly ritual. It works for him to get to sleep, but he still has difficulty staying in La-La land. When he wakes up, he turns on the television, or his laptop, which in turn wakes me up. Not only that, but it has been proven in sleep studies that any light (including the tiny glow eminating from your alarm clock) interferes with a solid sleep cycle because it causes your body to halt production of the hormone melatonin. Thus, I have made the decision to supplement myself with melatonin 3mg at bedtime. I am pleased to report that it works. So well, in fact, that when my husband tried to wake me up at (*wink*) 2 a.m., I had difficulty opening my eyes. I was so relaxed that my eyelid muscles did not even want to cooperate! Woohoo! Now THAT's an improvement!

What's on the menu?

A group of fellow homeschoolers was discussing menu ideas this afternoon, and I thought of something that I hadn't made in quite some time. Here's my recipe:

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

1 beaten egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
3/4 tsp. salt
dash of pepper
1 pound of ground beef (or 1/2 lb ground pork and 1/2 pound ground beef)
3/4 cup cooked rice
6 large or 12 medium cabbage leaves
1 can of tomato soup
1 T. brown sugar
1 T. lemon juice

In a bowl, combine egg, milk , W-sauce, onion, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add meat and cooked rice. Mix well.

Remove center vein of cabbage leaves, keeping each leaf in one piece. Immerse leaves in boiling water for about three minutes or until limp. Drain. Place 1/2 cup of meat mixture on each large leaf or 1/4 meat mixture on each medium leaf. Fold in sides. Starting at unfolded edge, roll up each leaf, making sure that folded edges are included in the roll. Arrange in a 12X7X2 baking dish. Stir together the tomato soup, brown sugar and lemon juice. Pour sauce mixture over cabbage rolls. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree oven for 1 1/4 hours, basting once or twice with sauce. Makes 6 servings.