Kitchen Tip Tuesday: Lower Your Grocery Bill

I am a subscriber to MaryJane's Farm magazine. While I don't agree 100% with everything that's in the magazine, there are a lot of wonderful ideas and recipes for healthy, frugal living. The June-July issue has this article for lowering your grocery bill.

7 Steps for Lowering Your Grocery Bill
The part of your budget that has the most flexibility is often the dollars you spend on food. If you're feeling the pinch in this challenging economic climate, don't trade quality for quantity -- with my simple solutions, your savings are in the bag.

1. But outside the box Shop the perimeter of the store - the outer aisles - where you'll find produce, meat, eggs, and dairy. When you delve into the other aisles, look for slow-cook brown rice, quinoa, dried lentils and beans, and rolled or steel-cut oats and avoid the expensive, boxed, highly processed foods.

2. Think big Bigger is better Save $$ by buying larger sizes and checking the shelf tags that tell you how much the product costs per ounce. (For example, you'll save about $2 buying a 32-ounce tub of yogurt -- transfer into smaller reusable containers for lunches.) Every ounces (and penny) counts.

3. Freeze it Shop the sales and freeze your bargains. Fish, meat, juice, and even dairy choices like milk, hard cheeses, and butter freeze well for short periods of time. It's like a store-wide sale in your freezer.

4. Heads up Buy fresh salad ingredients instead of those packaged lettuce mixes. The small pieces in the packages spoil quicker because their cut ends are exposed to more oxygen.

5. Weighty issues Buy bagged potatoes, onions, and fruit -- and weigh them first. Because they're bagged as 3 pounds, 5 pounds, or more, weights can vary a little and you can get up to 3/4 pound for free.

6. Herbal magic If you love fresh herbs but find yourself with spoilers before you can use them up, just refrigerate only what you can use within a week and hang the rest with a clothespin upside down to dry for later.

7. Tote it with you Many stores are now giving bag refunds when you shop with a reusable bag. Pick up a few -- think of them as fashion accessories!

Go to MaryJanesFarm.org to subscribe, find recipes, crafts, purchase wholesome foods and more.