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My grocery bill would be much lower if I never had to buy paper goods, detergent, HBA (health, beauty aids), plus all the other items people use in their homes.
But . . . but . . . you never need to buy paper goods. Use launderable cloth towels and napkins. Learn to sit on the edge of the tub and use it as a bidet. Blow your nose between your fingers over the sink. Newspaper for messy spills, free in the penny-shopper rack. Repurpose plastic bags and dairy/deli tubs.
Cut own on (or eliminate) detergent, just hand-rub your dirty dishes under hot running water, before the grunge dries on, use a plastic net produce bag or an old credit card for a scrubber. It won't hurt to carry a patina of grease over from one day to the next on your dishes.
Don't buy HBA at the grocery store, where they cost twice as much. My grocery receipts include zero in non-food items.
My grocery bill would be much lower if I never had to buy paper goods, detergent, HBA (health, beauty aids), plus all the other items people use in their homes.
I ran out of coffee filters once and resorted to a wet paper towel to hold the grounds. I haven't spent on coffee filters since. I just dump the grounds and rinse the towel. It lasts about a week or so.
My grocery bill would be much lower if I never had to buy paper goods, detergent, HBA (health, beauty aids), plus all the other items people use in their homes.
But when considering what your food costs are, which is what this thread is about, you would not include any non-food items in that total.
And for the record, there are plenty of ways to cut back on non food items. Use more cloth or sponges and less paper products and use more natural products for cleaning and laundry, etc instead of all of the chemical/fragrance ridden products. But this all warrants a thread on it's own.
Back to the cookbook, we've also made the potato & leek pizza and the pasta with eggplant & tomato, both of which were very good, as was the summer vegetable cobbler. I made that frequently this summer when I could not keep up with the zucchini explosion in my garden. I tried to make the pierogis last winter, but they were a bit fiddly for me. I guess I don't have the touch. The roti (flatbread) was easy and an inexpensive, home-made option for the store-bought naan I usually serve with chana masala. Overall, I think it's a great cookbook. I look forward to seeing more from Leanne Brown.
Is it really a $4 a day cookbook? I think it's possible, but it would depend on where you shop and how much you usually eat. I do think the book provides a balanced and nutritious approach to cooking on a budget with an emphasis is on widely-available, fresh, whole foods. I give it two thumbs up.
I thought it was a wonderful book, good concept, thought out, and some great recipes. She posted the pdf on her website, and it was downloaded over 100,000 times after being discovered by Reddit.
Many of us bloggers loved she was willing to help those who needed it most, a 4.00 a day foodstamp budget. That is what life is about, sharing, helping and being frugal allows many of us to do just that. Whether we are frugal to share our gifts, money or time. She was trying to show that if you are wise with your budget, food buying and being creative you can have great meals.
I stock my pantry and cook from scratch for the Health benefits, saving money is a bonus. I am in the Natural health field, and love when authors give creative recipes that can use natures bounty. I know many that bought her book to share and give away to those in need. Including myself.
Leanne is a wonderful lady, great cook and is willing to share and care. I have seen many blogger friends that tried many of her recipes and loved them. Good reviews from their spouses and kids as well. I loved some of the same randomparent mentioned.
What company sells HBA products that are 1/2 the price of the grocery stores price?
Walmart, on the bottom shelf, always has a name brand tooth paste, for example, for a lot less than the lowest price at a supermarket. So do some drug chains. You have to get down on your knees and search for them. Supermarkets are notoriously bad places to buy things like HBAs and cleaning products. The dollar stores have great prices on cleaning products. Although, no doubt some of them will carry a steeply discounted product or some economical store brands.
I ran out of coffee filters once and resorted to a wet paper towel to hold the grounds. I haven't spent on coffee filters since. I just dump the grounds and rinse the towel. It lasts about a week or so.
My grocery bill would be much lower if I never had to buy paper goods, detergent, HBA (health, beauty aids), plus all the other items people use in their homes.
Why would you put them in the food budget? In my house they have their own category.
I ran out of coffee filters once and resorted to a wet paper towel to hold the grounds. I haven't spent on coffee filters since. I just dump the grounds and rinse the towel. It lasts about a week or so.
Paper towels aren't actually food grade. Something you might want to look into.
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The roti (flatbread) was easy and an inexpensive, home-made option for the store-bought naan I usually serve with chana masala. Overall, I think it's a great cookbook. I look forward to seeing more from Leanne Brown.
