Favorite Pinterest Workouts

So, this blog isn't just about eating healthy anymore. This blog is about living a healthy lifestyle on a budget, and I want to provide my readers with tons of great ideas. One way you can save money on your journey to a healthy lifestyle is by working out at home, so I'd like give you a list of some of my favorite workouts that I've found on Pinterest.

To help narrow down my selection, I'm using only those workouts that don't require navigating to another site to view. You can find the entire workout on one image, which is helpful when doing the workout itself, because I know that I won't have to scroll down the page or tap for the next slide (I hate slideshows on Pinterest, by the way). None of these workouts require equipment, either. You're welcome to use weights or a cat if you feel that you need a better workout, but you don't need them.

Favorite Full-Body Workout: No-Excuses Workout

This circuit workout will leave you sweating.

This workout pinned from Back on Pointe is what I like to call a "doozie". You will curse during, and you will hurt after, but you will love this full-body workout that involves push-ups, jump-squats, and mountain climbers. If you need to modify this workout to make it easier, I highly recommend just doing one circuit the first time, then adding on as you gain strength and stamina.

Favorite Core Workout: 300 Abs
This is an abs workout. It contains 300 total reps. It hurts. Afterward, though, your abs start to think they can do anything. They can take on a punch from Superman, they can make the masses swoon at your feet, they can grow a pair of legs and kick grown men into pits.

Ok, maybe your abs won't do any of those things, but this is my favorite abs workout on Pinterest right now. If the name isn't enough to bring you over, I dare you to try it. You'll learn to believe.

Not sure where the original comes from as the Twitter account listed at the bottom doesn't seem to exist, so if you know the creator, I'd love to know!

Favorite Butt Workout: How to Get That A$$!
I said butt. Butt seriously, this is an awesome workout that will help you tone your glutes and make you giggle at the same time. And that means an ab workout. As I read it, I could imagine a smokin' hot trainer cheering me on and talking about my booty, which is never a bad thing. Don't worry if your pistol squats aren't completely parallel with the floor, either. Those suckers can take a lot of practice!

When I do this workout, since you might have guessed that there are no reps listed, I do sets of 10 until my butt is on fire. Fire.

I'd love to know the original source for this one, too. The Tumblr provided on the original image isn't correct, so the best place to find it right now is through Back on Pointe.

Favorite Arms Workout: Lean Arms Workout
Arms are my weakness, and I have long joked about my lack of upper body strength. In fact, I much prefer to get an arm workout without noticing until my arms are sore the next day. Unfortunately, that's not the way to build muscle. This workout is short enough that you can fit in any time but intense enough that you'll be feeling it by the time you're done.

Now, this workout does have a "with light weights" component (and a chair to do your triceps dips), but you don't need to use weights to do arm circles if you don't have them. I also found the wrist circles a little silly until I was nearing the end of the workout and my wrists started clearing their imaginary throats. Wrist strength is an easily forgotten component of arm strength, as my right wrist likes to remind me every so often.

This is another of those workouts from Back on Pointe.

Favorite Legs Workout: Cowgirl Legs Circuit
I love this challenging circuit workout that focuses on getting your legs toned and ready for anything. If you've never seen a Heisman, like I hadn't, you can find an example on Self.com.

This workout was pinned from YouMeFit.com, which is an excellent site to explore which you're looking for fitness advice or other workout graphics.

Favorite Running Workout: C25K
C25K is what I used to start my running obsession, and I love that it's available here as a single graphic. I do have other favorite running routines that aren't for beginners, but I wanted to show how easy it is to go from non-runner to I can run three-point-one miles straight in nine weeks. You can even download the plan to your iPod, iPhone, or Android Phone, and it will coach you through the program.

Favorite Cardio Workout: Indoor Cardio Crusher
I chose this workout because it's an indoor cardio workout that doesn't require a treadmill. With the heat of the summer imposing its heat on most of the US (I saw you, California, with your "high of 69" ridiculousness. What do you have to say for yourself?), I wanted to offer a cardio workout that could take place indoors and that anyone could do. This workout will definitely get your heart pumping. You can even use it as a circuit workout if your heart so desires.

The original comes from fitfabcities.com.

Favorite Spontaneous Workout: "Every time you see this, do..."
Okay, so this isn't just one workout, it's a collection of pins. I love that you can be scrolling along Pinterest and doing nothing productive one minute, then doing a short exercise the next. I'll admit, though, that I don't always jump up with enthusiasm to complete these exercises. And, yes, I keep scrolling for about half. Even completing half of these challenges, though, will help you work on your fitness rather than sitting around.

Phew. That was quite the workout!

I hope you've enjoyed my current favorite Pinterest workouts. There are far more workouts on Pinterest than this small collection, and I will bring more to you as we continue on this journey. If you want more workouts, you can follow my "I Work Out" board on Pinterest.

Remember, you always want to consult with a doctor to see if you're healthy enough and if your body can take any workout regimen. My intention is never for anyone to get hurt; that's the opposite of healthy.

Questions? Comments? Let me know in the comments below!

Civilized Caveman's Paleo Recipe App Review

I just downloaded the Civilized Caveman's Paleo Recipe App. George, the internet's resident bacon-obsessed (who isn't?) caveman has created this completely awesome, functional recipe app. At an introductory price of .99, it's a fantastic deal and, if you get a chance, you should download it.

The first thing you will notice after the download is how gorgeous all the pictures are. This is what I call high-quality, mouth-watering photography at its finest. The app is organized into different categories (Breakfast, Poultry Entrees, Sides...). Each category leads into a list of recipes, starting with a "Featured Recipes" section that you can swipe through. Talk about delicious.

Once in a recipe, swipe past the photo to the ingredient list then to the recipe steps. I love that I can change the units of measurement! I would definitely look into minimizing the amount of swipes between steps, though, because I don't always have a free (or clean!) hand to swipe with, especially when I'm working with raw meat.

In the future, I look forward to seeing a shopping list and a way to check off the ingredients that you do have. I am also interested in seeing a way to convert into a smaller number of servings because I usually cook for just myself. I would also love to be able to share that I made a recipe on Facebook or Twitter through this app—I don't even need to post the recipe, really, just let people know that the recipe is awesome and that they should try it.

The app also includes less bacon than I expected.

Overall, this is an awesome, very usable app that has room to grow. Worth more than .99, so I am glad that the price is introductory only.

Since this is a blog about maintaining your budget while living a healthy lifestyle, I will leave my readers with a small caution. The Paleo lifestlye can get expensive because the ingredients you use are superior in quality and don't have a high demand yet. Plus, you will fall in love with this lifestyle.

Paleo recipes, however, are fantastic and healthy because they use real ingredients and they work with the thought that our bodies have not yet evolved to combat all the various processed foods we eat. You can always scale your involvement when you begin a lifestyle, though, and I encourage you to start by buying whatever you can afford.

It will change your life!

Agree? Disagree? Questions? Comments? Let me know in the comments section!

TIL: I cannot spell lifestyle on the first try, apparently.

Ahoy!

This past year has been absolutely insane. What you haven't seen/read/heard is that, in that past year, I lost eighty pounds, moved to St. Louis, got homesick for Springfield, am trying to find a job, found a special someone, got linked to through Greatist, and have generally had a marvelous time.

I'm back in the blogging world, and I am more ready than ever to bring great content, recipes, and tips for eating healthy on a budget to anyone who might still be reading and anyone who wants to start reading.

Are you ready? Because I am, and so are my fingers and my taste buds.

I also want to encourage you to participate. Let me know what you want to see. Let me know your story. Let me know that you think I'm a big meany head for leaving you alone this long. I genuinely want to know, and I can't wait to hear from you!

Something Wicked...

So I've changed the name of the blog. And I may change it several times over before I'm finished writing it. I've changed my goals ever so slightly and wanted a name to reflect that change. Why? I don't just want to eat less food, I want to eat healthy food. I want to be healthy, and I want a blog to reflect that and not a misinformed idea that just by eating less I will be healthier, that I will spend less, or that I will lose weight.

I started off the year brilliantly by trying to cut high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) out of my diet. This one thing has made me start looking at the labels of products that I probably shouldn't eat anyway. Sometimes, the product I want does not contain HFCS, but the ingredient list is a mile long, or it contains corn starch, so I take a pass. I slip every once in a while, I know this, but those slips are becoming fewer, and they mostly happen at work (I work at a bakery where I want to eat everything all the time).

In February, my goal was to add running to my routine and, somehow, though the month did not start out strong, I ran the last five days in a row. And I feel great. On top of the running, a co-worker lead me in the direction of Tabata workouts, which I think have also helped me feel so good.

I'm not sure what I'd like to add (or take away) for March. It is my birthday month, and I think I would like to participate in the St. Patty's Day 5K in my neck of the woods just to see if I can improve my time ( I ran 5km in 42:42 last Thursday. It was one of those things that made me know that I was doing exactly what I am meant to be doing).

So, we'll see what my March goal is. I've got another day to think about it, though a part of my thinks I should give up cake. This won't happen, but it's a nice thought.

Green Machine!

Green, green; everywhere green.

As you can see from the picture, I bought a ton of green things when I went to the store, and let me tell you—this made a super awesome salad when topped with a little EVOO, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. If you'd like to replicate this awesome, just grab some kale, romaine lettuce, spinach, mushrooms, grape tomatoes, radishes, and avocado. This mix will last for days and will cost less than $3 per serving.

The Thin Mints, of course, are making a super delicious desert (though I have yet to check them for high fructose corn syrup). Girl Scout Cookies are never cost effective, but they're always for a good cause, and I was a girl scout for a long time.

On the high fructose corn syrup front, I'm doing rather well. Though the evil stuff is found in far too many items that I love, I have options that don't contain any. Plus, many (though definitely not all) of the food found without the syrup is healthier to begin with. I'm still trying to live without soda, though I've switched to diet in the hopes that I can use it as a gateway drug to drinking only water and juice.

You may also notice the fuzzy thing in the top left corner of the photo. That's my kitty. She likes to look at green things, though she looks at me like I'm crazy when I try to feed them to her.

Toaster Oven Garlic Kale Chips

After looking at the recipes for kale chips, I thought that I would just go ahead and improvise because there's nothing in the world I like better than to pretend that I'm a chef. Add that to my love for garlic and the fact that my oven doesn't work, and you've got what I came up with here.

Ingredients

• 4 c. kale
• 1 T. coconut oil, melted
• 1/4 t. pepper
• 1/4 t. garlic powder
• salt to taste

Rinse and dry kale, then remove the stems and center ribs. Tear into bite sized pieces and lightly coat with coconut oil sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic. Place in single layer on baking sheet. Cook in toaster oven for approx. 7 minutes until kale has turned slightly brown on the edges. My toaster oven does not have temperatures, just selections for top, bottom, or both. I cooked them with just the bottom setting and they turned out great.

The result is a light and crispy kale chip with a hint of salt and garlic. It's quite tasty, I think, and makes for a healthy snack.

Some notes on this recipe: the drier your kale is before you coat it with oil, the less clean up you will need to do. Drying the leaves also keeps them from steaming. If you've ever dropped water in oil, you'll know why. Also, a little bit of seasoning goes a long way with this recipe. If it looks like you've added too much, you probably have. My first batch was ruined because I put far too much salt on the leaves.

If you're looking for variations on the theme, tons of other bloggers have made different recipes with them. Kalyn's Kitchen goes ahead and lists them at the end of her own kale chip recipe, so I'll just direct you that-a-way.

Produce Confidential: Kale

The only thing I knew about kale before I picked up a bunch at the grocery store was that kale is green and leafy. I've seen kale chip recipes, a co-worker who put kale in her smoothies, and plenty of other uses for the vegetable, so I was curious.  Kale has all sorts of vitamins and nutritional benefits that counter its bitter taste. Now, when I see health benefits that include "risk-lowering benefits for cancer", I have to take that with a grain or two of salt, but kale, it seems, is a pretty impressive piece of leafy green vegetable.

Kale is what is known as a cruciferous vegetable. All that means is that it is in the cabbage family along with broccoli, cauliflower, and (my favorite) Brussels sprouts. There are three types of kale: curly, ornamental, and dinosaur.

To me, raw kale tastes a lot like raw broccoli (so, delicious), which would make sense. I can easily see kale as a way to spice up a spinach salad.

Peak Season

Kale is available throughout the year, although it is more widely available from mid-winter through the beginning of spring.

Nutrients in Kale*

1.00 cup, cooked (130.00 grams)

Nutrient%Daily Value

vitamin K1327.6%

vitamin A354.1%

vitamin C88.8%

manganese27%

dietary fiber10.4%

copper10%

tryptophan9.3%

calcium9.3%

potassium8.4%

iron6.5%

magnesium5.8%

vitamin E5.5%

omega 3 fatty acids5.4%

vitamin B2 (riboflavin)5.2%

protein4.9%

vitamin B1 (thiamin)4.6%

folate4.2%

phosphorus3.6%

vitamin B3 (niacin)3.2%

Calories (36)2%

* Hijacked from The World's Healthiest Foods website

Health Benefits

Besides being packed full of vitamins and minerals, kale has a number of noted health benefits. Incorporating kale into your diet can help lower cholesterol and lower the risk of heart disease. Eating kale and other cruciferous vegetables can also lower your risk of cancer. Again, I take that sort of research with a grain of salt, but any chance is better than no chance at all.

Pick Your Kale

Look for firm, dark leaves and healthy stems. Small leaves will be more mild in flavor. Kale can range in color from dark green to purple, so some varieties may be appropriate for adding color to salads and other dishes.

Storage

Store kale in a cool environment to keep the leaves from wilting. Kale does best in the refrigerator for up to five days, and the longer it is stored, the more bitter it becomes. You should not wash kale before storing.

Resources

• WebMD: The Truth about Kale
• WebMD: The Super-Veggies: Cruciferous Vegetables
• The World's Healthiest Foods: Kale
• AICR's Foods that Fight Cancer

Dinner

I went out to dinner with my brother the other day. We had an awesome time, eating way-too-greasy food and talking about our lives. While I am on a budget, eating out with my little brother is a luxury I can't give up. Even though we live less than two miles from each other, we see each other maybe for ten minutes each month other than when we make the time to sit down with each other.

So, while I admit that going out to eat is an indulgence that I really need to cut out of my life, there is always a time and a reason to let someone else do the cooking. Plus, it was really great to just hang out and talk.

Also, guess what!

Oh, Hi There...

It has been quite a while since I last updated this blog. A lot has changed since I last updated this blog.

Here are just some of the things that have changed in the last almost-six months:

• I have a new job. One that I adore and that I make a little more money with.
• My student loans have become due.
• I cut high fructose corn syrup out of my diet.
• I have gone from needing to watch the money I spend on food, to really needing to watch my money, to not needing to, back to needing to, and now I don't need to watch what I spend on food, but I should.
• I watched all of Star Trek: TOS and have started on TNG.
• I gained a roommate, lost her, and then got her back again.
• I have started learning the guitar!

Student loans are what killed my budget to begin with and made me realize that I needed to start watching what I spent on food. And, while I went to extremes when I first began this blog, the principle is the same. Last month I spent almost $200 at the grocery store. When I looked at the final number, I wanted to throw it all back up and return each bite. I'm single, I'm feeding only myself and my cat, and I get to eat for free when I work. Why spend so much on food? Where does it all go?

Then I look in my fridge and freezer, and I am back to where I started. Too much food that I don't eat. Too much that I do eat. I am stocking my freezer for some future date that I can't seem to see. Too much cake, always.

Cutting high fructose corn syrup from my diet has helped. Some. So much food contains the evil stuff...and yet I can still find items without. Like chocolate frosting.

So, I'm back here with a new intensity. My goals with this blog are shifting only slightly. Here, I will chronicle my adventures in cutting down how much I eat and how much I spend on food. I will also focus on eating healthy food in single-serving portions. We'll see how that works.

I'll be writing in this space more often now, too! Have a great day.

Produce Confidential: Zucchini

Zucchini is incredibly versatile in the kitchen. You can bake it, fry it, steam it. Make it into cakes, wear it as headgear. My favorite way to prepare zucchini? Saute with butter, add garlic, smother in Parmesan cheese, eat.

This absolutely gorgeous zucchini (why, yes, that's my sink in the background. Sorry!) came from my lovely friends over at Cooking with My Girlfriend. I thought that, in honor of that glorious squash, I would post about the care and maintenance of one of my favorite members of the squash family.

Before we begin, I also wanted to mention a blog I stumbled upon that has a recipe for Chocolate. Zucchini. Cake. The blog is called Chocolate and Zucchini and is run by a French woman (she writes in English, so don't be scared away!) whose cooking journey began while she was still a software engineer.

Random Facts

Growing Season: April-August
Origin: North America
Other names: Courgette, summer squash
Classification: Botanically, zucchini considered a fruit; however, chefs generally treat it as a vegetable and prepare it in savory dishes.

Selection

Choose zucchini that is firm and unblemished with a fresh, green color. The younger the squash is, the more tender it will be (the plants around here are rather vivacious at the moment, though!). A zucchini that is about 6–8 inches long should yield the best results.

Storage

Store zucchini either at room temperature or in a perforated bag in the refrigerator. Wash directly before using but not before then.

You should not freeze whole zucchini because it tends to turn mealy. If you wish to freeze your zucchini, I've located several ways to prepare it, all of which involve blanching the zucchini. You can cut it into 1-inch slices, then blanch for three minutes, or you can grate the zucchini and blanch for 1–2 minutes.

References

I found quite a few different web sites as I had my way with zucchini information. Many of them are filled with awesome recipes, so you should definitely check them out!

• University of Nebraska-Lincoln
• About.com
• National Center for Home Food Preservation
• Food.com
• Fruit and Veggie Guru

Produce Confidential: Watermelon

As I wandered down the aisles of the grocery store, a 15-pound watermelon rolling about in my cart (myself wondering how in the world I was going to carry it the half-mile home), it suddenly struck me as funny that I was paying less when the fruit was at its best, its tastiest. You can say this about produce, but what other types of food follow this trend?

Oh, here—filet mignon; best it's ever tasted—half off!

That wine is one of the best vintages around, sir. I can get it for you at a fraction of the cost.

Nope. Fruits, veggies, herbs—everything that's seasonal and tastes best at a certain point.

But 15 pounds of watermelon is a big commitment, especially when you're single and going to eat the entire thing alone. So, to help my curiosity and perhaps also spritz yours, I decided to find out the best ways to care for seasonal fruits and veggies.

And I'm starting with watermelon.

Peak Season

Regardless of the fact that you can find this rather hefty fruit year long (thanks to science), watermelon's peak growing season is from May to September, so that's when our favorite green-and-pink (or yellow!) fruit is at its sweetest.

Picking Your Watermelon

As far as picking the perfect watermelon, try to choose one with a dull rind and a slightly sweet smell. The rind should also be free of cracks or bruises. The fruit should have a yellow underside from where it ripened on the ground. Thumping on the side should result in a nice, resonant thunk.

Preparation and Storage

Watermelon can actually be stored on your counter for 7–10 days before slicing. So, if you're having a BBQ but the sale at your local grocery store ends a few days beforehand, don't fear buying the fruit a few days early. When you begin slicing into that lovely hunk of fruit, I recommend only preparing half of the watermelon while placing aluminum foil around the unused portion (leave the rind intact) and placing that half in the fridge. You can cut the portion you'll eat the soonest into wedges, cubes, or even balls, but don't forget to refrigerate after "opening" and to use air-tight containers or aluminum foil to keep the fruit from becoming mushy or mealy.

Do not freeze.

Watermelon Web Sites

I used various sources to create this post, so I thought I'd do the friendly (and, you know, non-plagiarizing) thing and let you know what other authorities are floating about the net. My favorite was actually an article from the Weight Watchers Web Site. The were very straightforward, and I used quite a bit of information from their article.

Want to learn more about watermelon or see some really neat watermelon carvings? Try watermelon.org. It's filled with tasty tidbits about nutrition, and lots of fun recipes!

Want to see some general rules on keeping fruit fresh? SparkPeople has created a handy list to let you know what fruits, veggies, and herbs you should store in what conditions (although I found some of them not as explanatory as they could be)

Coming Clean

I knew, coming into this project, that one of the biggest challenges I would face was actually coming to terms with all of the food that I don't eat. I've always been a food waster. I buy food, especially produce, then get distracted by something else delicious so I don't eat what I bought. Eventually, I forget what I have in my fridge so that, two months later, I rummage about only to find soggy, spore-ridden zucchini or bread or cheese. It's a problem.

So, I'm not hiding from what has, on occasion, amounted to several trash bags worth of wasted food (of course, I was living with two roommates, so they helped, but...). When I started thinking about my long-term goals with this, I had to decide what to do about this problem when it comes to trying to live under a certain amount per month.

My solution was two-fold: I would, once a month, clean my fridge of anything past its best-by date and add together approximates of what I had spent. Then, I'd add that to the totals for the month and see if I still remained under my goal.

Secondly, the amount that the wasted food was worth would go into a jar. Closer to the end of the year, I'll go on a shopping trip for whichever local food bank is collecting near me!

Like I said, I've realized that this is enough of a problem that I will have enough to make a substantial contribution at the end of each year (although, hopefully, it will diminish with time!).

This past fridge cleaning, I put away $5.20 in my jar. Considering that half of the contributions were only about $0.10 a piece...that's quite a bit.

I'm working, very slowly, toward reducing what I waste, but knowing what I waste is another first step.

An Itty Bitty Update

I have a notebook. It is green. I got it from my boss. It houses all of those numbers that no one wants to read but I post anyway. So I'm trying a new tactic for a while: not posting each individual number. I have so many things that I would rather post on this blog. There are the Product Reviews, of course, and more Recipes. I'd also like to start a section on Produce: how to care for and when to buy your favorite fruits and vegetables. Another section I'm toying with is a section about having an entire meal under $1—and I mean something from each of the food groups per serving.

I will still post weekly and monthly totals and averages, but I think that that part of this blog is more personal, and no one reallywants to read those. Actually, it's more that a part of me doesn't think anyone wants to know those sorts of things. If you think differently, let me know and I'd be glad to re-start those postings.

Anyway, ttfn!

French Baguette Pizza!

So, I made an awesome pizza a few nights ago by using a french baguette, lots of cheese, and garlic. And you can make your own, too! One baguette makes about four individual pizzas (I cut mine into eights to make them easier to eat, but I'd say fourths for the hungrier people out there), and can be bought pretty inexpensively.

What you need:
French baguette (as low as $0.88 from Walmart)
Butter
Garlic powder
Italian seasoning
Tomato sauce
Cream cheese
Parmesan cheese
Shredded cheese (preferably with provolone in it)
Any meat or veggie toppings you may want

So cut the baguette in half horizontally (using your serrated knife, of course!) and then again vertically for as many pizzas as you would like. Then, spread a layer of butter over the crumb of the bread. Sprinkle with garlic and Italian seasoning(french baguettes make awesome garlic bread, too). Cover with tomato/pizza/spaghetti sauce. Following that was a layer of chive and onion cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, and then the "pizza" mix I got from the grocery store. I put the pizza in the oven for 10 minutes at 420 degrees. Then I feasted.

I didn't use any meat, but that doesn't mean that you can't. In fact, I would love to see some meaty, delicious French baguette pizzas. You can also use a bagel as the crust instead of a baguette, but most other breads end up not having the same consistency or texture as a pizza crust, which makes your dinner "Stuff on Bread" rather than "Pizza".

The total cost for me ended up being about $0.30 per little section (so, an eighth). A lot of my ingredients were from before I moved, and I hijacked the baguette from my work. For pizza, that's a really good price.

Now some people may ask why I didn't just make my own crust, and there were several reasons. Firstly, the baguette was free. The baguette is similar (though not the same) as having a slightly tough pizza crust. It's a little on the thick side and you don't have the crust's edge to keep your toppings from falling off. You can use the rest of the baguette for other meals if you don't use it all in one sitting (sandwiches, garlic bread). Baguettes are delicious.1

Groceries~

So, I've been going to the grocery store once per paycheck, which seems to work out rather well. Last time, I went with a list. That technique went well enough, though I was hard pressed to curb my impulse buying. This round, I gave myself a set amount to spend—just $20. And I fully succeeded, spending only $19.94.

This tactic worked a little better for me because I was able to look at something and put it in the basket without feeling bad for not following that darned list. Of course, I had an idea of what I needed, so I wasn't completely unprepared. I knew I wanted potatoes and snacks, but the rest was up to my stomach.

Just a short update, I suppose. Later this week, I'll be posting a recipe of sorts that turned out really well. Hope to see you there!

Oooooklahoma!

Date	Food	Cost
6/6	Granola bar	$0.42
	Muffin	$0.00
	Cookie Mash	$0.50
	Fried Rice	$.68
	Cookies	$0.55
	Cookies	$0.59
Total		$2.74
6/7	Strawberries	$0.54
	Soda	$0.59
	Bagel	$0.00
	Fried rice	$0.68
Total		$1.81
6/8	Toaster pastries	$0.35
	Fried Rice	$0.68
Total		$1.03
6/9	Toaster pastries	$0.35
	Sandwich	$2.86
	Stroganoff Creation	$0.75
	Ice Cream with Strawberries	$0.90
Total		$4.86
6/10	Toaster pastries	$0.35
	Stroganoff Creation	$1.50
	Cereal with Strawberries	$0.61
	Ice Cream with Strawberries	$0.61
Total		$3.07
6/11	Chocolate	$0.40
	Cereal with Strawberries	$0.61
	Stroganoff Creation	$1.50
	Bagel	$0.47
Total		$2.98
6/12	Toaster pastries	$0.35
	Strawberries	$0.72
	Stroganoff Creation	$0.75
Total		$1.82
6/13	Popcorn	$0.33
Total		$0.33
6/10	Tater tots with cream cheese	$0.40
	Steak N Shake	$9.00
Total		$9.40

As a note, do realize that I'm not starving myself. In fact, if we added in the numerous bagels and pastries and such, the list would be a lot longer. In fact, It would be so much longer that I'm thinking about putting some sort of worth to the items that I don't have to pay for since the second goal of this project of mine is to eat less because I'm spending less.

Ham and Hot Dog Fried Rice

Why, yes, I did put hot dogs in my fried rice. It was delicious. And, for about $0.68/serving, who could argue? I don't really keep track of the ratio of spices that I put in my food when I cook, but I will tell you what sorts of good things I put in the dish.

Day-old rice
Soy sauce
Frozen veggies
Ham
Hot dogs
Egg
Garlic powder
Cayenne pepper
Chili powder
Black pepper
Salt
Onion powder
Brown Sugar

When You Were Young

I used to hate when Mom put extra noodles in the Hamburger Helper. I understand why she did it—when we were kids, my brother and I knew how to eat; we could put away two boxes of the stuff between us. Feeding just yourself is expensive—feeding kids even more so. Unfortunately, she just added noodles without compensating for how thin the sauce would be spread afterward, so we were always disappointed with this version of our favorite food.

Adding noodles, however, does save some money per serving, even if you're just using the off-brand (Kitchen Creations!) like myself. So, here is how I make my meal in a box taste just as good as the original.

• Extra meat.
  This one may sound a little silly. Why buy more meat when it's already the most expensive part of the dish? My reasoning is this: most packages of ground chuck (when you're not getting the stuff that comes in tubes) don't have exactly one pound of meat. Instead of searching for the package closest to one pound or under, I look for the package that has 1.21 pounds, 1.36 pounds. This gives you a little more meat to play with, so your extra noodles don't overwhelm the burger, and you're not paying too much extra.
• Spices.
  This may seem self-explanatory, but my mom forgot to add extra spice every time. The simplest solution is to add salt and whatever spice is most abundant in the recipe. Garlic salt and seasoning salt also work really well. I also like to at a little cayenne pepper.
• Water and butter.
  When I use most meal helpers, I tend to replace the milk with water and butter. This was not originally because it brought down the price. I started making recipes this way because the milk in my fridge was bad, and I didn't want to run to the store for more. Instead I added two tbsp. butter and replaced the milk with water. I haven't had anything taste terribly so far, so I'll continue to do this until I create something too foul for consumption.
• Noodles.
  I try not to add more than enough to make two extra servings. Otherwise, the flavor becomes too thin, which is the reason why I hated when Mom added noodles in the first place. Also, when you're boiling the noodles, add a little of the flavoring packet to the water as well as your salt. That way, just like with the noodles in the original, your new noodles have picked up some of the flavor from the sauce.

So that's how I help my meal helper go further while still tasting great. What ways do you make prepackaged food go further than the maker intended?

Product Review: Banquet Sweet and Sour Chicken

So I've decided to start a new section to this blog. I'm trying lots of inexpensive foods trying to see which ones are keepers and which ones are not to my liking (there's a part of me that wants to call them "studs" and "duds"...so I might label them as such). This will include mostly my thoughts on generic-brand offerings and frozen meals. The first victim was $1.00 from Banquet's line of frozen meals.

The Sweet and Sour Chicken

I'm a huge fan of (American) Chinese food in general. There's something about the grease-and-frozen-vegetable combo that is almost always a hit with my taste buds. This? Not so much.

I think the biggest turn off was the dark-meat chicken nuggets. Yes, they were chicken nuggets. No, I was not aware that they were dark meat when I bought them. I have never been able to stomach dark meat, regardless of how many times I've been told that it's flavor-filled and juicy. And, while I've never encountered dark meat that I liked, I've also never encountered dry dark meat which is the foe I faced with this meal.

I will tell you that the sauce was very good, and I've never met a rice I didn't like. In fact, the sauce saved the nuggets from being inedible. This particular item will never see the inside of my freezer again, but I am holding off my judgement of the Banquet line in general until I try some more of their (probably non-chicken) products.

Final Thoughts

With frozen food, I understand that you get what you pay for and that frozen meals are generally more expensive than making your own food. I also understand that half of it is so processed that the creatures the food originated from have actually changed both gender and species before the food ended up in my shopping cart. With that thought in mind, I never mind being disappointed by a frozen meal so long as I eat it all. I am also working to cut these types of food out of my life and to eat more leftovers. Of course, heating up something frozen is simple, so it may take some time to wean myself from the meals.

Days Go By

I may not have been updating, but I have been keeping track of the food inhaled. Today, then, will be kind of a mass update.

Date	Food	Cost
6/2	Granola bar	$0.35
	Sandwich	$0.56
	Frozen Meal	$1.00
	Soufflé	$0.00
	Cookies	$0.60
Total		$5.02
6/3	Granola bar	$0.42
	Sandwich	$2.86
	Frozen Meal	$1.00
	Tater tots	$0.40
	Cookies	$0.60
Total		$5.28
6/4	Granola bar	$0.42
	Sandwich	$0.56
	Bagel	$0.47
	Brownie	$0.75
	Stir Fry	$1.50
	Cookies	$0.60
Total		$4.30
6/5	Granola bar	$0.21
	Sandwich	$0.37
	Bagel	$0.00
	Stir Fry	$1.50
	Frozen Meal	$1.00
Total		$3.08