What Do You Make That Saves You The Most Money? (pancakes, bread)

[hellpaso]

I cook pretty much every day. Much less expensive than eating out, & what I make is better than most restaurants anyway. And I don't do it because I'm concerned about what may or may not be in our food. I do it because I like to cook.

I'm not a baker, though. I leave that to the pros.

[tommy64]

I boil potatoes and mash 'em with a fork. Then I put 'em on a plate and top with cottage cheese. It's the best food I've ever had, doesn't require much clean-up and is CHEAP!

I also spiff up Ramen by throwing in some browned ground beef and frozen veggies. Yum.

[Woof]

have i got a sausage for you!! - been making venison sausage for 30 years, one of my favorites..

What kind of fat do you add to venison sausage to keep it from tasting like sawdust?

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by Woof

What kind of fat do you add to venison sausage to keep it from tasting like sawdust?

good question,,,i dont like mixing suet with wild game..

here's what i like/recommend,,,mix 15-20% fatty beef trimmings... (there's a difference in beef suet/and beef fat)
or my favorite, is pork butts..grind in pork butts .. they are great, will lend alot of flavor!!
ive also had some folks ask to grind in some bacon,,,which was also tasty

its funny you mention "sawdust" in societies great push for lean and low fat, it also lowers the flavor without the fat...many friends will give me elk or caribou sausage ...that was made in other regions and they too was sawdust flavor,,too lean..

[hunterseat]

Anytime we eat in we save so the short answer is "dinner" but we eat cheap sometimes and love it. IE: a big pot of greens seasoned with smoked turkey legs. YUM. AND if I cook them right, chicken gizzards is a favorite. Those are two of our cheapies.

[mjd07]

Originally Posted by hunterseat

Anytime we eat in we save so the short answer is "dinner" but we eat cheap sometimes and love it. IE: a big pot of greens seasoned with smoked turkey legs. YUM. AND if I cook them right, chicken gizzards is a favorite. Those are two of our cheapies.

This is something my mother used to make. I really would love her recipes but she won't share them with me. Your post brought back some yummy dinner memories!

[thatswanlady]

Salsa and salad dressing. It is ridiculous how much salsa we eat, and I can make a huge quantity of it for a few bucks, as compared to spending more than that for a tiny jar.

We also eat salads nearly every day with dinner, and we love our salad dressings -- we don't soak the salad in it, but do definitely like to have enough on there to taste it. I can make my own for pennies, and it tastes much better and without all those preservatives.

[vision33r]

My soda stream machine makes cheaper club soda than anything out there. It cost me $4 to refill my CO2 tank that lasts over 2 months. Nothing like fizzy water over regular water.

[mjd07]

When I originally responded I was thinking in terms of food since that's a daily expense. However, I have also learned to be quite creative in making costumes for the various events in the kids' classroom. I try to budget no more than $20 for any of these projects and do quite well with some colored felt, yarn, leggings and headbands (mostly to make animal ears). Comparatively, a kids' costume runs about $40+ depending on how elaborate it is and I've seen some in the hundreds.

ETA: My grandmother was a seamstress and she made all her own clothes. She had closets full that would rival any superstar's wardrobe. I don't sew that well, but I can get by with a few costumes for elementary school kids. ;-)

[Nanny Goat]

Not buying beef or pork saves me money. And, not buying loads of crackers, cookies, snacks. A bit here and there only. No soda, no prepared foods, frozen or otherwise, few desserts. It all saves.