For many the food budget falls in line with the top three largest costs a family has, right behind a mortgage and car payment. So conserving on the food budget can have a big impact and it is a change that you can make right away. Preparing from scratch is is not just less costly it is healthier because you are not eating all those preservatives and you can control the amounts of sugar, salt, fat etc.  When it comes to saving money it all comes down to time and task management. If you shop, plan, stock and prep properly you will reap the biggest rewards.

It is something you can learn to do and after a while just like anything else becomes a habit. Do you have to be perfect and make everything from scratch? No, and we suggest at first you start with a few items that you can always make and have on hand. Try not to throw anything away, the freezer is your friend when it comes to saving prepared meals. if you are trying to sell the idea of leftovers you will not win by forcing everyone to eat the same thing three days in a row. Instead try this: freeze leftovers individually wrapped containers, this can be a pleasurable lunch for a teen arriving home after school or to carry to work every day.

We are all about good food and fun flavors. As you can imagine that can get expensive if we are not careful with our budget. For that very reason we have found ways to enjoy all our favorites without breaking the food shopping budget. By saving on many of the items we used to waste money on, we are able to splurge on those items that just cost more like seafood or steaks.  Saving is a way of life we learned long ago out of necessity however today saving allows us to be generous and share some of what we have with others and share our love of food by entertaining guests.

We hope that you will enjoy the ideas and recipes that we have added in our Frugal Favorites section.