This past weekend we celebrated Clayton's birthday with his friends. He turned 6 back on December 30th, but this year he asked for a party with some of his friends. So, when planning what to do, where to go and what to eat, I went with the ease of a hosted party, at a fun location and we ordered our food ahead of time from Greco Pizza.
This post is sponsored by Greco. We received pizza and compensation for this post, but all opinions and wording are our own.
Easy, Simple and Stress Free!!
This post contains affiliate links.
Many of us are on a mission to produce less waste in our homes. I am of a generation that was near the beginning of all the "convenience" products
Apple cider vinegar is such an amazing addition to our pantry, and I have recently decided to make my own.
Apple Cider Vinegar is loaded with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and enzymes. The health benefits include gut health, immune boosting to fight colds, alergies and more. It can be used to help clear acne, repel fleas on pets, soothe sunburns, as a hair conditioner and much more.
Did you realize how easy and frugal it is to make your own laundry powder or liquid? I have shared two recipes in the past that both contained borax (a naturally occuring substance), but the health warnings and requests to reduce exposure to borax have prompted me to find an alternative recipe.
This is the simplest two ingredient recipe I have come up, that I like, for keeping our clothing clean and fresh.
This Brownie recipe is my favourite. You can add chocolate chips or nuts to the batter before baking as well, for extra chocolaty goodness and texture.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Grease and flour an 8-inch square pan.
In a large bowl, pour in melted butter and stir in sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
Beat in cocoa, flour, salt, and baking powder. Spread batter into prepared pan.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Be careful not to overcook. They should brown and pull away from edges of pan. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.
Combine softened butter, cocoa, honey, vanilla extract, and confectioners' sugar. Stir until smooth.
Frost brownies while they are still warm to give them an even "glaze" of icing.
Last weekend I was making squares for an anniversary party we hosted. My mom sent me this recipe as an easy and super quick square to make.
If you are looking for a fast, yummy and easy recipe, this is for you!
Ingredients:
DIY Dishwasher Detergent
Just finished whipping up 72 Dishwasher Tabs or Scoops.
I had left over Washing Soda from making my laundry detergent and figured I would try the Dishwasher Tabs.
These are so easy and quick to make. I used a scoop to make mine, but you can use ice cube trays as well, if you prefer the blocks.
They dry fast and you can store in a container with tight fitting lid.
What you need:
1 cup borax powder
1 cup washing soda(not baking soda)
1/4 cup lemon juice Two ice cube trays.
Here is the cost break down for me. I lucked out and Borax was on sale. 4.99 for borax 2kg which is 8.45 cups equals .59 per cup(regular price is .83/cup) 5.79 for washing soda 3kg which is 12.68 cups equals .46 per cup 1.99 for lemon juice 945 ml which is 3.99 cups which equals .12 for 1/4 cups 19.99 for 5 kg of Epson salt which is 23.25 cups equals .22 per 1/4 cup(bought last year) Now add that all up is 1.39 for 32 cubes equalling .04 per cube. Regular price would've been .05 per tab. This is before taxes.
I asked for suggestions on our Facebook page of what to put in plastic eggs and there were some great suggestions! So, I've complied all the great ideas into one post for you and added some photos plus some details for what I bought & put in my eggs.
Judy's Freezer Meal Workshop with Sunset Gourmet Products
Contributed by Judy Brander
The question is – What is it and will it be a time & money saver?
What is it: "What's for dinner?" Is that a question that is asked at your home each day at 4:00pm? Eating at home saves you money and calories. But FREEZER MEALS meals save you TIME!! During the average workshop we prepare a minimum of 10 meals!!! Depending on the size of your family, you can easily double this number of meals!!
You get the Sunset Gourmet seasonings and sauces from me. They are high quality products, tasty and can be used in a variety of ways to make all your meals taste so good!!
Then I give you a grocery list, a lot of the items will be ones you will already have at home. (or will be once you start getting in the habit of freezer cooking, you will start getting chicken, hamburger, crushed tomatoes, etc when it's ON SALE!).
What makes these workshops great is you get to choose the type of meat you like, the leanness of the meat you want, your favorite veggies for a dish, etc. The grocery list lets you know what meal the item is for so you can make substitutions if desired; it may say "Ricotta cheese - slow cooker lasagna", and you can choose cottage cheese if you want to make it healthier!
You will also get a "Prep List", it may include things like "brown 1 lb hamburger" or "cube 2 cups of cooked chicken" for example.. Very simple!
You then bring your groceries to the workshop and I walk you through assembly and give you lots of tips. You will get recipes and labels, all the meals will be made in Freezer Ziploc bags. I will, also, gladly share any other recipes I have to help you use the leftover seasonings and sauces you may have from Sunset Gourmet!
Today's Menu:
Products being used:
There were a few things to cut & chop ahead of time. We had to dice & slice onions, chop sweet potatoes, slice peppers, chop & shred carrotts, wash & cut broccoli and chop celery.
Sometimes some of the meat needs to be cut or cooked. We had to cook bacon, ground beef, 2 chopped chicken breasts & as I am using ground chicken that also needed to be cooked. I also needed to cut some chicken breast into strips for the stir fry and cut up my ribs. That's it prepping done and now I am ready for the meal preparation.
Almost forgot I had to cook Penne.
Bacon ready -
Chicken pieces cooked -
Peppers ready for slicing & chopping
Chopped & sliced -
Veggies all ready -
Time it took to prep above: 2.5 hours
Cost:
A few other things you would have at home already – ketchup, soya sauce, papikra, flour,
Cost: $33.45
Meats:
Meat Cost: $52.43
Other items:
Total Cost $91.86 Cost of Sunset Gourmet products $65 – Total Cost $156.86
Number of meals: 21 meals
21 most will give leftovers & probably enough for the 2nd meal for us but we are only 2 people. The roast will probably serve at least 3-4 meals. (2 dinner and 2 lunches – sandwiches etc)
Time to put the meals together at the workshop and clean up: 2.5 hours
Total prepping & making meals app 5 hours but now NO dinner time meal preparation for at least 3 weeks. No mesh in your kitcen only dinner dishes to clean up. All meals go in slow cooker or oven.
Meal time PREP-- Thaw, put in slow cooker and set on low for the day. When you come home from work. Dinner is ready. OR Thaw put in oven for 45-1 hour Dnner is ready. All you need to do is add rice, potato or pasta if desired.
Cost /Package: $7.45 per package to serve 2 people (based on the 21 packages) or $3.73 per person. Cost will be less if leftovers and used for 2nd meal.
** Note: costs will vary depending on the meats and if you can buy them on sale.
We tried the handy Jokari Hands-Free Baggy Rack Storage Bag Holder
First meal ready – 3 Cheese Bake Penne
2 and 1/2 hours later ---21 Finished meals – ready for slow cooker or oven!
Great for busy family, seniors, new MOM (makes a great shower gift – lots of ready cooked meals) or someone sick or just home from hospital.
Love the variety of meals, ability to add or change things to suit your family & to try new things. If you are interested in hosting a Freezer meal workshop click this link.
Judy is a Rep with Sunset Gourmet, you can reach her on FACEBOOK for more info & send PM. Tell her you read about it on the Moncton Coupon Lady Page.
You need a minimum of 4 people – maximum depends on your house.
One of the dishes prepared:
Southwest Chicken Stirfry
I am last minute looking for things to do today with my little guy.
Are you looking for some fun things to do with your kids today? Here are a few quick and easy activities and crafts I found to try. I stuck to things you may have on hand to make it fun and frugal 🙂
Enjoy!
Be sure to let us know if you try any of these in your house.
15 Printables for St Patrick's Day fun
Scavenger hunt, colouring, activity sheets
Rainbow in a Jar by Playdough to Plato
Sparkly Lime Jello Playdough from Plain Vanilla Mom
3D Rainbow Craft by Crafty Morning