Frugal Parenting

I don’t yet have a baby (though I will very soon!), but I’m putting a lot of thought into the things I would like to do when the baby arrives. One of those things is to make my own baby food. Not only is it the more frugal choice, I feel that it is also healthier. I get to control the freshness of the food, the types of ingredients that go into the food, and other things like organic, locally grown, etc.

But let’s get down to the fact that it’s cheaper! Because from everything I read, making your own baby food is much cheaper than buying the jars from the store. I read an article today on Baby Fit that gives tips for making your own baby food . The article is worth a read, but this is what I got out of it:

• Cleanliness is paramount, so keep your kitchen clean and sterile when making baby food. This includes thoroughly washing the foods before processing them.
• Make nutritious choices and follow doctor’s recommendations when making your food. Choose fruits and vegetables that are fresh or frozen.
• Choose foods and textures that are appropriate for your baby’s age and development. For example, a younger baby won’t be able to handle anything more than puree.
• Make sure to store the food properly. Homemade baby food can be refrigerated for up to three days. To store it longer, fill an ice cube tray with the baby food, and then once frozen, store the frozen pieces in a zip lock baggie. Pretsto! You’ve got baby food whenever you need it.

The article also includes some easy baby food recipes, so check it out and give them a try.

Back to the topic of saving money on food. Rachel, at Antithete , recently did a post on how to eat on $250 a month . That amount would be amazing to me, as I am sure we easily could spend double that amount on food.

Rachel gives detailed directions on how to do it - it involves a lot of planning, some trial and error, and spending 1/2 day at several grocery stores. That may be too much for you, but I think it’s worth giving it some thought. I would love to reduce our food bill, so I may give some of her tips a try.

Her method involves making a menu for the whole month, and it also includes remembering to budget snacks in, which is something I don’t always do. Anyway, if you’re curious, take a look at her post here , and then tell me what you think. Is it doable? Do you have a method that works well for you?

If your family is anything like mine, you find that a lot of your budget goes toward food. For us, it’s partly because we don’t always know what to make, so we buy produce and then don’t end up using it. Or there are times when we just don’t feel like cooking, and so we eat out, which ends up costing a lot more than if we had eaten at home.

Does any of that sound familiar? If so, here are a couple of tips for keeping your monthly food bill a little more manageable.

1. Plan meals in advance. If you’re new at it, start at a week’s worth of meals and work your way up to a month. When you know ahead of time what you’re going to make, you can keep the right ingredients on hand. Plus, you won’t waste produce, and you won’t waste time wondering what to make for dinner.
2.  Buy staples in bulk. If there are certain food items you eat a lot, it’s a good idea to buy in bulk. Items like rice, toilet paper, pasta, or any canned items you regularly eat are easy to purchase in bulk. This can help save money over time.
3. When you see a good sale, stock up. But only buy if it’s something your family regularly eats anyway, or it really doesn’t save you money. When you’re financially strapped, it can be hard to buy extra, but even just a few extra cans of whatever is on sale can help you build your pantry and save money over time.
4. Double or triple your recipes, and freeze the extras for other meals. Bulk cooking saves time. If you are making a casserole for dinner, it doesn’t take much longer to double or triple it. You can freeze a whole pan in the freezer, and just pop it out the next time you don’t feel like cooking. This will save you on trips to eat out.
5. Utilize frugal recipes. I posted my frugal beans and rice recipe, and I will be posting more frugal recipes over the next while. Some frugal recipes out there will cost you just pennies per serving.

What do you do to help keep your family food budget manageable?

I’m always on the lookout for recipes that are delicious as well as frugal. My sister sent me this easy beans and rice recipe. It definitely fits the bill and is also quite versatile. The only constant is rice and beans - but you can vary the type of beans and the different vegetables and/or meat that is added. Here is the recipe:

The Beans:

1 pound bag of beans (white, kidney, red, pinto, etc. You pick.)
1/2 to 1 onion chopped
1-4 cloves garlic chopped
carrots chopped
celery chopped
green or red pepper chopped
1-2 T bullion
1 c chopped ham

Soak beans according to directions (Either overnight or boil for 2 minutes and then soak for an hour). Combine all ingredients in a pot and cook for roughly 2 hours or until beans are tender. You may wish to add other spices, but for me, this was perfect as is. I also didn’t use all the vegetables listed, just the ones I had on hand.

The Rice:

Cook rice according to directions.

Voila! You have a delicious beans and rice meal. Just combine the beans and rice. I like to add Tabasco sauce to make mine spicy, but not everyone will like that. Let me know if you make this, and also feel free to share your frugal recipes as well.