Spend Smart. Eat Smart.

Last week I was doing a presentation on the features of our Spend Smart web site. I discovered that we had gotten lots of hits from the more matters® web site which is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Further investigation showed the people were being referred to our Spend Smart site from a flyer and other postings called 30 Ways in 30 Days to Stretch Your Fruit and Vegetable Budget. 

The number ONE recommendation was:

Calculate an appropriate Healthy Food Budget for your family, based on USDA’s Low-Cost Food Plan. This easy-to-use calculator, offered by Iowa State University Extension, helps to create a budget for what is a reasonable amount to spend to feed your family healthy meals. 

If you don’t know what a healthy food budget is for your family, you might want to put each family member’s age, gender and number of meals eaten away from home into the calculator.  Then, to compare your spending, you will need to collect receipts for all your grocery spending for a month. Don’t count non-food items such as pet food, paper, cleaning and personal care items that you buy at the store.

-pointers by Peggy  

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Yesterday, I read a great article from the New York Times Health section comparing various helps for losing weight. Kelly Brownell, a Yale professor, is quoted on the pros and cons of various helps from D.I.Y. to hospital programs. Sprinkled throughout the article are references to current research.

If you are someone like me who has struggled for their whole life with weight issues and who tracks the latest research on weight control, this article makes a lot of sense.

Bottom line, there are many helps available. Pick one based on your budget and what will help you to accomplish your goals.

-pointers from Peggy

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We all know it is much easier to shop without kids along, but sometimes it can’t be avoided.

Recently, Ruby, an Extension staff member, shared how she dealt with this issue as a single parent. Together, she and her pre-school daughter planned their meals and snacks, wrote their grocery list and then went to the store. When the four-year old saw something she wanted, they’d check the list. If it wasn’t on the list, they didn’t buy it.

The list was specific. If they needed cereal, the brand was included. No more ‘middle of the cereal aisle’ arguments as to whether to buy plain Cheerios® or a pre-sweetened cereal with a favorite character on the package front. Yes, the four-year-old sometimes said “we need to put that cereal on the list next time,” but generally forgot about it when time came for the next planning session.

Snacks were part of the planned list, too. It is much easier to guide a child’s snack choices at home where healthy snacks can be planned for, than in front of the tempting candy or chip section at the store.

What about toys, books, and other trinkets? Since they didn’t eat them, they weren’t on the list!

Looking back, Ruby realizes this strategy has lots of benefits. They stayed within their limited food budget, ate healthier food choices, her daughter learned discipline at an early age and they shared a pleasant time together.

What do you do to make shopping with kids a little easier?

For additional shopping tips check out when to shop on the Spend Smart. Eat Smart. site.

-contributed by Joyce Greving

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If you haven’t tried the skillet lasagna recipe from the Spend Smart. Eat Smart website,  I highly recommend it.  Here’s why I like it:

• It’s a nutritious tasty recipe that only costs $.75 per serving.
• You can make it on top of the stove or in an electric skillet.  I don’t like to use the oven in the summer so this is a perfect ‘no oven’ hot dish.
• It’s easy.  There are not very many ingredients and you don’t have to cook the noodles first…saves on dirty dishes and time. 
• It tastes good, I recently made it when my 20 year old son and 3 of his friends were at the house.  They all loved it.
• It’s a very versatile recipe.  My youngest son loves meat and likes it with a bit more meat in it.  The original recipe calls for 1/2 pound of ground beef.  Since it makes 8  1-cup servings, that provides 1 ounce meat per serving.  If you double the meat you really aren’t overdoing  the protein, it will provide 2 ounces per 1 cup serving.  This will increase the cost to about $.90 - $.95 per serving — still a really good buy.  You can also make this recipe without any meat at all. 

My personal cooking tips:

• My family has a favorite spaghetti sauce brand that comes in a jar, but for this recipe I use a store or generic brand canned sauce (28 ounce can).  It costs less and still tastes great.
• I stir in 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder to the cottage cheese before spooning it on.
• You want to make sure you thoroughly heat it after you put the cheese on top.  The recipe says to cover and heat it for 5 - 10 minutes after putting the cheeses on.  During that cooking time, I occasionally remove the lid and insert a spoon in a few places throughout the skillet.  I’m not stirring it, just allowing some of the juices on the bottom to sort of rise up and mix with the cheeses a bit. 

- comments from Renee Sweers

food cost, food preparation, recipes budget, cooking, lasagna, recipe, savings

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, so (I think) I deserve chocolate! But, chocolate is expensive when it comes to my calorie and money budgets. A co-worker has a recipe for fudge made with pinto beans that should be less expensive than commercial chocolates. Although it won’t be so healthy I can eat all I want, it will be less un-healthy than what I might otherwise buy. The fudge is called Amazing Chocolate Fudge.

Here are additional tips:

• It would be cheaper to purchase dried pinto beans and cook them; but, I bought the canned store brand on sale. First, I drained and rinsed them—it cuts down on the sodium by about a third.
• The recipe says to sift the powdered sugar; but, if it’s fresh you can skip this step. If you do need to sift it, just use a wire mesh strainer and large spoon to work as a sieve.
• If you have an electric mixer, use it. It will get a workout though—remember fudge is supposed to be thick! It’s amazing how the powdered sugar just melts and makes the fudge more spreadable.
• Once the powdered sugar is mixed in, you may add walnuts and dried cherries if you like. I added cherries to mine because President’s Day, also celebrated in February, makes me think of cherries. Even though I purchased the store brand, they can be pretty expensive. Raisins would do just as well and be lots cheaper. 

Amazing Chocolate Fudge (You’ll never guess pinto beans are the amazing ingredient!)
48 Pieces

2 1/2 tablespoons margarine or butter
2 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
1 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans (one 15-ounce can equals 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/2 cup dried cherries (optional)

1. Spray an 8-inch square pan with cooking spray; set aside.
2. Melt margarine and baking chocolate together.
3. Warm the beans 1-2 minutes in the microwave. This makes them easier to mash and the fudge easier to stir.
4. Combine the beans and margarine/chocolate mixture in a food processor or blender and mash.
5. Scrape bean mixture into a bowl, add cocoa and vanilla.
6. Gradually mix in powdered sugar—mixture will be stiff.
7. Stir in walnuts and/or dried cherries if you like.
8. Press into pan. Cut into 48 pieces (6 x 8). Store fudge in refrigerator up to one week. If you won’t get it all eaten in a week, divide into smaller packages and freeze.

Now, enjoy a little chocolate on Valentine’s Day and not totally blow your budget! 

Each piece w/walnuts and cherries: 70 calories, 2.1 g fat, 0.6 g saturated fat, 0.1 g trans fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 29.3 mg sodium, 12.8 g carbohydrate, 0.9 g fiber, 0.9 g protein
Cost: 10¢/piece with nuts and cherries; 6¢/piece with no nuts or fruit

Source: Vegetable Desserts by E. Schafer& J. L. Miller, RD. Chronimed Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  ISBN 1-56561-135-7.

-contributed by Jan Temple 

food cost, food preparation, recipes budget, holiday, recipes