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Don't Buy Groceries - Buy Ingredients

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By Melissa Tosetti

How many times have you gone to the grocery store, left $100 with the cashier, come home, put everything away and felt like you have no food in the house?

One of the problems we have when it comes to visiting the grocery store is that we go with no plan, purchase random items and then try to make something of them when we get home.

There is a simple reason why the most efficient kitchens are restaurant kitchens. Chefs don't just buy groceries and then figure out what to make from there. They create a menu and then purchase the ingredients needed to make those dishes.

So, run your own kitchen like a restaurant kitchen and make a plan. Grab a cup of coffee and sit down with your grocery store's weekly sales ad. Start by reviewing the meat or fish items that are on sale (unless you are a vegetarian). Write down a few meals you can cook based on those meat items. Then, go through the rest of the ad and decide what side dishes you can create out of the other items on sale.

Once you have created your menu, find the recipes for those meals and see if there is anything else you need to purchase to make them. This is a crucial step.

If this thought process is brand new to you, start off slowly. Decide to make just one or two meals this week. As you gain confidence, see if you can do this for all of the meals you make at home including breakfast and lunch. In our house, we make sandwiches based off of the deli meats that are on sale that week. Also, if eggs are priced particularly well, then egg salad will be the sandwich of choice for that week. You get the idea.

More important than planning your menu around what is on sale, also remember what you already have in your house. If you have vegetables that are on the verge of going bad, make sure the first meal you make includes those vegetables. The more you can use of what you already have in the house, the more you save. Remember, the most expensive food is the food you throw away.

In addition to planning your meals, plan leftovers. On Sunday night when I have plenty of time to enjoy cooking, I always cook enough to ensure there are leftovers. On Monday, when we get home after 7:00 pm, I am happy to know that we can look forward to a healthy, home cooked meal of leftovers.

Saving money by cooking at home is one of the best (and easiest) ways to positively impact your financial life.

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Need Help "Cooking Your Pantry"?

By Kevin Gibbons

In our book Living the Savvy Life, we devote a full chapter to managing your pantry and cooking.

One of our favorite mantras is “the most expensive food is the food you throw away.” A corollary to this mantra may be “the second most expensive food is the food that sits in your cupboard and is never used.” This is such an important concept, that we issue quarterly “Pantry Challenges.”

The idea behind these challenges is to see how long you can go without buying staples, and living off what is in your pantry. Many of us have hidden inventory tucked away in our cabinets. By doing these periodic purges, we find these hidden items and use them, maybe learning new recipes or at least learning never to buy that particular item again. We have had readers go as long as 3 months living out of their inventory of food, buying only those fresh items like milk and eggs.

It is pretty easy to figure out how to use items like dried pasta, cans of soup, rice and beans. But what do you do when you have a can of peaches, some cornmeal and dried cranberries? Like virtually everything else in the world, “there’s an app for that.” Actually, there is a Public Radio program for that. NPR’s Morning Edition has started a new feature called Cook Your Cupboard. You simply post a picture of the contents of your cupboard, and their experts and readers will offer ideas on recipes you can prepare to use your varied ingredients.

Your pantry is more than just your kitchen storeroom. It is also an investment, representing hundreds, and in some cases thousands, of dollars of your money. A good investment is one that provides value for the money you put into it. A poor investment is one that just sits there, tying up your money, or even losing it as the value decreases. Make sure your pantry represents a good investment, containing supplies that are turned into valuable meals. As you refine your pantry’s contents, use resources like Cook Your Cupboard to help you make those meals. You may even find a new favorite recipe!

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That's Money On Your Shelves

My Dad and stepmom Linda were kind enough to recommend Living The Savvy Life to their friend Eva. Linda sent an email to me relaying an experience Eva had after reading the book.

Eva went to the grocery store on Saturday. When she got home and was putting everything away, her husband asked her why she bought several items. He said they already had plenty in the cupboard. She remembered the lessons in Living The Savvy Life, about the things in your cupboard representing money.

She actually took back $18.00 worth of items to the grocery store. When asked why she was returning them, she said she didn’t need them. She told them she would purchase them at a later time when she needed them. She said it was embarrassing, but worth it, and she felt so much better afterwards.

I love Eva's story and how she immediately took action. Although to some, $18 may not seem worth going back to the store for, it is.

Eva did more than just return a few items. She took control of her finances. The $18 worth of food would have eventually been used, but likely, it would sit on her shelves for months first. Instead, the money can now be used for her next trip to the grocery store for items she really needs or something fun like going to the movies with her husband.

The idea is to make sure you're getting full use of your money at all times. If you have six months worth of food equaling hundreds of dollars sitting in your pantry, that is money you can't use for something else like a weekend away.

The same theory applies to your closet. If you total how much money you spent on clothes hanging in your closet that you don't wear - how much does it come to? What would you rather spend that money on? It could be a new piece of furniture that you really want or even an infusion into your emergency savings account.

The moral of the story is that everything you own should be in use one way or another.

The food in your refrigerator, freezer and pantry should be on a three month rotation.
Strive to wear 80% of the clothes you own 80% of the time (the average American wears just 20% of their wardrobe).
Everything you own should be something you need, you use on a regular basis or you absolutely love because it has personal or sentimental value.

I'm looking forward to hearing more about Eva's Savvy Adventures. If you have a Savvy Experience you would like to share, send an email to me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . I look forward to hearing from you.

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Check Out Challenge

By Melissa Tosetti

I am ashamed to admit it, but while checking out at the grocery store, I look at what other people are buying and compare how much “real food” they have vs. how much junk food goes home with them.

It’s a fact that the less processing your food goes through, the healthier it is and most often, the less expensive it is.

It makes me sad to see carts filled almost entirely with soda, chips, frozen food and other processed items. Don’t get me wrong, I am an advocate of balance. If you're behind me at the grocery store, you will surely see at least one 12-pack of Coke (for Paul) as well as a six pack of Guinness (for me). You may also see one or two items from the frozen food aisle for those “got home too late from our martial arts school nights”.

You may even see a box of brownies if they happen to be on sale. I like to have them on hand to mix with a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips for last minute potluck events. That being said, the rest of our basket is likely filled with produce, bread, dairy products, eggs, meat and other ingredients to be made into meals.

The next time you’re at the grocery store, I challenge you to see if you can reduce the amount of processed foods you purchase to less than 25%. Shoot me an email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and let me know how it goes.

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4 Ways to Find the Time & Energy to Cook

By Melissa Tosetti

In our book, Living the Savvy Life, one of the main topics we discuss is Cooking and Managing your Kitchen. In fact, we devote an entire chapter to it (Chapter 10).

One of my favorite bloggers, Jules Clancy of Stone Soup, recently wrote an article offering hints and advice on how to cook after a busy day.

She and I are in complete agreement on such ideas as the importance of a well-stocked pantry with REAL FOOD, and having a few basic “go to” favorite recipes.

Jules has graciously given me permission to reprint her article. After you read it, check out her site for more ideas and recipes.

Note: Jules is based in Sydney, Australia so you may see a few words spelled differently than you would in the U.S.

4 ways to find the time and

energy to cook after a long busy day…

By Jules Clancy

Do you struggle to find the time and energy to cook after a long busy day? Well you're certainly not alone!

A few years ago I did a survey of Stonesoup readers for the biggest problems when it comes to cooking. And the overwhelming majority of you said that being tired at the end of a long day was THE biggest cooking challenge.

So no prizes for guessing that this problem was at the front of my mind when I decided to write my soon-to-be-published print book, 5-Ingredients 10-Minutes.

It's less than a month till my book will hit the shelves, so today I thought I'd share with you my favourite ways to find time and energy to cook when I've had 'one of those days'.

And to give you a taste of what's to come, I've included a 5-Ingredients 10-Minutes recipe that didn't make it into the book.

1. Use convenient ingredients.
There aren't any prizes for cooking everything yourself from scratch. Let convenience food do what it's supposed to do!

Some of my favourite 'convenient' ingredients include:

Prewashed salad leaves - Read the packet as some brands still need washing.

Curry pastes - Great for speedy fragrant curries like this green pea curry.

Pesto - Adds flavour to soups or sandwiches. Also brilliant as an instant sauce to serve with grilled chicken.

Frozen peas - Great for an almost instant green veg fix.

Frozen spinach - Takes a little longer to defrost than peas, but still worth having some around.

Canned chickpeas + other legumes - Just rinse, drain and toss with lemon juice, olive oil and grated parmesan for a super comforting salad.

Canned tomatoes - Ever tried peeling fresh tomatoes? It takes ages.

Natural yoghurt - Season with salt and pepper and serve as a sauce with salmon, chicken or lamb.

2. Prepare in advance.
If you hate being super organised, just skip this one. But if you are inclined to squirrel things away for a rainy day, cooking whole meals like soups or stews or curries in bulk and freezing for later does make a difference.

The other approach is to prepare ingredients in advance so all you need to do in the evening is 'assemble a meal'. I do this all the time, usually cooking up a big batch of lentils or quinoa and keeping them in the fridge for different dishes. My other favourite is to roast heaps of veg. If you'd like to learn more see this post on 'Mise en place'.

3. Have actual food in the house
Here's the thing, no matter how great a cook you are, if there isn't food in the house and it's been a long day, you (and all of us) are way more likely to pick up some takeout than go to the store, buy ingredients, come home and cook. So having food in the house gives you a HUGE head start.

I find there are 2 parts to this. First, having a well stocked pantry can be a huge life saver.

The other piece of the puzzle is finding some sort of regular system for buying fresh ingredients. It might be an idyllic weekly trip to the farmers market, or maybe a Monday night trip to the supermarket or maybe it's a regular online order that gets delivered. The type of system isn't important, you just need to find one that works best for you and then stick to it.

4. Have a collection of fast, simple recipes.
There's a time and place for fancy cheffy recipes, but that isn't on a regular 'school' night. Having a collection of quick, easy recipes is key. If you know that dinner is only going to take you 10 minutes or so, aren't you more likely to be able to find the energy you need to make it happen?

I can hear you asking, "Great Jules, but where am I going to find such a collection?"

To be honest you don't need to look any further than Stonesoup. This collection of 50 healthy 10-Minute meals would be the best place to start.

BUT if you're someone who also struggles to face looking at a computer after a long day in the office, and would prefer to flick through an actual, old-fashioned print book, then I finally have an option for you!

Introducing... 5-Ingredients, 10-Minutes PRINT Version!

My new print book is now available to PRE-ORDER from amazon.co.uk and bookdepository.co.uk (my favourite book supplier because they have FREE shipping anywhere in the world!).

Note: If you live in the US, you can sign up on Amazon to be notified when 5-Ingredients 10-Minutes will be available for sale here.

Recipe

Chicken with Pine Nut Sauce

So you're probably wondering why this recipe didn't make it into the book. And truth be told, it was just laziness on my part. The original version was made using fish fillets but I wasn't 100% happy with it or the photo I had taken. So it got the cut.

I made it again the other day, this time with chicken so I could take a Stonesoup-worthy photo. I just loved it so much I'm kinda kicking myself I didn't retake the photo earlier.

Enough for 2
4 chicken thigh fillets
100g (3.5oz) pine nuts
1/2 clove garlic
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 large handfuls baby kale or other salad leaves to serve

1. Preheat a large frying pan or skillet on a high heat.

2. Trim fat from chicken and bash with the palm of your hand so that the thigh fillets are an even thickness across. Rub with a little oil. Season.

3. Pop chicken into the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes on the first side.

4. Meanwhile, whizz pine nuts, garlic, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons water and 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil until you have a smoothish sauce. Taste and season.

5. Turn chicken when well browned and cook on the second side for another 3-4 minutes or until cooked through and no longer pink.

6. Divide sauce between 2 plates. Top with chicken and serve leaves on the side.

VARIATIONS
different meat - chicken breasts, 1 per person will work (bash them until flattened and about 1/2in thick before cooking). Also good with fish fillets (adjust cooking time and no need to bash) or pork chops. Lamb fillet or back straps will also be great.

vegetarian - replace chicken with sliced halloumi - just cook until golden on both sides. OR try serving the sauce and salad with a couple of fried eggs each.

vegan - replace chicken with eggplant 'steaks'. Slice 1 large eggplant crosswise and cook in oil until well browned on both sides and super tender. Will take about 5 minutes a side. You might like to increase the sauce recipe to make it more substantial too.

budget - replace pine nuts with cheaper nuts like cashews or almonds. Also consider using 1/2 nuts and 1/2 soft breadcrumbs.

nut-free - serve chicken and salad with a yoghurt sauce (natural yoghurt seasoned with salt & pepper) or just use a good quality mayonnaise or aioli.

With love,
Jules x

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