If you read about my Nitty Gritty Grocery List in today’s N.J. Star-Ledger you are in the right place.
Download my Nitty Gritty Grocery List here. (You have to click twice, the second time on the tiny print “nittygrittygrocerylist.”)
What additional grocery items should I add to the list?
We’re re-vamping the Top 5 Posts page so the deals are fresh and reader-controlled. As it is, older posts are basically grandfathered in because people click on what is already there so new stuff doesn’t rise to the top.
In the new system you will chose your favorite post from what was most popular this past week, as determined by what people click on from my free email newsletter.
The top vote getter will be posted on the Top 5 Posts page.
The four most-read posts from this week will go up against the post that got the most votes the week before (except for this week because this is our first vote). You have one week to cast your virtual ballot!
Which is your favorite post?
- Tips from frugal folks (37.0%, 19 Votes)
- Coupons: Jamba Juice and Cheesecake Factory (31.0%, 16 Votes)
- The return of the Nitty Gritty Grocery List (22.0%, 11 Votes)
- I'm not spending, Hubby is. Is our total spending any less? (6.0%, 3 Votes)
- Where do you keep your coupons? (4.0%, 2 Votes)
Total Voters: 51
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The return of the Nitty Gritty Grocery List
Where do you keep your coupons?
Coupons: Jamba Juice and Cheesecake Factory
I’m not spending, Hubby is. Is our total spending any less?
Tammy’s simple and practical system for organizing and remembering her grocery coupons is this week’s reader comment of the week. I’m going to use her system, and if you have a hard time remembering to bring your coupons to the store, you should try it too!
Here is a photo essay of my first recession garden harvest and the tasty dinner that we cooked from it. Recipe for Hubby’s fantastic Basil Chicken dinner to follow!
Stirring ingredients in the wok.
I’ve got extras if you want one!
Ingredients for Hubby’s Basil Chicken:
Canola oil
Half onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, diced
Whole chicken cut into pieces, on bone or cut into strips (Tip: buy whole chicken on sale and ask the butcher to cut it up for you.)
~20 basil leaves, washed and dried
1 T soy sauce
2 t lime juice (to brighten the flavor)
1 green pepper, sliced thin
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 t fresh black pepper or to taste
1 t salt or to taste
Directions:
Start rice in separate pan or in rice cooker. Prepare and chop all ingredients. Salt chicken lightly. Heat the wok on high until it is almost smoking. Add 1-2 T canola oil and heat. Saute the onion with a few leaves of basil. Add the garlic and let it cook for 1 minute.
Toss in a few pieces of the chicken. If you add it all at once the wok will lose too much heat. When the chicken is mostly cooked push it to the side and add a few more pieces of chicken and basil. Repeat until you’ve added it all.
Add the soy sauce, lime juice and mix. Add the green peppers, tomatoes and mix. Salt and pepper to taste. Cover and let the bigger chicken pieces cook through, about 5 minutes. Serves 4-6.
ALL ABOARD! We are starting a coupon train, which is when 5-10 people clip coupons and share the ones they don’t want by mailing them to the next person in the “train.” Get on if you want to save!
So far Veronica, Katie, and Carrie have expressed interest. We need 1-2 more people to start this off. Email me your name and region if you are interested.
Ideally, the members of each train will live in the same geographic region so the coupon envelopes don’t take too long to arrive. Once we get a few more members I’ll email the group to start things off.
The train’s moderator will have everyone’s address and email. But the members only have the address and email of the person ahead of them (to mail onto) and behind them (in case they go on vacation). Each time you receive a coupon envelope, take out the coupons you want to use and discard the ones that have expired. Add new coupons that you’ve clipped and mail onto the next person. The turnaround time is set by the group, but usually 4-7 days.
Borders offered a slew of coupons for today through Sunday, Aug. 2, 2009, including$10 off a Blu-Ray disc, $5 off a cookbook, CD, DVD or history book, $2 off a magazine, and a free medium cup of coffee when you buy a bag of beans. Print the coupons here.
Caveats: the discounts are off list price, valid in-store only, no rain checks.
There is a separate deal online: buy one item get the second for 40 percent off with code SLB7582M. Find a Borders near you.
Get $10 off a purchase of $50 or more at Walgreens.com, including contact lenses and sale items. Use coupon code LESSTEN for up to 5 uses per account through July 30, 2009. Online only.
Get $1 off a regular or large smoothie at Maggie Moos.
I know where my office away from home is: Barnes & Noble, which yesterday started offering free wifi to customers. The bookseller promises, “No fees. No charges. Just log on.” Sweet!
B&N hopes that free wifi will encourage shoppers to purchase books online when they are sold out in the store.
Of course, this will take a lot of business away from Starbucks, which offers 2 free hours of wifi to customers who register their Starbucks card. The move will force other retailers to offer free wifi, which is good for consumers!
Thanks, Dad!
A looooooooooong time ago when I was a reporter at the LA Daily News I created a list of low grocery prices for my readers. My theory was, and still is to this day, that if you know what a “good” price is for the items you buy most often, you will know when to stock up and when to push the purchase off.
Knowing what a “good” price is on the dozens of items you regularly buy will save you money. But it’s ridiculous to cram all that pricing info into your head, so I wrote it out after comparing prices at four grocery stores.
I’ve revived that list because many readers have asked for help lowering their grocery bill. This is my answer. I hope it helps you save money!
I left the prices blank for two of the items that I wasn’t comfortable pricing, lettuce and rice. What do you consider a good price on these items? What additional grocery items should I add to the list?
Download my Nitty Gritty Grocery List here. (You have to click twice, the second time on the tiny print “nittygrittygrocerylist.”)
1. Buy a whole chicken on sale and ask the butcher to cut it into 8 pieces for you. You’ll get smaller pieces that you can cook in more dishes than roasting a whole bird. Butchers are often happy to do this, though it’s best to ask when the counter is not busy. I bought two chickens yesterday at $.59/lb. You can’t beat that price when it’s cut up!
2. Search out the about-to-expire bread rack. I’ve seen artisan loafs for $.99. Just make sure to eat within 24 hours or freeze to avoid a mold takeover.
3. Get a loyalty card even if you’re not loyal. It’s free and gets you what is generally the “regular” price. Without it you’re paying an inflated rate.
4. Bring your own bags. Stores are starting to charge for paper/plastic and it’s better for the environment. Go for canvas or burlap for durability. The re-enforced nylon ones are crappy.
5. Ask for a rain check. If a sale item is out of stock and they don’t have any “in back,” get a rain check.
6. If a store wrongly refuses coupons, print out their coupon policy from their website and bring it with you next time you shop.
7. Look high, look low. Manufacturers pay to get their products placed at eye level, which can boost prices.
8. Stock up when prices are low so you can ride out the high prices.
9. Be open to new brands so you can be loyal to low prices.
10. Check out markets that cater to Latinos. In Los Angeles, Vallarta and Food 4 Less are full-sized markets with incredible prices but they often fall below the radar.
I had to trash two amazing coupons – one for $1 off a half-gallon of organic milk and another for a free bread product from the bakery at Albertsons because they expired. Rats!
I’m constantly forgetting to look for or failing to find grocery coupons. Where do you keep yours so that you remember them each time you head to the market?
Here are my top guesses:
1. In a coupon organizer.
2. On the kitchen counter.
3. Stuck to the fridge with magnets.
4. In my wallet next to my credit card.
Maybe the problem is that I keep my coupons in ALL of these places. Need to centralize!
How do you make sure you bring your coupons to the store? I know I would save more money if I could consistently remember/find them.
Get 30 percent off during a family and friends sale at the Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy starting Thursday July 30 and going through Sunday August 2, 2009. Get the coupon here. This INCLUDES Gap Outlet and Banana Republic Factory Stores.
You can select a particular charity to receive 5 percent of the total that you spend. Not too shabby.
Thanks, Christina!
Woa! Get a free smoothie at Jamba Juice when you buy one smoothie using this coupon. Expires Aug. 9, 2009. Not valid at Safeway, Vons or Pavillions. Excludes food.
Get 50% off a slice of cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory on “National Cheesecake Day,” July 30, when you dine in. Print the coupon here. They have more than 30 cheesecakes to choose from!
Thanks Rachelle!
My spending moratorium is over in four days on August 1. Hallelujah!
I told Hubby how well my spending experiment was going and he brought up a great point. You’re not spending anything, he said. “But I’m more in the ‘I can spend’ mindset,” he said.
The possibility that his spending would change during my moratorium had not occurred to me. Once he pointed it out, though, I was nervous that our spending had shifted from the two of us to just him.
Was our total spending in July any less than in past months?
I pulled up our most recent credit card statement, which ended yesterday, and found our total had ballooned to levels not seen since before we started my simple budgeting system.
Uh oh.
What happened? Some of the purchases were in June, before the moratorium started, which I subtracted. Then I subtracted all the business expenses, which were allowed during the moratorium. The total came waaaay down to where it resembled bills from past months.
But Hubby was right. Our credit card bill, which reflects the vast majority of our spending, was about the same. Does this mean I didn’t save any money during the moratorium?
I took a closer look at the bill. Most of the charges were genuinely Hubby’s (a pull up bar from Big 5, a massage, lunch with co-workers) – not him covering for me.
Then I saw it.
A $395 charge from the dentist for a night guard. That expense is paid for by pre-tax dollars we set aside for medical expenses through our Health Savings Account. The money has already been saved. I subtract $395 and our total spending is…REALLY LOW!
In fact, our July spending is less than half of what our lowest credit card bill has been in years. Maybe ever.
I’ve still got four days until I can spend, but so far I’m declaring the moratorium a success!!!
Are you considering buying your leased car at the end of the term? This 1:30 video from SpendLessTV shows how you can talk the dealer into a price just above wholesale.
Some of the most unique frugal tips we received at the Frugal Fe$tival were from repeat tipsters! Iggy, Pauline, Michele and Julie shared some really fantastic ways to save money!
“Used nylons are great for gardens. Tie plants up, use over ripening fruit to keep squirrels from eating, sling under a melon so it doesn’t rest on the ground.” – Iggy
“I make my own laundry soap – inexpensive and really cleans clothes.” – Pauline
“I use the plastic disposable container for fruits we buy in grocery stores as plant holders. The water doesn’t spill on the floor.” – Marie
“Save the water from washing a fish tank for plants. The plants love the extra nutrients.” – Iggy
“I make a game out of getting something for a better price by setting a “price point” that I’m willing to pay. Then I’ll hunt for the item and “keep an eye out” until I find it for that price. (i.e. I wanted a yoga mat but decided my price point was $10, so I waited until I found one where for that price.” – Julie
“My kids cut out the Sunday coupons and place them in groups by food and non-food. They get great cutting and organizing skills.” – Jessica
“Use the material from broken umbrellas to patch holes in clothes and jeans.” – Iggy
“Hungry? Go to a “fast food” Mexican restaurant such as La Sala or Baja Fresh. Do not order off the menu! Look for the low prices of the side dishes. You can eat very well by ordering a couple side dishes and enjoying all the fixings at the salsa bar!! All for less than $4!! For ex., a plate of beans and rice, a side of tortillas. Ask for a cup for water and add lime.” – Sheryl
“Don’t be afraid to cut your own hair! I cut my bangs and my husband trims the back. If the average woman’s cut is $50, I’ve saved at least $600 a year!” – Michele
“I save coffee cups from Starbucks, but instead of using them for coffee, I use them to bring a (large) glass of wine with me when I go out with friends! No bar has ever stopped me from bringing in a cup of “coffee.” – Julie
“Have a kid in college? Check out the online textbooks sites that compare prices before emptying your bank account at the college stores.” – Michele
“Save toilet paper roll for children’s projects.” – anonymous
“We use paper towel rollers for bedding for hamsters. We shred it and it turns out to be their bedding.” – Marie
“Hang old CDs in the fruit trees to scare away the birds.” – anonymous
Have you used any of these ideas? Many are new to me. Thank for contributing, folks!
Tammy reuses envelopes she gets in the mail (clever) and has a fool-proof way of remembering coupons. Thanks, Tammy!