Friends, Readers, Countrymen (& women): Although it hasn't been an official year yet since I started this blog (that happens next Friday), we are on the eve of what prompted the blog last year: Lent
Last year, you traveled with me when I resolved to give up shopping for forty days. While it wasn't a total success, it definitely helped me reflect on how I think about money and, more importantly, how I spend money.
I wish I could tell you now that I'm better off financially than I was almost a year ago, but sadly, I'm not. In fact, I'm worse off now due to having to purchase a new vehicle and various financial roadblocks we've hit along the way. For all my new-found understanding of how I spend, I really haven't changed my habits very much, if at all, which is disappointing on a lot of levels. But I'm not going to throw in the towel just yet.
This year's Lenten challenge is kind of a doozy. It's definitely going to be hard, but in a good way. Starting tomorrow, I am not allowed to purchase any food or drink item at work. If I didn't bring it in my lunch bag, I don't get to eat it. No work cafeteria, no Wawa, no Real Pizza, no lunch outings with my co-workers (sorry, girls!), no snacks or soda from the vending machine, no buying a candy bar from the sheriff's officer trying to raise money for his kid's sports teams. Nada. Since I started tracking my spending, I realized I'm wasting around $30 a month eating out when I can easily bring it from home. In fact, on some of the occasions where I grab something at lunch, I already did bring something from home, but didn't feel like eating it. That attitude has got to go. Yesterday, I had my last turkey sandwich from our work cafeteria. Today, I'm going to have my last $5 lunch combo from the pizza place down the street. Tomorrow, I'm finally going to finish off those leftovers from this weekend. Hopefully, it's not moldy.
Are you giving anything up this year?
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
tracked
I think I've told you all about how I've been tracking my daily expenses in a notebook, right? If I didn't, the concept is pretty simple: buy a small notebook, carry it everywhere, & write down everything you spend money on. Last week, I filled my first notebook. It lasted from just after Labor Day (September 4) to the end of November.
The problem I ran into was categorizing what I wrote down. It would've been pretty difficult to go through by hand and see where I spent the most money. I was unsure of how to create my own Excel tracking sheet, but I found online (of course I can't find the link to now), which was easy to use & I could customize my own categories as well as my method of purchase (auto-debit, credit card, check, etc).
I spent most of the day Friday organizing my notes into the Spreadsheet. By lunchtime, I was thoroughly depressed by how much money I was spending needlessly. Even though I was writing it down, I guess I had become desensitized to the process - just writing my spending didn't mean anything anymore. But seeing my monthly shortfall in big red numbers sure did.
That process spurred this month's challenge: No Wawa for one month. It is downright embarrassing how much I was spending on food at Wawa on a monthly basis. $22 in September, $31 in October, and $59 in November! More than $100 in three months. It was probably just because I didn't feel like eating whatever lunch I brought that day, or we hadn't gone food shopping so I needed breakfast. This was in addition to the other money I spent on food/eating out (but not groceries). Ridiculousness.
We're only five days into the month, but I'm doing good so far. I did buy an orange juice there on Saturday morning before we went to my in-laws (& I bought The Hubs a breakfast sandwich, but he's not included in the challenge), but I drank half & saved the other for another morning. The Hubs was kind enough to go grocery shopping on Monday afternoon so now we have food to eat at dinner (and consequently, leftovers for lunch the next day).
An informal and totally non-scientific poll of my co-workers found that most don't track their spending on a daily basis, but log in weekly/monthly to make sure everything is hunky-dory. Even though PNC's Virtual Wallet can do the tracking for me, I've realized I'm the type of person who needs to do everything manually, otherwise my brain just doesn't register that money is flying out the window.
What about you?
The problem I ran into was categorizing what I wrote down. It would've been pretty difficult to go through by hand and see where I spent the most money. I was unsure of how to create my own Excel tracking sheet, but I found online (of course I can't find the link to now), which was easy to use & I could customize my own categories as well as my method of purchase (auto-debit, credit card, check, etc).
I spent most of the day Friday organizing my notes into the Spreadsheet. By lunchtime, I was thoroughly depressed by how much money I was spending needlessly. Even though I was writing it down, I guess I had become desensitized to the process - just writing my spending didn't mean anything anymore. But seeing my monthly shortfall in big red numbers sure did.
That process spurred this month's challenge: No Wawa for one month. It is downright embarrassing how much I was spending on food at Wawa on a monthly basis. $22 in September, $31 in October, and $59 in November! More than $100 in three months. It was probably just because I didn't feel like eating whatever lunch I brought that day, or we hadn't gone food shopping so I needed breakfast. This was in addition to the other money I spent on food/eating out (but not groceries). Ridiculousness.
We're only five days into the month, but I'm doing good so far. I did buy an orange juice there on Saturday morning before we went to my in-laws (& I bought The Hubs a breakfast sandwich, but he's not included in the challenge), but I drank half & saved the other for another morning. The Hubs was kind enough to go grocery shopping on Monday afternoon so now we have food to eat at dinner (and consequently, leftovers for lunch the next day).
An informal and totally non-scientific poll of my co-workers found that most don't track their spending on a daily basis, but log in weekly/monthly to make sure everything is hunky-dory. Even though PNC's Virtual Wallet can do the tracking for me, I've realized I'm the type of person who needs to do everything manually, otherwise my brain just doesn't register that money is flying out the window.
What about you?
Thursday, November 8, 2012
hey hey what can I do?
Every time I've opened a blank post up this week, I haven't been able to come up with something to write. I like to try and keep my posts focused, lest this become reminiscent of my teenage LiveJournal days; However, clarity has been elusive. I'm going to indulge my stream-of-consciousness today in the hopes a more focused blogger will appear at the end.
When we last left off, pre-hurricane, we had just spent $1,800 on the Hubs' car. Prior to this, we had about $2,200 on our joint Chase card. We made a lump payment of $1,000 before the car repair; However, now we have a $3,300 bill. Ugh. At least at the end of this month, we'll get the Hubs' check for coaching track and that can get paid off. Sandy delayed that by at least a week though, since the whole season was pushed back a week (including the bonus pay schedule).
Speaking of Sandy, I had a bit of a panic moment this past weekend, when I believed there was a very real possibility we weren't going to be paid as scheduled tomorrow (since no one was in last week to submit their time sheets). Thankfully, it looks as though the State of NJ is going to come through and deposit a much needed paycheck in my bank account tomorrow. Phew.
Post car, but pre-Sandy, we went to the Hubs' cousin's wedding in North Jersey. Seriously, people, I love you all, but we need to get out of this wedding phase. I forgot to buy a card & we didn't have time to grab one before the wedding on Friday, so I figured I would mail it to them when we got back, but then I thought that having the cash might be in our best interest if the power was out for an extended period of time. Well, our power came back on sooner than most (so so lucky), but I just can't be trusted with money. In general. Ever. Plus I kind of over spent on groceries right before the storm, so I was doubly broke. Luckily, we didn't lose any food with the storm (again, so so lucky). I just wrote them the check this morning. Whoops.
I did fall into a bit of money yesterday, though! I'm in a football pick-em pool at work and I scored the most points two weeks ago and won $100! I would've won $185, but I hadn't paid my entry fee yet, so that had to be subtracted. I'm currently 13 points off the leader, so I don't know if I have a shot of winning any of the top three prizes, but I'm trying not to think about it or I'll mess up my winning strategy (which is really no strategy at all, but quickly trying to get all my picks in before the start of the first game on Thursday night). I already spent the $100 in the form of a check to the above mentioned bride and groom though. Whoomp whoomp.
I've been spending more money on food lately than I should, specifically lunches. I'm in one of those funks where whatever I've brought doesn't actually appeal to me by the time I need to eat it. Yesterday was one of those days and today is shaping up to be one too. Plus we're going to lunch tomorrow for my co-worker, who already transferred to another county, but we couldn't celebrate since we weren't at work last week!
Lastly, I'll leave you with a little quip about spending money to make money (kind of). After Financial Literacy Month was over, I was reading other personal finance blogs and came across Man vs. Debt. I saw he offered a "class" of sorts called "You vs. Debt" and I thought it would be interesting and relevant to the blog so I signed up. I just started getting the e-mails and was getting pretty excited about the whole thing (well, as excited as you can be for a personal finance class). Yesterday, I got the e-mail to complete my registration and when I went to the website, you had to pay a one time fee of $97! I guess in the grand scheme of things, $97 isn't a lot of money, but really, what could they possibly tell me that I don't already know? I get it - I need to spend less and make more. It's harder than it seems when you're a spender. That's the secret. I just put it out there for free. It was definitely a major WTF moment for me.
It feels to get that jumble of money related "stuff" out there, as disjointed and unorganized as it might have been. How are my lovely readers out there doing? I haven't had any comments on the last four posts - did I lose you all?
When we last left off, pre-hurricane, we had just spent $1,800 on the Hubs' car. Prior to this, we had about $2,200 on our joint Chase card. We made a lump payment of $1,000 before the car repair; However, now we have a $3,300 bill. Ugh. At least at the end of this month, we'll get the Hubs' check for coaching track and that can get paid off. Sandy delayed that by at least a week though, since the whole season was pushed back a week (including the bonus pay schedule).
Speaking of Sandy, I had a bit of a panic moment this past weekend, when I believed there was a very real possibility we weren't going to be paid as scheduled tomorrow (since no one was in last week to submit their time sheets). Thankfully, it looks as though the State of NJ is going to come through and deposit a much needed paycheck in my bank account tomorrow. Phew.
Post car, but pre-Sandy, we went to the Hubs' cousin's wedding in North Jersey. Seriously, people, I love you all, but we need to get out of this wedding phase. I forgot to buy a card & we didn't have time to grab one before the wedding on Friday, so I figured I would mail it to them when we got back, but then I thought that having the cash might be in our best interest if the power was out for an extended period of time. Well, our power came back on sooner than most (so so lucky), but I just can't be trusted with money. In general. Ever. Plus I kind of over spent on groceries right before the storm, so I was doubly broke. Luckily, we didn't lose any food with the storm (again, so so lucky). I just wrote them the check this morning. Whoops.
I did fall into a bit of money yesterday, though! I'm in a football pick-em pool at work and I scored the most points two weeks ago and won $100! I would've won $185, but I hadn't paid my entry fee yet, so that had to be subtracted. I'm currently 13 points off the leader, so I don't know if I have a shot of winning any of the top three prizes, but I'm trying not to think about it or I'll mess up my winning strategy (which is really no strategy at all, but quickly trying to get all my picks in before the start of the first game on Thursday night). I already spent the $100 in the form of a check to the above mentioned bride and groom though. Whoomp whoomp.
I've been spending more money on food lately than I should, specifically lunches. I'm in one of those funks where whatever I've brought doesn't actually appeal to me by the time I need to eat it. Yesterday was one of those days and today is shaping up to be one too. Plus we're going to lunch tomorrow for my co-worker, who already transferred to another county, but we couldn't celebrate since we weren't at work last week!
Lastly, I'll leave you with a little quip about spending money to make money (kind of). After Financial Literacy Month was over, I was reading other personal finance blogs and came across Man vs. Debt. I saw he offered a "class" of sorts called "You vs. Debt" and I thought it would be interesting and relevant to the blog so I signed up. I just started getting the e-mails and was getting pretty excited about the whole thing (well, as excited as you can be for a personal finance class). Yesterday, I got the e-mail to complete my registration and when I went to the website, you had to pay a one time fee of $97! I guess in the grand scheme of things, $97 isn't a lot of money, but really, what could they possibly tell me that I don't already know? I get it - I need to spend less and make more. It's harder than it seems when you're a spender. That's the secret. I just put it out there for free. It was definitely a major WTF moment for me.
It feels to get that jumble of money related "stuff" out there, as disjointed and unorganized as it might have been. How are my lovely readers out there doing? I haven't had any comments on the last four posts - did I lose you all?
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
double take
My coworker asked if I wanted to go with her to our work cafeteria. I wasn't getting any work done at the moment (a theme at my cubicle), so I agreed. I took a few dollars with me, in case anything caught my eye, but I wasn't really hungry.
A short distance later, we arrived. I saw the cafeteria had cartons of Tropicana, which was great, since I had forgotten to have some with breakfast. There are two things I need in the morning: orange juice & tea. Without them, my day is pretty much ruined. I grabbed a carton and took it to the register. Guess how much that carton was?
TWO DOLLARS.
$ 2 !!!
I was paralyzed at the register. I certainly didn't want to pay $2 for 24 ounces of juice (more than double what I normally drank in the morning), but I didn't want to be that weirdo who put it back. Not surprisingly, I paid for it, but it'll be a long time before I make that mistake again.
Also, I should have done a better job at checking prices. While drinks aren't labeled with prices in the cooler, there is a large peg board I should have checked first. But when my soda is 0.75 cents, I definitely don't think the orange juice is going to cost 150% (ish) more.
Anyone else ever have something similar happen? Are you better at putting the item back than I am?
A short distance later, we arrived. I saw the cafeteria had cartons of Tropicana, which was great, since I had forgotten to have some with breakfast. There are two things I need in the morning: orange juice & tea. Without them, my day is pretty much ruined. I grabbed a carton and took it to the register. Guess how much that carton was?
TWO DOLLARS.
$ 2 !!!
I was paralyzed at the register. I certainly didn't want to pay $2 for 24 ounces of juice (more than double what I normally drank in the morning), but I didn't want to be that weirdo who put it back. Not surprisingly, I paid for it, but it'll be a long time before I make that mistake again.
Anyone else ever have something similar happen? Are you better at putting the item back than I am?
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
magic isn't cheap
Next Wednesday, the hubs and I are traveling to the Most Magical Place on Earth (I feel the need to capitalize that, for some reason), as his cross country team is competing in the ESPN Cross Country Classic. Back when we first found out about the trip, we were both pretty psyched. I say we, because I was invited to attend as a chaperone. Sidenote: There are few words in the English language that make you feel old than chaperone.
Before you get your undies in a bunch about taxpayer money being wasted on a non-district employee such as myself (like my Mom), you should know we were responsible for paying our own way. Additionally, the girls cross country coach decided this year, the team would "upgrade" from a value resort to a moderate resort. For those of you who don't know, here are the differences:
Value Resort: Your basic amenities - food court, gift shop, pools (but no water slides), a lot of walking, sometimes long waits for the shuttles. Basically, we would be at the Wide World of Sports hotel (or other Value priced hotel) with every other cross country team attending.
Moderate Resort: A bit more upscale. There's a food court AND a table service restaurant and there are more pools (and some have water slides). The walking is about the same as well as the transportation (Disney shuttle).
I stayed in the Port Orleans Moderate resort when I went to Disney at 17. Honestly, I don't remember anything special about it. The two times the =hubs and I have gone to Disney as adults, we've stayed near Downtown Disney (because we're drunks). Personally, I would've been fine with spending less money on a Value resort this time around. But then again, when there aren't 500 obnoxious high schoolers around our resort while I'm trying to sleep - I'll be grateful.
Granted, I'm sure we saved some money by traveling in a large group, but some things are expensive in Disney no matter which way you look at it. The biggest of these is food. I did some research the other night on this and there are a few websites with helpful suggestions, but the most informative one is Mouse Savers. Every tip you could ever imagine for any Disney vacation is there.
The number #1 tip I found was that you can now bring your own water into the theme parks and fill up at the water fountains as your day goes on. Considering bottle of water usually cost at least $2, this is definitely going to come in handy. You can also bring snacks into the park as well. This weekend, we'll be picking up some travel-friendly snack packs to bring in with us.
The hubs and I also agreed to keep our meals light. He's decided to stick with two meals a day, so if he eats breakfast, he'll skip lunch, and munch on the snacks until dinner. I can't skip meals without turning into an angry bear, so my plan is to bring oatmeal that I can mix up in the room to eat for breakfast then hit the produce stand of whatever park we're in that day (there's one in every park) for a cheap, nutritious filler. Hopefully, when our day starts to wind down I'll be able to grab a few pieces of fruit for the next day as well.
For times that we have to eat in the park, Mouse Savers points out a few money-saving options:
Before you get your undies in a bunch about taxpayer money being wasted on a non-district employee such as myself (like my Mom), you should know we were responsible for paying our own way. Additionally, the girls cross country coach decided this year, the team would "upgrade" from a value resort to a moderate resort. For those of you who don't know, here are the differences:
Value Resort: Your basic amenities - food court, gift shop, pools (but no water slides), a lot of walking, sometimes long waits for the shuttles. Basically, we would be at the Wide World of Sports hotel (or other Value priced hotel) with every other cross country team attending.
Moderate Resort: A bit more upscale. There's a food court AND a table service restaurant and there are more pools (and some have water slides). The walking is about the same as well as the transportation (Disney shuttle).
I stayed in the Port Orleans Moderate resort when I went to Disney at 17. Honestly, I don't remember anything special about it. The two times the =hubs and I have gone to Disney as adults, we've stayed near Downtown Disney (because we're drunks). Personally, I would've been fine with spending less money on a Value resort this time around. But then again, when there aren't 500 obnoxious high schoolers around our resort while I'm trying to sleep - I'll be grateful.
Granted, I'm sure we saved some money by traveling in a large group, but some things are expensive in Disney no matter which way you look at it. The biggest of these is food. I did some research the other night on this and there are a few websites with helpful suggestions, but the most informative one is Mouse Savers. Every tip you could ever imagine for any Disney vacation is there.
The number #1 tip I found was that you can now bring your own water into the theme parks and fill up at the water fountains as your day goes on. Considering bottle of water usually cost at least $2, this is definitely going to come in handy. You can also bring snacks into the park as well. This weekend, we'll be picking up some travel-friendly snack packs to bring in with us.
The hubs and I also agreed to keep our meals light. He's decided to stick with two meals a day, so if he eats breakfast, he'll skip lunch, and munch on the snacks until dinner. I can't skip meals without turning into an angry bear, so my plan is to bring oatmeal that I can mix up in the room to eat for breakfast then hit the produce stand of whatever park we're in that day (there's one in every park) for a cheap, nutritious filler. Hopefully, when our day starts to wind down I'll be able to grab a few pieces of fruit for the next day as well.
For times that we have to eat in the park, Mouse Savers points out a few money-saving options:
- Split a large meal between the two of us. For example, you can get half a rotisserie chicken with mashed potatoes & vegetables for about $10 in at least one restaurant at all the different parks
- Buy kids meal portions at counter service restaurant - no kid required!
- Anything offered as a combination meal you can actually get a la carte. So instead of buying a sandwich, fries, salad, and drink, we can pick & chose what we'll actually eat. No wasted food OR money.
Friday, September 14, 2012
sub or hero?
Disclaimer: this post is not actually about the linguistics of a sub/hero/hoagie. I don't want this blog to be the start of geographical warfare (because that's totally what would happen). Authors Note: If you're visting South Jersey, it's hoagie.
I was reading Stephanie's blog this morning and she noted she has never made zucchini bread with nutmeg, simply because she didn't have it in her pantry. Instead, she uses pumpkin pie spice and it works out just fine. This got me thinking about all the times I haven't had something in the pantry/fridge that a receipe called for. When, and if, I meal planned, I usually just went right down the list and bought everything a receipe called for. This can get very expensive and half the time I don't use the ingredient again. Talk about a waste of money.
Lately, I've been getting better at checking out substitutions for common (and not so common) ingredients. I thought I would share with my lovely readers (all three of you) my favorites so far. Just know that these are necessarily "healthier" substitutions, but perhaps, easier.
Allspice: equal parts nutmeg, cinnamon, & cloves
Bread crumbs: rolled oats (crushed up a bit) or even plain potato chips crushed finely
Butter: 7/8 cup of oil for every one cup of butter
Buttermilk: just under 1 cup of milk combined with 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice. Let sit for five minutes then use as needed
Egg: applesauce, half a banana, or plain yogurt can be great egg substitutes in baked goods, just remember to add a pinch of baking powder if you need the food to rise when cooking. If you're really in a pinch, try mixing two tablespoons of water with two tablespoons of baking powder.
Fish sauce (my secret ingredient in a lot of things!): 1 teaspoon of light soy sauce
Ginger: 1/2 teaspoon ground to substitute for 1 teaspoon fresh
Molasses: 3/4 cup brown sugar, 3/4 cup white sugar combined with 1/4 cup water, OR 1 cup dark honey or maple syrup
Vinegar (white or cider): 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice
That's just a very brief list - check here if you're looking for something specific.
It might take a few more minutes to make a substitute, but your wallet will definitely thank you when the receipe is done! What's your favorite?
I was reading Stephanie's blog this morning and she noted she has never made zucchini bread with nutmeg, simply because she didn't have it in her pantry. Instead, she uses pumpkin pie spice and it works out just fine. This got me thinking about all the times I haven't had something in the pantry/fridge that a receipe called for. When, and if, I meal planned, I usually just went right down the list and bought everything a receipe called for. This can get very expensive and half the time I don't use the ingredient again. Talk about a waste of money.
Lately, I've been getting better at checking out substitutions for common (and not so common) ingredients. I thought I would share with my lovely readers (all three of you) my favorites so far. Just know that these are necessarily "healthier" substitutions, but perhaps, easier.
Allspice: equal parts nutmeg, cinnamon, & cloves
Bread crumbs: rolled oats (crushed up a bit) or even plain potato chips crushed finely
Butter: 7/8 cup of oil for every one cup of butter
Buttermilk: just under 1 cup of milk combined with 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice. Let sit for five minutes then use as needed
Egg: applesauce, half a banana, or plain yogurt can be great egg substitutes in baked goods, just remember to add a pinch of baking powder if you need the food to rise when cooking. If you're really in a pinch, try mixing two tablespoons of water with two tablespoons of baking powder.
Fish sauce (my secret ingredient in a lot of things!): 1 teaspoon of light soy sauce
Ginger: 1/2 teaspoon ground to substitute for 1 teaspoon fresh
Molasses: 3/4 cup brown sugar, 3/4 cup white sugar combined with 1/4 cup water, OR 1 cup dark honey or maple syrup
Vinegar (white or cider): 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice
That's just a very brief list - check here if you're looking for something specific.
It might take a few more minutes to make a substitute, but your wallet will definitely thank you when the receipe is done! What's your favorite?
Friday, July 6, 2012
grande half dirty iced soy chai
Hello, my name is Kathy and I am addicted to Starbucks.
But they taste sooooooooo good. I mean really really REALLY good. I want one just thinking about it. There's not much better on a hot day than a cold chai. All that deliciousness comes with a pricetag - and I'm not just talking about the literal price - there are 240 calories in a grande (medium) and 43 grams of sugar. I might as well eat about 12 sugar cubes (sidenote: the website Sugar Stacks will really make you think about how much sugar your consume).
In the name of frugalism (& my girlish figure), I've challenged myself to recreate the drink at home. Spoiler: it's much harder than I thought. I could just buy the boxed Tazo concentrate Starbucks uses - it's not *too* expensive (about $4 for 32 ounces), but, after reading the label, I saw the concentate was the man source of my sugar woes. There is 16 grams of sugar in four ounces! I put that box back on the shelf for now and took to the internetz to solve this dilemma.
The first website that pops up when you google "how to make starbucks chai tea latte at home" is Tammy's Recipes. She suggests using Celestial Seasonings India Spice tea bags. I didn't have that brand at home and I couldn't seem to find it in store; however, I saw in the comments that another tester used Stash's Chai Spice tea. Score! My favorite tea brand! But honestly, I wasn't a fan of this recipe. I used 1% milk instead of whipped cream (an ingrediant we don't normally have in this house), but it didn't have the right combination of spices + sweetness. Next!
I tried to use my brain (that might have been my first mistake) and recall how my baristas made the beverage. If the drink is hot, the ingrediants are water, milk, & concentrate, but if the drink is iced, it's only milk & concentrate. I picked up a box of Organic Vanilla Soy Milk at Stop & Shop for $2 and set out the next morning to create this drink if it kills me. My first attempt was eeual parts (1 cup) water & milk plus two tea bags. Blech. Absolutely terrible. The next attempt was just milk & tea bags. Better, but still too sweet. Back to the grocery store where I picked up a box of Stash's Double Chai Spice tea. Third time was the charm - the double spice tea bags packed the punch I was looking for.
The recipe still needs plenty of tweaking - it doesn't translate to an iced drink as well as I'd hoped, despite only using two ingredients. Adding a packet of Stevia in the Raw makes the drink too sweet. I'm thinking maybe one more tea bag will balance it out. But for now, the recipe does what I wanted - replace my weekly habit with a drink that's cheaper and doesn't pack on the pounds. Eventually, I'd like to try my hand at making chai tea with actual spices and loose tea, but right now, it's too hot for that!
Have you ever made your own version of a store's concoction? How did it turn out?
I've been frequenting the baristas a lot more than usual lately and it's taking a toll on my wallet. My usual drink (see the above title) costs around $4.50. Now, I'm not buying them everyday, but at least once, maybe twice per week. Sometimes I switch it up and get an iced tea, which is cheaper or a hot tea (one teabag), which is the cheapest. But it's summer, so hot tea is reserved for AM's in the AC only. In any case, I'm still spending about $20-$25 per month on calories I don't really need.
But they taste sooooooooo good. I mean really really REALLY good. I want one just thinking about it. There's not much better on a hot day than a cold chai. All that deliciousness comes with a pricetag - and I'm not just talking about the literal price - there are 240 calories in a grande (medium) and 43 grams of sugar. I might as well eat about 12 sugar cubes (sidenote: the website Sugar Stacks will really make you think about how much sugar your consume).
In the name of frugalism (& my girlish figure), I've challenged myself to recreate the drink at home. Spoiler: it's much harder than I thought. I could just buy the boxed Tazo concentrate Starbucks uses - it's not *too* expensive (about $4 for 32 ounces), but, after reading the label, I saw the concentate was the man source of my sugar woes. There is 16 grams of sugar in four ounces! I put that box back on the shelf for now and took to the internetz to solve this dilemma.
The first website that pops up when you google "how to make starbucks chai tea latte at home" is Tammy's Recipes. She suggests using Celestial Seasonings India Spice tea bags. I didn't have that brand at home and I couldn't seem to find it in store; however, I saw in the comments that another tester used Stash's Chai Spice tea. Score! My favorite tea brand! But honestly, I wasn't a fan of this recipe. I used 1% milk instead of whipped cream (an ingrediant we don't normally have in this house), but it didn't have the right combination of spices + sweetness. Next!
I tried to use my brain (that might have been my first mistake) and recall how my baristas made the beverage. If the drink is hot, the ingrediants are water, milk, & concentrate, but if the drink is iced, it's only milk & concentrate. I picked up a box of Organic Vanilla Soy Milk at Stop & Shop for $2 and set out the next morning to create this drink if it kills me. My first attempt was eeual parts (1 cup) water & milk plus two tea bags. Blech. Absolutely terrible. The next attempt was just milk & tea bags. Better, but still too sweet. Back to the grocery store where I picked up a box of Stash's Double Chai Spice tea. Third time was the charm - the double spice tea bags packed the punch I was looking for.
The recipe still needs plenty of tweaking - it doesn't translate to an iced drink as well as I'd hoped, despite only using two ingredients. Adding a packet of Stevia in the Raw makes the drink too sweet. I'm thinking maybe one more tea bag will balance it out. But for now, the recipe does what I wanted - replace my weekly habit with a drink that's cheaper and doesn't pack on the pounds. Eventually, I'd like to try my hand at making chai tea with actual spices and loose tea, but right now, it's too hot for that!
Have you ever made your own version of a store's concoction? How did it turn out?
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Go Green, Save Green
There are numerous ways to go green in order to save money: buy a fuel-efficient vehicle, repurpose/reuse, make your own cleaners, etc. I recently discovered a new way to save money that's also super healthy - making green smoothies!
In the past, I was hesitant to buy produce in bulk because inevitably some would go bad before I could eat it. I was spending more money to buy smaller quantities and making frequent trips to the grocery store. This was especially true in the late fall to early spring before the local farm stands re-open. I might as well have thrown money straight into the trash can. Now, if any of my fruit is too ripe to eat raw, I just pop it in the freezer for later use.
For the "green" portion, you can use just about any leafy vegetable that your heart desires. I'm still pretty new to the smoothie game, so I use spinach because it's mild in flavor and it's easy (& cheap) to come by. I'm looking forward to purusing my local farmer's market this summer for fresh kale, chard, and mustard greens to use in the smoothies. I also like to add some greek yogurt for its protein and creaminess. Depending on my fruit supply, I may choose a favored variety for an extra kick of fruitiness or just the plain fat-free version. You can often find individual greek yogurts on sale at your local grocery store or a larger fat-free container at a big box store.
Lately, my go to combination has been strawberry kiwi. Shop Rite had 6 kiwis on sale for $1.99 and a large container of strawberries for $2.50. I use about a half kiwi per smoothie and probably about a cup of sliced strawberries (it's really about personal taste preference, so I don't have exact measurements for you). I add almost enough water to cover the fruit and two heaping tablespoons of fat-free greek yogurt. I blend those first until smooth, then I add the spinach. The first smoothie I made, I only used one handful of spinach, but now I throw in about two & a half.
The whole process takes less then 10 minutes, depending on how many fruits you need to cut up. I like that I can carry it around the house as I finish getting ready for work. One 12-16 ounce cup keeps me full until about 11 AM, which is even longer than when I eat eggs for breakfast! It also helps curb my cravings for unhealthy food which is great. Don't feel like you need to get a fancy blender, either; We have a basic $30 blender from Target, which works fine for chopping up small or sliced produce (if you want to blend ice in though, maybe splurge a little more).
In short, green smoothies are good for you AND your wallet! Anyone inspired to try one tomorrow morning?
Day Twenty-Four Spent:
$25.00 gas
$10.00 March Madness pool
$1.00 Mega Millions lottery ticket
$1.00 chocolate bar (sheriff's fundraiser)
-----------------------
Day Twenty-Four Saved: $0.00
 |
| that's not me. i don't smile that much in the morning. |
For the "green" portion, you can use just about any leafy vegetable that your heart desires. I'm still pretty new to the smoothie game, so I use spinach because it's mild in flavor and it's easy (& cheap) to come by. I'm looking forward to purusing my local farmer's market this summer for fresh kale, chard, and mustard greens to use in the smoothies. I also like to add some greek yogurt for its protein and creaminess. Depending on my fruit supply, I may choose a favored variety for an extra kick of fruitiness or just the plain fat-free version. You can often find individual greek yogurts on sale at your local grocery store or a larger fat-free container at a big box store.
Lately, my go to combination has been strawberry kiwi. Shop Rite had 6 kiwis on sale for $1.99 and a large container of strawberries for $2.50. I use about a half kiwi per smoothie and probably about a cup of sliced strawberries (it's really about personal taste preference, so I don't have exact measurements for you). I add almost enough water to cover the fruit and two heaping tablespoons of fat-free greek yogurt. I blend those first until smooth, then I add the spinach. The first smoothie I made, I only used one handful of spinach, but now I throw in about two & a half.
The whole process takes less then 10 minutes, depending on how many fruits you need to cut up. I like that I can carry it around the house as I finish getting ready for work. One 12-16 ounce cup keeps me full until about 11 AM, which is even longer than when I eat eggs for breakfast! It also helps curb my cravings for unhealthy food which is great. Don't feel like you need to get a fancy blender, either; We have a basic $30 blender from Target, which works fine for chopping up small or sliced produce (if you want to blend ice in though, maybe splurge a little more).
In short, green smoothies are good for you AND your wallet! Anyone inspired to try one tomorrow morning?
Day Twenty-Four Spent:
$25.00 gas
$10.00 March Madness pool
$1.00 Mega Millions lottery ticket
$1.00 chocolate bar (sheriff's fundraiser)
-----------------------
Day Twenty-Four Saved: $0.00
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