Correction

I just got back from Harris Teeter, and the price on EZ peel shrimp wasn't as good as I'd reported on Wednesday. They're still BOGO, but the 31/40 count are $19.98 for a 2 lb. bag, making them $5 per lb - no deal at all. When prices aren't listed in the circular, I sometimes go online to check the prices with their "Express Lane" (shop at home) service. When I checked the price of the shrimp this way, it was listed as $9.99 per 2 lb. bag, BOGO. Obviously that was wrong - the bags are $19.98 BOGO, or $9.99 EACH.

Sorry about that, folks. :(

Great Deal Alert

I just got an email from Harris Teeter. Today through Tuesday, e-Vic members who spend at least $50 in a single transaction will get $10 off at the register. That's 20%!

You're an e-Vic member if you've linked your Vic card to your email address, and signed up to receive Harris Teeter's weekly fliers by email.

So check your email to see if you've gotten this offer. And if you haven't already signed up to be an e-Vic member, now seems like the perfect time to do it!

Wednesday Dinner

Tonight I made a pasta bake. I cooked 1 box of Ronzoni Smart Taste spiral pasta (this is the pasta that has extra calcium and fiber, but tastes like regular pasta). I purchased it with a coupon so it was the same price as regular pasta. I stirred in 1 jar Prego pasta sauce (purchased on sale + triple coupon), 1 grated zucchini from my garden, and a little less than a pound of Italian sausage, cooked and sliced (purchased on markdown). After stirring everything together, I topped with 1/2 an 8oz. package shredded cheese (purchase buy 2, get 3 free), and baked at 350 for 30 minutes. It was delicious served with a loaf of crusty bread hot from the bread machine.

Totals:
$1 - pasta
$1.76 - Italian sausage
.30 - Prego sauce
.65 - cheese
.50 - ingredients for bread
free - zucchini

$4.21 for dinner for 4 (sister & husband joined us), with plenty of leftovers

Food Lion Deals

They're having a 2-day stock up sale starting Saturday at 8am. Good deals to be had on paper towels ($4.99 for Brawny 6 or 8 pack), and toilet paper ($4.99 for Quilted Northern 9 mega or 12 double roll pack). I wasn't impressed with their other "stock up sale" deals. The following deals are good all week:

Washington cherries - $1.49/lb
Assorted pork chops - $1.99/lb
Food Lion brand soda 12 packs - $2/ea
Hunts Manwich - $1/ea
Chicken leg quarters in 10 lb bag - .79/lb

BOGO
John Morrell off the bone lunchmeats
Steak-ums
Deli turkey breast - roasted, smoked, honey or fried (buy 1 lb, get 1 free)
Hungry Man dinners
Cole's garlic bread
Keebler Chips Deluxe cookies
Emerald Mixed Nuts
Cantaloupes
Edy's Ice Cream

Lowes Foods Deals

Their big pull this week are their $2 deals. You'll have to look at the fine print in the ad to see how much you're actually saving over the regular price. In some cases, it's just a few cents (.38 off 4-pack of yogurt), in other cases, there's a substantial savings ($2.79 per lb. off eye of round roast).

$2 Deals
Boneless Skinless chicken breasts (per lb)
Assorted pork chops (per lb)
Boneless eye of round roast (per lb)
Weight Watchers entrees
Kraft shredded cheese
Lowes Foods lunch meats
Lays potato chips
Bakery cookies (1 dozen)
Wonder bread
General Mills cereals (select varieties)
Green Giant nibblers (12-pack frozen corn on the cob)
Dannon yogurt 6-pack
Activia yogurt 4-pack


BOGO
Breyer's Ice Cream
Mayfield Ice Cream
Starr's pimento cheese
Velveeta singles
Thomas' English Muffins
Snickers candy bars
Lowes Foods brand ice cream sandwiches, foam plates, and sandwich baggies

$1 each
Pepsi 2-liter
Totinos Pizza Rolls

Kraft Chunk Cheese - 3/$4.98

Lowes Foods has a new thing called e-offers by InstaSave. You register online with your Lowes Foods rewards card, and you can electronically link online coupons to your rewards card. They'll email you when new offers are available. You just click on the offer to "link" it to your rewards card, and you'll automatically get money off at checkout without having to clip coupons. You can also print a list of all your offers so you'll remember them while you're at the store. To register, go to Lowesfoods.com/instasave
As a thank you for registering, you can link an offer to get a dozen large eggs for .39 (limit 2). Great deal!

Harris Teeter Deals

This is a decent week at Harris Teeter. I see several deals good enough to entice me into the store.

Best Deal:
EZ Peel Shrimp BOGO works out to be $2.50/lb for 31/40 count. Definite stock up price - this is as low as it goes. (Sold frozen in 2 lb bags - only have to buy 1 bag to get BOGO price.)

Buy 2, Get 3 Free
Harris Teeter brand ice cream
Harris Teeter brand bacon
Ocean Spray Craisins
Marble Composition Books

BOGO
Fresh Foods Pizza Crust
Baby Back Ribs
Arm & Hammer laundry detergent & fabric softener
Breakfast Cookies (in the bakery)
Colgate Toothpaste
Chicken Breast
Ground Chicken
No-sugar Fudgesicles
HT brand English Muffins or Bagels
Hefty Cinch Sak, Foam Plates or Plastic Cups
Kleenex
Lipton/Knorr Rice & Pasta Sides
Kraft Mayo or Miracle Whip
Kraft Salad Dressings
Lays Potato Chips
La Brea French Baguettes
Nature's Pride Bread
Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice
Popsicles
London Broil
Deli Turkey Breast

1 lb. strawberries or 1 pt blueberries - $1.25 each

Kraft 7 - 8oz. shredded or brick cheese - $2 each

Hamburger Helper - $1.33 each

Tuesday Dinner

I've been keeping busy while The Kid is at camp by immersing myself in a major cleaning-reorganizing project. So dinner last night was simple but hearty. Turkey Kielbasa, corn on the cob, and a Lipton/Knorr rice mix (broccoli and cheese). As I've said before, the Lipton/Knorr rice and pasta side dish mixes are a great way to stretch a budget. Coupons for them are regularly in the Sunday paper, and Harris Teeter frequently puts them on sale. (They're BOGO this week, as a matter of fact.) Combine coupons with sales and you can consistently buy these for 25 cents each or less. During triple coupons, this is a product I often get free or for just a few cents. I keep plenty on hand for nights like last night, when I want to quickly put together a meat-starch-veggie dinner.

Totals:

$2 - turkey Kielbasa (Hillshire Farms brand, WalMart + coupon)
$1 - corn on the cob (3/$1)
.4 - rice side dish (purchased when HT had triple coupons)

$3.04 for dinner for 3 (sister joined us)

Sunday Dinner

The Kid has been safely deposited at camp, and the house already seems as quiet as a tomb.

I surprised myself by cooking tonight - or maybe I just didn't feel like going out. Either way, I put together a nice little supper. We had grilled chicken sandwiches with monterey jack cheese and sliced tomatoes (from the garden), oven fries, and pole beans (leftover, also from the garden).

Totals:

$1.80 -marinated chicken breasts (remaining 2 "Perdue Perfect Portions")
.50 - potato rolls (2 out of package of 8)
.40 - cheese
.60 - oven fries (1/3 of $1.80 package)
free - tomatoes
free - pole beans

$3.30 for dinner for 2

Life's little challenges

To any friends who might be reading:

I came down with a nasty virus on Wednesday - a computer virus, that is. I've been without a computer until today. A good friend (who has probably forgotten more about computers than I'll ever know) did what she could, but it's still far from being back to its old self. The recovery is shaping up to be a long and painful process.

Tomorrow, The Kid leaves for a week at camp. I don't do as much cooking when it's just the 2 adults - we eat out more often, and rely more on pre-cooked and/or pre-packaged stuff. I guess I'm just less willing to put in the time and effort when I'm missing my baby. (From past experience, this week is going to feel about 6 months long.)

So that's the story on why I haven't posted in the last few days, and why dinner postings for the next week are likely to be sporadic. Still, I'll post if I cook anything worth mentioning, and I'll definitely try to put in a "Weekly Deals" post around Wednesday.

So check back with me next weekend - hopefully both my computer and my household will be getting back to normal around then.

Peace.

~GSO Foodie

Lowes Foods Deals

It's official - no one is having a good sale week. Here's the best of what Lowes has to offer:

seedless white grapes - .99/lb
Shadybrook Farm ground turkey - .99/lb


BOGO
Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream
Dak sliced ham
Hormel Fully Cooked Entrees
Edy's Ice Cream
Spray n' Wash
Bakery sub rolls & French bread

Food Lion Deals

I don't see anything to lure me to Food Lion this week, but maybe you will.

Blueberries - 1.88/pt
Peaches - .88/lb
Family Size Stouffer's Entrees - $5.50

BOGO
Hamburger Helper
Arm & Hammer Laundry Detergent
Lays Potato Chips
Breyer's Ice Cream
Hormel Cooked Ham (lunch meat)
Select Kelloggs Cereals
Minute Maid Punches & Lemonades (refrig. carton)
Eggo Waffles
Pepperidge Farm Layer Cakes
Smithfield Lunch Meats

Harris Teeter Deals

I'm not seeing a lot in the way of deals at Harris Teeter this week. I suppose they're letting Super Double Coupons take the place of any real markdowns. Many of the products advertised in the circular look to be at or just a few cents off regular price to me. Here's the best of what they have:

Seedless Red Grapes - .99/lb
Frozen Turkey Breast - .97/lb
Mayfield Ice Cream - 1.99/ea
Gwaltney Bacon - 1.97/ea

BOGO

Cheez-Its
Hanover Gold Line frozen vegetables
Kelloggs Frosted Mini Wheats (recent coupons)
Luigi's Italian Ice (recent coupons)
Nature's Own White Wheat bread
Hershey single candy bars
Pop Secret popcorn

Super Double Coupons

A little bird tells me that Harris Teeter will have Super Double Coupons beginning bright and early Wednesday morning (and lasting through next Tuesday). Super Double means that all coupons with a face value of $1.98 or less will be doubled. So get your coupons cut and organized if you're behind. I'll post about any good deals I come across as I find them.

Tuesday Dinner

Tonight I made a recipe that my family really likes:

Creamy Rice, Chicken & Spinach Dinner

As usual, I never follow a recipe entirely - I always customize it to my own tastes. In this case, I've found that whole, boneless chicken thighs work better than breast strips. I cook them in the dressing until browned and the dressing has reduced to a thick, syrupy glaze on the chicken. Then I remove thighs from the pan and keep them warm. I add more dressing to the pan and prepare rice as directed, then serve each person their own whole thigh on top of rice. I've found that cooking the chicken in the rice mixture sort of "washes off" the flavor and leaves it rather bland.

Other notes: Kraft Sun-dried Tomato Vinaigrette works just as well as the Roasted Red Pepper Italian called for in recipe. Can also substitute 1 can of diced tomatoes (undrained) for fresh, if necessary.

Rounding out the meal we had a loaf of homemade honey wheat bread. I've been neglecting my bread machine lately, and this seemed like the perfect meal to break it out.

Totals:

$3.14 - boneless chicken thighs (meat markdown)
free - tomato
free - fresh spinach (from my sister)
$1 - remaining casserole ingredients
.75 - bread ingredients

$4.89 - dinner for 5 (sister & husband ate with us)

Sunday & Monday Dinner

I had a busy Sunday and wasn't remotely in the mood for cooking, so I heated up half a box of Taquitos, a can of refried beans, and sliced up a tomato from the garden.

Totals:

$2.12 (1/2 box of Taquitos, $5.25 - $1 coupon)
.79 - refried beans
free - tomato

$3.01 for dinner for 3

__________________

Tonight I did some experimenting with veggies from the garden. We all love fried squash, but the usual way I make it (batter-dipped) is messy and time-consuming. I found a recipe that basically just called for the squash to be dipped in seasoned flour. It turned out OK, but nowhere near as good as my "regular" way.

I also have a sudden glut of tomatoes to use up, so I made baked stuffed tomatoes. I looked at several different recipes online, but wound up making one up as I went along. It was very good if I do say so myself. I diced 2 slices bacon and cooked in a large skillet. I added a mixture of sauteed chopped onion, garlic and bell pepper that I had leftover from another recipe (about 1/2 onion, 1/2 bell pepper, and 2 cloves minced garlic). I poured in 1 cup instant rice and 1 cup chicken broth, then simmered until rice was done. I let it cool, then stirred in about 1 cup shredded cheddar/monterey jack mix. For the tomatoes, I cut a thin slice off the top, then scooped out the pulp, leaving a 1/4" shell all the way around. I salted the insides, then turned upside down on paper towels to let drain for 30 minutes. I stuffed with the rice/cheese mix, topped with more cheese, and baked at 400 for 20 minutes. Rounding out the dinner we had leftover pole beans from the other night, and I baked up a box of Jiffy corn muffins.

Totals:

.50 - corn muffins (mix + milk + egg)
$1 - filling for tomatoes (rice, bacon, cheese)
free - tomatoes, squash, beans

$1.50 for dinner for 4 (sister ate with us again)

Saturday Dinner

For dinner tonight I grilled some garlic-herb marinated Perdue "perfect portions." I think they're way overpriced at $8.99 for 5 individually wrapped chicken breasts (regular price), but not too bad at $4.50, which is what I paid after short-dated markdown + doubled coupon.

On the side we had a pasta-veggie dish. It would have been a lot better if I hadn't had to keep it warm for an hour because certain someones neglected to call home to tell me they would be late - but it was still OK. I diced 3 slices of bacon and cooked them in a large skilled with one thinly sliced onion until bacon was done and onion was soft and carmelized. I added 2 minced cloves of garlic and 8 oz. sliced mushrooms and sauteed until mushrooms were done. Then I added 2 tomatoes from my garden, seeded and cut into 1" chunks, a 4 oz. box of thin spaghetti, cooked, and fresh snipped parsley and chives from my garden. I stirred in some gorgonzola cheese crumbles just before serving.

Totals:

$2.70 - chicken
$1.50 - mushrooms
.33 - pasta
.50 - misc. pasta ingredients

$5.03 for dinner for 3

Wednesday & Thursday Dinner

I took The Kid to see the new HarryPotter movie yesterday, so dinner was a quickly-put-together meal when we got home - hot dogs (grilled last Sunday) and canned baked beans.

Totals:

free - Oscar Mayer beef hot dogs (received coupon by mail for free package)
$1.97 - buns
$1.29 - baked beans

$3.26 for dinner for 3

________________

Today was my first harvest of pole beans from my garden. I slow-cooked them with a little bacon and chicken bullion and they were great. I also tried my hand at making zucchini fritters (also with produce from my garden). I did a search for recipes, then picked what I thought were the best elements from several in order to make my own. They were awesome - The Kid has been going back to eat the leftovers, one by one, since dinner ended. (I don't count on having any left by bedtime.) We also had another of those 50 cent smoked sausages (BOGO sale + double coupon) that I grilled on Sunday.

Totals:
free - green beans
free - zucchini
.50 - misc. ingredients
.50 - smoked sausage

$1 for dinner for 4 (us + my sister). I beat my own record for cheapest dinner yet! (But I'm mainly happy because my garden is finally starting to pay off.)

Zucchini Fritters

2 cups shredded zucchini (about 2 medium or 1 large)
1/2 t. salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup Bisquick
2 T. grated Parmesan cheese
Seasonings: garlic powder, Mrs. Dash, pepper
oil for frying

Grate zucchini using large holes of box grater. Add salt, toss, and let stand in colandar for 30 minutes to draw out liquid. Spoon grated zucchini into clean dishtowel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. (Don't skip this step - you'll be amazed at how much comes out.) Return zucchini to bowl and stir in eggs, Bisquick, parmesan cheese, and seasonings to taste to form a smooth batter. Heat about 1/8" oil in skillet until hot. Drop in spoonfulls of zucchini batter (about 1 heaping tablespoon full), cook until browned on one side (about 3 minutes). Turn gently, and cook on the other side until browned (about 3 minutes more). Remove to paper towels to drain, and sprinkle with salt while hot. Can keep warm in 200 degree oven while cooking subsequent batches. This recipe yielded 14 fritters for me, each about 2 1/2" in diameter.

Recipes I found suggested sour cream or marinara sauce for dipping, but The Kid - who adores sour cream, by the way - said they were perfect plain and didn't need anything else.

Tuesday Dinner

Tonight's dinner was about as close to free as I'll probably get. I made big spinach salads with the spinach my sister gave us, sliced up leftover London broil from Sunday, cherry tomatoes from my garden, croutons that were free after double coupons, and dressing I think I paid 50 cents a bottle for. The only things I bought specifically for tonight's dinner were a tub of gorgonzola cheese crumbles to go on the salad, and a good loaf of crusty bread to round out the meal.

Totals:

free - spinach
free - leftover London broil (accounted for in Sunday's totals)
free - cherry tomatoes from garden
free - croutons
.10 - dressing
.50 - gorgonzola cheese (about 1/4 of $1.99 tub from Aldi)
$1.25 - crusty bread (about 1/2 of $2.50 loaf from Harris Teeter)

$1.85 for dinner for 3

Note: Costco has a great price on enormous bags of spinach for salads - if you can use it all up before it goes bad. My sister can't, which is why she shares with us. Otherwise, Aldi has smaller bags of brand-name washed spinach for $1.99 - the best price I've found.

Coupons Part 2

The Sunday paper should be your first and primary source for coupons - however, it doesn't have to be your only source. You can and should supplement your coupon supply whenever possible. Here are some good places to start:

Couponsurfer.com - Smartsource.com - Redplum.com - offer printable grocery coupons online.

Afullcup.com is a general couponing and money-saving site that has a great resources for finding specific online coupons. You have to sign up for membership, but it's free.

Pillsbury.com - brand-specific printable coupons online (not just Pillsbury, but General Mills, Yoplait, Progresso, and others, too). Sign up as a member and check yes to receive their online newsletter - you'll get the coupons sent directly to your inbox, along with along with practical, family-friendly recipes.

Kraftfoods.com - sign up for their Food & Family magazine by mail as well as their weekly online newsletter. Mainly recipes, but occasionally some good coupons (some for totally FREE products).

Verybestkids.com - by Nestle. Quarterly magazine filled with coupons.

**********

Family Circle and Woman's Day typically have a small coupon insert in every issue, but I've found that most womens magazines aren't the source for coupons that they were in our mothers' days. The big exception to this is All You, a similar womens magazine printed exclusively for WalMart. Their issues consistently have plenty of coupons I want to use, with a total value that far exceeds the cover price of the magazine ($2.25 or so). As a bonus, it's a pretty good magazine, too, with family-friendly recipes, crafts, decorating ideas, etc.

Couponing Part 1

I posted this back when we were all on Craigslist, but I thought it belonged here, too, for reference:

Couponing plays a big role in the amount of money I'm able to save. And while clipping and organizing them isn't my favorite activity, I do think it's time and effort well spent. For me, the payoff at the cash register more than makes up for the tedium. I look at couponing (and bargain shopping as a whole) as a competition, me vs. the stores. I've seen it written elsewhere that you have to look at couponing that way - to find the fun element in it - or you just won't do it. I tend to agree. Most people I know who don't use coupons complain about how much they hate clipping them, while still lamenting that they know they should use them. I say, try every which way you can to find something fun about couponing - make it a competition or a game. And if you can't, and know you'll never view coupons as anything but a chore, don't beat yourself up about it. Move on to other ways to save money on your groceries. You won't get the absolute best savings, but you can still make quite a difference in your food budget.

It will take a little time to work out the coupon system that works best for you, but here's mine as a jumping-off point:

1. Get a coupon organizer. I use a small, plastic, accordian-type folder that I got at Target for $1. It's actually a bill organizer, I think (although they make them specifically for coupns, too). You can find similar items at the dollar store, office supply store, all sorts of places. I've seen other storage items used as coupon organizers, too. Some women prefer recipe card boxes separated by index cards, others use 3-ring binders filled with clear plastic photo pages (the kind with 4 - 6 "pockets" per page). Personally, I think those are too bulky, but use whatever you're comfortable with.

2. Determine your categories and label. Tape over the pre-printed labels with your own if necessary. Use what categories work for you. The goal is to be able to find the coupon you want when you want it - not to let any one section get too full to manage easily. That's why I eventually created two separate categories for Beauty and Health. You also want the categories to make sense - to naturally go together, such as paper and plastic. I have my coupon folder divided as such:

Snacks & Misc. Food (food coupons that don't fit into any other categories, like produce or gum)
Frozen
Meat & Dairy
Breads & Baking
Breakfast & Beverages
Mixes, Spices, & Helpers (rice, instant potatoes, taco seasoning packets, etc.)
Canned, Jarred, Bottled & Condiments (soup, peanut butter, salad dressing, cooking oil, etc.)
Cleaning & General Household (like batteries, air freshener, etc.)
Paper & Plastic
Pets
Beauty (soap, shampoo, cosmetics, etc.)
Health (bandaids, toothpaste, vitamins, OTC meds, etc.)

3. Subscribe to the Sunday paper - or buy one at the store. (NOT from a vending machine, as these papers are the most likely to have had the coupons left out of them.) The Sunday paper is the BEST source for a steady supply of coupons. Clip them every week and put them in your organizer by category. You don't have to do it on Sunday, but vow to get it done some time during the week, before next Sunday's paper comes out. Do it while you're watching TV - it will take 20 - 30 minutes, tops.

4. Purge your expired coupons at least once a month. Since most coupons expire at the end of the month, a good time to do this is on the first Sunday. Before you put your new coupons in, go through each category and get rid of everything that has expired. This is also a great way to refresh your memory. Before long, you'll have a good running list in your head of which coupons you have.

5. Clip EVERYTHING you think you might use or like to try. I know this probably goes against what you've read elsewhere. Most articles on coupons advise you to only clip coupons on items you use regularly. But when stores double or even triple, you're missing out on a lot of savings on products that might otherwise be out of your price range. This is especially true of high-value coupons, which are most common on new products. I might not be willing to pay $3 for a small bag of fancy chips, but I'll sure take them for 75 cents after a 75 cent coupon has been tripled to $2.25. Another good example (for me) is canned French's Fried Onions. I love them, but I think they're way overpriced and unnecessarily increase the cost of a recipe. But they're practically free when triple coupons come along, so I stock up. And if a coupon expires before the next triple-coupon event, or you find the product is still too expensive, so what? You've lost maybe 6 seconds in clipping and organizing it.

6. Keep your coupon organizer in your car. Bring it inside to clip and organize, then put it with your purse so you'll remember to put it back in your car the next time you go out. Trust me, it's much easier than trying to remember it every time you want to go to the store - not to mention those impromptu "just a few items" grocery runs we all make. This way, you'll always have your coupons with you when you need them - not sitting home on the kitchen counter.

7. Lastly, be a coupon fairy. Do you have a coupon you know you won't use before it expires? Item still too expensive for your budget, even with the coupon? Put the coupon on the shelf next to the item - let the next person use it. The good Karma will pay off.

Tomorrow, Coupons part 2 - sources for coupons beyond the Sunday paper.

Monday Dinner

Tonight's dinner was one of my favorite spring meals - salmon, rice, roasted asparagus and hollandaise sauce. I say spring meals because that's usually the only time fresh asparagus is reasonably priced. I just refuse to pay $3 - $4 per pound out of season. But I ran across some at WalMart the other night for $1.75/lb - not as cheap as I'd like, but probably the cheapest I'm going to see until next March. So I had one little last hurrah.

The salmon was sprinkled liberally with Chef Paul Prudhomme Magic Salmon Seasoning (this stuff rocks), then quickly seared in a non-stick pan with a little butter.

Totals:

$2.61 - salmon (4 fillets for $3.49 at Aldi)
rice - free after HT triple coupons
$1.75 - asparagus
$1 - hollandaise sauce

$5.36 for dinner for 3

TIP: McCormick makes a hollandaise sauce mix for about $1 that is pretty darn good substitute for the full-fat, full-effort kind. I'll make from-scratch hollandaise sauce for special occasions, but the mix is my go-to choice for nuthin'-special dinners.

Sunday Dinner

Sunday is becoming "grill night" at our house. Tonight I cooked a London Broil, plus other meats for later in the week. I marinated the beef in Balsamic and Roasted Onion marinade (Ken's Steakhouse brand, bought for about 50 cents a bottle with triple coupon), then grilled to medium-rare. I covered the meat with foil and let rest while making the rest of dinner. On the side we had Japanese steakhouse-style Zucchini and Onions, plus mushroom rice pilaf from a mix. For the veggies, I cut 1 onion and 2 zucchini into 1" chunks. I stir-fried the onion in 1 Tablespoon of oil, over high heat, for about 5 minutes before adding the zucchini. I continued to cook for 10 more minutes or until it was tender, then added about 1 tablespoon each of soy sauce and teriyaki sauce, then topped it with toasted sesame seeds. To serve the steak, I cut into thin slices on the diagonal - this helps tenderize an otherwise tough cut of meat.

Totals:

$4.22 - 2 lbs London Broil (BOGO + meat markdown at Harris Teeter)
.15 - Knorr/Lipton Mushroom Rice side mix (Harris Teeter triple coupons)
free - zucchini from my garden

$4.37 - dinner for 4 (sister ate with us), plus plenty of steak left over for another dish I have planned

TIP: Sesame Seeds vary wildly in price, depending on where in the grocery store you get them. The little 1 oz. jar of McCormick brand - found among the spices - is $4.39 at Harris Teeter. The larger 1.82 oz. jar of McCormick brand is $5.49. But Sushi Chef brand, sold among the Asian foods, is $2.99 for 3.75 oz. Also, you should store sesame seeds in the fridge once you've opened them - they go rancid very quickly at room temperature.

Saturday Dinner

I was running around all day getting in on all the good grocery deals, so I wasn't up for much cooking when I got home. We had ham sandwiches (Maple deli ham BOGO deal from Food Lion), Simply Potatoes Southwestern Hash browns (BOGO + coupon from Food Lion), and fresh sliced tomatoes from my garden.

Totals:

$1.50 - 1/2 lb. maple deli ham
.93 - 3 Arnold's Sandwich Thins rolls ($2.50/pk of 8 - these things are awesome, thanks for the tip, Rebecca!)
.75 - hashbrowns
free - tomatoes

$3.18 for dinner for 3

TIP: Right now many Harris Teeters have a freestanding cardboard display in the frozen foods dept. that is covered with tear-off coupon pads. These include coupons for $1 off 2 packages of Simply Potatoes. Go grab some of these coupons while you're shopping at HT, then head to Food Lion to use them. Food Lion currently has this product (refrigerated hashbrowns) on sale BOGO. Combined with the coupons, you'll pay about .75 per package (down from regular price of about $2.50 each).

Thursday & Friday Dinner

Dinner on Thursday was a simple thing - hot dogs (cooked on grill Sunday) with chili, and sliced tomatoes from the garden.

Totals:

$1 - Ball Park beef franks (after BOGO sale + coupon)
$1 - buns
.13 - Texas Pete canned chili after sale + double coupons
free - tomatoes

$2.13 for dinner for 3

_________________

Dinner Friday night was grilled chicken and "fake out" Lemon-Broccoli Risotto. The chicken was seasoned with lemon juice and Cavendar's Greek Seasoning, then cooked on the George Foreman. The recipe for "fake out" risotto follows:

Lemon Asparagus (or Broccoli) "Risotto"

1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T. butter
2 cups instant rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
juice and finely grated zest of 1 large lemon

1 lb. asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 2" pieces
OR
1 lb. fresh broccoli florets
OR
1 16oz "steam in the bag" broccoli florets

Saute onion and garlic in butter for 1 - 2 minutes, or until garlic is lightly browned. Add rice, broth, cream of chicken soup and lemon juice and zest. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and cover. Simmer on medium heat for 8 - 10 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed and rice and veggies are tender. It should be on the "dry" side - creamy but not "saucy."

If using thick asparagus spears, add with rice and liquids. If using the pencil thin ones, or 1 lb. fresh broccoli florets, let the rice and liquid cook 3 - 4 minutes before adding. If using steam-in-the-bag broccoli, cook in microwave as directed, then stir into finished risotto just before serving.

Totals:

$1.33 - boneless chicken purchased during B1G2 sale
$1.25 - steam-in-bag broccoli
$2 - other ingredients for risotto

$4.58 for dinner for 4 (sister stopped by)

Wednesday Dinner

The Kid had a function tonight, so I pulled out another Bertolli skillet dinner. I think I'm officially done with these - this one was the worst yet. Shrimp & Asparagus Penne, I think it was called. It consisted of 13 very small shrimp for the entire bag, a few very grassy-tasting chunks of asparagus spears (no tips to be found), and a sauce that tasted overpoweringly of roasted red peppers. So glad I only paid $4 for this - but it wasn't worth even that.

Total:

$4 for dinner for 2

Weekly Sales

Woo-hoo! It's finally what I call a "good sale week!" There are lots of good - and a few great - deals to be had at the "big 3" grocery stores in the area. Following are the deals that interest me most. What I think I'll actually get is in red:

Harris Teeter

EZ Peel Shrimp (2 lb bags) - buy 1, get 2 free (works out to $4.49/lb - good but not great)
Harris Teeter "Your Home" brand trash bags - buy 2, get 3 free
Wishbone Salad Dressing - buy 2, get 3 free
Nestle Pure Life flavored water 6 packs - buy 2, get 3 free

BOGO
Crisco Oil
Crystal Light drink mix
Dove ice cream pints
Edys ice cream half-gallons
Dibbs ice cream treats
Entenmanns boxed doughnuts
Cheerios
Total cereal
Kelloggs Raisin Bran
Mrs. Dash marinades
Marie Callendar's Pasta al Dente frozen dinners (recent coupons)
Oscar Mayer Beef Bologna
Pictsweet Vegetables
Phillips Eco Vantage light bulbs
Smart Balance Popcorn
Tidy Cat cat litter
Trident Alaskan Salmon Burgers
Dove, M&M or Snickers ice cream treats


Lowes Foods

B2G3 Free

Pictsweet Seasoned Frozen Vegetables (looks like 5/$4.24)
Crystal 8 oz. shredded cheese (looks like 5/$6.38)
Also Lowes Foods brand popcorn, potato chips, dryer sheets and liquid laundry detergent.

BOGO
London Broil
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Hormel Canned Ham (works out to $1.50/lb!)
Klondike Ice cream bars
Sorrento string cheese
Beacon Light tilapia fillets
Butterball lunch meat variety pack
Butterball grilled chicken strips
Star's pimento cheese
Blue Bunny Ice Cream
Also Lowes Foods brand sliced lunch meat, ice cream, frozen pizza, raisin bran, and elbow macaroni

Buy any Chi-Chi's flour tortillas for $1.66, get a free Lowes Foods Salsa

Northwest Cherries - $1.99/lb

Lowes is also having a big sale on pet food and supplies - lots of tear-out coupons in their circular.


Food Lion

BOGO
Canadian Maple Ham (from deli - works out to $3/lb - this stuff is awesome!)
Ken's Salad Dressing
Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce
Blue Bunny Ice Cream
Purex Laundry Detergent
Starkist pouch tuna
Vlassic Pickle spears
Planter's Peanuts
Nature's Pride whole wheat bread
Nestle single candy bars
Velveeta sliced cheese
Simply Potatoes hashbrowns
Cabot cottage cheese
Bird's Eye frozen vegetables
Nathan's Beef Franks
Hefty Trash bags

Washington Cherries - $1.99/lb

Hormel Entrees (heat n' serve roast beef, meatloaf, etc.) - $3.99

Capri-sun 10-pk, $2 ea

T-bone or porterhouse steaks - $5.99/lb when purchased in value packs

Stouffer's dinners and entrees - 40% off

3-Day Breakfast Sale beginning 8am on Friday:
Cap'n Crunch, Eggo Waffles and Pillsbury Toaster Strudel, 2/$3
Maxwell House coffee - $4.99 (lowest I've ever seen it- STOCK UP!!!)
Gwaltney Bacon - 2/$4
Smart Option OJ gallon - 2/$5

Tuesday Dinner

Tonight we had more of the meat I grilled on Sunday - this time was a smoked sausage. Lowes Foods had them BOGO a few months back. When combined with doubled coupons, I paid .50 each - so I bought as many as I could to freeze. On the side we had pierogies (also BOGO, this time from HT), and a recipe I call Butter-Crumb Cabbage. The cabbage recipe is from Alton Brown of Good Eats (a Food Network show), and I think he originally called something like Head, Shred, Butter & Bread in case you want to look it up on Foodtv.com.

Basically, I shred half a head of cabbage and boil it in salted water for about 4 minutes, or just until tender. While it's cooking, I melt half a stick of butter in a large skillet. To this I add about 1/2 package of Texas Toast Garlic Butter croutons that I've crushed in the bag with a rolling pin. I mix everything together, adding in a few dashes of pepper and a few pinches of dry mustard. Then I add the hot, drained cabbage, stir it all up and serve. It's delicious and a nice change from other cabbage dishes.

Totals:

.50 - Carolina Pride smoked sausage
$1.50 - pierogies
.50 - 1/2 head cabbage
free - croutons (after double coupons)

$2.50 for dinner for 3, with plenty of leftovers

Monday Dinner

The salad I made tonight was one of my late father's favorites. He was a meat & potatoes man, and became a very picky eater in his latter years, but he gobbled this down every time I made it for him . My family calls it Hawaiian Chicken Salad (can't remember why) but it's really just my version of the Asian Chicken Salad that many restaurants serve.

For starters, I cube about 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken. I prefer using thighs, but breasts work just fine, too (that's what I used tonight). I saute the chicken in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat with about 1/4 cup Kraft Asian Toasted Sesame dressing - regular or reduced fat, it makes no difference which. The secret is to cook the chicken until all the liquid has evaporated from the pan and the chicken is browned and glazed and sticky.

In a large bowl, toss fresh spinach (my preference, but you can use lettuce) with 1/2 a large can of crunchy Chow Mein noodles, 1 15 oz. can of (drained) Mandarin oranges, and about 1/4 cup of the dressing. Divide onto individual serving plates, and top with warm chicken.

Totals:

$1.33 - 1 lb chicken purchased during Harris Teeter's B1G2 free sale
.89 - Mandarin Oranges (WalMart)
*free - spinach (about 1/4 of large bag from Costco)
.70 - Chow Mein noodles (WalMart)
free - Kraft dressing (after triple coupons at Harris Teeter)

$2.92 for dinner for 4 (my sister joined us)

NOTE: I've learned the hard way that Chow Mein noodles go rancid very quickly once opened. Store leftovers in the fridge and use as soon as possible. If you can't use them up before they go bad, it may be more economical to buy the smaller can even though you pay more per ounce.

*The spinach was from my sister - she buys the ginormous Costco bags and gives us half since she can't use it all before it goes bad. We used about 1/2 of what she gave us, which I figure is about $1 worth at Costco prices. If you're not dividing up a giant bag of the stuff, a standard-sized bag of washed spinach from the grocery store is about the right amount for 4 servings.

Sunday Dinner

Tonight I got my grill on, and I cooked enough meats for 3 meals.

We had grilled pork tenderloin (purchased on sale from HT), corn, garlic bread (made with the free French bread from Food Lion), and the first tomatoes from my garden!

Totals:

$4.99 - pork tenderloin
$1.25 - corn
free - garlic bread
free - tomatoes

$6.24 for dinner for 3

Saturday Dinner

Happy 4th of July!

In honor of Independence Day, we had...orange chicken, rice and steamed edamame. Seriously. I'm so ashamed. LOL

I didn't really think about it being 4th of July until late afternoon. By then there wasn't time to defrost any meat to go on the grill, and I didn't have any "traditional" side dishes anyway. So I'm defrosting some meats to grill tomorrow, and tonight I just concentrated on what was easy and low-effort.

The Orange Chicken came from Trader Joe's - we stopped at the one in Chapel Hill on the way back from the beach. Like almost every other frozen item I've tried from Trader Joe's, their brand is head and shoulders above the rest. Maybe that's why I've been so disappointed with the Bertolli stuff - Trader Joe's is twice as good for a lot less $$. (What I wouldn't give to have a store in Greensboro.) On the side we had plain white rice and steam-in-the-bag edamame (I'm so thrilled that WalMart carries this now).

Totals:

$5 - Trader Joe's Orange Chicken
$1.25 - Pictsweet Edamame
free - white rice (bought during Harris Teeter triple coupons)

$6.25 for dinner for 3, with a full plate of leftovers for lunch tomorrow (hopefully me, but only if I can beat The Kid to it)

PS: No dinner post last night - The Kid got home from youth retreat and we went out to dinner to celebrate.

Thursday Dinner

Tonight I made stuffed zucchini - and roughly half the ingredients were free. Zucchini from my garden (the first!), a bell pepper from my garden, and a loaf of French bread purchased with a free coupon.

First, the coupon- Food Lion printed out several coupons for me when I bought coffee on Tuesday. I got 1 coupon for a free loaf of French bread from their bakery, and coupons for $1 off $5 or more of ground beef, and $1 off $5 or more of produce. This is the second time I've gotten this exact set of coupons - the first time was when I purchased 2 family-size Stouffer's entrees about 5 weeks back. So I have no idea what sort of purchase triggers these coupons, but keep an eye out for them.

I didn't use a recipe, but the stuffed zucchini went something like this: I sliced zucchini in half lengthwise and scooped out seeds with spoon, leaving 1/4" thick shell all the way around. I microwaved about 5 minutes, or until tender.

In large skillet I sauteed 1/2 chopped onion in a little oil until translucent, then I added 1/2 chopped bell pepper and 1 clove minced garlic and cooked over medium until everything was tender. I added about 2/3 lb. chicken Italian sausage (removed from casings), and cooked until sausage was done, crumbling it as I went. I poured in 1 can sliced, stewed tomatoes and broke up the tomatoes with my spoon. I cooked everything on high for several minutes until most of the liquid had evaporated. I tore about 3 thick slices of the French bread into coarse breadcrumbs and stirred into sausage mixture. I added about 2 Tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese and about 1 cup shredded cheddar/monterey jack blend cheese. I mounded everything into the zucchini shells and baked at 350 for about 30 minutes. It was absolutely delicious, and now I'm brainstorming as to what else I can stuff with the filling.

Along with the zucchini, I made oven-roasted onion potatoes. I think the zucchini would have been filling enough on its own, but the potatoes were at the use or toss stage, so I used them. I just follow the recipe on the back of Lipton's Onion Soup Mix - cube potatoes, toss with oil and dry onion soup mix, and roast until done. I did drop the heat and increase the time a bit so I could cook the zucchini at the same time.

Totals:

$1.20 - chicken Italian sausage (meat markdown + BOGO sale at HT)
$1 - cheese, onion, garlic, tomatoes
free - zucchini, bell pepper, bread

$1.50 - potatoes & onion soup mix

$3.70 for dinner for 4 (The Kid is still at youth retreat, but we fed sister & brother-in-law tonight)

Rainchecks

When a traditional grocery store (Harris Teeter, Food Lion, Lowes Foods) runs out of an advertised sale item, they'll usually offer a raincheck. A raincheck is a piece of paper that allows you to purchase the item at the sale price later, after the store has restocked, even if the sale is no longer going on. (The exception is if the ad says "No rainchecks" or "While supplies last" or something similar to indicate when it's gone, it's gone.)

Getting a raincheck is a simple thing - if the store is out of the sale item you want, just ask for one. Some stores will write you a raincheck at the register, others will send you to the customer service desk. Either way, the employees are happy to do it and you shouldn't hesitate to ask for a raincheck.

Lowes Foods has the least-flexible raincheck policy. First, their rainchecks all expire 30 days from the date written. Second, if the raincheck is for an item that was BOGO, they limit you to the current BOGO selling price, not necessarily the BOGO concept. In other words, if cereal is on sale this week BOGO, and the selling price is $3, in reality you're only paying $1.50 for each box. They'll write the raincheck to allow you to come back within the next 30 days and pay $1.50 per box.

Food Lion follows the same guidelines, except their rainchecks don't expire.

Harris Teeter, however, gives you the most flexibility on their rainchecks. Sometimes, you can really use them to your advantage and come away with some great deals. Not only do they never expire, but in the case of BOGO items, they write the rainchecks according to the BOGO concept, but don't limit you to a firm price. To illustrate: We all know that stores often raise the per-unit price of an item before putting it on sale BOGO. Usually, it's still a good deal. Let's say that a certain kind of cereal usually sells for $3 a box. This week they raise the per-unit price to $4 a box and put it on BOGO special. Still a good deal at $2 a box, right? If they run out, you can get a raincheck to purchase this cereal BOGO at a future date. But let's say that in another 3 weeks, they put the cereal on sale for $2 a box outright. Now you use your BOGO raincheck to get it for $1 a box! Make sense?

I've gotten some incredible deals at Harris Teeter this way - combining a raincheck with a current sale price. Rainchecks can also be great combined with coupons. Or when there is a shelf-tag advertising money off my next visit if I buy X number of this item in one visit but I don't like the current selling price. Or, sometimes, I just don't have the freezer space or the extra money this week to really stock up on a sale item the way I want to. Lucky for me, they're out anyway - so I get a raincheck and stock up when it's convenient for me.

One of my all-time best grocery deals ever came about as a combination of raincheck, coupons , and Catalinas (the coupons that print out at the register). The deal was buy 3 Kelloggs cereals in 1 trip, get a coupon for a free gallon of milk. Buy 5, get 2. Buy 7, get 3. I had a raincheck to get Kelloggs Frosted Mini Wheats BOGO. I also had several coupons for $1 off a box of Kelloggs cereal. When I combined them all, I walked away with 7 boxes of cereal and 3 coupons for a free gallon of milk for a little over $8. That was like getting $1 off 3 gallons of milk, and 7 boxes of cereal free!

While extraordinary deals like that don't come along every week, I can regularly beat the store's best sale price by combining rainchecks with sales, coupons and/or Catalinas. Just the other week I got Simply Potatoes refrigerated hash browns for $1 apiece by combining raincheck + sale.

I make it a practice to always ask for rainchecks whenever an advertised item is out of stock. Even if I buy cereal (or whatever sale item) on Wednesday, the go back on Thursday for another item and notice they're out. I'll ask for a raincheck for the cereal and squirrel it away. Start asking for rainchecks - you'll wonder how you ever did without them.

Weekly Sales

It's slim pickins' for deals this week. I've browsed the Harris Teeter, Food Lion and Lowes Foods weekly circulars and see nothing that excites me. Mostly the same old, same old.

Harris Teeter

B2G3
Breyer's Ice cream

BOGO
Lipton tea bags (recent Sunday coupons)
Mama Lucia Meatballs (frozen)
McCormick Grill Mates seasonings
Chex mix (recent Sunday coupons)
Wheat Thins & Triscuits
Oscar Mayer hot dogs
Spray n Wash
Bakery pies
Sweet Baby Ray BBQ Sauce (recent Sunday coupons)

5/$5
Many varieties of "personal" sized ice cream and frozen treats - Haagen Daz, Ben & Jerry's, Minute Maid frozen lemonade, many more. They range from just over 3 oz. each to 12 oz. each. This is probably the most interesting sale HT has this week.


Food Lion

Ribeye Steaks - $4.88/lb when purchased in value-paks.

BOGO
Ball Park Franks
Breyer's Ice Cream
Lays Potato Chips
Select Kelloggs & General Mills Cereals
Keebler Club Crackers
Hebrew National Franks
Bird's Eye frozen veggies
Palermo Thin frozen pizza
Carolina Pride bacon or kielbasa
Mama Lucia meatballs
Great American Seafood (bagged frozen fish fillets)


Lowes Foods

Buy 1 package Sarah Lee buns, 1 package Ball Park Franks, get a free watermelon

BOGO
Ritz Crackers
Lays Potato Chips
Curly's Pulled Pork BBQ
Simply Potatoes (in the dairy case)
A-1 Marinade
Pepperidge Farm frozen layer cake
Van Camps Pork & Beans
McCormick Grill Mates rubs
Doritos
Edy's Ice Cream
Texas Pete hot dog chili
Tribe Hummus (this is the only thing I might drive to Lowes for)
Bakery sub rolls

Buy 2 select Kelloggs Cereals for $5, get a free box of Honey-Touched Corn Flakes

_____________________

That's it. Like I said, nothing exciting. I'm glad I'm already well-stocked and I hope you are, too. Maybe next week will have some more interesting deals.