I'll call this Hounding 101:

Hounding: to purchase something using little to no money. I think of it as hunting up the deals like a hound dog......

Each week, I start by checking in at my favorite locations: MSN message board Grocery Game followed by jillcataldo.com, then over to hotcouponworld.com. I start with the Grocery Game first because the information is the freshest, the scenarios have already been tested, and the ladies can always catch something that I miss. I next ventured over to jillcataldo.com - she's a local coupon queen that sets up deals, as do her followers, and she even links you to printable coupons to get the best deal. I love how thorough she is. Over at hotcouponworld, I get to view what deals have been done in stores across the country. They have a very comprehensive coupon database: this helps when planning what to focus on. I know we all have our basics like eggs that seldom have coupons, but to round out your pantry - hounding is the way to go.
Since June, I have paid less than $15 dollars in condiments (from salad dressing, to ketchup, to marinades, relish, mayo, etc.) in 6 months. I entertain 1-2 times a month, for as few as 6 or as many as 25. I haven't paid a dime out of pocket (OOP)for salad dressing, marinade, relish, mustard, and mayo since I got "serious" about couponing. Though there are coupons in the paper - I tend to find ones with higher values online. Though some smaller chain-grocery stores don't allow internet printables (IP's), I can still make it work for me. Manufacturer websites are a great place, along with coupons.com, smartsource.com, and couponloop.com to find internet printable coupons.
Like some of the pro's advise, I have a price book, I know the rock bottom price (the lowest price the item will see in a 3-6 month period) for many items I use, and whenever possible I wait for that price, and stock up when an item hits that price. If you have a separate freezer - this will benefit you the most. If you don't have a separate freezer, ask yourself this, would one work for your lifestyle? If so, save some of your coupon savings for said freezer. Remember, you can freeze bread, meat, chocolate, cheese, yogurt, premade meals, fruit, pie filling, etc.
Meat: if your local grocery store marks down their meat, clearanced meat can be a great deal. I tend to use it within 48 hours or freeze it until I need it. Mark downs can also include cheese (if you're lucky) and you can use coupons with marked down meat and cheese - works like a charm. Last summer, I stocked my freezer with loads of free or nearly free chicken (drummies and thights) from Meijer. They went on sale for $.59/ lb. got marked 40% off, and I had a $1 any Meijer chicken. As it didn't say whole chicken, boneless skinless chicken, etc., I used it on the cheapest possible item - smallest package (for highest savings), and even made a profit off of some of it. Most stores won't give you cash back, but you can use overage (if you have a coupon for $1 off an item that is selling for $.75, $.25 would be your overage) to help pay for other items, even tax!

I love when eggnog is in season. I've created some great dessert recipes that use it, and with that distinct flavor, nothing else will do. Here's a favorite of recipe of mine that I've been waiting all year to make.

Raisin the Bar!
1 pkg. spice cake mix
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. each unsweetened applesauce and eggnog
1/2 tsp. each rum and almond extract
2 eggs, minus one yolk
1/2 C. each raisin (golden or regular) and roughly chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 1 13x9" baking pan.
Mix well all ingredients, spread evenly into pan. (Mixture will be thick.)
Bake 24-27 minutes. Cool and cut. Dust with spiced powdered sugar if desired.

Spiced Powdered Sugar:
1 C. powdered sugar
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1 pinch ginger

Sift well all ingredients. Dust on bars once they have cooled.

Growing up, I always made my dad brickle brownies for a Christmas gift. Times were always a bit tight, homemade gifts made up the bulk of what was under our tree. Even though Dad is no longer in the picture (having returned to Family #2, us being Family #3), I still crave making those at the holidays. The recipe wasn't fancy, or even out of a cookbook - it came off the bag of Heath Toffee Bits. Just my luck, the first year I try to make them since Dad exited - the recipe is no longer on the bag. After searching online, I finally hit pay dirt....or toffee crumbs in my case. I just can't wait to make these....

Blonde Brickle Brownies

1 1/2 C. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 C. butter or margarine
1 C. sugar
1/2 C. brown sugar, firmly packed
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 C. toffee bits

Sift to gether flour, salt, and baking powder. Cream together margarine/butter and sugars. Add eggs and extracts - mix well. Blend in dry ingredients. Spread evenly into 13x9" baking dish. Top with additional toffee, if desired. Bake at 350 for 27-30 minutes. Cool and cut.
Yield 24 large bars or 36 small bars.

I am done with all my holiday shopping, Christmas dinner is made, the presents are wrapped....almost all of them anyway. I got surprised by my co-workers today: for Christmas they gave me a big box of Fannie Mae chocolates. As we are mostly women here, the box is nearly half empty. That was a very sweet surprise.
I am lagging behind on my Christmas baking - leaving lemon snowbars, eggnog crunch cookies (need to make a double batch this time), and fudge til the last minute. The good news is the weather has cooperated, sort of. It's snowing so hard that the last thing I want to do is go shopping, go out to eat, or to go anywhere that requires driving period. Might send DH out to grab some mozzarella, fresh mushrooms, and garlic bread so we'll have all the fixin's for a great pizza night in. And he's the one that makes the pizza.

Our Christmas dinner tradition is making pasta (during lean years) or lasagne (during the rather decadent years). Thanks to my fellow grocery hounds, it's a lasagne kind of year! I hounded some beautiful yellow bell peppers ($.59/lb.), cremini mushrooms ($2.29/lb.), and some parmesan cheese (imported from Italy $2.69 a lb.) I hounded the noodles over the summer from Meijer's - got them for nearly nothing. I went meatless this year as the price of ground turkey (my favorite staple) has doubled over this time last year. I even hounded the mozzarella cheese: our local Butera marks down their deli cheese (Yep, the nice big ol' blocks of it) and got it for $2.98 a lb. - what a steal!!!
My DH, DMom, and I made 4 medium sized pans and 5 small pans (that serve 2-3). For the small pans I usually grab disposable loaf pans, but I found a great deal at a dollar store on a 3-pack with lids! Yum-O! No Stouffers lasagne for us....
With so much of the work out of the way, all I have left to do is grab salad mix and garlic bread tomorrow. I managed to cut the cost of our Christmas dinner (as compared to last year) by 39%! I can't tell you how happy I am to live with that. Now, I'm off to see if the office is closing early, and make sure I have all the ingredients for my last round of baking.

This is a recent addition in my recipe library. All the recipes I've posted on here are my own creations, and tis is certainly no exception. This one, I will admit, my husband co-authored.....and he hates egg nog. Let me explain: last year I was having a bit of a mental block on what to introduce as my new recipe of the year - I do this every Christmas. I did my usual, pacing, muttering, griping.....while my DH merely watches with a raised eyebrow. He then says, "Why not do something with egg nog?" I stare at him likes he's grown a third head. Ever sarcastic, I immediately thought, I do something with eggnog - I drink it!
"Why not make eggnog cookies?" Cuts through the thousands of sarcastic comments flying around in my head. And finally.....light begins to dawn on me. I jump up, kiss DH - briefly exclaim that he's brilliant (which naturally he knows), then I'm off to create this newest cookie in my arsenal of Christmas creations. So, without further ado:

EggNog Crunch Cookies

1 pkg. yellow cake mix
1/3 C. eggnog
1 egg
1/4 tsp. rum extract
1/4 C. margarine, softened
1/2 C. white chocolate chips
1 C. walnuts, chopped
Nutmeg (to dust the tops of the cookies)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease cookie sheet(s).
Mix well all ingredients except chips and nuts. Stir in the chips and nuts til just blended. Dough will be soft. Drop by spoonful onto greased cookie sheet. Dust with nutmeg.
Bake 10-12 minutes, til lightly golden. Cool on cookie sheet, remove once cooled. Store in airtight container.
Yield: 3-4 dozen cookies.

For years, oatmeal raisin cookie have been a favorite of mine, but my father used to tell me they were good, but that they were missing something. While digging through the spice cabinet on Christmas season, about 10 years ago, I noticed something called rum extract. Instantly intrigued, I had to smell it. The dark, buttery, rich scent had me hooked - so it went in the cookies....and the missing ingredient had finally been found. If you like a rich, full-flavored cookie, I think I have one for you to try:

1 stick margarine
1/2 C. unsweetened applesauce
1 heaping C. brown sugar
1/2 C. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. each vanilla and rum extracts
1 3/4 C. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
3 1/2 C. oats
1 C. raisins

Heat oven to 350. In large mixing bow, beat margarine, applesauce, and sugars til creamy. Add eggs and extracts - mix til well blended. In separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, spices. Slowly add dry ingredients to the large mixing bowl - stirring til well blended. Stir in oats (I do this by cup-full), stir in raisins.
Drop cookies by spoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 9-10 minutes for soft cookie 13-14 minutes for crunchy cookie.

For other variations try:
Swap golden raisins for regular and add in 1/2 tsp. ginger(with the spices), 1 C. dried cranberries, 1/2 C. chopped walnuts = Christmas Oatmeal Cookies
Swap our raisins for 1 C. chocolate chips and 1/2 C. toffee bits = Chocolate Oatmeal Crunch Cookies
Add dried cherries (1/2 C.), 1/2 C. dried pineapple = Fruity Oatmeal Snackers
Add 1/2 C. dried apple or pear (rough chopped) and 1 tsp. ginger (with the spices) for Autumn Oatmeal Cookies

In the spirit of the season, I've been in the mood to shop lately, but with the economy - I've been reluctant to spend any actual money. So, to that end, I went to Target last night - having heard about a deal where you buy 5 packages of Keebler cookies or crackers and get a $5 gift card. To sweeten the deal, there are $1 any one of cookies (9.z oz. or larger) and $1 off Sandies (any) that you can print off twice per computer. The cookies were on sale for between $1.99-$2.54 a pkg. All I could hear was.....FREE cookies after gift card, and cool stocking stuffers to boot. Pardon the pun, but a good deal nonetheless. I also had the printed out $2 off any Archer Farms Ham from meat dept. Q's with me too so I grabbed 4 neatly packaged ham steaks - for around $.20 each. Since, you can never have too much ham, I'll be printing out some more of those coupons and be ready to stock up on those. The sizes aren't that generous - maybe one meal, two meals at the most per package, but I'll use them when I forget to make something to take for my lunch at work. I don't typically go out to lunch - it's a once a month treat.
I still have a pile of Wild Harvest Q's to use at Jewel - the deals are said to run through January 11th, so that'll be some great fill-in shopping - when I truly feel the need to shop and can't bring myself to spend much. I've been collecting donations for the food bank doing this - I've got my 3rd round of donations ready to drop off. It feels great to be able to give this season....when it's needed more than ever.
Nothing surprises me more than people that refuse to coupon. Especially people that aren't financially stable - what is this stigma that's attached to couponing? When I'm out hounding, the furthest thing from my mind is what someone else thinks of my shopping habits. It's not a popularity contest, it's my money and I'm determined to save as much as humanly possible. I get so excited to see what I can get on the cheap or for free, ever shopping trip is like a treasure hunt, except if I'm really good - the treasure I get to keep is the one I started out with, my own money. I really shouldn't complain too much about non-couponers because without them, the stores wouldn't be able to afford my shopping!

Alright, my deal for the week: Jewel-Osco has Wild Harvest Organic products on sale....but to sweeten the deal, there are $1 off any 1 item Q's that are available online.....with no print limit! So, the yummy organic blue corn tortilla chips that are B1G1F ($2.89 each originally) are $.45 a bag! And if you need baby food, at $.59 a jar, it's FREE. You'll get the overage on other stuff on your order, but they will not pay you. I've already discovered this. I have been breaking my order up into 5-8 coupons each and hitting as many Jewels as I can. So far, I've gathered:
8 bags tortilla chips at B1G1F - $2.89 = $.45 per bag
6 boxes whole wheat pasta B1G1F - $2.49 = $.25 per lb.
2 boxes white cheddar mac n cheese 2/$3 = $.50 a box
15 jars baby food $.59 a jar (FREE after Q)
1 bag baby carrots (1 lb.) $1.50 = $.50 after Q
13 jars pinto beans $1.00 = FREE after Q's!
I figured I'd mash up the pinto and have them as bean dip to go with all those tortilla chips! Nothing says Merry Christmas like bean dip and chips! If I could only find some Wild Harvest cheese to complete the ensemble, I'd have nachos on the cheap. At least I know what I'll be bringing for Christmas parties this year....uh, how about some chips 'n' dip? I say, while scratching my head and trying to look nonchalant.

Wow - I'm finally getting a chance to update my monthly totals - it has taken far too long to do this. For November, since I host Thanksgiving, my budget for the month is $250. With the great Jell-O deal, many, many trips were made to Meijer's. The total number of Meijer transactions = 44.
My totals:
Meijer: vs. Other stores:
OOP = $35.2 vs. $166.58
Saved: $312.59 vs. $261.96
Q's = $203.50 vs. $63.40
Qty. = 170 vs. 300
FREE = 197 vs. 37
This month, I'm hoping to just live off the stockpile, I'm allowing myself a list of 12 items to search for a rockbottom on, other than that - only items needed fresh (bread, milk, eggs, produce, yogurt, juice).

For October, here are the totals (my budget was $225 for the month).
OOP = $206.80
Saved = 254.76
Q's = 36.2
Qty = 251
FREE = 36
Not my best month, but I did stay under budget. There were a lot of in-stores sales on generic brands that just couldn't be beat. A favorite: Butera with grat deals like $.99/lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, 5/$1 tomato sauce (house brand), and (house brand) Italian styled diced tomatoes for $.39 can (14.5 oz.)

September's Totals:
It seems my summer/early fall totals are always much lower than the winter totals:
OOP = $179.77
Saved = $380.75
Q's = $129.95
Qty. = 273
FREE = 7
This was a really slow month for FREE, but my resolution is to do better next month. I'm still coming in under budget, but some costs of my basics are rising: the worst one is ground turkey, which I've seen double in price over this time last year. It's now bouncing between $1.19-$1.39 a lb. This is a staple of my diet, but I haven't thought of a way to hound down it's current price. If anyone has an idea, I'm eager for suggestions.

If there ever was a budget-friendly, have a good time with the girls' kind of party -then, this is it!
Each year I invite my family, friends, and even co-workers to my Christms cookie party. The first year, I baked like a demon, baking 17 different kinds of holiday goodies, invited everyone over for sampling - it was a BYOC party (Bring Your Own Container). The goodies were a huge hit, but much to my surprise - everyone was a little disappointed: the ladies wanted to learn how to make the treats, not just eat 'em. So, the next year, I decided to pick out 5-6 favorite, versatile recipes and invite over the gang. The recipes for Cranberry Chocolate Bars, Luscious Lemon Cookies, and Diane's Amazing Almond Cookies were born during that party. Last year, our new creations included Dark Chocolate Orange Bars (Sunny's idea), Holiday Cranberry Biscotti (Diane's idea - my advanced student), and (my personal favorites) Cranberry Rum Walnut Biscotti (Madelyne's idea).
The girls and I laugh while drinking sweet tea and wine (Arbor Mist - got to love it), the guys watch football and offer assistance by being our voluntary taste testers, and if the kids come, we teach them (and let them taste test), too.
At last year's party, with my mother, and my husband's mother, aunt, and grandmother - along with my friends Sunny & Troy, was one of the best times I can remember having in the kitchen. I might go for fewer recipes - 8-12 got a little confusing, but what I find worked great was using 2-3 base recipes and allowing each of the girls to do their own variation. My main base recipes are Basic Bars, Basic Biscotti, Basic Oatmeal, and Basic Cookie (vanilla flavored). With each of these, the girls got to pick their favorite flavor of spice and extract, and also add in their favorite stir-ins like nuts, fruits, chips, and more.
Each girl brings a basic ingredient or two, I supply the spices, extracts, and stir-ins. We get to have a variety of goodies, have fun making them, and caught up, too!

I had some catalina's that were about to expire last night, so I went shopping - I didn't need much, but figured it's always better to shop with someone else's money. I had 21 catalinas for $2 OYNO and a $5 off $25 purchase. With what I can remember, I got:
2 dozen eggs
2 spice jars - $.99 each
6 boxes Rice-A-Roni - $.90 each
5 boxes Betty Crocker Potatoes $1.00 -$.40 Q's for each
1 bag no yolk egg noodles $1.97 -$.50 Q
2 lbs. margarine $.63 each
1 Parkay Butter Spray $1.69 each (I love that stuff!)
6 cans mushrooms $.50 each
4 cans diced Italian-style tomatoes - $.50 each
3 cans organic tomato paste $.89 each -$1.00/3 organic items Q
7 pkgs. Betty Crocker pizza crust mix $.89 each (they have the boxtops on them)
1 66 ct. garbags bags (got something off the have-to list) $4.69
2 cans Libby's Pumpkin Pie Filling (28 oz.) $1.98 each
2 bags of flour $1.86 each
2 pkgs. instant pudding (meijer brand) $.50 each
10 cans tomato soup (ValuTime brand) $.44 each
1 jar olives (14.5 oz.) $2.99

# of items purchased - 57
Tax $.84
Savings - $62.74
Total OOP - $.29

For all that, I paid about 1/3 of the tax. The coupons paid for the rest.

Wow - the $1 a day challenge, I was amazed at how tough that was. Even for someone as frugal as me, I don't think I could keep it up indefinitely. What it has shown me is how to streamline some of my meals and tighten the budget - especially going into the holidays and all the holiday entertaining I'll be doing. Some of these meal plans will be graet to expand on for feed a group. I noticed dairy is my biggest budget buster while rice and pastas really help the financial diet I'm on. For entertaining, I'll expand on some basic rice dishes, look for deals and steals on meats (of any kind!!) and just keep doing what I've been doing.
I need to find more free items to stock up on, which is a challenge considering that no stores within 100 miles double coupons on a regular basis - only Kmart and they double coupons sporadically.
I've been spending some time organizing my pantry - it makes meal-planning and grocery shopping much easier. It feels great each time I check an item off the list knowing that I won't have to shop for it for quite some time. If I find free - or darn close to it, I try to buy enough to last 3-8 months at a time. What ever extra I can grab, I typically share with family and friends, though I'm actively trying to hound more stuff simply for donating to the local food pantry and soup kitchen.
Now, I'm off to hunt up some cereal coupons - though I have cereal, it's all the kind that DH likes, so I'd like to hound some for myself!

The goal is to spend $1 a day (per person) on food. Here's what my week looks like:
Monday
Breakfast: granola bar ($.16), yogurt ($.20) and glass of iced tea ($.03)
Lunch: salad ($.99 lb. bag broken down into 6 servings $.16) topped with chicken (free) and salad dressing (free)
Snack: Pretzels (1 lb. bag = $1.00, 24 pretzels = $.08)
Dinner: Roasted chicken drumsticks (.11/lb. serving = 1/2 lb. = $.05) chicken rice ($.50 a box - 1/3 box = $.16) and applesauce (free) and 2 brownies ($.11)
Total - $.95

Tuesday
Breakfast: yogurt ($.20), granola bar ($.08) and water (free)
Lunch: salad ($.16), dried cranberries (.09), dressing (free)
Snack: granola bar ($.08)
Dinner: boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed and pan-fried ($.99/lb. $.15 servings) with mashed potatoes and gravy ($.18/servings), corn ($.39/can - $.10)
Total: $.99

Wednesday
Breakfast: cinnamon raisin bagel (pkg of 6 for $.79 = $.13), butter spray (free) 1 banana = $.11
Lunch: leftover chicken ($.18), 2 sliced of bread ($.05), mayo (free), brownie ($.06)
Snack: Brownies ($.05), raisins ($.11)
Dinner: french toast ($.21), turkey bacon (free), applesauce (free) syrup ($.08)
Total: $.98

Thursday
Breakfast: yogurt ($.20), banana bread (.10)
Lunch: mexican rice ($.06), refried beans (.08), chicken ($.10),
Snack: tortilla chips ($.10), salsa (free)
Dinner: spaghetti (free) with meat sauce ($.26), 2 brownies ($.10)
Total = $1.00

Friday
Breakfast: english muffin ($.16) banana ($.08)
Lunch: bread - turkey and cranberry sammich ($.22), crackers ($.11)
Dinner: roasted chicken stuffed with rice ($.17) salad ($.16), green beans ($.10)
Total: $1.00

Saturday
Breakfast: 2 eggs and 2 slices toast ($.15), banana ($.08)
Lunch: spaghetti (.20) 3 cookies ($.20)
Dinner: pork roast with potatoes(free), carrots (free) ($.30)
Total: $.93

Sunday
Brunch: Ham and swiss sammie ( $.23) with chips (free), pickles ($.11)
Dinner: Red Rice ($.10), beans (free), tortillas (free), and ground turkey ($.25), lettuce ($.10), black olives ($.15), tomato (free)
Total: $.98

As you can tell, it's that time of year again - time to bake. And there's no time to do any "proper" baking, so you'll see a lot of recipes for quickie cookeis and throw-together bars (I love any recipe where I can dump everything into a bowl and mix.). I'm listing some of my favorites - all recipes here have been taste-tested on family, friends, co-workers, etc.
This recipe was born out of frustration and lack of better planning. What my mom used to call an Iff 'N' recipe. If and she had the right ingredients - it would have been something else. My mother-in-law and I invented them, and I must share the credit because they are simply too yummy.

1 box chocolate cake mix, any kind but devils food
2 eggs
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. water
1 tsp. rum extract
1 C. dried cranberries, roughly chopped
1/2 C. chocolate chips (anything but white chocolate will do)

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all but final 2 ingredient. Stir in remaining ingredients.
Spread evenly into prepared pan.
Bake 25 minutes.
Dust with powdered sugar, cool, and cut.
Yield = not enough with one batch, typically. I had to make 2!!

1 box coconut cake mix
2 eggs, minus one yolk
1/3 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/4 C. water
1/2 tsp. rum extract
1/2 tsp. coconut extract
1 C. coconut, divided

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all ingredients, except 1/4 C. coconut. Spread evenly in pan.
Bake for 15 minutes, then top with remaining coconut and bake another 10 minutes.
Cool and cut.
Yield = 36 small bars or 24 medium sized bars.

1 box german chocolate cake mix
2 eggs, minus one yolk
1/4 C. dark brown sugar
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/4 C. orange juice
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. rum extract
1/2 C. chocolate chunks (or 3 dark chocolate bars broken into small pieces)

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all ingredients. Spread evenly into pan.
Bake for 25 minutes. Cool and cut

1 box french vanilla or classic white cake mix
2 eggs, one yolk removed
1/4 C. milk
1/3 C. brown sugar
1/3 C. unsweetened applesauce
2 T. honey
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 C. vanilla chips

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all ingredients.
Spread evenly into prepared pan.
Bake for 25-27 minutes.
Dust with powdered sugar.
Cool and cut.

There have been a few variations of this going around, but the challenge is to spend only $1 a day per person on food. So starting Monday, I'll list my meal plans - including the cost of each ingredient and the number of people I'm serving. I'll continue this (with the exception of Thanksgiving dinner) for the remainder of the month: a kind of meal-planning, budget watching all in one.
To make this easier, I'll start with a break-down of my pantry basics - factored out by cost per serving - kind of a quick reference guide. I'll list by where I got the ingredients/coupons for anyone wanting to give this a try.
If anyone else has any ideas to help me meet this challenge, I'd love to hear them!

It isn't often enough that a deal comes my way that I do a "rinse & repeat" on, but with one this good, I just keep coming back for more.
The basic premise: buy 3 Jello at $.50 each. Use $1.50 off any 2 Jello (grab 3 though, I've heard they don't give overage). Now you're paying only tax for the Jello. Then a $2 OYNO coupon prints.....so $2 profit off each order. The only downside: you only get 1 $2 OYNO coupon per transaction. I've run more transactions this week than I can count! I have 20 $2 OYNO coupons at home. I'm going to grab more of them today. If you want to sweeten the pot, buy a pkg. of Taco Bell Taco Shells (the crunchy kind) that are 20% off, use a $1.50 off any Taco Bell Dinner Kit coupon and get $.10 back per box! Yep, Dh did that last night and made money.... there's more to him than just good looks and charm! That sweetie has brains, too. My hope is to use the $2 OYNO coupons to help pay for Thanksgiving dinner. Especially since I'm hosting it and having family come in from out-of-town. I'll be at it again tonight, shopping til I drop. I'm hoping to have $50 in coupon-money (I love those OYNO coupons) to use for the holidays. Hmmm....wonder what else I can get for $2 - you'd be amazed how much shopping you can do in ridiculously small increments.
I have added 195 free boxes of Jell-O (to be split with my sister, inlaws, and food pantry), 15 boxes of Taco Bell Crunchy Taco Shells (to be divided between family and food pantry) - for a profit of $.10 per box, 16 jars of salsa (half are mine, half to give away) - $.22 a jar, and ended up with more than $100 in cats by the time the sale was done, plus the miscellaneous $/$$ purchase. Which added in another $30+ in free spending. I also played coupon fairy and gave away enough Jell-O and Taco Bell coupons to people to help them save another $25. I love, love, love coupon-karma!

Well, the count is finally in - I currently have 23 $2 cats, so $46 in shopping for the big Turkey Day. And sis from MN is going to bring potatoes, so scratch another item off the list. Just need the price of canned veggies to go down, grab some yams and egg nog, and find a way to score as free turkey and I'll be pretty much set! This is the year of the hounded holiday!

I've been tagged by one of my favorite hound-pals over at centralillinoisian - Life is Hard - Just Keep Swimming. Ok, so the challenge: tell random 7 things about myself.

1. I love the smell of coffee, love the flavor of coffee....just don't like to drink coffee. I'm sure that's beyond odd, but maybe that's part of my charm. P.S. absolutely love Vanilla Cappuccino Bars!

2. I love to read - will read nearly anything....I might draw the line at Dickinson, but that's because everytime my DSis and I have tried to read the same book at the same time, she finishes first! One day I'll have some quiet time, re-read Tale of 2 Cities, because it's one of the books I've struggled through and still remember (many years after the fact).

3. When no-one is in the car with me, I love to blast 80's tunes, country, anything I can sing to loudly. Very loudly....then I start laughing at how ridiculous I must sound/look. It's a mood picker-upper for me.

4. I can never go anywhere without...COOP. COOP is an invention to keep my coupons organized. I feel naked leaving the house without it.

5. I don't like.....bugs. I keep telling myself every spring that there really aren't that many bugs in the ground, otherwise I'd never get my mini-garden in. This year I grew tomatoes.....more than 20 plants of them. That leads me to #6-

6. My favorite meal is spaghetti. You'd think I was Italian with all the pasta I eat. I've got some sauce, a Creamy Marinara, simmering for dinner right now. I'm hoping to learn how to make a good Puttanesca Sauce next.

7. I've just discovered..... the joys of walking in the grass barefoot. growing up, it wasn't allowed (bad neighborhood, and neighbors would leave rusty nails, shattered bottles, etc. everywhere...even toss them in our yard.) I felt so decadent walking around in the perfectly manicured grass at the Chicago Botanical Gardens without my sandals on. It was my favorite part of that outing! I'm also a glutton for tourist-y things.

Meijer's has Jello on sale starting Thursday 5/$3 or $.60 each. They're also offering a coupon online (through mealbox) for $1.50 off any 2 Jello items, and there's also a Catalina coupon to print with it. Being discreet, (ha!) I've printed 20 of those coupons. I want to stock up on Catalinas to help pay for Thanksgiving dinner. (I may be a little crazy, but at least I have a plan.)
The plan is to buy 3 boxes of Jello on sale for $1.80 -$1.50 Q = $.30 OOP and a $2 OYNO Q prints out! For $1.70 profit - love it!
To add in some variety, I'll see how low the OOP is on the Taco Bell Salsa, which also has a $1.50 Q.
To change it up, there are Q's for $2 off any 2 Kraft Mayo and Miracle Whip, which are on sale....2 for $4. That equals $1 for me! I'm lovin' it!
I try to make sure I don't run too many identical transactions, even though I use self-checkout. I still miss the days of free pasta. I loved loading 26 boxes of pasta into my cart along with a few miscellaneous items and paying for my order with spare change. Ah, the good ol' days...

4-6 lbs. chicken, bone-in works best (dark or white meat)
3-4 cloves garlic
1/4 medium onion

Put chicken, onion, and garlic into crockpot, cover with water and cook until meat starts to fall off the bone. (About 6-8 hours on low).
Drain off water into large bowl (and save to use in place of store bought chicken stock/broth), remove skin and bones. With 2 forks, gently pull the chicken apart.

Meal Ideas:

Add BBQ Sauce and serve as Pulled Chicken (great for sammies).
Add in some tomato sauce, garlic salt, onion powder, and taco seasoning for Chicken Tacos, Chicken Enchiladas, Chicken Quesadillas, and Chicken Burritos.
Serve over pasta.
Mix with cooked, diced potatoes as a hash
Use in place of lunchmeat
Add to broth, with noodles and veggies for homemade chicken noodle soup
Add into boxed pastas/rices/potatoes, for an entree on a side-dish budget!
Make mashed potatoes, make packaged gravy mix and add in chicken. Serve chicken in gravy over potatoes.
Makes a great pizza topping.

This freezes very well, and helps out in a pinch when you didn't plan dinner or forgot to thaw something. Instead of buying pricey cans of chicken breast meat, this is a great, cheap substitution.

1 box dark chocolate or german chocolate cake mix
2 eggs, minus one yolk
1/3 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/4 C. milk
1 tsp. rum extract
1/2 tsp. each cinnamon and almond extract
1/4 tsp. coconut extract
1/2 C. white chocolate chips
1/2 C. mini-chocolate chips
1 C. sweetened flaked coconut (optional)
1/4 C. macadamian nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all ingredients, spread evenly into pan. Top with additional coconut and white chocolate chips, if desired.
Bake for 25 to 27 minutes.
Cool and cut.

This recipe is great if you're on a tight budget, and want the taste of lasagne, but not too heavy of a meal. Feel free to scale back the portions - I make this once or twice a year (several pans at a time) and freeze it. It's a healthier take on frozen food - much more nutritious, too!

2 boxes lasagne noodles, cooked and drained, then rinsed in cold water
32 oz. container low-fat cottage cheese
1 C. bread crumbs
8 oz. can parmesan
6-8 quarts spaghetti sauce or 4-5 jars sauce
2 lbs. ground turkey, seasoned with garlic and onion, and browned, drained, added to sauce
1 lb. fresh mushrooms - chopped/sliced, sauteed with ground turkey
*optional 1 medium red bell pepper added to meat mixture, very finely chopped
3-5 bags 8 oz. mozzarella or Italian blend cheese, shredded
Basil

Mix cottage cheese with bread crumbs, 1/2 C. parmesan, and 1 T. basil.
In crockpot, add spaghetti sauce, browned ground turkey, mushrooms, red bell pepper. Add garlic and basil to taste. Cook on high for 2 hours or til bubbly.

In 13x9" baking dish, layer noodles, sauce, mozzarella, cottage cheese mixture, repeat this once, and top with mozzarella and parmesan.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
To freeze - once cooled, cover tightly and place levelly in freezer. Partially thaw before cooking - reheat will take 1 hour 20 minutes on 375 in oven.

DH & I just got back from our anniversary trip to Milwaukee. For a smallish city, it has some amazing attractions and great shopping stops for foodies. First up, the Milwaukee Public Market: an indoor food market with specialty wines, cheeses, meats, a spice shop, 2 bakeries, organic produce, and several different lunch counters. Thinking ahead to the holidays, I picked up some specialty cheeses (to put out for hors d'oeuvres) and grabbed a small sack of cookies. Next we were off to the Spice House. There I added Indonesian Cinnamon and some fancy toasted onion salt to my spice collection. Next we headed across the street to Usingers Sausage, they've been in business in the same location for over 100 years! An amazing find - chicken sausage with tequila and black bean - $.99 pkg. (20 oz. pkg). Along with BOGOF on the some of their other sausages, we returned home with 5 packages of chicken sausages and brats for less than $8.50!! On our return trip home, we stopped at JellyBelly and bought 5 bags of JellyFlops (the misshapen beans) for $27. Not a bad hounding - some of the jellybeans will go as stocking stuffers for nephews, and for the children of some friends, and split the bags with DM - she's a jellybelly fanatic, too.

1.5 lbs. ground turkey, browned with 1 T. each garlic and onion, 1 tsp. cumin
8 oz. shredded cheese (I use cheddar, Mexican blend, or whatever's in the fridge)
1-2 cans (8-10 oz.) enchilada sauce (or 16 oz can tomato sauce with 1/2 tsp. chili powder, dash of cayenne, 1/4 tsp. onion salt, and 1/2 tsp. garlic powder)
15-20 corn tortillas

Warm tortillas in microwave or on griddle pan until soft. Preheat oven to 375.
Dip each tortilla (both sides) in enchilada sauce. Place one heaping spoonful of ground turkey in tortilla, roll up and place seam side down on greased, 13x9" baking dish. Repeat until you run out of ingredients or someone whines, "I'm hungry." (Typically this is me whining.)
Bake 10-12 minutes or til cheese is melted.
Serve with beans, Mexican rice, shredded lettuce, and sour cream.

To make the meat stretch, you can add favorite veggies (finely diced) while browning the meat. I have used mushrooms, red bell peppers, sweet banana peppers, celery, and onion. You can also make this ahead of time and pop in oven for a reheat when you're running short on time. This can also be frozen - make in an aluminum pan, cover tightly. You can store this up to 1 month (if someone doesn't eat it first.)

3 cans (14.5 oz.) diced Italian style tomatoes
2 cans (6 oz). tomato paste
2 cans tomato sauce (8 oz.)
2 cans cream of mushroom soup (condensed)
1 (4 oz.) can mushrooms
8 oz. light sour cream
1/2 small red pepper - finely chopped
2 T. basil
1/4 tsp. fennel seed
1/2 tsp. onion salt
1 1/2 T. dry minced garlic
1 1/2 tsp. chili powder

Add all ingredients to crockpot. Heat on high for 1 1/2 hours. Turn heat down to low, cook additional 2-3 hours. Let stand 30 minutes before serving. (Sauce will thicken upon standing.)
Serve over pasta, over meatballs (for sandwich), or use as pizza sauce.
Servings = 10-12

1 box classic white cake mix
2 eggs
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/3 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. apple juice or cider
2 tsp. almond extract
1/4 tsp. rum extract
1/2 tsp. apple pie spice
1/2 C. sliced almonds
2 medium apples (overripe work great), finely chopped

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all ingredients. Pour into prepared baking dish.
Top with additional almonds, if desired.
Bake for 25-28 minutes. (Shorter for metal pan, longer for glass or ceramic dish).
Cool and cut.

1 box classic white or french vanilla cake mix
1/3 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. apple cider or juice
2 eggs
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla extract (1 1/2 tsp. if using classic white cake mix)
1/4 tsp. rum extract
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 C. white chocolate chips
1 C. fresh or frozen raspberries, thawed

Preheat oven to 375.
Grease a 13x9” pan.
Mix well all but berries and chocolate. Stir in remaining ingredients.
Spread evenly in pan, top with additional berries or chocolate if desired.
Bake 23-26 minutes.
Cool completely and cut.
Yield = 36 bars
2.5 grams of fat

*for all chocolate lovers, substitute chocolate cake mix for classic white - this tastes yummy, too!

Dh was listening to the radio on his way into work and every Monday morning there's a coupon lady telling about the deals and steals for the Chicagoland area, and she finally had a deal I could do. She was talking about Dominick's (our version of Safeway) and a deal on Nature Valley granola bars. I absolutely love those bars. Healthier than candy and they taste even better! Yum!
The deal? The boxes were on sale for 2/$5, get $5 off instantly if you bought 5. Okay, not bad but I can do better. Combined with coupons (both Sunday insert and IP) saves me another $2.60. But, wait.....I'm not done yet - a Catalina prints for $3.50 OYNO! Naturally at the first store no Catalina prints, so I think I've done the deal wrong. Nope, at the 2nd Dominick's I went to the Catalina prints just fine so I take that and my receipts (2 of them) from the first store right up to customer service and walk away with $7 cash - the manager didn't know how to print the Catalina, so I just got cash! Total OOP for both Dominick's = $19.71. Then -$3.50 Catalina & -$7 cash gives me and grand total of $9.21 for 15 boxes of granola bars and 4 4lb. bags of sugar. That'll come in handy for the free apples we went picking on our way to Dominick's!

I spotted a few deals last Friday - specifically at Jewel-Osco. I found a coupon online for $6 off any purchase of "The Other White Meat" when you bought Kraft BBQ sauce (on sale for $.79 a bottle), a Coke product (on sale for $.88), and a bag of charcoal - which we needed anyway. Porkchops and roasts were $1.79 a lb. - a little high for me typically, but with $6 off, it made it easier to swallow. Ran 2 separate transactions, total OOP for 3.1 lbs. of porkchops, 3.4 lb. pork roast, 2 bags (18 lb.) Kingsford charcoal, 2 2L Cherry Coke, and a 2L Dr. Pepper (peelie for $.55 off) came to $23.47. Saving of $36.08. I think I can live with that.
My next deal (tonight) is at Meijer. The promotion is for 120 boxtops for education when you buy 15 boxtops products. After printing out all my Q's, I think I'm ready. I've got enough coupons lined up for 2-3 transactions, and heard (on HCW) about a catalina for $2 OYNO that prints wyb 4 Toaster Streudels.
http://www.bettycrocker.com/coupons-promotions/coupons/default.aspx?WT.ac=homepage_05-01-2008

I've become emboldened by the chatter on the pound, and did some searching for specific coupons yesterday, and after my 5th try, I hit the jackpot. Vlasic brand relish was on sale at Ultra-Foods, a small IL & IN chain that often has good deals. Well, I was on a mission to see what could be bought for free, as Ultra was having a 12 for $10 sale. got out my calculator, that comes to $.84 per item and it included eggs, bread, condiments, Pringles, Chef Boardee - 2 pages of their ad was devoted to this sale! Well, that was a good deal on eggs in my book, so I figured if I'm going there for eggs, let me see what else I can find for FREE - or at least really cheap. My vlasic coupon was for $1.00 off any pickle, relish, etc. so I grabbed 5 jars of relish (potato salad anyone?) for.....FREE! I love free, it's my favorite price. Here's how the trip went:

5 jars Vlasic relish - $.84 -$.84 Q = Free
http://www.crunchinthefastlane.com/
4 dozen eggs at $.84 each
1 loaf French bread $.99
1 pkg. Little Debbie $.84
2 2Liters Dr. Pepper $.84 each
1 bag Malt-0-Meal cereal $1.99 - $1 off Q = $.99
2 1lb. pkgs. Bar-S smoked sausage -$.25 Q off each
OOP = $11.34
Savings = $18.65

Cherry-picking is a time honored profession, one to which I was born. A cherry-picker is someone that goes into a store (any store) and buys only what is on sale. Last night was triple stop cherry pick for me. I started off at Dominicks (Safeway to most of you) for their deal on boneless rib-eyes. Also noticed tons of mark-downs throughout the store, probably because there were so few shoppers. We only noticed 2 other shoppers during our stop and the register was manned by the store manager. More on that later.....
Next we stopped at Jewel, another quick cherry-pick. Yogurt on sale 10 for $6 with a $1/any 4. Will try to find that coupon again, think I found on someone's blog and printed off 2 (the limit), then had DH print off 2 more from his job. The coupon is good til 10/14/2008, so this will be fabulous for hounding.
Finally, decided to wrap it up with Caputo's and more $.99 lb. brats, some tortillas (A staple in my house), and some chips.
Here's how my totals breakdown:
Dominick's
8 Safeway pudding at $.22 each = $1.76
7.25 lbs. rib eyes @ $1.99/lb. = 14.44
Total (including tax) = 16.48
Saved = $23.35 or 59%

Jewel (2 separate transactions)
4 Yoplait yogurt = $2.40
$1/any 4 Q - $1
Total OOP = $1.44
Savings $1.76

Caputo's
6 lbs. brats $5.94
2 bags chips $3.98
1 pkg. tortillas -$1.19
Total = 11.30
Savings = $18.60

Total spent this week = $30.66
Total saved this week = $45.47

Cheesy Potatoes
1 can cream of mushroom soup
8 oz. sour cream
8 oz. grated cheese (cheddar and mozzarella, or your favorite blend)
salt & pepper
2 lbs. frozen hashbrowns

Preheat oven to 375.
Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
In a large bowl, stir together all ingredients til well blended.
Bake uncovered for 1 hour.

Last night I decided to give a relatively new store a second chance. Caputo's recently joined our area, it's marketed as an ethnic market/supermarket, with a large variety of ethnic foods. I only went in once before, during the grand opening, and had been less than impressed with their pricing, though the store was neat, clean, bright, and the merchandise plentiful and fresh. On the advice of a friend, I went in last night and was so glad I did! Here's how the shopping went:
12 lbs. brats @ $.99/lb. - $11.88
8 pkgs. gravy mix 2/$1 - $4.00
1 red bell pepper ($.69/lb.) - $.26
2 cloves garlic ($.69/lb.) - $.48
Vidalia Onion ($.79/lb.) - $.54
Cilantro 3/$1 - $.33
Total OOP (including tax) $17.75
Saved $36.36
Percent Savings 67%

Butter Pecan Cookies

1 pkg. butter pecan cake mix
1 egg
1/3 C. milk
1 tsp. almond extract
1/4 C. margarine
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 C. white chocolate chips.

Preheat oven to 350.
Grease 2 cookie sheets.
Combine cake mix, egg, liquid, and margarine until well blended. Stir in final ingredient(s). Drop by rounded spoonful onto prepared cookie sheet.
Bake for 10-12 minutes.
Yield - 3-4 dozen

My last trip to Meijer's was amazing, the self-checkout register actually paid me to shop! Here's a breakdown of what I got and how this happened. (most of it was off the 10 for 10, get the 11th item FREE Sale).
7 pkgs. Bar-S bun-sized hot dogs - $1 each -$.25 Q for each (printable - manufacturer website)
9 jars Meijer brand pasta sauce - $1 each -$.50 Q for each (from Meijer mealbox)
3 pkgs. Meijer Organic mushrooms - $1 each - $.50 Q for each (Meijer mealbox)
7 boxes Rice-A-Roni chicken rice - $1 each - $.50 Q for each (coupons.com printable)
1 pkg. premade veal patties - $1 each (no coupon)
3 pkgs. Betty Crocker Pizza Crust mix $.89 each (no coupon, it's cheaper than premade crust)
1 small purse (beach tote) - $3.74 (clearance from $14.99)
2 pkgs. Velcro Dots (craft project) - $2.12 each
1 pkg. Tie Wraps (craft project) $.99 each
2 bags Dove chocolates $2.00 each (BOGOFree Q)

-$5/$25 purchase
-$3 off your next order (OYNO)
-$20 OYNO (brought in coupon with prescription for that)
Total = -$1.38
They paid me $1.38 to take all that stuff! Can you believe it?!?!?!

I had to come up with some way to use the pasta sauce (veal parmesan, pizza sauce, etc.) since I make my own pasta sauce from scratch. Will be giving much of this stuff to family members, or will donate what isn't needed.

I never would have believed this was a lowfat recipe if I was told that, but I found this recipe in a cookbook called Low-fat and loving it, but I have modified this from it's original form. If you like onions, feel free to add more than I have listed, I like the flavor of the onion, but dislike large hunks of it, so I have triple the mushrooms and omitted much of the onion called for in the original recipe. I typically serve this with corn on the cob and a simple salad. A warning though: I have never had leftovers from this recipe.

Beef & Potatoes in a Creamy Mushroom Gravy

2-2.5 lb.s boneless beef round steak, cubed (salt & peppered)
1-1.5 lbs. fresh mushrooms, sliced thin
1-2 packets of onion soup mix
1/4 medium onion, finely chopped, or 3 T. dry minced onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup (10.75 oz.)
Water
1/4 C. corn starch dissolved into 1 1.4 C. water
1 tsp. garlic (optional)
prepared mashed potatoes, any flavor except cheese

In crockpot, layer ingredients in the following order: beef, mushrooms, soup mix, onion til all ingredients have been used. Top with cream of mushroom soup and 2-3 C. water. Cook on low 6 hours. Remove 2 C. liquid from the crockpot and on stove heat liquid to boiling (about 1-2 minutes - it happens fast!). Pour in corn starch mixture and stir til mixture reaches desired consistency. Add in garlic, if desired. Pour gravy into crockpot to cover meat mixture or serve it on the side. Serve with mashed potatoes. Enjoy.

I snagged a great deal at WAGS yesterday. They had Bic pens (8 pk.) 2/$1. Online and in the Sunday inserts there was a coupon for $1/2. That was great, FREE pens. They also had Hershey's Bliss chocolates on sale $3 a bag, with in store coupon of $2/2 bags, plus manufacturers coupon of $1 a bag. Total = $1 a bag. So I walked out happy with 4 bags of chocolates and 12 pkgs. of pens for.....$4.61. I'll put most of the chocolates away for Christmas stocking stuffers. I still have 4 coupons left for the chocolates, so if I have time on my way home from work, I'll pick up some more (didn't want to be too greedy the first time through).

I'm planning a quick hounding tomorrow at WAGS (Walgreens for short). I have oodles of coupons for $1/any 2 BIC stationery items, and BIC pens are 2/$1. I smell (picture bassett hound with it's nose in the air, sniffing for the scent) FREE! Also they have Hershey's Bliss chocolates on sale, which I have some $1 off Q's for. On sale 2/$4, minus $1 off = $1 a bag. Great deal on Christmas stocking stuffers. My favorite gifts to give are gift baskets - I just love doing baskets of little things people need/enjoy/love/can use. Christmas stockings and Easter baskets are some all time favorites for me. I'm going to check their website and see if I missed anything good, check back with ya later-

Well, I was pretty impressed with last month's grocery totals.
Total Retail Value - $818.88
$ in Coupons Used - $416.15
Total Savings - $713.15
Total OOP - $105.73
Number of Items purchased - 430
Number of FREE Items - 74
Not the greatest at figuring my percentage of savings, but here goes
Savings Percent - 88%
(I keep chasing after that elusive 90% savings marker.)
I'm gunning for it this month!

A simple, classic Italian soup, made from whatever favorite veggies you have on hand.
1-2 cans diced or crushed Italian-style diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
4 C. water
2 cans beef broth - optional
3 T. corn starch, dissolved in water
1 red bell pepper, roasted and finely chopped
8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced thin
1 can butter beans, drained
1 lb. cooked carrots
1 large zucchini, finely chopped
3 medium potatoes, cooked and diced into small pieces
1 T. basil
1/2 tsp. oregano
2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
1 box rotini or small shell pasta, uncooked

Add all ingredients to crockpot except pasta. Cook on low for 8-12 hours. Let sit overnight for 8-10 hours. Cook on low for 4 hours or til hot, add noodles, cook an additional hour. The longer you let it cook, the more the veggies will thicken into a hearty rich broth. If you need helping thickening the broth, add additional corn starch or instant mashed potatoes.

Serve with Italian bread and sliced/cubed cheese.

Just a little twist on the classic chocolate chip cookies. Great to entertain with, look far more impressive than they actually are!

Tuxedo Chip Cookies
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/2 C. granulated sugar
2 T. each unsweetened applesauce and softened margarine
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp baking powder dissolved in 1 T. hot water
2 C. flour
1/2 C. each semisweet and white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.

Mix well sugars, margarine, and unsweetened applesauce. Stir in egg and extract, mix well. Stir in dissolved baking soda, stir in flour 1 C at a time, mixing until well blended. Stir in chips. Drop by rounded spoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 9-11 minutes, longer for a crunchy cookie.
Yield - 2-3 dozen.

Cappuccino Bars


1 pkg. vanilla cake mix
2 eggs, minus 1 yolk
1/4 C. coffee, cold
1/4 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. each vanilla nut extract & almond extract
1 C. cappuccino chips
1/2 C. sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 13x9” pan.
Mix well all, but final 2 ingredients. Stir in chips and 1/2 of almonds. Spread evenly in pan.
Top with remaining almonds.
Bake 24-27 minutes, cool and cut.

Caribbean Dark Chocolate Bars


1 pkg. devils food or dark chocolate cake mix
2 eggs, minus 1 yolk
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/4 C. water
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. coconut extract
1 tsp. each almond extract, rum extract, saigon cinnamon, cinnamon
1/2 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 C. white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.
Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all but final 2 ingredients. Stir in chips.
Bake for 24-27 minutes.
Cool and cut.

Meal In One

1/2 lb. browned ground beef or turkey
1 can each (10-11 oz.) veg beef soup and cream of mushroom soup
1 can each (10-14 oz.) green beans, carrots
Salt & pepper to taste
2 C. prepared mashed potatoes
8 slices American cheese

Mix well meat, canned ingredients, and salt and pepper. Top with prepared mashed potatoes and layer cheese over top. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or til cheese is melted or cook on high in microwave for 10-15 minutes til cheese is completely melted.

White Chocolate Biscotti
1 pkg. classic white cake mix
1 C. flour
1 pkg. white chocolate pudding mix
2 eggs
1/4 C. each applesauce and margarine
1 tsp. almond extract
1/2 C. white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.
Grease 2 cookie sheets.

Mix well all but chips. Stir in chips. Divide dough in half. Roll each half into a 9x3" log, slightly flattened on top. Bake for on prepared cookie sheets for 20-25 minutes or til lightly golden on top. Remove from cookie sheet and cool 5-10 minutes. With a serrated-edge knife, cut the dough into 16-20 slices, roughly 1/4" to 1/2" thick. Place cut side down on cookie sheet and bake 15 minutes or til lightly golden brown. While warm, top with drizzle.

Yield - 32 - 40 cookies

Drizzle:

1/3 C. milk
1/2 tsp. extract
1/2 C. powdered sugar

Mix well, mixture should be thin. With a spoon, lightly drizzle over warm cookies. Cool and store in an air-tight container.

Sweet Spice Cookies

1 pkg. spice cake mix
1/3 C. apple juice
1 egg
1 tsp. rum extract
1/4 C. margarine, softened
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg, optional
1/2 C. raisins roughly chopped
*optional 1/4 C. walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350.
Grease 2 cookie sheets.

Combine cake mix, egg, coffee, extract, spice, and margarine til well blended. Stir in raisins and nuts. Drop by rounded spoonful onto prepared cookie sheet.
*optional - dust with powdered sugar*
Bake for 10-12 minutes.
Yield - 3-4 dozen

Creamy Mocha Cookies
1 pkg. chocolate (any variety except devils food) cake mix
1/3 C. coffee, cold
1 egg
1/4 C. margarine, softened
1 tsp. brandy extract
1/2 C. mini chocolate chips or cappuccino chips, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 350.
Grease 2 cookie sheets.
Combine cake mix, egg, coffee, extract, and margarine til well blended. Stir in chips. Drop by rounded spoonful onto prepared cookie sheet.

*optional - dust with powdered sugar*
Bake for 10-12 minutes.
Yield - 3-4 dozen

Fruity Summer Cookies

1 pkg. strawberry cake mix
1/3 C. orange juice
1 egg
1/4 C. margarine, softened
1 tsp. strawberry-banana (or banana) extract
1/2 C. white chocolate chips
1/2 C. chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350.
Grease 2 cookie sheets.
Combine cake mix, egg, juice, extract, and margarine til well blended. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Drop by rounded spoonful onto prepared cookie sheet.
Bake for 10-12 minutes.
Yield - 3-4 dozen

For a while now, shopping for deals has been referred to as hounding in my family. As in, sniffing out the good deals. My last visit to cvs was certainly no exception. Armed with Coop (My coupon organizer that folds into an orversized-looking clutch) and my hubby, I grabbed 6 boxes of Kleenex, 6 CoverGirl foundations, Bic 3 razors, shaving cream, and Speedstick for men. Total OOP for 2 separate transactions: $11.38. Not my lowest total, but I'm getting better.

Apple Nut Bars

1 pkg. spice cake mix
2 eggs, minus 1 yolk
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/4 C. apple juice
1/3 C. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanialla nut extract
1/2 tsp. rum extract
1/2 C. chopped walnuts, plus 1/8 C. - rough chopped
2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and finely diced
2 T. cinnamon sugar

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all ingredients except fruit and nuts. Stir in final ingredients.
Spread evenly into prepared baking dish, top with additional nuts.
Dust with cinnamon sugar.
Bake for 24-27 minutes.
Cool and cut.

Nothing can beat this treat in the steamy, sticky summer days. Goes great with ice cream or as a stand alone dessert. Dust with powdered sugar for a decadent look, or drizzle with a sweet simple syrup flavored with lemon.

Sweet Lemon Almond Bars

1 pkg. lemon cake mix
2 eggs - minus 1 yolk
1/3 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. unsweetened applesauce
1/3 Juice blend
1 tsp. lemon extract or 2 tsp. lemon imitation extract
1 C. sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.
Mix well all but nuts. Stir in nuts.
Spread evenly into prepared baking dish.
Top with additional nuts, if desired.
Bake for 24-27 minutes.
Cool and cut.

Luscious Rum Bars

1 pkg. classic white cake mix
½ C. brown sugar
¼ C. unsweetened applesauce
¼ C. pineapple juice or pineapple juice blend
2 eggs, minus one yolk
1 1/2 tsp. rum extract
1/8 tsp. coconut extract
1 C. golden raisins, coarsely chopped
½ C. pecans or walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9” pan.
Mix well all but last 2 ingredients. Stir in final ingredients.
Spread evenly in pan, top with additional nuts (if desired).
Bake 23-26 minutes.
Cool completely and cut.
Yield = 36 bars
3.5 grams of fat

Lemon Coconut Bars

1 pkg. lemon cake mix
½ C. brown sugar
¼ C. unsweetened applesauce
¼ C. fruit juice (orange, strawberry, banana)
2 eggs, minus one yolk
1 tsp. lemon extract
½ tsp. vanilla nut extract
½ C. sweetened, flaked coconut, plus 2 T.
¼ C. sliced almonds
¼ C. white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 13x9” pan.
Mix well all but last 3 ingredients. Stir in final ingredients.
Spread evenly in pan, top with 2 T. of flaked coconut and additional almonds (if desired).
Bake 23-26 minutes.
Cool completely and cut.
Yield = 36 bars
1.5 grams of fat

I don't know about you, but spaghetti is my all time favorite dish. It doesn't hurt that I have 20 tomato plants planted around my house, or that I scored 26 boxes of pasta (1 lb. each) for free last time they were on sale. I'll explain the bargains later, but on to the sauce, because the Sauce is Boss!
Creamy Spaghetti Sauce
2 cans 14.5 oz each Italian style diced tomatoes
2 cans each 8 oz. tomato sauce
2 cans each 6 oz. tomato paste
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 C. light sour cream
1/2 lb. browned ground turkey
1 lb fresh mushrooms (cremini or white button) finely chopped
*1 medium red bell pepper, finely chopped
*1/4 C. red wine
* 1/4 C. parmesan or mozzarella cheese
1 C. beef broth
1 T. dry minced onion
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 1/2 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. basil
1 tsp chili powder
*1 bay leaf
* optional ingredients
Add all ingredients to crockpot, cook on high for 1-2 hour, reduce heat to low, cook 2 hours. Serve over noodles, with salad and garlic bread.
Yield - 8-12 servings

Basic Bars

1 box any flavor cake mix, except pound and angelfood cake
2 eggs - minus 1 yolk
¼ C. each unsweetened applesauce & any liquid (water, juice, coffee,etc)
1/3 C. brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. extract, any flavor (or mix and match your favorites)
½ C. nuts, chips, or fruit (dried or fresh/frozen)

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 13x9” pan.
Mix well all ingredients, spread evenly in pan.
Bake 24-27 minutes, cool and cut.

You can frost them or dust with powdered sugar, but I seldom do – these go great with anything.
My favorite variation uses: vanilla cake mix, coffee, brandy extract, and cappuccino chips for Latte Bars!
Another popular variation: lemon cake, lemonade, lemon extract, and almonds and coconut stirred in.
Always the crowd pleaser - vanilla cake mix, apple cider, rum & almond extract, raspberries and white chocolate chips - Yummy White Chocolate Berry Bars

Basic Substitutions:

Butter - substitute an equal portion of unsweetened applesauce
Ground Beef - substitute an equal amount of ground turkey
Egg - substitute 1 T oil, 2 T baking soda, 1 T. water
French onion soup mix - substitute 1 T dry minced onion & 1 1/2 tsp. beef bouillon
Chicken broth - substitute equal amount of water with 1 chicken bouillon cube (per cup)

OK, figured I should list this recipe here, but it can also be found at groceryhoundcoupon.blogspot.com.

7lbs. (7-8 lbs. is usually good for one BBQ) pork n beans or vegetarian baked beans
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
6 oz. turkey bacon, divided
1/3 C. brown sugar, packed
1/4 C. molasses
1-2 T. Tabasco sauce
1/4 C. worchester sauce
2 T. ground dry mustard

In medium skillet, fry 6-7 slices of turkey bacon with finely chopped onion.
Preheat oven to 350.
In 13x9" baking dish, combine all ingredients except raw turkey bacon. Cut raw turkey bacon into 1" strips, top with cut turkey bacon. Bake at 350 for one hour or until bacon is fully cooked.