Cooking

Online coupons!!

Am I the only person in the world having problems with online coupon services?

Economy is in trouble, and like most of you our pocket books are getting squeezed as well – it seems like we are getting punched every which way.

I am now starting to look through grocery store advertisement pamphlets that come in the newspaper, and started to jot down things that are on sale – going to the stores to purchase “on-sale” items only.

Guess roaming through the store to just fill up the shopping cart days are clearly over.  Don’t get me wrong I still do buy things that are not on-sale (sorry, I am not that discipline), but I need to start saving money here and there.

About a year ago or so I used to load up a cart with grocery, and would probably pay around $250 to maximum of $300 – reminds you that this included basic staple items as well as “luxury” items(not on sale) that would last us for five days or so.

However, when I went to the store to get grocery for the week I spent over $350!!!  AND I didn’t really spend money on the luxury food items!

When I say luxury items I mean beef jerky, Haagen-Dazs, conveniently packaged snacks , filet mignons, leg of a lamb, imported cheese or specialty cheese, deli meats (where you pay $8.99/lb for turkey meat), and etc.

So, when I came home I searched through bags of grocery, and studied my receipt to see what I bought from the store — I couldn’t find anything overly “shocking.”

I didn’t buy the top of the line meat selections, bought generic ice cream cones for the kids, bought large bags of cookies and pretzels (so I can pack them in individual snack bags to save money), stocked up on canned sauces (tomato pastes, sauce, and etc), bought fruits that were on sale for $1.99/lb or less, and etc.

From the receipt, it was $1.99 here, $0.59 here, $1.45 there, but when I added up the receipt it was closed to $350!

I couldn’t believe it – when did food get THAT expensive? 

With this shocking revelation I decided to subscribe to online coupon “stores” – coolsavings.com, Pillsbury.com, clipngocoupons.com, and coupons.com.

Unfortunately — I guess I am an idiot — I couldn’t get those coupons to print even after installing the printer software onto my computer.

I followed every step carefully, but no success!

Here are the problems I have encounter.

In the Coolsavings.com website, I couldn’t complete the printing process – menu to install printer function did not function … so, it was in idle mode.

In clipngocoupons.com, even after I sign in as a member, I kept getting the survey page – come on, I already did that!

With coupons.com and Phillsbury.com sites I did successfully pick the coupons I wanted, but even though it said “print successful” my printer didn’t print out the coupons – yes, I did check if my printer was on and there were sufficient amount of ink.

So .. to make sure my printer was working properly I did print couple of pages of documents; which was successful (but not the coupons).

Bottom line – my attempt to shop “smarter” didn’t quite work well.  I guess I am going to cut out coupons that come in the newspaper.

Popularity: 3% [?]

I hate mosquitoes!!!!!!!!

I can live with mosquito if and only if they bite me on soft flesh areas — my legs and arms, but they always bite me on my knees or toes or on my knuckles.  It is impossible to scratch to satisfaction, and the itch electrifies through every nerves of my body.

If you haven’t been bitten on those areas I have mentioned you are truly LUCKY as heck; however, if you have than you know what I am talking about.

Last year alone we have spent over $350 on buying and stocking up on Cutter’s Citronella candles (the large bucket ones) for pest control purpose– we usually burn the candle around 4 o’clock at night and just let it burn through the night—we are constantly in and out of the house constantly (kids playing and taking the dogs out to their business).

SO .. I recently went t our local Walmart store and saw the employees stocking up spring items onto the shelves – seeds, plants, gardening equipment, and of course, citronella candles!!

I couldn’t believe it – the company drastically reduced the size of the product!

Honestly, I think it’s about the half of the size as the ones I bought last year for the same price.  I know the times are tough, the economy is not that great, and many companies are using different strategies (price increase or less amount of goods in product for the same price as before or minimizing substitutes, and etc) to sustain their product sales; but come on – they didn’t even bother to “trick” us!

According to Lennon – editor in chief of The Daily Anchor, “… companies decreasing the size of their products in grocery stores while maintain the same price, effectively raising prices on the sly (Groceries: Same Prices, Less Product).”

For instance, Kellogg’s breakfast cereals from 14.5 oz to 12.1 oz, Edy’s Ice Cream from 1.75 quarts to 1.5 quarts, and Purina One dog food from 20lb to 18 lb.  In another words, food is getting more expensive!

One of the main reasons why companies are choosing this creative marketing strategy is to avoid layoffs, and keep their balance book in check.

The bad thing about this is that they are deceiving their consumers – their bread and butter!  American consumers might be many things, but we do not like to be deceived – it’s big no-no in my book; don’t know about you guys.

Here is another excerpt from marketplace.publicradio.org:

With the price commodities going up this year Luby says shrinking containers might be the lesser of three evils. The other two being cheaper ingredients, which would change the taste of your peanut butter, or alienating even the most loyal consumers with higher shelf prices. Now, Skippy is made by Unilever, a food conglomerate that also put a dent in the bottom of Hellmann’s mayonnaise and shrank your carton of Breyer’s ice cream. No one there would go on tape but when I raised the deception question, a spokesman said the new weight is clearly marked on the package. And Frank Luby says the per ounce and per pound labels on the grocery shelf really help.

Spending same amount of money to get les – it’s really hard to swallow, but what can you do right?

I have become more aware of “price/oz” labels, and I shop strictly with that information – it does make shopping so much easier.  I would pay little bit more initially for a bigger product, but at the end it comes out cheaper – if you go by price/oz information.

Reference:

Lennon, A.  The Daily Anchor.  Retrieved on 4/1/2009 from http://www.thedailyanchor.com/2009/02/18/groceries-same-price-less-product/

Less product, same price.  Marketplace: American Public Media.  Retrieved 4/1/2009 from http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2009/01/08/pm_deceptive_packaging/#fbFormContainer

Popularity: 3% [?]

I have been debating for over a month if I should purchase Reynolds Handi-Vac Vacuum Sealing System gadets and try it out.  I really have my eyes on the Food Saver V2440 Vacuum Packaging system, but it is just so expensive.

FoodSaver

If you check out Sam’s Club website, they sell the system for $99.84 and $39.74 for the Food Saver Combination Bags and Roll – four 11”X18” and two 8”X22” rolls.

I have heard many good things about the Food Saver products – actually one of my friends have it and she just loves it.

She buys bulk groceries, including meats (chicken, beef, pork, sea foods, and etc), and she marinates all of her meat product before putting it in the freezer.

According to her the marinade penetrates through the meat fibers before finally freezing in the freezer, and when you defrost the meat it defrosts in the marinade – double whammy.

Moreover, if you have fresh meat you can marinate it in the Food Saver bags for only ½ hour (yes, there are marinating sauces that, but the vacuum bags actually presses the marinade into the fiber effectively.

Well, back to my Handi-Vac system – what a waste of money!!!

I only lost $8.00 (Vacu-Seal Starter Kit with Handheld Vacuum Sealer and Bags) plus $3.00 (gallon bags) plus tax – So, I lost about $12.00.

I cannot personally compare and review pros and cons of Food Saver product, however, I do have friends who own it and they frequently uses it – in simple terms they LOVE it.

Handi-Vac

On the other hand, I can personally give you my consumer opinion on Handi-Vac product – it is piece of GARBAGE!

If you already own one and it works for you than you probably spent the best $12 of your budget.

As for me, I couldn’t completely vacuum out the air out of the bag (the top of the bag was pretty vacuumed out, but the bottom of the bag was all bubbly.

Also, it took me good minute or two get the air out of the bag, and I had to press the handheld device against the bag pretty firmly – it was a problem for me because I have arthritis on my right hand, so it was pretty painful after couple of bags.

All-in-all, it was a tedious work, and took me pretty long to complete the bags of meat I had to vacuum out – I think I spent extra 15 minutes in the kitchen.

I am going to work my household budget this month so I can buy the Food Saver machine – I think it’s going to relieve my headaches.

Thumbs Down

Popularity: 4% [?]

I just bought “mi-self” a Hamilton Beach 6 Speed Classic Hand Mixer at my local Wal-Mart store for $29.99 (well, plus the tax – can’t forget Uncle Sam; right?).

Everyday Italian

Anyhow, I love watching Food Network shows; especially Giada de Laurentiis’ show Everyday Italian.
She has such a bubbly personality along with her wide perfect smile, and let’s not forget her irresistible Italian dishes.

I must confess – I am not an Italian nor married to an Italian, but I love the pasta, the creamy sauces, the herbs, the breads, and etc – anything that can make you fat from eating Italian dishes (from all the carbohydrate ingredients) the more I love them.

I really do make attempts to make or cook food for my family, but I just don’t have the gift in the kitchen – I think it took me over three years to boil a pot of water on the stove

I remember cooking for my husband (when we first got married), and I would spend hours in the kitchen chopping, scrapping, sautéing, and etc.

By the time my husband came home from hard day at work I would have the table ready for dinner for two – have couple of candles lit up on the table, neatly position all necessary utensils and dishes set up, strategically place the entrée front of him, and etc.

I would just sit on my chair anxiously waiting (like a school girl) for him to take the first bite, and overwhelm his taste buds.

I remember doing this for him day after day – making him eat my food – I honestly, thought my cooking was great and I was doing him a favor.

Well, after 13 years of marriage I discovered that I made that poor man eat my crappy food for the first six or so years of our marriage.

He always told me it was great, and always finished his plate – not knowing how he really felt I gave him second servings too!

Cuisine Art

Well, back to Giada … I always see her using Cuisine Art hand mixer to make whip creams to cake mixes and etc.

I had the generic cheap handheld mixer that I bought it for $8.00 and it did serve my needs (making mashed potatoes) for past three years, but I wanted to trade up.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have $70 (nor wanted to even spend that much money even if I had the money) to buy Cuisine Art handheld mixer.

Thankfully I came across the Hamilton Beach hand mixer for $30 – that I could live with, and not going to lose my sleep over.

There are reviews written about the product, and they are generally satisfying one – I have not used it yet, but some of the things written about HB mixer are:

Hamilton Beach -- White

1)    It is quite
2)    All the attachments are stored in snap on storage case
3)    Five attachments included (traditional beaters, wire beaters, and a whisk
4)    It’s rather powerful
5)    Brushed stainless steel

Like I said I haven’t used it yet, but wish me luck ladies and gents – I am going to bake some cookies tomorrow, and let’s see if it is good as they say.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Blueberry Cream Cheese Tarts

I love cheesecake (especially from The Cheesecake Factory: New York Style); how about you?

Unfortunately, cheesecakes (well, any sweet desserts) do not love me back – if I look at it wrong I gain ten pounds.

If you didn’t know or just didn’t care about the nutrition facts (sometimes it’s smart to stay dumb, so you don’t have to feel guilty about eating such bad food), each slice of cheesecake has around 1,150 calories and 74 grams of fat!!!

I think I just 20 pounds right now from thinking about the cheesecake!

Anyhow, I was lying on my couch, while my youngest was taking a quick afternoon nap, and saw Paula Deen show.

In her Quick Fix (quick and easy) episode, Paula Deen was talking about making a chicken pot pie, steak Diane, snow peas in orange liqueur, and blueberry cream cheese tarts.

I have already made her steak Diane recipe (it was alright) and blueberry cream cheese tarts — wow, the dessert is heavenly, and it in small servings so I don’t over-kill.

The recipe requires general and everyday items we usually have it in the house: such as cream cheese, vanilla extract, vanilla wafers, eggs, sugar, pie filling, and paper cupcake liners.

I have made it twice already, and my family loves it.

It is so quick and easy that while my family sits down to eat dinner, I just pop those little babies in the stove, and voila – “it’s done.”

Yes, it does require some planning though.

For instance, I have to take the cream cheese out of the refrigerator, an hour before, so it reaches room temperature.

Second, I mix all the ingredients up and insert paper liners into the muffin tray, while my dinner is cooking.  Also, don’t forget to preheat the oven when you are mixing the ingredients!

It is so easy, and I love the fact that I can provide dessert for my family after dinner – it just feels like restaurant; you know what I mean?

Try it and see if you or your family likes it.

Popularity: 4% [?]

I love chestnuts!  I had the fondest moments, in my childhood, with chestnuts.  I remember growing up eating chestnuts, in the winter nights, right out of the fire pit.   It’s all toasty and warm and so starchy!

I used to buy my chestnuts at local grocery stores, but found it’s really small.  You have to cook a lot, and have to peel one after the other.  Honestly, who has the patience!  Also your fingers get all tired out by the time you satisfy your “chestnut” crave. 

I recently discovered my local “Asian/Oriental” store carries chestnuts.  It costs little bit more (per pound), but it’s worth spending little extra money.  Generally, the nuts are much larger, usually double in size of the ones you buy at your local grocery stores, and I think it’s heartier. 

If you live in larger towns you can usually find these specialty stores; especially if you live in or around college towns.  They do not advertise what-so-ever – it’s all word of mouth.  Check your phone book – sometimes they have it in the yellow pages, but no guarantees. 

My parents used to roast these things in the fire pit – making them all smoky.  It does have extra/special taste to the nuts, but it’s really not convenient for my family.  So I usually toast them in the oven.
When I toast these yummies I turn on my Christmas music collection in my kitchen, and play with my kids in the living room while they are getting roasted.  The house is soon filled with the smell of chestnuts, and it just brings happiness. 

When it’s time for eating I usually slice the nuts in half, and give my children a spoon to scrape the insides out – that’s what my mom used to do, so it’s a tradition for me.  Also, it saves me time to eat the nuts myself. 

If you didn’t know how to roast these things, it’s quite easy.  Here’s the direction.

Step one:
Heat oven to 400 to 425 degrees F (depending on the size of the nuts)  — I prefer roasting them slowly.

Step two:
Cut each chestnut using a sharp knife … making an X on one side (on flat side of the nuts)

Step three:
Place nuts onto a cookie sheet with cut side up– make sure you cover the cookie sheet with an aluminum foil.

Step four:
Put the cookie sheet into the oven.  Cook them for 25 minutes or so.  You can see when it’s done when the skin is “peeling” off the nuts.

Step Five:
Let it cool little bit so you don’t burn your fingers.  Then take a sharp kitchen knife and cut the nuts in half, and scoop it out.  (I think this is a best way to eat it because it’s still nice and warm). 

Step Six:
Enjoy it!!  This can be part of your family tradition.

Popularity: 1% [?]