Monday, December 3, 2012

Holiday Food: On A Budget

Christmas time is a wonderful time....of busy-ness, that is. Every year I debate how I'm going to work plate of goodies, a big Christmas Eve dinner, stocking treats and everything else into our food budget. I'm not one to increase my food budget easily and tend to experiment with "how little money do you need" before I'll increase it.

That being said, here are some ways to get through the Christmas eating season without blowing your food budget out of the water.

1. Plan ahead. Well, obviously, but in this case I'm talking about buying ahead of time. If you like turkey at your Christmas festivities, buy TWO at Thanksgiving. That's when they're cheapest! Or if you prefer a roast or brisket, look at the "reduced" meat section at your local grocery store. This is meat that is a day or two away from its expiration date. Obviously you won't leave it in your fridge for the next 3 1/2 weeks. No, you'll freeze it and thaw it the day that you need to cook it. You can get meat for really cheap and it's still good!

2. Stick with good, traditional treats. Before you go buying fancy ingrediens to make your own Christmas candies, think about what you have. Do you have the ingredients to make peanut butter cookies? For a few dollars of Hershey's Kisses you can make the "kiss cookies"(pb cookies with a kiss in the middle). Instead of making eggnog fudge (delicious, but expensive), how about making gingerbread men? Or rich peanut butter fudge? You don't need to buy fancy paper plates--just buy some colored cellophane paper instead. Or have your kids decorate white paper bags! There are lots of ways to make a fun treat without spending lots of moolah.

3. Learn how to make things. I used to think pies were so hard...until I realized they weren't! It is a lot cheaper to make your own pie crust and filling than it is to buy a $4 pre-made pumpkin pie. Liz posted a great crust and pie recipe a few posts back. Easy, delicious and cheap! Don't buy rolls-- make them yourself. You can get more bang for your buck if you're willing to take the time to peel the potatos instead of buying a box of potato flakes.

4. Shop the clearance section. My grocery store has a clearance section with over-stocked or "damaged" items. During the holiday season you find a lot of things on clearance. Just today I found 200 cans of Ocean Spray cranberry sauce-- $.50 apiece. Last year I bought four turkey roasting pans for $.50 apiece (normally $3.99).  Brining bags, aluminum foil, "old" candy (for stockings) and other things have been great finds. I also always buy the damaged cans. Dented isn't a problem-- rusty and bulging is! I have bought artichokes for under a dollar (for a pasta salad or delicious dip), tahini for only a few dollars (for making hummus), and various other cans for cheap. If you're bringing a dish to a Christmas potluck, see what the clearance section has to offer and base your dish off that!

5. Be deliberate in your menu planning. I'm not talking about your regular menu planning here. I'm talking about a big holiday dinner menu. For example, I'm planning a holiday dinner this year. There is one dish that really means "Christmas" to me. But....I'm the only one in my family who likes the dish. The first few years I was married I made a big bowl of it. Lots of money. And I threw half of it away because I couldn't eat it before it went bad. Now I only make enough for myself for a few days.  If you think you have to make something or buy something just because it's Christmas, reconsider. Do enough people like it? Is it worth the time or money for the dish? How long will it stay good in the fridge or freezer if you have leftovers?

I hope you have a great Christmas with tons of food...and tons of money left in your food budget on the 31st!

Good luck!

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