Fresh & Healthy
Recipe: Swedish Baked Potatoes
I had the family’s Valentine’s Day Dinner celebration pretty much planned out based off the items that I had in the refrigerator and pantry (steak, baked potatoes, fresh stir fry vegetables, fresh fruit salad, cherry limeade fruit punch from the girls birthday party, poppy seed french bread, and cheesecake). Since I had gotten potatoes on clearance at the grocery store earlier I wanted to do baked potatoes to go with the steak but was hoping to try a different recipe. I adapted this recipe from SeasaltwithFood and it turned out really well! Everyone in our family LOVED these potatoes (including the kids)! The girls even wanted to know if they could take the leftover potatoes to school for their lunches the next day they like them so much. The best part is they were pretty easy to do. They had much more flavor than regular baked potatoes plus we didn’t add any additional butter or toppings because they were so tender and tasty (which means they were probably healthier for us too). This one has become family favorite already!
Swedish Baked Potatoes:
- 4 large Potatoes
- Garlic Seasoning
- Olive Oil
- Sea Salt
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place the potato on a cutting board and make thin slices down the whole length of the potato (each slice should go almost all the way through the potato). Put potatoes on a baking tray or in a baking dish. Sprinkle Garlic seasoning over each potato. Make sure some garlic seasoning gets down in between a few of the potato slices on each potato for extra flavoring. Spread butter over the tops of each potato with a butter knife. Brush olive oil on over the butter. Sprinkle the sea salt on top of the potatoes. Bake for 20 minutes on convection oven or 40 minutes if baking regularly (bake until potatoes are tender). When done the potatoes will be soft on the inside and the skin will be crispy.
You can put butter, sour cream, bacon pieces, and cracked pepper out as additional toppings for those wanting more flavor.
Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4
We had a birthday party celebration for the girls and Valentine’s Day this week but in between the fun I was able to make a quick trip to the grocery store. Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.
Groceries from Ingles, Dollar Tree, and Save A Lot | RiteAid
Ingles Groceries:
- $10.16 at Ingles for 2 bags Laura Lynn Bread, 1 container Portabella Mushrooms, 1 container whole fresh Mushrooms, 1 container fresh Strawberries, 1 loaf Poppy Seed French Bread, 1 bag fresh Bananas, 1 bag Romaine Lettuce, and 1 box Jimmy Dean’s Sausage & Biscuts. (All the items were on clearance, marked down or on sale. The produce was marked down on clearance.)
Dollar Tree Groceries:
- $14.00 at Dollar Tree for 2 jars Strawberry Jam, 3 boxes Applesause, 2 boxes Toast’ems, 1 Chocolate Frosting, 1 Vanilla Frosting, 2 containers Sprinkles, 1 can Canola Cooking Spray, 1 jar Vanilla Extract, and 1 bag Marshmallows.
Save A Lot | RiteAid Groceries:
- $7.76 at Save A Lot | RiteAid for 2 gallons Milk and 1 box Dannon Yogurts (yogurt was on sale).
We were able to stock up on some great items this week. Although we had the girls birthday party celebration and Valentine’s Day we were able to keep it within reason! 🙂
This week I spent $31.92 on groceries. I was over on my budgeted amount for the week because of the busy week with traveling, appointments, and upcoming celebrations so thankfully I have a little extra to cover the groceries this week. I was happy to find fresh eggs and great produce on sale that we can use for several meals. I hope that next week is better week, back to normal, and we can come under budget!
It is my goal to give you regular updates on this budget section so you can celebrate the good weeks with me and thump me on the bad weeks! As always you are welcomed to join the journey with me. I would love to hear your story and how you are doing too. The purpose of our family doing this it to watch our grocery spending while allowing us to feed our family, enjoy life, share with others, and yet stay on track with our budget.
Living on a Budget is a series of ways our family uses a budget to help keep us accountable with our finances. Life doesn’t always go as planned. We have used some of the ideas I will be sharing for years while others are ones we are just starting to implement as we continue finding ways to be creative and have fun with what we have been given. Having a plan in place allows us the freedom to be smart with what we have been given, get more creative when it is a tight (week, month, year or a season) and when necessary live a much more simplified life. A budget helps us stay on track so we have more opportunities to enjoy the many blessings we have been given as well as share what we have with others. There is so much more to life than having all the stuff. We may not have the newest or greatest items in our house, we drive used cars, and wear hand-me-down clothing…..however, if our family is taken care of and have love for each other and others we have more than all the riches in the world.
Save A Lot: Deals for the week of February 15 – 21, 2012
The Save A Lot weekly ad deals are listed below for your convenience. It is a great time to stock up on some Save A Lot deals. Sign up for the Smart Shopper Club, by doing so you will get a $5.00 off of $25.00 coupon!
Meats and Seafood
Family Pack Rib Eye Steaks – $6.99 lbs
Assorted Pork Chops – $1. 79 lbs
Family Pack Cube Pork – $1.89 lbs
Port Side Tilapia (16 oz) – $3.99
Cooked Cocktail Shrimp (40 to 60 oz) – $4.99
Butterball Turkey Bacon (6 oz) – $1.00
Use $0.55/1 coupon insert from 1/15 Smart Source (Expires 2/16/12)
$0.45 each after couponCarolina Ground Turkey (12 oz) – $1.00
Pick 5 for $19.99 promo on going: Pick any 5 specially marked packages of your favorite cuts of fresh, frozen or smoked meats and pay just $19.99 (about $2 per pound).
Fridge and Freezer
Banquet Breaded Chicken, Patties, Tenders, or Nuggets (25 to 26 oz) – $2.99
Hot Pocket Singles, Pepperoni, Ham & Cheese, Breakfast (3 oz) – $0.88
Marie Calendar’s Chicken Pot Pie – $2.29
Oscar Mayer Wieners (16 oz) – $1.00
Oscar Mayer Bolagna (12 oz) – $1.00
Oscar Mayer Lunchables – $1.00
Save A Lot Today Chicken Strips or Meatballs (7 – 8 oz) – $1.00
Banquet Brown ‘n Serve Sausage Links, Maple or Original (6.4 oz) – $1.00
Gwaltney Pork Sausage (12 oz) – $1.00
Budding Deli Cuts, Ham, Turkey, Chicken, and Roast Beef (3 – 4 oz) – $1.00
Hormel Sliced Pepperoni or Hard Salami (3.5 oz) – $1.00
Use $1.00/2 coupon insert from 1/15 Smart Source (Expires 3/15/12)
$0.50 each after couponHinsdale Corn Dogs (3 count) – $1.00
Fisher Boy Fish Sticks (6 oz) – $1.00
Fisher Boy Shrimp Poppers (4 oz) – $1.00
Tortino Pizza Roll, Pepperoni or Cheese (15 count) – $1.00
Tony’s Crispy Crust Pizza, Pepperoni or Supreme (9 – 10 oz) – $1.00
Banquet Dinners (4 – 9 oz) – $1.00
Buyers Best Crinkle Cut French Fries (32 oz) – $1.00
Pillsbury Grand Biscuits (16 oz) – $1.00
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 12/4 Smart Source (Expires 2/25/12)
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 12/11 Smart Source (Expires 3/3/12)
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 1/8 General Mills (Expires 3/31/12)
Use $0.30/2 coupon insert from 2/5 Smart Source (Expires 4/28/12)
Use $0.35/3 coupon insert from 1/8 General Mills (Expires 3/31/12)
As low as $0.85 each after couponSunny D Orange Mango or Orange Strawberry (48 oz) – $1.00
Produce
Roma Tomatoes – $0.99 lb
Seedless Grapes, Red or White – $1.49 lb
Mini Carrots – $1.00
Dole Salad Mix (12 oz) – $1.00
Celery – $1.00
Yellow or Red Peppers – $1.00
Jumbo Navel Oranges or Red Grapefruit – $1.00
Klondike Rose Potatoes – $1.00
Household
Angel Soft Bath Tissue (4 pack) – $0.99
Sparkle Paper Towels – $0.99
Grocery
Crystal Bottled Water (24 pack) – $2.99
Hargis House Chili with Beans (15 oz) – $1.39
Kaskey’s Chicken or Beef Bouillon Cubes (3.25 oz) – $1.89
Marcum Gravy Mixes – $0.57
Mantia’s Wide Egg Noodles (12 oz) – $1.39
Shelby”s Grove Sliced Peaches or Fruit – $0.99
Mantia’s Garlic Toast – $2.29
Save A Lot Today Sandwich Cremes (12 oz) – $1.19
Libby’s Tropical Fruit Salad (15 oz) – $1.29
Sundia Fruit Cup – $1.00
Chef Boyardee Canned Pasta – (14.5 – 15 oz) $1.00
Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper or Chicken Helper – $1.00
Progresso Vegetable Classic Soup (19 oz) – $1.00
Nissan Souper Meals (4.3 oz) – $1.00
Hormet Micro Cups (7.5 oz) – $1.00
Chicken of the Sea Chunk White Tuna (5 oz) – $1.00
Knorr Sides (4 – 7 oz) – $1.00
Use $1.00/3 coupon insert from 1/29 Red Plum (Expires 2/26/12)
Use $0.50/2 coupon insert from 1/29 Red Plum (Expires 2/26/12)
$0.77 each after couponBetty Crocker Flavored Mashed Potatoes (4 – 6 oz) – $1.00
Kraft Mac & Cheese Cups or Boxes (2 – 7 oz) – $1.00
Malt O Meal Cereal (10 – 12 oz) – $1.00
Use $1.00/3 printable coupon from Malt ‘O Meal
$0.77 each after couponKool-Aid Bursts (40 oz) – $1.00
Hawaiian Punch, Assorted Varieties (32 oz) – $1.00
Mrs Freshley’s Buddy Bars, Oatmeal Cream Cookies, Swiss Rolls & Honey Buns – $1.00
Nestle Candy Bars (2 – 3 oz) – $1.00
Wylwood Cut Green Beans or Whole Kernel Corn (28 – 29 oz) – $1.00
Diane’s Garden Tomatoes (28 oz) – $1.00
Red Gold Ketchup (36 oz) – $1.00
Remember you can use the $5/$25 printable coupon to sweeten these deals! Plus you can earn up to 5 additional $5 off $25 coupons for sharing the coupon with your friends.
For more information about Save A Lot’s coupon policies go here. If you find additional deals or savings please let me know and I will add them to the list.
Fresh & Healthy: Lunch Box Meals
School Lunch!
The girls are good at helping put together their lunches. They know that we get a protein, fruit, vegetable, dairy, drink and snack. Here’s what they had today:
- Peanut Butter & Homemade Strawberry Jam
- Fresh Tomatoes
- Pita Chips
- Yogurt
- Applesauce or Yogurt Raisin
- Cheesestick
- Bottled Water and Reduced Sugar Juice
- Sugar Free Cherry Jello
- Protein Bar or SoyJoy Apple Granola Bar
Lunch Box Goodies
Book: “Everything Romance” by Todd Hafer
Any time is the perfect time to celebrate with the ones you love! With Valentine’s Day celebrations around corner I thought I would share with you a book I recently read called Everything Romance by Todd Hafer. The book is packed full of great quotes, recipes and information. It has plenty of great ideas to get your creative juices flowing for your upcoming Date Night, Valentine’s Day, Honeymoon, Anniversary or any other fun celebration with your spouse. You will get a wonderful variety of romantic inspiration from the book through:
- Blessings & Prayers
- Did You Know? (fun love facts)
- Features (Conversation Starters and More)
- Lists (such as Creative Ways to say “I Love You”)
- Love Boosters & Love Busters
- Love Letters (from famous people like Mark Twain and more)
- Perfect Pairs & Famous Quotes
- Poetry & Poets
- Special Recipes
- Gift Ideas & Love Stories
- Scripture Verses, Trivia and More!
I thought this book was great reminder of how important it is that we spend time with our spouse. Going on a Date Night even after your married helps keep you connected. The book has a lot of different ideas. My suggestion is take the ones that work well for your marriage and implement them. There is plenty of fun activities to try and inspirational sayings to get you started. I especially enjoyed the love quotes and the recipes. The top 100 lists for Love Songs and Romantic Movies are wonderful starting points for Date Night ideas.
I haven’t had a chance to try all the recipes but here are a few fun ones:
- Berry Sweet Breakfast Parfaits for Two
- Lip Smackin’ Spicy Lime Popcorn
- Smooth Operator Blue Smoothie
- Perfect Pair Pizza Pita Snacks
If you need some great ideas for the upcoming Valentine’s Day celebration or more ideas for your Date Nights I would recommend checking this book out. Everything Romance would be a neat Valentine or Anniversary gift for your spouse. You could read through the book together or use it to help plan out your next date night.
I think investing time and energy into our marriage is important. While I may not be inspired by every story, quote, or activity in the book I believe the author did a good job of putting a great mix of ideas so each person can pull their favorites out for them to implement or enjoy. The book was a fun one for me to read and I appreciate a book that focuses on building better relationships! I am already looking forward to our next Date Night! 🙂
Rate my review & be entered into a giveaway: I reviewed this book for “Blogging for Books.” By rating my review, it allows me to choose another book and enters you in a GIVEAWAY! The rating is a two step process.
Step 1: Rate my review below (select the number of stars, enter your email, and hit submit).
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes from the publisher through the Waterhouse Multnomah. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4
Jake was traveling for work most of the week and I had a lot of appointments for myself and the girls but I was able to squeeze in a quick trip to the grocery store. Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.
Groceries from Ingles, Walgreens, and Save A Lot | RiteAid
Ingles Groceries:
- $37.14 at Ingles for 6 containers Fresh Strawberries (marked down to $0.99 on clearance), 3 bags Fresh Oranges (4 pounds each marked down to $0.99 each), 3 limes, 1 box Roarin Twirling Berry Drinks (10 count), 1 box Roarin Twirling Fruit Punch (10 count), 1 box Laura Lynn Oatmeal, 5 packs Kool Aide, 2 packs Wylers, 4 cartons Minute Maid Cherry Limeades, 2 boxes Go-Gurt Strawberry and Blueberry (10 count each), 1 pack Laura Lynn Sliced Sharp Cheddar Cheese, 1 pack English Muffins, 1 large bag Pepperoni, 1 pack Potatoes, 1 small pack Pepperoni and 1 fresh Pineapple. (All the items were on clearance, marked down or on sale. I was able to use a couple coupons as well.)
Walgreen Groceries:
- $0.00 at Walgreens for 2 cartons of Eggs, a dozen each. (Used Register Rewards to pay for the eggs).
Save A Lot | RiteAid Groceries:
- 20.49 at Save A Lot | RiteAid for 1 bag Granny Smith Apples (3 pounds), 1 bag Red Delicious Apples (3 pounds), 2 bags Carrots, 2 packs KoolAid Drinks (6 count each), 2 bags Cheddar Chex Mix, 1 bag Fresh Spinach (marked down on clearance), 1 fresh Green Pepper, 1 box Frosted Flakes, 1 stalk fresh Celery, 1 can Cinnamon Rolls, 1 box Little Hugs Reduced Sugar Drinks (20 count), and 1 fresh Cucumber
Groceries from Walgreens
Walgreens Groceries:
- $0.00 at Walgreens for 1 gallon Milk and 2 cartons of Eggs (They had their eggs marked down to $0.99 each this week and they are still the best price I can find on milk in our area. I used Register Rewards to pay for the milk and eggs today. We should be stocked up on eggs for a few days.)
We were able to stock up on some great items this week. Although we were a little over we have two celebrations going on this weekend. The girls Birthday party and Valentine’s Day!
This week I spent $57.63 on groceries. I was over on my budgeted amount for the week because of the busy week with traveling, appointments, and upcoming celebrations so thankfully I have a little extra to cover the groceries this week. I was happy to find fresh eggs and great produce on sale that we can use for several meals. I hope that next week is better week, back to normal, and we can come under budget!
It is my goal to give you regular updates on this budget section so you can celebrate the good weeks with me and thump me on the bad weeks! As always you are welcomed to join the journey with me. I would love to hear your story and how you are doing too. The purpose of our family doing this it to watch our grocery spending while allowing us to feed our family, enjoy life, share with others, and yet stay on track with our budget.
Living on a Budget is a series of ways our family uses a budget to help keep us accountable with our finances. Life doesn’t always go as planned. We have used some of the ideas I will be sharing for years while others are ones we are just starting to implement as we continue finding ways to be creative and have fun with what we have been given. Having a plan in place allows us the freedom to be smart with what we have been given, get more creative when it is a tight (week, month, year or a season) and when necessary live a much more simplified life. A budget helps us stay on track so we have more opportunities to enjoy the many blessings we have been given as well as share what we have with others. There is so much more to life than having all the stuff. We may not have the newest or greatest items in our house, we drive used cars, and wear hand-me-down clothing…..however, if our family is taken care of and have love for each other and others we have more than all the riches in the world.
Recipe: Fresh Garden Salsa
Fresh yellow and red tomatoes from our garden
As I was thinking about the upcoming Spring season I realized that it is almost time to start planning for the 2012 garden. Yikes! There are so many big events going on with our family between now and garden season, however, I don’t want to wait until the last minute to start planning either.
I absolutely LOVED having a garden last year. It was fun to grow, eat, and giveaway the food we had planted in the garden. Recently, I took a few minutes to go back over my notes, photos, and information from last year’s garden to see which produce did well and what our family ate. During that time I came across my Fresh Garden Salsa recipe and pictures from when I made it in the Fall. Just looking at the fresh vegetables got me excited about this upcoming year. I hope the garden does well again because it was a blast giving away produce to family and friends!
This recipe was created out of the items we had in the fridge and pantry at the time so feel free to alter it to match what you have in your kitchen as well. My family enjoyed this recipe and ate it but cutting up the fresh vegetables did take a little more time than I originally planned. The girls pitched in and helped so it made it a fun family event.
Fresh Garden Salsa:
- 4 cups fresh Tomatoes (used yellow & red tomatoes)
- 2 cups fresh Peppers (used red & green peppers)
- 1/2 cup Banana Peppers
- 1 small Sweet Yellow Onion
- 2 cloves of Garlic
- 2 Jalapeno Peppers
- 1/2 teaspoon Cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 freshly squeezed Lemon (or Lime)
- 1 can Corn
- 1 can Black Beans
Wash and dice up all the fresh vegetables. Mix all the ingredients together and blend lightly. Refrigerate for 2 hours or more (to allow the flavor to blend together) and serve with any type of corn chip. If you would like a spicier salsa you can add additional jalapeno peppers or hot sauce to the salsa.
Fresh Green and Red Peppers from our garden
Fresh Banana Peppers from our garden
Mixing up some fresh salsa
Salsa is ready….now do we have any chips!?
Be My Valentine: Sweetheart Strawberry Smoothie
Sweetheart Strawberry Smoothie
Last week I picked up some fresh strawberries on clearance at Ingles. As soon as the girls saw the strawberries they wanted to know if I would make them a smoothie. This past weekend while they were playing together I decided it was time to make they smoothie for them. I came up with this recipe using ingredients we had on hand.
As an extra treat I put freshly cut strawberries around the smoothie on a plate. I cut the stems off the strawberries in a “v” pattern making the strawberries look like little hearts.
Sweetheart Strawberry Smoothie:
- 5 Strawberries (fresh or frozen0
- 1/4 cup Raspberries
- 1/4 cup Cranberries
- 1 cup Milk
- 1/2 cup Ice
- Extra Strawberries for garnish
- Cool Whip for garnish
The girls loved the fresh “heart” strawberries and their smoothies. I super excited that they willingly ate some fresh cranberries and raspberries which were in their smoothies. The more healthy fruits, vegetables, and nutritional goodies I get into the kiddos the better. They love smoothie treats just as much as I do! 🙂
Strawberry Smoothie with Cool Whip and a Straw! The girls LOVED it!
Recipe: Quick Orange Julius Smoothie
Orange Julius Smoothie
As a kid I used to LOVE it when my parents made Orange Julius for an extra special breakfast or Holiday treat. I still use the recipe we did as kids occasionally but this a little quicker and healthier version of one of my favorite childhood drinks.
Orange Julius Smoothie:
- 1 peeled Orange (or 1 cup freshly squeezed Orange Juice)
- 1 cup Milk
- 1 cup Ice
Blend all the ingredients together and enjoy.
This is a great breakfast smoothie to get you started in the morning. The orange provides great vitamin C and the milk is wonderful in calcium and protein. If you want a creamier smoothie add more milk or yogurt and less ice. My preference is to use a fresh orange but in a pinch you can use Orange Juice.
Be My Valentine: Sweetheart Sandwich
Valentine Heart Sandwich for the Brina’s lunch box
It is a lot of fun putting in something different into the girls lunch box. Around the Holidays and whenever I get the urge I do a special surprise in their lunch boxes. I typically do at least one special lunch box note or shape or treat a week, occasionally they get a few extras squeezed in when I have the time and creative juices flowing. In honor of the upcoming Valentine’s Day Holiday I put a heart PB&J sandwich in their lunches.
It an easy way to show the girls that I am thinking about them and care, plus they had a blast showing off their heart sandwich at lunch time to their friends! The majority of evenings if we have time I have the girls at least start putting together their lunches. Many nights they make the PB&J sandwiches themselves. Yes, they are messier and probably use more peanut butter and jelly but they enjoy pitching in and helping put together their lunches. Also, lunch making time gives us a few extra minutes of productivity and socializing together in the kitchen. Sometimes after they finish their lunches I will sneak in a note or something special other times I am making the lunches so I will add a special Momma’s touch.
All you have to do for this simple treat is make your peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Use a cookie cutter to make the shape you want. Put it in a container or sandwich bag and it is ready for them to discover the next day at lunch.
Heart shaped cookie cutter that I used for their PB&J sandwiches!
Karlie’s sweetheart surprise sandwich!
