Wingin’ it in the kitchen - on a budget

Eating vegetarian is a great way to cut back on your grocery bill amongst rising food costs.  Swapping meat for dried beans, lentils and tofu is a strategy that will not only stretch your grocery budget, it will provide nutrition, can lead to weight loss, and if you are not used to eating vegetarian, experimenting with veggie cuisine will lead you to discover exciting new flavours in the kitchen.

But if you are going to eat meat, cheap cuts such bone-in chicken, like drumsticks and wings, are economical choices.

On Saturday, Josh and I hit up our local farmer’s market, this time remembering to bring our cloth bags and coffee mugs to fill with fair trade coffee. One thing I love about our new home is the proximity to the market - only a 5 minute walk. There we bought 10 large chicken wings.  While chicken wings are normally quite cheap, we paid more for ours because they were from a local organic farm, however the wings were deliciously meaty. 

Chicken wings are much less expensive that boneless, skinless breasts, but if you are concerned about consuming dark meat and skin, with a higher fat content than white meat, simply try to balance your meals with vegetables and whole grains.  If you are restricting your meat consumption, a little dark meat here and there won’t hurt you.

The recipe below for chicken wings is also a lot healthier, not to mention cheaper, than eating out at a pub or even home deep-frying.  We used Alton Brown’s no-deep-fry recipe.  Think that baked chicken wings inevitably sacrifice flavour and crispiness?  They do not!  Our wings came out perfectly - fully cooked, with nice crispy skin on the outside, and delicious, juicy, moist meat on the inside.  Far better in fact, than any deep fried wing I’ve ever eaten.

The wing process is pretty easy and all the prep work can be done in advance if you are looking to serve these for a party.  Essentially, you butcher your wings, steam them in a basket for 10 minutes and set them in the fridge for an hour. Then, you bake them in the oven for 40 minutes and coat. The steaming is a valuable technique that eliminates a great deal of the fat, and prevents smoking in the oven.

I recommend that in addition to following the recipe below, courtesy of the Food Network, you watch the show - Alton does a great job of showing how to easily butcher a chicken wing, and besides, he’s cool.

My only complaint was that we did not have any hot sauce, so we opted to create our own concoction using butter and barbeque sauce.  Our sauce turned out much runnier than it really should have been.  We put an extra dish of sauce on the table for dipping. 

Ingredients

• 12 whole chicken wings
• 3 ounces unsalted butter
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup hot sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

Place a 6-quart saucepan with a steamer basket and 1-inch of water in the bottom, over high heat, cover and bring to a boil.

Remove the tips of the wings and discard or save for making stock. Using kitchen shears, or a knife, separate the wings at the joint. Place the wings into the steamer basket, cover, reduce the heat to medium and steam for 10 minutes. Remove the wings from the basket and carefully pat dry. Lay the wings out on a cooling rack set in a half sheet pan lined with paper towels and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Replace the paper towels with parchment paper. Roast on the middle rack of the oven for 20 minutes. Turn the wings over and cook another 20 minutes or until meat is cooked through and the skin is golden brown.

While the chicken is roasting, melt the butter in a small bowl along with the garlic. Pour this along with hot sauce and salt into a bowl large enough to hold all of the chicken and stir to combine.

Remove the wings from the oven and transfer to the bowl and toss with the sauce. Serve warm.

A delicious, healthy meal for less than $1.50

Okay, so you’ve all heard me rant and rave over the popularity of so-called cheap convenience foods, arguing that meals can be made for the same price or less than the cost of a box of Kraft Dinner.

In order to prove my point  offer some helpful suggestions for those of you interested in cheap, healthy alternatives, I thought I would share with you a few meals I’ve made recently that have cost less than $1.50 a serving.

I love eating food that is frugal, simple, easy to make, but full of flavour.  I like taking short-cuts in the kitchen, and I especially love making use of what I already have.  If a recipe calls for something that requires a new trip to the store, forget it.  I prefer to make one trip a week, give or take, and just make the best of what I’ve already got.

Here is one meal I made this week, with a little mild experimentation on my part, as an attempt to use up foods in the cupboard and fridge, without sacrificing taste or nutrition.

The prices will vary depending on where you live. I have included the price I paid for the ingredients, divided by the quantity it yields.  Remember that cheap meals are made cheaper by creative shopping.  Stock up on the great deals, search the flyers, use coupons, buy in bulk when practical, and buy generic.  

1. Curried chickpeas & tomatoes

Ingredients:

1 can chickpeas - 69¢ (Cheap Tip: buy dried chickpeas and save.)

1 can diced tomatoes - 79¢

1 cup Basmati rice - 50¢ (approx.)

1 green pepper - 89¢

1 onion - 10¢

1 garlic clove - 3¢

spices - 1 tbsp curry, 1 tsp coriander, large pinch kosher salt, pepper, ginger - 10¢

Directions

Cook the rice according to package directions.  Drain about 90% of the liquid out of the can of tomatoes and rinse the chickpeas. Pour the tomatoes with liquid and chickpeas into a large saucepan; add spices. Cook on a medium-low temp and let simmer for about 15 minutes, allowing the mixture to reduce.  Meanwhile, sauté the onion and peppers until done - I like them slightly crunchy - and then add to the tomato/chickpea mixture.  Instead of green pepper, you could add broccoli, red pepper or whatever veggies you prefer. (I used green pepper because it was what I had.)  Add minced garlic and veggies and stir. Season with the above spices to taste - you may want to add more as you go.  After the mixture has reduced to the point where there is only a little liquid in the pan and chickpeas are a nice bright colour, you’re done - just add on top of the rice. Easy, huh? 

Makes 4 portions.

Total cost: $3.10, - or 78¢ a portion.

2. Cucumber salad

This side dish is a pleasant addition to the Curried Chickpeas & Tomatoes above.  

Ingredients

1 English cucumber - $1.79 

1/2 cup plain yogurt - 54¢

1 garlic clove - 3¢

Spices - large pinch s&p, 1/2 tsp coriander, pinch cumin - 9¢

Directions

Cut the cumber lengthwise and then widthwise in order to make thinly sliced triangles.  Mix with the yogurt, along with minced garlic and spices.  You will have to season to taste as my spices are just estimates (I taste as I go along).

Makes 4 portions.

Total cost: $2.45 - or 61¢ per serving.

Added with the Chickpea & Tomato dish above, the meal comes to $5.55 in total or $1.39 per person.

What is your favourite frugal meal? Have you priced out the serving cost? 

Fifty Fun, Free things to do on Valentines Day!

Believe it or not, there are lots of ways to celebrate Valentines Day with your parter that don’t involve spending heaps of money.  Think outside the box - and outside the restaurant - and you’ll find yourself surrounded with frugal opportunities for romance. This year, Valentines Day falls on a Saturday, which means you will have all day to explore fun, free activities in your neighborhood.  Here are fifty examples, with help from my blogger friends and twitter followers!

1. Go ice-skating. Take a hot thermos filled with hot chocolate with you (see recipes for frugal hot chocolate mix or peppermint hot chocolate!) Tip: sneak a little rum or Bailey’s in it for an extra treat!

2. Prepare your own “pub night” at home - enjoy delectable snacks and guilty pleasures without worrying about the cost.  For how-to instructions, click here.

3. Visit your neighbourhood Botanical Gardens. Many are free - others may cost $10 or less.

4. Go sledding.  What could be more fun than reconnecting with your fun, free-wheeling, inner child.  Wrap your arms tightly around your partner as you speed down a snow-covered hill.

5. Have a spa day at home.  Pamper each other with mani/pedis, a luxurious bath, and homemade treatments. 

6. Tea in the tub -  Wisebread suggests giving a bath and pedicure to your loved one along with a delicious cup of tea and candlelight.  

7. Make a scrapbook - another suggestion from Wisebread, but it’s one I recommend as well. We did this last Valentines day.  Gather up your cards, photos, and any little mementos or souvenirs you have from your relationship - such as tickets to plays or movies, receipts from special purchases you made, love notes, etc.  Get crafty with construction paper, stickers and markers to create a scrapbook that captures the story of your relationship.  You will have just as much fun making it as you will looking it from years to come.  

8. Make a slide show - Wisebread also suggests making video compilation with music.

9. Make a romantic meal together.  Wisebread had some great tips for greating atmosphere:

Whether you are in extreme northern climes and going for a romantic candlelight breakfast, or implementing a simple seafood dinner of seared scallops and shucked oysters ( London Lennies restaurant has instructional videos on both here ),  you can make the most of the experience using things you already have around the house. A pressed tablecloth, intricately folded napkins, candles galore, wine and water goblets, a specially printed menu and some specially created background music will make whatever you serve seem exceptional.

10. Whip up some luscious, yet easy, desserts - such as chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate mousse, or fondue. 

11. Rent some of your all-time favourite romantic movies - or go the opposite direction and rent the cheesiest movies you can think of, and then make fun of them then entire way through.  Make your movies special by whipping up a batch of delicious homemade snacks - see my recipes for various dips and snacks - or check out my recipes for yummy toasted almonds.

12. Have a tea-party at home. To see how, visit my post on how to host a tea party at home, or check out my post on how to make scones and cream.

Suggestions from The Simple Dollar:

13. Look for free concerts. Many communities have free Valentine’s Day concerts by municipal groups that don’t get widely publicized. Take a look at your community calendar and see what’s out there to do for free on that day.

14. Bake some cookies. Take a good chocolate chip cookie recipe - and add to it an ingredient that you know your partner will like. For example, my wife has baked me a batch of cookies before that were basically just chocolate chip cookies - but they also had cherries in them, cherries that were soaked in cherry liqueur before baking. It didn’t cost her much more than an hour or two of time and a couple dollars’ worth of ingredients, but the gift was not only delicious, but memorable.15. Do something silly. One year, we were snowed in on Valentine’s Day. What did we do? We put on some mood music, ate dinner together… and then colored. Seriously. We got out some printer paper and a box of crayons and drew pictures of various things. We gave the pictures to each other, too, and I still have mine.

16. Get refreshed. Put on pajamas, have a drink together, and relax in the most comfortable room in your home. Give each other a massage. Hold each other. Fall asleep in each other’s arms. Get a great night’s sleep. You’ll wake up the next day physically and emotionally refreshed without spending any money at all.

17. Consciously agree to save for something. Let’s say, hypothetically, you’re saving for a down payment. Instead of planning an elaborate Valentine’s Day celebration, stay at home, do some planning for this big step in your life, and put that $100 you saved into your savings account for that down payment. Apply this same principle to other “big” days in your life (birthdays, Christmas, etc.) and you’ll find yourself much closer to your big dream.

18. Volunteer. If you’re both socially conscious (and also adding in the fact that Valentine’s Day is on a Saturday this year), why not spend the day involved with a volunteer project together instead of doing the typical date thing? Help build a Habitat house. Serve a meal at the local food kitchen. Do some drudge work for a charity that matters to both of you. That way, the day means something beyond merely spending time together - and it doesn’t cost anything.

19. Organize your photos. Kaycee from In The Moment says: “One year on Valentine’s day my husband and I ended up organizing a box of photos into photo albums.  We had such a great time that we have made it a point to go through the previous year’s photos every V day.  It’s cheesy, but it’s a great walk down memory lane and usually sparks some fun conversations.”

Amy from The Finer Things suggests:

20. Make a restaurant fave at home - check out Amy’s Valentines Meal plan. She also suggests putting a fun spin on the day by making food into heart shapes.

21. Check out your public library. Not just to borrow books or movies, but for local events.  You might find an interesting talk or movie showing.

22. Visit an art gallery or museum. Find out which ones are free in your neighborhood.  For the month of February, the McRae house in Guelph is free.

23. Get back to nature. Head out for a winter walk along trails you haven’t explored.

24. Go for a fun run.  Join together with a running group or just head out the two of you.  Many running groups have weekend runs and you can pair up with a group that matches your preferred distance.  In Guelph, for example, Running Works has group runs starting at 8:00am.

25. Have a carpet picnic.  Remember in Pretty Woman how Julia Roberts sprawled out in front of I Love Lucy with some champagne and strawberries? What could be more fun than a few indulgences, an indoor picnic, and some good old fashion laughs?

26. Breakfast in bed.  Treat your spouse. It’s a great way to wake-up and spend the first few hours of your day!

27. Serenade your lover with a love song using whatever talents you have - on the guitar, piano, - hey, even bongos or a recorder would do!

28. Take a long walk on the beach.  It became a cliché because everyone likes them!  Even if you live in a cold climate, a refreshing walk on a frozen beach can be really lovely.

29. Take part in a free yoga class.  It will find you refreshed, relaxed and more connected with each other.  For suggestions on how to find a free or otherwise affordable class, read my post “affordable fitness“. Or try some yoga at home.

30. Work out together. In the same post mentioned above, I discuss how to find free passes at fitness clubs.  Call around or drop-in.  Many fitness clubs will give you a free day-pass to try it out.  Search coupon booklets for free passes as well.  

31. Star gaze.  If you live in a warm climate, drive out of the city into a quiet, serene area and climb on to the back of the car, or lay down on the ground.  Make sure you are somewhere safe - beyond that, just relax and enjoy.  Curl up in a blanket to keep warm. 

32. Make a list of your happiest, funniest memories together.  

33. Make a board game.  This will take some creativity, but if you are crafty people, it can be a lot of fun.

34. Play board games. Pull out your most treasured games or maybe some classics you haven’t touched in years.  

35. Have a “diner night” with hamburgers, milkshakes and music from the 50’s.

36. Create an art project together.  If you are an artist, share your skills.  Teach your spouse how to paint.  Or have fun by making crafts or collages together.

37.  Make a “tapas menu” with yummy appetizers to graze on throughout the evening.

38. Read poetry to each other and/or write a special poem for you lover.

39. Meditate together .  Light some candles and find a peaceful, quiet place where you won’t be interrupted.  Close your eyes and focus on your breath.  Simply observe the feeling of your abdomen rising and falling.  When your attention drifts, gently guide it back towards your breath. 

40. Be photographers for a day.  Go outside and explore - find what is beautiful or interesting and snap away.  Explore different angles and distances.  Appreciate your surroundings.

41. Play a homemade trivia game.  Write down the answers to questions about yourself.  Then ask your partner the questions and see if she or he gets it right. 

42. Treat each other to a massage. Use a calming scented oil, light some candles and play some calming music to create a spa-like feeling.  For added comfort and relaxation, place a pillow under your hips and feet when you lie on your stomach, between your arms and legs when on your side, and under your knees when on your back.  Warm the sheets with electric heating pads or an electric blanket, or use a hot water bottle.

43. Dance. You don’t have to leave the house.  Just put on some favourite music and dance together.  You can have a romantic dance to “your song” but you can also put on some Michael Jackson and moon walk around the house or play some Chubby Checker and twist together.  Relax and let loose.

44. Luxuriate. Use your finest - not just for dinner, but throughout the day.  Use your fancy tea cups. Your finest bath products. The best bottle of wine you have.  Wear nice clothes.  Share and enjoy whatever luxuries you have in your own home. Whatever you have been saving, now is the time.

45. Make a compilation of your favourite Valentine’s Day tv shows.  Curl up on the couch and have a marathon.

46. Play cocktail. Whip up your favourite cocktails and some salty snacks. 

47.  Plan your future. Think about what you want for yourself and for your relationship for years to come.  List your shared goals.  Use this time to get back on track or to connect about what is important to you in the world.

48. Do some reading.  Take the day to relax, reading and relaxing to each other on the couch.  Share your favourite passages with each other.

49. Explore a new neighbourhood. Take a long walk in a part of the city you haven’t explored. Do some window shopping. Admire the architecture.  Explore new galleries, bookstores, or whatever that part of town has to offer.

50. Be together.  Whatever you do, be present.  Look into each other’s eyes. Listen to one another.  Play, tickle, and laugh. Be thankful for each other.  Truly appreciating one another and just being together, no matter what you do, won’t cost a thing.  In fact the time you’ll spend together is truly priceless.

Have a great tip to share? What is your favourite idea for a fun, free Valentines Day?

Why I don’t want roses for Valentines Day

Well, okay.  It’s not as if I would be unhappy if my man walked in the door with a beautiful bouquet of flowers.  So maybe I should rephrase this post to “why I don’t expect, need, or demand roses for Valentines Day.”

Part of my apathy towards roses is, of course, the fact that the prices skyrocket on Valentines day.  But there are a host of other reasons why we should avoid them.

1. They are unoriginal.  If it’s the thought that counts, roses are one of the least thoughtful gifts you can get.  Why not use your creativity to buy or make a more meaningful gift?

2. They say nothing about you, your personal taste, who you are, or the nature of the relationship.  Instead, I suggest you find something special for your sweetheart that has more sentimental value, recognizing how you’ve grown as a couple or why you love him or her so much.

3. They are fleeting.  Roses do not last very long.  Perhaps that’s part of their charm - you have to take in their beauty before they disappear.  But consider something longer lasting - and by that I don’t mean a houseplant - I mean something memorable.  Perhaps splurge on an activity or getaway that will give you happy memories for years to come.

Case in point. Last weekend, my partner and I went snow tubing at a nearby ski and tubing resort.  We paid $36 in total and that gave us each two hours of utter childlike fun.  On a bright, sunny, wintry day, we flew down the hills together laughing our heads off.  A dozen roses on Valentines Day could cost you double that, but would not provide any of the laughter, shared memories, and sense of freedom or adventure that we enjoyed from our saturday afternoon outing.  

According to Canadian Living magazine, roses and other cut flowers cut say, “I threw caution to the wind. I did not do the sensible thing today. I send you these because today, I am thinking with my heart, not with my head.”  But there so many other ways to throw caution to the wind - many more original, exciting ways, in fact, that cost a lot less.

Moreover, splurging without the consent of your partner can either be delightful, or stressful.  If your family is struggling financially right now, having your partner spend so much money on something frivolous may cause more tension than joy.

For frugal Valentines (or anti-Valentines) craft ideas, check out Crafster - I love some of their ideas!

I am currently collecting ideas for a new post on fun, free things to do on Valentines Day.  If you have a suggestion, please email me at saverqueen - at - gmail - dot - com, or tweet me: @saverqueen.  If you are a blogger, I will link back to your blog.  Thanks!

Do you want to receive roses on Valentines day?

* Image courtesy of Canadian Living

How to find great Canadian coupons

I just updated my “About” section and added a new article (page) titled, “How to find great Canadian coupons.”   I get a lot of questions about where I find all my coupons, so this is a comprehensive guide to a Canadian coupon collection.  I hope it is helpful!

Give monthly & save

Now that the holiday season has passed, it’s easy to forget about others and focus on our own troubles.  But with the economic recession in full swing, it’s important that we make charitable giving a priority.

A great way to do this is by making monthly donations instead of giving a lump sum at year end.  Giving this way has multiple benefits for you and the organization.  

Here are the top six reasons to give monthly donations.

1. It helps the charity to budget.  Imagine you are drafting your own budget: would it be easier to have a monthly salary, or simply hope for a bonus in December?

2. It is easier for most of us to part with $10 or $20 every month than give a lump sum of $120 or $240 at one time. 

3. If you don’t give monthly, it’s easy to forget to do it completely. If you don’t give monthly but have a philanthropic goal in mind, you will need to put the month away in a savings account each month or simply cross your fingers and hope you will have something left over.  The reality is, you might dip in to those savings or simply forget to give.  Monthly giving will ensure you will reach your charitable goals.

4. You can easily set-up automatic payments so that you don’t need to think about it.

5. You can cancel any time, so if you just can’t afford to give anymore, a quick email is all it takes.

And my personal favourite…

6. Pay less tax throughout the year! On Gail Vaz-Oxlade’s post, “Tax refunds are not your friends” she explains that by filling out a government form (Form T1213) and giving it to your employer, you can reduce the amount of income tax off your paycheque every month, instead of waiting all year for your refund.  Squawkfox gives step-by-step instructions on how to use this form (it’s easy) and also shows just how fast those savings add up when you throw compound interest into the mix. So put those savings in a high yield interest account or add it to your TFSA and you’ll be earning interest on that refund all year round. 

Do you give to charity monthly? Why or why not?

What not to do with used coffee grounds

Canadian Living magazine is usually full of fab frugal tips and I can’t fault them for being creative, but this month’s issue has crossed the line by offering up ideas on how to use old coffee grounds.

The absolute worst (and on the top of their list) was:

Mix with a little olive oil to make an excellent exfoliant for the shower (rub vigorously on any spots of cellulite).  

Um.  The sentence should end with …”and you will be cured from ever wanting to drink coffee again.”

I don’t know about you, but there are few worse things I can imagine doing to myself with my used wet coffee grounds than rubbing them all over my body, whilst naked, in the shower.  When I am finished with my coffee grounds, I do what every normal person does: bin them.

And not that I really expect old coffee grounds to eradicate cellulite, but even if it did, I think I would rather make peace with my body than rub wet, brown gunk all over my ass. Heaven help me if it clogged up the shower drain.

Their second ingenious tip is to sit the grounds in the fridge for a fresh scent (have you ever smelled used coffee grounds?) and add a few drops of vanilla (sure, vanilla and coffee, that’s a good match). 

Lastly, use as a “natural abrasive cleaner for stainless-steel pots and pans.”  Okay, so at least that doesn’t involve my body, but I still don’t feel like taking something which should obviously be classified as garbage and mixing it with my cookware.

These tips really contrast with my personal frugal philosophy - that frugality is about enjoying simple pleasures, not acting in masochistic ways. 

By the way, if you want to make a frugal shower scrub from products around the house that doesn’t stink, try these treasures from Tipnut.  I notice one recipe does include fresh coffee grounds.

Or for a “green” tip to make your coffee habit more ecologically friendly, learn about composting your grounds - a tip from Starbucks.

Alert: Gail Vaz-Oxlade answers questions

Gail Vaz-Oxlade is answering questions from Globe & Mail readers today.  Join in the online discussion about “keeping your head above water in a recession” at 12pm E.T

You can submit comments by using the website’s comment function.

I’m sure you will enjoy hearing a delightful dose of reality from Canada’s budget queen and financial expert.

Free Gillette Satin Care Shave Gel

Just one freebie this week. Zellers has Gillette Satin Care Shave Gel on for $1.97. Use your $2 off coupons from Save.ca and get the product for FREE! (Plus you will make 3¢ in overage for per purchase). Hope you enjoy this fun freebie!