Cut the cord

It is hard to believe, but this month marks one year of living without cable. As somebody who grew up as an avid television viewer, it is hard to believe that I managed to survive. Like many people watching their expenses increase while the paycheck remain stagnant, I was looking for ways to cut back on living expenses. One of the largest bills we had was from the blasted cable company. It angered me, because we always complained there was nothing good on, we hear various reports about how watching too much T.V. is not good for you, and it provided very little for amount it cost. Yet, we kept it month after month. When we moved, the cable bill did not come with us. We cut the cable! It wasn't easy at first as we transitioned to finding other forms of entertainment to fill the void but here are some things that we did.

Library Patron. We visit our local public library to not only checkout books, but videos, video games, and other multi-media as well. Our library rotates their videos and games with other libraries in the region, so the selection is never stale. We get to borrow from their selection for free. Yes, FREE! Of course, you have to watch out for late fees from some libraries, but it is still significantly cheaper than cable, and it is something you can easily avoid.

Games. We play games together. Okay, we're not gathered around a board game having family game night. It is primarily video games. My kids are using their brains trying to solve the puzzle and challenges presented by the game, which is a step up from just staring at the T.V. Plus, I don't have a reoccurring bill for the gaming console. With the ability to checkout games from the library, you can easily refresh your entertainment selection.

Internet. Some households consider the Internet as a luxury, while they still keep the cable bill. If I had to choose Internet or cable, I would keep the Internet. The Internet can help with homework, provide entertainment, help me stay in touch (hello Skype! and Facebook), help me with finding new recipes and provide a wealth of knowledge. Cable? Not so much. We kept the Internet to stream videos, allow me to complete online classes, read news, and to video chat with family members in different timezones. Fox, ABC and CBS let us stream our favorite T.V. programs with minimal commercials. We also watch a good bit of sporting events online as well. We just hook up our laptop to the T.V. using a HDMI cable.

Netflix or Amazon Prime. We subscribed to Netflix and are thinking about switching to Amazon Prime. Either way, they both provide us a vast entertainment selection. We dropped Netflix for a few months, since we were not watching it very much; however, we decided to pick them back up. Guess what? There was no hook-up or cancellation fee.  We could stop and start services when we wanted to, plus the monthly rate is still cheaper than a cable bill.

Hobbies. Without the usual past time of flipping through the channels and staring brain dead at the idiot box, we had to find other things to preoccupy our time. My husband and I got into cooking more and trying different recipes, with delicious results I may add. I crochet providing me more scarves, hats, and blankets. They make great gifts as well. My boys love to create intricate Lego vehicles. My husband loves to go running. Find something you are passionate about, or something that relaxes you. With a hobby  you will have something to show for your time, whether it good meals, better health, new doilies or a new Lego Starship. Cable cannot provide this.

Benefits.

More free time. Without television competing for my children's attention and distracting them, my kids have time to do their homework and other **gasp** educational pursuits. My oldest son read more this past year than he did in the previous two years. Before we got rid of cable, he would read because it was assigned reading. Now, he reads for pleasure. He is really into the "Diary of Wimpy Kid" and "Captain Underpants" series. For me, I have free time to work on my degree (college classes are online), write, blog (just not too much on this site), and spend time with my family.

Less advertisement and commercials. Since going cable free, my children see less commercials. It's great because I hear less whining from my kids about how they want the latest and greatest toy they had no idea they needed until the commercial came on.

Learning. The extra reading I've done taught me a great deal, such as how to live healthier, cook, crochet, sew and a new language. As I mentioned earlier, I am pursuing my college degree, so there is a good bit learning there. My oldest son started creating his own comic book, so he is learning on how to develop a story and write dialogue.

Lighter Chocolate Chip Muffin

In my quest to healthier cooking, I found Cooking Light. Admittedly, I use them a lot. I was really happy when they came out with Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins. Finally, I could have a chocolate treat without all the guilt. Well...to be honest, they were okay. If you read the reviews, many people recommended adding more chocolate or some other alteration.

Fat is a flavor vehicle. The problem with going low-fat in any recipe is you're messing with the vehicle that delivers and develops the flavor. Also, fat provides forgiveness in baking by keeping things moist, even if you leave it in the oven just a little beyond the finish stage. When you remove some of the fat, you need to compensate for flavor some where else.

After reading a few books on baking (I have more time to read since we no longer have cable, which I guess is a different frugal post all together), I learned that the secret to enhancing the flavor of chocolate is a cup of java. Vanilla helps too, but the original recipe already includes that. Thinking I could do better, I tinkered with the recipe to provide my version of a healthier chocolate chocolate chip muffin, and I think I succeeded. My family really likes these muffins over the original recipe, despite the fact I reduced the sugar and increased the fiber. Healthy can be tasty!

Note: My recipe calls for dark brown sugar. You can use light brown sugar, but dark brown sugar adds a bit more flavor. Remember, since we reduce the fat, we need to compensate for flavor in other places. Rolled oats increases the fiber without adding to the calorie count or deminishing the flavor.

Lighter Chocolate Chip Muffins
Serving size: 1 muffins. Yields: 12 muffins.

Ingredients
1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 tbsp red wine
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup coffee
2 eggs
 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions: Set eggs out to warm up to room temp. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat the muffin tin with cooking oil. Set aside.

In a medium size bowl, mix the rolled oats and coffee together, then set aside.

In a medium size bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and baking soda together. Add chocolate chips, except for 2 tablespoons of chips (this will be used for the topping later). Mix well and then set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, brown sugar, apple sauce, red wine, and vanilla extract. Make sure to break down any brown sugar lumps. Add the eggs, and whisk the liquid mix for  2-3 minutes. Add the rolled oats and coffee mixture. Stir until well mixed.

Add the dry ingredients. Stir to incorporate the dry ingredients, but care should be taken to not over mix. Do not stir more than 15 times.

Spoon mixture into the muffin tin. Place on the oven middle rack and bake for 10-12 minutes. The muffins are done when you stick a tooth-pick down the middle and it comes out clean. Do not leave the muffins in too long, since they're more susceptible to drying out due to the decrease in fat. During the last minute add the remaining 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips to the tops.

Once done, let cool for 5-10 minutes before eating.

Nutrition Information for one muffin:
Calories: 177 (tastier & shaved 12 calories off the original)
Fat Total: 8.5 g
Saturated: 2.5 g
Cholesterol: 31 mg
Sodium 164 mg
Carbohydrate: 30 g
Fiber: 3 g (increased the fiber)
Sugar: 11 g
Protein: 3.5 g

Pie Crust Cookies

I have a slight problem. I made pie crust following the recipe below, which made a fabulous pie crust, if I do say so myself, for my pumpkin pie.

 

2 1/2 cup white flour

1 cup cold butter (cut up)

2 tbsp cold water

 

Instructions: In medium size bowl, add flour and butter. Cut butter into the flour until it is a crumbly mixture. Sprinkle water over mixture and create a ball out of it. When a well you have a well formed ball of dough, place in fridge for 15-30 minutes to make the dough easier to work with.

You may be asking yourself, um...so what's the problem? Well the recipe is great if your pie required two pie crusts (upper and bottom), but a traditional pumpkin pie only needs one. This left me with a whole lot of left over pie crust. It seemed like a shame to throw it away since I'm a firm believer in "waste not, want not."

What to do?

Make pie crust cookies. Stay with me. What are the basic ingredients in short bread cookies? Flour and butter. The left over pie dough already has butter and flour, so I just had to add the remaining cookie ingredients.

1/2 pie pie dough from above recipe
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract (I really like vanilla!)
1/4 cup coconut flakes
1/4 cup walnuts

Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a small food processor or grinder, pulse the coconut flakes and walnuts to create a powder like substance. Add the coconut/walnut powder, vanilla extract, and sugar to the left over pie dough. Knead these ingredients together for about 5 minutes. Create small balls out of the dough (about 1 1/2 in diameter), place them on a lightly greased cookie sheet, and press down the ball to flatten it some. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are golden brown.

Makes approximately  1 1/2 dozen.

Beauty on the Cheap

Hair Care: Use warm oil to provide deep condition to your long hair or moisturize your damaged hair. This is cheap substitute for the V05 hair oil. Pour 1-2 tablespoons of cooking oil in a small container. Submerge the container in warm to hot water to gently warm the oil. After a couple of minutes, spread the oil through the ends of your hair. Let sit in your hair for 3-5 minutes, then wash your hair with your normal shampoo. Its amazing how shiny and smooth your hair looks and feels afterwards.

Highlights: Hydrogen Peroxide provides a cheap hair lightener. The basic brown bottle from the drug store won't change your dark brown hair to blond, but it will certainly lighten it. Spray a small amount through your hair, brush, and let your hair dry. When I started, I had dark brown hair. After about 2-3 days my hair was a light reddish, brown. It was enough of a difference that my male boss noticed.

I also used the hydrogen peroxide to lighten the hair on my upper lip, otherwise known as my woman'stache. Every morning, I dip a Q-tip into the hydrogen peroxide and cover the hair. It doesn't irritate my skin like the over the counter hair bleach, but still accomplishes the job. Not bad from a small brown bottle that comes in under $1.

Water-proof eye make-up remover: A tablespoon of simple cooking oil mixed with a drop of shampoo does the trick to gentle remove even the most stubborn of water-proof mascara.

Skin Care:
At Petit Elefant, she provides a tutorial to make your own pore strip, which is a cheap alternative to the name brand pore strips you get at the drug store.

In an earlier post, I provided a couple of recipes to make homemade facial and sugar scrubs, which I happen use quite frequently.

Recipe: Greek Dressing

One of our favorite dressings for salads and marinades is Gazebo Room Greek Dressing (pictured left). While coming in at over $3 at the register (and probably will continue to rise with inflation), I thought I could come up with something just as good, but cheaper. Then we moved to a region that did not carry our favorite Greek dressing, so this gave me an opening to get creative.

Just using the items I typically keep in my pantry, I came up with the recipe below. This is our "go to" dressing.

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup canola oil
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp basil
2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp brown mustard
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup white vinegar

Directions: In a clean sealable jar, add the oils and spices. Then shake the jar to mix ingredients. Add the vinegars and shake. If you're somebody that really like tangy flavor, you can reduce or omit the sugar.

This can be stored on the kitchen counter...no refrigeration required. We use this not only for salad dressing (salads will keep you feeling fuller with a little bit of fat), but to marinade chicken for the grill, dress cubed potatoes for roasting or dressing for our pasta salad. All very yummy!

Beauty Scrub

I have sensitive, dry skin, so I need to be extra cautious with skin care products on the market. Instead of going through the testing phase to see if I'm allergic to a product or paying the extra costs for hypoallergenic, I learned to make my own using ingredients that won't cause an allergic reaction. They're really cheap and easy to make, while giving me a pampered feeling.

For sensitive, dry skin, try the Baking Soda Facial scrub a few times a week. I use this on my face to exfoliate, then wash it off with soap and water. It leaves my skin very smooth, and provides the moisture my skin craves. It'll keep in an airtight container for at least a few weeks. I only make small batches, so I'm not sure if it'll keep pass that time frame (I don't see why it wouldn't).

Baking Soda Facial scrub
3 tbsp Baking Soda
2 tbsp Oil (i.e. Canola, Olive)
1 tsp Vanilla Extract (or a drop of oil of essence). It's for fragrance only.

Mix all ingredients together to make a small batch to last a couple of weeks.

To exfoliate my body, I use a sugar scrub that I absolute love. I prefer more of a gritty scrub than the baking soda one. I knew I was onto something when my husband kept making remarks about how smooth my legs were (without me prompting him). This works well on tough spots like elbows and knees. Much like the baking soda scrub, this will keep for at least a few weeks. Because it is so easy to make, I only make small batches.

Sugar Scrub
2 tbsp Baking Soda
2 tbsp White Cane Sugar
3 tbsp Oil (i.e. Canola, Olive)
1 tsp Vanilla Extract (or drop of oil of essence). It's for fragrance only.

Mix all ingredients up and store in a sealable container.

For really tough spots like feet, the below is the pamper scrub I use, but I must warn you that it only keeps for a few days. It starts to harden after a while. This has real grit to sandblast my callous feet.

Sugar Salt Scrub
1 tbsp Baking Soda
2 tbsp Sugar
1 tbsp Epsom Salt
3 tbsp Oil
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Mix together and apply liberally to your feet. You can either let your feet soak or immediately wash the scrub off.

With all these scrubs, I wash it off with soap and water.

Mind Set..

Many people think that being frugal means going without, which is not necessarily true. Being frugal is a mind set where you try to get the most value out of your money. Resources are finite, so you learn to make due with what you got.

You can accomplish this through various way, such as finding another use for an item. For example, we buy clementines in these little wooden boxes. Instead of throwing out the box once we're done with all the clementines, we find another purpose for it. We use one of the boxes to store our spices, which keeps our spice cupboard organized. Another box we used to keep the cat's food dish in, which helps keep the mess down. A third box we used to organize my children's arts and crafts supplies. These items are providing another service at no additional costs to me. As you can see (besides the fact we eat lots of clementines), stuff that was once heading for the trash may have another purpose.

Homemade items are better than you think. There are various of recipes to make items at home, such as sugar scrubs, soaps, tasty dishes and more! Before the grocery stores expanded their aisles to hold various merchandise choices, families were making stuff at home. Also, there is something rewarding about making your own stuff.

Find activities to preoccupy your time and fill your life. Life is not about stuff, yet we're a society that seems so focused on it. Life is about memories. The memories from my life do not revolving around stuff, but rather around doing things with friends and family. Taking walks, riding bikes, trips to the library, sitting around talking, creating crafts, playing in the snow... All of these are joyful memories that did not require expensive items.

Being frugal is not about missing out, it is about using creativity to find other uses and finding value in what is around you.

Avoiding the Beverage Aisle: Confession of a Cola Addict

I admit it. I'm addicted to the sweet bubbly stuff. While my preference is Diet Coke, Coke Zero and Diet Dr. Pepper, I don't really have any brand loyalty. Typically I would consume 3-5 cans of soda a day. However, with the prices of soda rising and the articles warning about the health effects of diet soda, I knew I need to quit.

A price for a 2 liter of soda cost about $1.50-2.00.

If I was going to quit, I needed to avoid the beverage aisle and go cold turkey. My problem was I wanted my drink to have flavor. How could I find an acceptable alternative to that sweet stuff, but won't cause me to go broke in the long run?

Make my own drinks!

Cucumber Water. A pitcher of water with some cucumber slices is oddly very refreshing with a nice crisp flavor to the water with no extra ingredients (no sugar, preservatives). After letting the cucumber slices sit in the water overnight, I fish the slices out and save them for a small snack.

Lemon Water. A pitcher full of water with a few slices of lemon. I recommend warming up the lemon slices in the microwave for about 20 seconds, which makes the lemons juicer (flavoring the water).

Fruit Flavored Water. Strawberries are in season now, so we have bunch in the house. I sliced up a few strawberries and added them to a pitcher of water. It taste pretty good. For a sweeter taste like the bottled flavored water, I would probably add a teaspoon or two of sugar (not much). I also tried it with a kiwi.

Iced Tea. Add some hot water to a few bags of tea to brew, then place in the refrigerator. You can flavor how ever you want....sugar, mint, lemon, ginger (saw it in a Kung-Fu movie, don't knock it until you try it). Home brewed iced tea is so much better than the bottle store bought variety, which is more of a sugary, syrup than tea.

At night I fill a couple of water bottles with one of my homemade brews so I have a cold drink while at work. I'm able to quench my thirst without spending money at the vending machines or visiting the grocery store beverage aisle.

BBQ Beans

I swear there is nothing cheaper per serving than dried beans. It's also pretty healthy. In fact a serving of Northern Beans has over 50% of your daily fiber serving, as well as 8 grams of protein, all with very little fat. In a quest to find healthy and cheap, you should not over look dried beans.

Naturally it is not convenient as canned beans, but it is a minor trade-off.

Ingredients:
1 lb bag of dried Great Northern Beans
1 bottle of favorite BBQ sauce
12-16 cups of water

Directions:

You'll need to soak the beans. There are 2 methods, the overnight soak and the quick soak. Some swear by the overnight soak as the way to get the best tasting bean. To my unrefined palate, I cannot tell a difference. If you're planning ahead, do the overnight soak; it's easy, with very little work. If you're like me and don't plan that far in advance, the quick soak is the way to go. Don't worry, it is still easy, but has a little bit more work than the overnight method.

Regardless of what method you use, you'll need to rinse and sort through the beans to remove any pebble or weird looking bean.

Quick Soak: After rinsing and sorting through your beans, place the beans in large pot with 6-8 cups o hot water. Bring to a rapid boil. Once you reach a rapid boil point, boil for an additional 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover and let stand for 1 hour. It's okay to let it stand longer if you forget about it. Drain and rinse beans again.

Overnight Soak: After rinsing, place the beans in large pot with 6-8 COLD water. Place in refrigerator or on counter covered overnight.

For cooking, there are two methods, stove top and the slow cooker (a.k.a. crock pot). Again, what method you use depends on time and how involved you want to be.

Stove Top: Combine 6 cups with your soaked beans in a large pot. Simmer gently with lid tilted until desired tenderness is reached, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Slow Cooker: Add soaked beans in slow cooker. Add enough water to barely cover the beans. Place on low for approximately 8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.

Once your beans are done cooking, drain the water and add favorite BBQ sauce. Let bean sit for 5-10 minutes in sauce, then serve. For better flavor, let the beans sit overnight and reheat the next day; however, this requires planning.

Recipe: Carrot Quick Bread

Vegetables are important part of a healthy diet; I know this. Despite this knowledge, I have a difficult time getting them in, while having no problem getting to dessert. A simple solution? Combine them. This carrot bread has a taste like carrot cake, but with less sugar and fat. Additionally, by using whole wheat flour, I increase the fiber.

Wet ingredients:
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup applesauce (to cut the sugar down, use natural unsweetened applesauce)
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Dry ingredients:
1 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup rolled oats

Other ingredients:
2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups shredded carrots
1 med potato peeled and shredded (I know this looks weird, but the end result tastes good!)
1/4 cup coconut flakes
1/4 cup crushed walnuts (optional)

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a normal loaf pan.

Combine all the wet ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk until well blended. Add cinnamon and whisk until it is blended throughout the wet mixture.

In other large bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Mix together until all ingredients are well distributed. Add dry ingredients to the wet mix and stir. Fold in the carrots, potato and coconut flakes. If using the optional crushed walnuts, add at this time.

Spoon mix into loaf pan. Place on middle rack in the oven. Bake for 40-50 minutes. If you insert a knife in the center and the knife comes out clean, the bread is done.

Once done baking, transfer to cooling rack and cool completely.  Once cool, wrap the bread in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or up to 5 days before serving. The bread tastes better if left in the refrigerator overnight, but it is still good if you want to serve after it cools.

Recipe: Easter Egg Nest Cookies

Ingredients:
5 oz package Chow mein noodles
1 cup crushed cornflakes
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup coconut flakes
48 egg-shaped candies
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract


Directions: In large bowl, combine the chow mein noodles, crushed cornflakes, rolled oats, and coconut flakes. With a spoon or your hand, break the chow mein noodles up some. This will make it easier to create the nests. Place egg-shaped candies in small bowl. Cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper or wax paper. Set these items to the side.

Chow mein, cornflakes, oats and coconut flakes mix.

In large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Once butter is melted, add sugar and milk. Bring to a full boil over medium heat while stirring continuously. Boil for one minute. Remove from heat. Add peanut butter and vanilla. Mix until the peanut butter is melted and blended in well.

Add chow mein/cornflake/oats/coconut flake mix to the peanut butter mixture. Mix until the dry ingredients are well coated. Spoon the mixtures onto the wax paper and quickly form into nests. Add two to three egg-shaped candies to the nest. If the cookie mix starts to set before creating all the nests, place the saucepan over low heat for one to two minutes to soften the mix.

Let cookies set for 5 minutes before consumption.

Recipe: No Bake Peanutbutter Cookies

Ingredients:
2 cups Sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup crushed cornflakes
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1 1/2 cup rolled oats

Directions: Combine crushed cornflakes, coconut flakes and rolled oats in medium bowl. Place wax paper or parchment paper over two cookie sheets. Set these items to the side.

In large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. When butter is completely melted, add sugar and milk. Mix well; bring mixture to full boil over medium heat while continuously stirring. Boil for one minute.

Remove from heat. Add peanut butter and vanilla extract. Mix until the peanut butter is completely melted and blended into the mixture. Add cornflake/coconut/oats mixture. Stir until the dry ingredients are completely coated with the peanut butter mixture.

Quickly drop spoonfuls of the cookie mix onto the wax papered cookie sheets. If cookie mix starts to set before spooned onto the wax paper, place the large saucepan over low heat for a minute or two to soften the mixture.

Let cookies set for at least 5 minutes. Once set, enjoy!

Recipe: Hot Chocolate

With the price of food rising, I look for ways to reduce the grocery bill, which means making a lot of things from scratch. This recipe is easy, and cost efficient.

My children love hot chocolate, but I'm not loving the prices on the boxes of the pre-mixed hot chocolate Plus there are other unnecessary ingredients (i.e. preservatives, hydrogenated oils) that I'm leary of. I learned how to make my own mix out of things I keep in my pantry.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp of baking cocoa powder
4 tbsp of sugar

Directions: Mix ingredients in a container. Store in sealed container in a cool, dry location.

Yup, it's that easy. Nothing fancy, but my family enjoys it. Sometimes the simplest things are the best. When making a mug of hot chocolate, I add a tablespoon of the mix to half hot water and half milk. Of course you can embellish with marshmallows, rum or any other favorite hot chocolate embellishment. Sometimes I'll add it to my coffee for my own little homemade mocha. Take that Starbucks!

For plain chocolate milk, just add a tablespoon of the mix to a glass of milk.

I you're trying to watch your sugar intake, you can substitute the sugar with your favorite sweetener like stevia or Splenda.

If you have powder milk, you could add that to this mix for a creamery mix, but I don't keep that in my pantry, so I omit it. Hope you enjoy!