ALDI Deals, Starting 05/29/2013

Here are a few of the AWESOME deals this week at ALDI...

• Weds. 05/29 ONLY: Fresh USDA Choice Boneless Beef Ribeye Steak $7.99/lb
• Pears 28 oz $1.79 ea
• Organic Fuji Apples 3 lb bag $4.29 ea
• Mangoes $0.59 ea
• Pineapple $1.59 ea
• Organic Grape Tomatoes 10 oz $2.29 ea
• Baby Lettuce 14 oz pkg $1.59 ea
• Burman's BBQ Sauces Assorted Varieties 18 oz $0.79 ea
• Burman's Ketchup 40 oz $1.29 ea
• Burman's Steak Sauce 10 oz $0.99 ea
• Smucker's Magic Shell Topping Chocolate or Chocolate Fudge 7.25 oz $1.89 ea 
• Savoritz Mini Cheese or PB Crackers 7.5 oz $1.99 ea 
• Fit and Active Light Pink Lemonade 59 oz $1.99 ea
• Nature's Nectar Frozen Lemonade 12 oz $0.89 ea
• Nature's Nectar All-natural Raspberry Lemonade 59 oz $1.99 ea
• Little Salad Bar Hummus Artichoke Spinach, Chipotle, or Tomato Basil 8 oz $1.69 ea
• Mama Cozzi's Pizza Kitchen Combination Bagel Pizzas 31.1 oz $5.99 ea
• Summit Freeze Pops 60 oz $1.49 ea
• Benton's Ice Cream Cups 24 ct $0.99 ea
• Benton's Sugar Cones 12 ct $0.99 ea
• Friendly Farms or Fit and Active Whipped Topping Original or Lite 8 oz $0.89 ea
• Sundae Shoppe Ice Cream Assorted Varieties 160 oz $4.99 ea
• Sundae Shoppe Triple Chocolate Sundae Cones 24 oz $2.49 ea
• Choceur Ice Cream Chocolates Cookies and Cream, or Fudge Ripple 4 oz $3.49 ea
• Kitchen Living 6 piece Serving Bowl Set Oval or Square $9.99 ea
• Kitchen Living Ice Cream Maker $14.99 ea
• Easy Home Tower Fan 3 speed $19.99 ea
• RCA 5000-BTU Window Air Conditioner $99.99 ea
• Intex Rainbow Ring Play Center $39.99 ea

For more information about shopping at ALDI, visit their Homepage!

Tempt Your Tummy Tuesday: Cake Mix Cookies

Yellow Cake Mix + White Chocolate Chips

I make a most of my recipes from scratch, but there are just sometimes that you need a special treat quickly.  For those times, I always keep a couple cake mixes on hand to make Cake Mix Cookies!  Very quick, and delicious!  I have used chocolate cake mix with M&M's, yellow cake mix frosted with homemade chocolate butter cream frosting, and Joe's favorite, confetti cake mix with white chocolate chips.  The possibilities are endless, so you can easily use what you have on hand.

1-18 oz Cake Mix (any flavor, you could probably use homemade also)

1 Egg

1/2 C Softened Butter

1 C Mix-in's (Candies, Morsels, Nuts, etc)

(if using a Chocolate Cake Mix, add 2 tbsp Water also)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix all ingredients, except mix-in's together in a bowl until a soft dough forms.  Add mix-in's and mix by hand to evenly distribute them.
3. Scoop dough onto cookie sheets (I use a baking stone, works great) by rounded tablespoons.
4. Bake 12-15 minutes (depending on oven), or until cookies are slightly browned on edges.
5. Let sit on cookie sheet to cool 5 minutes before moving to cooling rack to cool completely.
6. Enjoy!

Linked to Homemade Mondays, Clean and Scentsible, and One Project at a Time!

Menu Plan Monday: 05/26/2013

I am a very lucky girl this week, because I have almost no cooking to do - wahoo!  With picnics Monday, working at Joe's Grandfather's on Wednesday, and a graduation party to attend on Saturday, plus leftovers, I don't have to plan too much.  :-)

Breakfasts: Waffles, Cold Cereal

Lunches: Leftovers, Sandwiches, and/or Salads

Dinners:

Sunday - Leftover Zuppa Tuscana Soup and Bread

Monday - Family Picnic (hotdogs, coleslaw, taco dip/tortilla chips, onion dip/chips, Jell-o poke cake, and homemade Mac and Cheese!)

Tuesday - Leftover Picnic Food - yum-o!

Wednesday - Working at Joe's Grandfather's house, we'll probably end up at Applebee's or Chili's with him

Thursday - Cheesy Baked Pork Chops, Baked Potatoes, and Veg.

Friday - Chipped Beef Gravy with Pancakes

Saturday - Graduation Party!

For more AWESOME Menu Plans, visit Org Junkie!

Weekly Spending Report: 05/19 -25/2013

This past week was a little crazy, and tight on cash, so I didn't do a lot of shopping.  Here's what I ended up with...

• Sunday's ALDI Trip: $5.47 oop

• Sunday's CVS Trip (2 free deodorants, mouthwashes, and chocolates, 2 newspapers, and 2 pkgs of cookies for $1 ea): $3.92 oop, Earned $3 ECB's Earned

• Sunday's Giant Trip (stocked up on $0.50/can diced tomatoes, $0.30 ea bottled tea, fish sticks, sausages, bananas, milk, and tortilla chips): $23.53 oop

• Wednesday's Kohl's Trip (used a $10 off coupon to buy 1 Christmas present): $2.12 oop

Total OOP: $35.04 - $3 Earned Rewards = Net OOP: $32.04!

Linked to Couponaholic!

Frugal Finds Friday: Saving/Repurposing Tomato Juice

I started making my own salsa a few months ago, with each batch taking 1 large can of drained whole tomatoes.  Being the frugal person I am, I couldn't just toss that free tomato juice down the drain!  So, I save it.  I measure it out; each can holds about 1 cup.  I pour the tomato juice into a zip-lock bag or a ball freezer jar, label, and wait until I need it for something.  I've drank the juice, as you would V8, very tasty.  I've also added it to beef stew, chili, vegetable soup, and cooked ground beef in it.  It gives these meals a little punch of extra flavor!

What interesting things do you save from the trash and give new life to?

 Linked to Homemade Mondays!

ALDI Deals, Starting 05/15/2013

Here are some of the deals for this week at ALDI....

• Weds. 05/15 ONLY: Fresh Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts Jumbo Pk $1.69/lb
• Vine Tomatoes 24 oz pkg $1.29 ea
• Iceberg Lettuce $0.79 ea
• Sweet Corn 4 pk $1.69 ea
• Blackberries 6 oz pkg $1.19 ea
• Strawberries 1 lb pkg $1.59 ea
• Pineapple $1.59 ea
• Sundae Shoppe Red, White, and Blue Pops 16-1.75 oz pops $1.89 ea
• JIF To-Go Creamy Peanut Butter 8-1.5 oz cups $2.29 ea
• Belmont Ice Cream Peach Cobbler or Peanut Butter S'mores 48 oz $2.89 ea
• Season's Choice Waffle Fries 22 oz $1.79 ea
• Season's Choice Broccoli Cuts 16 oz $0.85 ea
• Baker's Corner Beer Bread Cajun or Bacon Cheddar 16 oz $1.79 ea
• Countryside Creamery Tastes Like Butter Spray 8 oz $1.49 ea
• Simply Nature Vegetable Chips 7.5 oz $2.99 ea
• Happy Harvest Canned Sauerkraut 14.5 oz $0.65 ea
• Sealtite Meals on the Go (BPA Free) $4.99/set 
• Adventureridge Pocket Knife or Camping Cutlery $3.49 ea
• Adventureridge Foldable Hammock with Stand $49.99 ea
• Adventureridge Self-Inflating Pillow $4.99 ea
• Adventureridge Self-Inflating Sleeping Mat $19.99 ea
• Little Tikes Picnic Table and Umbrella $59.99 ea
• Little Tikes Spiralin' Seas Water Park Water Table $29.99 ea
• 6" Vegetable to Herb Assorted Varieties $2.49 ea

For more information about shopping at ALDI, visit their Homepage!

Tempt your Tummy Tuesday: Cheesy Baked Pork Chops

These cheesy baked pork chops are super simple, and are something a little different to have for dinner.  This recipe only requires a few ingredients, and can be ready in as little as 20 minutes depending on the size of your pork chops.  Here's what you'll need:

• Pork Chops, boneless or bone-in, your choice
• Seasoning (I use a homemade seasoning blend, but regular seasoning salt works just fine too)
• Sour Cream (about 1 tsp per pork chop)
• Shredded Cheese (I have used both the Mexican Blend and Mild Cheddar, both very yummy!)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Place pork chops in foil-lined baking sheet.
2. Cover each pork chop with about 1 tsp sour cream.
3. Sprinkle each pork chop with Seasoning.
4. Sprinkle a good-sized pinch of cheese over each pork chop.
5. Bake pork chops in preheated oven 15-35 minutes depending on thickness/bone.  My bone-in ones a on the thinner side, but with the bone, they still take about 30 minutes, just an fyi).  These are delicious served with salad and rice or buttered noodles, or even baked potatoes and steamed broccoli.  In other words, they are totally yummy, and you should make them for dinner, like, tonight :-)

Linked to Homemade Mondays, Works for Me Wednesday, One Project at a Time, the Natural Living Link-up, Make Your Own Monday, and Tempt my Tummy Tuesday!

Menu Plan Monday: 05/13/2013

This week Joe and I are getting ready for another event here at the museum, we are going to work at Joe's grandfather's house one day, and bring up a few things to sell this weekend, hopefully.  I also have some mending to do, and a little cleaning as well.  Here's what's on the menu for this week...

Breakfasts: Waffles, or Cold Cereal, or Smoothies

Lunches: Leftovers, Sandwiches, and/or Salads

Dinners: (all served with salad or a steamed vegetable)

Sunday - Take-out :-)

Monday - Grilled Chicken Salads

Tuesday - Working at Joe's Grandfather's, we'll probably go to Apple Bee's with him for Dinner

Wednesday - Chili/Taco Salads

Thursday - Chicken Fajitas, with Mexican Rice

Friday - Cheese-steak, Mushroom, and Onion Sandwiches with Baked French Fries

Saturday - Homemade Pizza

Extras: Some kind of homemade cookie, TBA.

For more AWESOME Menu Plans, visit Org Junkie!

Sunday's CVS Trip

Sunday, after I got off work, Joe and I stopped into CVS to pick up a couple of deals for this week.  Here's what we ended up with...

2 Medium 10% Bonus bags PB M&M's $4.19 ea - $1.69 ea Sale - $2/2 CVS Coupon - $1.50/2 MC = 2/$1.50
1 bag Combos $2.57 - $1.08 Sale = $1.49
1-24 ct Zzzquil $9.99 - $0.20 Sale - $1/1 MC - $3/$8 Sleep Aid CVS Coupon - $2 ECB's = $3.79
+ $0.25 Tax
- $6 ECB's used to Pay
Total OOP: $3.03, Earned $2 ECB's for next week!

Linked to Simply CVS!

Sunday's Giant Trip

Also, after work Sunday evening, Joe and I stopped into Giant to pick up a few deals, since we didn't really need anything this week.  I will have to stop out later in the week for salad veggies, but for now, we're good.  Here's what we ended up with...

4 loaves Oat Nut Bread $4.29 ea - $1.29 ea Sale - $1/2 MC x 2 = 4/$10

2 bags Florida Crystals Raw Sugar $2.99 ea - $0.55/1 MC Doubled to $1.10 x 2 = $1.89 ea or 2/$3.78

2 pkgs Pamper's Wipes $2.39 ea - $0.39 ea Sale - $0.50/1 MC Doubled to $1 x 2 = 2/$2

4 boxes Green Giant Frozen Vegetables $2 ea - $0.75 ea Sale - $1/3 MC (peelie) = 4/$4

1 pint Gelato $4.99 - $1.49 Sale - $1/1 MC = $2.50

+ $0.18 Tax

- $0.15 Reusable Bag Credit 

Total OOP: $40.91 - $18.78 Sales and Coupons = $22.31 oop!