This is a great week for getting healthy food and doing something with the stuff you can't eat. It's late and I'm tired, so bear with me and tomorrow, I'll give you all the explanations and instructions for what to do with the suggestions tonight. There's no real order to this, it's just the way I picked it out on the CouponSense 'Create a Shopping List' (an unbelievably fab application that makes finding the best deals and matching them to coupons easier than cheating on a diet.)
To wit:
1) Hot dogs. It's Memorial Day Weekend, of course there are hot dogs. Everybody is selling the Bar-S brand cheap, but the best price is at Albertson's - 59c a pack. Purchase 12 packs and purchase 10 ears of corn for a total of...wait for it...$12. Why 12 packs? Figure if you go through one package a week, you have a 3 month supply.
(disclaimer: I know hot dogs aren't healthy and I'm a very bad person for starting off with these, but let's face it, people like 'em, especially kids. Besides, a little unhealthy never killed anybody who wasn't already teetering on the brink.)
The corn is just for eating. Corn on the cob is a seasonal treat and best enjoyed in season. So go enjoy.
2) Basha's is selling Van Camp's Pork and Beans for 38c/can. I happen to like this brand and this is a rock-bottom price. I don't think I've seen it go lower in recent memory. 24 cans will set you back about $9. Why 24 cans? It's the number on the shrink-wrapped pallet. Makes it easy to get it out of the store and into your pantry.
Hot dogs, pork and beans...are you sensing a trend?
Add a 2 lb container of the strawberries for $1.99 to get you up over the $10 so you can use the 'in-ad' coupons (That means on the front page of the Basha's ad, available at the front of the store) to pick up a package of Kraft singles for 98c and a 24 oz container of Basha's sour cream for the same price. (Yes, the Kraft singles likewise play into the theme and sour cream is useful to have around).
You get all that food for about $13
3) Now it's off to Food City to pick up 10 pounds of Gala Apples for 50c/pound, 5 pounds of papaya for 50c/pound, and 10 pounds of Roma Tomatoes for 50c/pound. That comes out to $12.50.
You have to go tomorrow, Thursday, because the price on the Apples and the Papaya is only good then. Don't fret, I have great and easy ideas for what to do with all this fruit. One of the things involves pectin. Pick up a couple of boxes. It's usually in the baking area, or at the end of the canned goods aisle. Check each store and get a feel for how much it costs and who has it cheaper. Frys has a store brand that works beautifully. Don't be proud, buy it.
And don't get the vapors. Scary as the word pectin is, making stuff with it is way easier than makers of commercial jams want you to know. I thank my compadres at the CouponSense message board for teaching me that. The message board is an incredible resource, filled with friendly and knowledgable people.
But I digress. We've only spent $36 of the allowed $50. On to the next store.
4) At Fry's, pick up 5 of the Oscar Mayer Cotto Salami - the 12 oz pack. It's good to have around. Who doesn't like a nice salami sandwich? That's $5 total.
Now we're at $41. Where to spend that last $9? Hmmm...
5) Go to Sprouts. Pick yourself up 2 pounds of fresh broccoli crowns for $1.98 total. Steam it. Eat it. It's good for you.
6) Last store is Sunflower Market. The Bulk Bin Rolled Oats are 50c/lb. That's the same stuff you get all excited about if you can buy it in the canister for $1.00. It's also really good for breakfast when you make it with cinnamon and nutmeg, brown sugar and some of the apples I said to buy.
Buy 10 pounds. It won't go bad and is great for lots of stuff besides breakfast.
That's another 5 bucks away. Spend the last 2 bucks on 8 kiwi fruit for $2 total. They'll be great with the strawberries in a homemade strawberry-kiwi freezer.
More discussion re: why these particular items and why not other particular items.
I'll also point out that with coupons, the $10 in hot dogs from Albertson's would only cost $1.20 and that would give you an extra $8.80 to spend. You could spend some of it on Potato or Cole Slaw or Macaroni salad Sunflower Market is selling for $1/lb because Memorial Day Weekend is coming up and you already have hot dogs, pork and beans, and cheese singles.
This is a GREAT week for couponers because there's so much free stuff to be had. Today I 'purchased' 23 free items ranging from orange juice to salad dressings, bbq sauce, snacks, seasonings and other items that tend to suck the grocery budget right away from us. Tomorrow, I'm going back to the store to buy 20 other free items like toothbrushes and chewing gum and sports drinks, and pasta, and potatoes in a pouch.
The information on how to do it is right there on the CouponSense website. If you have questions, leave a comment. I'm happy to explain.
And if you decide to give it a trial run, mention Mindy Likes to Coupon. I got an 'in' with the management. They'll be sure to give you a really good table.
I'll be back tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment