What homemade things save money compared to store bought?

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, wathe said:

Re chicken stock storage:  I make mine in the instant pot from carcasses like PP.  Then I freeze it in silicone muffin cups.  Then transfer the frozen pucks (each about half a cup) into a gallon ziplock.  That way I can take out exactly how much stock I need without having to thaw a big lot.

This is a good idea! 

[moonflower]

vegan baked goods

ingredients for vegan muffins/breads/cookies/cakes are cheaper than for non-vegan (no eggs, milk, butter, etc) but buying them at a bakery costs much more than a nonvegan bakery.  

[ScoutTN]

43 minutes ago, KungFuPanda said:

 

This is especially true when your garden goes rogue. Here is a photo of my squash haul minus the three I ate. I didn’t even PLANT butternut squash this year. It volunteered in a space where I’d dismantled a hugelkukture and moved the dirt to other gardens. My takeaway was that squash must LOVE an excessive amount of rain. 

Love this!

Two years ago we got cantelopes galore that we didn't plant. Seeds in the compost! 

We got zillions of cherry tomatoes this summer from volunteers in my daughter's flower bed. 

[ScoutTN]

10 minutes ago, wathe said:

Re chicken stock storage:  I make mine in the instant pot from carcasses like PP.  Then I freeze it in silicone muffin cups.  Then transfer the frozen pucks (each about half a cup) into a gallon ziplock.  That way I can take out exactly how much stock I need without having to thaw a big lot.

Oh, I like the half cup idea! Doing that, for sure. Thanks! 

I do chx stock ice cubes to get a tablespoon size.  

[Sunshine State Sue]

7 hours ago, katilac said:

 

Where do you buy your vanilla beans?

For a while, online at Penzey's.  For a while, at the co-op I belonged to.  Lately, in bulk at the health food store.

[ScoutTN]

For us:

soup stock - homemade is SO good, SO much better than store bought!

herb garden

small veggie garden - greens and tomatoes, mostly

bread, cookies, pie crust, pancakes, waffles

yogurt

spice mixes like taco seasoning

vanilla

popcorn on the stove vs. the microwave kind

 

 

Edited October 29, 2018 by ScoutTN

[MeaganS]

24 minutes ago, wathe said:

Re chicken stock storage:  I make mine in the instant pot from carcasses like PP.  Then I freeze it in silicone muffin cups.  Then transfer the frozen pucks (each about half a cup) into a gallon ziplock.  That way I can take out exactly how much stock I need without having to thaw a big lot.

That's an awesome idea. I may have to copy you, at least for some.

[KungFuPanda]

37 minutes ago, ScoutTN said:

Oh, I like the half cup idea! Doing that, for sure. Thanks! 

I do chx stock ice cubes to get a tablespoon size.  

I get my stock just right, then reduce it by half so I can add water when I cook, but save freezer space. 

[ScoutTN]

17 minutes ago, KungFuPanda said:

I get my stock just right, then reduce it by half so I can add water when I cook, but save freezer space. 

brilliant!

[Carol in Cal.]

5 hours ago, Momto5inIN said:

What do you store your chicken stock in when you freeze it? I haven't figured that part out yet.

 

I use pint sized wide mouthed canning jars.  They are self measuring, it’s easy to slide the block out when just the sides are thawed, and they tend not to break plus I can see into them so no more mystery contents.

[Momto6inIN]

10 hours ago, wathe said:

Re chicken stock storage:  I make mine in the instant pot from carcasses like PP.  Then I freeze it in silicone muffin cups.  Then transfer the frozen pucks (each about half a cup) into a gallon ziplock.  That way I can take out exactly how much stock I need without having to thaw a big lot.

This is brilliant!

[Miss Tick]

23 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Ok who has some good granola recipes?  I didn't love the one I made last night. 

And soup recipes.  I have never made my own. 

I have a generic recipe i got from ReadyMade magazine. You can tweak it for your tastes in light of the recipe you just made.

1/3-1/2 c.oil or butter

1/3-1/2 sweetener (maple syrup, brown sugar, honey)

Flavoring - 1t. Vanilla or 1t. Cinnamon or 1/2 t. Ginger or 1/4t. Cardamom 

4c. Flaked grains - oatmeal, kamut, spelt, and/or rye

Add-ins - 1/3c. Unsweetened coconut or 3T. Wheat germ or 2T nutritional yeast or 2T flaxseed or 2T chia seeds 

2c. Nuts/seeds - pumpkin, sesame, walnut, almond, pecan, sunflower

1c. Chopped dried fruit

Sometimes I add some of whole wheat flour and mix well to make it more clumpy.

[shawthorne44]

One other thing I've noticed with homemade is that there is less storage.   For example, I recently started making Ranch dressing.   The only thing I had to buy extra was a can of coconut milk, and I'll be able to freeze that into recipe sizes.  So, now I don't need to store spare salad dressings.   We recently redid our kitchen and I discovered TWELVE open salad dressings, so I'm a bit sensitized to that.   

Similar with laundry detergent.   I make a batch of powdered detergent and then turn that into a liquid/gel in small quantities.   I probably have 6 months of laundry soap taking up the room of two iced tea containers.  
 

[73349]

Flannel handkerchiefs have saved us $$$ on tissues over the years. Get the biggest men's flannel shirt you can find at a thrift store, cut a rectangle twice as big as desired (yay for straight lines already on the fabric!), fold in half and sew. We use a different pattern for each family member. Put one in a pocket when dressing each day, and save one disposable tissue box just for guests (ours is circa 2012 and still good).

I'm about to go back to making yogurt tonight, actually. I buy expensive milk, but those little single servings we've been eating are not cheap, either. The only special equipment I have is a thermometer--you don't need a yogurt maker. Yogurt's good for at least as long as the sell-by date on the milk was.

Tip: Don't dump excess milk when it gets to its sell-by date if you like cottage cheese at all. It's super easy to make (just heat and add a little vinegar to curdle, strain with a fine mesh strainer and/or cheesecloth, and then add a dash of salt). Even faster than yogurt.

Edited October 29, 2018 by whitehawk

[happypamama]

Cloth and reusable as much as possible. 

 

Haircuts!  With all these smallboys, having a set of clippers at home helps a lot!

[KungFuPanda]

2 hours ago, whitehawk said:

Flannel handkerchiefs have saved us $$$ on tissues over the years. Get the biggest men's flannel shirt you can find at a thrift store, cut a rectangle twice as big as desired (yay for straight lines already on the fabric!), fold in half and sew. We use a different pattern for each family member. Put one in a pocket when dressing each day, and save one disposable tissue box just for guests (ours is circa 2012 and still good).

I'm about to go back to making yogurt tonight, actually. I buy expensive milk, but those little single servings we've been eating are not cheap, either. The only special equipment I have is a thermometer--you don't need a yogurt maker. Yogurt's good for at least as long as the sell-by date on the milk was.

Tip: Don't dump excess milk when it gets to its sell-by date if you like cottage cheese at all. It's super easy to make (just heat and add a little vinegar to curdle, strain with a fine mesh strainer and/or cheesecloth, and then add a dash of salt). Even faster than yogurt.

Ugh.  I forgot about making cottage cheese. I dumped some starting-to-turn milk last week and now I’m mad. 

[BooksandBoys]

On 10/28/2018 at 10:47 AM, Margaret in CO said:

We raise our own beef and lamb, and dd has gotten a buck for the last two years. We traded a half hog for some baler repairs this fall. Now if dd can just get that bull and bear... 

Anyone need a lamb? We still have 8 available, and I think we have half a steer. 

 

Maybe? Could you PM details so I could consider iT? 

[BooksandBoys]

3 hours ago, shawthorne44 said:

One other thing I've noticed with homemade is that there is less storage.   For example, I recently started making Ranch dressing.   The only thing I had to buy extra was a can of coconut milk, and I'll be able to freeze that into recipe sizes.  So, now I don't need to store spare salad dressings.   We recently redid our kitchen and I discovered TWELVE open salad dressings, so I'm a bit sensitized to that.   

Similar with laundry detergent.   I make a batch of powdered detergent and then turn that into a liquid/gel in small quantities.   I probably have 6 months of laundry soap taking up the room of two iced tea containers.  
 

 

Ranch from coconut milk? That sounds like it might be a dairy free recipe! Could you share? 

[shawthorne44]

15 hours ago, BooksandBoys said:

 

Ranch from coconut milk? That sounds like it might be a dairy free recipe! Could you share? 

 

Google Dump Ranch.  It is basically homemade mayo plus coconut milk plus ranch spices, where you make the mayo with the ranch.  

I am on the Keto diet, which is why I went for diary-free.  Milk isn't allowed on Keto, so if you need diary-free in general, you might want to check-out Keto recipes.  Cheese is allowed, so it isn't all diary-free.