Monthly Archives:

April 2014

Fit Fruit & Vegetable Wash Hack!

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Good morning, savvy savers! Spring has sprung, and fresh produce is soon to be in even more abundance in the home of millions of American homes! With this in mind, for this weeks Cleaning Solutions Post, I wanted to share with you a hack for the Fit Fruit & Vegetable Wash! I make my homemade, DIY version for $0.12 a bottle! Compare this to the $9.99 price tag for the leading brand, and you are at a 99% savings! I generally even restore my product back in my original FIT bottle as well!

 

Here’s how to make it:

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 cup water
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tablespoons salt

 

Instructions:

1) Mix all ingredients up, allowing the baking soda and citric acid to neutralize for 2 minutes, and then store in a spray bottle.

2) In a glass bowl, place all produce and spray with solution, then let sit for five minutes.

3) Rinse all Produce, dry in a vegetable strainer, salad spinner, or dry on a paper towel.

4) Store solution in the refrigerator, up to 1 month.

5) Enjoy!

 

 

Easter Candy Cones!

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Good afternoon, savvy savers! I wanted to take time this afternoon to share with you another one of my favorite Easter crafts, my Easter Candy Cones! What’s cool about this project is that all of the supplies can be purchased at the Dollar Tree, for under $5.00, and will make you 12 cones customizable candy cones! These cones make for excellent church gifts, thinking-of-you surprises, or a treat for the parents of wee-ones Easter egg hunting this coming weekend! I always love how they turn out, whether individually or in a basket, whomever receives one, is guaranteed to smile!

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All you need to make them is a box of waffle cones, candy, paper shreds, wrapped candy, Easter gift bags, clear packaging tape, and creativity!

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Just fill each cone with a half handful of paper shreds, add the candy, and then place the cone in the gift bag; twist the gift bag in a cylinder and secure with clean tape and twist tie the top closed!

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Easy peasy!

Here’s to Easter!

(Photo Bunting Credit, Hallmark Cards)

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Start Saving Tax Receipts From Donated Stockpiled Goods

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Good morning, savvy savers! For this weeks Wednesday Ways to Save, I just wanted to give everyone a quick reminder to start saving receipts for all of the donated food that you donate for the remained of the year! Assuming you have decided to donate food and non-perishable goods, even toiletry products, to a local food bank, federally you can request a tax receipt for up to $200.00 annually!

With so many savvy savers undergoing spring cleaning this season and clearing out pantry shelves, why not earn a few extra dollars for all of your hard-earned, couponed goods? If you decide to donate food, make sure you do so with a repetitive 401-c3 non-profit group, and kindly ask for a tax receipt! You are allowed by law to receive the Fair Market Value of your goods, at the time of donation! Most tax software programs and internet tax tools are set up to handle any donation receipts you have accumulated over the past year.

This $200.00 can pay to reimburse yourself for the fuel, paper, and ink costs which go into couponing throughout the year while helping others at the same time! Remember to also keep your receipts in a safe place for next tax season! Now I have to ask, what tax deductions do you have ready for this coming years tax season? I’d love to hear about it below!

Crockpot Lasagna!

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Good afternoon, savvy savers! Today I would like to share with you all my recipe for Crockpot Lasagna! This recipe is lower in fat, as I use ground turkey in liue of ground beef, which can be purchased for $1.00/lb. tubes at your local Save-A-Lot; the cheese can also be purchased for $1.00 there as well! All other ingredients can be purchased at your local Dollar Tree; recently my Dollar Tree started carrying ricotta cheese, which I stockpiled, and froze! I love that this recipe does not require boiling the lasagna pasta, which is a great time saver in the winter, and helps to eliminate heat in my kitchen, in the warm southern summers!

I can make this recipe for under $4.00, and it will 6.

Here’s how I make it:

Ingredients:

1 pound ground turkey
4 tablespoons dried onions
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 (29 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (12 ounce) package lasagna noodles
12 ounces cottage cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
16 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions:

1) In a large skillet, over medium-low heat, brown your ground turkey.

2) While browning, add your dried onion, oregano, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and salt.

3) Stir well, and heat through for 5 minutes on low.

4) In a seperate large bowl, mix together the cottage cheese, grated Parmesan cheese, and shredded mozzarella cheese.

5) Next, place a small layer of the meat mixture onto the bottom of the slow cooker.

6) Now, add a double layer of the uncooked lasagna noodles; break the noodles up to fit the shape of the crockpot.

7) Now, add a layer of the cheese mixture. Then continue to layer the meat, noodles, and cheese mixture until add layer are finished.

8) Cover, and cook on low setting for 6 hours.

9) Pair with a salad and garlic bread.

10) Enjoy!

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DIY Easter Egg Garland!

Hello again, savvy savers! Today finds us with another Easter Craft Project, this time a Paint Chip Easter Egg Garland!

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To make this project, simply acquire paint chips (you will need 8 per foot of garland), I used Behr paint tri-color swatches.

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Now, using this awesome egg pattern from nuttinbutrpreschool.com, you will cut out your eggs, and using a small hole punch or exacto knife, on a cutting pad, cut out two hole, 1/2 inch apart, as seen, and string through craft twine, through the hole, stringing the garland as you go along! This project is easy, but time consuming, and I was able to create 12 feet of garland in the time it took me to watch 2 movies this past weekend!

As well, please be sure to ask paint store employees if it is alright to take that many samples before hoarding the stash, if you will!

Here’s to Easter!

DIY Electronic Spray, For Only $0.08!

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Recently, I was in need of electronics cleaner for my computer, laptops, and tablets, and so I set off to Best Buy to browse, only to find that the average electronics spray cost $13.00! So, I set out to make my own!

I use 1 cup isopropyl alcohol, or rubbing alcohol, and 1 cup distilled water, in a spray bottle as my cleaner! Each cleaning, for nearly thirty appliances costs me $0.08! As well, I use a clean, white tee-shirt, cut up to clean my appliances, as well; never use paper towels for this sort of cleaning. A rule of thumbs is to spray four sprayed onto the cloth to clean; never directly spray appliances or electronics with spray!

I use this blend on: eyeglasses, my TIVO, tv’s, computers, tablets, iphones, and more!

This spray is both a time and money-saver!

Enjoy!

 

 

Crockpot Spiral-Cut Ham Recipe!

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Good afternoon, savvy savers! For day 2 of my Easter Crafts, Recipes, and Projects Series, I wanted to share with you my recipe for Crockpot Ham! I shop and purchase my ham at the same time that I purchase my New Year’s Ham, in mid November, and freeze it until needed; this cuts down on my out-of-pocket holiday rush-pricing. As well, the other ingredients you may have on hand, or can be purchased at your local Dollar Tree. I can make this dish for under $15.00, and it serves 12. The above photo was of last year’s ham, after being taken out of the crockpot, and it was awesome!

Here’s how I make it:

Ingredients:

1 (6 pound) bone-in country-style spiral cut ham
30 whole cloves
3 cups apple juice
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 tablespoons ground cloves
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 maraschino cherries
1 can pineapple rings, with juice.
1/2 cup dijon mustard
1 orange’s peel
Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1) The night before serving, take 1 cup brown sugar, a dash of salt, pepper, and a half a cup dijon mustard, and make a rub. Using the rub, slather this mixture on the ham, then wrap in saran wrap and refrigerate overnight.

2) On a baking sheet, place your prepped ham, spiral cut sides up. Under the broiler setting on your stove, bake 25 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbly on top; the ham should have a slight crust, but not be burnt.

3) Next, remove the ham from the oven and place it in your crockpot.

4) Now, taking your spices, vanilla extract, pineapple and apple juice, to make a sauce, and then set to the side.

5) Next place the pineapple rings on top of the ham, along with the cherries and cloves.

6) Now carefully put your mixture around the base of the ham, then cook on low for 8 hours.

7) When the ham is finished, reserve the pineapple, cherries, and closes to the side for garnish on a platter. As well, be sure to strain the mixture from your crockpot, and serve it alongside the ham as an optional glaze and sauce.

8) Enjoy!

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