Thriftism

Homemade can make all the difference in what some people like. Take my husband for example. He used to think he didn't like cranberries, then he tried my grandma's homemade whole cranberry sauce. He liked that. Funny how making something yourself with fresh ingredients can really change the taste. Some recipes are challenging and might not be worth the extra effort to have homemade (maybe bread for example or puff pastry?), but that is not the case with cranberry sauce. Every Christmas we stock up on fresh cranberries because they are clearanced out then and luckily they freeze well. That means we can make cranberry sauce even cheaper than canned in many cases and you get to adjust it to your liking. What You'll Need 1 Cup Water 1 Cup Sugar (Adjust to Liking) 12 oz Bag Fresh Cranberries Mix water and sugar in sauce pan and bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Once boiling add cranberries. Boil until all cranberries have split open or ~10 minutes. Chill 20...

When I think of summer, I think of rhubarb pie. My grandma always made the best pie and we rarely had it anywhere else. Now that I have a garden of my own and have a rhubarb explosion, this seems as good a time as any to learn how to make my grandma's rhubarb pie. This tasty pie is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth without breaking your diet, and at only $0.35/per serving it won't break your budget either! See nutrition and cost information at the bottom of the post. What You'll Need 4 Cups Diced Rhubarb (1/2" Pieces) 1 Cup Sugar 6 Tbsp. Flour 1 Egg (large) 3-6 Tbsp Butter or Margarine 2 Pie Crusts Preheat Oven to 425 Mix rhubarb, sugar, and egg together. Slowly add flour. Roll out pie crusts. Place one into a greased 9" pie pan. Fill pie crust with rhubarb mixture. Add dollops of butter/margarine to the top of the rhubarb mixture. Top with remaining pie crust and press edges down with fork or thumb. Trim outside pie crust and save for ot...

If you're already shopping at Walmart, the phone app is a must have. While shopping in stores, it saves quite a bit of time usually spent searching. The app will tell you the aisle your item is located in or if it is out of  stock. This definitely helps me if I'm looking for something new (like puff pastry for our cranberry brie bites, who knew it wasn't with the pie crusts?). It also has this great feature called "Savings Catcher". You do need to sign up for an account to use this feature. It compares prices of all items you purchased with other stores in the area. If there is a cheaper price elsewhere, you get money back in the form of a prepaid card or for use on walmart pay. Here's how to use it. Download the walmart app and save your receipt.  Tap the savings catcher icon and then hit the orange "Add a Walmart Receipt" button. Scan the bottom of your receipt. You can then see a digital version of your receipt. Plus once the...

Potlucks and dinner party appetizers can be tricky. You have the tried and true options of veggie trays, chips and dip, cheese and crackers, but those can get old, especially if more than one person brings the same thing. These cranberry brie bites are an easy way to branch out and bring a dish everyone will love and you won't have to spend all day in the kitchen to make them. Plus, these are are roughly half the cost of lil' smokies as an appetizer (Only $0.23/Serving). See bottom of post for nutrition information and cost breakdown. What You'll Need Puff Pastry (17 oz) Brie (8oz) Cranberry Sauce (1 Can whole berry sauce or 1 Bag Fresh Cranberries made into sauce) Greased mini muffin tin Layout puff pastry and cut into 1" squares. Two sheets should be ~48 squares. Grease muffin tin Place one puff pastry square in each cup and push down slightly to form a small bowl with each piece. Cut brie into 1/2" pieces and place one piece in each cup. To...

Another month has flown by, meaning its time for our monthly goal check-in. Here's where we at Thriftism stand: Take 6 Courses Online A Life of Happiness and Fulfillment on Coursera (6/27/17) You and Your Money (Began 6/27/17) Install Bathroom Heater DONE!! So nice to have a warm bathroom. Stain/Finish Captains Bedframe No progress here, this one seems to be a challenge for us.  Read 12 Books Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown The Summons by John Grisham Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen  Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen Mansfield Park by Jane Austen A Convenient Marriage By Georgette Heyer Take 2 Trips (Mexico & TBD)   Trip 1✔ We went to Cancun in January. This is always a favorite of ours.  GERMANY!! We were able to get tickets half off by watching for deals. Watch for posts this fall on hiking through the Black Forest, German Castles, and of course great food! Paint & Trim Guest Bedroom ...