food

New Month, New Coupons!

Abby H.

file000786402730Here is your monthly reminder!  A new month means new printable and electronic coupons!

Check out the following sites:

One of my favorite website is the Sunday Coupon Review.  It helps me plot out scenarios in advance and I can email friends to ask for coupons in advance. Remember if clipping coupons isn’t your thing, but saving money is, check out my list of Smartphone apps that can save you the big bucks! New offers are added on the Smartphone Savings Apps all the time!

Here are just a few of the new coupons that have me excited:

SAVE $1.00 off any ONE (1) package of Hefty® Trash Bags
SAVE $0.55 off ONE (1) package of Reynolds Wrap® Foil (25 sq. Ft. or larger, excluding Wrappers™ foil sheets)
Save 35¢ on ONE (1) Flav-R-Pac or Westpac Veggies bags, any variety or size


$2.00 off any ONE package of HUGGIES Diapers

$4.00 off any 2 Huggies

$0.45 off one International Delight

$0.50 off one Cafe Breaks

$0.50 off one Pace product 15 oz or larger

Buy one Paqui, get 1 free

Family Recipe: Chicken Tetrazzini

Abby H.2 Comments

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My Dad made this for us a lot when my mom worked late. I love it because it’s got chicken, onions, cheese, and pasta in it.  Pretty much everything I like in life. AND when I was pregnant with Lil’ Man I had such horrible morning sickness round the clock, it was pretty much the only food I could eat. This is a great hot dish, perfect for a family dinner or make a bigger batch for a potluck. It’s a hit with kids and grown ups!

I try to make adaptations for many differing diets, but sadly, this recipe cannot be adapted for Vegans or be made gluten free (unless there is GF Cream of Mushroom soup I don’t know about).

Chicken Tetrazzini 

Ingredients

  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 t. butter
  • 1-2 c cooked shredded or cubed chicken (I usually cook a batch of chicken breasts in the crock pot and then portion it up for later use)
  • 1 can Cream of Chicken and Mushroom soup (if you can’t find it, stick with Cream of Chicken)
  • I can of water
  • 1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
  • ½ cup cheese (you favorite kind- I like sharp cheddar!) You can use more cheese if you like.
  • 1 lb pasta, your choice

Directions

  1. Start a large pot of water on the stove and cook pasta as directed.
  2. While Pasta is cooking  In a saucepan, saute the onion in butter, until the onions are clear, about 10 minutes.
  3. To the onions, add chicken, soup, water, Italian seasoning. Cook until bubbly, stirring to combine ingredients.
  4. Add cheese and stir until smooth.
  5. Add pasta and stir to combine.
  6. If you want to make this a one pot dish,  add 1-2 cups steamed veggies, such as broccoli, peas, or asparagus.

Serves 4-6.

Options:

  • You can use the vegetarian “chicken” pieces in place of the chicken. You can also use leftover Turkey or rotisserie chicken!
  • You can also add 1 cup sliced mushrooms and/or 1/2 cup celery while you are sautéing the onion.
  • My dad likes the dish topped with butter bread crumbs or slivered almonds.
  • To make this dish a little richer, stir in 1/2 cup sour cream (the real stuff, no imitation sour cream) when you add the cooked pasta.

Giveaway: Enter to Win Two LegoLand California Park Hopper Tickets!

Abby H.17 Comments

img_9875I am so excited to share these tickets! As a LegoLand Blogger, I am given two free Park Hopper tickets each year. I can use them myself, or give them away.

I’ve decided to give them away. I want one of you to experience the fun of Legoland! This pair of tickets expires 12/31/16, so you still have a while to go and experience the fun of Legoland California!

If you haven’t been to Legoland, it’s a great way to spend a day! There are tons of fun things to do: Rides, Shows, and of course, stations to build and play! We love the build and play area next to Heartlake City. It has a Duplo Theme. There is a playground, and in the playground you will find various stations where kids (and grown ups) can build whatever you’d like!

If you are looking to save some money, I recommend that you take a bottle of water (at least one). All of the snack stations/restaurants will refill your empty bottles. We take our Camelback bottles. The kids have these smaller bottles, and hubs and I have these larger bottles.  We also take snacks to munch on throughout the day. Family favs include: Apples, orange slices, fruit snacks, crackers and seed butter, protein bars (we are currently digging on Balance Bars). However, we do splurge on the Apple Fries- They are sooooo good!

To enter to win the pair of Legoland California Park Hopper ticket, please use the Rafflecopter widget below (or visit here). Please note that it is not mobile friendly, you need to enter from a desktop!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

Healthy Frozen treats!

Abby H.

My kids love popsicles. If given the choice, they’d eat them all day. So I figured, why try to fight it? I’m turning into the skid and embracing their love of frozen food on a stick.

screen-shot-2016-10-04-at-11-54-06-amRecently, I was sent this awesome Lebice Popsicle mold kit. Right now it’s on sale for about $8.00. Remember Amazon prices change frequently!

It makes 6 good sized frozen nummies, a stand to keep them upright while they freeze, a collapsible funnel, and a small brush to clean out all the nooks and crannies.

After I washed them, I pulled out the blender and whipped up strawberry banana breakfast popsicles (if they are going to demand popsicles in the morning, might as well make them healthy, right?). I keep over ripe bananas sliced in the freezer in ziploc bags for morning smoothies and protein shakes, as well as whatever berries are in season. I buy them on sale, and freeze them before they go bad. It’s a great way to keep fruit on hand!

Strawberry Banana Popsicles

Makes 6 popsicles

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups Vanilla Greek Yogurt (or use whatever you have onhand, it doesn’t have to be Greek)
  • 1 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1 cup frozen banana slices
  • 1/4 milk

Directions

  1. Set up molds in stand.
  2. Blend all of the ingredients together, until smooth.
  3. Pour mixutre into mold, leaving about a 1/2 inch at the top.
  4. Snap lids/sticks on, stash in freezer for 6-8 hours.
  5. Remove from stand and run molds under warm water to loosen. Pop popsicles out of molds, and enjoy!

I also like making instant pudding (adding in frozen bananas or raspberries) and pouring that into popsicle molds too. That is a sweet and satisfying dessert!

I like that the stick and drip tray are attached and I’m not finding mystery popsicle sticks all over the house. The entire set is very sturdy and  I know we’ll be using it for years to come.

Thanks to Lebice and Tomoson for providing the awesome popsicle mold! I received no financial compensation for this post, and all opinions are my own!

Save with These Make Ahead Breakfasts!

Abby H.3 Comments

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Everyone loves something easy. And I like something healthy too. So when I can find food that’s easy to prep and healthy, I’m in! I love doing breakfast prep once a week. It keeps us out of the drive thru, and that helps our bottom line.

As part of the Pinterest Generation, I’ve seen and tried TONS of make ahead/batch cooked breakfasts. All with little success (not fails, really, but nothing that I’m super excited to try again or share). Here are two favorites at our house:

screen-shot-2016-09-29-at-10-22-04-pmIt seriously doesn’t get any easier!

Ingredients:

  • 2 packages of 8 count Sausage links (I used Farmer John)
  • 2 tubes 8 count biscuit dough (I scored a 2 pack at 99 Cents Only)

Directions:

  1. Cook and drain sausage links per package directions. Set aside.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
  3. Open biscuit dough package and roll out biscuits until flat.
  4. Place sausage on flattened biscuit, roll up dough, encasing sausage.
  5. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on wire baking rack.
  6. Once cool, store in zip top bag or container with a snap top lid. Can be stored in the fridge for up to a week, but really, they won’t last that long.

Makes 16 rolls.

Add a cuppa Joe and you’ve got a quick, filling breakfast.

And if you prefer to start your day with fruit and something rich and creamy, check out our parfait recipe (it’s seriously a no-brainer!)
screen-shot-2016-09-29-at-10-39-06-pm Inspired by my love of the McDonald’s parfaits.  I’m serious, since they changed over to Greek yogurt, my mouth waters every time I glance at the Golden Arches. You can make your own at home in just a few minutes!

I make a batch once a week! I use Ball canning jars (like these) that originally had home made jam in them (thanks Mom!), but you can use whatever jars or reusable containers you have on hand.

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 cups frozen fruit- I like berries, but feel free to use whatever is on sale or you have on hand. Skip melon, mango, banana, or pineapple- You may find them frozen, but they won’t taste very good or have a good texture in this recipe.
  • 1 large carton Vanilla Greek Yogurt (it’s about 4 cups)
  • Honey, if desired

Directions:

  1. In each container, pour in 1/4 cup yogurt.
  2. Top yogurt with 1/2 cup frozen fruit.
  3. Repeat layer of 1/4 cup yogurt. Drizzle with honey, if desired.
  4. place a few pieces of fruit on top, gently pressing down into the yogurt if needed.
  5. Screw on lid and refrigerate.

Makes 6-8, depending on sizes of jar and type of fruit used. If you need “crunchies” on your parfait, individually portion out 1 cup of cereal and stash them in the cupboard. I use the snack sized bags like these and portion out cereal, then put the portions in a tub like this one. It lives on the counter. No more cereal mysteriously being eaten in one sitting. Really, who is going to open a bunch of little bags into a big bowl and pig out?

Another tip I have for you is: Set up your coffee maker before you go to bed. For those with a classic coffee maker, it’ll just be a quick flip of the switch to get your coffee fix. We have two French Presses, I set them up at night, one I fill with cool water and steep over night to make iced coffee in the morning for myself. I prep the other with grounds and fill the Tea Kettle for a hot pot in the AM for the Mister.

I turn on the stove in the AM and in less than 10 minutes, he has a steaming cuppa Joe and I am already on my second iced coffee!

 

Talk back: What is your go-to frugal breakfast?

Club Cards: An Easy Way to Save Money

Abby H.

Every time I teach a couponing class, there is one person who announces that they are too busy or important to print or clip coupons. They need to save money but it can’t be too hard or involve any actual work.  Basically they are lazy but won’t cop to it.

For those people, I ask them if they are too busy to spend 5 minutes filling out a form that can save them thousands of dollars over their lifetime. Most people say that they would spend 5 minutes to save thousands. I present…. The store club card.

This is my keychain. img_9216Yup. I have tons of club cards. Grocery stores, drugstores, restaurants, office supply stores, department stores, movie theaters. There are even more in my wallet for those stores that don’t have a key fob. I save money where ever I go, and you can too. These cards are free to apply for and use.

Stores utilize the information they gather when consumers scan their cards to look at shopping trends. Grocery companies look at sales trends to help them decide what items should be sold, put on sale or completely discontinued. Cards also offer information about what each consumer purchases, and coupons tailored to the individual cardholder can be mailed or emailed to each card holder.

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Two of the coupons I loaded to my Shop Your Way Rewards Card

Most stores allow you to link up your card number to an online account, and you can add coupons to your card (via the store website or app) to save you even more.

Sears and KMart have a great program called Shop Your Way Rewards. You earn points on every purchase and points are converted to dollars off future purchases. They have coupon on their website all the time!

Both Vons and Ralphs have easy to navigate apps where you can load coupons to your card, including quite frequently freebies (Ralphs has a Free Friday Download most Fridays). Ralphs sometimes has games you can play online to win free grocery items. I won Goldfish crackers and BBQ sauce last week, which just two clicks of the mouse!

Regal Cinemas has the Regal Crown Club. Download their app or visit a local theater to pick up a card. Present the card to be scanned at the box office and when you buy concessions and earn points that you can redeem on free snacks or tickets. The points add up really fast!

Some clubs like the Ikea Friends and Family card offer discounts and extra perks.. check it out:

screen-shot-2016-09-25-at-8-37-05-pm

With these clubs, if you do not present the card or your phone number, you will not receive a discount, which is usually advertised at the sale price.  Some stores don’t even require that you present your card, you can just punch your phone number into a Credit Card terminal or give it to the cashier.

Later in the week, I’ll share with you my favorite club card and how I use it to get free gas every month!

What is your favorite club card?

 

 

National Coffee Day, 9/29/16

Abby H.

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Thursday is National Coffee Day, and while the free coffee doesn’t flow freely here in San Diego, I was able to find a few deals we can take advantage of!

Krispy Kreme- Free Coffee and a Donut. Details on their Facebook Page.

Dunkin Donuts- Not free, but 66¢ Medium-sized Hot Coffee all day. Details on their Facebook Page. 

Yeah, that’s pretty much it. Starbucks and Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf aren’t doing any in-store freebies or deals.  There are other places back east, like WaWa and Pilot Flying J have free coffee offers, but they are no where near me.

screen-shot-2016-09-25-at-7-50-43-pmOh, and not this week, but October 3-9, 7-Eleven is giving away free coffee when you present their app on your phone!

Don’t you know I’ll be there every day that week!!

 

 

Two free offers at San Diego area McDonald’s!

Abby H.

Right now there are two great free offers at McDonald’s! Both of which are on the healthy side.

screen-shot-2016-09-08-at-9-50-19-amThis week, Sept. 8-10 from 7 to 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., visit a participating San Diego County McDonald’s restaurant to sample a Fruit ‘N Yogurt Parfait made with nonfat vanilla Chobani® Greek Yogurt.

Combined with the sweet taste of strawberries and blueberries, and topped with granola, Fruit ‘N Yogurt Parfaits are perfect for breakfast, as a side, or a mid-day snack – especially with the classic vanilla taste of Chobani® Greek Yogurt.  YUM! I think Bitty Bird and I will hit up our local McDo’s after the Y today and get a coffee and free Parfait!

And offer #2 is a favorite around these parts!

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On Tuesday, Sept. 13, participating restaurants will offer free breakfast from 6:30-9:30 a.m. to students in kindergarten through eighth grade when an accompanying adult uses the McDonald’s App. In San Diego County, students can enjoy an Egg McMuffin or Egg White Delight, apple slices and milk.

To redeem this offer, an adult must download or have already downloaded the McDonald’s App, present the offer to the cashier and ask the cashier for the free back-to-school breakfast. Students younger than 13 years of age are required to be accompanied by a parent/adult to redeem this offer at participating McDonald’s restaurants. This offer may vary throughout the state and only one breakfast is allowed per student.

The MCDonald’s App is pretty cool. You can earn free McCafe Beverages, and there are coupons that are only available on the app (like BOGO happy meals and free upgrades!).

So there you go! Two tasty deals. Thanks to my Friend Su for the heads up on the second offer!

New Month,New Coupons!

Abby H.

file000786402730Here is your monthly reminder!  A new month means new printable and electronic coupons!

Check out the following sites:

One of my favorite website is the Sunday Coupon Review.  It helps me plot out scenarios in advance and I can email friends to ask for coupons in advance. Remember if clipping coupons isn’t your thing, but saving money is, check out my list of Smartphone apps that can save you the big bucks!

Here are just a few of the new coupons that have me excited:

$0.50 off ONE BOX Reese's Puffs cereal
$1.00 off any ONE PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese Brick
$0.60 off any 2 Lipton Recipe Secrets
$2.00 off one Persil
$1.00 off one Jennie-o

Teachers: Score a Free Taco at Rubios!

Abby H.

Screen Shot 2016-08-21 at 8.06.26 AM

Back to school has started for most of us, but by 9/8/16, most teachers will be ready for a little pick me up! Check this pretty long list of folks that qualify for a free taco on September 8th in honor of Teacher Appreciation Day!

While you are checking it out, scroll at the way to the bottom of the page and join the Beach Club. You’ll score a free taco, as well as all sorts of awesome perks through the year (Like free noms for your birthday!).