Friday, January 22, 2010

Don't Be Fooled!


Is one of your goals for 2010 to eat a healthy diet? Maybe you want to eat more organic food this year. My biggest mistake when we first switched to an organic lifestyle was to buy all our normal junk food but in organic form! It added a dramatic amount to our grocery bill. I'm now in the process of only letting each child pick out one snack per month. I use it as a reward for going on our monthly shopping trip to four different stores.

Instead of buying organic granola bars, you can try making your own. They taste much better!! We make all of our cookies, brownies, and cakes. Our main snack is usually organic popcorn. Do not buy microwave popcorn! You can make your own by adding 1/3 cup popcorn to a paper bag and microwaving for about 2 minutes. We melt our butter while it's popping.

For more frugal tips check out Life as Mom

6 comments:

Jennifer said...

In trying to switch to a more organic diet I have noticed that it would be easy (but expensive) to just start buying the same things organic. BUT most of that stuff has dairy and eggs in it, so I can't buy it anyway - ends up being a good thing.

In the process of using up what we have and then not buying those things again, one of my problems is wondering what to feed the kids. Especially at snack time or in lunch boxes. They have really started enjoying nuts though and I hesitate to say no to such a healthy food. WE do popcorn, and I have been pushing boiled eggs and yogurt on 3 of the 4.

It is a learning process for sure! Thanks for all the guidance.

The Farmer said...

Special diets make it much harder to eat on a budget. My daughter can't do gluten so I do buy her some of the Pamela's brand cookies once a month for a treat. She's able to do dairy now that we switched to raw milk.
Our snacks are mostly fruits, popcorn, cheese, and baked goodies oh and yogurt. Our fruit and veggie budget is crazy though. I can easily spend $75 a week on just produce! I'd love to reduce that but it's hard to say no to something so healthy!

Leslie said...

I agree that making your own can really save a lot of money. Same for veggies - we try and grow a lot so it really is organic and cheap, too! Now I can't wait for winter to be over to do that.

KatieBug said...

Do you have a recipe for homeade granola bars? I would love to try it!

Anonymous said...

Hi Autumn,
I cook mostly from scratch. It sure saves money and I know what is in it.
You are doing a great job.
Hugs,
Elizabeth

The Saved Quarter said...

You're right - organic junk food is expensive, but it's still junk food! So much good stuff can be made healthier at home.

My husband makes excellent stove-top popcorn, so I haven't tried the microwave version.