Thankfully, we have never been big meat eaters, but in these lean times (ar-ar), there are two types that are in the budget — ground beef and London Broil. When I get a hankering for steak, it’s the latter to my rescue — and still only less than $1 a serving!

Farmer’s Wife has been asking me for months to post how I cook London Broil, so after I just prepped mine for tomorrow night’s dinner, I was inspired to share.

First, the stores will call it “London Broil,” but that’s actually a cooking method. Most times, it’s flank steak, so you may look for that term when seeking recipes. My “buy” price is $1.77 a pound for the “family size” packages. Now, let me tell you for two-person households, it may seem intimidating when buying those large packages, but I finally figured it out a couple years ago — you cut the meat in half and freeze the other. Normally you are left with a neat 1-1.25 pound of meat. Perfect for one or two people (and with a little leftover). A 2+ pound cut I think is perfect for four people.

Another secret? I use it for beef stew meat. I normally cut it into pieces, and then freeze it. It’s ready to go later and it’s much cheaper than traditional beef stew meat, which is usually $2.99 a pound plus. I’ve also pre-cut it very thinly and used for stir-frys. It’s fantastic!

Now here’s the dirty secret about London Broil — it’s a tough piece of meat. This is not rib eye. But if you treat it right, you can get your steak fix for a fraction of the cost.

I did some research tonight on how to cook London Broil. The big warning is not to poke or stab it (because it lets the juices out). You can massage it or hit it with a mallet. But I’ve never been one to beat my meat (heh-heh).

It really comes down to three tips:

I normally broil mine (on foil to make cleanup easy) for 7 minutes on the first side and 6 minutes on the second — this is medium/medium rare. Then I remove it to the serving platter and wrap it in a blanket of foil to rest for 5-7 minutes. This helps keep it juicy (and continues the cooking process). For rare, about 6 minutes on the first side, and then 5 minutes on the other side. And for medium, I would suggest cooking it medium rare, and then microwaving till medium (about a minute or two).

After cutting it very thinly with a sharp knife, serve. I like A1 steak sauce, Worcestershire or horseradish sauce on the side. Add smashed potatoes and a veggie, and you have a great, inexpensive dinner.

Try London Broil — it’s a great budget saver and delicious, too.

I was watching a new show on VH1 about OCD, when I decided that I needed to clean out the pantry. (Surprise, surprise, because I am an “arranger.”) But as I straightened everything, I thought of a Prohomemaker Challenge: “Eat out of your pantry/freezer/fridge for one week.” And I am going to do it this week, and I want you to join me.

I think this is important because, first, it makes you take stock of what you have. And second, it saves money. The only allowable purchases for one week are produce and dairy. That’s it.

People spend so much on groceries, without using the 12-week cycle, which means everything hits its lowest price every three months. You’re wasting money if you wait and buy until you need it — use the cycle and save in the long run. I am in need for ground beef due to a stock of Hamburger Helper bought at its lowest price, but I know ground beef is about to hit my buy price of $1.47 a pound. This week was close at $1.77, but I know patience will pay off. Mark my words.

That’s the importance of having a well-stocked pantry and freezer. You’re not at the whim of what grocery stores decide to charge that week. You can hang out and wait for the stock-up price. But do take stock of what you have — you will be surprised what you can make. Yep, that’s the “M” word — menu planning. But here’s a helpful hint: Have a few things, go to Allrecipes.com and use its ingredients search, you’ll surely find something to make.

Won’t you join me in this challenge? Let’s see what we can do this week with what we have.

This became more imperative to me this week when I did our budget using this tool and realized that my income had dropped dramatically since my Dad became sick and passed away. The host of “Til Debt Do Us Part” was kind enough to email me back and advised ramping up my business and cutting the budget wherever I could. And that’s what I am doing. Believe it or not, by eating out of the pantry/fridge and freezer once a month for a year, we can save $1,000+ a year! Do the math, and figure out what you can save, too, just by being creative.

I will post a blog every day on how I am doing — and my challenges with meeting the challenge.

But for now, here is what I am going to make tomorrow night. Just need a bell pepper (allowed-produce) tomorrow, and the rest is in the pantry/fridge/freezer.

Oh, and the pantry is clean — and arranged. 
 

I’ve become enamored with a Canadian show on CNBC — “Til Debt Do Us Part,” and I recommend you watch it, too. It’s part advice, part intervention and part reality show. So, bottom line, you get great information, some dirt and can judge people — who could ask for anything more?

The host, Gail Vaz-Oxlade, is a financial author who does interventions on couples who are not making their bills, or just driving themselves further into debt — one of the biggest causes of divorce.

It’s voyeurism at its best, watching how others feel entitled to spend thousands on Christmas, or keep a truck that is bleeding them dry. The advice is good, and I always pick up a tip or two.

It’s also a wakeup call — but surprisingly for me! I was feeling smug as I watched the pregnant bride plan two weddings and eye spending $8,000 on two gowns. But then I used one of the online tools from Gail’s web site — the budget calculator.

I happily — and truthfully — entered our monthly income and expenses, taking pride in all our budget cuts that I detailed in this post, including no car payments, $4 a month on eating out, and a total credit card debt of $1,400, which should be paid off within three months.

But it was the income that gave me a wakeup call - mine dropped dramatically over the past six months due to paying more attention to my parents’ health and welfare, and dealing with the ultimate passing of my Dad in March.

Seeing it on paper made me realize I had successfully cut expenses to deal with the downturn of the real estate market as an agent with RE/MAX, but I had not dealt with the further drop in my income from trying to manage with personal issues.

Thankfully, I have 10 months of the difference in my checking account to make up for the deficit before hitting my savings, but it was clear that I need to ramp up my business in hopes I won’t have to hit my “no touchy money,” as I call it.

That’s what I love about this show — it has you take a hard look at your finances so you can see what you need to do.

I also love Gail’s style — she is blunt, and her blog with Monday morning quarter-backing on each episode is a hoot (and offers even more tips).

I highly recommend you watch ”Til Debt Do Us Part” – and best part, you can view the episodes online at the web site if you don’t have cable.

Let me know what you think about it — I love this show!

This is probably my crudest headline ever, but it underscores how so many people lead their lives — literally pissing away $10,000 every year and not knowing where the money went. Believe it or not, if you blow $27.78 a day, it adds up to $10,000 that went out the door in one year. $10,000! Don’t think you do it? Do these scenarios sound familiar?

* John and Mary — John works full time and Mary is a stay-at home mom. In one day, they spent the following: $4 for Mary’s Starbucks iced tea in the mid-morning, John needed lunch so he stopped at the fast food place - $6, the kids begged for a bag of chips at 7/Eleven - $3, the day was exhausting, so they ordered a pizza - $13 with tip. Oh, they needed soda, too, so they added that in on the pizza order. Boom! $28 for the day!

or how about this scenario:

* Mary is too busy to take an hour each week to scout the grocery specials and plan her meals accordingly. She goes into the store one afternoon and buys what she needs. An average dinner ends up being $10-$15. Of course, she throws in some impulse items, and the total quickly jumps to $25 for a “quick stop” at the grocery store. On the way home, she’s thirsty, so she stops at the fast food place for a large drink for $1.99 and a fries off the dollar menu. Boom! She’s at $28 for the day.

or what about this scenario:

* John and Mary driver older cars. The insurance for two runs $2,000 a year, even though based on their value, it makes no sense to carry collision, but it’s just too much a pain to take it off and raise the deductible, when it would cut their bill in half. Just thinking about it makes them feel they deserve a night out for dinner for two at the local national franchise. After all, it’s only $25. Boom! They are at $27.74.

or finally:

* Mary just doesn’t think coupons are worth her time for her family of four. She spends an average of $125 every week at the market, not knowing that by shopping specials and using coupons she could cut that in half. Even with food in the house, Mary and John sometimes don’t feel like cooking, so they usually take the kids to a franchise place for dinner for $40 every two weeks. Boom! They just went through $48.34, covering nearly two days of their $27 per day bill to pissing away $10,000 each year.

Folks, that’s how easy it is. Add in manicures, those few drugstore items, a quick stop at Target and you are on your way, too, to throwing $10,000 out the door.

Now, I am not against spending money, but choose your priorities. Now the article I read says to keep track of your finances for a week. I think sometimes that’s overwhelming for people. But what if you did it for just one day, and perhaps another? Would that make it easier to get an idea of where your money goes?

Are you looking at a charge card balance every month — wouldn’t you like to pay it off each month? Or, how about that down payment on a house you are longing for? Or would you rather go on a 15 night round trip cruise to Hawaii in one year or have fast food every day? I just added up, and it was $6.74 per day in one year for what I spent on that cruise.

It’s not denial — it’s smart choices … and, yes, delaying satisfaction. But man, when you get the satisfaction, it sure beats that burger at Jack in the Box! Hope this gets you thinking.

I just finished scanning the grocery store ads for this week and realized the specials stink this week! But I’ve got to make dinners for the next seven days — what to do? Time to call on the pantry, freezer and what is well-priced this week, that’s what!

This is when the tactic of stockpiling comes into play. With a well-stocked freezer and pantry, you don’t need to be held captive by fluctuating food prices. But it takes a little planning, being creative, open to new recipes and using what you have.

This week, the only good specials I can find are on produce (mainly salad items) and eggs for 99 cents. That’s it! So I started planning tonight. I found two great egg recipes (for dinner) via my email subscription to General Mill’s “Dinner Made Easy” web site. And lo and behold, this week they sent me ideas for suppers made with eggs!

Two looked great to me — the Bacon and Tomato Frittata and the Chile Rellenos Egg Souffle.

These recipes appealed to me ’cause they used the ingredient du week — eggs — and also called for items I have stocked: cheese, chilies (albeit diced), tomatoes (the salad deals this week) and bacon (in the meat drawer when I got it for $1.50). Add in a vegetable, salad, biscuits (stocked ’cause they were on sale for 99 cents) or tortillas (also stocked), and I have two dinners down!

A lot of ethnic dishes call for inexpensive ingredients, so next I went Italian. I snagged Italian sausages with a raincheck and coupons last week for $1.49, so I am going to fry them in large chunks and make penne pasta (50 cents)with Neuman’s Cabernet Marinara ($1) and frozen garlic bread (all purchased when they hit their lowest price). Dinner will end up costing no more than $4 tops. Dinner number 3 done (and I will have enough leftover sausage for a “cook once, eat twice dinner”).

Dinner number 4 will most likely be a fixed up frozen pizza (another ethnic dish) that I snagged for free with a raincheck. I will add fresh veggies and cheese to fix it up. This will be the plan this week when I am running short on time for dinner. Add a quick (sale) salad, and I am done.

I’ve got a lot of tuna in the pantry (44 cents), so I will either make tuna melts, tuna noodle casserole or just tuna sandwiches with a salad to cover dinner number 5. That cheese in the fridge is going to come in handy (and was also on special this week).

I’ll probably pull out half of the London Broil I got this past week for $1.44 a pound and team with some of the 99 cents 10 pound bag of potatoes I picked up also this past week for dinner number 6 and to make a change of pace.

Dinner number 7 will probably be a wild card — either a soup and salad (with the cheap Chunky soup I bought two weeks ago for 49 cents each) or a replay of one of my “cook once, eat twice dinners” (I’m thinking this bratwurst casserole I made this past week with the brats I got on special for $1.49.)

And with that, I’m done. I will probably spend about $15 or less using the egg, cheese and produce specials, and I was not victim to the hike in grocery prices this week. A little planning and being creative can net you so much in the end! Sounds like a dang good menu plan to me!

I’ve never been one to go out to eat — to me, it’s a treat or time to socialize with friends, but not just a means of getting nourishment. And let me tell you, we save a lot of money this way.

If I do go out, I try to enjoy something I would not make myself, because I can’t get over how simple a good dinner is to make — and so much cheaper. Tonight we had London Broil, steamed broccoli and smashed red potatoes. The total cost for two people? $3! That’s $1.50 per person! Try to get that dinner at a restaurant for less than $5 for two people!

There was no huge preparation time. One hour max. But what it illustrates is how you can eat so well at home as long as you match what’s on sale with what you eat that week (or beyond).

The “beyond” means often you can stock up and freeze meats, veggies and other items when they are at their lowest price and enjoy later. Ground beef, for instance, has not been on special for a couple weeks. Consequently, my menu plans have eliminated it for awhile. This week, London Broil was an incredible deal, so we had steak tonight, and I plan on making beef stew with another part. The remainder will go in the freezer to enjoy when it’s two times as much. (I paid $1.44 a pound with a store special and store Ecoupon.)

I got the broccoli for 50 cents a pound today and the red potatoes for 33 cents a pound last week. Today, I picked up a 10 pound bag of russet potatoes for 99 cents, so those will be the carb du jour for the next week or so.

But by matching specials and menu plans, I was able to make the dinner pictured for less than $3, and it was dang good.

One of the fastest ways in which to save money is to avoid eating out as much as possible. I have even massaged this savings strategy even more so by stocking up on fast convenience items so as to avoid the $1 fast-food value menu runs when I am absolutely starving. Instead, I save at least 50 percent by having Hot Pockets, frozen taquitos, and individual pizzas at home that I can have ready to eat in 3 minutes or less. These are not everyday foods, but ones I have in emergencies when I can’t wait any longer to eat, and, of course, I only buy when I can net a great deal at the grocery store. For instance, the Red Baron individual pizzas I got for 50 cents apiece on Friday with a store special, store coupon and Internet coupon. Those went right in the freezer for such emergencies.

Saving money is not about netting the one big deal; it’s a conglomeration of planning, looking ahead and building small amount of savings into something substantial — like tonight’s dinner and what was left in our bank account.

Geez louise, I thought I lucked out in December when Olay offered to reimburse the total price of two body lotions, but a new offer just came out that’s just as sweet! Receive a $15 rebate when you purchase three Olay products before March 12. I did the deal today, and actually made money!

I got two big bottles of body wash and another bottle of body lotion today at Rite Aid for a total cost of $19.49. I then used two manufacturer coupons from the January 17 Proctor and Gamble coupon insert to net $2 off the lotion and $1 off the body wash, bringing the cost down to $16.49. With the rebate, I am now paying $1.49 for three items. Woo-hoo! But then I added in a $5 off $25 Rite Aid purchase, and when all was said and done, I got paid 2 cents to buy everything in the photo, when I used one rebate, one more manufacturer coupon an and Internet coupon for the soup available at Campbellskitchen.com! $25.45 in merchandise for free! Sweet!

Even if you used no coupons, but just looked for a good sale, you still should be able to get three Olay products for only $1 apiece. Still dang good. I also just saw that if you do some good shopping at Walmart, you can make even more money on this deal! This one is a sweet deal!

Eligible products are Olay facial moisturizers, facial treatments, facial cleansers, hand and body lotions, body washes or 6+ bar soap packs. Just fill out this form with the UPC codes for all products and include the original receipt (with the items and prices circled) and you’re on your way to making a great deal! The purchases may be made separately but prior to March 12. The form and receipt(s) must be postmarked by March 26. Only one offer per household.

Special thanks goes out to For the Mommas blog for tipping me off on this great deal.

These are one of those high-value coupons I love. This one is for a free bottle of any kind of Excedrin up to $5.99.

Just go to this link and answer one question, and the good folks at Excedrin will send you a coupon in the mail.

I love these kind of offers. Just last week I got a free package of Oreos (a $3.29 value) and a bottle of International Delight creamer (a $2.49 value). Gotta love free.

Thanks to Melissa at Savings Cents with Sense blog for tipping me off on this one.

Sorry for the holiday hiatus … lots to do, but I am back with a very eye-opening, personal post. And that is how being financially savvy can save your budget.

I am going to be sharing a lot of personal information here, but it shows very clearly that by watching your money, you can make it!

As you may know, my income dropped to one-fifth of what I was living on before — and I still watched my money then. What’s the numbers? I averaged a little over $100,000 for about four years, and have been living on $22,500 a year for the last two years, and only $7,000 in 2007. The reason? Need I say more? Real estate meltdown.

But we are surviving and with a very little impact on our day-to-day life! Sure, the days of 15-night cruises to Hawaii are history, but I still managed a three-night one to Ensenada this year!

The best news is that for the first time in two years, I did not need to pull $10,000 from savings in January to give me a head start on the coming year (and by that, I mean, I was out of money). I take that as a huge victory, and I chalk that up to the fact that my budget-saving measures are working — and well!

Not only that, I have six months’ living expenses in the bank!

To answer a couple questions/doubts, I am not living on credit cards. My total balance is less than $700 (and that was for real estate association fees). I’ve resigned myself I cannot pay those off in one fell swoop, but with a chunk payment here and there, I can pay ‘em off in a matter of three to four months.

I last hit savings in January 2009 for $10,000. Otherwise, it is intact (and actually improved, thanks to a stock market uptick).

How am I doing it? It’s the cumulative effect of watching our budget — and looking for savings wherever I can.

Here are some salient points on how I did it:

Bottom line — I ran $198 negative this year. Now that’s do-able. I just ran the numbers, and by just doing the above, I saved a little under $8,500. This underscores now what I know — why didn’t I need to hit savings for $10,000 this year! I just wish I would have done these measures even earlier, but I am so proud of myself.

Want an even better picture of how watching your money is a job — the savings I made this year is as if I worked 24+ hours a week all year long (tax free!) at a minimum wage job!

I hope this post gives you inspiration. It sure showed me that what I am doing is working!

Now this is too cool a rebate to pass up!!

Purchase any Olay Quench Body Lotion (other than travel size) before January 29, 2010, and get reimbursed for its total cost! And you can do this rebate twice! (You just need to submit the form separately, so have ‘em ring it up separately, if you do this.)

We all know lotion is costly, and Olay is a good brand. This rebate is worth bucks! It looks like the lotion is about $6 a bottle.

This is a great rebate for the cost of a stamp! I am getting rebates nearly weekly, so try it! And, in this case, it’s a totally free product!

Click here to get the link for the form.