Three ways to create cash in the kitchen now
For many of us, times are hard and cash is lean. For some of us cash may even be nonexistent. Here are three quick and easy ways to create more cash in your budget by driving by the restaurant and heading home.
As a financial planner, I’ve come to discover that generally the number one cash buster for most families is dining out. For some reason, our society has come to believe that eating out is better than eating in. I beg to differ. Homemade food is so much better for our bodies than food prepared in a restaurant that’s full of fat, sodium, sugar, and other ingredients that we simply do not need. And obviously the subject at hand is saving money which is difficult to do in a restaurant. Excessive dining out is generally the most wasteful use of cash. With a little ingenuity and dedication, you can create fun and tasty meals that your family will enjoy. In many cases, what prohibits families from eating at home is time. Here are three suggestions to reduce cash spent on eating out.
1. Buy a crockpot. (Don’t laugh. I’m serious.) When I was a child my mother used a crockpot faithfully. I remember coming home from school and the house smelled divine. For the next couple of hours I could hardly wait to eat dinner because of the delicious aroma emanating from that crockpot. Some of my favorite meals were chicken cacciatore, spaghetti and meatballs, pot roast, and vineyard chicken, a tasty blend of white wine, butter, and onions. You can buy a crockpot for less than $10 these days, and for bargain hunters, a couple bucks. With a multitude of recipes available online, there is no end to delicious and tasty recipes your family will enjoy.
2. The second idea involves the entire family and a commitment of time. I called the suggestion the “weekend cook-off.” Prior to going to the market to purchase your groceries, create a list of the meals that you would like to enjoy that week. From that list, create a shopping list of the items that you need to have on hand to create those meals. (Creating a list prevents you from impulse buying and spending money that you might not otherwise have). While shopping-stick to the list. Shortly thereafter, schedule a block of time for the family to prepare meals for the week and freeze them for easy preparation during the week when time is short. When I was practicing this method of cash savings, I often made lasagna, meat loaf, stroganoff (without the noodles), hamburgers, and my favorite vineyard chicken. My family loved these recipes. All I had to do was take the item out of the freezer prior to going to work that morning for easy preparation that night in the microwave or oven.
Now of course, we were able to save money by bypassing McDonald’s, Steak and Ale, and Acapulco’s, but the real benefit came with the family fun that followed. Needless to say, we had our fair share of food fights, tasty disasters, and memorable menus. We generally followed up the weekend cookoff with baking fresh cookies or a pie or cake. That was our special dessert; ice cream was the dessert at the end of the week when the fresh made cookies and pies were gone. The memories we created as a family will stay with us forever. The habits that we created in our children are with them today.
3. This last suggestion I like to call family fun night. With my family this involved inviting over another family or two to share in the festivities. We usually met with the same families so we would rotate the event from one family’s home to another. Generally, we would go and purchase pizzas that were pre-made but not baked at the local discount membership warehouse, such as a Costco or Sam’s Club. I know we purchased extra-large pizzas for less than eight dollars; we could buy three pizzas for less than $25. The second family was in charge of bringing the beverages both non-alcoholic for the children and alcoholic for the adults. The third family was in charge of dessert — many times this was homemade cupcakes, brownies à la mode, or make your own sundaes. For entertainment, we either rented movies or played games. Again the main purpose was to save money, however the unexpected byproduct was the relationships, memories, and joy that was created in the process. Just try playing Pictionary with your five-year-old and friends. It’s a hilarious time and very difficult not to enjoy.
You too can save money and build family memories by simply choosing to do so and employing these three tips. I encourage you to find other ways that are fun and enjoyable to save your cash. The choice is yours.
© 2009 Start Smart Advisor
