I spend a majority of my day in the kitchen and I have been searching for ways to decrease my cost of baking and cooking. Here are a few tricks that I do to save money in the kitchen:
Make Your Own PAM Cooking Spray
Just the other day I ran out of generic PAM you know the vegetable oil in a spray can, and of corse because I make my own cleaners I had an extra new spray bottle sitting around the house. So I cleaned it out and filled it with vegetable oil! Viola! I now have my own PAM and for pennies compared to the generic $1.97 can that I buy from the local grocer!
Avoid Using Paper Towels
I used to use paper towels for everything from drying my hands to cleaning up the messes my kids made on the floor. Now I use dish towels. I have even gone so far as to sew my own apron that is made out of a towel so I always have one with me to dry my hands. (I do make them to sell by the way.) We have managed to go from 3 rolls of paper towel a week down to one!
Stop Using Disposable Antibacterial Wipes to Clean the Counter
I used to use Clorox wipes all of the time to sanitize my kitchen and table. I have done away with this practice and begun using bleach mixed with water to sanitize my kitchen surfaces. I keep a mixture of this in a spray bottle as well so I don’t need to mix a whole sink full if I am cleaning a small area. Simply spray it and then wipe it up with a clean dish rag! The best proportion to use is 1/2 cup of bleach to 1 gallon of water. Remember this mixture will take color out of clothing so be careful with it.
Buying Baking Products in Bulk
I bake things from scratch a lot! Pizza crust, bread, biscuits, cakes, muffins, rolls, cinnamon rolls, corn bread pancakes and waffles are all things I make from scratch regularly! I have found that buying my baking supplies in Bulk from Sam’s club not only saves me money on my grocery bill but also saves me extra trips to the store which in turn save me money on gas and also my valuable time. I can get a 25 LB bag of flour for around $7.00 at Sam’s Club versus a 5 LB bag of flour from the local grocer for around $2 on sale! Things That I have found are much cheaper to buy in bulk are: Flour, Sugar, Brown Sugar, Yeast, Chicken Bullion, Baking Powder, Corn Starch, Cocoa, Butter, Cheese, Vinegar, Vegetable Oil, Olive Oil and Spices. Now you are thinking how in the world does she store 25 LBs of flour and sugar? Well that is simple, I store it in a 5 gallon bucket with a lid. I freeze the cheese and usually use up the butter well before its expiration date!
Now I encourage you to not only try to try my tricks for saving money but also see what you can do to cut your costs in the kitchen!
Everyday Frugal Mama 