food and drink

Sorry Starbucks (and you too, Tim Hortons) but now that I know I have the secret ingredient to making my own Starbucks Frappachino™ in my cupboard right now, you are not getting my nickels this summer.

If you're up for the challenge, you can find a lot of greens in your back yard or on the boulevards that are edible and can add some welcome diversity to your plate and diet. Plus, there's the zero mile/locavore angle, too!

Weather, fuel costs, and other issues are finally catching up this year and economists are warning of steep increases in food prices. What can you do to insulate yourself from the rising costs?

If you're frugal through the rest of the year, Thanksgiving shouldn't be a reason to deviate, but sometimes the added pressure of extended family can make it tempting. Here's a few tips to help you make it through without breaking the bank.

Once again, I find myself overwhelmed with green tomatoes at the end of the season. Not wanting to be wasteful, I went in search of ways to use them. Last year I pickled most of them but we've yet to use all of those so I wanted to make something else. Here's some ideas I found:

Whether you've got kids in school or you're a starving student or just want some variety in your own lunches, consider some of these options for frugal lunches:
1. Don't buy the "lunchbox packs" -- single servings of cookies, crackers, raisins, applesauce or whatever -- they cost more and add needless packaging. Instead, buy a bigger bag/box/jar and portion them out into re-usable containers.
2. Better yet, make your own. Whether it's cookies, bars, trail mix or even pudding, chances are you can make more for less than the package and you'll know exactly what's in it. (see recipe links below)
3. Get a decent insulated food jar (e.g. wide mouth Thermos Food Jar) and send soup, pasta or leftovers (our daughter loves almost any casserole) -- we heat the food in the morning and it stays warm until lunch.
4. Speaking of leftovers, cold pizza goes a long way. Whenever we make a batch we make enough for lunches, too.
5. Invest in a Tiffin or Bento Box (or six -- they're addictive) and start building little meals one bite at a time. Check out Flickr for bento-style lunch inspiration -- groups like Bento Lunch Box Recipes are packed with ideas!

 I was asked by an out-of-town reader for suggestions of frugal places to eat downtown. I put out the question to my other readers and decided it needed to be a section on the site. I've divided the suggestions by meal-type, basically:
For breakfast:

Join CBC host Sook-yin Lee for an exploration of being "cheap," where she asks: does being "cheap" really pay off? (Originally aired Saturday March 6, 2010). Followup show airs March 16th.

Listen here: http://www.cbc.ca/dnto/MT/2010/03/listen_to_dnto_mar_6_on_the_ch.html

Some of what's discussed:

Our current home is surrounded by plum trees. Problem is, I don't much like fresh plums. I pulled out my canning books and scoured the internet and found a few recipes to use the bucketsful of plums I was collecting off our trees.

TIP: for large plums, like the Italian Prune Plums on our biggest tree, use egg cartons to store them in the fridge and keep them from getting squished. 

Getting groceries can be a time-consuming and frustrating task -- especially when you are on a tight budget. Even now that grocery stores now put their flyers online, it can be tedious going to each site to check for the weekly deals. 

If you don't get the weekly newspapers there are some other options:

Flyerland.ca -- sign up and receive local grocery flyers (or almost any flyer) weekly.