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How to: Freezer Bacon and Cheese Egg Wraps

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Hey all! This post is about one of my favorite recipes for the freezer to date- bacon and cheese egg wraps!  Honestly, making up a bunch of these and freezing them for myself is one of the nicest things I’ve done for myself in a long, long time! It’s an awesome way to have a quick and easy breakfast that really satisfies you if you have a long morning of meetings or running errands. If you are a non-pork eater, you can easily substitute a turkey bacon alternative. I have even heard of vegan friends making tofu and veggie scramble and a non-lard tortilla (yes, a lot of traditional tortillas are made with lard but not so much for store bought). The trick to executing this well and not having soggy tortillas is to cook everything and then cool it down to room temperature before assembling your wraps. This is also…

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In cheap eats

Burst Tomato Penne with Kale

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Hi! Today’s post is a quick and easy vegetarian dinner option that is so, so delicious and super healthful. This recipe is pretty close to my spaghetti squash with tomatoes and zucchini, but it’s a bit more indulgent and not gluten free. The combination of tomatoes, tomato paste, kale, minced onions and garlic, italian herbs and fresh basil is simmered with parmesan rind and then topped with grated parmesan and fresh basil. If you follow me on Instagram then you know this photo is one of my most liked, and it’s of this recipe! Burst Tomato Penne with Kale $0.80 per serving, $4.81 for 6 1/4 onion- $0.06 ~one pint of grape tomatoes -$2.47 1/2 a can of tomato paste- $0.33 previously frozen kale- $1.28 basil leaves- $0.67 Pantry items: parmesan rind (ask for it at the cheese counters, sometimes it’s free), salt, pepper, garlic, italian seasoning Start by chopping your…

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In cheap eats

What’s In Season for Produce

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One of the easiest ways to keep your food bill affordable is to shop what’s in season. While it’s pretty easy to crave a fresh, green salad in January, when you’re trying to keep your food costs under control, you have to think about when and how to indulge those cravings if you want to make serious cuts to your food bill. Here in Canada, we are so lucky to live in such an agricultural country. At this time of year you can find all sorts of things that haven’t had to be shipped from another area of the world and don’t have that added cost. I love visiting different farmers markets because what is available is by default what is in season. I can’t always afford to buy anything at the farmer’s market (it was $5.50 for a pound of peas this weekend!), but it is a great fact finding…

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In Lifestyle

Affordable Decor – Entertaining Dishes

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Now that I no longer have a roommate, I feel a bit more comfortable investing in pieces I love for the kitchen and entertaining. When people come into my house, I think there’s always quite a bit of surprise when they realize this girl that loves bows and sweet dresses has a home styled in an industrial-rustic way, with loads of black pieces and natural wood anchoring a bright, open space. I love this aesthetic because it allows me drop in mirrored pieces, touches of pink and pattern without my house screaming “single female”. Everything is functional, comfortable and durable for when I want to have a few friends over. When I bought my home I didn’t have much in the way of decor, and expensive projects like custom blinds sucked up all of my “fun” money I had laying around. When I realized things like dishes and glasses were being…

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In Food

Paella-ish

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It really shouldn’t be such a surprise that I’m so into paella that it’s my new favorite thing… it’s like Spanish risotto (only easier, hallelujah, because you just deglaze the pan and then add all of the liquid) and you just can’t go wrong with risotto. I’m calling this paella-ish because I’m sure I didn’t make this traditionally and that some true experts will find flaws in my execution, but at the end of the day this was as good as the paella I had out at a restaurant recently. I love the smokey, rich flavor that is present without the use of heavy oils, butters or cheeses. This paella base is one I kind of made up myself based on what I had in the fridge- carrots, red pepper, onion and garlic, then finished with a load of frozen spinach. I deglazed the pan with dry white wine, but…

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In cheap eats

35 Day No-Buy Recap!

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Hello! So my 35 day no-buy for groceries was officially over on Friday, but I didn’t go grab groceries until Sunday so here I am now, giving a bit of a recap on how 35 days of not buying groceries went. It went surprisingly well. In retrospect, I don’t know that I could have chosen an easier month to have a no-buy on, because there was both of my parent’s birthdays, Father’s Day, a family dinner in Red Deer, and a family dinner with friends that took care of five dinners, plus loads of opportunities to visit my parents, and my mum is the best and always feeds me. So there’s a bit of cheating there but it doesn’t entirely wipe out the significance of not buying any groceries from May 25th to July 3rd. So did I buy any groceries? Yes and no. I bought shrimp on sale…

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In Cheap Housekeeping

How-to: Keep your house cool

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I live in a three story townhouse, and my bed is on the third floor. Sometimes, it can get so, so hot and I’m tempted to turn tail and hide at my parent’s place, where I not only sleep in the cool basement but also they have air conditioning! While that compulsion isn’t so bad on the weekends when I don’t have to get too much done, during the week that means I have to get up about 30 minutes earlier and spend time packing work clothes/makeup to get ready in the morning, as well as drive into my house on the highway to tuck my car into the garage before walking to the bus station. It’s a lot of variables to add to an already hectic average work day, so I really try to keep my house cool to avoid doing that, as much as I love midweek visits…

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In cheap eats

Easy Flatbread

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Hey! Today’s post is a quick and easy snack inspired by a restaurant dish I love! On this particular day I had been helping out at my sister’s new place all day and everyone was going to have a Famoso flatbread (seriously, check it out!) at my parent’s place afterward, but I really needed to get home and get ready for the week. So, my mum helped me assemble all of the required ingredients to make something similar myself! This recipe isn’t an exact dupe- it uses flatout flatbreads (something my mum found at Safeway and I’m now obsessed with) and I wasn’t in the mood to make my own tatziki so I used a pre-packaged hummus. Since most of these ingredients were actually my mum’s (I think she felt a bit bad I had helped all day and wasn’t going to be there for the fun post-work snack), the…

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In DIY

How To: Plant Your Own Flower Pots

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Hey! Today I wanted to talk about something I do pretty much every year with my mum- custom flower pots. While my mum probably could afford to purchase pre-made planters and pots of flowers, she makes her own each year and says that the best way to save money on having a nice yard is to take the time to learn how to do it yourself. The type-A’s amoungst us will also appreciate that these are 100% customizable to your own color and varietal preference. So lets get started! When you’re within a day or two of having time to plant, get to the local greenhouse or big box store and start looking at plants. As you are looking, keep in mind where you’re wanting to put these plants- if they’re going in a shady area, find some that are shade lovers by reading the tags inserted in the…

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In cheap eats

Cous Cous Salad

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This easy multi-meal salad is perfect for when it’s hot out since you don’t need to really “cook” anything. You just need to wash your veggies, boil the kettle, and you’re good to go. This version isn’t vegetarian, but you could easily remove the chicken to make it vegetarian, or add a vegan cheese to make it vegan. When I’m making this salad, I keep everything separate until the end and then arrange the toppings because I love how it looks, but if you are in a rush just dump in as you go! Mediterranean Cous Cous Salad $6.81 for four, or $1.70 per serving 1 cup cous cous – $0.44 one can of chick peas – $0.77 one tomato – $0.85 half of a cucumber – $0.38 the juice and zest of one lemon – $0.87 salt, pepper, oregano and olive oil feta (or vegan option to your preference)…

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