(ARA) – Think it’s tough managing your grocery budget and making the most of family mealtime? Meet Kathryn Sansone, a St. Louis mother of 10 who, along with her husband, puts dinner on the table six nights a week. If anyone knows the value of stretching the dinner table dollar, it’s the woman who sets a table for 12 almost every night of the week.
“Cooking for my family is not just about feeding them — it’s another way my husband and I express love to our kids,” says Sansone. “We’ve always used our dinners as a special time for being together each day. The same is true even in today’s economy; we just have to get a little more creative.”
While most families don’t have a table full of 10 Sansone children, ages 3 to 20, they are still faced with the same challenge at dinnertime: finding something that everyone likes while not breaking the bank. Sansone says that her recipe for success isn’t really all that complicated.
“Everywhere you look, Americans are seeking value,” says Sansone. “As we dine out less and watch our pennies more, we’re becoming bargain shoppers who want our dollars to go as far as possible. But even in this new ‘food economy,’ it’s important that people understand they do not need to compromise on taste, quality or convenience when living on a budget.”
Sansone’s tips include:
* Plan Ahead — Between the soccer practices and piano lessons, dinner is often an afterthought. Instead, schedule your family’s dinners just as you would your kids’ after school activities. You’ll save money by making just one trip to the grocery or club store, and when you go, try buying in bulk and take advantage of the many coupons available. Even at the regular supermarket, buy in larger quantities, like when there is a 10 for $10 sale on Rice-A-Roni or Pasta-Roni.
* Turn Sides Upside Down — Typical side dishes, such as rice and pasta, are ideal for stretching your grocery budget because you can quickly turn them into main courses. Use holiday leftovers such as chicken or turkey and combine with a pre-packaged dish and add leftover veggies. You’ll end up with a nice, well-rounded meal for a family of five that costs about an additional 64 cents per serving.
Here’s one of the Sansone family’s favorites using leftover turkey to make a delicious Wild Rice Risotto:
Turkey and Wild Rice Risotto
Ingredients:
1 package (4.3 ounces) Rice-A-Roni Long Grain & Wild Rice
3/4 pound ground turkey
1 2/3 cup water
1 tablespoon margarine, butter or spread with no trans fat
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 cups fresh mushroom slices
1 cup thinly sliced celery
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
Preparation Steps:
1. In large skillet, brown ground turkey until thoroughly cooked; drain. In same skillet, combine 1 2/3 cups water, 1 Tbsp. margarine, rice mix, seasonings and turkey. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low.
2. Cover; simmer 20 minutes. Stir in soup, mushrooms, celery and bell pepper; return to a simmer. Cover; simmer 5 to 10 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Let stand 3 minutes. Stir before serving.
Preparation Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 30 Minutes
Time to Table: 40 Minutes
Recipe Yield: 6 people
Rely on a good source — Finding fun and unique dishes to prepare doesn’t mean starting from scratch. Sansone notes that a favorite Chipotle Rice and Chicken Chili recipe actually came from the Rice-A-Roni Web site. She often visits sites such as www.ricearoni.com to see what other meats and veggies can be combined to create a variety of dishes as well as find exclusive coupons.
Courtesy of ARAcontent
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The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to implement new things into your life. People have been known to start new diets, look for new jobs, and even new homes. It only stands to reason, then, that the beginning of a new year is the perfect time for a new addition to your family: a family budget.
In an ideal family budget situation, the family would get together on a regular basis to plan the next budget cycle. Monthly meetings and budgets work wonderfully. At these meetings family members can discuss their anticipated needs for the next month, their projected income, and any concerns. Although everyone may not be able to work their desires into the budget, everyone will be able to share in the decision-making process.
Family budgets work much better than budgets prepared by one person for two different reasons. Firstly, the old adage that two heads are better than one is true. In fact, three or four heads are even better. If responsibility for the budget falls onto one person’s shoulders, he may forget to plan for irregular expenses like semi-annual insurance premiums, school supplies, or lawn care. By gathering the entire family together to create the budget, the family stands a better chance of not allowing anything to fall through the cracks.
Family budgets also work well because the entire family is vested in these types of budgets. In households where the budget is dictated to most of the family, each member may resent having all of their spending decisions made by someone else. However, by working through the kinks of the budget as a family, each member of the family will know that his concerns and needs were considered during the creation of the budget.
The process of creating a family budget can, of course, be tweaked to fit each individual family. Families with very young children may prefer to leave them out of the monthly budget process. In these cases, the adults will simply handle the finances themselves. However, as the kids age, they should be integrated into the process as they become old enough o understand what is going on.
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The idea of creating a family budget can be pretty scary. If you’re not good with numbers, you may consider this basic task to be a lot tougher than it really is. Really, though, the act of creating a budget doesn’t have to be horrible. By following a few simple steps, you can have a family budget that will serve you and your entire family very well.
Start by determining what your income is. For most people, this task is as easy as taking a look at your pay stub. Self-employed people however will need to work a little harder at estimating their income. Looking at the previous year’s tax return is a good place to start.
Now, you’ll need to decide how much you have to spend each month. Mortgage or rent payments, utilities (although these vary from month to month, you can estimate an average monthly amount), and debt payments will all need to be included in this figure. The idea is to work out exactly how much of your money is already committed each month. If you are afraid you’re going to forget something, try looking through your bank statements from the previous year.
Flexible spending should also be accounted for during the budget process. For instance, you know that you’re going to spend money at the grocery store each month. You should also include estimates for things like fuel for your car or clothing for you and the kids. Don’t be tempted to budget a bare bones amount that is unrealistic. Be honest and allocate funds accordingly.
Finally, don’t forget to set some savings expectations in your budget. You’re going to want to set up an emergency fund, as well as saving for big ticket purchases you plan to make later. Retirement and college savings plans should also factor into this part of your budget.
Hopefully, when you subtract all of the expenses and savings contributions you planned from your monthly income you haven’t exceeded your income. If you have, then you’ll need to go back and try to find some excess in your budget.
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