The Thrifty, Frugal Mom

We all know that food costs money- probably more money than most of us would like! So really every time you throw out food essentially you are throwing out money. And even those "little" wastes add up. In fact, I think we'd be surprised if we kept track of how much food we throw out in a month. (Maybe I should actually do that and report back to you!)

If you are like me you find yourself throwing out more food than you care to admit. My biggest problem is simply having little containers of stuff in the fridge that I forget about and end up having to throw out because they spoiled. Every time it frustrates me and I promise myself I'm going to do better. But I keep failing and keep learning.

Here are some of the things I've learned that have helped me waste less food.

1. Use your freezer. If you have leftovers or food that you don't think you're going to be able to use before it goes bad, put it in the freezer right away. Then you can easily pull it out when you need it and it will taste better than if it had sat in the fridge that whole time. Plus, it won't have spoiled on you!

2. Buy reasonably. When shopping, know how much you will use of perishable items and buy accordingly. Just because lettuce is on sale for an incredible price doesn't mean you should buy 3 heads. Remember, if you are throwing food out, you aren't saving a thing.

3. Save that stale bread. Make homemade croutons from it or toast the bread and then crumble it to make homemade bread crumbs.

4. Don't throw out that half drunk glass of milk or juice. If your child doesn't drink all of his beverage, put it in the fridge and pull it out later when he's thirsty. True, it might not seem like much to throw out, but those little things really DO add up!

5. Label leftovers. This might seem silly but it has helped me immensely to label any container that is not see through. I simply use a piece of masking tape and write on it with Sharpie. Then I am constantly reminded as I shuffle around in the fridge what all is in there and needs to be used.

To be continued....