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Family Feasts for $75 a Week |
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Written by Michelle
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When my editor handed me this new cookbook to review, I immediately dove in. With a title like Family Feasts for $75 a Week, how could anyone resist? The book claims to be for "families everywhere [who] are struggling to buy nutritious food for their children without going broke." I'm pretty sure that includes every one of our readers. It definitely includes me!
 Author Mary Ostyn is a self-proclaimed "black-belt budget stretcher," and she's here to turn us into frugal shoppers. Within the first few pages, I found myself wondering, "Where has this book been my whole life?"
This is not just your average cookbook. Not only are there amazing recipes, (our family fave was the Pork Chops with Apricot Sauce) but it's almost like a thrifty survival guide: a meal-planning workbook. Mary's friendly writing style is encouraging and made me feel ready to tackle the supermarket.
Mary suggests that to save big, you must dream big. If you have a goal in mind as to what you'll do with the money you save, you will be much more likely to stick to your budget. So the next time you're tempted to order take-out, just close your eyes and think about the incredible beach vacation you could afford with all the money you save. The idea is not to deprive yourself, but to improve yourself with good spending habits.
But Mary doesn't expect her readers to change overnight. That is why she provides action points at the end of each chapter--easy goals to accomplish, one step at a time. She shows us the simple steps to building our own price book, a quick, go-to guide for the best prices in town, and encourages us to make small changes each month.
Among many priceless tips and tricks, the real gem for me was putting a paper towel in with my leftover produce. The paper towel soaks up extra moisture and makes veggies last much longer. I tried it with a half of a bell pepper. Several days later, I was shocked to find it just as fresh and crisp as the day I brought it home from the market.
Another trick is to have some sort of bread item at every meal. It may be a shame to fill up on bread at a restaurant, but at home, it can help stretch your dinner dollars. I'm a soul food girl, so there was rarely a meal growing up that we didn't have fresh bread, biscuits, or muffins of some sort. I couldn't believe I had forgotten how great a corn muffin was with my meal. And so inexpensive to make!
I highly recommend Family Feasts for $75 a Week for any parent wanting to shave up to 50% off their weekly grocery budget. You're not just getting a volume of recipes, you're getting a personal coach. Mary is with you every step of the way, from supermarket to kitchen, whispering in your ear, "It can be done!"
Family Feasts for $75 a Week
Buy now on Amazon.com
www.oxmoorhouse.com
ISBN-10: 0848732960
ISBN-13: 978-0848732967
288 pages / 9" x 7.5" x 0.9"
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