Beating Broke

Personal Finance from the Broke Perspective

4 Meals from the Pantry to Save Money

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Woman looking at her pantry shelves and grabbing a jar

If you’re like me, you may find it harder and harder to stay within the grocery budget as food costs skyrocket due to inflation. So I try to find nutritious recipes that aren’t expensive. In addition, to save money, I try to have one week where I don’t make a complete grocery shopping trip and instead only buy some fresh fruits and vegetables and make my meals from the pantry to save money. Doing this allows me to use up what I have and stretch my grocery dollars.

Our Favorite Meals from the Pantry to Save Money

These are the pantry meals we make during the weeks I skip grocery shopping:

Spaghetti

My kids don’t mind a pantry meal when the meal is spaghetti. So I buy pasta and pasta sauce when they’re on sale, and I purchase canned mushrooms at Costco. I mix them together for a quick, cheap meal.

We recently upped our spaghetti game by making Pizza in a Bowl (I left out the creamed soup and only used half the cheese.) I was amazed at how this meal stretched—we had it for two meals!

Breakfast for Dinner

Omelette with mushrooms

Another favorite is breakfast for dinner. We might have omelets with green peppers and cheese and a piece of toast. Or, if we have many bread heels in the freezer, we make French toast and eggs. Sometimes we make a breakfast sandwich with ham, egg, and cheese on toast or an English muffin. Another economical recipe is Ham, Broccoli & Cheddar Frittata. (If money is tight, I leave out the ham, and it still tastes good.)

Broccoli, Potato, & Cheese Soup

I recently found this delicious recipe for Broccoli, Cheddar & Potato Soup. I like it because I can use frozen broccoli. (This recipe and the broccoli frittata recipe are the only ways I enjoy eating frozen broccoli.) Like Pizza in a Bowl, this recipe stretches and easily feeds the four of us for two meals.

Fried Rice

Another frugal yet filling meal is Chicken Fried Rice. We use a rotisserie chicken from Costco and save the bones to make homemade chicken stock. Since rotisserie chicken at Costco is only $4.99, the meat is cheap, and we add rice, frozen vegetables, a few eggs, and seasoning.

How We’re Able to Keep Our Meals Frugal

For years, I’ve stocked up on items when they’re on sale, so I pay the lowest price for groceries. We have a pantry in our basement, two deep freezers, and two refrigerators so we can keep a full supply.

When ground beef is on sale, I may buy 20 or 25 pounds. We have food intolerances and can’t eat dairy, so when our favorite vegan cheese, Daiya, goes on sale, I may buy 20 bags. Then I won’t buy any more until it’s on sale again. If we run out before it goes on sale, we do without until the next sale.

Shopping this way makes having a pantry cooking week easy.

Final Thoughts

Keeping within our allotted grocery budget is getting more challenging every month. One way we rein in expenses is by making meals from the pantry to forego a weekly shopping trip once a month.

Read More

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5 Tips to Save on Groceries This Year

How You Can Avoid Loss of Income

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As a hardworking individual, the last thing that you want is to lose your income in a way that could have been prevented. Since most of what you do as an adult is towards securing your finances, you want to make sure that there’s minimal risk of something happening to them. Read on to see some actions that you can take to avoid a loss of income that could leave you in financial distress for years to come.

Maintain a Clean Home

One of the most important things that anyone can do for their continued good health is to keep their home clean and tidy at all times. Doing this could lower the chances of infections and diseases spreading to people in the home. This is backed by the fact that flu viruses can survive for up to 48 hours on hard surfaces.

There are many other disease-causing organisms that can linger around your home for a long time if you’re not careful. With health care being as expensive as it currently is, it’s important to take measures to keep the chances of coming down with something low for you and your family. When you do this, you may end up spending fewer finances on treating various issues.

Ensure Your Business Is Run Professionally

If you run a business either as a side hustle or it’s your main job, you must do it right. When you do, you’ll have a better chance of not just avoiding losing money, but you’ll also be likely to make more money. Avoid making mistakes such as failing to ensure your website is running optimally. This is important since up to 42% of people wouldn’t hesitate to leave a website whose functionality was poor. Clearly, it’s a good idea to hire the right professionals at every level of your business.

While doing this will see you spend money, you’ll have a great chance of getting this money back down the road. This should motivate you to plan your business operations carefully, ensuring that every last detail is thought about and dealt with the right way. This is going to help you avoid mistakes that could see you losing a lot of money and potentially even having to shut your business down in the end.

Take Care of Your Health

As mentioned, healthcare can be expensive. This makes it a good idea to practice prevention rather than wait to cure a full-blown issue. To this end, paying your doctor and dentist regular visits is advisable. This way, you can easily have any health issues identified and dealt with before they become expensive and time-consuming to solve. Keep in mind that almost 137.1 million Americans, according to CNBC, have gone through financial hardship this year as a result of medical costs.

Clearly, you stand to save a good amount of money by ensuring that you’re always in good health. The moment any issue is identified, you need to deal with it before it gets out of hand. Otherwise, there won’t be an advantage in finding out about issues early. Don’t try to cut corners where your health is involved. Pair regular visits to your health care professionals with eating healthy, nutritious meals, and staying physically active. These are all measures that can help you get your health in the best possible shape.

Taking these actions can help you avoid a loss of income in a number of ways. Start with one measure and practice it to perfection and then work on the others. In the end, you may be able to control your finances and avoid loss of income that could affect your lifestyle in a negative way.

7 Reasons You Need to Have an Emergency Fund

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If you’re currently having a tough time managing your finances, having an emergency fund in place can help you stay afloat. Setting up an emergency fund means that you’ll always have some money to lean on during extreme financial difficulties. Many people rely on their emergency fund when they lose a job or are forced to cover an unexpected expense. Here’s an overview of why it’s beneficial to set up an emergency fund.

1. You Don’t Follow a Strict Budget

Perhaps you have started trying to establish a strict budget, but you forget to cover some of the monthly expenses. If you become overwhelmed due to the state of your finances, you can rely on your emergency fund. You can adjust your emergency fund as your financial needs change over time.

2. You Only Have One Primary Source of Income

Establishing an emergency fund is important if you only have primary sources of income that you rely on to meet all of your needs. Things may become tight if you suffer an unexpected illness that prevents you from working for an extended period of time. Perhaps you suffer a tooth injury that causes severe pain, and you’re forced to take time off work or cover an unexpected expense. According to recent stats, almost 50% of adults over 30 have some form of periodontal disease.

3. Car Issues

One of the most significant financial emergencies that people deal with is car issues. Perhaps your engine breaks down out of nowhere, or you’re involved in a serious accident. While auto insurance should assist with some of the repair costs, you may still be responsible for covering your deductible. Things may get complicated if you’re going through a tight financial situation. Having an emergency fund in place protects you and ensures that you won’t do any short-term damage to your finances. Having an emergency fund also covers you if you are held liable for causing damage to another vehicle. Perhaps, the impacted party decides to sue you. You’ll need money to defend yourself in court. Keep in mind that recent data highlights over 30% of people who can’t make bail on their own will have their case resolved or dismissed.

4. Emergency Home Expenses

Perhaps you’re living comfortably with your spouse and a couple of children. According to a recent study, over 90% percent of people get married before the age of 50 in the United States. As a homeowner, you’re responsible for performing regular maintenance. Perhaps unexpected plumbing or HVAC issues arise. Covering these repairs can get expensive, which is why establishing an emergency fund is beneficial. This way, you can relax if an unexpected home repair issue arises because you have the funds to take care of it.

5. Cover a Large Tax Bill

Filing taxes is generally unpredictable. One year you may receive a refund and the next you may owe some money. You may be surprised to learn that you filed a significant amount of money. If your finances are limited, you could rely on your emergency fund to pay your taxes.

6. Unexpected Travel

If you have to make an emergency trip to visit a loved one, covering last-minute transportation costs is generally expensive. You can rely on your emergency fund during these tough times. You don’t want your finances to stand in the way of you getting a chance to spend time with your loved ones.

7. You Have a Long-Term Goal You’re Trying to Reach

Finally, you could be saving money to start your own business or purchase a new car. You’ll need stable finances in order to accomplish long-term goals. One unexpected emergency could prevent you from accomplishing your goals or extend the time it takes to reach them. However, relying on an emergency fund during troubling can help stabilize your financial situation.

There are multiple positive benefits to establishing an emergency fund. You can prevent a minor setback from damaging your long-term financial situation. Remember these tips as you look to build your fund.