The Art of Leftover Wizardry

I first published this post to Living the Low-Income Life on the 13th of this month. Older children can easily throw together a simple meal with these ideas.

On page 133 of Amy Dycyzynz book The Complete Tightwad Gazette, she discusses the art of leftover wizardry. This is an important concept when trying to live frugally.

She mentions things like:

• Using leftovers for lunches.
• Keeping a soup container in the freezer.
• Pot luck nights.

When freezing leftovers, I tend to do three things:

1. Freeze leftover vegetables in 1 container.
2. Freeze leftover meats in another container.
3. Freeze vegetable, meat and pasta juice in another container.

With these three containers of food, I can make a variety of foods:

1. Casseroles
2. Sauces
3. Cat Stew (for our kitties)
4. Soups/stews
5. Mini meatloaf

What ideas can you come up with?

Shannon

Cappuccino

Image by Leo Reynolds via Flickr

Here is another coffee recipe for your enjoyment. Again, this can be used as a gift for a coffee lover.

Ingredients:

1 c nonfat dry milk powder

3/4 c sugar

1/2 c coffee grounds, instant

1/2 tsp orange peel, crushed well

1. Mix it all together.
2. Put through the blender.
3. Use 2 Tbsp per 1 cup of hot water.

Shannon

Swiss Mocha

Image via Wikipedia

Here is another mocha recipe for coffee lovers. This recipe can be used as a gift for coffee lovers as well.

Ingredients:

1 c nonfat dry milk powder

1/2 c sugar

1/2 c coffee grounds, instant

2 Tbsp cocoa

1. Mix it all together.
2. Put through the blender.
3. Use 2 Tbsp for each 4 ounces of hot water.

Shannon

Mocha Espresso

Image via Wikipedia

Many people enjoy mocha. Even though I am not one of those people, I am offering up this recipe to you. It can actually be found on page 128 of Amy Dycyzyns The Complete Tightwad Gazette.

Ingredients:

4 1/2 c nonfat dry milk

1 c coffee grounds, instant

1 c sugar

1/2 c cocoa

1. Mix it all together.
2. Put through the blender.
3. Use 2 Tbsp for each small cup of hot water.

This is another mix that would make a great gift for a coffee lover.

Shannon

Cafe Vienna

Image via Wikipedia

My daughter, Zowie, loves coffee. I do not. Well, I love the smell of the grounds, and I love the smell of the coffee when it is percolating, but it makes breath smell stinky and I do not like the taste of it.

For those who do:

Ingredients:

2/3 c sugar

2/3 c nonfat dry milk powder

1/2 c coffee grounds, instant

1/2 to 1 tsp cinnamon

1. Mix it all together.
2. Put through the blender.
3. Mix about 2 tsp of this with a cup of hot water.

This mix would make a great gift for any coffee lover.

Shannon

Syrup

Syrup is great on pancakes, waffles and french toast. We do not ea these foods often, but it is nice to have a recipe on hand for syrup when we decide that we want to.

This recipe can be reduced to what you need. This is an easy one for children and teens who do not need much supervision.

Ingredients:

3 c. sugar

1 1/2 c. water

3 Tbsp molasses (You may like more or less)

1 tsp vanilla

q tsp maple extract (you can experiment with this as well)

• Put everything a pot and bring to a good rolling boil. Be sure sugar is dissolved.
• Stir often.
• Turn off burner.
• Leave pot on burner until it is no longer bubbling.

Shannon

Frugal Recipes Goals for 2010

I have goals for this blog that I hope I will be able to accomplish this year.

Frugal Recipes Goals:

1. Update this site.
2. Write eBooks containing all recipes up to December 31st, 2009.
3. Clear the site of old posts to make room for new posts.
4. Add more links to places that can help people during hard times.

Happy New Year!

Shannon