I have started a long-term meal planning project, taking the weekly meal planning that I have been doing for years, and organizing it a bit more. Usually, I just use sheets of paper to plan things out, but lately, I’ve been hankerin’ for something a bit more “cool.”

This morning, on a whim, I did a search for Meal Planning Calendar (because a regular calendar just wouldn’t do, you know), and found the perfect solution quickly and easily.

Free Weekly Meal Planner & Monthly Menu Planner Templates

Downlad these templates for Excel FREE. Choose between weekly meal planning (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and monthly menu planning (main meal + sides). Print them out.

One of the things I love about this is that I use a Day Planner-style organizer, and this saves me from the indignity of paying 10x more for smaller sheets of paper. I can just print to the size I want and trim down.

If you don’t want your items in Excel, they also offer PDF printable versions of their planners, to just print and go – old style.

O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Thy stock is froze forever.
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Thy coldness leaves thee never.
Thy shell is rust and needs some prime,
But will be white by Christmas time.
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Thy stock is froze forever.

O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!
For every day the Chest Deep Freeze,
Offers up frozen food tast-yyyy.
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!

O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
I peruse thou wares nightly!
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
I peruse thou wares nightly!
Delicious dishes out of sight,
To save me from my time-strapped plight.
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
I peruse thou wares nightly!

O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Oh how you save me money!
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Oh how you save me money!
Thou dost save food already laid,
On lazy days we nuke homemade.
O Chest Deep Freeze, O Chest Deep Freeze,
Oh how you save me money!

On another networking site I participate in a participant in the foodies group asked what the coolest item in our kitchen is.

People were responding with such things as their Mandoline, Jenn-Aire, immersion blender, super-uber commercial mixer and the like. I felt a bit pedestrian when I responded with praise for my freezer, but it was from the heart:

“My freezer is the best tool I have. It allows me to cook multiples of a meal for eating later, so I get to the point of only having to cook as often as I want (2-3 times per week), and I can focus on cooking interesting, experimental meals more often, since my basics will always tide me through.

Oh, and it also allows me to take advantage of sales, either buying and freezing or buying and cooking and freezing when prices are low – again saving money so I can experiment on those recipes and techniques I adore.”

One of my favorite meals is Roast Chicken. It’s been a favorite for years, and I’ve long since perfected it, thanks to my NuWave Oven.

In addition to being healthy and tasty, another benefit is that I have leftover chicken to make into other meals. Leftover Chicken Enchiladas is one.

These are not traditional enchiladas, but still tasty, nonetheless, and have always been a big hit when I’ve made them.

Easy Leftover Chicken Enchiladas

Serving Size: 4
Cost Per Serving: ~97¢ per Enchilada
Preparation Time: 10 minutes hands-on, 45 minutes in the oven

Ingredients
2    cups   leftover chicken, shredded or chopped
14   oz   diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2   med   diced white onion
1/2    cup    sour cream
4    8″ tortillas
1    cup    Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (or Mexican blend)
salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, mix the chicken, diced tomatoes, onions, and sour cream. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Lightly spray a baking pan. Use 1/4 of the mixture to fill each tortilla. Roll up, tucking open end along the bottom, them top each with 1/4 of the cheese.

Bake for 45 minutes, until heated through, cheese is melted, and tortilla edges are crispy.

Notes: Some friends have tried seasoning the filling with Taco Seasoning as well, and liked it. I find that once I’ve properly seasoned the chicken, I don’t need much in the way of additional seasoning.I prefer them without enchilada sauce, but if you choose to add it in, it’ll add about 25 cents per serving.

I like shredding the chicken by hand, rather than chopping. I have enough chicken to make two batches of enchiladas left over after I feed Michael and myself for dinner. I freeze the filling for another meal.

I’ve also included a bonus recipe of the 8-Spice Blend I use to make sausage at home from leaner and less expensive meats.

8-Spice Blend

Serving Size: 16 Tablespoons
Cost Per Serving: ~$2.94 per recipe, ~18¢ per tablespoon
Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients
3    T   salt
3    T   firmly packed brown sugar
2    T   paprika
1 1/2    T    chili powder
1    T    black pepper
2 1/4    tsp    garlic powder
1 1/2    tsp    cayenne pepper
1 1/2    tsp    basil

Combine.

Note: This is an excellent spice to make sausage from just about any ground meat, to season steaks, even roast chicken. It’s a very versatile spice blend, and economical, too.

–

Zuppa Toscana is apparently a well-loved favorite from Olive Garden (I never go there), clocking in there at $4.65 for a bottomless bowl (plus breadsticks, I’m assuming). Not actually a bad deal.In fact, you could drive up the cost of this recipe a great deal more than I did making it at home.

For example, I’ve seen Italian sausage for $6.00 per pound, rather than the less than $2 I spent on ground turkey spiced with 8-spice seasoning. I’ve also seen pricey bacon topping $8 per pound, instead of the $2.50 I spent. It’s up to you how to make this. The inexpensive ingredients did NOT make this less yummy.

I’m drooling just thinking about it, and it’s 7:30 AM.

For me, though, the hour it takes to make this soup plus a side is better than an hour piled into the car, driving to Olive Garden, spending time in a noisy, commercial space, and dealing with questionable service.

I, too, enjoy eating out. When I do, it’s for food I cannot easily cook at home, and a restaurant experience that pleases me. This soup at home is an amazing thing, truly.

Zuppa Toscana

Serving Size: 8
Cost Per Serving: ~92¢
Preparation Time: 20 minutes hands-on, 25 minutes simmering (which is a perfect time to whip up the biscuits)

Ingredients
1    lb   ground italian sausage (I mixed 1 pound ground turkey with 2 T of 8-Spice powder)
1 1/2   tsp   crushed red pepper (I left this out, because I like the spice in my “sausage”)
1    lg   diced white onion
1/3    pacakge    bacon, diced
2    tsp    minced garlic
10    cups    chicken broth
1    cup    heavy cream
1    lb    sliced or cubed russet potatoes
1/4    bunch    kale (I used 1/2 bunch)

(If you are making cream biscuits, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.) Saute the sausage and red pepper in a large soup pot. Drain excess fat, and set aside while preparing the rest of ingredients.

In the same pan, saute the bacon, onions, and garlic over low-medium heat for about 15 minutes, or until the onions are soft.

Add the chicken broth to the pot and heat on high heat until boiling.

Add the sliced potatoes, reduce heat to medium-high, and cook until potatoes are soft (about 20-30 minutes). (If you are making cream biscuits, use this time to whip them up and get them in the oven.)

Add the heavy cream and cook until it’s just thoroughly heated.

Stir in the sausage and kale, let all heat through and serve!

Per serving: 156 calories, 4g fat, 4.5g protein, 27g carbohydrate

–

Quick and Easy Cream Biscuits

Serving Size: 8 (This is what the original recipe says. I make a half recipe and cut into 6 biscuits)
Cost Per Serving: ~21¢ per biscuit (per original recipe)
Preparation Time: 5 minutes hands-on, 15 minutes baking

Ingredients
2    cups   all-purpose flour
2    tsp   sugar
2    tsp   baking powder
1/2    tsp    salt
1  1/2    cups    heavy cream

Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Add 1 1/4 cups cream and stir in with a wooden spoon until dough forms, about 30 seconds. Transfer dough from the bowl to counetop, leaving behind the dry, floury bits. In 1 T increments, add up to 1/4 cup cream to dry bits in bowl, mixin with wodeen spoon after each addition, until moistened. Add these moistened bits to the rest of dough and knead by hand just until smooth, about 30 seconds.

Press into a flat round, and cut into 8 wedges or flatten and cut with a biscuit cutter.

Place on parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking.

Note: These biscuits have a tiny hint of sweetness to them. Do not over mix or over-knead, you will make your biscuits tough. I like to make a half recipe and cut into sixths, because it’s just two of us, and these are yummy, but are not as good reheated as they are fresh. They are so quick to make, though, they can be whipped up easily with any soup.

I whipped this up as a snack today. I think you’ll enjoy it. I find it a lovely way to get some fruit and calcium.

Strawberry-Vanilla-Honey Smoothie

Serving Size: 2
Cost Per Serving: ~50¢ (as made)
Preparation Time: 5 minutes

1/2    cold milk (I use chilled green tea I make from scratch, or whatever juice I may have on hand)
1c     vanilla yoghurt
1c    fresh strawberries
4    tablespoons organic honey (or less, to taste)

Put ingredients into the blender.

Blitz for 2 minutes

Serve in tall glasses and garnish with strawberry slices or mint leaves, if you choose.

Note: This is not a very thick smoothie, so can take 1/2 cup of oatmeal added to make this a perfect breakfast drink to make on your way out the door, or is just fine as a snack. It can be very sweet, depending on the sweetness of the strawberries, yogurt and if you use a juice instead of milk. Adjust the honey as necessary.

Strawberry-Vanilla-Honey Ice Cream

If you are in the mood for a frozen treat, and your blender can handle the strain, try freezing the yogurt in ice cube trays, and blend it all together to make a soft-serve icy treat.

After several weeks of searching, I got a chest freezer. It’s not new. In fact, it’s many years old, so we’ll take a hit on our energy bill. That said, though, we only paid $25 for it, and it works like a charm, so I’m happy with the deal until we can trade up.

Here are a few tips I keep in mind when trying to save on energy:

• Chest freezers are usually more efficient than upright freezers. Chest freezers are better insulated and cold air doesn’t spill out when the door is opened.
• Automatic defrost freezers can consume 40 percent more electricity than similar manual defrost models.
• Don’t put the refrigerator near a heat source – an oven, the dishwasher or direct sunlight from a window.
• Make sure air can circulate around the condenser coils. Leave a space between the wall or cabinets.
• Keep the coils clean. Brushing or vacuuming the coils regularly can improve efficiency by as much as 30 percent.
• Check door seals to make sure they are airtight. To test them, close the door on a dollar bill and try to pull it out. If the dollar slides out easily, kiss that dollar away because you’re wasting energy and money by letting cold air leak out!
• Check the temperature – a freezer that is 10 degrees colder than necessary can use 25 percent more energy. Refrigerators should be kept between 35 and 38 degrees – freezers at 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
• A full freezer retains cold better than an empty one. If your freezer is nearly empty, store water-filled containers inside. The mass of cold items will enable the freezer to recover more quickly after the door has been opened.On the other hand, don’t overfill it, since that will interfere with the circulation of cold air inside. The simplest solution is to buy the right size for your family in the first place. (This is what we did, but it will take a while to fill, so I’m using bags of ice to keep it full and leave room for circulation – and I always have some to bring to a party.)
• Keeping the freezer full will also keep your food colder longer in the event of a black out.
• Open the door as little as possible. Get in and out quickly. Label leftovers so you can quickly see what they are, and keep a list of available foods up-to-date, so you always know what you are looking for.
• Regularly defrost manual-defrost models. Frost buildup increases the amount of energy needed to keep the motor running.
• Always allow hot foods to cool before freezing.
• Check door seals regularly to make sure they’re airtight. To test them, close the door on a dollar bill and try to pull it out. (Larger bills are harder to come by, but work just as well!) If the dollar slides out easily, you’re wasting energy and money.

Out of all the meals and snacks of the day, it seems to me that people have the most trouble with breakfast.

After all, we’re told it’s the most important meal, because it breaks our fast after sleeping, giving our body the energy and reserves it needs to propel us through the next few hours… especially on a Monday like today.

The problem is that more often than not, we are rushed in the mornings, tired, and just don’t want to fuss with food. That leads tot he trap of heading to the coffee shop, grabbing a muffin and coffee (or tea) to get us on our way… to the tune of $3.50 or more (if you get the cheap stuff). Multiply that by 260 (the number of work days in a year), and you are spending $910. Wow. And they are not caloric bargains either, if you are interested in keeping fit. While numbers may vary, here is some food for thought:

Calorie-count shockers: did you know that lowfat muffin has 400 calories? Or that restaurant appetizer packs 3,000? Facts and figures you need to know before you take another bite – Nutrition

Yeah, BAD news.

Time-wise, it can also really wipe you out. Although it feels fast, I’ve read that if you include the time driving to and from a shop, getting out of and back into your car, and actually picking up a coffee, that even with just a regular coffee and muffin, it takes an average of 15 minutes on top of the hectic weekday commute.

That’s 1 hour, 15 minutes per week, if you and your barista are fast. If you get the muffin heated and your Super Grande Choccie-Crazy Skinny Macchiato, it can add 5-10 minutes onto your schedule. Add busyness, and you are even worse off. Stop to chat… You get my drift.

So, let’s look at this… The biggest excuse for the who breakfast issue is time. No time. Well, this morning, I whipped up a batch of blueberry muffins in 15 minutes, put them in the oven for 25 minutes (perfect time for taking a shower), and voila! Breakfast is ready for 12 days (my sweetie does not eat muffins – YAY!), since I already have sharp cheddar in the fridge cut into 1 oz. servings and an apple takes all of 25 seconds to get out, slice and core (one move with my corer-slicer), and a cup of hot tea is 1 minute to just boil and 3 minutes to steep.

So, breakfast at home today takes a total of 20 hand-on minutes, and won’t take more than 5 minutes for the other 11 days I eat this meal (they may not be consecutive, I freeze half my muffins as soon as they are cool), saving me 105 minutes (12 days times 15 minutes minus 12 days times 5 minutes plus 15 minutes). Not too shabby.

Of course, there is more. My meal is healthier. I get more fiber, more protein, less fat and calories, and it tastes pretty darn good – better because I made it.

Then there’s the cost… Total, the muffins cost $2.17 to make – for 12. It could have been less, if I hadn’t bought frozen blueberries at full price. They were my most expensive ingredient.

My apples are about 35¢ per, and the cheese is 25¢ ($2 for 8 servings). My tea is a splurge. It was $10 for 25 bags (yes, it’s worth it to me – the Cost Per Wow is WAY up there), for 40¢.

My entire breakfast costs $1.20.

Not a bad haul for a few extra minutes in the morning.

Do I expect everyone is going to read this and immediately do what I do? No, not really. I do hope that I’ve offered some food for thought.

Here is my recipe:

Blueberry Muffins

Serving Size: 12
Cost Per Serving: ~20¢
Preparation Time: 15 minutes hands-on, 25 minutes baking

Ingredients
1 1/3    cup   all-purpose flour
1    cup   oatmeal
1/4    cup   firmly packed brown sugar
1    T    baking powder
1/2    t    cinnamon
1    cup    skim milk
2    egg whites, slightly beaten
2    T    oil
1    cup    frozen or fresh blueberries

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with foil liners or spray. I spray – saves money.

In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon. Add milk, egg whites and oil; stir until just blended.

Lightly fold in the blueberries. Spoon into muffin cups, filling about 2/3 full. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool about 5 minutes before serving.

Per serving: 156 calories, 3g fat, 5g protein, 27g carbohydrate

Note: These muffins are not overly sweet, cakey or large.

Over my years of sewing every fabric know to man, I discovered several alternatives to traditional dry cleaning that worked for me.

Handwashing: Not perfect for all fabric types (none of these options are), but the oldest method around for keeping nice fabrics clean. It’s also the least expensive option, and requires no special purchases. Shampoo is excellent for washing clothing.

Dry Cleaner’s Secret: Available in many grocery and drug stores. This is a cleaner/freshener that you can use in your dryer at home.

Whirlpool Fabric Freshener: This is a steam cabinet that freshens and sterilizes clothing while relaxing wrinkles using just distilled water (and a few drops of essential oil, if you choose). It removes odors without replacing them with other scents. Your clothing is fresh and clean.

LG Steam Clean Machine: LG says its Steam Direct Drive spinner – the first in the world to use steam technology – uses 35 per cent less water and 21 per cent less energy than traditional washers. Steam is sprayed over your clothes for forty minutes to remove stains, while an extra 20 minutes will get rid of creases and save you doing the ironing!

Neither of these solutions will fix a stain, but they are excellent for day-to-day use and care of fine fabrics, and cost a lot less (except maybe the LG – but that has other uses and ends up with an excellent CPW/U possibility).

*smiles*

What do you do instead of dry cleaning?

Critics of BND (Buy Nothing Day) suggest that those who would buy today and choose not to will simply buy tomorrow. That may be true. After all, most sales will last the weekend.

However, I’m hoping that those who do take today’s Buy Nothing to heart will reflect on what they actually need to buy, rather than getting caught up in great deals that are completely unnecessary. After all, the easiest way to save is to simply not buy.

But, enough proselytizing… I am already way too late to save those souls determined to “save” today, so instead of going on and on, I’d like to share with you some images created to promote Buy Nothing Day in years past, including one of my own (can you guess which one?)… and ten things you might consider doing today, either instead of shopping or after you’ve worn yourself out. *smiles*

1. Curl up in bed with a good book.
2. Write a book – start that novel you’ve always wanted to write.
3. Get out your stationery (or your email) and send a real letter to a few good friends.
4. Plan out (and possibly start) create gifts you can make for friends and family.
5. Have a cuddle-fest with loved ones.
6. Research charities. Find one (or several) to support in 2010.
7. Take time to reflect on all that you have to be thankful for. Yes, I know this is a day late… but even if you did reflect yesterday, another day certainly won’t hurt.
8. Have a movie marathon, watching long-time favorite films from your collection.
9. Write a blog. Start a blog. Post on Facebook. Tweet. Tell the world a bit about yourself. Make contact with other humans.
10. Get a head start on your New Year’s Resolutions.

I’d love to hear your ideas for making this day about more than Black Friday sales!

Cost Per Wear/Use (CPW/U) is a time-tested strategy of making purchases cost-effectively, and to make sure that that snazzy pair of boots won’t end up as a ball and chain on your budget. It’s a simple formula. Take the cost of the item and divide it by how many times you expect to wear/use (or have worn/used) it. That is your CPW/U.

Amy Dacyczyn, author of The Tightwad Gazette, defines CPW somewhat differently, but it is also applicable to our clothing choices. Amy calls this Cost Per Wow.

What this means is that if you can purchase two different pairs of earrings, one for $20 and one for $100, the pair for $100 should give you five times as much pleasure and wear to be truly valuable.

Let’s take a look at these theories in practice.

I like art jewelry. Each piece is unique, which is a big factor in my attraction. Pieces are often made from interesting materials in attractive shapes. It is also often much less expensive than traditional jewels, but often more elegant than costume jewelry.

Since I wear earrings every day, and I rotate about 20 pairs, I can guesstimate that any single pair will most likely be worn about 10-15 times per year. If the style I am considering is very trendy, and will likely not last more than a year, then a price tag of $30 or more will cost me $2+ every time I wear that piece.

However, if I choose a pair of earrings that are timeless and stylish, I can assume that I will own them for 3+ years, bringing the number of wearings up to 30-45 times. If they do not have a lot of color in them, and can be worn with many varied garments, then that number could easily be higher. A very specific pair of earrings for a certain garment or color scheme will be worn less often.

A single pair of earrings that make you feel special and sexy every time you wear them, even if it is only once or twice a year (Valentine’s with your hubby, for example), might just be a fabulous deal at twice the price of everyday earring choices. Even if the Cost Per Wear/Use shoots through the roof, the Cost Per Wow is a bargain.

The reverse can also be used to choose less expensive items. For example, say you saw a $500 sweater in a very striking color. You loved it, and decided to put it on hold while you shopped the rest of the day.

Later, you find a similar sweater in a color that blends with your wardrobe, making it wearable with ten times the outfits than the previous sweater. This does not tug at your heartstrings as much, but will make you feel good more regularly, and only costs $75.

Only you can make the choice which is worth it, but by figuring both CPWs for yourself, you are armed to make a better decision to suit your style and be happier with your purchase.

I’ll be looking at various purchases through the CPW/U lens in this blog – I’m planning everything from hats to mattresses, to kitchen gadgets. I’m kind of a geek when it comes to this stuff, and I hope you’ll enjoy the process as much as I do, and perhaps gain a new way of looking at the decision to purchase, while learning to avoid that expensive purchase that never fails to drag you down.