These easy meal solutions are key for all working moms. With a little planning, you can use what you already have to easily create meals for your family in a jiffy!
As parents, we always try to think of ways to cut back on our spending. With every month that passes by there’s always something that gives our bank balance a knock. But we also try to make our kids healthy and make sure they don’t fill up on junk food. This is a hard balance to maintain. Being healthy seems to equate with being expensive these days. So what can we do to make sure our kids are healthy while also being able to help our wallets keep some cash in it for once?
Here are a few hacks that I use for clean and cheap eating!
Plan Meals
It may sound like an obvious thing, but a lot of people don’t prepare their meals in advance. If you plan ahead, it can save you time and money at the grocery store because you’re not grabbing items randomly. Planning your meals for the week ahead will keep you focused and keep your purse strings tight.
Freeze Things
Freezing items for future use is another way to cut back on costs. Even if you use half an onion for a spaghetti bolognese, for example, you can dice the other half up, put it in a food bag and put it in the freezer. That way, the next time you make spaghetti bolognese you can just take the other half out of the freezer and add it to your pan of ingredients.
Use One Pot Meals
I get a lot of use out of my Crock-Pot at home. Not only is it a quick and easy method of making meals but you can make many cheap meals using it that only require a handful of ingredients. The great thing about one pot meals is that all the best ones are incredibly healthy. From stews to soups, and broths that are full of pulses and vegetables it will make your family come back for more! You also get plenty of leftovers, which is no bad thing at all!
Buy Cheaper Brands
A lot of people would not go for the cheaper brands but if you look at the list of ingredients a lot of them have the same amount of ingredients as high-end brands. Going to cheaper brands can save your shopping bill by it at least one third! Another easy way to save money is to get online coupons, look at a site like Snapdeal coupons at ManyCoupons to see what brands you can save on.
Batch Cook
At the start of every month, I batch cook all my meals. It works very well with meals like cottage pie or lasagna. I then portion them up individually and put them in the freezer. The great thing about this is that by the end of the month when your finances are low, you can just take a meal out of the freezer and reheat it, saving you money and time!
Finances are always a concern for us when it comes to our kids. But by using these little hacks, it will really make a difference to your family’s health and your family’s wealth!
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