Dining on a Dime

Who doesn’t have New Year’s resolutions? Some make lists 3-5 pages long, while others keep it simple. Many of those resolutions involve food, whether it’s to lose weight, help the environment, or save money—but even the best of the best can struggle to stay on course.

How to Knock Out 2 Resolutions at Once

More than likely, your resolutions involve better budgeting and a healthier lifestyle. With one simple hack, you can do both at once.

Ditch the take out.

Benefits of Cooking and Ditching Take Out

• Cost: In 2017, a whopping 44% of the average American’s income was spent on dining out! And that’s not counting waiters’ tips and fuel costs for transportation. Is it all worth it? Keep track of how often you’re eating away from home and aim to reduce that number. For instance, consider packing a lunch from home for work.  Worried about the increase in your gas bill from all that cooking at home? Check out Apples to Apples Ohio to make sure you’re getting the best deal on your utilities.

• You Become Famous: When word gets around that you can put two and two together with food, chances are you’ll be the most sought-after person in your neighborhood, especially come football season. Mothers will beg for your recipes. Your peers will admire your abilities and could be inspired to try it themselves. Even kids from Kindergarten to teenagers will sing your praises.
• Family: More than anyone, families benefit better from a good old home-cooked meal. This brings better nutrition, which produces healthier bodies. By living a healthier lifestyle, you decrease the chances of sickness and unwanted doctor visits. Most importantly, cooking at home can establish and build long-lasting relationships.
• Health and Nutrition: When you are the one cooking, you know exactly what goes into each dish. Restaurants often are very liberal with their butter and cheese, which is why it’s so tasty! But with some practice, you can learn to make some healthy dishes that taste amazing.

Tips to Being a Master Chef

Every chef differentiates from taste and style, but there a few pointers they all agree on:

• Know Your Knife: No quality chef is without a good knife. It’s not necessary to know all the fancy knife tricks to cook like one (though those are fun!). But it is wise to know how to handle a knife properly while chopping vegetables, slicing meat, and trimming fat.
• Invest in Good Appliances: You don’t always need the latest and most excellent kitchen toys to create meals like a pro, but a few items that are a good idea not to skimp on are:
  • Can openers. The cost of one good opener is about the same as the number of cheap openers you’ll end up having to replace, and they last much longer.
  • Non-stick pans. You can cook almost anything in them, and they are easy to clean.
  • Spices bring your food to life and have countless health benefits.
• Shortcuts: When you are in a pinch there are some shortcuts that may not be ideal for every day but they can help you be more successful with your goals
  • Box Meal delivery services -such as freshly, or blue apron – fresh ingredients delivered to your door. Before you take the plunge in one of these services make sure to check for coupons.
  • Pre-cut vegetables, onions, etc. – Sometimes splurging on the pre-cut goods can make life much easier and you know what they say time is money. Sometimes is well worth the money spent.
  • Curbside Pickup: Shopping online and picking up your groceries is a good way of sticking to your list and only getting eh essentials. It is also a great way to not buy excess because you can look at what you already have while you are shopping online.

• Have Fun!Cooking doesn’t have to be a chore. Reducing your food bill isn’t a punishment. Make cooking enjoyable and have fun with it!