I'm currently in the process of moving – AGAIN – and have made an important discovery during the process: there's a fine line between saving items for re-purposing and hoarding. I confess I've crossed that line.
So, while I sort the stockpiles, this instalment of 'Thriving on Thrift' must be shelved. The next blog will return to its usual bi-weekly time-slot on October 8th.
Now, to decide which jars – in an awesome assortment of sizes! – must be sent to recycling...
Recently, a thread of conversation on Twitter caught my attention. The buzz was about a kitchen appliance that enables home-cooks to make their own sodas and seltzer water. The appliance is called SodaStream and is currently manufactured by SodaClub. Little did I know this system was invented back in 1903! For more of its history, check out this Wikipedia Sodastream article. I figured, if this was news to me it might also be news to some TOT readers, so I decided to feature the product in this week's blog.
Actually, I don't drink soda...well, except for the occasional chug from hubby's bottle. It seems soda of any kind makes me swell up like a blowfish, so I usually avoid it. Hubby, on the other hand, can't get through a day without, at least, one "sugar fix" – his words, not mine! That equates to at least one 710ml bottle of cola per day. That's why I found this product so appealing. Though we haven't yet bought one, we plan to, and for a couple reasons. First, there are potential savings to be had with making our own soda. And, second, we can control the amounts of sugar and soda, and the type of sugar used.
To learn more about the product, I asked Twitter-user, FoodieFinds, a few questions. Jodi generously agreed to be interviewed and here is what she had to tell us:
First of all, Jodi is using the 'Fountain Jet' model of SodaStream and – lucky gal – she received it as a gift. The cost for the 'Fountain Jet' is $99.95 US$, and includes the Soda maker, 110-litre carbonator and two carbonating bottles. The web-site offers varying models in starter kits, as well as soda mixes, gas refills, extra bottles, and other accessories. All prices Jodi quotes in the interview are in US$.
Now, to the interview...
QUESTION: Can you tell readers how the machine operates, and whether it is user-friendly?
ANSWER: I find the SodaStream machine to be extremely user-friendly. It sets up in about 5 minutes. Well-designed and easy to use. Takes about 30 seconds to create carbonated, flavoured water or soda from plain water. I was a bit trepidatious
about the pressurized CO2, but it seems quite safe and stable. Once initial set-up is complete, creating plain or flavoured seltzer, or sodas, is as simple as:
1) Fill the provided 1-litre bottles with tap or filtered water & chill.
2) Take chilled 1-litre bottle, push tilt lever, screw bottle onto machine & release tilt lever.
3) Pump the carbonation button 3 times, releasing after each "buzz." (Note: You can carbonate more or less, according to your taste.)
4) Remove 1-litre bottle from machine. Add any desired flavouring, cap bottle, and rock gently to mix.
5) Enjoy your homemade soda!
QUESTION: What are your opinions of the quality and variety of syrups they offer?
ANSWER: The quality of the syrups is higher than your standard soda brands in that they are not made with high fructose corn syrup. SodaStream seems to offer a wide variety of syrups, everything from diet root beer to "faux-Fresca" – even a "Red Bull"-style energy syrup.
QUESTION: I know you've created a few of your own syrups. How did you do this, and what were the results?
ANSWER: Loved the results I have achieved creating my own syrups. I'm what you would call a "frugal foodie." I love pushing the envelope with my flavour combinations, but I still like to minimize the costs by buying whatever fruits, herbs, etc. are on sale and/or in season. Syrups I have created thus far: cantaloupe, rhubarb, sriracha-lime, honeydew, strawberry-basil, lychee-ginger, and orange-coriander. Creating syrups could not be easier. Just use a basic simple syrup recipe (1:1 ratio of water to sugar.) Put water and sugar in a saucepan, heat until all sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat to low, add fruit, herbs, etc. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes, remove from heat & let cool. Pour through a strainer into a bowl. Make sure to squeeze all of the liquid out of the fruit. Put the liquid into a squeeze bottle or Tupperware container and refrigerate for up to a week or so. To be extra frugal, I take the reserved pulp/fruit and use it over Greek yogurt as a quick & healthy take-to-work breakfast. You could also use the reserved pulp/fruit as a starter to make chutney.
QUESTION: What is your average cost per bottle using the bought syrup?
ANSWER: I have not depleted my first CO2 canister yet, but according to the documentation, you are supposed to get 110 litres of carbonation out of each canister. The replacement canisters are listed on the SodaStream website at $21.99 each, so I figure that the carbonation portion costs about $0.20 per 1-litre. The purchased soda syrups are listed on the SodaStream website at $4.99 and are supposed to make 12 litres, so the purchased flavour cost is approximately $.41 per bottle. This brings the total for a carbonated, purchased-flavour 1-litre bottle of soda to approximately $.61 per bottle. The unsweetened seltzer flavour bottles come in packs of 3 for $9.99, and each bottle makes 20 litres. Therefore, the purchased cost for seltzer is $.17 per bottle. This brings the total for a carbonated, purchased flavour 1-litre bottle of seltzer to approximately $.37 per bottle.
Now before you start saying – wait a minute – I can buy store brand 2L bottles of soda on sale for that much, remember that the SodaStream flavours have no high fructose corn syrups. If you make your own syrups, you also have no artificial ingredients or flavourings, and you get some vitamins/minerals from your choice of fruit. Another big selling point for the SodaStream is that you no longer have to lug heavy bottles home from the grocery store, and you are also being more "green" by minimizing your plastic use.
QUESTION: What is your average cost per bottle using the home-made syrups?
ANSWER: Again, the carbonation portion costs about $.20 per 1-litre. The homemade syrup cost varies widely depending on the cost of the ingredients. I use approximately 2 cups of water and two cups of sugar for each syrup mixture, at an average cost of $.15. However, tart fruits require more sugar (rhubarb, lemon, etc.), and sweeter fruits require less (strawberries, cantaloupe, etc.) The cost of the ingredients could be anywhere from $.99 for a cantaloupe on sale, to $4-$5 for out-of-season or exotic fruits, herbs, etc. I keep my costs down by buying in season and on sale. I also have an Aero-Garden, so I grow year-round most of the fresh herbs that I use (mint, lemon-basil, basil, cilantro, etc.) If you are lucky enough to have a fruit tree or berry bush on your property, then your fruit cost would be zero.
Depending on the amount of syrup produced, the concentration of the syrup, and your personal sweetness preference, you can get anywhere from 4-10 1-litre bottles from each batch of syrup. Therefore, you can potentially make your own flavoured sodas for as little as $.35 with the SodaStream machine. However, I would say that the average price would be about $.50 per 1-litre bottle. An even simpler way to do it (albeit not as fresh), is to get canned fruit in heavy syrup. Then you simply put the can & syrup into a pan, heat it up, simmer, and follow the rest of the instructions above. If you get canned fruit on sale and/or with coupons, you might be able to get your total 1-litre cost down to $.30 or so.
QUESTION: How would you compare the SodaStream syrup flavour with commercial sodas?
ANSWER: So far, I have tried only a few of the SodaSteam syrup flavours. I initially thought both the Diet Cola and Diet Pete (their version of Diet Dr. Pepper) syrups were too sweet, but I experimented with different ratios of syrup and carbonation. What I found is that the perfect "formula" for my personal tastes is:
QUESTION: Do you have any other comments about the SodaStream for readers?
ANSWER: If you want to feel like a kid again, cut out high fructose corn syrups, be more "green", and serve healthier drinks to your family, you can't go wrong with the SodaStream. Also, at this point in the week (2 days before recycling goes out), my recycling bins are usually overflowing with soda & seltzer bottles. Instead, I now have exactly 6 bottles in my recycling bin - a visual reminder of how the SodaSteam helps us be more "green."
Thank you, Jodi, for this wealth of information! I'll be watching for further updates from you on Twitter (FoodieFinds). Now, I can hardly wait to get our own SodaStream and begin experimenting with our own flavours!
Upon researching this product for Canadian customers, I found the following caveat: Shipping gas canisters to Canada has been a problem, but should resume September –October 2009. For details on this, go to: Chiron Canada website
Last week, a reader asked about veggie and cheese storage, expressing the concern that these perishables often spoil before they can be used. That concern is shared by many. Annually, in Canada and the U.S., several million tons of food is thrown away. At a cost of several hundred dollars, on average, per household, these statistics are alarming. Two rules of thumb can alleviate much of this waste.
Though these two rules will help avoid most produce spoilage, there is another concern when storing fruit and vegetables and that is whether the product needs to be stored in the fridge, at room temperature, with ventilation or without, or in darkness. While researching this, I came across an excellent article on SparkPeople which included this comprehensive and easy to read chart: Fruit & Veggie Storage Chart .
When it comes to cheese, the situation is not as clear. Some argue cheese needs an airy environment, while others argue ventilation is death for cheese. It turns out, both are true. It depends on the cheese, which is a living food, much like yogurt. During research, I found an article – directed towards food service professionals (recommendations by The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board and Wisconsin Cheese Makers,) – which answers this question, in all its complexity: Cheese Storage Tips. 
I've heard other tips on preserving foods, but none of them have proved successful for me. One such recommendation says: to preserve bananas' freshness, they should be separated from the bunch. I ran three experiments on this suggestion, using three different bunches of bananas in varying weather conditions. In each experiment, I separated a few of the bananas from the bunch, and left the remaining bananas attached. Each time, all bananas, whether separate or attached, appeared to mature at the same rate, and their taste confirmed this. We do live in a very arid climate, so I'm not sure if this skewed the results or not. You might wish to perform your own experiments.
One handy hint I learned from my mother is to freeze produce that is deteriorating, but not yet spoiled, and use those veggies in a stock. The flavours may not be as high as fresh vegetables would produce, but those wilted products won't be thrown into a landfill where they'd be completely wasted. A compost pile is another good place for (most) produce that has passed its prime.
If you have ideas or suggestions you wish to share on this subject, please leave a comment.
You're cooking dinner when your child falls, the phone rings, or someone knocks at the door. Distractions happen and meals get scorched. It's frustrating but, most times, unavoidable.
What really rankles, though, is when nothing diverts our attention and still supper becomes burned. For someone as thrifty-minded as me, it's intolerable. Throwing food out is entirely contrary to my notions of economy.
So what's a frugal person to do?
I suggest giving a critical look at the quality of your pots and pans. Cheaper is not always better, nor more economic. For instance, I once bought the cheapest can opener thinking I was saving money. After two years, however, I had bought three of those cheap openers, and about to buy the fourth. Irksome, to say the least. The next opener I bought was about five times the cost of the inexpensive opener and I worried I was spending too much on it. That "expensive" can opener has lasted (dare I say it!) about thirty years. If I'd continued buying the cheaper openers, at the rate they were wearing out and/or breaking, I would have bought approximately twenty of them during that time, and spent four times the money! So, value is often found in the pricier make, and cost can be greater with the cheaper model.
Pots and pans are a good case, in point. When I first moved out on my own, all I could afford was the cheapest aluminum and stainless steel. With those pots and pans, I managed to scorch and burn countless meals. Food stuck. Cleaning was a nightmare of cleansers and scrubber pads. Sometimes, they even required special treatment. (How to Treat Burned Pots and Pans)
Then, about fifteen years ago, my hubby and I received some higher quality pots as a gift. Lo and behold, our meals stopped charring. Could it be I wasn't an abominable cook after all?
Over the next few years, we slowly replaced all our cookware with high quality (mostly 18-10 stainless steel,) pots and pans and, now, the only meal disasters happen when those aforementioned distractions occur. The new pans clean up easily, too; usually with a cloth only.
Now, given my proclivity for avoiding waste, many of those early meals, though scorched, were trimmed and eaten. So, not all the food was wasted. But they weren't enjoyed, either. I also discovered, years too late, that burnt food can be bad for you. (Why Is Burnt (burned) Food Bad For You?)
Now, our meals cook beautifully and are delicious. Best of all, the trash no longer devours burnt offerings. We've saved a good deal of groceries simply by upgrading our cookware. In fact, I would hazard to say the savings are nearing the price we paid for the good quality pots and pans.
So, if your meals are singeing and you're tired of scouring burnt rice from the bottom of the pot, consider buying better quality cookware. Your grocery budget, your health and, most likely, your family will thank you for it.
,Whole foods are generally considered to be foods which have not been chemically or genetically treated, foods that are natural and in the raw state, and have not been pared, polished, or otherwise processed. While organic foods are becoming increasingly popular, I have not included that criterion in the following article simply due to their greater cost. Some may argue (as I have with a certain cheese) that organic foods have value and thereby bridge the cost-to-savings ratio.
Perhaps one of the best ways to save money on the grocery budget is to buy foods whole. Savings are only part of that equation, though. Whole foods, in many cases, offer better flavours and, in some instances, higher nutritive values and/or improved quality over their processed alternatives.
Here are some examples:
Aside from budgetary issues, we buy whole foods because we prefer the taste and aroma. Purchasing fruits, vegetables and meats whole has also spared us from many of the Salmonella, E. coli and Listeria outbreaks in recent years.
If you're concerned about your food's goodness, consider purchasing whole foods. The economic gain will be a cherry on top!
One bane of shopping, for me, is packaging. Whether for food or household, need or want, nearly everything comes bagged, bottled, canned, clipped, encased, or otherwise contained. Usually in plastic and often excessively.
It's the plethora of plastic packaging that has me worried. Recent studies on the endocrine-disrupting chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) – used in plastics and for coating the inside of many cans (Toxic Nation article) – heightened consumer caution about certain plastics. Yet, even with this new restraint, bloated landfills still suffer daily infusions of plastic. Their durability is daunting, but the propensity for them to leach toxic chemicals is downright alarming, particularly when those plastics lay in landfills where they're sure to get plenty of sun and hostile weather. I wonder how much BPA already infuses water-tables.
In an effort to contain the problem, to apply thrift to this (largely unavoidable) consumerism, our household has adopted new purchasing habits, one of which is to scrutinize packaging. The less of it, the better. Un-packaged products get priority consideration but, sadly, that opportunity seldom occurs. Quantity and type of packaging material are then taken into account. Paper, glass and metal are preferred to plastic for both re-usability and recyclability.
Paper has many reuse options. Tissue paper is ideal for wrapping delicate items. Brown-paper, grocery-store bags are not only excellent insulators for frozen and refrigerated foods in transit, later they become "biodegradable" trash bags. Boxes can be used for storage or shipping. Cardboard is great material for certain crafts and easily recyclable. Over-sized department store bags, cut open, make good wrap for parcel shipping. I've even created a few sewing patterns with this sturdy paper product. Small bags work well for food ripening and storage. Contaminated paper, such as used butcher's wrap, is thrown away like its cellophane counterpart but, unlike plastic wrap, will eventually decompose. Computer paper and flyers, used on one side, is saved, cut into strips, and becomes "scratch pads."
When I was young, paper bags were commonly used in kitchen waste-baskets, with "sloppy" things flushed, or stowed in tin cans (which weren't recycled then) or empty dairy containers. Store-bought, waxed-paper bags were my mother's first choice, but brown-paper bags came in a close second. When I have them available I use the latter, but the former are no longer sold. Yes, our week's refuse would still go to the curb in a one large plastic bag – civic regulations insist they be used, even in curb-side garbage cans – and, yes, the kitchen waste-basket needs cleaning more frequently, but these factors don't diminish the possibility that, once a week, 6-10 plastic bags (the usual liner for household waste-baskets,) aren't exiled, evermore, to a refuse site. Unfortunately, paper bags are not used by many stores today, so it's difficult to keep enough on hand for regular use.
Jars are exceptional packaging with good re-use and recycling potential. Glass makes the perfect food storage container because, being inert material, it won't impart synthetic, "acquired," or metallic flavours like plastic or tin often do. They also make great vessels for reheating food: in a conventional oven on moderate settings; on stovetop in a saucepan of simmering water; and, in the microwave without the metal lid. Occasionally, "re-sealable" jar lids retain odours from their original contents and won't be viable for food storage...unless you like pickle-infused rice. I don't, so those jars are used for miscellany purposes: storing screws, string, socket safety-plugs, collections of unidentified keys, copious rubber bands and twist-ties, or just something to clean paint-brushes in.
Tin cans are especially useful for hot or cold items. If you save bacon or other meat drippings for cooking or bird-feeding purposes, and store it in the refrigerator, food-grade cans handle the dramatic fluctuations of temperature the best, and hot fats won't shatter or melt tin as it might do with glass or plastic. Just make sure the can's interior isn't plastic-coated.
When re-use isn't possible, most paper, glass, and tin are recyclable. There are a few municipalities which offer recycling for some plastics but, where we live, no plastics are recycled so we avoid them as much as possible. Sometimes, they're inescapable, though. That's when we look for re-purposing applications. The travel-sized shampoo and conditioner bought years ago were consumed long ago, but those bottles have been refilled, time and again, from our home supply. Dairy containers keep craft supplies sorted and dry. Remember, when reusing plastic containers, it's advisable they do not store edibles. Though it may seem impossible, our household has gone without plastic wrap for two decades. Paper, cloth, or glass has been used instead.
Bulk shopping is another way to reduce plastics. For example, buying meat in economy packs rather than two-portion packs saves more than money. Six (or more) Styrofoam plates and their wrapping are reduced to one platter and its wrap which are composed of significantly less plastic. Re-packaging at home will, of course, require other packaging material, but we use freezer wrap (a heavy brown paper, wax-coated on one side) which will decompose when discarded. We don't purchase any "individual-use" packets, preferring instead to buy full- or bulk-sized packages and apportion servings ourselves, thus eliminating the extraneous wrapping.
Ultimately, there are some products we won't buy due to excessive packaging. It's obscene to see a couple square-feet of plastic encasing a finger-sized thingamajig. Security and shelving efficiency are two reasons offered for this packaging trend. Whatever the reasons, our household boycotts these superfluously-encased items. If those doodads are too fragile, perilous, or costly, then I suggest putting them back into showcases. And, please Mr/s. Manufacturer, spare us the farce: don't boast about environmentally-friendly production plants and procedures while continuing to package merchandise in ominously enduring plastic.
And that's a wrap on my packaging rant!
What are your views on retail packaging? Do you have unique reuse ideas? Have you any empowering observations to share with fellow consumers?
Okay, call me crazy, but summer isn't my favourite season. I don't suffer scorching days and humid nights easily, and get especially frazzled when they stretch, one upon the next, for weeks on end. It's because of this, cooking – which I normally love doing – becomes a dreaded chore. Standing over the stove, adding even more heat to an already over-warm house, ratchets up my level of exhaustion. Hours later, that heat still lingers, too. I'd fast if summer didn't last so long.
For this reason, most of our summer cooking is done outdoors, on the barbeque. It's surprising just how much of the day's meals can be prepared on an outdoor grill. Ours is a propane model, which is not a favourite amongst many grilling aficionados but it works fastest and easiest as stove-top replacement. Even without using the side-burner, the grill top can function well as a cooking surface. Cast iron pans, grills, and griddles, as well as heavy-gauge metal pots and pans (with heat resistant handles) work well on the grill top, which happens to also be one of the best places to cook pizzas, in my opinion.
An added bonus of cooking this way is the economy of it. I stumbled upon this saving when comparing our household energy costs for the same months in other years when the stovetop was still being used. Energy costs had changed, obviously, so I evaluated the savings by kilowatt hours. The difference was significant. Then, I calculated the dollar savings and compared that with the total cost of propane refills over the same season, and found using the barbeque cost us about half of what our energy supplier would have charged us had we cooked indoors on the stove. The difference was so stark I actually did the calculations twice, just to be sure.
Not everything needs cooking, either. One of my favourite summer drinks, homemade iced tea, would normally require making fresh, hot tea, but can also be made using the sun's heat. Here's my version of "Sun Tea":
Cheers to staying cool! 
