Super savings homemade basics

[jkelstaten]

Well, here I've had to start making some items that we consider "basic staples" from scratch because they don't sell them here, but when I considered how much money they cost I may continue to do it after we move back to the states in May.

Here's what I made today: (cost analysis is for me here, but I've given measurements so you can compare for yourself.)

Light Corn Syrup Substitute
6c granulated sugar (sugar 2c=1 pound......6cups=$0.93)
2 1/4 c water (free from tap- we don't pay for water)
3/4 tsp. cream of tartar ($0.10 approx. I bought in bulk, had it around a long time)
3 dashes of salt
Total cost: $1.03 for 1 quart

Powdered sugar
ground granulated sugar in coffee grinder to make powdered sugar
1c granulated sugar=1 1/3c powdered sugar
cost for me=$0.69 for 6cups powdered sugar

Homemade bisquits WOW!! I didn't do the cost analysis for this because I didn't take the time to measure out my flour/pound. But I can imagine....2c flour, 1/2 butter, 1c milk. When I think of all the times I bought the pilsbury rolls, oh my!!!

So what things do you make from scratch (the bare basics) to save money?? I would appreciate hearing anything you do....they don't have sales or coupons or anything like that here so anything I can do to make the basics even cheaper is great for me.

[staceyy]

I make my own muffins, biscuits, scones, pancakes, waffles, puddings, bread (sometimes). I make my own cupcakes, cakes, cookies and pies. My own salad dressings, pickles, mustard, stuffing, cranberry sauce. Sometimes I make my own jam. I make my own bacon bits and croutons, bread crumbs, ice cream sauces, olive butter, granola, peanut butter (sometimes). Pasta sauce, applesauce, and snack dips and meat marinades. Window cleaner, clorox spray, mouthwash, liquid soap and facial lotion. Greeting cards and gifts.

Pretty soon I'll start my own vegetable garden.

[jkelstaten]

I make my own muffins, biscuits, scones, pancakes, waffles, puddings, bread (sometimes). I make my own cupcakes, cakes, cookies and pies.

I *have to do these...there are no baking mixes here and the only pre-made pies are (no joking) $15!!

My own salad dressings, pickles, mustard, stuffing, cranberry sauce.

Do you have a recipe for a good ranch dressing?? They don't have it here and we LOVE ranch dressing

Sometimes I make my own jam.

I made 16 jar of jam/jelly this summer

I make my own bacon bits and croutons, bread crumbs, ice cream sauces, olive butter, granola, peanut butter (sometimes). Pasta sauce, applesauce, and snack dips and meat marinades. Window cleaner, clorox spray, mouthwash, liquid soap and facial lotion. Greeting cards and gifts.

Some of these I could use tips on.....do you have recipes for the ice cream sauces? Mouthwash, liquid soap??? Anything you can give me would be great...or point me in the direction of a good webite.

I'm trying to put together a binder with good "basics" recipes so that I don't have to search the web everytime I want to make something.

[happydog]

I make my own bar soaps, have done that for years. I don't make liquid soap, because it's complicated. I like simple and easy. I make several salad dressings, but have yet to come up with a really killer vinaigrette. I do most of my own baking, including bread. It's so much better, and so easy to make. I just have to plan ahead. One thing I do still buy frozen, are waffles. I hate the mess, cleanup and time involved in making waffles from scratch. We don't make our own ice cream either.


Oh, here's a recipe for a dry mix for ranch dressing that we LOVE:

4 teaspoons dried chives (or you can omit this, and add fresh chives to taste when you make the dressing)
4 teaspoons dried parsley (same as the chives--you can omit and use fresh)
1 tablespoon dried dill weed
4 teaspoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

mix together very well, and store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place.

To make ranch dressing, mix together:

1/2 cup mayonnaise (easy to make yourself, btw)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk (you can sub plain yogurt for this)

add 2 tsp of the dry mix (less, if you omit the dried chives and/or parsley from your mix and add fresh to taste), mix very well, and chill for at least 30 min. to let flavors blend.


To make ranch dip, use 1.5 cups of sour cream to 2 tsp. dry mix. Again, it's better if you make it ahead and let it sit in the refrigerator for a while before serving.

[PrairieRose]

There are all kinds of recipes for homemade (liquid and dry) laundry soap in the homemade cleaners forum. Just do a search and you'll come up with all sorts of stuff. I make my own liquid laundry soap. I use it most of the time and it works great. It's soooo cheap too.

[happydog]

Or, you can just make a 100% coconut soap for laundry, with no superfatting, and grind it to a powder in a food processor. Use a couple of tablespoons per load. It works great, and no softener is needed when you use real soap instead of detergent. If you don't have access to coconut oil, tallow is the next best, or palm kernel oil. If you have really hard water, you'll want to add 1/2 cup of vinegar or 4% citric acid to the rinse cycle. This is known as a "laundry sour" and is really important when using real soap to wash. It removes soap scum that causes whites to go gray, and also keeps soap scum from building up inside the washer.

I do make laundry goo every now and again, to use up old soap scraps. You grate up the scraps, throw them in a bucket with some hot water, add borax, some extra lye solution (if they were superfatted soaps), and stir periodically until you get a uniform goo.

[jkelstaten]

thanks for all the great ideas.

This week I plan on making marshmallows and candy canes from scratch. We tried the candy canes last night and the recipe needs a little tweaking, but it works. And best of all we get to have all our favorite Christmas treats even thought the premade ingredients aren't available here.

[dmvezina]

I make alot of my own foods & cleaners.
"Make Your Own Groceries" has great recipes. There's two books.

[SewCrafty]

Not sure what type of washing machines you may have over there, but the next time you do laundry---- do a load of towels without any soap, you will be amazed at how much soap is still in them! I have a front loader and did this when I first got it, I was SHOCKED! Took a couple of rinses to get all the soap out. Ever since then I only use 1/2 - 1 tablespoon (depending how heavily soiled they are) of detergent (yep you read that right!) and my clothes come out just as clean as when I used the standard 1/4 cup!

I am still working on a box of powdered Gain (60 loads) that I bought over 8-9 months ago. I still have at least a 1/2 box left and that is doing 4-6 loads per week.

[jkelstaten]

Not sure what type of washing machines you may have over there, but the next time you do laundry---- do a load of towels without any soap, you will be amazed at how much soap is still in them! I have a front loader and did this when I first got it, I was SHOCKED!

I have a small front loader. It's at least 1/2 the size of a standard U.S. washer....I learned that about the detergent from washing cloth diapers. I only use 1 T now and 1/4 - 1/2 cup vinegar for fabric softener (depending on what I'm washing). Besides the fact that the vinegar is much cheaper/enviro-friendly, if I use regular fabric softener it causes the diapers to not be able to absorb. I'm still trying out different brands of detergent here since they are not the same as in the states. But on average I spend $1 every two weeks for laundry detergent. And $1/wk for vinegar.

[rachelMcK]

Does the vinegar not make your clothes smell?

[Hardy1]

No - vinegar just gets rid of the last of the soap residue and your clothes will be softer. I add vinegar to the rinse especially when I wash for my son who has eczema.
W

[rachelMcK]

I'll have to try the vinegar then!!!

[MC]

rachelMck--you will notice when you open the washer that it smells a bit vinegary. It will fade and no one will smell like a pickle!

Lol--there have been times when I didn't use soap for laundry. The clothes came out fine. I'm still cutting down a bit at a time on my soap.

Things I make from scratch(unless I can buy it cheaper):
pasta noodles(spaghetti, lasagna, and regular, like the ones for soup or casseroles)
Hamburger Helper(mix)
Sauces for meats and pastas
Breads
Cottage and ricotta cheese(for cooking)
Sour cream(also just for cooked recipes)
Evaporated milk(from powdered milk)
Assorted seasonings(taco, mexican beans, etc) that I seem to use a lot of

[ImEmile]

Hi, ladies.

I'm in the same boat. The kids and I lived for a year in Lebanon and now we're in Kuwait with DH. Things are even more expensive here than in Lebanon. In Lebanon I had to cook from scratch a lot because convenience foods were outrageous (canned veggies were about $1 or more per can) and store brands rarely exist (except at Spinneys and Geant Casino) but the prices still weren't to my American sensabilities. But fresh fruits and vegetables were great, grains, beans, etc. Meat could be pricey if I went to a butcher for local meats, but the ones imported from SA were better prices at the big stores. But here in Kuwait, it's different. We're in a dessert! Almost nothing grows here so almost everything has to be important. The major Middle Eastern staples are cheaper so my Lebanese recipes are a big help, but I still have to make some things myself that I didn't at home.

I think you mentioned wanting a vinaigrette recipe? I use this one:

1/2 c. red wine vinegar (can't find here-has the word wine in it- so I use apple cider)
1 c. olive oil (or vegetable or combo)
2T. onion, finely chopped, or 1/4 t. powder
2 large cloves of garlic, crushed
3/4 t. salt
1/4 t. black pepper
1 T. parsley (fresh or dried)
1 t. dry mustard
1/2 t. dried basil or oregano
1 t. sugar

Mix in a jar and shake real well. I prefer to half this, pour the whole thing over the whole salad before I toss it and then toss it until everything is wet. That way every bite has the dressing on it and it's just fantastic. It's the best thing you'll ever eat. I also add fresh spinach for the extra iron. Not all veggies are real affordable to have regularly and since even my 2 year-old twins like salad, it's great as a side dish for just about everything.

I've thought about trying making my own detergents, but all call for Borax or Fels Naptha (sp?) soap, neither of which can be found in Lebanon or Kuwait. So I've used Persil (made by Henkel, a German company, so you might find it there). They're good and a reasonable price. Then I switched to Bonux which was cheaper and still good. I don't know who makes Bonux but you could look for it there. I usually just buy the cheapest cleaners I can find and then work up if I need to if they don't please me. Right now I'm using DAK which has a rose scent (pretty but not going to overpower the men in the house). They were out when I bought a new bottle so I got Arabian Jasmine. It's made by Henkel too so you might be able to find it. Just don't know what scents are available there. They smell pretty but they disinfect too...just don't make your house stink, KWIM?

Beth