I’ve mentioned my real-life friend Erin a lot lately, I know. She’s promoting her $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook, and it’s just so exciting I can’t keep quiet about it! I feel like a know an honest-to-goodness celebrity. What can I say? I love living vicariously.
But mainly, it wouldn’t be responsible of me not to talk about her, y’all, because she’s the real-deal. She’s super intelligent and organized, and her calling right now is to couple those gifts to help her family and yours to eat healthy meals on a very strict budget.
She personally feeds her family of four (plus baby) on an average $60/week. She shares her personal journey in learning how to do this in her cookbook. The first full three chapters are devoted to teaching strategic grocery shopping, couponing, and meal planning. I have never, ever, seen so much information of the like all gathered in one place. Truly.
The remaining eight chapters offer 200 recipes organized by category: pasta and pizza; chicken and turkey; beef; pork; fish and seafood; soups and stews; vegetarian; and homemade (breads, broths, salsas, dressings, etc.). Each recipe is broken down by cost per ingredient, and frugal tips are included throughout. Some of my favorite examples…
- Save and freeze the last bits of potato chips in a freezer-safe plastic container to use for potato chip-crusted chicken.
- March is “frozen food” month. Frozen vegetables can be purchased for their lowest prices during the month of March, so stock up.
- Fresh cranberries can be frozen whole and used for future meals. Look for them for just $1/pound around the Thanksgiving holiday. Grab an extra bag and toss it in the freezer to use in future meals.
- If you plan to freeze chicken breasts in individual portions after buying a large family pack, consider adding the diced tomatoes and green chilies before freezing. As the chicken thaws, it will marinate in the sauce.
Erin kicked off her book signing tour last night at a local Dayton book store, and I took Olivia along with me to enjoy the experience.
Olivia loves Erin’s cookbook, by the way. Surprise, surprise.
“We should make every single one of these!”
At her signing, Erin addressed three core themes that are fundamental to saving money at the grocery store.
- Understanding marketing ploys (and avoiding them).
- Couponing, and the importance of matching coupons with circular sales.
- Stockpiling and meal planning.
If you’d like to see her in person, which I highly recommend,
Check out her tour schedule:
Columbus, OH
Friday, January 15th from 4:00 – 6:00 PM
Kroger Store
6417 Columbus Pike, Lewis Center, Ohio 43035
Indianapolis, IN
Monday, January 18th at 7-9 PM ***Rescheduled!
Barnes and Noble
14709 US Hwy 31 North, Carmel, IN 46032
Cincinnati, OH
Tuesday, February 2nd from 7-9 PM
Joesph-Beth Booksellers
2692 Madison Rd Cincinnati, OH 45208
Nashville, TN
Thursday, February 4th at 7:00 PM
Borders
2501 Westend, Nashville, TN 37203
DFW, TX Area
Saturday, February 13th at 2:00 PM
TCU Bookstore
2950 West Berry Street, Fort Worth, Texas 76109
Houston, TX
Monday, February 15th, Time TBD
Houston Library
500 McKinney, Houston, TX 77002
San Antonio, TX
Wednesday, February 17th at 7:00 PM
Borders at The Quarry.
255 E. Basse Rd., Ste. 350, San Antonio, TX 78209
Check back at her site for updates. Erin also continues to post daily tips and recipes at 5dollardinners.com.
And buy the book! It’s $10.19 at Amazon, a little more at your local bookstore.
More from Jolyn
Yakezie Posts
- What Do You Do If You Really Cannot Afford Regular Health Insurance? By jacob@mypersonalfinancejourney.com (My Personal Finance Journey)
- The Welfare States of America – Data That Even Blew My Mind By Darwin
- Touching the Lives of Others By Briana
- Donors Choose Giveaway Vote! By Kelly
- Transitioning from the Starving Student Budget to a Real Budget By young
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
(HUGS)
So glad to see you guys last night…are we on for Sunday?!?
[Reply]