One Hundred Dollars a Month - Page 1727 of 2143 - I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.

Carrot Cake with Coconut and Raisins

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 13, 2013 · 6 Comments

Last summer when I was swimming in carrots, reader Teresa was kind enough to send in this recipe for carrot cake. I’m not sure how I misplaced it, but last night, I made it. Holy canolies people, I wished I had made this carrot cake sooner. Because hello, this cake was freakin’ awesome.

I’ll definitely be making this cake again. Thanks Teresa!

Ingredients
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/3 cups light brown sugar {packed}
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sweetened shredded or flaked coconut
1 cup grated carrot {packed}
3/4 cup Raisins
2 large Eggs
1/2 cup Canola oil
1/2 cup {1 stick} melted unsalted butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat to 350 degrees

Line a 9×9 inch pan with parchment paper and set aside.

Mix together the flours, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, butter and vanilla. Add the coconut, carrots, and raisins and combine. Slowly add the four mixture until you have a nice batter.

Pour the carrot cake batter into your pan and bake until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. About 35 to 40 minutes.

Cool cake and serve with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream or whip cream.

Looking to grow some heirloom carrots this spring? My favorite carrots are the Calliope Blend from Botanical Interests. Kids love them for their colors, I love them because of the taste.

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Baby It’s Cold Out There!

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 13, 2013 · 40 Comments

Maybe I’m just a major wimp, but baby it’s cold out there!

It seems like everyone I have talked to is sick, has been sick, or is waiting to get sick. I’m thinking now might be a good time to buy a bunch of my favorite Puff’s Plus Lotion Tissues and hang on to them in case there is some sort of tissue shortage across America. It’s been like 5 days, and I still feel like crap!

All the bird baths in town have frozen over.

The decorative grasses people have planted in their yards is all frozen, and has little icicle hairs standing up on the blades.

And the chickens, the poor, poor chickens are eating warm oatmeal this morning because this mama bird feels bad they have to stay outside in this cold weather.

What’s the weather like this morning in YOUR neck of the woods? Snow? Rain? Sun?

Mavis wants to know.

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Shopping with Mavis | Albertsons Double Coupon Shopping Trip

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 13, 2013 · 11 Comments

I was up early this morning so I went to Albertsons and snagged a few deals with my Albertsons double coupons. There were quite a few deals this week at Albertsons, but since I spent so much last week, I really need to watch my budget over the next 3 months if I want to reach my goal of feeding my family for $100 a month this year.

Here is what I bought:

Transactions #1 &2

2 Special K Cereal – $1.88 each
1 Yoplait Simplait Yogurt – $0.75 each
Used {2} $0.70/1 Special K Cereal Printable Coupons
Used {1} $0.30/1 Yoplait Simplait Yogurt Printable Coupon
Final Price: $ 1.11 after double coupons

Dreamfields Pasta – $2.00 each
1 Yoplait Simplait Yogurt – $0.75 each
Used {2} $1/1 Dreamfields Pasta Printable Coupon
Used {1} $0.30/1 Yoplait Simplait Yogurt Printable Coupon
Final Price: $0.15 after double coupons

Are you headed out to Albertsons this morning? What is on YOUR list?

~Mavis

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Face-Off: White Bread Vs. Whole Grain Bread

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 12, 2013 · 70 Comments

{photo credit}

Monkey boy loves Wonder Bread. I won’t buy it for him of course, but really, who can blame him? It’s soft and delicious up to the very last piece. As I’ve grown more conscious about what my family puts in their mouths, I’ve started to wonder (ha, no pun intended!) if I’m failing him? On one hand, I’m supposed to make sure he gets his whole grains, but on the other hand, whole grains occasionally taste like you’re chewing paste. So what’s a mother to do?

I decided to compare the two. Did you know that Wonder Bread has 1/2 gram of sugar per slice, while whole grain has, on average, 2 grams per slice? Apparently, in order to make whole grain palatable, they have to add more sugar. I know, I know! 1/2 gram and 2 grams is nothing, but let me throw this at you: Wonder Bread also has more protein and fiber and less calories per serving. Even NPR weighed in on the battle, citing that it has been chemically proven that white bread releases better smells, making it more desirable. This is not at all what I was expecting to find.

{Monkey Boy & The Girl in front of La Boulangerie ~ Paris, 2006}

Now, before we get all crazy, I am not saying we should all switch to Wonder Bread. After comparing nutrition labels, I moved onto the ingredients list. I can’t even pronounce half the stuff in Wonder Bread (or the whole grains ones for that matter). The whole thing left me thinking: when did bread get so complicated? Didn’t it used to have, like, 5 ingredients in it?

So, after all of this, I’m on a mission. I am going to learn how to make my own bread. I know it’s an art form, so I’m not expecting to open a La Boulangerie, or Panera store right out of the gates, but I ordered up Peter Reinhart’s Artisan Breads Every Day and I’m going for it. Wish me luck.

How about you, are you a store-bought or homemade bread family? Is homemade better/worth it? I read that it costs roughly $.47 to make a loaf–what do you think, is that accurate? Is this going to save me money in the long run? And most importantly, do any of you have a recipe that might fool Monkey Boy?

This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.