Okay this one is the easiest tip so far. It’s something that helps with both cooking and shopping.

Cooking & Shopping Tip: FoodSaver

If you don’t have one, get one. They are awesome and a worthwhile investment. Mine has paid for itself several times over. It’s several years old and not nearly as sleek looking as the new models but it still works great and I’ve put a lot of miles on it. Here’s what I love about mine:

• I save money by shopping in bulk because I have a way to break down amounts and store them for long periods of time.
• I can prolong the life and freshness of items like cheese, etc. with daily use and resealing.
• I save time by preparing meals ahead of time and freezing them without risking freezer burn.

That’s just the short list. My daughter’s birthmom shared how she buys her hamburger in bulk then seasons and cooks it all at once taking small portions out for freezing to add to meals in a jiffy. I helped a friend do something similar where she did an entire week’s work of meals for her family in one marathon day about a month or so before her baby was due. We vacuum sealed them with my food saver and she still praises how much easier that first week was with baby home!

My family is a bit more picky about food, I think I’ve spoiled them with fresh and tasty too much - well that and WAY too much dining out at fantastic restaurants! *wink* But the best run I had was when I did the preparation (not cooking) ahead of time and froze meals like chicken fajitas - all the chicken and veggies cut, seasoned and ready to cook. They responded beautifully to this and loved that all they had to do was pull it from the freezer and cook it. The beauty of the FoodSaver is that regardless of whether you freeze before or after cooking you win with freshness and ease.

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