costs, made vs. storebought

[hollyquaiscer]

I too think that if you try and make tons of fancy stuff it can break you. I make bread constantly, have for more hers than I can count, and it works out to only between .50 & .60 cents per loaf, for big loaves. But then I buy a lot of things in bulk. I think that's the key. Also when making meals, a lot of thing are reinvented the next day, so you have to count that second meal too. I honestly believe that almost everything ( of coarse there are always exceptions ) I make is cheaper than purchasing the premise version at the store.

Then the quality controll comes into play. I substitute to make my version healthier, less saturated fats, less sodium and so on. I really enjoy baking and cooking, so to me, even if it cost more, I would still make my own.

I watch for sales on items I use everyday, like flour. About a month or so ago, Sobeys had a coupon for a 20 pound bag of flour for $3.99 of coarse the limit was 1 bag, so I got a bag, dh got a bag, and I had all 5 of my dd's get me a bag. I'm set with the flour for their bread and cakes for a few months

The key, watch for the sales and stock up.

[sweetmomma]

Rice Krispie squares are cheaper compared to the lunch snack kinds. This is providing you buy most ingredients on sale(ie/Rice Krispies). Although today I almost died buying No Name Marshmallows for their price. I remember when I was a kid a bag cost $0.79-$1. Now it has double or trippled in price!

[barbs]

lasagna can be more expensive homemade than storebought.

almost everything else is cheaper, and you can't beat the quality control: no soy oil, artificial colors, flavors, MSG, ingredients you can't pronounce, soy product that's in most of your entrees, etc.

I like the fact that when I cook from scratch I'm eating a top-quality product made from whole food ingredients, plus it really is cheaper.

salad dressings & spice mixes cost just pennies & can be custom made to exactly what you like.

you can't buy the same volume of soup, beef stew, etc. for the cost I pay for the ingredients to make a jumbo pot.

[roseofblack25]

um guess who is making homemade fudge tonight because of this thread?? Yes this person right here since I have all the ingredients except for vanilla or maple syrup Oh well it should still taste amazing without it

[jaybird]

Rice Krispie squares are cheaper compared to the lunch snack kinds. This is providing you buy most ingredients on sale(ie/Rice Krispies). Although today I almost died buying No Name Marshmallows for their price. I remember when I was a kid a bag cost $0.79-$1. Now it has double or trippled in price!

Homemade also tastes way better. I can't stand the store bought ones. On the other hand...I cannot resist homemade ones, sitting on the counter, looking all delicious...sigh...now I'm going to have to go make some. Thanks

[roseofblack25]

um guess who is making homemade fudge tonight because of this thread?? Yes this person right here since I have all the ingredients except for vanilla or maple syrup Oh well it should still taste amazing without it

I ended up making this: http://alidoesit.wordpress.com/2012/...-fudge-tablet/

I stirred for too long and it almost didn't make it out of the pot and into the pan hence all the lumpy fudge in the centre oops! At least I know it hardened well LOL! Still tastes the same anyway :p

om nom nom...Though I really really long for some good creamy buttery fudge like the stuff you can buy in expensive blocks from specialty places.

[Insane]

Looking at the that fudge makes me want to make peanut brittle!

[Craiger]

Although a great Dairy Queen cheeseburger tastes good I can make one at home for less than .75...
A Pizza night out costs us around $30 while pizza night at home costs around $6.00 (and we have lunch the next day)...
I can buy a spice cake mix for $1.00, add shredded carrots and then make 24 muffins, you can't buy that many muffins at the grocery store for $1.00...
And since I just made a bunch on the weekend, baby food...so much cheaper to make your own, way less waste!

[momof5boys]

I make a lot of home made food but I think the biggest cost savings for us is making my own applesauce and juice. To make applesauce only requires a hand held food mill which is really not that expensive. I can our applesauce but it can easily be frozen as well. It is absolutely the easiest thing in the world to make and tastes so delicious. There are usually people with apple trees where the apples are just falling and they are more than happy to have someone use the apples. I'm very fortunate that my parents have an apple tree.

Making large quantities of juice requires a Finnish style steamer stove top juicer....at the moment I am busy making pear/blackberry juice...so incredibly yummy and healthy. A load of pears with a few blackberries added results in four litres of juice. I use cooking pears (again from my parent's pear tree)that are dropping in vast quantities at the moment. Sure, the pears are damaged but that isn't any problem - just have to cut off the bad stuff and take out the core - no peeling required....so simple really. I have also mixed some rhubarb in with the pears.

[jaybird]

I make a lot of home made food but I think the biggest cost savings for us is making my own applesauce and juice. To make applesauce only requires a hand held food mill which is really not that expensive. I can our applesauce but it can easily be frozen as well. It is absolutely the easiest thing in the world to make and tastes so delicious. There are usually people with apple trees where the apples are just falling and they are more than happy to have someone use the apples. I'm very fortunate that my parents have an apple tree.

Have to admit didn't have a clue what a finnish style juicer was

Making large quantities of juice requires a Finnish style steamer stove top juicer....at the moment I am busy making pear/blackberry juice...so incredibly yummy and healthy. A load of pears with a few blackberries added results in four litres of juice. I use cooking pears (again from my parent's pear tree)that are dropping in vast quantities at the moment. Sure, the pears are damaged but that isn't any problem - just have to cut off the bad stuff and take out the core - no peeling required....so simple really. I have also mixed some rhubarb in with the pears.

Have to admit I didn't have a clue what finnish style juicer was . Thanks to google I now do. Can I ask where you got yours, how you'd rate it and the cost? I've been scrolling through Amazon and they have quite a few and the prices are all over the place, I'd of course assume the cheaper the price the cheaper the quality but sometimes that might not be true and I'd hate to spend $200 when $60 would do. Thanks for any input!

[lecale]

.

[momof5boys]

Have to admit I didn't have a clue what finnish style juicer was . Thanks to google I now do. Can I ask where you got yours, how you'd rate it and the cost? I've been scrolling through Amazon and they have quite a few and the prices are all over the place, I'd of course assume the cheaper the price the cheaper the quality but sometimes that might not be true and I'd hate to spend $200 when $60 would do. Thanks for any input!

I am using my parent's juicer and they bought it at a Farmer's Market somewhere in Ontario in Mennonite/Amish country....it was from a booth at a Farmer's Market that was staffed with Amish people I believe....Not sure how much they paid for it but it was over $100 for sure. My Mom has been using this juicer for years and now I am taking over because it is too much for her to handle. I make easily over 100 litres of pear juice each year with this gem.

[roseofblack25]

The fudge I'm thinking of is Eagle Brand 1-2-3 fudge.

1 can sweetened condensed milk
3 cups chocolate chips
2 tsp vanilla

3 cups chips is about 500g (small bags are 250-300g). Or maybe 5 Cadbury Dairy Milk bars, lol.

3 ingredients, you just heat up the sweetened condensed milk enough so that it can melt the chocolate chips, and add vanilla. It's pretty well idiot proof. No timing things, candy thermometer, or waiting for things to change colour. No crystallization. The sweetened condensed milk is a syrup that has already been cooked to the 'soft ball' candymaking stage, 120 Celsius, which is what you need to hit when making fudge the long, hard way. The fudge is really good, I have had a lot of requests for this recipe. It's comparable to fudge shop fudge.

That one is super easy to do! I'm just not a fan of chocolate fudge! I only like the maple stuff and bonus if it has walnuts in it yum!!

[lecale]

.

[ninna]

The fudge I'm thinking of is Eagle Brand 1-2-3 fudge.

1 can sweetened condensed milk
3 cups chocolate chips
2 tsp vanilla

3 cups chips is about 500g (small bags are 250-300g). Or maybe 5 Cadbury Dairy Milk bars, lol.

3 ingredients, you just heat up the sweetened condensed milk enough so that it can melt the chocolate chips, and add vanilla. It's pretty well idiot proof. No timing things, candy thermometer, or waiting for things to change colour. No crystallization. The sweetened condensed milk is a syrup that has already been cooked to the 'soft ball' candymaking stage, 120 Celsius, which is what you need to hit when making fudge the long, hard way. The fudge is really good, I have had a lot of requests for this recipe. It's comparable to fudge shop fudge.

Oh sweet jesus. wish I hadn't seen this post. Easy Fudge.

Really...you guys are gonna be the death of me.

It would have been safer to tell me that fudge is THE most difficult thing in the whole wide world to make cuz then I never would've attempted it. LOL.