Food Facts: Yogurt

Many of us have grown so used to reading labels on food that we have, collectively, lost the ability to identify food that is good to eat without a time stamp and full instructions printed on the label. Food does not expire on the date given and knowing when it is still good can save a lot of money. In this series I will be looking at foods with this in mind.

Yogarts are a yummy and healthy food and they often a good choice with hungry children.

Modern yogurt are, for the most part, sold in airtight plastic containers with a foil lid. This gives us a perfect barometer for the state of the yogurt inside. When yoghurt expires it gives of gasses which can not escape as a result the lid of the yogurt pot starts to budlge upwards under the pressure. When this has not happened the content is most likely still safe to eat.

The general consensus of my straw poll was that shop brought yogurt will last an extra month unopened past the sell by date. Obviously if it smell sour, has green, black or red things that should not be there, goes crusty or tastes "off" then you might want to think twice (or even three times).

On the whole dates are set earlier then they need to be because it makes it easier and less risky for the people selling it.

Yahoo answers and askville both have a discusion on the subject of yogurts and thier kin.


Disclaimer: please use your head. None of us are food scientists, clinical technicians or experts in the field of food sciences. As such nothing here should be taken as advice because, although we understand it all to be true we are only writing this to share what we "know" and have no desire to be sued if you do something stupid or we get something wrong.

Photo credit: Jason McKim

Save money by cooking like your Grandma

My grandmother knew a thing or two about saving money. Growing up during the depression, then becoming an adult just as World War 2 broke out, followed by being a young mother during the post-war years of rationing, it wasn’t really surprising that she knew how to make a meal out of apparently nothing and didn’t believe in wasting anything.

By the time I was born my gran, along with the rest of the country had become more affluent, but she never forget the days when there often wasn’t enough to go around and it was only the determination and imagination of housewives that kept a family fed.

We could learn a lot from the women of my gran’s generation. In our throw away, easy come-easy go society, ideas such as make do and mend, or making meals out of left-overs might seem arcane, but really they shouldn’t because not only is that a more economical way to live, it is also very green. With that in mind, read on for a list of great websites offering wartime recipes that are both delicious and frugal - it wasn't all sheeps heads and powdered egg. Many of these recipes are also healthier than a lot of our modern food, don’t forget, the British public were at their healthiest during the war years - not sure what that says about us the rest of the time LOL

Some Wartime Recipes: Includes a recipe for real Lancashire Hotpot, perfect for this chilly time of year.

Food and recipes of wartime Europe: Includes a recipe for Mock Goose which would be a good vegetarian option this Christmas.

Frugal recipes from wartime Britain: Amongst the offerings is a recipe for sausage and sultana casserole which seems an odd combination but sounds intriguing.

Wartime Mock Recipes: During the war people came up with ingenious ideas for creating mock versions of popular but hard to obtain food, this page lists a few.

20 Thrifty recipes from the austerity years: These recipes are actually scans from original books so are a little hard to read. It’s worth persevering though, especially for the last one, a frugal Christmas pudding.

How to save a fortune by shopping smarter

Supermarkets use dirty tricks to make you buy more stuff.

supermarket ethics say "we need to sell more stuff" - selling stuff is what the super market exists to do. No mater how much they claim to be about the little guy, or caring for the housewife or being all about value the bottom line is that they do this to sell stuff. Selling stuff to you is the whole plan.

This article is about reducing the cost of shopping by not only becoming wise to the sales tricks of Supermarkets but by using them, when you have to, to greater personal effect.

In part reducing the cost of shopping is going to be part of creating a positive personal environmental impact insofar as reduced consumerism (the life-style of consuming things) will lead to reduced costs. What we are searching for is a form of sustainability in our own lifestyle.

That sustainability can only come when we are aware of the mindset big chain stores are keen to create for their own benefit and not for yours.

1. Consider the trade off between quality and quanitity. As Stubsy points out at financesandmoney.com [...] at Tesco right now, Andrex 4 roll, plain white, bog standard – pun intended – loo paper is £2.25 but Tesco’s value loo roll 4 pack is 43p! So in order for a packet of Andrex to be more efficient each pack of four would have to last 5.2 times longer. In my experience Tesco loo roll lasts a third of the time of better rolls. So while Tesco Value roll is cheaper and not so good you can afford to buy three times as many for less and so come out on top. (Tesco is the big UK Supermarket for low prices)
2. Have a big lunch before you shop. If you shop hungry those impulses to buy are much stronger and those chocolate bars at the checkout are going to look very yummy and perfect for a post shopping snack.The managers put those there because that is where they sell best as hungry tired shoppers go to pay for their goods. You and your waste line don't need the sweets.
3. Ignore your nose - go when not hungry. This is real the same point as have a big lunch - hunger is a powerful selling tool and big chains are good at making it worse. Big supermarkets put bakeries and other cooked food areas in to make you feel hungry. Hungry people buy more food. Pay no attention to the smell.
4. Make a list and stick to it. Supermarkets are very good at placing content so that you want to buy it. Everything in the shop is about selling you more stuff. By sticking to a list you can reduce the impact of the impulse to purchase extra things. That tasty looking two-for-one offer is false economy designed to make you make extra purchases.
5. Walk to the back of the shop first. A modern supermarket is laid out in such a way as to get the maximum sale from you. First you hit the fresh stuff and the tinned is at the back. After all that you must then walk to the front of the store to pay. Skip a whole passage of temptation and buy nothing that until you are at the back. When finished you will be at the front of the store and ready to pay.
6. Beware of missed deals. Many times stores will put a special on bigger sized units but not on the smaller. For example it is not uncommon for a litre of Bells Scotch Whisky to be priced lower than the 75cl bottle at Tesco stores. When I say less I mean that it is actually a lower price for a bigger bottle. This happens a lot because special offers are not worked out on the shop floor.
7. Share the shopping load. Bulk purchases can save you money but sometimes ten tins of beans is too much. By sharing the shopping load with otehrs you can share the saving of the bulk purchase too. This saves everyone money.
8. Learn to spot free food. Did you know that on more than one occasion I have walked out of a Tesco richer than I went in? The magic discount works when foods on special (50% off, BOGOF, 80p off, etc) are reduced to sell. The "50% discount" on a £2 item is actually a £1 refund at the checkout. You look at the receipt you get and you will see "multibuy saving -0.83" or similar. When food, especially fresh vegetables are reduced that refund is often still active so when you purchase you actually are being given the item for free plus free money.
9. Spot Errors with the Promotion. Famous examples are the man who got his local Tesco to give him all of their bananas (a full pallet of the things) buy demanding the club card points as cash; or the "two pound off offer" that coincided with the one pound trial price. Sometimes what seemed like a good idea at the time can, for sharp eye shoppers by a freeby waiting to be discovered.
10. Ignore the front row. Older stock is placed a the front to stop the store being left with out of date stuff. The items at the back are the freshest and will last longer. By purchasing these instead you will make you food last longer and be less ready to go off.

What tricks have you learned over the years?

5 Tips for Looking Good on a Budget

With the economy on the slide, and prices going up, beauty products may seem like an unnecessary expense. However, don’t worry that you have to ditch them altogether - perish the thought! - there are plenty of cost effective ways to look good without spending a fortune. Here are my top five, but stay tuned for more.

1) Don’t feel pressured into buying expensive brands of moisturiser in the belief that they will make you look twenty years younger, the chances are they won’t. Cheaper, own brand makes may not look as good, but will be just as effective. You could even try baby lotion which has the advantage of being formulated for delicate skin, so is less likely to cause a adverse reaction.

2) That old tip about cucumber slices as eye compresses actually works. And there are numerous other beauty treatments that can be made using products found in your kitchen. Banana makes a good face-pack, and oatmeal a great exfoliant. A quick search of your favourite search engine will turn up plenty of sites featuring recipes for home-made beauty products.

3) Vaseline may have a slightly unsavoury reputation, but it should be a permanent fixture in your make-up kit. Use it to shape eyebrows, mix it with lipstick to create lipgloss, or dab on as a night cream. Buy the version made for babies, if you find the regular stuff too greasy.

4) Shaving gels have become popular in recent years, which is no surprise, because lathering up with soap and water frequently lead to dry skin. However, hair conditioner makes a much cheaper alternative, and leaves your skin feeling silky smooth.

5) Back to the baby products - you could spend a tidy sum on a make-up removal cream or pads, or you could use wet wipes, which are just as effective, but kinder on the skin.

Frugal Gifts For Frugal Gals

By Cheryl Johnson

A frugal gift is measured first by it's usefulness. Speaking from my own experience, I would say that my most appreciated gifts are those that I not only find useful, but that I would have had to purchase myself at some point. With that in mind, the frugal mind that is, the gift actually serves two practical purposes; It is useful and saves me money.

If you are a frugal gal, this task will be much easier for you. If great minds think alike, the same is true of frugal minds. Simply look within yourself. The frugal gal can get excited about the most ordinary items. For the rest of you, here's a little help.

Although you may question some items on the list, remember, the frugal gal enjoys frugal things! She looks to get the best value for her money and this IS what makes her happy! It just makes sense that providing a practical frugal gift that may also save money, will make her happy. Isn't that what great gifts should do? So here's to happiness and the pursuit of the frugal lifestyle! Happy holidays, happy birthdays, happy Mother's day, etc. etc. etc...

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