THE WORD GOURMET AND LUXURY ARE PARTNERS IN CRIME AND IF YOU MEET WITH THEM BE PREPARED TO PAY THE PRICE. The most expensive food is the food that you can’t afford to buy. Your grocery budget should be important to you especially if finance is something that you want to challenge and control. For most consumers the number one budget category to tackle is the food budget. The reason is because we can change how we shop and what we eat. Product prices differ all over Canada and for this reason depending on where you live the struggle to keep on budget may be near to impossible or at least seem to be. One way you can help your grocery budget>>Investigate your habits. Find out what gourmet really means and why you should consider chopping luxury food products that take up too much real estate in your shopping cart.There’s nothing wrong with indulging in your favourite luxury food products but when it becomes a habit you may be biting off more budget than you can chew. Stop making excuses as to why you need a bag of chips every time you watch television or pop in a DVD […]
Luxury Food Products That Are Eating Into Your Grocery Budget : The Grocery Game Challenge 2017 3&4 May 15-28
Baked Cheesy Pork Rind Nachos (Low-Carb Keto Snack)
YOU SHOULD TRY THESE PORK RIND NACHOS IF YOU WANT TO ADD SOME CRUNCH TO YOUR DAY WITHOUT ALL THE CARBS. Break out the smokey flavoured BAKEN-ETS (CHICHARRONES) because there is a way to make low-carb nachos and boy are they delicious. Keto nachos to the rescue any time you have a craving for something salty and crunchy. Pork rinds are the keto chips of the low-carb world and today I’ll show you how to transform them into loaded cheesy pork rind nachos. What is a keto diet? A ketogenic diet (keto) is a very low-carb diet, which turns the body into a fat-burning machine. It has many potential benefits for weight loss, health and performance, but also some potential initial side effects. A ketogenic diet is similar to other strict low-carb diets, like the Atkins diet or LCHF (low carb, high fat). These diets often end up being ketogenic more or less by accident. The main difference between strict LCHF and keto is that protein is restricted in the latter. Get ready folks it’s party food time but this round is for the low-carb foodies who want to tuck into the snack table with options. Low-carb keto snacks […]
Inexpensive Long Weekend Activities Rain or Shine : The Saturday Weekend Review #224
BIRDS CHIRPING, EARLY SUNRISE, KIDS PLAYING, WATER SPLASHING, GRILLS ON FIRE, MUSIC AND LAWN MOWERS BLAZING-IT’S THE LONG WEEKEND VIBE! The first long weekend of the year is upon us this Monday for Victoria Day 2017 and I’m at work, but maybe you’re not. You will want something to do even if it’s an hour or two just to get out of the house or short travel to destination to enjoy the sunshine. Don’t you just love the feeling you get go through your body and mind when you wake-up knowing it’s a long weekend and you don’t have to work? I do too but sadly that won’t be me for the Victoria Day long weekend. What I love about a long weekend is that people seem to be relaxed and they tend to smile more and become engaged. This may be the best time to ask your neighbours to split a cost for a new fence or ask for help, haha! Even though we’re scheduled for some rain in the Greater Toronto Area on Sunday for the long weekend don’t let that hamper your plans. Grab an umbrella, rain boots and away you go whether you have a […]
One-Pot Meal: Courgette and Tomato Goulash
FILL THOSE HUNGRY BELLIES WITH THIS INEXPENSIVE ONE-POT MEAL. It has been surprisingly cold and white (Yes that means snow) here in Manitoba,Canada the last couple of days. I think Mother Nature forgot to switch to Spring but that’s fine because it gives me more opportunity in the kitchen to create new recipes. Having said that it was time for me to make a pot of stick to your ribs goulash. Originally this was to be a soup recipe but I wanted it to be bulkier to fill everyone up easily. This is a great way to stretch a meal or to add any leftovers looming in your refrigerator that look like they could use some love. What are Courgettes? I knew you would ask! Don’t worry they aren’t something you have to source as they are found in every grocery store. Photo Source: Rik Schuiling / TropCrop-TCS – Own work I love courgettes (a.k.a zucchini) and they generally go on sale quite often or you may find them on the reduced rack. Keep an eye out for green and yellow zucchini as most people tend to know more about the green then they do the […]
Change Your Life With The Perfect Pair Of Shoes : The Saturday Weekend Review #223
LIFE-CHANGING EVENTS HAVE THE POWER TO TAKE AWAY YOUR DREAMS OR OFFER OPPORTUNITY. I’m not selling shoes or even marketing them in this blog post. No. I’m sharing with you how important it is for you to pick the perfect pair of shoes, toughen up and find the riches that you dream of. This is a story about two sisters 10 years apart and on two different financial journeys. It’s tough for siblings to sit back and watch each other grow up because they venture in different directions for school, career and love. What’s even harder is being successful and then watching family members suffer financially. It’s hard to be happy but we know that in order to change your life you have to accept failure, learn from it and move on. How many pairs of shoes do you own and wear? Most people have 1 pair of shoes which is really all you need to get what you want from life. Don’t let anyone tell you that in order to become successful you must look a certain way. Accessories are just that, extra stuff you don’t really need and that includes shoes. Walk in my shoes for a […]
Grocery Store Etiquette and How You Can Participate For Free : The Grocery Game Challenge 2017 #2 May 8-14
KINDNESS GOES A LONG WAY-EVEN AT THE GROCERY STORE. Over the past almost 6 years that I’ve blogged at CBB I’ve rattled on about grocery store etiquette because it needs to be said. Today I’m dedicating this post to the lady in the grocery line behind us last week and to those of you who need a crash course on how to be polite. Understanding the code of etiquette and following through are two different things. Both need to be in place in order for you to be a nice person and not a hard-nosed grocery shopper (in this instance). With the rising costs of living everyone (almost everyone) is trying to save money wherever they can. Our biggest financial fight after the mortgage was the grocery store and we’ve battled it ever since and documenting our journey on this blog. Related: How we became mortgage free in 5 years First off let’s explain what the word “etiquette” means for those of you that may not be familiar with it. Your mom and dad might have told you to “be nice” or “treat others as you’d like to be treated” growing up. Ring a bell? If not, this post […]
Creamy Avocado Blue Cheese Salad Dressing (Low-Carb)
LEAVE THE BOTTLED DRESSING AT THE GROCERY STORE AND JUMP INTO THIS CREAMY AVOCADO BLUE CHEESE SALAD DRESSING. Watch out…I’m bringing the best of my game with this Creamy Avocado Blue Cheese Salad Dressing which is low-carb, sugar-free and gluten-free. Whether you’re a fan of blue cheese or not you can adjust the amount you use or find a brand that is not heavy on the blue veining. Please don’t run off when you see the words ‘low-carb’ because that steak you eat is low-carb too as are eggs, cheese, spinach and lettuce greens. Low-carb is just a way to say there aren’t that many carbs in the recipe or food you are about to make or eat. There are no toxic weird science projects going on behind the scenes and low-carb doesn’t taste like horrifying diet food. Not.even.close. Low-Carb Party Food Once the hot weather is here the back-yard BBQ party invitations will be arriving and you’ll want to bring something unique. One of the things I love about pot-lock parties in the summer is that we get the opportunity to try different kinds of foods. Related: How to have a frugal back-yard BBQ party I […]
Why This Senior Doesn’t Care If He’s Retirement Poor : The Saturday Weekend Review #222
DON’T LET MONEY KEEP YOU LOCKED BEHIND CLOSED DOORS. Finance has consumed Joe’s (changed name) entire life and now he says that he doesn’t care if he’s retirement poor. Who is Joe? Joe is a guy we met last week at the gym while babysitting his grandson. The gym has become a hub for parents/grandparents/caregivers who have little to no social life. We joke about this just about ever week. All wired up in the corner of the gym there were 6 of us parents chatting about the cost-of-living and how it’s been getting harder and harder. This is where Joe jumped in to say that he’s tired of worrying about money and he doesn’t care if he’s retirement poor or not. “I’ve lived a good life and seen more than I thought I would ever see”, as he calls over to his grandson to get out-of-the-way. Joe is an athletic almost retired man with white hair and a big smile that most people would gravitate towards. Even though he knows he hasn’t saved near enough he says being retirement poor won’t stop him from doing the things he loves especially when it comes with a free price-tag. […]
