Simple Copycat Recipes To Make At Home
Copycat recipes are great to recreate, especially if you spend too much money on fast food, restaurants, and coffee shops.
As you may already know, we don’t eat out at restaurants often because of the high costs.
I enjoy making copycat recipes from some of our favourite restaurants.
It saves us money, but it makes us feel like we’re not missing out.
Today you find 15 maybe more of our favourite copycat recipes from Pinterest.
I also included creations from our kitchen, both keto and non-keto recipes.
Copycat Recipes Without The High Price Tag
One of the main reasons people eat out is convenience, either because of time barriers or lack of meal planning.
Eating out can drastically alter your monthly budget if you don’t know it already, especially if you spend more time at restaurants than grocery stores.
Media Marketing Works
How often have you seen an advert on the television or in a magazine for food and said, “I want to try that,” probably quite a few times?
I know because I do that quite often, the art of marketing does work.
Factor in the costs of tips and drinks for the meal, and you’ve just spent enough for a week’s worth of groceries for one meal.
Consider how much it costs to make a batch of your favourite muffins, subs or take-out chilli compared to a drive-thru.
What doesn’t work is prices which keep us at home working on ways to create mouth-watering meals in our kitchen.
Grocery shopping for some people is just B.O.R.I.N.G., but I don’t know many people who shop to party.
Of course, it’s not the most exciting chore, but when it affects your finances, it should be the smartest.
What Is A Copycat Recipe?
Well, it’s a recipe you love, but there is no recipe, or if there is, you aren’t going to get your hands on it because it’s a SECRET.
If you want your favourite foods at home to save money, you’ll have to figure out the ingredients used in the original recipe.
Is it easier to eat out than make it? Yes and No
For the home cook creating copycat recipes might be a fun way to get creative in the kitchen.
Not everyone likes to cook, but sometimes it takes ‘effort’ to increase enthusiasm.
Too often depend on others for our meals, but I bet you’d have to figure it out yourself if you were alone.
Eating at restaurants comes into play for people who are alone and enjoy the atmosphere and conversation more than the savings.
Related: Eating out Vs. Eating in
Eating Out Influences
Anyone influenced by co-workers, family, or friends to frequent fast food and eat-in restaurants should ask themselves whether it impacts their financial goals.
The hardest thing to get out of your mouth might be no, but it must be if you’re running on credit card swipes for money.
It’s not until someone creates and uses a budget for more than a month do they see the damage eating out can cause.
Related: The costs of coffee and lunch between co-workers- Take-out vs. Homemade
Costs Of Eating Out Can Become A Debt Trap
I can’t tell you the last time we went to a restaurant apart from in the U.K, and it cost us a fortune.
The reason was that I wanted to treat my UK family to dinner as it’s so expensive back home.
With a family of 4 to feed, my sister has a tight grocery budget, so she makes copycat recipes at home.
After eating out, we decided to go grocery shopping at Aldi’s to help offset the extra food costs of having us there.
Copycat Starbucks Lemon Loaf
Oddly enough, Mrs. C.B.B. and I have tried our hand at copycat recipes in the past.
Our favourite was the Starbucks Lemon Loaf that went viral on Canadian Budget Binder.
Although eating out is excellent, doing it too often can lead to high grocery bills and even higher eating out expenses in your eating out budget category.
Food Waste Sucks Money From Your Wallet
If you grocery shop and then eat out, you have food at home that possibly could waste unless eaten on time or frozen (if it can be).
If you’re working on cutting out either, you must balance both.
That means buying less food for home, leaving more money to eat out or less, leaving more money for groceries.
Ideally, you’d want to eat more at home, plus it WILL be cheaper by a landslide.
Copycat Recipes Are An Eating Out Fix
Tim Hortons chocolate chip muffins that our son loves. Now, I make them at home.
I realized that people who are mindful of their grocery budget or want to eat out but can’t still want to make copycat recipes.
They are saving money and getting the restaurant or fast-food cravings that used to cost a fortune.
Kudos to you because you’re the winner enjoying all the benefits of cooking foods you love but can do without the extra “convenience” expenses.
Why Choose Copycat Recipes?
To choose copycat recipes that pique your interest, you may consider the following;
- I tried the product before but can’t or don’t want to keep buying it—for example, Tim Hortons Chocolate Chip Muffins. The Tim Horton’s Chocolate Chip Muffin CopyCat version is the MOST popular recipe in my copycat section.
- The copycat recipes look mouth-watering.
- Copycat recipes are easy to follow.
- Copycat ingredients are inexpensive in comparison to eating out.
Nicola and I have created our favourite copycat recipes: treats, sauces, appetizers, and condiments instead of meals.
Now that I’m looking at this list and other copycat recipes, I’m finding that people are recreating their favourite packaged foods at the grocery store—oreo cookies, Twinkies, Ding-Dongs, etc.
I am forever adding new copycat recipes that we’ve tried on Pinterest and those we don’t.
Let us know your favourites in the comment section below.
British Cherry Bakewell Cheesecake Blondies
Popular Copycat Recipes On Canadian Budget Binder
- Dairy Queen Chocolate Dipped Bananas
- Just Like Starbucks Lemon Loaf
- Cherry Bakewell Cheesecake Blondies
- Copycat Tim Hortons Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Crispy Fresh Spring Rolls
- Copycat Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
- Homemade Old Elpaso Taco Seasoning
- Copycat Twinkies
- Milk Toffee
- Nuts and Bolts Recipe Mix
- Dundurn Castle Shortbread
Copycat Dundurn Castle Shortbread Cookies
Most Popular Copycat Recipes From Restaurants
I find that most copycat recipes come from fast-food joints or eat-in casual restaurants that offer a specific sauce, appetizer, drink, or dessert on the menu.
Most popular copycat recipes that consumers flock to.
- Cheesecake Factory recipes in the USA are to-die-for, but the closest you’ll get is a copycat version or the real thing if you have a CF nearby.
- Kentucky Fried Chicken, specifically the KFC secret recipe, KFC gravy, and Classic KFC Macaroni Salad are trendy recipes.
- Tim Hortons recipes are popular, especially the muffins, donuts, soup, chilli, and bagels.
- Red Lobster recipes- You can buy a box of pre-made Red Lobster biscuits at Costco or make them yourself.
- Applebees recipes are all appetizers and meat-based, like their famous burgers.
- Olive Garden is all about salads, sauces and bread.
- McDonald’s recipes- Did you see the new Big Mac sauce offered in a squeeze bottle at the grocery store yet?
- Chinese restaurant food is famous for Canadians, especially creating a healthier version.
Some of the best copycat recipes come from inside information, which means you know someone who works at an establishment or works (ed) there yourself.
Most restaurants won’t give up the recipe or leave out ingredients, so food is not part of a copycat recipes community.
You might even try copycat recipes that come SO CLOSE to the real thing you consider it just that or better but more so for your pocketbook than your taste buds.
Top 15 Copycat Recipes On Pinterest
Below you will find the top 15 copycat recipes on Pinterest sought after by people like you and me who want to stay home and save money.
Do me a favour and if you try any of the copycat recipes in this blog post, come back and leave me a comment and tell me what you thought about the recipe.
Copycat Cinnamon Cinnamon Rolls
Copycat Cinnabons Cinnamon Rolls
Try our CBB Cinnamon Apple Rolls and Keto Cinnamon Rolls and put them to the test.
Outback Secret Blooming Onion Sauce
I’ve never been to the Outback Steakhouse but Mrs. CBB has and loves their blooming onion sauce.
Cheese Biscuits Copycat Recipe Red Lobster
Kentucky Fried Chicken Secret Recipe
Mcdonald’s Big Mac Secret Sauce
McDonald’s BIG MAC Secret Sauce
Salad Dressing From The Olive Garden
Every Copycat Panda Express Recipe
15 Copycat Cheesecake Factory Recipes
I’ve never been to the Cheesecake Factory in Toronto but I’ve heard nothing but good reviews.
Below there are 15 Copycat Cheesecake Factory recipes that you can make at home.
Raising Cane’s Chicken Tenders and Sauce Copycat
If you’re a fan of Raising Cane’s here is a copycat recipe for their chicken tenders and dipping sauce.
Copycat Pancakes From The Popular IHOP
Try my ultra pillow-soft fluffy pancakes and put them to the test.
Orange Julius Recipe
The Most Popular Wendy’s Frosty Recipe
Crazy Bread Copycat Recipe From Little Caesars
Muffin Recipe From Costco
Copycat Wing Sauces From Buffalo Wild Wings
Buffalo Wild Wings Copycat Wing Sauces
Copycat Red Velvet Cheesecake From Cheesecake Factory
Cheesecake Factory Copycat Red Velvet Cheesecake
Pretzel Bites Copycat Recipe From Auntie Anne’s
Auntie Anne’s Copycat Pretzel Bites
Coleslaw Recipe From Kentucky Fried Chicken
K.F.C. Copycat Coleslaw Recipe
Delicious Copycat Arby’s Sauce
Kentucky Fried Chicken Recipe #2
Starbucks Lemon Poppyseed Loaf Copycat Recipe
Copycat McDonald’s French Fries
Subway Sweet Onion Sauce Copycat Recipe
Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce
Outback Blooming Onion Sauce Copycat Recipe
McDonald’s Chicken Nuggets Copycat Recipe
Five Guys Burger
Copy Cat Thin Mint Girl Guide Cookies
10 Taco Bell Copycat Recipes
Copycat Starbucks Banana Bread
CopyCat Chick Fil-A Chicken Nuggets Recipe
Copycat Chick-Fil-A Chicken Nuggets
Copycat Taco Bell Quesadilla Recipe
The Ultimate Guide For Making Starbucks CopyCat Drinks
I created a blog post specifically for Cheap CopyCat Starbucks Drinks, cold and hot brew.
Related: The Ultimate List of Cold Brew Recipes
Many talented people on Pinterest save money by creating their favourite beverages,
I will continue to add more recipes as I find them, so you won’t have to.
Discussion Question: What copycat recipes do you make at home, or would you like to make at home?
Also, If you try any copycat recipes, leave me a comment below and tell me what you think.
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