With a wedding coming up, I'm trying to save money wherever I can. Our grocery budget is the 2nd largest expense, next to our mortgage, so that is where I'm cutting back the most with hopes that I can reduce it by half each month for the next six months.
One way I'm reducing our grocery budget is by menu planning for the week and only buying what we need for those meals. This is a HUGE change because I always have had a stocked pantry. So far I have saved $100 this week alone! Why did it take me so long to figure this one out?
I'm starting by sharing some money saving secrets that I'm learning along the way. First up is how to make homemade frozen hashbrowns. Have you seen the price of frozen hash brown's lately? Ridiculous. Here's instructions on how to make your own compliments of my friend Gayle.
First peel each potato, cut it in half and put it in a pot of cold water.
Boil
for 10 minutes or until just tender. They will feel sticky on the
outside but still give a bit of resistance to a fork being poked into
them. This short cooking time will give them just enough heat to keep
them from turning brown in the freezer.
Remove potatoes from pot of boiling water and place in a large bowl.
The next day drain your potatoes.
Remove potatoes from pot of boiling water and place in a large bowl.
Cover with cold water to stop the cooking process.
Refrigerate overnight.
The next day drain your potatoes.
Either cube, grate or shred the potatoes in your food processor. No need to flash freeze - the potatoes will be very dry.
Then fill a freezer bag with your cubed or shredded potatoes. I store them in serving sizes so for the six of us that's a gallon bag. That's also a similar size to store bought hash browns so if you're using them in a casserole you'll have the right amount. Make sure to squeeze out any extra air.
Store them flat in your freezer so it takes up minimum space.
To cook:
Heat frying pan over medium-high heat. Add butter or
margarine. Place shredded potatoes in pan. Cook until
bottom is browned. Flip potatoes and cook until browned again. Season
with salt and pepper. Or use in your favorite recipe.
