Five Ways To Save Money On Your Grocery Bill

How To Save Money On Your Grocery Bill

Have you noticed that the price of food is rising as fast as the housing prices in Vancouver? Well, okay, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but you have to admit, food is not cheap. When I'm at the grocery store, I have to stop myself from gasping at the cashier's total and accusing them of overcharging me. I typically smile (a fake smile), pay, and discreetly check the bill while walking away. They are never wrong.

We have to eat. And if we eat well, this means lots of fresh whole foods and not much junk food (such as the high fat, high sugar yummy food that we shouldn’t, but do, eat). Our bodies will work better, we will have more energy and think smarter…. in other words, we will be “healthier.” However, the not-so-good for us food is typically cheaper (think fast food take-out) than the good-for-us food (think fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and cheese). So what is the solution to this eat-healthy-affordable food dilemma?

We have to shop smarter. We have to strategize and think of grocery shopping as a competitive sport where the goal is to eat and live well...without going into debt.

Here are 5 simple ways to help you save money on your grocery bill:

1. Choose The Best Produce. Be Ruthless.

Pick the best produce

Choose what looks like the freshest fruit or vegetable in the pile. It may require rearranging the food displays the produce folks work so hard to build. You will have to be discreet. Dig around, move things and find the best looking fruit or vegetable. Often they are at the back of the pile. The produce staff like to move the older stock to the front because we tend to grab the first ones we see. This is how they rotate their stock.

When you find what looks like the ‘one,’ pick it up and inspect it carefully before you put it in your basket. Avoid bruises, blemishes and signs of spoiling. Take charge. If it looks slightly old, then keep hunting. This way, you will purchase the freshest produce and it will keep longer, eliminate food waste and save you money.

2. Know your prices.  

If you know what you should pay for your food, then you will not be tricked into buying products that claim to be ‘on sale.’ For instance, I buy a type of coffee that always goes on sale. However, the ‘on sale’ price varies between stores. The one-pound bag can go as low as $13.00 a pound. So when I see it ‘on sale’ for $16.00 I know I’m being duped. If you know your prices (roughly, we can’t all be perfect) you can avoid being ripped off. This requires paying attention to prices when grocery shopping.

3. Look for sale signs.

If you have the space in your home (and the extra money) it’s worth stocking up on the deals. Sale items are often at the storefronts, at the end of the aisles or at the checkout counters. However, you may have to hunt for them because they aren’t always obvious. Don’t be fooled by signs. Some stores advertise certain food items with signs that are camouflaged as sale signs. However, if you look closely, the signs are only advertising the product but not a sale. Shopping can be as intriguing as a detective novel.

4. Search for the discount bins.

Stores typically have them tucked away in a corner. You can find decent deals on hard goods, such as soaps, tea, cleaning solutions, etc.

Know Your Prices

5. Bring your magnifying glass.

Read the ‘best before dates’ before you buy, especially on perishable items such as bread, milk and boxed lettuce. Pick the package with the longest ‘best before date,’ which is usually at the back of the pile (you are at an advantage if you are tall or have long arms). This way, your food will last longer and you will not be throwing out as much. You’ll save money in the long run and have more flexibility about when you eat your food.


There are many great ways to save money on your grocery bill and these are just a few simple ideas. It really boils down to shopping smarter. And remember, the cashiers do not purposely charge you too much for your groceries! Real food is not cheap.

How To Ripen An Avocado

As a kid I always ate avocados. Not because they were cool, they weren’t. In fact, food back in the day was never cool. I’m not even sure why my mom bought avocados. But she did, and they were always in our salads. As a kid I went through a “green thumb” phase where I actually grew an avocado tree. I stuck three wooden toothpicks into the giant brown seed and suspended it over a cup of water with the bottom half submerged. It sprouted roots. I planted it in a pot of dirt and kept it in my bedroom. It grew into quite a big and ugly green plant with a few broad shiny laurel-like leaves. I watered it, I babied it and took care of it like a pet. But it never did grow an avocado.

10 Ways To Snack Smart

Snacking is contagious. Don’t you agree? Once you start it’s tough to stop. Especially if it’s salty potato chips, greasy french fries or anything with chocolate. Avoiding these treats is tough but doable. Here are a few tips to help you snack smart.  

1.  Just Say No And Don’t Buy The Junk Food  

How To Avoid GMO Foods For The Everyday Home Cook

GMO Food Growing In A Field

“You don’t want to buy those strawberries,” says my neighbour with authority. “They’re so perfect they’re GMO strawberries.”

“No they aren’t,” I say politely. “Strawberries are not a GMO food.”

He looks at me with a blank stare, shakes his head as if I’ve just told him that people live on Mars and grow strawberries, and then abruptly changes the subject.

I get it. GMOs are confusing for the everyday home cook and a conversation non-starter. Many food labels proudly claim to be non GMO, which sounds fantastic. But, plenty of everyday home cooks purchase these products without fully understanding what non GMO represents. So to help you make informed decisions at the grocery store here’s a simple explanation about what GMO means and how to avoid them. 

7 Ways To Fight The Boredom Of Everyday Home Cooking

Let’s face it, cooking every day is dull, boring and monotonous. Planning, shopping, cooking and clean up is no easy feat. Combined with a busy lifestyle it can be terribly stressful. When you cook breakfast, lunch and dinner every day for the family, it can add up to over 1,000 meals a year. No wonder it’s tedious!

But we all know it’s always a good idea to cook your own food at home from scratch. You, and your family eat better, which means you can take more control over your health. So, just how can we avoid the boredom of everyday cooking? Here are 7 ideas to consider:

Ginger Cookie Recipe

Ginger Cookies

Recipes haunt me like a bad smell in the refrigerator. You know what I mean, every time you open the refrigerator door you think, ‘gee something smells bad’ and promptly close the door. Eventually, you succumb to the smell, bend down, move containers around, until you find the culprit.

I often find recipes and think, ‘gee that looks good, I should try that.’ Usually, I leave the cookbook or magazine open for days or weeks in an obvious location so I have to look at it or move it around many times until finally I break down and try it. Now, if that recipe doesn't work (because believe it or not, there are many bad recipes out there) I take no mercy. Outcomes the black felt pen and the recipe ends up looking like an essay marked by a fastidious English Teacher.

I love to bake or to be honest, I love to eat my baking. Often there are recipes of cakes, cookies, muffins hanging around the kitchen. However, baking is like an add-on, it’s not a necessity for survival. With time so limited, everyday meals take priority. It’s only when there is a blip in the schedule, the add-on’s or baking can get done. In my case, it's often at 10pm at night. As everyone heads off to bed they are tormented with yummy smells coming from the kitchen. 

I made this recipe last week, and to my surprise, the cookies all disappeared in two days – and trust me, it wasn’t because of me.

What Is Skyr Yogurt?

Skyr Yogurt

The number of yogurt products available at the grocery store is growing as fast as the cereal aisle. Have you noticed? The choices are endless: Balkan style, stirred, Greek, organic, 2%, 5%, or no per cent, sweetened, unsweetened, sweetened with artificial sweeteners. You get the idea. It’s enough to throw you into a full blown existential crisis right there in the dairy aisle.

Apple Muffin Recipe

Apple Muffins

After being told my cholesterol was too high, I set out in search for alternative solutions.  My quest led me to a faded pink waiting room.  I checked in with the busy receptionist then sat and waited, watching the streams of people coming and going.

Is The Recipe Dead?

I own many cookbooks - too many actually.  Some women have boxes of shoes hidden in their closets. For me, it’s cookbooks and cooking magazines.  When we recently moved, boxes of them mysteriously disappeared, including some cherished 1970 Gourmet magazines given to me by my mother.  She thought it sacrilegious to throw them in the recycling bin.  And to alleviate her guilt, I gladly took them.  Sadly, they magically vanished when my husband took a stack of boxes from the garage to the dump before the move.  Hmmm, I guess that’s one way of downsizing cookbooks!

Cauliflower Rice

Cauliflower

Cauliflower

When I was growing up vegetables were never the star attraction.  Don’t get me wrong…we ate our vegetables every night at dinner, but they were always the sideshow and never the main act. They were served to add colour to a plate of food.  Not unlike adding accent pillows to your living room couch!  As you might have guessed, the everyday home cook then was not so concerned about their nutritional merit because the knowledge wasn’t as abundant as it is today.  Vegetables were boiled for many minutes, leaching out all their colour, nutrition and taste.  Often a cheese sauce was spooned on top to cover up the anaemic-looking and tasteless veg.   And if not the sauce, then a hefty pad of butter was plopped on top along with multiple shakes of salt.

The one vegetable that was consistently smothered with an orange cheese sauce was cauliflower.  The thick velvety sauce would sit confidently on top of its bumpy, knobby, surface.  It was the perfect solution to a needed splash of colour for the white and bland-looking vegetable.

Life has changed a lot since then, thankfully!  Today, vegetables take a lead role on the food stage.  We cook vegetables to preserve their freshness, taste and vitamins. Cauliflower can be steamed, boiled, or even sautéed.  I particularly like it roasted. 

If you haven’t tried roasting cauliflower you must. Simply break up the florets and mix with 1 or 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast in a 425° F oven for 20 minutes.  Toss, then roast for another 10-15 minutes until they look, well, roasted. 

Another trend today is to serve cauliflower rice…yes, I said rice.  It’s a fun side dish and a sneaky way to add more vegetables into your kids’ diet.  Here’s an easy recipe to try.  If you feel adventurous, spice it up by adding different herbs or spices such as curry, basil, or parsley.  Enjoy.

Cauliflower Rice

 Cauliflower Rice

1 head cauliflower, cut in half.  Grate the florets with a box grater using the large holes or in a food processor (working in small batches)
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil on medium-high heat in a large skillet.  Add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds, then add cauliflower.  Sauté for 8-10 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Here is a video on Cauliflower Rice from the Minimalist Baker.

Looking for a way to get motivated in the kitchen?  Check out our FREE online course: How To Menu Plan For The Everyday Home Cook.  It includes a video, templates and recipes. 

Let's Talk About Dates...the small, brown, oval-shaped dates that grow on palm trees

Benefits of Dates

With Valentine’s Day nicely tucked away for another year I thought it would be a good time to talk about dates.  No, not the date who showered you with good food, chocolates and red wine on February 14th, but the small, brown, oval-shaped dates that grow on date palm trees.

A Food Paradox

How Food Packaging Is Misleading

We all know how to eat well. Everyday we are reminded how by the media, the health experts and even the food packaging. Walk down any grocery store aisle and you will be bombarded with food products screaming healthy messages: low fat, transfat free, low sodium, natural, light, 0 calories, whole grains, fibre!  It's all so confusing and at times often hard to believe.  

For instance, let’s take Froot Loops, a popular breakfast cereal. The packaging says it is “made with whole grain and a source of fibre,” plus it is blessed with having “natural fruit flavours.”  I have often wondered how or what could be natural about brightly coloured lifesaver shaped cereal that appears to be coated in sugar.  It’s paradoxical to me so I decided to buy a box to experience the ‘natural fruit flavour’ taste. 
  

Full disclosure, I do not eat cereal. I overdosed on the stuff as a kid, but for this paradoxical experiment I was willing to chow down on some.  

I poured the breakfast cereal into a white round bowl and I must admit, they were colourful, like the rainbow - orange, rose, natural (or was that yellow) and green.  

First I tried the green loop. I’m not sure what flavour green was trying to be, it was kinda like me trying to grow vegetables and not quite succeeding but getting an E for effort (good try green!)

The rose was faintly like cherry. I was hoping the purple  would be grape (my favourite flavour), but it was like opening up a birthday present expecting money but getting a t-shirt…a slight disappointment (nice attempt purple!)  

A Recipe From The Past - Easy Cheese Fish Fillets

Easy Cheese Fish Fillet

A Recipe From The Past

The box sat on the kitchen shelf like a shining beacon. It was filled with a mish-mash of various-sized recipe cards bearing an assortment of people’s handwriting. Some cards had faded newspaper clippings taped onto them, the yellow tape barely sticking to the various-sized snippets of recipes. 

It wasn’t your typical old-fashioned recipe card box that you’d expect an octogenarian mother to have. It was made of thick plexiglass with a modern look, extra large and unbreakable. I’m sure it would last several more lifetimes. Inside were perhaps up to 50 years worth of recipes that my mother had accumulated throughout her life.

“Can I have that?” I asked my 86-year-old father, the guardian of the box.   

“Why of course, take it, I can’t understand it.” He replied. 

He is a man whose cooking skills consist of boiling an egg, a hot dog, making a cup of coffee and a peanut butter sandwich. 

When my mother passed away four years ago, he also mastered the skill of heating up frozen pre-made dinners from the upscale deli down the street.

I was keen to find that one recipe that in my memory, was an all-time favorite. A white fish smothered with a Dijon mustard and mayonnaise sauce topped with melted cheddar cheese. 

A dish where each bite brought you an element of satisfaction with a blend of rich taste and smooth textures, a real delight.

I scooped up the box like a squirrel with a new find and headed out the door.

These days’ recipe cards are like old photographs, they have disappeared with the click of a keyboard. Recipes of generations are slowly sinking into the abyss of landfills daily and being replaced by the expansive cyberspace and virtual clouds.

I thumbed through the fish section with anticipation and suddenly realized how simple cooking was back in the day – often just a few ingredients, with salt, pepper, and usually butter. 

It was everyday cooking with no expectations to perform. Nothing fancy, complicated, or fussy. Its sole purpose was to feed, nourish and be tasty, although somewhat bland. 

Today there seems to be plenty of anxiety around everyday cooking with the perception that we, the everyday cook, have to be superstars in the kitchen and produce picture-perfect meals as seen on T.V., websites, food blogs, and in magazines.

Perhaps we should turn back time and bring back these old recipes, refresh them with some herbs and spices and make preparing super-simple meals the new normal. Then just maybe, we will all be superstars in our own kitchens and produce tasty, stress-free meals.

I didn’t find the fish recipe I was looking for, but I did find the following yummy fish cheese fillet recipe that I have made many times since. It was written in my mother’s handwriting and was from the “Kitchen of Sheena Mitchell,” a dear old friend of hers. 

The entire box is filled with a lifetime of memories around food, people, and experiences, the things you just can't find from a click of a keyboard.