Roasted Seasoned Potatoes a la Stockpile Recipe

The family had a yard work day on Sunday. The weather was nice, a tad cold but nice, so we donned the work clothes and set out to get the garden beds ready to plant. We pulled up weeds, raked up undecomposed leaves and such from the beds & did some weed whacking around the dog run and pool. There was also the end of last year's dirt pile to move so we could level & reseed the now grassless spot where it had sat. We also had a new pile of dirt delivered last week that had to be dumped into various garden beds. The compost also needed work as it had sat unattended all winter.



After a few hours of work, we called it a day and I had the task of feeding the ravaneously hungry crew. Besides the steaks I bought the day before to grill out on Sunday, I had been so busy with the yardwork that I hadn't prepared any other dishes to go with the protein....heck, I didn't even have ANY IDEA of what to serve with the steaks. So I opened the pantry door and peered in to see what stockpiled items would 'speak' to me.



The vegetable dish was easy, as I had some frozen boxed mixtures to choose from. The carbo dish was the hard one....I had some potatoes I needed to use up but baked potatoes would take too long and I didn't want to fry anything since I was on outside grill duty.
A box of Knorr dry soup mix caught my eye and I took it from there, making it up as I went along.



I washed & peeled the potatoes. Then I cubed them, placing them in a big stainless steel bowl.


I poured in about 2 Tablespoons of EVOO=Olive Oil, and tossed them in the bowl to coat.

I sprinked on 1/2 a packet of Knorr Leek Soup dry soup mix, shaking the potatoes so they were coated evenly.

The Knorr Soup Mix was a find from a Big Lots at $1.00.

Then I shook on McCormick's Salad Supreme(a salad topping seasoning mix)& one of their Grill Mates mixtures called "Hamburger". This had salt, pepper, chili flake, garlic, etc. in it. The Salad Supreme has Parmasen Cheese in it, among other things. I sprinkled on each, while tossing the potatoes to coat evenly, using about 1 Tablespoon of each.

Then I lined a cookie sheet with foil and turned the potatoes out on it, spreading them evenly. No need to spray the foil, as the EVOO on the potatoes will keep them from sticking to the foil.

I roasted the potatoes in a 400 degree preheated oven for about 22 mins. or until the chunks were cooked through and they were golden in color. (Smaller pieces will cook quicker-larger pieces will take longer, so YMMV.)

And here they are! My photography isn't the best but even with my skills with a camera, they looked good enough to eat!lol

The family gobbled them up in short order and gave them 2 thumbs up.

The potatoes were inexpensive, as potatoes usually are....about $1.00 for 7 spuds.

The Soup Mix was $1, so the half I used was .50¢.

The McCormick Seasonings were $1 & $.67 a bottle, respectively, on sale and with $1/1 Qs. I used approx. 1/4 a bottle each, so .25¢ & .17¢=.42¢ for both.

EVOO was .13¢ a tablespoon, so cost was .26¢ for 2 TBs.

$2.18 total for 6 generous servings or .36¢ per serving.

I thought this dish was fairly successful. It was tasty without resorting to mashing and tons of Butter & Salt....not that there's anything wrong with Butter & Salt.lol

It's Monday night and I STILL don't have my Menu Plan done for this week!

*sigh*

Maybe a refreshed brain in the morning can deal with this chore. I'm just too beat to think up anything good tonight.

Off to rest my weary bones.....

Sluggy

These Insoles are Made for Walking! 99% Savings at WAGS!

The Dr. Scholl's Qs I ordered came on friday. I found myself out & about today near a Walgreens and made a quick run into the store to use some Qs.




Transaction #1

2x Dr. Scholl's Insoles on sale 2/$20
Used 2x $10/1 Qs
Total OOP $.00
Received $10RR for Insoles


I had gone over to the food aisles looking for those boxes of Large Lipton Tea Bags(the ones for making iced tea by the pitcher) I saw the other day that they were on clearance for .80¢ a box. This store had none! I figured the .87¢ peanut butter would be long gone...


But as I wandered back to get more insoles to buy, I went down the back end of the 'hardware' aisle and they had carts of food products lined up down the middle of the aisle. I don't know if they were marking them all down for clearance of just rearranging the food shelves and needed some stuff out of there temporarily so they had space to work BUT.....I found the boxes of Tea Bags in a cart there. So I priced checked them and they were still on clearance for .80¢....yes!!! We drink alot of fresh brewed iced tea in this house. Those boxes go for $3.00+ regular retail so .80¢ is a wonderful price!


Which leads me to the next couple of transactions......



Transaction #2

2x Lipton Tea Bags clearanced @.80¢=$1.60
2x Dr. Scholl's Insoles on sale $2/$20.00
Subtotal $21.60
Used Coupons
$1/2 Lipton Tea=$1.00
2x $10/1 Dr. Scholl's=$20.00
Coupon Total $21.00
Total OOP $.60
Received $10RR for Insoles



Transaction #3

5x Lipton Tea Bags clearanced @.80¢=$4.00
2x Dr. Scholl's Insoles on sale $2/$20.00
Subtotal $24.00
Used Coupons
2x $1/2 Lipton Tea=$2.00
2x $10/1 Dr. Scholl's=$20.00
Coupon Total $22.00
Used $2RR
Total OOP $.00
Received $10RR for Insoles


Wandered back to the Pharmacy and saw they had more Breeze 2 Monitors in....

Transaction #4

Breeze 2 Monitor on sale $14.99
Subtotal $14.99
Used Bayer Monitor Q $14.99
Total OOP $.00
Received $5RR for Monitor

**I just want to mention that alot of the blogs note that the Breeze 2 AND Contour Monitors are month long deals at Walgreen's for May. This Is NOT correct. Both Monitors were on special the 1st week of May(April 26th-May 2nd)BUT ONLY the BREEZE 2 Monitor is on sale for $14.99 ALL MONTH!
Trust me, I found out the hard way, by trying to buy a Contour AFTER the 1st week. It rang up regular price, twice!lol**


This store STILL hadn't gotten any Roots of Nature Hair Products either. And I found 1 lone bottle of the Iceland Health Fish Oil Capsules left on the back of a high shelf this turn around the aisles. Plenty of Colgate Max Toothpaste and Toothbrushes however.

Transaction #5

4x Ramen Noodles@ 4/$1.00=$1.00
2x Dr. Scholl's Insoles on sale $2/$20.00
1x Iceland Health Fish Oil @$8.00
Subtotal $29.00
Used Coupons
2x $10/1 Dr. Scholl's=$20.00
1x $5/1 Iceland Health=$5.00
Coupon Total $25.00
Used $2RR, $2RR=$4RR
Total OOP $.00
Received $10RR for Insoles, $8RR for Fish Oil


Transaction #6

2x Dr. Scholl's Insoles on sale $2/$20.00
Subtotal $20.00
Used Coupons
2x $10/1 Dr. Scholl's=$20.00
Coupon Total $20.00
Total OOP $.00
Received $10RR for Insoles


Grand Total
Value of Items Purchased $223.28
Coupons Used $121.99
Total Out of Pocket $.60
Savings of 99%
Register Rewards Used $6
Register Rewards Received $63

This was a great trip. Quick, low OOP, stuff I can use & made lots of RRs.

Sluggy

Green & Thrifty Thursday...Toilet Paper without the Guilt

A little late but it's still Thursday somewhere, right?lol

Here's this week's Green & Thrifty Tip.


I am NOT paid to endorse or review products. So rest assured, I have no financial motive when I recommend a product. You'll get the unvarnished truth from my experiences with products.

Folks who are concerned about the environment(and who isn't these days?) have decisions to make when shopping. Usually the big choice boils down to this one....Do you use the product that does the least harm to the environment or do you use the product that does the least harm to your financial bottom line.
Face it, most 'green' products come with a bigger price tag than 'regular' products. Buying 'green' is not cheap and often times the products are not all that 'green' either. Being 'green' has become the new hype companies use to get more of the GREEN stuff(money) out of YOU! When you can find something that truly strives to be 'green' & satisfies BOTH your conscience AND your wallet, that is HUGE!

Even if you are concerned with the environment, most people don't want to or can't conceive of give up using ALL paper products. You can give up paper napkins in lieu of cloth napkins;you can give up paper plates & use 'real' plates. But most folks can't see giving up using toilet tissue. Ah, there's the 'green' consumer's rub.....until now.

Marcal has come out with a line of paper products called SMALL STEPS. The company claims that No trees are destroyed in the making of these products. They are made from 100% premium recycled paper ONLY! If you buy the single roll size, even the outer wrapper is a paper product and can be composted! The larger packages DO have a plastic outer wrapper but I read on the wrapper that it CAN be recycled as a #4! Think of all those toilet paper wrappers being thrown into landfills each day....Charmin, Scott, Cottonelle, etc. If they would all go to a recyclable packaging, that's a TON of material we wouldn't have to dump into the earth!


Not only is this Marcal SMALL STEPS product better for the environment by not causing the destruction of the earth's forests, it is whitened WITHOUT Chlorine Bleach, so no harsh chemicals are used to make this product white. I don't know the specifics of the whitening process but since it's recycled paper to begin with, it's already been bleached in it's previous life, right? There isn't much whitening left to perform on it.

SMALL STEPS products are also Hypoallergenic with no Dyes or Fragrances added. I don't like my toilet paper colored or scented up, how about you? This would be a great product for all those folks out there who are allergic to chemical produced fragrances and artifical colorings.


I've used the toilet tissue, the facial tissue & the paper napkins in this line. In my experience, all are as good or better than other brands of the same items. They are sturdy but soft and get the job done.


As far as price goes, this line of Marcal products is comparable in price to other brands. Marcal has been releasing coupons regularly for this new line, making the products an even better deal for your wallet. Let's hope they continue to offer coupons to keep the price you pay lower, if you choose to use the coupons that make available.
As you can see in the photo below, I have been picking up the Small Steps products as I get coupons for it, giving me quite the toilet paper & facial tissue stockpile. Behold my Pyramid of Paper in progress.....lol

If you don't see the Small Steps line in your store, check out the Marcal website HERE to see where it's currently available. Or ask your local store manager to carry it.

No harsh chemicals, dyes or fragrance, good price, no trees cut down and even the packaging is recyclable. Sounds like a win/win/win/win/win to me!

Sluggy

A Quickie to CVS...Buy $48.46, Spend .22¢

While over by WAGS yesterday I popped into CVS for a few things and to roll some Extra Care Bucks.

4x Kellog's Cereals on sale $2 ea.=$8.00
4x Ragu Sauce on sale $1.66/67 ea.=$6.67
2x Skippy Peanut Butter on sale $1.66/67 ea.=$3.33
2x Crest Pro Health Rinse on sale $3.49 ea.=$6.98
Bayer Crystals on sale $2.00
Nivea Body Wash $5.99
Nivea Legs Cream $9.99
Nivea for Men After Shave clearance $1.50
12 pack Diet Coke *Not Pictured* on sale $3.25
1x Energy Drink *Not Pictured* on clearance $.75
Subtotal $48.46

Coupons Used....
4x Kellog's Cereals $1/1 =$4.00
1x Ragu Sauce $1.25/3=$1.25
1x Skippy Peanut Butter $1/2=$1.00
2x Crest Pro Health Rinse $1/1=$2.00
1x Bayer Crystals $1/1=$1.00
Nivea Body Wash buy Leg Cream Get Body Wash Free=$5.99
2x Nivea $1/1=$2.00
1x Diet Coke $1/1=$1.00
Coupon Total $18.24


$48.46-$18.24=$30.22
Used 3x $10 ECB=$30.22
OOP...$.22

Received ECBs...
$4 for 2x Crest Rinse
$2 for Bayer Crystals
$3 for Ragu/Skippy(buy $10, get $3ECB)
$5 for Nivea(buy $15, get $5ECB)
ECB Total $14

The per item breakdown on the Nivea was $2.00 ea.(not counting the clearance item)after the coupons and ECBS earned....a little high for what I like to see but ok.

I have peanut butter coming out my ears! I bought these 2 jars BEFORE I hit the Peter Pan clearance sale(.87¢!!) at WAGS, so we are good on the peanut front now.lol I also realized I didn't have enough Diet Coke stockpiled for hubby's relatives arrival in 2+ weeks. All 3 of them drink this stuff, so my 1 12-pack purchase was far from enough! I figure 2 12-packs should get them through 3 days, right? Oh wait....Sis-IL will be here a WEEK....Yikes! I'd better pick up more, huh?lol

If anyone needs Kellogg's Cereal, get to CVS this week after you print the Kellogg's coupons on Here. With coupons, they will run you $1 a box!

Sluggy

Walgreen's-cheap Peanut Butter, Fish Oil & Beans-95% Savings

Stopped by WAGS today to roll some RRs.
**Be careful this week if you are rolling the $4.50 Colgate Sensitive Toothpaste RRs from last week. Don't use this RR to pay in a transaction buying the Colgate Max Fresh/White Toothbrush or Toothpaste, or you won't get your Max White/Fresh RR. I mention this because it almost tripped me up today!

Let me just give a disclaimer here for all my Compact following friends, before you see the photo below. There are sinful Paper Towels in the photo. Now, I don't do paper towels in any way shape or form, since my sick old dog passed away last May. I hate paper towels, I always have since my mom first bought them in about 1973. But I am married to a human being who thinks Mighty Highly of them & grew up using them. He doesn't care if he's destroying the planet when he needs to use a paper towel.

He also pays for things around here, as he is the gainfully employed one and he is very good to me. So I let him have his few indulgences. My only request is that I buy the paper towels & not him.
He is a typical man.....you need an item, you go into the nearest place that sells item and you buy it. You don't even look at the price, you don't find one that is less expensive if there is a choice and good lord!, you DON'T USE COUPONS!
So, if paper towels are coming into this house, they are coming in through MY FRUGAL, COUPON USING, CHEAP SELF FILTER! I get em but I get em cheap. I'm not happy about it but I do what I gotta do. 'Nuff said.

With that, here's the haul from this afternoon......




Transactions #1



Colgate Max Fresh Toothbrush $2.99
Iceland Health Fish Oil $8.00
2x TUF Paper Towels @$.89=$1.78
Subtotal $12.77
Tax $.08

Coupons Used....
Colgate Toothbrush $1.00
Iceland Health $5.00
WAG Q Tuf Paper Towels $.60
Coupon Total $6.60

Used $4.50RR from Listerine
$1.75 OOP
Received $8RR Fish Oil, $2RR Toothbrush



Transactions #2

Colgate Max Fresh Toothbrush $2.99
Iceland Health Fish Oil $8.00
2x TUF Paper Towels @$.89=$1.78
Peter Pan Peanut Butter clearance $.87
Subtotal $13.64
Tax $.08

Coupons Used....
Colgate Toothbrush $1.00
Iceland Health $5.00
WAG Q Tuf Paper Towels $.60

Coupon Total $6.60
Used $2.50RR from Bayer, $2RR from Pert, $2RR from Pert
$.62 OOP put on Gift Card
Received $8RR, $2RR




Transactions #3

Colgate Max Fresh Toothbrush $2.99
2x Milky Way Bars @$.89=$1.78
Bayer Crystals $2.49
Subtotal $7.26
Tax $.00

Coupons Used....
Colgate Toothbrush $1.00
Bayer Crystals $1.00
WAG Q Mars Candy Bars x2 $.80
Coupon Total $2.80

Used $2RR from Pert, $2RR from Right Guard
$.46 OOP on Gift Card
Received $2.50RR, $2RR



Transactions #4

Iceland Health Fish Oil $8.00
6x Van Camp's Beans raincheck @$.50=$3.00
Peter Pan Peanut Butter clearanced $.87
Subtotal $11.87
Tax $.00

Coupons Used....
Iceland Health $5.00
Van Camp's $.75
Coupon Total $5.75

Used $2RR from Pert, $2RR from Right Guard, $2RR from Right Guard
$.12 OOP
Received $8RR

Transactions #5

5x Peter Pan Peanut Butter clearanced @$.87=$4.35
Subtotal $4.35
Tax $.00

No Coupons used

Used $2RR from Right Guard, $2RR from Pert
$.35 OOP



Value of Items $72.87

Coupons Used $21.75

OOP Spent $3.30($1.08 on GC/$2.22 Cash)

Savings 95.5%

RRs Used $25.00

RRs Received $32.50

I should have bought a 3rd Paper Towel on my 1st transaction and I could have used another $2RR to pay and had a $.37OOP instead of $1.75OOP. Doh!lol

I hate all these $2RRs I had. Made it harder to roll.
I did burn some RRs though for that amazingly cheap peanut butter...what a good price!
No Roots of Nature yet at this store. The truck comes tomorrow so I'll have to live without it as I don't have time or another reason to be over in that part of town the rest of the week.

Sluggy