Saturday, March 31, 2012

Easy Cake Banana Bread

This morning i got a special request. More of a demand from my cousin-in-law Jim to make banana bread. Jokingly he says "In a hour please..." Well There were things that had to be done but i promised it to him. I used what i had. There is a simple recipe for cake flour Which is 1 cup Flour-2tbs .. then add 2 tbs corn starch. Simple but I wanted it to be even more easy.. So I grabbed some Yellow cake mix and threw something together. 


Note.. Try not to get the cake mix with pudding in it... it made it very thick.
Cake mix, 3 Eggs, 3 ripe bananas, Veg oil
Bowl With cake mix and add eggs and 1/3 cup oil

Mix it up... Excuse the monkey hands.
Mash your Three Bananas

Gently Fold in the bananas. 

Get some help Filling, We made them into cupcakes for easy portion control

350 F for 11-15 or untill golden brown

Here is what you need:
  • 1  pkg cake mix (yellow, white, or I used butter pecan)
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/3 cup oil
  • 1 cup mashed bananas (about 3 medium bananas)
  • 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl blend together the cake mix, eggs, oil, and bananas for 2 minutes.  Pour batter into a greased 5.25 x 9 x 2.75 loaf pan.
  3. Bake for 40-50 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  4. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and allow to cool completely.  Makes 1 large loaf.      


Total Cost for this: $.90 for the cake mix. $.25 for 3 eggs.  around $1.50 for everything!

Friday, March 30, 2012

Rachs Pasta Muffins

I always wait till the last minute to make dinner. That's because I don't know what I want that day. And I have a lot in my stock pile so I have a lot to chose from. I plan out meals during the week to go shopping but sometimes it takes me a week and a half to actually use that recipe. Tonight i asked my son what he wanted, we can always count oh him eating Angel Hair Pasta  with butter and Parmesan cheese with some carrots and fruit. I think he has become a vegetarian. For the past month he has not wanted to eat any meat what so ever. Back to the point of this entry. I am getting bored with everything I make, I feel like I eat the same thing all the time, but to night I wanted to make something different. I only used what I had on hand today...
I pulled this out of my fridge and pantry
What I had on hand were basic essentials that probably you have in your kitchen now. I was thinking "hrm... What can i make with Noodles, Pasta sauce, Brats, Cheese, and Grands Biscuits? Here is what I did...
Whisked My egg 

Add Pasta Sauce



Added Cheese
Kinda Looks like Jiffy
Cut my grands in 1/2

Placed Grands in Tins. Then Cooked Pasta On top

Add Your Pasta Sauce Creation. And Place Brats on Top

YUMMMY!!




It looks weird but it is actually good! It took 1 1/2 to fill me up! 




Rach's Pasta Muffins Break Down:
Grands- $.80 for 1 container(using coupons). I used 3 and cut them in 1/2  There are 8 in a package. That brings the price down to $.30
Pizza Sauce: $1.00 for a 24 oz jar. I used 4 oz brings my price to $.16
Noodles: $1.00 I used about $.15 worth
Brats: There are 6 brats in a package. I got the 6 for $1.65 (using coupons) 1.65/6=$.27 

Lets add this together: Dinner tonight cost me...

   .30+.16+.15+.27=  A whopping $.88!! For 6 servings! That is $.14 PER MUFFIN!!!!  Ill take it!



Tuesday, March 27, 2012

"Make it Yourself" Laundry Detergent

A friend of mine Melissa, has a family of 7. I went to her one day looking for some advice, how do i cut my monthly spending and bills? I knew if she could do it. I could to... So she told me she made he own laundry detergent. I kinda laughed in disbelief not really realizing you could do it yourself. So she sent me home with a bottle. Man was that stuff amazing! She told me " Go check it out on the Dugger Family Website" and get the recipe! 

Making your own laundry detergent has so many benefits! Some of those are; 
1.Its cheap! Each load can be about $.01 per load or less if you use sales and coupons! Compered to $.22 for the average name brand detergent. When you buy manufactured detergents you have no idea whats in there.

2.They put tons of complicated names and dyes which a lot of people are allergic to. Making your own laundry detergent can be like buying a container of DREFT for 3/4 the price. For all of those parents out there, we all know Dreft is awesome for your kids, but also very pricy.
3.You know what is in it!! It is natural!
4. I love the smell of Fels- Naphtha, It has a natural lemon clean smell to it. I have also tried Ivory and both work just the same! Actually, I find that home made laundry detergent makes my whites whiter and brighter!
5. These recipes are HE (high efficiency). Companies actually put in a chemical to make your cloths lather. And what they have on the shelf named "HE" actually all they are doing is taking that additive out.

To each is their own. Some people like the smell of tide, and if you are wanting to make your own, add a bottle of tide into your "Make it Yourself" Batch it will smell great but last you MONTHS! If you are really wanting to save your money making your own laundry detergent is the best way to go! You can make 10 Gallons of detergent for around $7.00 and most of that is a one time fee. I am going to add links to other recipes as well as post them. Some people don't need 10 gallons. 

Check them out below:

Here is the recipe:

  • 1 Cup  Arm& hammer Washing Soda $3.49
  • 1 Cup Borax (20 mule team) $3.59
  • 1 Bar of Soap (ivory, Fels-Naptha, lever 2000)
  •  5 Gal bucket w/ Lid
  • Long Spoon

* Do not use a soap with lotions or heavy perfumes, The smell will become unbearable and to strong and the lotions wont set the detergent.*

1.Grate the bar of soap, Place it into a medium sauce pan with 6 cups of water, Bring to a boil and cook until there are no more Chunks.
2. Fill up your bucket 1/2 way with hot tap water.
3. Add your 1/2 cup of Borax and 1 cup washing soda
4. stir until it is dissolved.
5.When your soap is melted. Poor into the bucket. Stir.
6. Place lid on top and then let sit for 24 hours.

It should turn out like a gel. When you are ready to pour into your containers grab your hand held blender and blend and stir until it is even (you can even use a drill and stir attachment)

When filling up your container, Fill 1/2 way and add hot water to the rest.

Each load put in a 1/4 cup


Laundry Detergent Break Down: Do the math on your own laundry detergent. How much does it cost? How many loads per bottle? Is it HE? 

I did the math on our "HE" ALL we had been using for about 3 years. $11.39  a month (Sometimes more!) turns out to be $820.08 over 3 years. Okay to me that's pretty ridiculous! That is $273.36 A YEAR! WOW! I can think of so many things that are $270 a year! I could put that into my sons bank account, by the time he is 18 there would be $4920.48 ... Great to me so far! 
             Example:
All $11.29 – 96 loads per bottle, in one week if you end up doing 20 loads. $.11 x 20 = $2.35 x 4= $9.40 Compared to $.01 x 20= $.20 per week x 4 = $.80 a month!   


For Powdered Laundry Detergent 

Powdered Laundry Detergent 
  •  1 ivory (fels-naptha) soap bar 
  •  1 cup washing soda
  •  ½ cup borax

Grate soap or microwave for 1 min or until powdered and gritty. Mix all ingredients together. Use a TBSP each load. Yield is 40 loads.

 *** pictures to be uploaded at a later date.***


Note: I have NO affiliation with any of the websites, TM names or stores listed above.

Monday, March 26, 2012

Make It Yourself Fabreze $0.15

I love febreze but i HATE the price (from $3.99-5.52 per bottle, Seriously?!) So I quit buying it about a year ago... I found this recipe at www.homemademamas.net and I had to add it... Changing the recipe a bit to fill the bottle I already had.

Frebreze bottle. (sorry about the dark picture)

To fill a 32 oz Febreze Spray Bottle:

  • 1/8 Cup of Your Favorite Fabric Softener
  • 2 Tablespoons Baking Soda
Baking Soda, Febreze Downy April Spring, Downy April Spring Fabric Softener
Hot Tap Water - To Fill the Bottle to the Top


Shake and then Spray!
It gets rid of the nasty smells on couches, carpet, sheets and more! The smell actually LASTS LONGER! Give it A try!!  


The Make it Your Self Febreze Breakdown:
fabric softener ( $.12-$.15 per 1 oz)
Baking soda- cant really count.



Note: I have no affiliation with any of the TM names, Websites, or Stores listed Above.

Make it Yourself Windex $.27

Once again i did not come up with this on my own. Fake- It Frugal has made my blog once again! This recipe is amazing! I cant wait to try it!!!

Here's what you need:
1 Empty Windex Spray Bottle
1/8 Cup (1oz) White Ammonia
1/4 Cup (4oz) Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol
1 Drop Laundry Detergent
Water - To Fill The Bottle 




Wow, its crazy that all you are paying for is water!

Use a 64 oz bottle of Ammonia and a 16 oz bottle of Rubbing Alcohol that you can pick up for $1.00 each at the Dollar Tree.  Wait till you see how cheap it is to make your own Windex:


Make-It Yourself Cost:
Ammonia $0.02
Alcohol $0.25

Total Cost For Windex: $0.27


This is what you are paying per bottle ....  $3.69
This is what you SHOULD be paying....   $0.25






Note: I have no affiliation with any of the TM names, Websites, or Stores listed Above.