I am so weary of frugal living websites that have suggestions for saving money like - grow your own vegetables or raise your own chickens. Sometimes, I think the authors of these suggestions forget that not everybody lives in the country, and the startup costs for starting a garden or raising chickens are high. Not to mention that if you suddenly find yourself in a financial tight spot, you're not going to be able to instantly plant a vegetable garden and haul in the crops.
A truly good frugal cooking site will be realistic. It will understand that not everybody has a pantry stocked with a variety of spices, fresh herbs and essentials like rice. It will show the true cost of cooking a recipe, and not skip over ingredients that the recipe creator has on hand.
Furthermore, frugal recipes need to pay some attention to be satisfying and nutritious. Living on generic macaroni and cheese and ramen noodles will only get you so far.
So, I'm wondering if I could put together a collection of inexpensive recipes that meet my own rules.
I think I'm going to start playing with the idea and impose a few simple rules on myself.
1. No sales prices. Readers won't necessarily find a super sale on the ingredients. If they do, they can chalk it up as a bonus.
2. Meal plans that meet nutritional requirements.
3. Meal plans for individuals and families.
4. Portion sizes should be realistic.
5. My family has to actually eat it and like it and think it was enough food to be a satisfying meal.
With those rules in mind, I think the game is on. I'll start collecting the recipes and when I'm ready with a week or two of meal plans, I'll post them in the Domestic Policy forum at EA.
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