Frugal Village

photo by Todd Ehlers

It’s interesting what people will give up when they have to. Equally interesting are the things people don’t give up even when they probably should. I see a lot of parents spending an enormous amount of money on summer camp for their kids. I get numerous fliers from my children’s school for [...]

photo by mwri

High food prices have more people planting produce gardens. Many have decided to skip adding their usual annuals and perennials to save on costs. Instead, some people are planting fruit-bearing shrubs and trees, or they’re buying from U-pick farms, roadside stands or local farmer’s markets. Early in the growing season, rhubarb, blueberry and [...]

photo by tale kinker

DEAR SARA: How long will chicken last in the fridge after it has been cooked? I pressure-cooked a package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts five nights ago and used some of them. I planned to use the rest the next night, so I put the leftovers and the chicken broth from the [...]

photo by zacklur

When I was growing up, generic products seemed inferior to brand-name products. We grew a garden, so our house wasn’t filled with generic canned vegetables, but I do remember the black-and-white or yellow-and-black labels. There were no fancy descriptions. Look at a can or box on a supermarket shelf now, and you could [...]

photo by Arlette

Cooking existed long before boxed and canned convenience goods. While some prepackaged products provide tasty shortcuts, it’s good to know how to make things yourself. You want your family to enjoy more than just add-water, heat-and-eat meals. Many from-scratch recipes are simple and don’t take a long time to make. In a recent [...]