Last week while cooking dinner and baking, I ran out of some items that I shouldn’t have. If I had done a better job of planning, it wouldn’t have been a problem. But, with a little creativity, I was able to turn it from a disaster into a frugal success.
I was making tacos for dinner and discovered while I was browning the meat, that I had forgotten to purchase a taco seasoning packet for the meat. I debated what I should do.
. I debated making an emergency trip to the grocery store. It was only a mile away, but that was extra gas, and the meat WAS browning…dinner would be delayed. My husband and I discussed it, and decided that I would just make the meat with no seasoning. That was fine with him…since he’s not picky, but I would have to add a LOT of extra toppings to my taco to make me forget that it was DIFFERENT. Then, I had the ingenious idea to research taco seasoning on the internet. In the space of 2 minutes, I had a recipe for making my own taco seasoning using the spices that I already had on hand. It was a frugal alternative, and it tasted good.
Then, later that same night, I was making some cheesecake to bring to my in-laws house for Labor Day weekend. Once, again, my shopping list went awry…I thought I had tons of Baker’s Chocolate, but when I pulled it out, there was less than half of what I needed. Did I panic? No, my lesson earlier that night with the tacos caused me to think about my alternatives. I had several bags of Hershey’s Bliss dark chocolates that I had purchased at Walgreens the previous month on a great deal. Someone had mentioned on their blog that they broke them into pieces for making chocolate chips. I thought, maybe I could use a mix of the semi-sweet Baker’s chocolate and the dark chocolate Bliss. I melted it, and used it in the recipe, and I can’t even tell the difference. If I still have the Bliss around next time, I’m going to use it instead of any Baker’s chocolate, since it’s available, and it was free.
Have you ever had to be creative in the kitchen and come up with some easy and frugal alternatives?
Corrie is a "cents"able wife and stay-at-home mom of 2 boys.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
i like homemade taco seasoning better than the packet – and its cheaper!!
We try to make a point not to just run out and get something but make do. I make my own taco seasoning, cream of whatever soups, etc.
Home made taco seasoning is great.
Last year at Easter, my kiddos received six very large solid chocolate bunnies. There was no way they were eating all of that. I used a few of them in my baking whenever I needed chocolate, and they were yummy! Great idea on the homemade taco seasoning, too.
We never use taco seasoning anymore! We always have a ton of salsa! Mix the meat with a jar of salsa and we add some frozen corn! YUMMY!
I’ve substituted cocoa and shortening for baking chocolate. I also make “sour” milk instead of purchasing buttermilk.
Kelly
Great post! I make my own taco seasoning too. I seasoned some black beans with it last night and they were so good!