6 Frugal Breakfast Foods

A recently distributed survey got a variety of interesting answers from anonymous users. Here are some great tips on eating a cheap breakfast.

Frugal Breakfast Food #1 - Eat Pancakes

"Pancakes and waffles make very cheap breakfasts. You can mix up the flavors by using instant muffin mixes instead of pancake mix."

A box of pancake mix can easily feed several people at least one hefty meal.  You can also make your own pancake mix with this simple recipe.

Old Fashioned Pancake Recipe INGREDIENTS: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon white sugar 1 1/4 cups milk 1 egg 3 tablespoons oil 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional) DIRECTIONS: 1. In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and oil.  Mix the ingredients until they are smooth. 2. Heat your pan to medium heat.  You can even preheat your pan. It's important that the heat be medium and consistent.  If it is too hot the cakes will burn and be raw on the inside.  Pour batter on the pan, wait for the batter to bubble up and the bubbles to become firm before flipping. What is the cost of this recipe? The flour costs about 18 cents, the milk will cost about 23 cents, and the egg will cost about 10 cents.  Add up the remaining ingredients and the total cost will easily come in at about 20 cents.  So, you have a meal that will end up costing about 71 cents and has 8 servings.  So, the cost per serving is 9 cents.

Frugal Breakfast Food #2 - Eat Oatmeal

"Per ounce, oatmeal is the cheapest breakfast going.  Don't buy the flavored packets; buy plain oats, store brand, and cook in a slow cooker or on the microwave.  Add your own cinnamon, butter, brown sugar, or bananas!"

Another person wrote,

"Bulk instant oatmeal can be bought from many discount grocery stores. Mix with a little sugar, and some nutmeg or raisins, for a frugal but tasty breakfast."

Oatmeal really is economical. A 42-ounce container would cost you about $3 in any grocery store. If you want to add flavor consider honey, nuts, apple, Cinnamon, and even plain sugar.  Cost per serving is about 10 to 12 cents for a half cup of dry oatmeal.

Frugal Breakfast Food #3 - Buy Old Bread

"For a cheap breakfast, find a bakery that sells the prior days produce at a discount, even the bread is a little hard, you can always toast it."

Homemade bread is likely to be heartier and healthier than a simple loaf of store-bought white bread.  However, if you aren't crafty enough to bake your own bread, buy the good stuff day-old and heat it up.  You can use bread to make french toast too, which is a rich and protein filled breakfast.


Frugal Breakfast Food #4 - Eggs, Potatoes and Bacon

"Breakfast is not only the most important meal of the day, it's the cheapest. Eggs, potatoes, and bacon can be used to make up a plethora of hearty meals on a budget. Eggs are also an affordable protein."

Costing about ten cents for a 70 calorie serving, eggs are truly affordable protein. A simple omelett also takes minutes to prepare.  A frittata takes a little more effort, but is just as rewarding.  A simple Apple Cheddar frittata has about four ingredients, an apple, cheddar cheese, eggs, and butter, all very economical.

Frugal Breakfast Food #5 - Generic Cereal and Use Coupons

"Off-brand cereal is a good way to go."

Another person added,

"Breakfast can be one of the most economical meals of the day. Coupons for cereal can often be located in the Sunday newspaper. Many stores now have the option to load coupons onto their rewards cards or by logging in using a cell phone number."

Even if you buy cereal full price it is economical.  A box of Cheerios can be purchased for about $3.50 (18 oz) and it contains 18 servings.  This puts the cost per serving at about 20 cents.  Add in coupons and sale prices and you can usually cut the price in half.

Frugal Breakfast Food #6 - Fruit

"Bananas are cheap, and fulfill one's need to start the day with some fruit."

A banana is a simple and healthy breakfast consisting of about 100 calories. It comes in it's own biodegradable wrapper.  Most importantly, it costs about 50 cents per pound.  Add granola bar or some other small item and you have a decent breakfast.

Crispy Broiled Chicken Thighs and Rosemary Rice Recipe

Chicken thighs can be very economical alternatives to other meats, often costing less than $1 per pound.  For those that prefer dark meat, the flavor of the thigh is preferable to white meat because it is richer and more moist.   That flavor is actually fat.  This recipe could be altered to remove the skin, which lowers the overall fat content.  Broiling should cook a lot of the fat off as well. Also, by de-boning the thighs, you also make them more appetizing to those that don't like to mess with taking the meat off of the bone.

Ingredients
4 chicken thighs
1 cup of rice
2 stalks of celery
1/2 cup of baby carrots
1/2 cup of fresh green beans
1 medium onion
Salt, Pepper, and Seasoned salt
Rosemary

Directions

1. Slice the onion in half then put it in a large pot on the stove with about two cups of water.  Start the heat at medium.

2. While the water begins to heat begin de-boning your chicken thighs.  Place the thigh bones in the pot and bring the heat up to get the water to a boil. Once the water has boiled lower the heat to simmer the liquid.  Place the chicken thighs on a piece of foil.

3. Cut the celery into sections one inch long.  Add the celery and carrots to the pot.

4. Season the pot of vegetables and chicken bones with salt, pepper, rosemary, and seasoned salt.

5. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and seasoned salt.

6.  After the chicken bones have cooked in the pot for 15 minutes remove them from the pot and discard.  Pour one cup of rice into the pot and add a 1 to 1 1/2 cups of water.  Bring the heat to high briefly to get the water boiling.  Then reduce the temperature later.

7. Move the oven rack to about 7 inches from the broiler. Preheat the broiler at high.  Place the chicken one inch apart on the foil lined baking pan or on a broiler pan.

8.  Broil the chicken for 10 minutes.  Check the chicken to determine if it is cooking too fast.  If the top is brown or black, you may want to move the oven rack down several inches.  Cook for an additional 10 minutes.

Tips: Frequently stir your rice and add water if it is getting dry too quickly and place the chicken with even thickness on the broiler pan for even cooking.

What is the cost per serving?
Each chicken thigh is about three ounces of meat.  Including the weight of the skin and bone, four chicken thighs should weigh about one pound and at $0.99 per pound, the cost of the chicken is $0.99.  A bunch of celery costs about $1.49 and has at least 8 stalks.  So, the celery should cost you about 19 cents.  A bag of baby carrots could about $1.  A 1/2 cup of carrots should cost about 20 cents.  A cup of rice would cost about 8 cents.  One medium onion might cost 50 cents.  And the green beans could be purchased on sale, leading to a price of about 20 cents for this 1/2 cup.  The cost of the spices would be about a nickel.  The total price of this meal would be about $2.21 and has four servings.  The cost per serving is 55 cents.


How do you de-bone a chicken thigh?  
De-boning the thigh eliminates a mess at the dinner table and can actually eliminate waste.  Someone that turns their nose up to meat on the bone may eat the entire thigh rather than picking small pieces off of the bone.  Follow the instructions in this video and you should have no trouble.  Use a sharp knife to make the job easier.

Instant Brown Sugar and Cinnamon Oatmeal Mix

Make some instant oatmeal mix to save money off of the packets that you may buy for a quick breakfast this winter.

Ingredients

8 cups of Quick Oats
2 cups of brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 tablespoon nutmeg (optional)

Makes 20 servings of 1/2 cup each.  Simply pour into a bowl and microwave with water or milk.



Instructions

1. Find a plastic container that will hold at least two quarts.  Make sure the inside is washed and dried to prevent spoilage.

2. Measure 8 cups of oats and 2 cups of brown sugar and mix thoroughly.  Break up clumps of the brown sugar.  Mix in the spices and salt.  If the container has a top that seals, this can be accomplished in the container itself by shaking.

3. When you are ready to serve, measure portions with a 1/2 cup measuring cup.  Heat in the microwave for one minute after adding water or milk.

Cost Per Serving

Each cup of brown sugar costs about 44 cents, bringing the total to 88 cents.  Quick oats cost about $3.18 for 48 ounces.  This recipe calls for about 30 ounces of oats when measured to 8 cups.  This brings the total cost of Oats to $2.27. The total cost of the spices is about 20 cents.  This whole mixture cost $3.35 and makes 20 servings. Thus, the cost per serving is 17 cents.

Calories per Serving

Each 1 cup of oats is 300 calories and there are 8 cups in the mix.  This is 2400 calories total.  Two cups of brown sugar are 1658 calories.  The mixture totals 4,058 calories for 20 servings.  Each serving is 203 calories for 1/2 cup measured.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins Recipe with Cost Per Serving

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

These muffins are hearty and filling. Not too sweet, but just the perfect blend of crunch and chocolate mixed together. They would pair well with a delicious pot of soup (like Hamburger Vegetable Soup) for a chilly December evening.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

• 1 1/2 cups oats (old fashioned or quick oats)
• 2 and 2/3 cups flour (white, whole-wheat, or a mixture of both
• 2/3 cup sugar or raw sugar
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup oil or butter
• 6 ounces chocolate chips 

Combine the oats, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, milk, and oil.
Stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture until moistened. Mix the chocolate chips in.
Fix greased or paper-lined muffin cups 2/3 full with the batter. Bake at 400 degrees for 16-18 minutes, or until tops are light golden.
Makes approximately 18 muffins.
Recipe adapted slightly from Frugal Homemaker.

How much does this recipe cost?
Of course, we are dedicated to being frugal and finding ways to save money.  That also means knowing how much things cost to make.  Here's a rough breakdown of the possible cost of this recipe. 48 ounces of Whole Grain Quick Oats will cost about $3.18.  12 ounces of Oatmeal will cost 79 cents.  Flour costs about 12 cents per cup.  So, this recipe uses 32 cents of flour.  Each cup of sugar costs about 62 cents and this recipe calls for 41 cents worth.  Baking powder and salt cost about 5 cents.  The eggs will cost about 20 cents.  A gallon of milk will run about $3 leading to this recipe using 28 cents of milk. Half a cup of canola oil costs 22 cents.  Half a bag of chocolate chips will cost about $1.25.  This brings the total cost of the recipe to $3.52, or about 20 cents per serving.

Video: Jell-O Stars - Kids Recipe

Jell-O Stars - Kids Recipe by MyRecipesTV Get the Recipe: http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=10000001875401 Use your kids' favorite shapes and colors for these jiggly Jell-O creations. Yield: 12 Servings Cost per Serving: $.40 Ingredients * 2 (3 oz.) packages Berry Blue Jell-O * 2 (3 oz.) packages red Jell-O Preparation In a bowl, dissolve 2 (3 oz.) packages Berry Blue Jell-O in 1 1/4 cups boiling water. Pour into an 8-inch baking pan. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Repeat with red Jell-O. Dip bottoms of pans into warm water for 15 seconds. Cut Jell-O into stars with a 1 1/2-inch star cutter. Yield: about 50 stars. All You, JUNE 2006 Find more Kid Approved kids recipes: http://www.myrecipes.com/kids/

The cost per serving for this dessert is only 40 cents. However, just a few weeks ago, coupons.com ran a coupon on the main ingredient, Jell-O.  So, reducing your input costs for the food will lower this cost per serving dramatically.  Also, you could consider doing Jell-O circles, squares, or triangles to eliminate wasted Jell-O.  Remember, making your own food is one of the best ways to be frugal and save money.

Simple French Toast Bake Recipe

This is a recipe and instructions for making a simple French Toast Bake.  It's tasty, nutritious, and affordable.

Ingredients

12 slices of white bread
6 eggs
1 1/4 cups of milk
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg (optional)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Mix the liquid ingredients, sugar, and the spices.  Pour mixture over the white bread. Place in the oven and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes.

Cost per Serving
This recipe will use about 66 cents worth of bread, 60 cents worth of eggs, and 24 cents of milk.  The sugar and brown sugar will cost 21 cents and 15 cents respectively.  The spices will vary in price, but in general will amount to no more than 20 cents.  So, the total cost is $2.06.  Each of the 12 servings costs 17 cents.

Calories per Serving
Each slice of bread is about 70 calories, 840 total,  and each egg is about 70 calories, 420 total.  The sugar is about 435 calories. 1 and 1/4 cups of 2% milk is about 152 calories.  This brings the calorie total to 1847 calories.  There are about 12 servings in the batch, each at 154 calories.

Slash the Christmas Budget, Bake Cookies

A good way to save money during Christmas is to slash the budget when giving gifts. Be sure to communicate this well in advance of the big day too. The last thing you want to do is hand your sibling or parent a box of cookies and they give you a BlueRay player in return. Don't feel bad about cutting corners when thinking of gifts. This is about taking responsibility for your financial future.

When giving gifts to coworkers, do they really expect you to buy them something expensive, or will they be happy with a thoughtful tasteful gift. For example, instead of getting everyone in the office a present, merely bake them some festive cookies. In return, you are likely to get your own tin of something in return and your coworkers won't feel obligated to buy something expensive.

Christmas Sugar Cookie Recipe 


INGREDIENTS:
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup margarine, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:
1. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together, set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Gradually blend in the sifted ingredients until fully absorbed. Cover dough, and chill for 2 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. On a clean floured surface, roll out small portions of chilled dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out shapes using cookie cutters.
3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are barely brown. Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.

- AllRecipes.com

Cost per Serving
Flour costs about 12 cents per cup. This recipe calls for 45 cents of flour.  There are 6 teaspoons of Baking powder per ounce and 8 ounces will cost about $5.50. So, each teaspoon costs about 11 cents.  The salt costs less than a penny.  The sugar costs 93 cents and the eggs cost 20 cents. 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract will cost 10 cents.  1 cup of margerine can cost about 50 cents.  The total cost of the recipe is about $2.30 and the recipe makes 4 dozen cookies.  The cost per cookie is about 5 cents.

Pumpkin Banana Bread Recipe with Cost Per Serving

Ingredients 

Original recipe makes 1 - 9x5 inch loaf

 2 cups all-purpose flour
 1 teaspoon baking soda
 1/4 teaspoon salt
 1/2 cup butter
 3/4 cup brown sugar
 1/4 cup sugar
 2 eggs, beaten
 3/4 cup mashed overripe bananas
 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt.

In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar with a mixer or whisk.  Add in the eggs one at a time, puree pumpkin, and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana and pumpkin mixture into flour mixture; mix until moistened. Pour the finished batter into greased loaf pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 55 to 65 minutes.  A toothpick should come clean when inserted and removed from the loaf.  Let the bread cool for at least ten minutes in pan.

Cost per Serving
For this recipe, we're going to assume that the pumpkin and banana were free because this is essentially a way to use bananas that are about to turn rotten and old fall pumpkins that would just be thrown away.  The store brand of flour costs $1.87 for 5 pounds.  We'll round up to $2.  Since there are 3 1/3 cups per pound, this recipe calls for 24 cents worth of flour at this price.  Sugar costs about $2.50 for 4 pounds and there are about 2 cups of sugar per pound. So, 1/4 cup of sugar will cost about $0.16.  Two eggs cost about 10 cents each.  One stick of butter costs about 30 cents.  The brown sugar amounts to 33 cents and the salt and baking soda come in at a penny each.  The total cost for the recipe is $1.15 per loaf.  This recipe makes about 8 hearty slices, which puts the cost per serving at 14 cents.
 .

Simple Pound Cake Recipe with Cost Per Serving

Living frugally means making food from scratch.  Here is a simple pound cake recipe that can be enhanced with lots of toppings.

Ingredients
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 cups canola oil
1 tsp. each: vanilla extract, almond extract and lemon flavoring
5 large eggs
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl and pour into greased and floured bread pan.  Be sure to use a rubber spatula to pull all the batter into the pan. Bake at 350°F for about 50 to 60 minutes.

Cost per Serving
16 ounces of almond extract can be purchased for $18.99 on a popular website.  There are about 6 teaspoons per ounce.  This means that the price per one teaspoon of almond extract is about 20 cents.  32 ounces of imitation vanilla extract cost about $8.90 on the same website. The cost per teaspoon of vanilla extract is about 5 cents. Lemon extract prices at about $1 per ounce.  So, a teaspoon of lemon extract is about 17 cents. Sugar costs about $2.50 for 4 pounds and there are about 2 cups of sugar per pound.  So, two cups of sugar will cost about $1.25.  The store brand of flour costs $1.87 for 5 pounds.  We'll round up to $2.  Since there are 3 1/3 cups per pound, this recipe calls for 24 cents worth of flour at this price.  Canola oil costs about $2.58 for 48 ounces.  So, a half cup of oil costs about 22 cents.  A dozen eggs costs about $1.20.  So, five eggs cost about 50 cents.  The total price of this pound cake totals $2.63.  With about ten servings, the cost per serving is 26 cents.

Pound cake is an old fashioned and simple dessert staple that can be enhanced with fresh berries, chocolate, ice cream, or even jams and jellies. By itself, it is very economical.

Homemade Bread Recipe with Cost Per Serving

Ingredients

 2 cups warm water
 6 tablespoons white sugar
 3 teaspoons active dry yeast
 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
 1/4 cup vegetable oil
 4 cups flour

Directions

Run your faucet on hot until the water reaches a warm temperature.  Then in a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in two cups of water.  Make sure the water is not so hot that it will burn your hand.  Add the yeast, stir, and then set a timer for five minutes.  After this time, the yeast should activate and create a foam in the mixture.

Add the flour to the yeast, one cup at a time, mixing with a fork or spoon.  Also add in the oil. Knead the dough and set a timer for 15 minutes.  After 15 more minutes, add some salt and then knead the dough again.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Knead the dough once more once the oven is preheated.  Grease a cooking pan or cookie sheet.  Place the dough on the sheet or in the pan and cook for 50 minutes.

Price Per Serving 

Sugar costs about $2.50 for 4 pounds and there are about 2 cups of sugar per pound.  There are 16 tablespoons in a cup of sugar, which means that each tablespoon costs about 2 pennies.  Six tablespoons would cost just under 12 cents.

The store brand flour cost $1.87 for 5 pounds.  We'll round up to $2.  Since there are 3 1/3 cups per pound, this recipe calls for $0.48 worth of flour at this price.  We will round up to 50 cents.

A well-know store has Morton's salt priced at 93 cents for 26 ounces. This puts the price of a teaspoon at less than 1 penny.  For these purposes, we'll say the cost is two pennies to be safe.

A jar of yeast costs about $4 for 16 servings.  So, that's a cost of 25 cents per serving.

48 ounces of canola oil cost about $2.58 at one of the major chains. Since 2 fluid ounces equals about 1/4 cup, the cost of the oil is only 11 cents.

Oddly enough, all of these ingredients add up to exactly $1.00.  You could easily slice a loaf this size to about 10 hearty pieces.  This makes the cost per serving about 10 cents.

Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe With Cost per Serving

When making a batch of cookies, or anything else, I always wonder about the cost per serving.  Here's a simple recipe and below you will find the cost.

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 12 oz Chocolate Chips
• Directions
• PREHEAT oven to 375° F.
• Combine the dry ingredients, such as flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. In a separate bowl, beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract until creamy. Add the eggs, beating well after each is added. Blend in the dry ingredients gradually.  Then, using a spoon, make small drops of cookie dough on a baking sheet. 
• Bake for 9 to 11 minutes, until the edges brown. Use a baking rack to cool for several minutes.
• How much does this recipe cost per serving?
• First, it should make about 3 dozen cookies.  Let's say a serving is three cookies.  Then, we have 12 servings.
• Second, we need to tally the cost of the ingredients.  The store brand flour cost $1.87 for 5 pounds.  We'll round up to $2.  Since there are 3 1/3 cups per pound, this recipe calls for $0.27 worth of flour at this price.  Yes, that's 27 cents. 
• Walmart sells 16 oz of store brand baking soda for 54 cents.  According to an online calculator, there are 6 teaspoons of baking soda per ounce.  So, this teaspoon of baking soda costs half a penny.  We'll round up to 1 penny.
• A well-know store has Morton's salt priced at 93 cents for 26 ounces. This puts the price of a teaspoon at less than 1 penny.  For these purposes, we'll also round up to one penny.
• For margarine or butter, you can usually pick up a package for about $1.21.  So, two sticks should cost you about $0.60.
• Sugar costs about $2.50 for 4 pounds.  There are about 2 cups of sugar per pound.  So, 3/4 of a cup is equal to less than 23 cents worth of sugar.  We'll round up to 24 cents.
• Two pounds of brown sugar can be purchased for $2.00.   There are about 2 1/4 cups of brown sugar in a pound.  This puts the cost at about 33 cents.
• Imitation vanilla flavoring costs about $1.50 for two ounces.  A teaspoon costs about 13 cents.
• One dozen eggs costs about $1.20.  So, two eggs will cost you about 20 cents.
• 12 ounces of name brand chocolate chips go for about $2.50.  This brings the grand total for a batch of 36 cookies to $4.29 and the cost per serving is about 35 cents.