Saving Money: 5 Tips To Save On Monthly Meals

According to the USDA's Center for Nutrition, the average cost for a moderate meal plan for a family of four is $771.10 a month. You really don't want to throw in the cost of the car your paying per month to pick up those groceries, the insurance or the gas, which by the way is quite expensive driving around that family of four. So, how can we cut cost on our monthly grocery bill, provide nutritional meals for our family and maybe put a little bit more away in savings for the next fun vacation?

1. Comb the cabinets- You've selected your recipes, made your grocery list, made it out of the store without saying NO to your kids 400 times, but when you begin unloading you find yourself mumbling the words, "I already had 2 cans of these stewed tomatoes." Take the time to comb your cabinets to ensure that you don't have multiple cans or jars of the items on your list. Also, try to make meals from items that you already have. There is no telling how much $ goes straight in the trash by allowing food in our cabinets and refrigerators to go bad. If there is something that will soon go bad, Google it. You will find hundreds if not thousands of recipes. Get Creative!

2. Keep your receipts- If you're trying to stick to a budget, the best way is to track what you've spent. By keeping your grocery receipts each month you can create a monthly "Meal Budget." You can refer back when you see certain items at different stores for less. "Did I really pay that much for that!?!" May be a great time for sitting the family down to discuss alternative foods or driving the extra 10 minutes to a different store. Keeping past receipts can save big bucks on food purchases made in the future.

3. Make your own baby food- You've worked 40 hours this week. You've cleaned the house. You've taken the kids all over creation. The last thing you want to do is blend up your babies green beans and yams. Once you get started, you'll never go back. You don't have to make every meal little Billy eats, but it takes very little time to take last night's chicken and green beans and throw them in a food processor. Jarred baby food is expensive and your not usually using just one. You can buy plastic containers that are designed for steaming. Tear open a bag of corn, put it in the microwave for 10-15 minutes, blend, freeze and you're done.

4. Couponing and Grouponing- Couponing can be the basis for a separate article in itself, but the best part about coupons is....they save ALOT of money! However, it does take time. Check out your local newspaper. The inserts usually fall out if you're not careful. Check women's magazines such as Good Housekeeping and Woman's Day. Always take the coupons when the nice person at the register gives them to you. Look on the web. There are printable coupons everywhere. Coupons are up for grabs, you just have to look. Groupon Inc. has launched a pilot with Big Y Foods, a supermarket chain in Springfield Mass, according to Internet Retailer. "Groupon has the potential to transform the way grocery stores market to consumers who do not normally clip coupons." As for now, sign up for Groupon in your local area. You'll find several restaurant discounts.

5. Minimize meals out- Face it. If you're going to save on meals for the month, taking the family to Outback twice a week can dwindle the budget. By planning meals for the week can eliminate the feeling of distress because you have nothing to fix for dinner that night. One of the worst phrases out of a child's mouth when you haven't planned your meals is "So what's for dinner tonight?" You cringe as you reply, "we're going out." Take an hour on Sunday. Look up some healthy meals for the week, comb the cabinets, grab you're coupons and smile as you save.