I went somewhere I thought I’d never go to save money – into a dumpster.

Let me explain.

As I was complaining about how my city makes us drop our recycling off at the city dumpster (because I forgot this errand twice that day), I chuck Bag Number One into the full dumpster with a practiced sky hook.

As I’m planning the trajectory of Bag Number Two, I see them.

A stack of flyers in door bags – GOLD!

But not for the reason you think.

I have a dog. Therefore I need doggie pick up bags. We’re running low on potty bags and plastic advertising door bags work well for this purpose.

I’m excited about finding free garbage – to use as garbage.

I’m weird like that.

I grab a couple of bags from the top of the bin and dump the contents of the door bags back into the dumpster.

Then I remember reading about people dumpster diving for coupons. I took a peek into the next door bag. Sure enough it held an unexpired coupon flyer.

I grabbed a couple.

Truth?

I ended up with forty.

My coupon strategy is to clip coupons for anything we regularly use from the coupon flyer. Clipping a coupon doesn’t mean I’ll automatically use it. It just makes it easier to find in my coupon file if I want to use it. I leave the rest of the coupons attached to the flyer and store them in a folder in my grocery shopping tote bag.

There wasn’t much for me to clip from the stack. Even though I had enough flyers to clip 10-20 coupons for each item, I clipped 4 like coupons at the most. For me, couponing is not about getting a bunker full of nail polish on the cheap or clearing store shelves just because I can (I don’t work that hard at getting all of the coupons necessary to pull that off. LAZY Budget Chef, remember?) Using coupons is one more money saving strategy I use to save money on the staple items my family regularly uses so I can put the difference toward healthy things that don’t go on sale regularly.

What am doing with the rest of the coupons? I released the rest of the coupons and flyers back into the wild.

It’s illegal to sell coupons. You can legally give or trade coupons to others free of charge though. That’s what I’m doing with the restaurant coupons. I gave a few to a friend because it is her favorite restaurant. I dropped the rest of the uncut flyers off at the recycling dumpster from whence they came.

I was more excited about not needing to buy potty bags than finding hot sauce coupons anyway.

Have you gone dumpster diving? Would you?

One of the most wonderful things about being a Balancing Act Community Blogger is that they like to challenge me to develop recipes with a new to me ingredient like Rothbury Farms croutons.

It’s even better when that challenge email hits my inbox after I found out about it after watching a segment on The Balancing Act and before a planned look for it at the grocery store trip.

Why? Because RothBurby Farms croutons are one of the rare brands that are transfat free, high fructose corn syrup free, hydrogenated oil free, AND are made with whole wheat flour.

As a Budget Chef, I could most certainly make my own croutons without all of the nasty stuff I don’t want my family to eat. As a Lazy Chef with real world responsibilities, there isn’t always time to do so. As a result, every burger and meatloaf I make is soupy because it lacks a trans fat free crouton binder.

Let’s change that, shall we?

Spicy Shawarma Black Bean Burgers with Rothbury Farms Croutons

Sometimes I like to make a meatless meal to keep things interesting. It’s easier on the budget and my waistline after binging on holiday cookie for the last month. I haven’t found a black bean burger recipe that truly satisfies. I decided this is the perfect opportunity to create one!

Spicy Shawarma Black Bean Burgers

2 cups cooked dried black beans or 1 16 oz can of drained and rinsed black beans
½ chopped onion
1-2 cloves minced garlic
1 egg
3 tablespoons Shawarma spices
1 cup crushed Rothbury Farms Organic Seasoned Croutons

1.Crush the croutons in a blender, food processor, or with a rolling pin in the Rothbury Farms bag. Guess which one I did? Yep. Rolling pin. OK, I really smacked the bag with the stainless steel measuring cup I pulled out of the cupboard to measure the crushed croutons. Rooting through the lower cabinet for a rolling pin was too hard. Use whatever method you like that crushes your croutons.

2. Use a potato masher to mix the black beans, onion, garlic, egg, Shawarma spices, in a large bowl while mashing the beans.

3. Mix the crushed Rothbury Farms Organic Seasoned Croutons into the bean mixture.

Optional: Allow the mixture to sit for an hour in the refrigerator to allow the Shawarma spices to marinate for a stronger flavor. I didn’t do this while I was developing the recipe and my burgers tasted great. However, the extra burgers I froze for later, tasted a bit better. Let your taste buds and cooking timeline be your guide.

4. Roll the mixture into ball and flatten it to make a patty.

5. Grill the black bean burgers or fry them in light oil on stove over medium heat.
6. Chow down!

I buy my shawarma spices premixed at a local international grocery store. Most of those little local shops have better price and selection on spices than my traditional chain grocery store. If you can’t find premixed shawarma spices for sale, use this shawarma spice recipe to make your own.

Disclaimer: I am a Balancing Act Community Blogger and received samples of Rothbury Farms products to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.

Keep reading! I’ll teach how to make this salad
I’m a fan of a mixed greens salad. I like the idea of buying a bag o’ salad mix because I buy more than one type of lettuce for my salad in a more affordable manner, but the quality of the greens are often more hit than miss. Bag o’ salad mix tend to wilt and spoil quickly.

My friends at The Balancing Act asked me if I wanted to try working with Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce. As a lover of real food and fresh vegetables, I was leaning toward a yes but with caution given my bag o’ lettuce woes.

Then The Balancing Act told me that they are pairing with Tanimura &Antle to bring more fresh fruits and vegetables to the school lunch rooms by working with the United Fresh Foundation’s Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools campaign, and CPMA’s Freggie’s Children’s programs and the School Nutrition Association (SNA) I fully support initiatives that move kids away from the type of food I grew up with – dinner from a box and vegetables from a can – bleach! I wasn’t sure what to expect from Tanimura & Antle, but if it gets one kid to realize fresh vegetables won’t kill them, then I’ll do it for the kiddos.

I was surprised to see Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce comes as four crisp heads to a plastic clam shell package (red and green varieties of Oak, Tango and Gem lettuce) than in a plastic bag. The varieties added a variety of spice and texture to my salads.

Unexpectedly it took a bit longer to use them than I would have liked due to a few life got in the way situations. I was happy to find the Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce (as well as the other fresh celery, cauliflower, Artisan roman, and leafy romaine lettuce Tanimura & Antle generously sent us to try) lasts longer in my refrigerator than my regular brands of fresh produce. Nicely done Tanimura & Antle!

The price is right too. I priced Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce at three different grocery stores (Aldi, Sam’s, and Costco.) It cost under $4.00 a package – cheaper than bag o’ salad and in my opinion a better return on investment. I did not toss anything due to wilting or spoilage as I sometimes do with other brands of bag o’ salad mix.

I used the Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce and celery to make a crisp salad for dinner. Since this is fancy hand tended lettuce (that’s why they call it artisan), I want to treat it right. I pulled an easy (and cheap!) wow factor by adding squash and cucumber flowers from my heirloom organic garden to the salad.

You can eat these flowers!

In typical Lazy Budget Chef fashion, I did not have salad dressing on hand. Buying a tasty salad dressing that isn’t loaded with high fructose corn syrup, extra fats, and things I would rather my family not eat isn’t easy to find. I’ve almost given up on store salad dressing after spending too time than I like reading all of the salad dressing ingredient labels in the grocery store aisle and coming up empty.

So I made the salad dressing myself.

I made a quick salad dressing from the growpocalyspe of heirloom cucumbers in my garden. Yes friends, Tzatziki (tat-zee-key) sauce isn’t just for gyros! You can use tatziki (also spelled tzadziki and tzatskiki) sauce as salad dressing too. Or at least I do.

Tzatziki Sauce Recipe (Cucumber Yogurt Salad Dressing)

Ingredients:

1 cup (or 8 ounce container) of plain yogurt
1 cucumber – peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 tablespoon of chopped dill
3 cloves of garlic – minced
¼ cup of lemon juice (or more if you like it tart)
Salt and pepper to taste

Make it:

1. Combine the yogurt, chopped cucumber, olive oil, dill, garlic, and lemon juice in a blender.
2. Use the blender to mix the ingredients together.
4. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
5. Pour it on and enjoy!

What kind of dressing do you like on your salad?

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Disclaimer: I am a Balancing Act Community Blogger and received samples of Tanimura & Antle produce to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.

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I’m dying to try something a bit more grown up when it comes to making Popsicles – infused with booze.

I read that the Fountainbleu Miami Beach serves vodka popsicles at their poolside bar. Have you ever been to the Flountainbleu? If I close my eyes, I can still see their dreamy pools cape with a waterfall that looks over Miami beach and the ocean…………aaaahh!

I’d love to have my own taste of Miami beach in landlocked Ohio.

I don’t have vodka.

I’m too lazy to run to the store to buy some.

I rooted around in the pantry and pulled out a bottle of Jose Cuervo Especial The Balancing Act sent for me to develop recipes. Well, mixed drinks use recipes, don’t they?

Actually Husband and I are using the Jose Cuervo for cooking. We have to make a few tweaks to the recipe before it’s ready to post. However, the whole desire for Popsicles and arrival of Jose Cuervo Especial was fate. The Balancing Act sent it right after I came home from an out of state family emergency. How’s that for timing? Thanks gals!

Back to the booze pop story.

When I think tequila, I automatically think margarita. How festive in a Popsicle!

Sadly, I do not have margarita mix either.

Yep, I’m still to lazy to run to the store to buy some.

I should mention there are five grocery stores in a four mile radious of my house. But yeah, running to the store requires finding car keys and my wallet. I rarely leave with just the item on my list either. I’m a foodie and am tempted to buy interesting ingredients all. the. time.

It’s best for me to use what I have. Especially when I’m trying to rebuild our household emergency fund.

Besides, I’m in the mood for something sweet, not tart like a traditional margarita. Since there has to be a significant amount of juice in the mix and a kiss of Jose Cuervo Espeical or it will not freeze into a Popsicle I used what I had on hand and went retro. I made tequila sunrise Popsicles!

I bought a set of Prepara Volcano BPA free Popsicle molds earlier in the summer to make Popsicles. I think it’s easier to get the finished product out of individual Popsicle molds than my other set of Popsicle molds that are in a row like an ice cube tray. The Prepara Volcano Popsicle molds allow me to color code the Popsicles so I know which ones are for grown ups only.

Tequila Sunrise Popsicle Recipe

You will need:

5 cups of orange juice
1/c up grenadine
2 teaspoons of Jose Cuervo Especial tequila

Make it:

1. Mix the orange juice, grenadine, and Jose Cuervo Especial tequila together. 2. Pour the tequila sunrise mixture into a Popsicle mold. 3. Put the Popsicle molds in the freezer and wait and wait and wait until the tequila sunrise Popsicles freeze. 4. Once the Popsicles freeze completely, remove from the mold and enjoy!
My friends hailed me a bartending goddess. That means you should probably make them too.

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Disclosure: I am a Balancing Act Community Blogger. I received a sample of Jose Cuervo Espeical to facilitate recipe development.  Please use this product responsibly.

I am The World’s Most Fabulous Aunt to nine nieces and nephews. They are all over the food map. One young niece is a vegetarian. Actually, she is the easiest to feed because as long as it is meat free she follows the house rule of eating what I serve. On the other end are my fussy eater nephews who think anything remotely healthy will kill him. The only vegetable they will eat is potato chips and their mother allows them to eat my desserts as their main course.

That makes cooking for a family gathering a challenge. I want something fun and healthy for everyone. Veggie dogs and nitrate free hotdogs are my summer food weapon of choice.

I always run out of hot dog buns during a party. It. Never. Fails.

Fortunately as a Balancing Act Community Blogger, they asked me if I wanted to try baking something fun with Auntie Annes At Home Baking Kit, which I saw on The Balancing Act August 16th.

Since both my husband and I haven’t met a warm soft pretzel with mustard we could refuse, I agreed to try the Auntie Annes At Home Baking Kit. Although me being me, I couldn’t just make pretzels with it. I wanted to kick it up a bit.

Last weekend we hosted a gathering with the smorgasbord of kid eaters. I broke out the kit and headed off a potential hotdog bun shortage by making soft pretzel dogs. No buns required.

I normally don’t go for meals in a box but in this case it’s my party and I don’t want to spend all if it in the kitchen I have to. I skipped making bread maker soft pretzel dough and used Auntie Annes At Home Baking Kit to make the dough for the soft pretzel dogs instead.

• To keep the hotdogs from drying out during baking I slipped them into hot tap water while I rolled and cut the dough into one inch strips.

• I wrapped the dough strips around the hot dogs.

• I did a quick dip the wrapped dogs into baking soda dissolved in hot water. This is SO much easier than bread maker pretzels, which require boiling the dogs in water on the stove before baking. With the Auntie Annes kit, the kids can help me in the kitchen where the younger ones can’t when I make bread maker soft pretzels.

• Then I baked the pretzel dogs for five minutes. I pulled them out of the oven, gave the baking sheet a turn and baked them for another five minutes. The shorter than the twenty-five minute bread maker pretzel baking time makes Auntie Annes my new BFF.

The light fluffy pretzel dogs won raves from the vegetarian, the picky kids, the not so picky kids, and the biggest kid of all, my husband.

I get to keep my title of World’s Most Fabulous Aunt for one more summer.

Whew!

If 2010 was the Summer of the S’more, then I declare 2011 the Summer of the Popsicle. Homemade Popsicles using just about every combination of fruit, juice, cream, yogurt, chocolate, and then some are all the rage in food circles this year. They blow those plastic tubes of neon colored sugar water Popsicles I grew up out of the water!

My family discovered frozen fruit bars last summer. I felt better about serving a snack that is fruit and juice. It became spendy because a box never lasted more than a few days after I brought it home from the store.

Lo and behold, the winter holidays dropped a family gift of popsicle molds down our chimney. That meant I had six months to come up with a healthier alternative to a sugar laden drink mix popsicle recipe.

I’m sure this never happens to you, but I popsicle recipes steadily moved down my To Do List as never ending snowstorms and cold weather hit my area. The last thing I wanted to think about at the time was cold food.

Last week Mother Nature turned off the cold and turned up the heat to full blast. Perfect popsicle weather!

I rooted around in the refrigerator to see what I had. Hidden from my family of fruit piranhas were a few packages of Naturipe Berry Quick Blueberry Snacks I had leftover from two recent business trips. I tossed them in my tote bag to avoid unhealthy and high priced snacks at the airport and on the plane. Perfect!

BerryQuick Blueberry Popsicles

You will need:

1 package of Natureripe Berry Quick Snacks
1 cup of plain yogurt
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 tablespoons of sugar

Make it:

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a blender until it is well blended.
2. Pour the mixture into popsicle molds and freeze in the freezer.
3. Remove the popsicle from the mold and enjoy!

June’s One Small Green Change is to switch to a reusable glass straw.  It’s kinda big deal because I normally go without. I got used to not using a straw during summer historical performing gigs. 

Beth of My Plastic Free Life and Lisa of Retro HousewifeGoes Green both rave about their unbreakable Glass Dharma straws. I thought, “That’s cool for you and straw loving people but I can mostly do without.”
However, there are times when using a straw makes life easier (Hi super thick shake! I’m talking to you.) Straws are a disposable that I can easily replace with a reusable. It will also save me money. Therefore, I kicked myself in the tush and got a Glass Dharma reusable straw.

Husband says my straw reminds him of a chemistry pipette.