Cooking from scratch is one of the first ways I learned to save money when I quit my job and I still do it today! It doesn’t really take much longer and the taste is so much better than store bought. Your family will crown you queen with these great chocolate chip walnut cookies. And the best part is the cost is only $1.87 per dozen. This article will break down all the cost of the items for you to show how easy it is to cook from scratch and save money.
The prices used in this recipe are taken from Walmart store prices since that is where many people shop. In all cases, I have used the Walmart store brand for food items. They are not only cheaper, they taste just as wonderful!
- Flour – $1.88 for 5lb bag = .38 per pound.
- Walnuts – we buy 48-ounce bag at Sams Club for $12.88 = $.29 per cup
- Chocolate Chips – 1.98 for 12 ounces = $1.00 (only used half a bag)
- Sugar – $2.28 for 4lb bag = $.17 per ounce
- Brown Sugar – $1.74 for 2lb bag =.87 pound
- Eggs – $1.88 for doz large = $.15 eacy = $.30 for 2 eggs
- Butter Flavored Crisco – $5.59 for 48 ounces – used 1cup = $.93 (can use margerine of butter)
- Vanilla, baking soda, salt, etc comes to around $.35
Total cost to make a huge batch of 36 cookies is…..Drum Roll……….$5.62!!! Again, that’s only $1.87 per dozen for great tasting cookies!
You can also make really cheap sugar cookies and dress them up with some powdered sugar icing! My husband loves these.
Sorry about the cup and Stevia in the background. Just wasn’t thinking of sharing this picture when I took it. These were fun to make and tasted great.
There are other ways to save by cooking from scratch that doesn’t include sweets. As you can see from the picture below I made some homemade pasta and beef with hamburger meat. It was so easy because I cooked it in my electric pressure cooker. However, this same recipe can be done on top of the stove. I have an article coming up about cooking with pressure cookers soon so look for that. They are such time savers!
You don’t need any kind of hamburger helper or box mix to whip up some fantastic meals in a very short time. I try not to buy anything in a box. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part, I buy and cook what is going to fit best in my budget.
Think about what you are buying when shopping at the store. Is that something you can make from scratch? I have even learned how to make pie dough from scratch recently and it’s really quite easy. Whenever I don’t know how to do something I simply look the recipe up on the Internet, which has got more recipes than you could ever try.
One key to good cooking when not using prepackaged items is seasoning. We are all so used to buying prepackaged stuff that has all the seasonings included, so it’s important to have ample seasonings on hand. You can get by with basic seasonings when cooking from scratch. Below is a list of seasonings I love to use. You don’t have to buy them all at once, just as you need them for recipes. They will last for a very long time.
- garlic powder and garlic salt
- onion powder and minced onion
- pepper
- salt
- fajita seasoning
- all purpose seasoning salt
- chilli seasoning
- taco seasoning
- dried chives
Those are just basic everyday seasonings and of course, over time you will add to this collection. Once you learn how to use seasonings you will wonder why you didn’t branch out earlier!
Home Cooking Resources
Do you have some special recipes you cook from scratch? If so, feel free to share them in the comments. We are all in this together and saving money is important to all of us.
