Grocery Budget Extreme Makeover Part VIII

Level 2: Dollar Diva

Be Prepared
After planning your meals and preparing your grocery list, set a price cap for each item based on the in-season sale cost and vow not to pay more than that. Make sure to have contingency plans so that if an item costs over your limit, you can substitute a different item, or use a different recipe. (15 minutes)

For example, if you planned to serve peach pie, but peaches are not in season and are over your price cap, but strawberries are in season and the cheapest they’ll be all year, serve strawberry shortcake instead. This would also be a great time to stock up on strawberries for the freezer, or to make jam, etc.

For an interactive map of what’s in season where you live click here, or here for a more general list. And this site even includes a list of in-season meats and seafoods.