Will’s a vegetarian so we’re always looking for good deals on produce. Either it’s on sale becuase it’s going to go bad unless you eat it right there in the store, or its $5/lb apples on your bill again. Last May we got ourselves a membership to Costco and started taking note on whether it w
as worth it for just a family of two. Although there are times where we find ourselves sitting down to dinner with potato soup, potato wedges, and potato gnocci – not a great combination – we have enjoyed the memebership for the produce we get, especially the staples.
There’s my Grandmom to the up there on the right. I keep her in the kitchen with me in hopes that she’ll wisper down a few tips. I haven’t heard any yet, but I do remember hearing from my friend’s grandma – her Italian one may I add – that you should start every meal with onion, garlic and olive oil. For those three things, we’ve found our member fee worth it. In the cheese/meat section they sell already peeled garlic in a large gallon sized container for around $4, a priceless purcahse for any chef. For another $4 you can find yourself carting home a 5lb bag of curry onions.
For all the ingredients that come after the onion and garlic, we’re looking for a deal. Weekly were in the store stocking up on spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers, carrots, etc. Our lastest purchase was a surprise, a bag of 15-20 Mineola oranges for under $6. The oranges were great and they lasted a long time. I know if I 
was looking to buy 15-20 oranges a my local grocer I know they would be tripple the price. Times like these, I’m glad we are memebers – not to say I’m not going to force feed them to Will before they go bad.
One additional note about Costco/Sams like stores – you find yourself paying more ($1-$2) than you usually would for a package of mushrooms, but you need to keep in mind your getting more than twice you usual container size. One package will now take you through two dishes instead of just one. So as long as you can plan the meals ahead, none will go to waste.
I liked that produce blog. Perhaps you can do one about cleaning products? Let me explain: Today I purchased a bottle of Palolive dish detergent, a can of EasyOff oven cleaner, container of toilet cleaner, 10 sponges, a tub of all-purpose citrus-scent wipes, AND a 6-pack of YoGos (yogurt-berry balls) at Dollar Tree for…(drumroll) $6.41! Shiver-inducing deal to say the least.
Aleks – Great find! $6 for all of that. Usually just the ceaning wipes and the dish detergent would equal that much. I need to know more places to get good deals on household items such as these. Other good suggestion – BigLots. Go ahead and laugh it up but you should give it a try. Where did you find a dollar tree??
I know – makes HEB seem more like Randall’s compared to Dollar Tree (which is at 5310 Burnet Rd. by the way). I’ll definitely check out BigLots next (my mother claims to get all of the dog’s toys there)- I’ll keep you updated on what treasures I find.