Frugal Kitchens 101 - Mixes

The results of the last poll were rather surprising. Of the 61 voters 67% used no mixes while 31% used 1 - 3 mixes per week. Only 1% used more than 6 mixes per week. So you really need to give yourselves a well deserved pat on the back! Congratulations on not using a lot of commercially prepared mixes.

The average commecial cake mix contains about 30¢ of ingredients and you still have to add oil, water and eggs. The bake time is the same as homemade so essentially you are paying three times or more as much as what you could put together yourself. The same thing can be said for muffin mixes, any baking mixes, hamburger stretcher mixes, pasta/rice mixes, salad mixes and basically any mix you can find in your grocery store. You seriously do not need to buy a mix to make a vinegarette or salad dressing or a dip. Virtually any mix can easily be made at home with ingredients you already have on hand and homemade is always cheaper especially when it comes to mixes.

What you are buying is the convenience of mixes combined with the packaging. Eliminate the packaging and make your own mixes. In areas where packaging is not recyclable you prevent the packaging from going to a landfill as well. That way you have the convenience of a mix without the packaging so you are reducing your carbon footprint while you are saving money. At the same time you are putting homemade convenience products in your pantry for use when you don't feel like doing a lot of measuring. If you take 20 minutes on a Saturday and make up say 10 jars of a white cake mix, look at how much you will be saving and you are getting a healthier product with less salt, sugar and preservatives!

There are a lot of online resources for making your own mixes. Click here for a recent Google search then explore some of these mixes. There's everything from cookies to cakes to pasta and so much more. Make up one or two jars of whatever strikes your fancy, try it out then if you like it make several jars. Most homemade mixes will keep 1 - 2 years in your pantry providing it is cool and dark.