How to food shop like you mean it!

In order to make all of the tasty meals I've featured in past posts, you probably should purchase the food and ingredients first. Food shopping can be a simple task if you're running in for milk and eggs. If you aspire to be a serious food shopper, there are many things you need to take into consideration before you plan a big excursion. In this post I want to share with you my personal experiences and some great tips to ensure you have a successful shopping trip each time you visit!

I have to be honest, I am in the food store at least three times a week, it's like my home away from home. I usually do a large shopping session on Sunday and then I stop in several times during the week because I either forgot something or I want to pick up more of something that is on sale. In order to cut down on the amount of times I revisit, I try my very best to carefully plan out my large shopping trip on the weekend so I have just about everything I need for the week. 

To achieve the best results, one should prepare and organize before leaving the house. The first thing you should do is pick the store you are going to shop at. In my area, we have three different food stores to choose from: Shoprite, Stop & Shop, and Aldi. Each of these stores have different sale dates so the most important thing is to know what day of the week sales start and end. From there, you then look at each flyer (I get mine in the newspaper, but you can always look online) to see what items are on sale and decide which day is best to shop for what you want.

Years ago, I always made sure that I had pen and paper on hand to start a shopping list. Nowadays I make use of digital shopping list apps for ease of use and convenience. Usually I look at what is on sale and then derive my weekly meal plan based on what I find. That way, I usually only buy what is on sale and use what I have at home to complement it. If something I need for a meal is not on sale, I add those items to my list as extras, but I'm extra mindful when shopping for them. Prices are often higher than if purchased on sale so I make sure to check all prices and make sure its really an item I need so I can stay in my budget. As a tip, make sure you put every item you plan on buying onto your shopping list; if you don't, you'll surely forget something. 

The next thing I do after looking at the flyers is check for coupons; I clip from the newspaper and print from online. I have several coupon sites that I visit. My top three are:

1. Coupons.com

2. redplum

3. SmartSource 

These three sites give the best coupons for items that are usually popular in your location. If you're new to couponing, I suggest you check out one of my favorite blogs, Living Rich With Coupons. At this site, which I also check weekly, the blogger gives amazing tips for shopping with coupons as well an extremely useful coupon match-up, where she links what coupons go with what sales and where they can be found. She also offers a coupon database with every coupon out there. This is extremely helpful when you want to buy items that are not on sale because you can usually find a coupon through her site. Any way to save money is a great thing to look into, especially when you're on a budget! 

Check out this video for some couponing advice from Cindy at Living Rich With Coupons:

Once I have my coupons and shopping list prepared, it's time to hit the store! When I am doing a big shopping, I am in the zone. I try to focus on what I am looking for and I usually go down each aisle so I don't miss anything or have to go back and fourth. I usually keep my shopping list visible at all times, and I cross off, or mark on my phone, each item I've added to my cart. This really helps to keep me on track. If I stop singing along to the music and focus, I can make it out of there in under an hour with at least $75 dollars of groceries. That to me would be considered a good shopping trip. 

When you're shopping, here are some tips to remember:

• Smell your food. Produce should smell fresh; meat should smell clean and odorless. You can even smell different body products so you don't waste and only buy what you like.
• Shop for your frozen and cold items last so they stay cool for your ride home. 
• Group items on your shopping list based by category so you can knock out a set of items in each aisle.
• Try to not impulse buy, you'll end up with more items then you planned on. Stick to your list!
• Double-check your prices while shopping and while on line, sometimes the sale signs are outdated or misplaced.
• Know what you want to spend on an item, if something is too expensive you can find alternatives or find it at another store on sale.
• Keep like items together in your cart for ease of bagging and unpacking at home.
• Get your coupons ready before you get to the register and match them up with the items you have in your cart so you don't miss a savings.
• Don't get overwhelmed when paying; check your prices as the items are being rung up. 
• Accept help or ask someone to bag for you so you can focus on your coupons and prices. 
• Do not be afraid to ask for a price check, usually the customer is right!

The greatest gift of all is feeding your family and knowing you shopped for them. I get on such a high after a great food shopping trip because I know I worked hard to get the hand picked products that look the best and all for a great deal. Preparing and cooking food for my family is an absolute joy, I hope you too can enjoy the experience from start to finish. Your family will love you for it, I promise!

My narrative of the greatest culinary experience of all, attending NYCWFF

I have married the sweetest, kindest, generous man I've ever met. My husband John is one of a kind. He really listens and understands me. Ever since we started dating, I have always expressed my feelings of how horrible my birthdays have been. I can honestly say it is probably one of my least favorite days of the year. When I was 17 my brother was put into an induced coma, on my birthday, not knowing if he would make it or not. When I was 19 a bouncer accidentally punched me in the face at a club. At age 21 my family threw me a surprise birthday party, which was no surprise to me, and then my father accidentally dropped my large, beautiful, pink cake right onto the kitchen floor. My list goes on and on. All the while, each time, I've had to suck it up and pretend like everything was ok. At age 25 I decided I wasn't going to make a big deal out of my birthday, I'd just treat it like another day. Well that wasn't ok with my husband. He tried so very hard to make my birthdays special, but I refused to accept the happiness on my day. It wasn't until I was 27 that I realized I was being stupid, and I should be grateful for what I have. At age 29, I got the greatest birthday gift I've ever received, two tickets for my husband and I to attend the New York City Wine and Food Festival. 

I was speechless. This is a huge multi-day event in New York City where many famous chefs and TV personalities appear. Several events go on throughout the festival that are focused on one chef or personality and you get to taste their food and watch them perform. The event my husband got me was the cream of the crop, The Grand Tasting with GEM access. This means we would have access to the entire tasting room filled with hundreds of top chefs, as well as entry to the GEM wine and liquor tent featuring premier and rare liquors from all around the world and last but not least, up close and personal live demos made by my idols, Food Network and Cooking Channel chefs. I couldn't believe a gift like this was being given to me. I am such a lucky girl!

The day came and I could barely contain myself. I was worried about my hair, my outfit, who would I meet, what will we try? We made our way into the city and my nerves grew stronger the closer we got to the venue. I wanted to make sure we took in absolutely everything. I even made a carefully timed out schedule so I didn't miss one chef's presentation that I wanted to see. 

As soon as we got there we were given a first class gift bag filled with many food lovers goodies and a wine glass that you could hang on your neck. I knew we were in for a hell of a time. 

Some of the swag we took home

As soon as we walked into the venue I was overwhelmed with emotions. It still felt like a dream to be there. I heard a familiar voice over the speakers, Tyler Florence, I immediately ran toward that stage to not miss a moment of his presentation. It was unbelievable; he spoke to the audience like we were all his close friends. 

Following Tyler were many other of my favorite Food Network stars like Robert Irvine, Anne Burrell, and my favorite, Alex Guarnachelli. My husband even surprised me that day with a copy of her cookbook which I got a personal meet and greet and signing. She talked to me like we were friends forever. She even shared some personal information about her night on the town the night before. I really couldn't believe such welcoming people surrounded me. Later on, I got to meet Kelsey Nixon, a new star on The Cooking Channel and I also got to take a selfie with Morimoto.

The icing on the top was when we left the stages to enter the food section; standing right outside the live presentations was my second favorite chef, Sunny Anderson.

It was a complete surprise because she wasn't not even listed on the agenda for the day. She was doing an appearance for Extended Stay America and was casually hanging out waiting for guests to discover her.I ran right up and said hello, after that we talked for almost half an hour. We shared food stories, hugs and a lot of laughs. It is a huge moment I will never forget. 

The different foods we tried were amazing. I had never had pork belly or escargot before, and they didn't let my expectations down. We had so many different treats; it's hard to name them all. The GEM wine and alcohol tent was outrageous. We tried some of the top-notch beverages from all over the world. I even saw one of the largest champagne bottles ever made. Needless to say, we left there feeling full, but pretty good! 

This birthday gift was something I never would have expected, nor dreamed I would be gifted with. All of my wishes came true that day and I left with such fantastic memories. 

Welcome to my blog!

When I was a kid, I grew up on your basic "mom and pop" food: basically meat and potatoes typically boiled or baked with basic seasonings. Although Mom’s home cooking was and is comforting and sustainable, there is so much out there I had never tried before. When I became and adult, my palate craved new flavors. I quickly became an adventurous eater. Over the past 11 years, I’ve discovered so many new and enjoyable foods and seasonings. I have gained a true passion for cooking and my biggest hobby now is learning to cook with new ingredients. 

This blog will be your tasty hub for fabulous food finds. I’ll pick a fabulous find and link it to a recipe or restaurant that proves it can be affordable, appetizing, and convenient. Most of all, I’ll show you why these finds stand out as something you've just got to try. I’m here to bring you the deliciousness that already exists.

In this blog, you'll also get tips and tricks so you can work with these great finds at home too.  It’s all about eating, so I hope you enjoy my blog and try some of my recommendations out!