Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ Fourth Week August 2026

Welcome to Frugal Workshop where every Monday I share the simple strategies used to save money in my kitchen over the past week, along with the meals that made it to our dinner table. You'll find practical tips on how we saved money on food hopefully to inspire your own meal planning using the foods you have in your own pantry.

My Frugal Week

The Old Country Kitchenware website has this recipe for Old Country Pan Coat. This magical mixture allows cakes to slip from their pan with ease. It's a one-step alternative to buttering and flouring your pans.

Old Country Pan Coat

I know I've posted a similar pan coat before, but I was watching a Lovina Zook video, a former member of the Swartzentruber Amish community in Iowa, where she mentions this recipe. I wanted to share it with you in case you're interested. 

One of my friends gave me a lot of produce last week including mushrooms, which are currently dehydrating for use later. I've also been dehydrating celery as she gave me found packages of celery and I will definitely use that. 

Photo of the Week

This is one lady's five gallon bean bucket. Whenever she gets beans from food pantries, food banks, church handouts, or friends, she adds them to this bucket. Then she uses them to make soup, chili, and spicy burrito beans, which makes for zero waste. I thought this was a great idea and wanted to share it with you. We love fifteen bean soup here and this would be very similar to that.

Saving Money YouTube Videos

The Back to Basics Kitchen YouTube channel, which has content on basic cooking, canning, bread making, and dehydrating foods, has a video entitled, Foods The USDA Says Will Increase In Price. I watched it the other day as I'm interested in knowing if certain foods we buy will be increasing in price. That way we can stock up before any price increases. 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Grilled Chicken Strips, Carrots, Cucumbers.

Tuesday ~ Chicken Breast Filets, Cucumber Tomato Salad. 

Wednesday ~ Salmon Patties, Green Beans with Onions & Potatoes. 

Thursday ~ Spicy Salmon Sushi, Soup Beans, and Strawberries. 

Friday ~ Grilled Chicken, Corn on the Cob, Carrots & Green Beans.

There was a little bit of fresh vegetables, so I put all of them into my Instant Pot and cooked them all at the same time, which made more than enough as a side dish for dinner. 

Saturday ~ Chicken Nuggets, Soup Beans, and Strawberries.

Sunday ~ Meatloaf, Green Beans with Onions, and Watermelon. 

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week? 

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

~ Living within our Means ~Frugal Workshop Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Image Credit

Third Frugal Friday of August 2026

 

Welcome to Frugal Friday

Each Friday here at Frugal Workshop, I love sharing the frugal wins, quiet savings, and simple strategies that helped us stretch our budget over the past seven days. It’s a gentle look back at the small things that make a big difference. 
When Bartering Doesn’t Work
I had an incident happen last week that I want to discuss. Back in June I made a barter arrangement with someone in exchange for garbage service, outside hose repair, roof repair, and weed eating and mowing in exchange for some of Dad’s equipment downstairs. It was a good deal for both of us if he had kept up his part of the arrangement. 
First off he wanted to change our Monday arrangement to Friday. I said no as that is a prime yard sale day in summer, but he had already stopped coming on Monday as he made an arrangement with someone else for another job. Then he backed out of the hose and roof repairs, and when I asked him to work on the lawn, he said he couldn’t for two to three months. Sigh. 
I’ve been burned before by people coming here and thinking they can take advantage of me. He already took a great deal of the equipment and was not fulfilling our agreement. So, after discussing it with Bailey I asked him to bring the equipment back and I would pay him for his services he had done so far. He was not happy, but I can sell the equipment for more money and get the repairs done that way, which is what I plan on doing. 
The moral of the story is that sometimes bartering doesn’t work. Bailey told me I shouldn’t have let him take the equipment before the work was done and she is right. I feel bad but I can’t let someone take advantage of me either, so this is what was going down last Friday when I didn’t post. I gave him his money and wished him the very best. Lesson learned the hard way.
My Frugal Week
Last week I used a $5.00 off Bealls reward when I was buying some Skinny Syrup. 
Monday afternoon I took a tumble backwards and fell onto the concrete floor downstairs and one of Dad’s machines fell onto my foot and leg. I went to urgent care and nothing is broken, just scrapped up and bruised. My doctor has an ace bandage on it for now. 
Earning Money 
I sold my Reel Lawn Mower on Facebook Marketplace for $50 this week. I bought it to mow our yard and then realized it wasn't powerful enough to do the job, so I made the decision to sell it. I only paid $40 for it, so I made a good deal. 
On Sunday I measured and processed fifty-five clothing items for Bailey’s online shops. We barter this with each other and exchange my work for her paying the Internet bill each month, which she has to have for her business. It’s a win-win for both of us. 
I received a payout of $35 from a class action lawsuit I had joined for something I had purchased in the past. It takes so long for one to payout that I don't even recall what it was for now. 
Yard Sale Saturday
Last Friday I went to a yard sale and picked up:
Brute garbage can $2.00Cat Condo freeS Hooks 25 centsBlender Shaker Bottle metal inside 25 centsHangers 50 centsTwin Size Bed Platform Frame $2.00Oyster Food Chopper $1.ooWooden Clock $1.00Aveeno Body lotion 25 centsDove soap 3 pack $1.00
Freebies
I was dropping off some trash the other day and found a couple of freebies at the garbage dump. Someone had left some brand new brake pads, which I brought home for Bailey to sell as they are worth $74.95 of the Napa auto parts website. 

I also found a couple of welcome mats and this air stepper fitness machine. We already had one of them upstairs in Bailey's room and now we have one downstairs too.  I put a walker in front of it to hold on as I'm not too steady on it. 
That is my week in a nutshell. How was your week?

Thank you for dropping by my frugal blog, you are always welcome here. 
We would love to hear all about your week in the comment section.

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ Third Week August 2026

Welcome to Frugal Workshop where every Monday I share the simple strategies used to save money in my kitchen over the past week, along with the meals that made it to our dinner table. You'll find practical tips on how we saved money on food hopefully to inspire your own meal planning using the foods you have in your own pantry.

My Frugal Week

On Sunday I was working and listening to Miss Lori at Whippoorwill Holler's YouTube channel. She recently made a video titled, "Feeding my family when times were hard, No five course meals!". It was a good video where she talked about the rising price of groceries, but since she has been keeping house groceries have always risen with time. 

She spoke about struggle meals she made when there wasn't much food in the pantry and some of the meals she made back then and still makes today. If you get a chance to watch it, I'd recommend it. 

I went to People Helping People on Saturday night for free vegetables and came home with bitter melon, tomatoes, zucchini, yellow, orange, and red bell peppers, corn on the cob, and yellow squash. I could have also taken green beans and egg plant, but didn't get those.  

I went home and washed most of the vegetables and on Sunday morning I chopped all the peppers and put them in a large mason jar to use throughout the week. I love having them ready to go to add to whatever I'm making that week. 

Bailey and I have been decluttering the house for the upcoming consignment sale, which means we gave the kitchen a good cleaning out. I went through all of my spices and if I had more than one container of a certain spice (which happens when you buy in bulk) I emptied all of them into a mason jar and added a parmesan cheese lid, which I save for this purpose. 

The drawers and cabinets always look so good and organized after a good decluttering too. 

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Philly Cheesesteak Casserole, Sweet Potatoes, Cauliflower, Pickled Beets. 

Tuesday ~ Roast Beef, Sweet Potatoes, Creamed Corn. 

Wednesday ~ Lentil Loaf, Sweet Potatoes, Steamed Broccoli. 

Thursday ~ Lentil Loaf, Baked Apples, Steamed Carrots. 

Friday ~ Chicken Breast Fillets, Baked Apples, and Steamed Carrots. 

Saturday ~ Chicken Tacos with all the toppings, and Corn.

Sunday ~ Salmon Patties, Corn on the Cob, Green Beans with Onions. 

This was one of those “don’t heat up the kitchen” summertime suppers. I shucked the corn and put it in my smallest instant pot, and fixed the green beans and onions in my smallest slow cooker. All I had to do was make the salmon patties come dinner time and brown them in a skillet. 

Thank you for visiting here and getting a glimpse of being in my kitchen with me this week.  

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week? 

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

~ Living within our Means ~Frugal Workshop Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Image Credit

No Frugal Friday Blog Post for August 14, 2026

 

Just a quick update to let you know there will be no Frugal Friday blog post for today, but I'll be back to posting next Friday and of course on Monday for Menu Plan Monday. I hope you all are doing well and enjoying your summer.

Thank you for dropping by my frugal blog, you are always welcome here. 
We would love to hear all about your week in the comment section.

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ Second Week August 2026

Welcome to Frugal Workshop where every Monday I share the simple strategies used to save money in my kitchen over the past week, along with the meals that made it to our dinner table. You'll find practical tips on how we saved money on food hopefully to inspire your own meal planning using the foods you have in your own pantry.

My Frugal Week

On Thursday I pulled the last of the chicken off the rotisserie chicken bought at Sam's Club. I put the carcass in my crockpot with an onion, sweet potato peelings, and black pepper because that is what I had on hand. I love making liquid gold in my crockpot.  I ended up with five pints of chicken broth, which went right into the freezer. 

I also placed the chicken left from dinner and filled two pint freezer containers with it and froze that for future meals. I picked the biggest rotisserie chicken Sam’s Club had and it paid off.

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Rotisserie Chicken, and Cole Slaw. 

Dinner was a rotisserie chicken I picked up at Sam’s Club for $4.98. Combined with coleslaw, it made a great dinner after a day of running errands. 

Tuesday ~ Homemade Pizza

Wednesday ~Loaded Baked Potato, Blackberries, and Fresh Peach. 

Bailey went to the theater with her friend, so I was on my own for dinner. A loaded baked potato worked for me and was inexpensive. Afterwards I had some fresh blackberries and a locally grown peach, which were delicious. 

Thursday ~ Chicken & Onions, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, and Green Beans with Onions. 

I took the rest of the meat off Monday's chicken and used that to make a skillet of chicken and onions for dinner. I served this with roasted sweet potatoes and green beans with onions I had stored in the freezer from a previous meal. 

Friday ~ Grilled Chicken, Steamed Carrots, Sliced Cucumbers, Sliced Red Bell Peppers. 

Saturday ~ Chicken Breast Filets, California Vegetables, Sliced Cucumbers. 

Sunday ~ Philly Cheesesteak Casserole, Baked Sweet Potatoes, California Vegetables. 

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week? 

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

~ Living within our Means ~Frugal Workshop Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Image Credit

First Frugal Friday of August 2026

Welcome to Frugal Friday

Each Friday here at Frugal Workshop, I love sharing the frugal wins, quiet savings, and simple strategies that helped us stretch our budget over the past seven days. It’s a gentle look back at the small things that make a big difference. 
My Frugal Week
Last Friday Bailey and I went to a church yard sale and I ended up buying a NordicTrack GX 7.0 Recumbent Bike and a Schwinn 431 Ergonomic Elliptical machine.  Both pieces have now been set up in our home gym downstairs. I go down there each morning and use them along with the walking track and get my exercise in for the day. 
On Saturday it was raining, so rather than yard sale, we went to the anniversary sale of a thrift store where they were having a “fill a bag with clothes for $1.00” sale. 
OMG! The timing was perfect as I’ve realized I needed to switch to a medium (size 10) in pants as the large (size 12) I’ve been wearing are getting too big. I also picked up several shirts in small and medium sizes. I ended up with thirty-five pieces, which fit into five bags and I paid $5 for the lot or right at 15 cents each! Score! 
The thrift store even had free food for customers. We had popcorn, lemonade, bottled water, and brownies. They also had cookies and cupcakes for those who wanted them. 
One thing I noticed this week when I was putting vegetable peelings in the compost pile was how many butterflies there were. I hadn’t realized they would be attracted to the compost, but they sure have been. 
On Monday I had an appointment in Chattanooga for a mammogram. Taking advantage of that, I combined it with other errands to save on fuel costs. I went to Gordon’s for black olives, Sam’s Club for gas and toilet paper, Dollar Tree for vinegar, and Ollie’s for spices. 
Thursday Bailey and I went out to vote. 
The library called me on Wednesday evening because I won the grand prize drawing for the summer reading program! I picked my prize up on Friday which included a reusable shopping bag, button, blanket, stickers, squishy toy, dinosaur statue, stuffed dinosaur, magnet, all in the dinosaur theme, which was the theme of the summer reading program. 
Earning Money 
This week I tutored on Tuesday & Thursday, but my students start school on Friday, so tutoring will be scheduled around their time spent at school. 
Avoiding Spending 
Payday fell this week, so it was hard to avoid spending money as I paid all the bills. 
Saving Money on Entertainment
This week I watched the film, Still Mine on Amazon Prime. The film is based on a true story where a farmer fights back when local authorities in rural New Brunswick hamper his efforts to build a cottage for his dementia-stricken wife. It was very good. 
My Reading Nook ~ What I've been Reading This Week
 This week I finished reading Gary Harper’s book titled, A Man of Rubber: A True Story of Love, Adventure & The Fine Art of Staying Flexible, which was this month’s selection for book club at the library. We had a good time discussing the book and are going to be reading The Book Club for Troublesome Women, written by Marie Bostwick, for our September book club. 
After book club I started reading Granny’s Healing Ways, found here on Goodreads. This book is a return to the knowledge that once lived in every mountain home. The remedies reflect the resourcefulness of mountain folk who used whatever was at hand. 

How was your week?

Thank you for dropping by my frugal blog, you are always welcome here. 
We would love to hear all about your week in the comment section.

Belinda 🫶 💕 Homemaker at Heart 💕 ~ Living within our Means ~My Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Menu Plan Monday ~ Saving Money in my Frugal Kitchen ~ First Week August 2026

Welcome to Frugal Workshop where every Monday I share the simple strategies used to save money in my kitchen over the past week, along with the meals that made it to our dinner table. You'll find practical tips on how we saved money on food hopefully to inspire your own meal planning using the foods you have in your own pantry.

My Frugal Week

This week I used up multiple cans from my pantry since I've not done any grocery shopping lately. We've been in use it up mode, but we will be going grocery shopping one day this week. 

Recipe of the Week

This is a recipe from Hannah Cooks Healthy-ish on her Facebook reels. I used a package of ground turkey to make it more healthy and one serving had forty-one grams of protein, which is good. We both really liked it and I’ll definitely make it again. 

Philly Cheesesteak Casserole

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground turkey, chicken or beef 1 large white onion, diced 2-3 bell peppers, diced 4 oz low-fat cream cheese 1/2 cup non-fat, plain Greek yogurt 6 slices of provolone cheese 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp onion powder 1/2 tsp chili powder Salt & pepper, to taste Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Brown ground turkey, beef, or ground chicken.

Add in onions and peppers and cook until fork tender.

Add in spices and seasonings, stir.

Reduce heat to low/medium.

Cube your cream cheese and add it in to the meat mixture.

Stir and let it melt and fully incorporate.

Remove from heat and add in Greek yogurt and stir.

Transfer to a 9x13 casserole dish if not using an oven safe skillet.

Cover with provolone slices and bake for 10 minutes.

Broil for 2-3 minutes to crisp up the cheese.

What’s for Dinner

Monday ~ Grilled Chicken, Cucumber Salad, Bean Salad, Roasted Beets. 

Tuesday ~ Homemade Pizza

Wednesday& Thursday ~ Stuffed Bell Peppers, Cucumber Salad, and Bean Salad. 

We picked up so any colored bell peppers on Saturday that I wanted to use them in al our meals this week and this night was no exception.

Friday & Saturday ~  Almost Spaghetti, Steamed Broccoli. 

I love this recipe because it is low carb, which is important to me to keep my blood sugar under control. Since losing weight, these days my blood sugar will go high and then crash to very low levels if I eat things like pasta, flour, or bread products. So, food like bean sprouts or spaghetti squash are a good replacements for the pasta and don't cause my blood sugar to crash. 

Sunday ~ Philly Cheesesteak Casserole, Steamed Broccoli, and Pickled Beets. 

Another delicious low-carb recipe to add to our menu rotation. 

What’s been on the menu in your home this past week?

Belinda

Homemaker at Heart

~ Living within our Means ~Frugal Workshop Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27

Image Credit