Ask Miserly Moms

Weekly Features Highlights: Virtual Cookbook Harvesting Vegetables Sassy Salsas Bushels of Beans Easy Snacks for Busy Kids Back to School Breakfasts - Quick and Easy Beating the Breakfast Rush Hour Lunch Smiles Ask The WebChef Freebies and Fun Stuff by Jonni McCoy Q. My dad is a diabetic, I can not afford to pay the outrageous prices that they have in the "sugarless" shops and not only that, some of the foods contain too much salt or sugar than he is allowed. I really don't trust anything that says "sugar free." I would love to learn how to make him cakes, foods and simple snacks for him to enjoy with out the worry of too much of salt and/or sugar. Thank you. ~ Veronica Henry A. Cooking from scratch is going to be the best answer for your situation. If you can't afford the convenience of premade food, and you don't trust their ingredients, then you need to make them. To get you started, I would look into some sugar free cookbooks. Some use natural sugars which won't help you, but some use NutraSweet. For an excellent equivalency chart for how much NutraSweet to use in place of a recipe's sugar content, visit http://www.tallassee.net/~crafts/rec8.htm I personally think NutraSweet is very bad for us, so I would explore another sweetener called stevia. It is an herb that is very sweet that comes in powdered as well as liquid form. There are cookbooks for stevia use as well. One is Stevia Sweet Recipes by Jeffrey Goettemoeller They even offer some free recipes to try out. Stevia can be purchased at most health food stores. Q. I have a daughter who is milk allergic and can tolerate soy milk. Do you happen to have any suggestions on how I can save money on our grocery bill? A. Soy and rice milk can be an expensive addition to the grocery bill. We have found it on sale at health food stores. Most health food stores put out monthly flyers much like the sale flyers for regular grocery stores. I watch these for sales and stock up on it and store them since they last awhile (check the "use by" date). Regular grocery stores are catching on to the health bandwagon and are often carrying them and putting them on sale as well. The last alternative is to make the milk yourself. It has a different taste, but you can do it if you wish. Here's a recipe to try: Soy Milk 1 cup soybeans, soaked overnight 7 cups water pinch salt 1 T honey Vanilla Rinse soybeans in very hot water. Bring water to a boil, then reduce heat. Pour 1 cup of the soaked beans and 2 cups of water into the blender at a time. Blend for about 1 minute per batch. Strain the bean pulp. I use a fine mesh stainless steel strainer, and then strain again in an ultra fine mesh strainer. You could also use a coffee filter or cheesecloth for the last strain. Flavor the milk with salt and honey (or whatever sweetener). Add a few drops of vanilla to taste. Store in the refrigerator. Q. My children really enjoy eating Nutri-Grain bars but they are quite expensive. Do you happen to have a recipe for making these? Thanks, Tracy Qua A. Here is a recipe for a similar bar: Semi-Nutragrain Bars 1 package yellow cake mix 1 1/2 cup rolled oats 3/4 cup melted butter 12 ounces jam or other filling 1 T. water Mix cake mix, oats and butter. Press half of the mix into a 9x13 greased pan. Mix jam and water and spread over the mix. Add the remaining mix on top and bake for 20 minutes at 375. Before cutting, cool completely. Variations: Use a strawberry cake mix with strawberry jam as the filling, or use a chocolate cake mix with peanut butter and marshmallow cream as the filling. About the Author: Jonni McCoy is the author of "Miserly Moms - Living On One Income In A Two Income Economy" and "Frugal Families - Making The Most Of Your Hard Earned Money!" Visit the Miserly Moms Website at http://www.miserlymoms.com To submit a frugal question that you would like answered, write to miserlymoms@miserlymoms.com - please put "Column Questions" in the subject field. "The advice given in this column is based upon personal information and experience. For further information on the disclaimer, please visit this address: http://www.miserlymoms.com/MOMdisclaimer.htm" Mail this article to a friend (or yourself) You will be returned to this page after your mail has been sent. Your email address Your Name To email address