have a pantry

One great way to stretch a buck is to have a pantry and know your prices. It's not enough to just stock up on stuff, you have to know how much to pay. For many years I only bought pasta when it was at fifty cents a pound. I kept a pantry stocked up with what I really needed. The days of fifty cent pasta has come and gone. Now the going rate is about a buck. Sometimes it's less, so that's when I stock up. I try to keep on hand what I am likely to use in 6 to 8 months. I also keep other staples on hand, but only if I can get them at a good price. I don't particularly like frozen meats, but peas and mixed veggies are always good to have on hand for soup making. I use leftovers to make soup. I just throw everything in with some canned broth and heat it up. Great for those cold Northeastern evenings. This weekend we had a storm and although I couldn't shop I had enough in the refrigerator to scare up some soup after shoveling all the snow. I keep lentils and barley in my pantry too.