You might think that you're getting a good deal buying spices at the dollar store, but, I urge you to do some comparison shopping at a health food store. I can buy a nice bag of extremely fresh spices for less than the dollar store offerings. And, I know that what I'm getting at the health food store is very fresh. You can smell the difference. Also, those snap benefits are given in monthly allotments. If you plan a budget, and meal plan, you can save a lot of money by buying all of your food in bulk. Of course, some of that depends on your freezer space. But, if you buy the largest economy cans of tomatoes, and cook all of your sauces at once, or use what you need today, and break the rest of that tomato sauce/puree/dice into smaller portions, those can then go in the freezer. There is also a discount grocery store in nearly every city. I find that when I shop at the one nearest me, I save at least 10 - 20 cents on every item that goes into my cart. Meats are often 50 cents/pound cheaper, and they appear to be better quality than my local Hannaford store offers. An other huge savings: Buy only what's listed on sale in the fliers. Work your menu around those offerings, go to more than one store, buying the specials at each store. Make your own mixes: A bag of flour, sugar, some oil, baking powder, powdered milk will provide you with biscuit mix, pancake mix, muffin mix, and you'll be well set up to do some extra baking besides. Buy your milk at the gas station. They often sell it at the state minimum. That works out to almost a buck/gallon. Don't use a gallon at a time? It freezes well. Make your own breads, or go to the day old bakery. I can spend $8 at the day old bakery and come home with what would cost $30 at the grocery store.
