Freezing Meats = $aving Money

Your Gay Husband Tip of the Day :

Buy in Bulk and Freeze to $AVE

Date and Label Your Food for Even Rotation

Freezing Meats = Saving Money
Like I say in my Weekly Grocery Shopping blog, Buy when it is on Sale and Freeze. I do this all of the time. It is a huge money saver on those everyday items like boneless skinless chicken breast [we eat all the time] to a great price on T-Bone steaks or standing Rib Eye Roast. Here is what I do...

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

I bought these boneless skinless chicken breasts for only $1.19 per pound, which is a GREAT deal especially with how many of these we eat in a week. I had to buy it in family pack to get this price but really who cares..I bought 4 family packs.

Date and Label

It is a good idea to put as many breasts into a bag that you would cook at one time. For example for the 2 of us I will pack 6. 2 for dinner that night and I will use the left overs for salads, tacos, burritos or pasta during the week. I do this at least 1 time per week. Only at these prices though.

Cut and Marinate First

Another great Tip is precut and marinate your meat before you put it into the freezer. In this case I did Orange Chicken. I chopped it into 1" pieces and pour the marinade over it and put it in the freezer immediately. It will marinade as it is freezing and while it is defrosting. Squeeze out all of the air and close your Zip Lock Bag.
That's it..how easy and what a great way to save money...believe me it adds up FAST.




Til Later,
Your Gay Husband

Spring Clean Pool Filter

Your Gay Husband Tip of the Day :

Upkeep Today and $ave Tomorrow

Pool Filter

Spring Clean Pool Filter
If you have a pool then you know this is a year round responsibility. Spring is a perfect time to CLEAN YOUR FILTERS. This will not only prevent a malfunction that can be costly in repairs but it will stay in good condition and run quietly. I spent $15.99 for SeaKlear Spa. This is a Filter Cleaner and Degreaser. To replace 4 filters could cost more than $500...this is why you want to maintain them. Here is what I did...

Dirty Filter

When you remove the filter it looks disgusting from all the debris and algae. By looking at this picture you would think the filters are brown....NO they are white. When cleaning your filters make sure to wear a mask and goggles and to follow all manufacture directions for safety.

Cleaning Filter

This is really pretty simple. Put your hose nozzle on a jet stream and spray it until the water runs clear and it is white. Set aside and repeat on all 4 filters.

Bagged Filters with Cleaner

After you have sprayed down the filters, pour the SeaKlear Spa Cleaner into a spray bottle and spray filter with solution [I use 1/4 per filter] and put in a large black trash bag and let set in the sun for at least 4 hours. Good time for BBQ Burgers and a Nap in the Sun. After your nap, remove the from the bags and rinse thoroughly and set aside.

Replace Clean Filters

OK now it is time to put the filters back and get it going. I tell you my pool runs so much more quietly now. This is a must..so enjoy your afternoon and GET ER DONE and relish in a job well done...like steak.
Now it's Beer Time !






Til Later,
Your Gay Husband

BBQ Turkey Legs

Your Gay Husband Tip of the Day :

Use leftovers and WoW the Crowd

BBQ Turkey Leg with Smashed Carrots and Potato

BBQ Turkey Leg Dinner
It seems like every time we go to a street fair or the TX state fair we inevitably get a BBQ Turkey leg. We both love them. I make them a few times a year to mix up my BBQ repertoire. I originally BBQ'ed these Turkey legs when I was BBQing Chicken Breasts for dinner. Yep I ended up Freezing the Turkey Legs for this quick and easy meal. The entire meal consisted of Turkey Legs, Smashed Carrots and Potatoes with a Fresh Pineapple and Strawberry salad.
TIME - 30 minutes
COST - $10 for 4 people
Level of Difficulty - 2 on a scale of 1-5

Turkey Legs on Grill

I prepared and cooked them the same way as the chicken. Click here for how to. They turned out perfect. The key is to Marinate, and cook on a LOW temp between 200-250 degrees for about 1 hour to 11/2 hours per pound. Once these were cooked, I cooled them and put them in the freezer wrapped in foil for later.






OK it is time to reheat. This is how I do it...Remove Turkey from freezer, preheat oven to 350 degrees and put foiled wrapped Turkey legs in the oven as it preheats and leave it alone for 30 mins. Once complete add your Favorite BBQ sauce. You can put the BBQ sauce on mid reheating and close foil. This will make it steam and fall off the bone.

Smashed Carrots and Potatoes

I swear I could eat mashed potatoes for every meal if it wouldn't kill me with all of those calories. Here is a great way to mix it up and add a healthy touch. Wash and cut equal amount so of carrots and potatoes and cooked them in boiling water until fork tender. Make sure to cut carrots a bit smaller than the potatoes because they take a little longer to cook.

Use a Potato Smasher

Drain and add butter, milk, salt and pepper to taste them smash with a potato smasher. Do NOT over smash, you want them lumpy. They taste so yummy. The carrots add a little sweetness to the dish and brightens up your plate. Great for Pot-Lucks.

Better with Butter

You can use this method with several veggies. So kick back and enjoy some left overs as if they were new. You can also freeze the Smashed  Carrots and Potatoes to use at a later date. I am always looking for time savers for making healthy meals. I made a small fruit salad to accompany this meal. A nice cold Beer would be a perfect to wash it down.





I hope you enjoy this as much as we did.
Til Later,
Your Gay Husband

Elizabeth Taylor... We Will NOT Forget You

Your Gay Husband Tip of the Day :

Arrive Fashionably Late

Long Live Elizabeth Taylor

...We Will NOT Forget You

 In honor of one of the greatest..Elizabeth Taylor....lets celebrate this iconic beauty,who inspired the world to live fully,participate in life..act upon what you believe...Elizabeth Taylor is the last of the Hollywood actress's, who created the path for the women actress of today.

Those Memorizing Eyes

Elizabeth Taylor's radiated beauty...timeless and classic...confident and secure of who she was and where she had been.Listening to the recaps of her life, she was the first female $1 million dollar actress, over 50 films, 2 Oscars are just a few of her credentials.

Elizabeth Taylor in Cat on a hot tin roof.

Elizabeth Taylor was one of the founding supporters for the research of AIDS.Her support in the research of this epidemic, led to many
inspirational and influential celebrity fund raisers for AIDS.


Elizabeth Taylor...2 time Oscar winner 

A fun moment for me back in the late 80's   I waited amongst hundred other people, waiting for her personal appearance at the Macy's San Fransisco for her perfume debut, White Diamonds.





The Original 10...Elizabeth before Bo

I look at the beauty of Elizabeth Taylor and wonder what was really going on in that makeup chair?...where was Richard Burton?Imagine being a fly on the wall. Did she really like what what was Hollywood planed for her...I do believe that she truly enjoyed being a mother, her children and family were most important.

Classic Hollywood Beauty

Elizabeth Taylor..Your internal beauty and passion for mankind will be missed but you influence to the awareness of AIDS and the need for research will continue in her honorable name. I"m so glad to be of age to know this greatness and the influence she has left behind. We love you Elizabeth Taylor.









Miss Taylor had left instructions that it was to begin at least 15 minutes later than publicly scheduled, with the announcement, 'She even wanted to be late for her own funeral,'" a statement from the late actress' rep to Access Hollywood read.

Leave a comment if you have an Elizabeth Taylor story you want to share.
Til Next Friday,
Your gay Husbands Husband

Edible CenterPiece for Your Table

Your Gay Husband Tip of the Day :

Make Food Storage a CenterPiece

Fruit Storage Made into a Edible CenterPiece

Edible CenterPiece for Your Table
There are a few things in life I like and 2 of them are creativity and functionality. When ever I go shopping I get a variety of Fruit. Some is more ripe than others. Where am I going to put all of it. You can't put fruit in the fridge that still needs to ripen not to mention out of sight out of mind. When I have fruit OUT and AVAILABLE, I eat more and that is the practical part of this...The creativity part speaks for itself.



Apples and Citrus

 Adding something organic to an otherwise lifeless table really brightens a room. Here I have a variety of Citrus and Fuji Apples. I don't know about you but I love grabbing an Orange or an Apple for a snack. The Lemons I use mostly for cooking and the Key Limes are perfect for Cocktails. As you see I will use every last piece of fruit one way or another.







 Edible Color for Your Table

This is the epitome of form and function. Don't worry if some of your fruit gets over ripe...that's what baking is for.
Make your own Edible CenterPiece and see if it inspires you to eat more fruit, it does for me.
I hope you enjoy mixing creativity with functionality.




It is not just for a centerpiece...it is for LIFE.
Til Later,
Your Gay Husband

Weekly Grocery Bargains

Your Gay Husband Tip of the Day :

Cook More Than Enough for Leftovers

Read this Blog and Save Money

I think one of the best ways to save money is by knowing what and where the best prices are along with knowing what you need...a list before going Grocery Shopping. It is just like Fashion, if it is not on sale today..just wait..there's always tomorrow. The other thing is making enough for left overs to cover lunches or a quick dinner. Once a week I cook 6 chicken breasts and put them in the fridge to use over the next few days. This is not only a great money saver it is also a BIG time saver.

It means a great deal.

One great thing about Albertsons is the do not require a rewards to  cash in on the savings. They are having a 4 Day sale March 24th-March 27th boasting such great deals like Turkey Breast for .79lb [limit 2], Large uncooked shrimp for $3.99lb 31/40 count, Bud or Coors $13.99 for 18pack. Print Albertsons Coupons and Ad here.
Well rounded selection of items at good prices. Make sure to pick up a whole chicken while you are there, it is just .69lb and grapes for .99lb.

get high-quality produce at Fresh, Low prices

Last week at Aldi I bought so much Broccoli it wasn't even funny. Could you blame me it was just .75lb ! I made fritata, pasta, salad etc... This week the best buys are whole Pineapple for .99ea, I bought one and it was good. I let it set out for 2 days till I could pull a leaf out mmm, bananas .39lb, cantaloupe .79lb and strawberries $1.29lb. Aldi always has the BEST deals on Milk, Eggs, Butter and any other staple food item. They have weird things like a 28" tall bird bath for $9.99 and an 85" tall bird feeding station for $9.99. It is always worth a stop but remember to bring your own bags and a quarter for your shopping cart. You will get it back when you return your cart. Print Aldi Ad here.

March is Seafood Month

Fiesta is having their Seafood Month. When they had their Meat month I thought I was going to loose my mind with all of the great deals the had. I still have T-Bones and Pork Ribs in the Freezer just waiting. Could you blame me. Here are the great deals this month with seafood...Atlantic salmon $4.99lb, super jumbo shrimp $7.99lb 13/15 count WoW hat is really big [great for BBQ], live crawfish $1.69lb [how southern]. They are having some good deals on T-Bone steaks for $3.99lb, boneless skinless chicken breasts or tenders [the tenders are great to cook alot and use during the week], mangos 3 for $1, strawberries $1.99lb and pineapples $1.99ea. Print Fiesta Ad here.

March to Savings

Kroger always has good deals and at times can be a perfect 1 stop shop. They do require a rewards card to receive discounted prices.
Here are a few good not great buys at Kroger this week...boneless skinless chicken breast for $1.99lb pork spare ribs $1.49lb, coca cola 2 liter .89ea, assorted pork chops $1.99lb. They also have alot of coupons this week. Print Coupons here.

Serious Food Silly Prices

Sunflower Farmers Market is such a pleasant place to shop. They have a wide variety of healthy food and beverages. I love that they made their own sausage. The chicken Italian sausage is my favorite. Last time, the guy behind the counter was the same guy that made the sausage I bought that morning. Talk about fresh...I wasn't kidding. Other than sausage they always have the best prices on FRESH produce and sell a descent table wine for just $3.33 per bottle. I am not kidding the wine is good. Print Sunflower Ad here.

Ingredients for life.

Tom Thumb has very competitive pricing. The are not always the lowest but they are pretty consistent with customer service. If you are a high maintenance shopper... go here and they will rise to the occasion. The also require a rewards card to receive discounted prices. They also have weekly coupons. Print Coupons here.



Here are some links across the country to help you find discounts....
Safeway, Smiths, Jewel, Ralphs, Raleys, HEB.

I hope you find this helpful in planning your weekly grocery shopping and saving.
Til Later,
Your Gay Husband

Starting VEGGIE Seeds

Your Gay Husband Tip of the Day :

Share your seeds...you will have Tons

Everything you Need

Starting VEGGIE Seeds

I love fresh VEGGIES the best when you grow them yourself by seed. They always taste sweeter and are more intense in flavor. I just started my seeds a couple of weeks ago. I store my left over seeds in individual zip lock bags in a dry location. I will be planting more seeds later as well as giving some away to friends and family to start their own VEGGIE garden.

Preparing Empty Egg Carton

I love re-purposing things, here I use left over egg cartons. Before I add soil I make sure to cover the large holes on the Tops with paper towel. I only use 1 layer of paper towel. The egg cartons are great because they are bio degradable and can really be planted directly into the ground if you wanted too.

Time Frame and Seed Map

I can't stress it enough to make a Map of your seeds when planting. It can help to right on the egg carton top and bottom for easy reference. I have also noted  the next time I want to start more seeds. I am starting the next round 3 weeks later to ensure long production time. You can do this a few times during the growing season as long as you have enough space.

Planting Seed

Add soil that you have pre moistened to the top of the egg carton. Poke a hole about a 1/2" deep and put in 2-3 seeds and cover. I plant more than I will use for back up if for some strange reason one won't grow. This will also allow you to keep the strongest. If I need 1 I plant 2 and so on. The soil is JIFFY MIX made for Starting Seeds and it only cost $3.97 at Home Depot.

Water Seeds

 At this time you will want to water thoroughly. This sounds easier than it is. Here is the deal. The soil is VERY airy and will blow away extremely easy until wet. I use a spray bottle. It takes a little longer but I am 100% certain everything is wet and not one seed was missed. Put in a warm place. You can also lightly tent them with plastic wrap for added humidity. I have mine on top of a freezer in the garage.

4 Days Later

Here they are just 4 days later. It is NOT too late to get your garden going....so go for it.







Happy Gardening !
Til Later,
Your Gay Husband