With the very real possibility that LD might not have a job at the beginning of January due to many companies being force to have a hiring freeze, I have started preparing myself for a few months of really living on one salary. As it is, we already don’t live on both salaries and we put significant amounts of our income toward loans and savings, but being able to put significant portions of money to both of those places makes me feel a bit more safe. So, I have been digging deep to try to figure out some more ways that we can cut back on our spending. Well, in my research, I discovered that making my own hot cocoa mix (one of the items on our grocery list this week) was not only very easy, but I had all the ingredients already in my pantry!!
Here’s the recipe:
- 1 1/2 cup cocoa
- 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 cups nonfat dry milk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
All you have to do is mix the ingredients together well and store them in an air tight container. We had one of those Oxo Good Grips containers sitting around from a set we got for our wedding so I used that. For serving, put about 2-3 tablespoons into a hot mug of milk.
Price wise:
- Half a container of cocoa: ~$1.58
- 1/6 a bag of powdered sugar: ~$0.25
- Dry Milk: ~$1.59
- Salt negligible
Total for homemade: ~$3.42 (but I didn’t buy anything new)
Price for a can of Nestle Hot Chocolate Mix at Target: $4.89
Savings: ~$1.47 <–Totally worth it!
Next, I think I am going to try making my favorite snack, animal crackers!
Crazy on the Outside 