This quote in one of the blog posts by Kristen Fischer, author of Ramen Noodles, Rent, and Resumes (which hopefully you bought after our last post), was just too good to not write about. While some of you may feel differently, I found it much easier to cook in college. It was easier to slip in trips to the grocery store between lectures, and lets admit it, who didn’t prefer to go to the store over reading the next biology chapter, or studying for your Spanish final? Another huge contributor to my Rachael Ray Phase (ok, my Roommates in college would laugh pretty hard at that one, I don’t think frozen chicken and veggies qualifies me for that sort of label), was my prettier bank account. With the extra contributions from the parents every month, paying rent and making frequent trips to the grocery store was not a problem. 

Since graduation, and starting my 9-6 job, I honestly can’t remember the last time I even used the kitchen except to microwave a Lean Cuisine.  It’s so much easier to run to work, snack on whatever is available in the kitchen and grab lunch at a restaurant by my work. In reality, bringing my own lunch would save me money and calories. Here’s some tips that will replace your “I only eat out” mentality and make you a more feasible candidate for the next Top Chef:

Cook Ahead of Time: Picture an angel and devil on your shoulder. The Angel is saying “get up and pack lunch!”, while the devil is saying, “Go back to sleep for 20 minutes!” We all know who usually wins this battle. To avoid this oversleeping temptation pack your lunch at night, or better yet make some meals on Sunday and freeze them for the week.

Have your parents/Friends teach you a recipe: A lot of recipes are easier than they look. The next time your parent, sibling or friend is cooking dinner watch what they do and make notes while you go. With Fathers Day Coming up.. this is the perfect time to ask. Trust me this will make the cook happy and your bank account happy-it’s a 2 for 1 deal.

Don’t go to the store without a list: We all know what happens when you go to the store hungry, you end getting twice as much food because the bag of chips looks as tempting as Johnny Depp . Writing down a list before you go and sticking to it, will make your shopping trip shorter and cut your bill in half.

Bored? Watch Cooking Shows: Anytime you turn on the Food Network its hard not to be instantly mesmerized (and hungry). Watching Rachael Ray whip up one of her 30 minute meals, or Robbin Miller make one of her “Quick Fix Meals” can be very inspiring. So instead of turning on the Friends re-run and Seinfeld (although they’re very good choices), tune into the cooking channel and get some great ideas for quick and easy meals. 

The other day, I resisted pressing the snooze button the usual 5 times, and woke up in time to see an interesting segment on Good Morning America. Stephany Neilson, better known as the “Coupon Mom” is a grocery shopping and financial expert frequently seen on the show. In the segment I happened to watch, she saved over 200 dollars at the grocery store using coupons, and getting many items for free!

I checked out her site Couponmom.com to see for myself how this super-mom can help me save me some money on my weekly grocery sprees. While the site can look pretty overwhelming at first it offers many helpful tools that I have regularly used since then, from discount coupons, restaurant coupons, savings advice to her own personal blog with some helpful money saving tips. 

I personally am a fan of the grocery coupon database, which shows deals you can get from the Sunday paper or print directly from the Site.  For example, you can save 50 cents off a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch or 75 cents on one of Emerils Rubs (which I highly recommend for grilling chicken). To get more information, sign up for the site (its’ free and takes 2 minutes) and check out the free Ebook or instruction page. Once you get the hang out of it, it’s a pretty simple process. 

It may seem like too much extra work to print out  coupons every week, but this site makes it a lot easier and shows you some great deals you wouldn’t know otherwise. Plus, with all of those college loans, expensive rent, and expensive drinks at the bars, every penny makes a difference!!

Check out Couponmom.com and start saving!