Local farms often have the best deals when it comes to getting meat and eggs, and depending where you live, fruit and veggies. Ask around to other like-minded people where to find things. Ask the farmer how much you need to buy to get a discount, or if there are seconds or times when they reduce things (like when they are butchering a new cow and need to clear thier freezer etc).

If you are doing gardening, growing things that are going to do well where you live and produce lots means less time and energy wasted and space wasted on seeds that won't grow well. I can't break even, for example, if I tried growing pepper plants where I live. I would be out money. However I can save a ton of money by planting lettuce. Frugally speaking, grow only things that you will likely have much more produce than the cost of seed and other tools used to grow the vegetable.

Never turn down free offers of produce (or other things such as used clothes, for example). It seems that once you say no even once, people think you won't want it or are too busy all the time. If you say yes, you can always give it away (nicely say when offered "sure, but if I can't use it all do you mind if I pass it on to someone else?" I've gotten free produce this way many times.

Grindig my own alternative flours pays off when compared to the prices I can buy it already ground for me, factoring in the cost of my grain mill. Something to look into if you use a lot of alternative flours.

Menu plan and make a list before going to the store.

My favourite way to make things stretch is to cook dishes where everything is combined. Instead of meat-potatoe-veggie all seperate. Also, make use of things like the freezer and crock pot to save time on busy days and then therefore avoid last minute expenses.

What I wish someone had told me: its impossible to be perfect! Try one thing at a time.

As for frugality, I am by nature a frugal person, but because of lifestyle/job choices we have made, I have had to become increasingly frugal by necesity, not just desire. We have also moved a lot and in some areas those food dollars stretch further than others. I would second what others have said that buying whole foods is always better, even if you can't afford organic, which I often can't at this time. I love the book Real Food by Nina Planck and she says this same thing. That being said, buy in bulk when things are in season or garden like crazy and put things up by freezing, drying, or canning. We don't have to buy much of any produce in the winter- what a blessing! I've had great luck getting second quality produce from area farmers most places for canning. Just ask!

I think one of the easiest areas to be more frugal, healthy, and green at once is to make your own cleaners. So simple!

Herbs, of course, you can grow yourself in a windowbox or a small corner of your garden. Many herbs are perennials, and most of them dry well just spread out on a rack or hung up on a nail.

- If you budget your income as a whole, you can better control your grocery budget and prioritize spending on whole foods.

- Learn how to be flexible within a recipe and substitute.

- I believe that dairy, eggs, fish, and meat products can be part of a healthy diet, especially when compared to processed junk or refined grains. However, I think they should be used as flavoring and not eaten daily. This requires eating more produce, salads, quinoa, beans, etc. - but will help save money too.

- Plan your menu and talk it over with your spouse and/or kids (we don't have children yet) to make sure they are on the same page, like what you've suggested, and do not have appointments or whatnot that would require leftovers or a quickie dinner (our go-to is some sort of breakfast-for-dinner like pancakes or eggs and refried beans). However, we often have one night of the week unscheduled, to eat up what's in the fridge (there are websites that allow you to search by ingredient), see friends, etc. I look over the weekly ads for my two local grocery stores to help me make my menus. Looking over recipes I've bookmarked and tagged also inspires my meals. Currently, we plan lunches and dinners, but not snacks or breakfast. I also note what needs to be eaten that week from the previous week.

- Keep a grocery price spreadsheet comparing different prices for the same item for local and/or e-retailers.

- Buy in bulk for non-perishables when they go on sale. Some stores will offer you a case discount.

- Try to use less or go without. For example, we do not buy pop (soda) or candy. If you can have one product take care of many uses, you will save money. Some products I use for many applications are hydrogen peroxide, Dr. Bronner's liquid castille soap, and coconut oil. Every time you finish an item, think before you replace it. For example, my next step is buying sucanat or rapadura instead of white sugar for baked goods and raw honey instead of heated honey. A few months ago, I decided to start keeping only a few cans of beans for emergencies and to make the rest from scratch in the crockpot myself. I am also in the process of getting rid of old sponges in favor of biodegradable ones.

- Every so often, shop your pantry. This past month, my husband and I used our pantry/freezer stock and just supplemented with eggs, coconut milk (our dairy sub), and produce (85% from the farmers' markets). We used canned red salmon from the pantry, frozen chicken, etc.

- Soups and many crockpot meals will provide you with huge batches if only cooking for two. Freeze them for lunches and label them. We use mason jars to do this because I try to avoid plastic and like a tight seal.

- Store leftovers in glass because glass is healthier and see-through (no more guessing games!).

- Know what items you prefer to have the brand name for and what store brands are just as good.

- Have a soup bag in the freezer to store leftover chicken or turkey bones, parsley, carrot tops (the green stuff attached if you buy farmer carrots), etc. We also freeze leftover chopped scallions for use in cooked recipes. We also often use leftover cilantro or other herbs to make homemade pesto.

- Buy seasonal and local, as much as possible. I haven't had apples in a while...in our opinion, they are pretty tasteless in May in the midwest...but I cannot wait for them to become locally available this fall. Eating seasonal foods helps me to be excited about what's coming and eat the best quality/taste food.

~M, from IL

It can be used as baby food, a dessert, a breakfast, a non-fat alternative in baking and dehydrated to make a fun snack of fruit leather. Add fruit to it or cinnamon, serve it hot or cold... it is the greatest thing to have in the freezer.