Kristie’s Tips for Saving on Light Summer Meals

Posted July 19, 2012 at 9:43 am

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Pasta salad makes for a refreshing summer dish. Image courtesy of Daniel Rossi

I rarely like to cook inside in the summer because of the heat so I always try to prepare some light summer meals. This can prove difficult with little ones, but if I make sure there’s lot of variety in my weekly meal plans, I find that I can satisfy even the pickiest of eaters! Here are a couple of ideas to help you save money on light summer meals.

Pasta Salad – I often buy Barilla Pasta and Lite or Low Fat Kraft dressing and throw in some fresh veggies and mozzarella cheese for an easy summer dish. For those of you who have a Meijer or Kroger nearby, you can always Barilla whole grain pasta for free by stacking coupons! Plus, you can almost always get a bottle of Kraft dressing for less than a dollar when you combine a manufacturer coupon with a sale at your favorite store.
Summer salad – Whether it’s strawberries and feta cheese or nuts and berries, you can always whip up a quick and fresh meal with Dole’s salad bags. These often go on sale for $1.00 to $1.50 and you can usually find a $1.00 off printable coupon once a month. The bags are large enough to make four salads and come in several varieties.
Sandwiches – Lunchtime always feels rushed for me with little ones so I really like to make turkey or chicken sandwiches and pair them with a side of veggies and fruit. The Kraft Deli Fresh packages are typically $2.00 on sale. The best time to buy these is when Kraft offers a “Buy 8, Get $8.00 off” deal and you can use a $1.00 off 2 printable coupon, making these $.50 each!
Healthy Choice and Weight Watchers – For those of you who are trying to stay lean this summer, these diet-friendly meals are a quick and easy lunchtime fix. The Healthy Choice lunch entrees typically rotate sales with the Weight Watchers lunch entrees. The best sale price I’ve seen is $2.00 each and the best coupon I’ve seen is for $1.00 off 5. Sometimes you can find deals like “Buy 10, get 2 to 4 Healthy Choice desserts free” or a checkout coupon for upwards of $3.00 to use on your next order.
Grillin’ – Meat can be the most expensive item when cooking healthy meals, but who doesn’t love a juicy hot dog or hamburger? I’ve been able to swap in some all-natural chicken franks and turkey burgers for the higher-fat meats. Al Fresco all-natural chicken franks will go on sale for as low as $3.99 for the 6 count package at most grocery stores. This week, I actually used a coupon from CouponCabin for $1 off, making it $2.99. If you don’t mind turkey burgers, Jennie-O sometimes offers a $2.00 off 1 coupon on the 6-count turkey burger packages.