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This year my couponing and shopping has taken quite the shift due to two things: first, I have decided to start moving my family away from processed foods and second, the local newspaper in Memphis is only including coupons in the Sunday subscriptions.

I tried ordering coupon inserts in bulk, but that didn’t work – not sure why – but I wouldn’t recommend wholecouponinserts.com.

A few things have motivated me to look at non-processed options for food . . .

1. I realized by a fluke that MSG and its derivatives make me nauseous, lethargic, and have headaches. Actually I figured this out because I felt sick every time I ate at Chick-Fil-A. After a bit of research I discovered that they use MSG in ALL of their chicken products. I then went through my pantry and discovered WAY too many products containing MSG. Things like Progresso Soup and Old El Paso Taco Seasoning and more. I am doing a more in-depth post title ‘MSG and Me’ later this week.

I was shocked!

1. My boys both have keratosis pilaris – a form of eczema. After a lot of trial and error, we learned that dairy contributes to the red inflamed areas on the face, arms and legs. Do you know how many products have trace elements of milk? Oh my! Biscuit mixes, muffin mixes, cake mixes, soups, crackers, etc.

And by monitoring what they eat, I can always tell if they got their hands on something with dairy in it. For example, today they both got milk chocolate in their Valentine’s bags from school. I let them eat it and poof – red inflamed skin. Ahh! Thankfully, there is a soap and lotion that helps, but still it is a pain.

2. Over the past two years I have suffered IBS in varying bouts of discomfort. After doing a little research, I have learned that some preservatives actually slow and/or inhibit the function of the bowel and intestine. Gross – I know. Sorry. And I don’t want to live my life having to take fiber supplements, though I really like Benefiber.

So now what does that mean for my shopping habits?

Get Coupons for Organic Products at Whole Foods

Well, first of all I have a lot fewer coupons, which means I am not compelled to buy a ton of processed stuff if my family doesn’t need it. I still follow my favorite coupon blogs (Faithful Provisions, Hip2Save, and Southern Savers), but most weeks I look at the deals and see what is on sale and think, “Ah, I don’t really need that.” And since I am trying to limit the preservative laden items I purchase, this happens a lot.

I have also been reading a lot about the Paleo Diet these days and am intrigued. Though I am still not convinced, I like many of the tenants – primarily eating raw foods (unprocessed).

Frozen foods even have some added junk to preserve sometimes, which is quite frustrating. Which is why a couple weeks ago I price matched the Aldi ad at Walmart and stocked up on carrots, broccoli, celery, and avocado. I cooked the carrots and broccoli, cut them, and froze them. Would you believe that I spent $4 on carrots and broccoli and had the equivalent of 8 bags of store-bought frozen veggies?

And since I have started removing the processed stuff from our diet, I can taste the difference – and it is gross.

Sorry for the long explanation, but I just thought you might want to know why I’m not super coupon stocking like I was last year.

Instead of buying yogurt from the store that is full of all kinds of junk, I purchased a yogurt maker and now make either Almond Milk or Coconut Milk yogurt for the boys and me (the hubs wouldn’t touch yogurt with a 10 ft. pole). I use this in tons of recipes that call for cream, cheese, sour cream, and even butter. If I set it in the morning, I can have a full batch (enough for a week) ready by dinner time. Before breaking down and buying the yogurt maker, I tried making it in my crock pot and in a Styrofoam igloo container. Both worked with inconsistent results, and I wanted it to be right every time. There were several yogurt makers to choose from, but I chose one with an auto-shut off so that I wouldn’t accidentally overdo the yogurt (the whey then separates and you have a mess).

We have replaced table sugar with agave nectar, honey, or molasses in most everything and Big C is convinced that agave nectar is yellow syrup. I guess it kind is . . . kind of.

Agave is sweet and healthy than table sugar.

So for now, for this week the only big plans to shop are to do a little more price matching at Aldi.

Green Grapes 79 cents per lb.

Cantaloupe 99 cents per lb.

Red Grapes 79 cents per lb.

Grapefruit 19 cents each

Bananas 44 cents per lb.

Navel Oranges $1.29 per 4 lb. bag.

I plan to spend about $10 on produce and freeze most of it.

Freezing Tips:

1. Clean, Rinse, and dry all fruit.
2. Peel bananas, grapefruit, cantaloupe, and oranges. (If you are cutting into the skin, always wash first to keep from introducing bacteria into the fruit.)
3. Slice or section fruit into bite-sized pieces
4. Arrange on parchment paper-lined baking sheet and place in freeze for one hour.
5. Transfer to freezer Ziploc storage bags.

I usually prep all of the food first and then whatever won’t fit on the first baking sheet, I put in the refrigerator until I can transfer it in.

Remember you can buy frozen fruit at the grocery store, but it is usually $3-$5 per small bag. This takes a little time, but it makes eating unprocessed foods a bit more affordable. And since I’m clipping fewer coupons these days, I have more time to prep food.

Tomorrow will be prep and freeze day in my house. What about you?