Kroger deals for the week of 3/3
A Month of Frugal Recipes Day 3: Chocolate Banana Snack Cake
Being on a budget doesn’t mean you can’t have dessert, too! I found this recipe on the Betty Crocker website one day when I was looking for ideas on how I could use up bananas that were past their prime so to speak. It looked quick, easy, and kid friendly, so we decided to try it out and it became a hit with our family! I love it because my kids can also help with preparation (one mashes the bananas while the other one mixes the batter and they both get to help put the chocolate chips on top). Plus, we have all of the “base” ingredients on hand and it keeps that last banana or two from going to waste when they start to get mushy!
Ingredients:
2 very ripe medium bananas
1 1/4 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Place bananas in ungreased 8-inch square pan; mash with fork. Stir in remaining ingredients except chocolate chips. Sprinkle chocolate chips over batter.
2. Bake 35 to 37 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 45 minutes.
1 Serving: Calories 270 (Calories from Fat 100); Total Fat 11g (Saturated Fat 2 1/2g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 210mg; Total Carbohydrate 41g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 23g); Protein 3g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 0%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 0%; Iron 8%
Publix deals for the week of 3/4-3/10

Thanks to Brittany from The Prudent Patron for the weekly Publix deals!
Here are the highlights for the week. You can find all of the deals for the week at The Prudent Patron (this is based on the Florida/Southern Georgia market) Also, check out her $25 Publix gift card giveaway!
These items are free this week:
$1/1 SS 1/3
:: Free
$4/1 from RP 1/24 (regional – exp 3/8)
:: FREE + overage!
$1/1 Printable (IE) or (FF) or Printable
::FREE + overage
Oikos Yogurt $1.69
$.50/1 Printable (Thanks, couponingtodisney)
$1/1 SS 1/03
$1/1 Printable (Whole Foods Q – If competitor)
::FREE + overage if you use both or Pay $.69 with just manuf. Q
$4/2 RP 1/3
:: FREE + overage
Scotties Facial Tissues Accents, 60-132 ct box, $1.00
$1/1 Printable – Answer no
::FREE
$1.50/2, $.75/1 RP 2/14
$1/2 Multiply Your Meals & Savings booklet (store Q)
::Pay $.21 each wyb 2 and use both store and manuf. Qs
$1/1 RP 2/07
$1/1 off Quaker Oatmeal Printable (IE) or (FF)
Free Naked Juice 15.2 oz wyb Oatmeal from Family Style Magazine or Yellow Advantage Buy Flyer
::Pay $.94 and get FREE juice!
$.40/2 SS 12/13, 1/03 or Printable
$1/3 SS 12/13, 2/07
$.95/1 Printable (limit reached)
:: Pay $.72
Thrifty Thursday: Spring Break fun on a Budget
Spring Break is approaching quickly. In the past, we have always taken some sort of family vacation, even if it was only for a day or two, but that is not in the budget for us this year, so we’ve been brainstorming budget-friendly family fun ideas.
Here are a few that we’ve come up with so far:
*Free family night at the Children’s Museum ~ Check out your local zoo and Children’s Museum. Our local zoo has several free family fun days and our local children’s museum has a free family night once a week!
*Family game night ~ Between the big Toys ‘R Us sale and the Amazon sale, we stocked up on family games during December. We’ve had a few game nights here and there, but I think a big family game night is in the works and the kids are super excited!
*Family movie night ~ We’re going to pull out the pillows and blankets, pop some popcorn, and let each of the kids pick a favorite movie. We’ll either raid our movie collection or use a free Redbox code. If we go to Walgreens to use a free Redbox code, maybe I’ll use some of my RRs and let everyone pick out a “movie theater” box of candy, too!
*Treasure Hunt ~ Have you heard of Letterboxing or Geocaching? Essentially, it’s like a game of hide and seek. People hide a letterbox or cache and then post clues (in the case of Letterboxing) or GPS coordinates and clues (in the case of Geocaching) online and you try to find them. You can enter your zip code and find locations that are near you. We’re excited to go on our first treasure hunt!
Do you have a tip for family fun on a budget or another Thrifty Thursday tip? Feel free to link up and share!
For more Thrifty Thursday ideas, check out Coupon Teacher, Madame Deals, and Life as a Mom.






