I would bet that most of us out there, even those of us with jobs, are looking to save a little money these days. Everywhere I look I see recipes to make things I would normally buy with the claim it is cheaper. Bagels, yogurt, cheese, mango lassi, jam, pickles, butter… you get the idea. But is it really cost effective? There is no denying that for the most part making something from scratch with no preservatives to keep it on the shelf for 10 years is going to be better than store bought. But is it more economical? Jennifer Reese set about answering that question in this article on Slate.com. She does a great job of factoring in everything from ingredients to cents per hour to run your oven. Your time is free since as she puts it, “I take it as a given that everyone knows better than to quit their job—any job—to take up cracker-baking.” The bottom line? Try it. You might be as surprised as Jennifer to find that things can be better AND cheaper when you make them at home. Am I going to start making everything from scratch? Probably not everything, but I might try bagels and butter. If you don’t know where to start, The Kitchen has put together a nice long list of recipes.
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