I am thankful for the people in my life and all of the good food we make together. I've already had two thanksgiving meals and the day hasn't even arrived!
One of my girls that used to work for me messaged me that she made Magic Cookie Bars for her roommates. It is one of my all-time favorite recipes to make. My mom has been making these for me since I was a kid. Super decadent and just a few ingredients make them easy on the pocketbook. I make mine with with chocolate and butterscotch chips, while some people only use chocolate. No matter how you make them, they always seem to come out - amazing!
Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk is the secret ingredient that makes these bars so rich! EagleBrand.com is my go-to website for delectable desserts. As for tomorrow I will be making Chocolate Truffles for Thanksgiving. I have been wanting to make these for some time now, so I have my fingers crossed that they come out! I'm going to stick with unsweetened cocoa (cut with a bit of powered sugar so they aren't too bitter) and chocolate sprinkles as my coatings.
To all my new readers I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and would love to hear what frugal decadent recipes your family used.
For some reason we are raised with this concept of saving everything for special occasions. Nice clothes, fine china, expensive perfume, we are always saving it for a better day than today. I remember saving perfume and outfits for these so-called "special occasions" only to find that one day the perfume didn't smell so sweet and the clothes were out of style. In every single case I wish I just had just enjoyed what I had. Especially being on a budget it is critical to enjoy those splurges. If you already paid for it (or you will someday when you get to that credit card) - enjoy it! It is vital to living a truly decadent life.
I have been collecting Rosanna dishes for years and at first I used to simply keep them stored in their gorgeous hat style boxes. I'd only break them out for parties or gatherings. I finally wondered what the point was. Now I don't just store them away - I use them for Seinfeld marathons, date nights, girl talk and everyday life.
Everyday truly is special, it should be treated that way.
When entertaining it is never about how much you spend, it's all about presentation. CB2.com - the modern cheap version of Crate and Barrel, is one of my favorite websites to look for new serving dishes. Right now I'm loving the Curve Appetizer Spoons that are less than a buck!
I'm a lot of things, but an accountant is sadly not one of them. My friend Sarah Barnes told me about a "creepy" little website called Mint.com. This free personal finance software gathers all of your credit cards, loans, and accounts in one place. Now if your net worth happens to be in the negative, you owe more than you are worth, it can be a bit depressing. I then understood the "creepy" part. Once you get over the nauseating shock of what your financial situation really looks like you can build a budget, set bill reminders, track your spending - all for free! A really useful tool for taking a hold of your finances.
No one needs another blog to dwell on our awful economy. I'd rather not spend my time reflecting on how after graduating college I seemed to have woken up in a terrible recession where "having a job is the new promotion." My student loan doesn't seem to like the sound of that. I'd rather not focus on all the times I relied a little too much on my credit cards. Enjoy now, pay later. Someday when I have money, right? I'm still waiting on that day.
I am not alone. I am surrounded by educated, talented, twenty-somethings that are not as financially stable as they thought they would be. Budgeting, saving, getting out of debt: it can be grueling. Yet life must go on. We must find a way to still enjoy life, not merely survive.
I have been blogging for years, but every once and a while I love to start over. My blogs of the past have been all over the place, without any real direction. Frugal Decadence has a focus that is very important to me. Sticking to my budget, making better financial choices, while still indulging in the luxuries life has to offer.
As they say I have champagne taste on a beer budget...
©Copyright Bobbi Barbour.
