home cooking

Everybody knows the basic rules for saving money on food. Don't eat out. Ditch the steaks in favor of ground beef. Stick to staples. But a recent USDA report shows that, in 2011, some classic money-saving guidelines proved useless as food prices went through the roof.

Americans plan to apply a new DIY-attitude across the board this year -- to their vacations, staying in shape and even beauty maintenance. It's all part of the trend of trying to scale back and save more money.

Since the economy went bland, Americans have been trying to spice things up at home, and they're pouring on a lot of sauce to do it. Sales of cooking sauces have risen 20% between 2005 and 2010, according to a new report from market research firm Mintel.

Americans are still pinching pennies, and some of that budget cutting is happening in our kitchens. But spending less on food doesn't have to mean sacrificing quality or taste. Centuries of effort in cultures around the world has gone into creating delicious, inexpensive and surprisingly healthy peasant cuisines.

Americans are returning to indulging in specialty foods the way they did before the recession, and they'll likely make big purchases of these affordable luxuries during the holidays. A recent survey showed 63% of American consumers purchased specialty food this year, up from 46% in 2009.

Tell me if this sounds familiar: You decided to make chicken dijon. The recipe called for four chicken breasts, but the breasts came three to a package, so you bought two packages. For the garlic, you bought a full head, most of which is still left. Ditto the 1/2 onion that was left after you...

If there was one truly happy player in the harried, two-income, over-scheduled family of popular lore, it was the restaurant industry. With extra income and no time to cook, families ate their lunches and dinners out in huge numbers. But the thrust of women into the workplace has leveled off over...