Whether you live alone or with a family, more and more people are looking for money-saving tips to help stretch their hard-earned money. In fact, many consumers are making or have already made significant lifestyle changes to navigate the ever-changing economic challenges we have faced over the past decade.

Some of the most common ways consumers are working to control their spending is by creating and sticking to a budget, cutting streaming services, buying less stuff, taking advantage of sales and discounts, and eating out less.

If you are among millions of Americans eating out less often and at home more, you may want to join us for the Healthy Cooking at Home series. Making healthy, nutritious, low-cost meals doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. You simply need to have a plan and be creative. There are many benefits to preparing your meals at home. For one, you know what ingredients are used, which allows you to control the amount of saturated fat, sodium, and added sugar in the foods you prepare. Cooking at home saves time compared to driving to a restaurant and waiting for food. It also helps you stretch your food dollars, which is very important in today’s challenging economic climate.  

The Healthy Cooking at Home series will cover a variety of topics. You can attend one or all the classes offered. Throughout the series, we will discuss items such as using budget-friendly recipes with fewer ingredients, the social and health benefits of cooking at home, saving energy using small kitchen appliances, food safety tips, and many other topics. Plus, you’ll receive delicious recipes to take home.

These programs will be held at the Freeport Public Library, 100 E Douglas St, Freeport, IL. Select the program you want to learn more about and register for any of these programs by calling the Extension office at (815) 235-4125 or visiting us online at go.illinois.edu/jsw. There is a $5.00 fee, which will help to cover the educational session.

• Air Fryers 101, Wednesday, March 20, from 1 – 2:30 p.m. Registration deadline is March 15.
• Eggs: From Farm to Fork, Wednesday, April 17, from 1-2:30 p.m. Registration deadline is April 12.
• Homestyle Microwave Cooking, Wednesday, May 15, from 1-3 p.m. Registration deadline is May 10.
• Culinary Herbs 101, Wednesday, July 31, from 1-3 p.m. Registration deadline is July 26.

If you need accommodations to participate, please let our office know when you register. Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time to meet your access needs.