The Freedom to...TRAVEL

Recently, I went on a weekend getaway for my birthday - we headed to a new area in Las Vegas, called Lake Las Vegas (I HIGHLY recommend it) - it is AMAZING!! Anyways, the price for a 4-star hotel was around $200/night - we were trying to stay under $600 for the 4-day trip. So here is one of my favorite saving tips (which I have been an advocate of for years). PRICELINE...

Westin Lake Las Vegas

4-Star for $65/night

Priceline is a site that I refuse to travel without. In fact, I should be paid for the kind of advertising I give to them - from telling co-workers during lunch, people standing in front of me in long grocery lines, random runners on the treadmill next to me at the gym...the WORD has to be spread!! You can get a 4-star hotel room in NYC or Las Vegas or even Cheyenne, WY (do they have 4-stars? Haha!) for a fraction of the cost that you would spend on a lower-star, much less impressive hotel. Priceline gives you the freedom to travel!! I'm constantly skipping town (and work...just kidding...well maybe not) to take a random road trip or to fly to the beach and the only way that I can do that...while still being on a monthly budget is to forgo the extra shopping trip that month...AND...use Priceline to book my hotels!

TIP: Make sure you know where you would like to stay (approximate vicinity) and ALWAYS use the "Name Your Own Price" tab. This gives you the option to bid for a hotel room, based on star rating and location - you can get up to 60% off any hotel. The one trick is that you won't know which hotel you're getting, but let's be honest a 4-star is going to nice regardless if it's a Marriott or a Westin. Also, it doesn't matter if you bid a month out or the day of - I've gotten great deals doing either one. 

Bottom line, is that even though you're traveling and spending extra money, you can always be smart about it and save money for other things while on your trip. Let Freedom Ring!!

Stuffed Bread

I was one of the last to get on the Pinterest bandwagon.  I knew it would consume me so I put it off as long as possible (as in I just joined just a few weeks ago).  While I have copious boards detailing every corner of the house I plan to DIY from scratch, I have found an amazing wealth of new recipes that fit my diet needs.

I am not a professed vegetarian or vegan, but I mostly eat vegetarian or vegan dishes.  Meat and I get along on an as needed basis.  I have several severe food allergies and a handful of intolerances so I'm hoping I can show you how to still eat fabulously on a budget!!!

This recipe was a brilliant Pinterest find.  The original recipe can be found here:

http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Acharuli-Khachapuri-Cheese-and-Egg-Bread

I have to be careful with the amount of dairy and eggs I consume so this is my take (based on what I had in my pantry).  If you want it cheesier, add more ooey gooey cheese!!!  I've been even more in love with this the day after when it's cold.  The key is that the dough recipe is spot on.

Ingredients:

Dough:

1 tsp rapid rise yeast

2/3 cup water (115 degrees)

1/4 tsp sugar

1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil (and more for  coating the bowl)

1 1/4 cups bread flour (I had it on hand so I used it.  They used AP)

1 tsp sea salt (they used kosher, but sea salt has natural iodine which I severely lack)

Filling:

1/4 cup Feta cheese

1/2 cup frozen spinach (thawed and drained)

1 handful marcona almonds chopped 

1/4 cup fresh Parmesan 

2 Tbsp chopped white onion (or 1TBSP of dried)

1 1/2 tsp chopped garlic 

1/2 tsp rosemary chopped

1 TBSP olive oil

Sea salt & ground pepper to taste

Start by heating the oven to 500 degrees with a pizza stone (I used two small stones) in from the beginning.  Turn the oven on before you mix the dough.  It will be heated perfectly by the time the dough rises and is ready to go.  (About an hour)

Add yeast, sugar, and water to a bowl or stand mixer bowl.  Let it bloom for 10-15 minutes.  Add the flour, salt, and olive oil,  mixing with a wooden spoon or the dough hook of your mixer (on 4) until incorporated.  Lower the speed, you don't want to over work the dough.  Add flour if needed, or water if needed, depending on your climate, until the dough is a little wetter than satiny (sticky but not oatmeal).

Take the dough out, oil your bowl (don't fret about dough pieces left) and put the dough back in.  Lightly oil the dough and set a piece of siran wrap over it.  Let it rise in a warm place (I just set mine on top of the pre-heating oven) for 45 min.

In a small/medium bowl toss in all the filling ingredients and mix until everything is evenly distributed.  (Side note: use what you have on hand, change up the cheeses, veggies, or the nuts!)  Let them marry together while you watch an episode of Suits! 

When the 45 min is up, divide the dough into two halves.  Press each into a circle on a lightly sprayed surface or a bit of parchment.  Put 1/4 of the filling in the center of each.  Roll up the two sides of the circle like a scroll until you get to the majority of the filling (sides should be about 2-3 inches apart).  Pinch the ends together and tuck them into the "bowl" a bit so you have a boat shape.  Once both loaves are formed, top them off with the rest of the filling and a splash of olive oil.

Quickly and carefully place them on the pizza stone in the oven, making sure not to adjust them once they touch.

Bake for 18 minutes at 500 degrees.

Let them cool, and enjoy!  I can usually eat about half of one in a sitting.  But the best part is, they are fabulous leftover!  Be the girl bringing the artisan stuffed bread for lunch at work!  

PS for those gluten free readers - stay tuned!  With several gluten intolerant family members, I have some fan favorite recipes that I love myself.  

Welcome to the 21st Century...

So I know Maggie wrote a little bit about me, but she was very kind to not tell all of you that I'm her technologically-challenged friend. Over the past decade of friendship, Margret has set-up my first email account, my Facebook page, Pinterest account, has written numerous letters of recommendation and edited many papers for my MBA - she's my go-to when it comes to technology and the latest trends. She's always encouraging me (and sometimes getting annoyed) by my lack of curiosity into the newest site.

That being said...I have made a new discovery. I realize that I'm 32 years old (whoops! 33...I just turned 33 this month - might need to come to grips with that)...but I just found online shopping. WELCOME TO THE 21st CENTURY!! NOT just online shopping...online deals!! It's amazing how much money you can save by shopping sites like Zulily, Groupon and Priceline (I'll be talking more about these sites throughout the blog). I'm a believer!! For example, I recently did my Spring cleaning and got rid of tons of clothes - you know the jeans that have holes in them (not cute, intentional holes), but just old, worn out holes and shirts that you tell yourself you are going to wear again when...you lose a few lbs or when it comes back in style or because the shirt is a memory...I've done this for years. Hence, the need to get rid of tons of clothes! That being said, I have been left without much of a spring wardrobe. I desperately turned to a site that Maggie had told me about ages ago...Zulily. It just so happened that they were having a sale on 7Seven jeans - I bought four pair!

I know this is a blog about financial strategy, but it's also about making smart decisions when making purchases - these jeans were only $20/each. Meaning that for the price of one pair of jeans in the store, I now have a new wardrobe of jeans (light pair, white capri pair, dark pair and one with "intentional" holes). If you have been in the dark like I have, I strongly encourage you to check it out! It will save you tons of money in the long-run and you will still be able to make some of those important purchases. The money that you save, you can actually save for that rainy day.