Frugal Friday: College Discounts in Boston

First off, apologies for the tardy post! I’ve been really diligent about posting every weekday, but with the recent holiday, this Frugal Friday post is clearly not up on time.

Something I’ve learned during my time in Boston—a city that houses over 35 colleges—is that when in doubt, present your college ID card. So many restaurants, retailers, museums, theatres, even hair cutters have student discounts available.

Although there are a ton of free things to do in Beantown, if you’re a college student looking to open your wallet without totally emptying the contents, here are some frugal opportunities:

John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

“The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum's core function is to collect, preserve, and make available for research the documents, audiovisual material and memorabilia of President Kennedy, his family, and his contemporaries.”

Open 7 days per week, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

College ID: $10.00 (Savings: $2.00)

Skywalk Observatory

“Visit the Skywalk Observatory, Boston's only sky-high vantage point for sweeping 360 degree views of Greater Boston and beyond. Let your eyes and ears do the walking as you experience the exclusive state-of-the-art.”

Open 7 days a week. Winter Hours are 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. November 1 - March 28.

College ID: $10.00 (Savings: $2.00)

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

“The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is at once an intimate collection of fine and decorative art and a vibrant, innovative venue for contemporary artists, musicians and scholars. Housed in a stunning 15th-century Venetian-style palace with three stories of galleries surrounding a sun- and flower-filled courtyard, the Museum provides an unusual backdrop for the viewing of art.”

Tue.-Sun., 11 am-5 pm

College ID: $5.00 (Savings: $10.00!)

*Also, receive free admission on your birthday or a $2 discount if you’re wearing Red Sox paraphernalia (Isabella was a Red Sox fan!).

AMC Loews Boston Common

Movie theatre…enough said.

College ID on Thursdays: $8.75 (Savings: $2.00)

J. Crew

Fancy shmancy clothing.

10% off total purchase discount for students

Fire + Ice

“FiRE + iCE Grill + Bar is a smokin’ hot restaurant showcasing an incredible variety of fresh food, cooked on our open grill in a fun, refreshing atmosphere. Select from a delectable array of fresh meats, seafood, vegetables, and pasta available in our in-house market place. Choose the types of internationally inspired sauce to add to your entrée. Dictate grilling preferences as you watch our grill chefs expertly work their magic on our huge open grill.”

Monday College Nights: unlimited dinner for $9.95

Boston Symphony Orchestra

“Boston Symphony Orchestra offers a College Card during the regular season.  For only $25, attend up to 15 select performances.  A limited number of College Card tickets are available on certain performance dates, usually Tuesday and Thursdays.  All tickets must be picked up in person with a valid student ID and College Card the day of the performance.”

           

New England Aquarium

“College students can get Aquarium admission tickets for $19.95,  (Adult: $21.95) buy tickets for standard presentations at the Simons IMAX Theatre for only $7.95 and get an Aquarium/IMAX combo ticket for $25.95.”

Improv Boston

Hilarious mprovisational comedy shows.

College ID: $7.00

Have any of you Bostonians visited these places?

Today’s Recommended Read: How To Eat Healthy While You Travel (ThatsFit.com) 

Frugal Friday: Leftover Lovin'

Does cold leftover pizza become an unacceptable breakfast after I graduate from college?

I hope not! Today’s Frugal Friday post will highlight the financial benefits of reusing leftover food, as well as how to enjoy that extra slice of last night’s pizza in a safe manner!

LOL Dogs!?! Watch out LOLcats!

When you've spent money preparing a filling, nutritious dinner, your wallet weeps when you go to throw out any leftovers. Instead of chucking those last two slices of cheese or scraping those lingering slices of chicken into the trash, there are ways to reuse that food at a later date.

Thanksgiving: The ultimate leftover's holiday!

Safety Tips for Storing Leftovers

• Keep stored cold foods below 40°F and stored hot foods above 140°F.
• Foods may be kept in the fridge to 2-3 days before spoiling. (Be aware that food in a lower-powered dorm fridge might spoil faster.)
• Label all leftover food, making sure to indicate the date it was stored.
• Do not leave uneaten food out of the fridge for more than 2 hours.
• Never reheat leftover food more than once.
• Frozen leftovers will freeze/thaw faster if you put them in a smaller container
• Do not reheat leftover food in a slow-cooker since gradual heating causes bacterial growth.
• Practice common sense: If food is discolored, moldy, or smells like your unwashed laundry, don’t eat it. 

Meal Ideas for Leftovers:

• Soups: Add extra meat and veggies to a chicken or vegetable stock to create a steaming bowl of soup.
• Tacos/Burritos:  Buy taco shells or tortillas, reheat chopped up, leftover burger meat, add taco seasoning, and sprinkle lettuce and cheese on top to make Chipotle and Taco Bell shudder with jealousy.
• Omelettes: Fold last night’s leftover veggies (tomato, corn, spinach, etc) into this morning’s breakfast omelette.
• Sandwiches: Add leftover meat and veggies to two slice of wheat bread for a super-easy meal 
• Breads: Bake leftover carrots, bananas, and zucchini into mouth-watering breads.
• Salads: Leftover chicken can lead to a chicken Caesar salad, while leftover veggies can make a healthy chopped salad.

I have to add...after writing "leftovers" so many times, the word is beginning to look really odd. Haha :-)

Do you have any tips for re-using leftover foods?

Today's Recommended Read: Thanksgiving Leftovers: Healthy Post-Holiday Recipes (thatsfit.com)

Frugal Friday: Frozen Foods

TGIF! With my big exam behind me and the weekend ahead of me, things are looking pretty good over here! While the weather is warming up a bit in Boston (I mean, at least the sun is out today?), today's post is actually going to cool things down. This Frugal Friday piece will highlight the financial (and nutritional) benefits of taking advantage of your fridge's loyal companion: the FREEZER.

There are few foodie nightmares worse than having a bag of delicious fresh produce going bad before you have the chance to eat it. I shed a couple tears (sorry for the dramatics, I am a theatre minor after all) as I tossed out a forgotten, rotting apple the other day. Last week, I reluctantly tossed out the last few slices of my bread when I discovered patches of mysterious green fuzz on them. Not only was I wasting food, but I was also wasting the money I spent on those purchases.

The EYC solution? Using the freezer to increase the longevity of your food purchases! A great way to be frugal is to buy bags of frozen fruits and veggies, or place your fresh bread and produce purchases in the freezer. The following fruit, veggie, and bread tips will set you on the right path to becoming a Professional Food-Freezer! (There's a career for everything these days...)

General freezer tips:

• Regularly defrost your freezer, not letting the amount of ice accumulation to exceed 1/4 of an inch. Defrosting will help the freezer maintain the correct temperature and minimize energy waste.
• Overpacking your freezer can prevent proper temperature maintenance, so don't go overboard with the frozen goodies.
• For the energy-conscious individuals, purchase freezers with new energy-saving features (like proper insulation materials) to reduce your electricity consumption.

Fruits

• Most fruits retain their high quality for 8 to 12 months at 0 degrees or below.
• Fruit is best served still partially frozen. Frozen fruit thawed entirely can become mushy because of cell wall damage from ice crystals.
• Smoothies are a great way to use frozen fruit.
• I like to munch on a handful of frozen mango chunks as a quick and healthy dessert.

Vegetables

• Frozen vegetables have a higher vitamin content than refrigerator-stored veggies.
• Fresh veggies travel a long distance, losing their benefits. Frozen veggies are treated just a few hours after being picked.
• Frozen vegetables can easily be steamed, stir-fried, or microwaved. 
• I sneak in an side of veggies at dinner by steaming some frozen broccoli and cauliflower in the microwave.

Breads

• Freeze, don't refrigerate. Refrigerated bread will go stale faster than bread left out at normal temperature.
• Freeze your bread in a plastic bag, making sure to squeeze out the excess air first. The original wrapping for your bread wrappers is probably not meant for the freezer.
• Frozen bread can contain fewer additives than fresh bread since the process of freezing acts as a natural preservative.
• I tend to make cucumber, tomato, spinach, and hummus sandwiches on frozen bread in the morning. By the time lunch rolls around, my packed sandwich is thawed and the veggies are still cold.

What's in your freezer right now? Who else has tearfully tossed out a forgotten fresh produce item?

Today's Recommended Read: Benefits of a Good Night's Sleep (Cooking Light)

Frugal Friday: How a Friendly Email Led to a Free Meal

I want to start this Frugal Friday post with a little disclaimer. I am not advocating using compliments for the sole intention of being rewarded. In the story I’m about to tell, I genuinely reached out to a great business. As a pleasantly surprising result, the wonderful people at b. good brought me a free meal! The lesson is that good service should be recognized. And let’s be honest, college kids always welcome free food. What's more frugal than a free burger and fries? ;-)

Over the summer, I had the opportunity to intern in Boston. Although I packed my lunch on most days, I was able to do some exploring of the nearby dining options. I had heard of b. good before, a locally owned, “healthy fast food” place.

Wait a second. Healthy fast food?

The founders of b. good are two childhood best friends, Anthony and Jon. As explained on the b. good website,  “We started a business together around a simple idea - make fast-food "real" by making it the way it should be… by people not factories. See, we loved fast-food but hated how it made us feel. So, we created a place where you can feel good about burgers and fries.”

Sound good? It was good. So good, in fact, that I decided to write the following email to the owners:

Jon & Anthony,

As I sit here staring at my crumpled, empty, (almost) grease-stain-free b.good to-go bag, I feel compelled to write you two an email. Well, my two empty bags, but we’ll get to that in a moment. 

Usually I quietly succumb to the “don’t-leave-your-desk-for-lunch-even-though-you-are-technically-alloted-a-half-hour-break” vibe that is emoted at my place of work (and by work I mean summer internship). However, today was different. Today the beautiful weather and the monotony of the office and the fast-approaching weekend inspired me to seize the day and venture out for a—gasp—lunch break! 

With a purposeful stride, I walked away from my desk, hopped into the elevator, and burst out the front door of my place of work. Like Edward Cullen (gag), the sunlight hit my vampire-pale skin (my summer tanning efforts have been rather fruitless this year, ok?) and my whole body glittered as it absorbed the great outdoors. I peered down the depths of my street and took in the sights: the tired old man selling browning roses, the woman pounding the ground with her too-white Adidas en route to Healthworks, the buttery clouds reflected in the Hancock Tower’s façade, the barely avoided collision between a cyclist and a game-faced taxi driver. I thought to myself, “It really is a beautiful day,” before my thoughts turned to my growling stomach.

Surely an exceptionally gorgeous day and a rare break from my cubicle deserved an extraordinary lunch. Rebecca’s Café? Eh. Au Bon Pain? Same ol’, same ol’. Cottonwood? Ha, I kid. Where to go with only 30 minutes to spare and a body desiring delicious yet healthy food? Suddenly a memory creeped up on me. Something that a fellow intern mentioned earlier this summer came to the forefront of my brain: “I’m so glad a b.good opened on Newbury Street. 

Perhaps it was the positive connotation of the restaurant name, perhaps it was the prospect of walking down ritzy Newbury Street, or perhaps it was my intense crush on my fellow intern (HA, I kid again), but the thought struck me as pursuit-worthy. I made a beeline through Copley Square and joined the lunchtime bustle on Newbury (“Whoa, does this mean there are people who eat food at places other than their work desks??” “Yes, Brain, yes it does.”). 

Fifteen minutes later, I had arrived. My flip flops clapped against the stairs as I passed under the b.good banner and entered the basement location. The charming setup and seemingly happy, served customers set things off on a good note. My eyes immediately began darting about the menu. My new vegetarian lifestyle (Today on Jenny’s Life network: “Week 3 of Being Meat Free”!) was a perfect match for this new place. I approached the cashier—a tanned young man with impressively gauged ears—and placed my order.

“A veggie burger please. West Side. I mean, with the West Side. Like, West side on the burger. A veggie burger made as West Side,” I finally said a little too loudly, taking a cue from the menu’s diction. A faint, amused smile spreading on his face, Gauged Ears Man punched some buttons on the register and accepted my wrinkled dollar bills. 

As I walked toward the pick-up counter, another customer—either a rude, nosy, eavesdropping know-it-all or my Lunch Break Guardian Angel, I hadn’t decided yet—spoke up. “No fries? Ya gotta try the sweet potato fries. They’re famous for their sweet potato fries.”

What the heck, might as well go all out. I turned back to Gauged Ears Man. Ignoring his “back already?” eyebrow raise, I asked if I could put in another order for a to-go bag of sweet potato fries. A few minutes later, a baseball-capped girl handed me two brown paper bags. Although my stomach was egging me on to taste the contents right then and there, my watch was telling me that I had been MIA from the office for a little too long. I gave a goodbye glance to my newfound friends—my biffle Gauged Ears Man, my Lunch Break Guardian Angel, my baseball-capped server—and emerged back onto Newbury.

The walk back to the office flew by, and before I knew it I was once again surrounded by the sounds of keyboards clicking and murmured conversations. I avoided the judgmental stare of my fellow intern, his derrière firmly planted in his swivel chair (if only he knew where I had gone for lunch!), and returned to my desk.

Now came the moment of truth. Not being able to quiet my stomach a moment longer, I ripped open the almost-unordered sweet potato fries. My first bite was hesitant but not met with disappointment. The fry was hot with a fresh, moist inside and a slightly crisp outside. The sweetness of the generously large sticks made me wonder why anyone ever bothers eating regular potato fries. The flavor filled my mouth and soothed my starved stomach. Only faintly noticing the absence of Fry Finger Syndrome (y’know, that layer of salty grease that makes your fry-handling fingers grossly shiny), fry after fry was devoured.

Suddenly, I remembered my veggie burger! I peeled away the sticker announcing “ALL NATURAL VEGGIE BURGER” and my eyes unwrapped the mouth-watering sandwich. Resting between the wheat bun was a dark veggie patty topped with avocado chunks, tomato slices, and a dripping salsa. The fries faced tough competition with this burger baby because the main dish turned out to be even more wonderful than the tasty side. I chomped through the layers of delicious vegetarian-goodness (hey, if being a vegetarian is always this yummy, I’m definitely all in!) until my satisfied tummy gave me a pat on the back (just go with it).

In summary, my first visit to b.good will not be my last one. The 45 minute office hiatus was worth the wonderful lunch, and my curiosity about this dining establishment led me to explore the b.good website. The delightful atmosphere of the restaurant carried over into the whimsical nature of the site. When I spotted the “Contact Us” button, I knew I wanted to share my first time story with the owners. Keep up the good work!

All the best from your long-winded new customer, Jenny

One hour and six minutes later, I received the following response:

Anthony & Jon

Holy sh*t, Jenny! Since you just sent the longest customer email ever recorded in b.good history, you better get back to work. 

Seriously, you have no idea how good it makes us feel to get an email like that. You definitely just made Anthony and my day (and the day of team Newbury Street... especially the gauged-ear guy. His name is Wilian and he's the man). 

Anyway, we absolutely have to show you some veggie-burger-and-sweet-potato-fry-love for the effort. Maybe we can run lunch over to you tomorrow? Where are you located? And do you mind eating a little later in the day or earlier? (Lunch time is kind of crazy on Fridays.)

Let me know and thanks again.

Jon

SO cool, huh? The next day, I was once again enjoying this meal:

Thank you so much b. good! And readers, if you're in the area, I definitely recommend checking this place out!

Have you ever been given a free meal from a restaurant?

Today's Recommended Read: Is Dark Chocolate Really Good For You? (Delish.com)

Tune-In Tuesday: The Food Network's Healthy Side

Often my roommates will turn on the television and see that the last person manning the remote was watching the Food Network channel. Immediately they’ll know the culprit. Guilty as charged! I’m a HUGE fan of the Food Network. Who doesn’t love watching Bobby Flay grill or Alton Brown narrating the Iron Chef challenge?

While certain Food Network shows would probably not qualify as nutritionally focused programs, many of the programs do offer healthy recipe options. Today’s Tune-In Tuesday post offers some EYC-approved Food Network shows. Check out my opinions of these programs, including links to a couple recipe options:

30 Minute Meals with Rachael Ray

Unlike other shows that fast forward through steps and make an elaborate meal seem deceivingly simple, the real-time nature of 30 Minutes with Rachael Ray proves that her dishes truly never take more than a half hour to make. While some of her recipes seem more focused on filling up a family, she does offer many healthy ideas, even suggesting how to turn certain meat dishes into vegetarian ones. I have to ask though, has anyone else noticed that she rarely leaves time to taste her meals at the end? Where’s the dramatic “MMM so good!” trademark of cooking shows? J

Recipes: Avocado Boats & Giant Stuffed Mushrooms

Tune In: Sundays at 11:30 AM, Saturdays at 10 AM, Weekdays at 1, 6 & 6:30 PM EST

5 Ingredient Fix

Often I will be scared away from a recipe when I see the list of ingredients required. I like Claire Robinson’s 5 Ingredient Fix program because it shows that you can make delicious dishes with only five ingredients or fewer. Claire enhances the natural flavors of carefully selected, fresh ingredients to create healthy, seasonal meals.

Recipes: Baby Heirloom Tomato and Cucumber Salad & Spicy Baked Chickpeas

Tune In: Thursdays at 9:30 AM and Saturdays at 10:30 AM EST

Giada at Home

You should watch this show if for nothing else than to hear Giada’s distinct way of pronouncing ricotta (“rih-coh-tuh,” although that hardly does it justice). On Giada at Home, Giada De Laurentiis puts together fresh, unique meals in her own kitchen, then serves them to her friends and family (cue clip of laughter and conversation at a dinner table). This show is definitely one of my favorites on the food channel. While she does present recipes for more decadent desserts, Giada also offers a variety of light, healthy dishes.

Recipes: Israeli Couscous with Apples, Cranberries and Herbs & White Bean and Roasted Eggplant Hummus

Tune In: Saturdays at 1 PM and Mondays at 4:30 PM EST

The Food Network website also offers a Healthy Eating section, offering recipe collections like Low-Carb, Low-Fat, Low Calorie, Gluten-Free, Meal Makeover, Vegetarian, and more. 

I certainly love watching sugary, tummy-pleasing desserts being prepared on Cupcake Wars and Ace of Cakes, but it’s good to know that there are healthier options offered as well!

Are you a Food Network fan? Do you feel that the network presents a good variety of healthy recipes?

Today's Recommended Read: Daily Exercise Helps Keep the Sniffles Away (CNN Health)

Frugal Friday: Seasonal Finds

First off: Happy Halloweekend all! I love all things Halloween: creative costumes, festive spirits, candy corn...

Since this is the only time of year that these pointed yellow-orange-and-white sugary treats are in stock, I definitely take the opportunity to indulge a bit. This leads us into today’s Frugal Friday topic: the financial benefits of buying seasonal foods.

Feeling a bit guilty over the latex Sarah Palin costume you just purchased (I hope not, Palin costumes are so last Halloween)? A good way to make nice with your wallet is to ease up on money spent in the grocery store by taking advantage of seasonal specials!

When foods, especially fresh fruits and veggies, are in greater supply, the costs tend to be lower. Seasonal food requires less effort to produce than out-of-season products because they don’t need as much labor and time.

In addition to lower costs, buying seasonal foods yields many benefits:

• Seasonal foods can imply locality. Since these foods do not need to be flown in from across the country/world, the unhealthy environmental impact of transportation is lessened.
• Seasonal foods often taste better since they were allowed to grow and ripen properly without being shipped over great distances.
• Seasonal foods can be healthier, since out-of-season food is often forced to grow in artificial environments with the aid of fertilizer.
• Experience new, interesting tastes and textures by trying what’s in season. Maybe you’ll realize an unknown love for roasted cauliflower!

Some autumn fruits/veggies include apples, beetroot, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, cranberries, grapes, lettuce, mushrooms, parsnips, pears, potatoes, pumpkin squash, tomatoes, and watercress.

Don’t feel like you have to suffer without your summer strawberries! Fall’s seasonal goodies yield so many delicious recipes. Doesn’t a hot loaf of pumpkin bread sound perfect? What about a fresh apple crisp? Sweet potato casserole? Roasted Squash?

One seasonal recipe I would love to try soon is Emily’s Roasted Squash and Black Bean Chili in Pumpkin Bowls dish. Until I find the time for that recipe, I’m pretty content snacking on these Fall finds:

What food are you happy to see in season right now?

Today’s Recommended Read: 5 Terrific Fall Foods (TLC Cooking)

Frugal Friday: Trader Joe's Treasures

When I did my weekly grocery run this week, I realized the first Frugal Friday post needed to highlight the awesome prices at my favorite grocery store:

Trader Joe's always gives me such a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. Perhaps it's the delicious free samples, the cozy decor, the extensive organic selections...or the AMAZING PRICES. If you're a college student looking to make nice with your wallet, I recommend checking out TJ's for finance-friendly supplies. Their website explains it best, listing these reasons for their low prices:

• We buy direct from suppliers whenever possible, we bargain hard to get the best price, and then pass the savings on to you.
• If an item doesn't pull its weight in our stores, it goes away to gangway for something else.
• We buy in volume and contract early to get the best prices.
• Most grocers charge their suppliers fees for putting an item on the shelf. This results in higher prices...so we don't do it.
• We keep our costs low--because every penny we save is a penny you save.

So what exactly do these savings look like? Well, for one thing, they are very colorful. TJ's artistic displays only add to the deliciousness of their deals. Photos often speak louder than words, so I'll let my snapshots from this week's shopping trip do the talking:

As a banana addict, my favorite deal is the 19 cent bananas. Just look at that beautiful banana bonanza...

Trader Joe's has locations nationwide. If you happen to live near downtown Boston, a few locations include Back Bay (899 Boylston Street), Brookline (1317 Beacon Street), and Cambridge (748 Memorial Drive).

Have you ever been to Trader Joe's? Any other banana addicts out there? :-)

Today's Recommended Read: Told to Eat its Vegetables, America Orders Fries (NY Times)