When to Splurge and When to Save: Grocery Shopping

When grocery shopping, it pays to be strategic. From price and packaging to potential time savings while cooking, here’s what to consider at the supermarket.
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[@whiskeychicken]

This should be a series. Evaluate several products each time and provide a nice explanation of why it's the "best" choice.

[@DietBajaBlast]

They already do this with their reviews. A winner and a best buy.

[@TheMrFarkle]

Go to the website and read the full reviews there.

[@aedwa021]

This is the kind of kitchen table journalism that everyone could use more of. I love every single one of these rating and taste test videos

[@weston.weston]

This was a great segment, Jack.

[@wordkyle]

I once read a statement by Stanley Marcus, from the Nieman-Marcus family. He said "Buy the best quality you can afford." Spend the money on those things that are important to you, and don't buy anything just to impress other people. They say that quality lasts longer than the memory of what you paid for it.

[@steph4you72]

Very true!

[@aedwa021]

I absolutely agree with this sentiment, but it kinda circles back to the boots theory of economics. Sometimes people just can't afford the better product, even if it would end up lasting longer or being more efficient over time because the initial cost is too high.

[@wordkyle]

@@aedwa021 The second part of the phrase is important. "...you can AFFORD." It's about quality, and how we can look for it at whatever level we're at financially. Marcus used this example (remember, it's Neiman-Marcus): "A good rabbit fur coat is better than a poor quality mink." You do the best you can, but always look for quality. (Incidentally, I grew up very poor, so I understand where you're coming from.)

[@napoleonsdauphin]

in German they say those who buy cheap, buy twice!

[@Uprightfossil]

I would never buy imitation vanilla. Never

[@thebd798]

I'm in total agreeance with everyone else: this needs to be a recurring segment! I definitely only buy maple syrup (the specific brands vary, but I'll NEVER touch "pancake syrup" again!). I'll make sure to target the dark and very dark variants on my next trip to the store.

[@drewpknutz1410]

Butter too! Stepping up to the Kerrygold or Amish butter is definitely worth the higher price!

[@Paelorian]

Definitely for bread or at the table, but if it's for baking I can't tell the difference! I love great butter on my bread, but use cheap butter sticks bought by the pound for baking, cooking, and making ghee.

[@TheGodYouWishYouKnew]

@@PaelorianI buy grass fed butter even for cakes for health reasons but yeah, can’t tell the difference otherwise.

[@pamcadd8658]

I recently saw a recipe for cream cheese frosting that recommended buying Philadelphia brand rather than store brand. When they used store brand, the frosting slid off the cake. The recipe said that the added stabilizers vary, so buy brand name for consistent results. I agree with another commenter, Jack. I'd like to see more of your save/splurge videos. Also, please comment on availability. You have brands in the Northeast that we don't see in Washington state.

[@curtisrobinson7962]

Yeah, but you have Tillamook brand cheese and they don't.

[@adterpandrea]

I'm in Pennsylvania. I've never seen that brand juice in the stores.

[@dw6150]

I live in Virginia and havent seen the orange juice. I did try the tillmook cheese and throw in trash. No flavor in swiss cheese.

[@pavelow235]

​@@curtisrobinson7962 plenty of Tillamook ice cream and cheese for sale on the East Coast nowadays.

[@louisel.sinniger2057]

Yeah, was thinking the same regarding the OJ & grapefruit juice. Never seen these brands in Northeast. Are they in Trader Joe’s? I generally follow what you recommend. 👍🏻

[@caramimi]

Yes, more of these tips please! The price of vanilla is outrageous and I don't have the energy & time to make my own extract. I'll feel less guilty about buying "faux" vanilla now.

[@ddee1263]

I wish in your taste testes that you would rank the store brand at Aldi, Walmart, and target. Some of these store brands are better than the name brands. I also enjoy our local brands for some products too.

[@AxelQC]

Dan did a great episode on vanilla. Basically, imitation vanilla is vanillin without any of the other flavors of vanilla. When you cook, those flavors evaporate, leaving nothing but vanillin behind. If you want to splurge on real vanilla, add it at the end of cooking or to uncooked food and beverages. Waiting to add vanilla to ice cream after you cook the custard will preserve the complex flavors. Adding real vanilla to cakes and cookies bakes out the deep flavor, so you are wasting money.

[@jimmeyers8960]

One of the most useful things I've learned from ATK is that I can (and should) do my own taste tests. Grew up with "brand loyalty". Now? I'll buy a handful of the top brands for a thing after researching a bit online. Try them. Throw the losers away and consider the money well spent. I've done this several times and always find something surprising.

[@Xelbiuj]

Yeah, I actually saw this best illustrated from the youtube channel, "glen and friends cooking" he did a taste test of different colas and Pepsi ended up winning for him, and he thought he hated Pepsi. lol. That really stuck with me and since they, I've done several of my own tests.

[@yuppers1]

This is fun to do with produce too, like apples

[@Xelbiuj]

@@yuppers1 honeycrisp for life. Lol

[@kensimmons]

Maple syrup or nothing. I like the dark amber for everything, goes great in coffee. Living in upstate New York I can get good stuff at the farmer's market.

[@morrismonet3554]

Agreed. I get it locally produced.

[@midlifemom5829]

Thank u for finally taking people's budgets into consideration.

[@stevedailey2029]

I find it makes sense to buy Italian bronze cut pasta instead of the cheaper brands like Ronzoni, San Georgio, most Barilla, etc. the difference in taste and texture is worth the marginal increase in cost per portion. I sometimes see terrific Italian brands like la molisina on sale for less than Ronzoni .

[@voidofbeeswax]

100% agree It’s not just the bronze cut that makes a difference. Drying the pasta more slowly at a lower temperature also improves quality.

[@talonsl]

You can find De Cecco almost everywhere, and it is a big step up from the non-bronzo pasta.

[@fgiraffe8751]

@@talonsl Agreed, De Cecco is a great pasta for the price. A little more expensive, but a LOT better taste and texture.

[@maydaygarden]

I agree but do the supermarket brand pkgs specify bronze die cut?

[@stevedailey2029]

@@maydaygarden if the package doesn’t say it’s bronze cut it probably isn’t . Color is a big tip off as well as slow dried bronze cut pasta is much paler in color and rougher in texture that standard commercial pasta

[@2615ParkAvenueAssociates]

This post is so helpful, Jack. Thank you. I was just about to shell out the big bucks for real vanilla when I have grown up with Mexican, Watkins, McCormack or Schilling imitation. I also saw the testing you did with Julia--or was it Bridget. You all have made such growth in my home cooking--not as much as Mama or the Grandmas--but it's hard to beat those odds.

[@paullukens7154]

👍👍Jack is the most believable and authentic presenter here. Wonderful content sir. Great job.

[@JustAThought155]

This is a great concise yet informative episode. Thank you!

[@glennzanotti3346]

I agree on the cheeses and definitely on real maple syrup vs. pancake syrup (artificially flavored corn syrup). I'm fine with a good brand of orange juice that is a usually blend of 100-percent juices. I make my own vanilla extract, and give a bunch of it to my cooking friends during the holidays. It takes a few months, but is very easy, and people love getting it as a gift.

[@kareninalabama]

I first tried Natalie's when I had covid and was craving some juice. As a Floridian, I'm kind of picky about oj and Natalie's definitely did not disappoint. Didn't realize until today that they're a local business; based in Fort Pierce, FL, about an hour south on U.S.1. Super cool!

[@johnbartholf777]

I just checked it out. It's $8 for a half gallon. I mean, I'll splurge, but for that money, I'll get up early and squeeze the oranges myself.

[@JohnPMiller]

In Colorado, we get our oranges from California, and our grapefruit from Texas (large, dry, and with skin as thick as leather). You're so lucky to live in Florida. When I travel to the East, I stock up on grapefruit!

[@kareninalabama]

@@johnbartholf777, fair enough. Since I'm diabetic, I have to limit my intake of juice. I typically only splurge when I'm not feeling well. So I just ordered the 16-oz. bottle, which was less than $3. If I drank juice every day, I'd probably have to follow your lead and juice the oranges myself. 😄

[@kareninalabama]

@@JohnPMiller, I was even luckier when my sister lived here because she had honeybell orange trees and grapefruit trees on her property. I miss being able to load up on free citrus. And sure, I miss having her nearby, but mostly I miss the free citrus. Lol

[@zelma8]

I recently learned about the different maple syrup types. For me, all are great, but for different purposes. If you're baking, go for dark; for pancakes or ice cream, golden. But seriously, ALL are so good!! The other stuff is NOT syrup, it's glorified sugar, ew.

[@ratherbfishing455]

Fructose

[@MrTheBigNoze]

Thanks for not being pretentious and recognizing what the average person is willing to spend more on! Grocery splurges are few and far between these days but you provided some thoughtful options.

[@LikwitSwords]

This would make a great series

[@honeyfromthebee]

I may be a feinschmecker in a number of ways, but I actually still like pancake syrup. Maybe it’s the nostalgia

[@larrybenson3514]

I agree completely. Thank you.

[@ColumbiaB]

Bear in mind that the grading systems for maple syrup, which assign the nominally higher ratings for lighter syrup with milder flavor, have their roots in the historical use of maple syrup. Today the syrup is most commonly used as a valued condiment, especially for breakfast foods. If it's used as an ingredient in cooking, the intent usually is to impart that distinctive maple flavor to the recipe. But before refined cane sugar started to become more widely available in the late 19th century, maple syrup was perhaps the most commonly used general sweetener in the U.S. and Canada. If you think about it, one of the culinary virtues of the white sugar we're familiar with is that it sweetens without adding any other distinctive flavor element. Maple syrup, of course, not only makes things taste sweet, it also makes them taste . . . well, mapley. Sometimes the cook wants that, but often that's inconsistent with what you're trying to achieve. So, back when maple syrup was used mostly as an all-purpose sweetener, cooks valued more highly those maple syrups that imparted the least maple flavor, in sweetening whatever they were cooking. And thus when the grading systems were devised, they reflected that valuation of the qualities of maple syrup. Today, of course, that's the inverse of what we usually value maple syrup for, which is almost always the more intense and robust maple flavor. Accordingly, if you really like that maple flavor on your pancakes, don't be put off by what may seem an ostensibly "lower" grade assigned to a syrup you're considering buying.

[@fordhouse8b]

This should be the top comment. To buy good maple syrup that is affordable, buy Grade B online in larger jugs, not at the supermarket.

[@ericawentz2734]

Thank you so much!! Keep up the good work!

[@kimcleek5054]

Thank you so much for your tip!! I have always thought you were not supposed to get the imitation!!

[@sparkyheberling6115]

I remember when artificial vanilla was described as having a detectable chemical taste. What has changed in the manufacture of synthetic vanilla to make it an acceptable substitute? Has ATK stopped using natural vanilla altogether?

[@DillyDallyDeeleeDallee]

Love this segment please do more please 🙏🏼

[@MrGarySomething]

Most excellent video, thanks Jack!!

[@ncgirlfromtx]

I've been drinking Natalie's orange juice for several years. I love it! And dark maple syrup is my favorite pancake pour over! I guess I'm doing something right! Now, I have to concentrate on better cheese. Thanks, Jack!

[@therealnancycarol]

Excellent video! Thank you! 💕💕💕

[@gary1anderson]

Thanks for all the useful information.

[@angelwings7866]

I recently bought both of those expensive cheeses and it's soooooo true. We made a noodle recipe with both of them and we could instantly tell the difference. I agree with the maple syrup. I used to "make" it with my dad on his WI hobby farm. I was surprised by the vanilla. I always thought you should not by imitation so it's nice to know that's okay.

[@LP-le1hi]

I love this. Please do more.

[@michaelsalmon6436]

What do I think? Me think that we need much more of Jack Bishop wisdom and explanation in the world today! Thanks for sharing this extremely useful info with us, Jack! Any suggestions for where to find the Natalie's juices? Any ideas about how to stop the insanity in the Ukraine?

[@JohnCipriano-nl8cp]

We just bought 4 bottles of Maple syrup from the Vermont Country Store, and we are amazed how GREAT it is, I never want to go back to pancakes syrup again.

[@BlaineTog]

Honey is another staple worth spending a little more on, especially if you can buy from a local supplier. The store brands may be cut with corn syrup, whereas the real deal is so much tastier. Supposedly eating local honey can also help ameliorate your seasonal allergies as it introduces the pollen to your body in a form it's less likely to reject, though your mileage may vary on that one.

[@pauly5418]

Commercial honey is made at massive industrial bee farms. If one bee gets sick, they all get sick. That's why commercial honey is always pasteurized. But honey shouldn't need to be pasteurized because it has natural anti-bacterial properties; it doesn't go bad (btw crystalized honey is not spoiled). Locally made honey is usually unpasteurized and may offer additional health benefits. Also, at these industrial bee farms, who knows what these bees have as their source for honey.

[@joec7795]

Jack, You are great!

[@Karen-vs2fo]

More of this type of segment, please! 👍

[@Fathersloveforhisson]

Thanks Karen, you'll get more lol.

[@Fathersloveforhisson]

How're you.

[@infin1ty850]

This is one of the few times I have already been buying a recommended products before ATK actually recommends it. I absolutely love Natalie's.

[@laurao3274]

One of my local stores carries it. It's worth the price, if you can afford it.

[@revmd621]

Thanks, Jack! 👌

[@marjeaneking212]

Thank you!!!

[@coda_o7]

really practical advice!

[@NYtoNC]

Yes to all of this!

[@mastod0n1]

My wife recently bought the maple syrup shown here. Well I'm assuming it's the same because the bottle is the exact same shape even though there is no label. It was way less viscous than I was used to but it tasted soooo much better than the pancake syrup I had always been used to. Well worth the extra cost.

[@CorwynGC]

Those bottles are sold to many syrup maker's around here. You could be getting anything in that bottle.

[@normacroberts-hakizimana8785]

Real maple syrup is normally very thin. 😋

[@CorwynGC]

@@normacroberts-hakizimana8785 real maple syrup varies depending on when the sap was collected, what the weather is doing and numerous variables about how it is reduced. It can be amber, all the way to almost black, thin, to thick, to crystallized into candy.

[@emkn1479]

More like this, please!

[@SS4Xani]

I just learned that Sprouts carries her juice. I'll be swinging by there in the near future. :D

[@ScottHardy-mv4fr]

I have done vanilla test tastes myself. In things that are cooked at high temperature like cookies, the imitation is better. In things that are cooked lightly like pudding, or not at all like a milkshake, real vanilla is clearly better.

[@alysshart7522]

Please make this a series!

[@Cuwop2]

Great vid ty

[@Marcel41021]

I make my own vanilla extract. After the initial cost for equipment to make the first batch the price is much lower than premium vanilla extract and it has flavour notes that far exceed commercial extracts. With my method it takes about five months to produce.

[@louisortiz3928]

Natalie’s OJ is the best

[@opwave79]

Definitely gonna try Natalie’s. Thanks for that recommendation.

[@bdwon]

Jack is a hero!

[@wotan10950]

100% agree about maple syrup. My adult children drown their pancakes in "syrup," so I just buy them a store brand. I reserve the real deal for myself, and I use it sparingly because you don't need much for robust flavor, and it's very expensive. Selfish? Not so much when 30-year-olds move back home.

[@leonardshapiro3660]

I use the real thing and drown the pancakes and waffles but for me its not expensive

[@TheBaciWorld]

Please make this a series

[@lindaevans6461]

Good to know

[@O2life]

I also like Lakewood OJ. It reminds me of drinking fresh squeezed orange juice in Spain.

[@lasandralucas7314]

Awesome video. 👌

[@kristinej.9599]

More of these "When to...." please!!!

[@meganpopple9100]

Pancake syrup is just corn syrup with coloring or a dilution of any type of sugar replacement from erythritol to stevia to maltitol to sorbitol to allulose. Most of these replacements are hard on your digestive system, especially your gut. You can look that up on your own.

[@charlescarroll5736]

Real maple syrup lasts forever in the fridge, i buy largest jug and pour it into smaller,manageable jars. Like honey,won't go bad.

[@bonniesiegel9024]

A very wise woman once told me "Cheap is Dear." Don't waste your hard earned $$ on "knock-off stuff.

[@leephillips2837]

I love all of Jack's content

[@momuv6980]

"Pancake syrup" i.e. colored corn syrup is an abomination! I am a native Vermonter and the only syrup to eat on anything is 100% all natural maple syrup! Vermont recently changed the grading criteria for syrup, so I would say definitely go for dark amber or darker. Definitely worth the extra $$! BTW - my family (grandfather & uncle primarily) used to make maple syrup and it's definitely a labor of love. Anywhere between 40-60 gallons of maple sap to make 1 gallon of syrup; boiling sap for hours, 12-16 hours a day for a couple of weeks or more depending on the length of the season. Not to mention drilling trees, hanging buckets (or in later years, running miles of plastic tubing), splitting fire wood, hauling buckets of sap, etc, etc. Is it any wonder we call maple syrup "liquid gold"?😁❤🍁

[@krwada]

Pancake syrup is basically burnt and caramelized sugar diluted with water... and maybe some maple flavoring. Get the real deal. Get the maple syrup. Dark, or amber are both fine. The stuff that comes from Canada is a bit cheaper than Vermont. New York maple syrup is also very good. As to vanilla; yes, I used to exclusively use artificial vanilla extract. However, for custards, pastry cream and other other desserts, nothing beats the real deal like Madagascar vanilla. Lately, I have been using the Tahitian vanilla. Tahitian vanilla is absolutely the best for pastry cream or desserts. I have found that the cheap McCormick vanilla extract works fine for things like cookies and cheesecake.

[@loisroth-johnson3071]

Years ago I worked on a dairy farm in Vermont. My task during sugaring was collecting sap from the buckets. It was one of the most physically demanding jobs, but we'll worth it. Pure maple syrup is worth the price. The other stuff doesn't even come close.

[@paulharold2602]

Nice tips!

[@kenyattaclay7666]

When I want to make a really good breakfast sandwich I like to buy the good Kiser roles, good beacon & a quality egg but for some reason using regular old American cheese taste better. Also, when doing things like French toast I like using bread from the bakery section but I tried making croutons from that leftover bread and they just weren’t as good as making it from cheap generic white bread. I just keep a loaf of that in my freezer and it makes the perfect croutons & use the good bread for sandwiches.

[@tomsparks6099]

I love this advice from Jack! Don;t skimp on good ingrendients. This is only scratching the surface. Spending 20+ on a good block of parm is worth it in the long haul. If you are buying cheap syrup, your'e not getting SYRUP but sugar subs. Vanilla is a flavor, yes the real deal is good, but it depends on what youre making. Dairy is a big fall-for cheap choices. After a while, you appreciate the difference in going for the gold brands.

[@kpnitrl38]

Finally. Let's settle this debate once and for all! Mrs. Butterworth's is not syrup. It's car oil.

[@nancycy9039]

Hahaha 😂

[@fessendenful]

full synthetic...

[@HLNA14]

💀😂

[@STEVEARABIA1]

That’s being mean to car oil.

[@lizcademy4809]

Oh, it's "syrup" - if you define syrup and any sugar heavy thick fluid that is intended to be edible. Not that I would ever eat it ... I'd sooner have my breakfast starches dry.

[@Stephanie-vn6ir]

Your voice went just blank after noticing your refrigerator in the background! 😳 It is beautiful!! 😍 😂🤣

[@rcmaniac25]

Good tips. I used up some leftover oranges by making juice and it's so much better then others, but it's so much more labor intensive. I'd recommend people checkout Ethan Chlebowski here, he ended up getting into a bit of a series on cheese and vanilla and others of "do I really need to use fresh or can I use pre-grated?" "real vs imitation vs. powder vs.... vanilla" (a note on vanilla: heat will destroy any subtleties in the vanilla. So if you only use it for baking, then imitation is fine. But if you are gonna make ice cream or frosting, real stuff is better)

[@naliniganguly649]

Your advice on these few product’s definitely makes good sense however for those who don’t have the luxury of finding Natalie’s juices on their grocery stores making freshly squeezed juice makes good sense. Investing in a good juicer makes it easy and they last long. I use Mexican vanilla and I love it , it is super flavourful and affordable, occasionally I getMadagascar vanilla from Homesense which is the Canadian version of Homegoods. Anyone using Mexican vanilla , please provide your feedback and opinion.

[@Er-sv5tn]

It varies a lot but some is good. I like Totonac's

[@AnimeReference]

Local Parmesan/Pecorino here is great actually. The age is there on the label (usually 6 month increments from 12 to 24), and quite frankly the taste is better (I suspect that the official regions can produce better tasting cheese, but that's certainly not what appears on shelves here, and it's certainly not priced competitively). My supermarket has a juicing machine with a vat of their oranges on top that get squeezed before you. Pricey, better, but tbh you should probably just opt for something that keeps better so you don't have to go so far out of your way differentiating between products. Just use honey. Maple isn't that much better.

[@LoebRules]

Parmesan and Romano are the two items that make my Costco membership worth it

[@matthewhuszarik4173]

I buy Pecorino Romano at Costco and age it for two more years in the refrigerator it is even better. The flavor gets significantly stronger. I have tried up to five years, but after two is only gets a little bit stronger. One caveat it gets so hard it is hard to grate. I cut it into chunks and grind it in a commercial grade food processor.

[@Blue-xk8vq]

@@matthewhuszarik4173 WOw that's cool, thank you for sharing.

[@LoebRules]

@@matthewhuszarik4173 oh good tip. Do you leave it in the original vacuum sealed pack?

[@matthewhuszarik4173]

@@LoebRules Yes you do otherwise mold will grow. I have had the vacuum seal broken and seen the mold, but it is only on the surface and easily cut away. It is my favorite cheese. So rich and flavorful.

[@michaelklein3148]

Also, Costco organic maple syrup.

[@5610winston]

2:00 One of my regular breakfast stops has beautiful, delicious, light pancakes but their syrup tastes like paint stripper. I always keep a flask of maple syrup in my truck.

[@richardmorano9976]

A lot of good information. Thsnka

[@richardmorano9976]

Thanks

[@rosastratton4169]

The best oj is the one you can make yourself from fresh oranges, and Natalys is number 2 in my book! 😜

[@tnthomas1954]

Yep, I found Natalie's a couple of years ago by accident, and I'll buy no other packaged OJ now. Still squeeze my own most of the time though.

[@talonsl]

So grateful for protected designation of origin.

[@ChocolateJ3sus]

Sarvecchio Parmesan by Sartori is a good mid-priced domestic alternative to the DOP Parmigiano Reggiano, at least for cooked applications. It is aged 20 months so it has a decent flavor. The texture, however, is creamier so I'd probably go with something else for shaving on a salad or other uncooked uses.

[@Paelorian]

It's good, but it costs as much as imported Parmeggiano-Reggiano, and freshly cut Parm-Reg is better and I can find in local shops in New York for less than the cost of Sartori. Maybe if I lived in Wisconsin the prices would be different and Sartori would be more competitive as a lower-priced, generally slightly inferior alternative. It is the best domestic parmesan I've tried.

[@josephmarciano2584]

Huge fan of this channel and Jack, but please keep in mind that this is a big country. Showing me, in California, something I can only get east of Philly is interesting, but not helpful. Maybe regional picks?

[@termikes174]

Nice

[@ansleybleu]

Would love to see a segment about potatoes that have gone green. Is it safe to trim the green and eat the rest, or does the whole thing need to be tossed?

[@michaelhorton6166]

With orange juice, buy "Not from concentrate"!😃

[@vodiak]

1:37 Are you sure it isn't pasteurized for longer (at the lower temperature)?

[@cutl00senc]

“You get what you paid for” is true today, was true yesterday, and will always be true tomorrow…

[@THE-X-Force]

Yes, but the problem is that too many people think that higher price automatically means better quality, when in fact, that is often not true.

[@cutl00senc]

@@THE-X-Force I think the bigger problem is many people don’t know what quality is…they just assume that cheap is better because it’s less of a chunk of their budget. In most cases, better quality usually comes with a higher price. It’s pretty much common sense….

[@barbara-holley]

get real parm or go home!! i love that this was first on their list.

[@kevinsanders200]

I disagree about buying dark amber maple syrup. The most difficult to find is the extra light, or "fancy" maple syrup-- is my favorite. Very delicate, much more pure sap flavor. It's only produced from the very first sap of the spring and is typically used for candy making but if you ever try some, you'll be hooked for life! The darker amber syrups are all mixed and blended and I think have "off flavors". And in my opinion, if you can find it, find some with a hint of wood smoke, it's pure heaven!

[@karenpolansky9097]

This Canadian agrees… real maple syrup every time. Except, I prefer the amber. It’s more flavourful than the light, but not overcooked. Did you know that Canada produces about 70% of the world’s maple syrup, and we have a hidden emergency stockpile? 🇨🇦😁🇨🇦😁🇨🇦

[@Fathersloveforhisson]

Hey Karen

[@krism4139]

Buy vanilla beans and a bottle of cheap vodka and make your own extract - you'll never want to use anything else and huge money saver. Squeeze oranges the day before so you don't have to do it at 7am. Maple syrup - dark for cooking, amber for breakfast.

[@sms17762000]

I agree you can't taste much or any difference in real v imitation vanilla when baking. Where you taste the difference is when you put it in frosting, hot chocolate, or any other time you add the vanilla after you take it off the heat.

[@phil4208]

Great tips, you get what you pay for except the vanilla, hey if a mooch spends the night they'll get the cheap stuff

[@AuntieM58]

I am surprised that imitation vanilla is given the thumbs up.

[@drthmik]

I've never seen that brand of juice in my whole life

[@julie9785]

Please, Keep giving us all the tricks of your trade.

[@dorifogle5934]

more!

[@barcham]

I live in Montreal and buy my Parm at Walmart, it is imported from Italy, aged a minimum of 24 months and costs me $24.97 CAN for one kilo, which is 2.2 pounds for you Americans. It is better than any Parm I have gotten from any other store, even specialty cheese shops. Unfortunately that OJ is not available here, and I have been unable to find anything similar, so I will stick to squeezing my own or drinking one of the premium grocery store brands. I have come across fresh squeezed OJ at one grocery chain, but paying close to $20 for one litre is not something I am willing to do. I am lucky when it comes to Maple syrup because a friend owns a maple syrup farm and I get very high quality syrup for free. That price cannot be beat, and neither can the quality.

[@yvonnerogers6429]

👍🏻

[@coderspy]

I bought some Costco Maple Syrup and it wasn't very good. It tasted worse than cheap pancake syrup. Does anyone have a good brand to recommend?