Last Updated on April 28, 2026 by Themigonikitchen

How We Save $130/Month on Groceries with Simple Homemade Swaps

Grocery prices have gotten out of control lately—and instead of just accepting the higher bills, we’ve starting making a few homemade swaps.

The best part? Every dollar we save is money we can put toward travel.

These aren’t complicated, homesteading-from-scratch changes. They’re realistic swaps that fit into our busy family life—and most of them take less time than a grocery run. Altogether, these small changes save us about around $130 per month —which might not sound huge at first, but that’s almost $1,600 a year… or a roundtrip flight for our family. 

How Much We Actually Save Each Month

These aren’t extreme changes—and we’re not making everything from scratch. These are just the few swaps that actually made a noticeable difference for us.

8 Things We Make at Home to Save Money on Groceries

1. Baby Food Pouches

• Why we do it: Store-bought pouches add up fast (Organic options are sometimes $2-4/each!) – we usually give one pouch a day for our 16 month old, so that’s upwards of $60-90/month just for these. I also try to avoid relying on shelf-stable processed foods when I can.
• What we use: I found a gently used baby food maker on Facebook Marketplace, and it’s been a huge help. Paired with a pack of inexpensive reusable pouches and homemade pouches are so simple.
• What we make: fruit/veggie blends (we keep it simple — apple, carrot, sweet potato, pear), yogurt blends
• Time commitment: Approximately 30 minutes (steam time included for fruits/veggies)
• Costs: Homemade will range 0.57-0.90 cents each vs $2-4 each. Total monthly savings is about $54 
• Optional tip: Freeze extras to always have them ready

2. Hummus from Dried Chickpeas

• Why we do it: Cheaper + better texture
• How we do it: Instant Pot + high-speed blender using our perfected recipe
• Bonus: Can customize flavors easily, control sodium levels for babies, and no preservatives
• Costs: One container of hummus from store = $4-5. Costs for our version — approximately $1.70. We go through about 1 container/week. Total monthly savings is about $10.

3. Beans & Lentils (Instead of Canned)

• Why we do it: Avoid BPA lined cans, cheaper, control portions, better texture
• How we do it: Batch cook in Instant Pot
• Costs: One can of beans/lentils is usually $1.50-$2. Cooking from dried usually averages about $0.45-$0.70 for the same quantity. We usually buy 1-2 cans of beans per week depending on what we’re cooking. Total monthly savings is about $7 
• Optional tip: Freeze in portion sizes

4. Homemade Yogurt

• Why we do it: Yogurt is a weekly staple and has gotten crazy lately price-wise. I love the flavor and texture of homemade yogurt, plus it allows us to control sugar/flavors and avoid additives. We also use the yogurt to make occasional yogurt pouches when we’re on the go. Just mix yogurt with spoonful of fruit jam or blend with some frozen fruit.
• How we do it: Instant Pot method — here’s a great tutorial on the steps. Having a thermometer is key as well.
• Costs: A 32 oz container of organic yogurt runs about $7. The homemade version, about $4.25. We go through about 1 container per week. Total monthly savings is $11 

5. Cashew Milk

• Why we do it: Store-bought alternatives are expensive. I love using nut milks specifically in smoothies and for overnight oats but otherwise use regular milk, so I don’t need much each week. 
  How we do it: I’ve tried other homemade options but like cashews the best. I soak 1/2 cup of unroasted, unsalted cashews for 4+ hours (or overnight). Then toss in a high-power blender with a date and water. No straining required (one of the reasons I prefer cashews)
• Bonus: No additives or gums
• Costs: $6 for 32 oz at the store. $2.15 for the homemade version using organic cashew and dates! I use about 1 container/week so total monthly savings is $15.40

6. Salsa

• Why we do it: Fresh, cheaper, and honestly tastes better
• How we do it: Using our favorite recipe (ours of course). Roast the ingredients and then a quick blend in the Vitamix and you’re done
• Time: 30 minutes (including roasting time)
• Costs: $4.15 for 2-3 cups of salsa. If you are into canning, you can can and store in the pantry! Or refrigerate and use right away. We go through about 1 container of salsa per month. Grocery store version of similar flavor profile runs upwards of $7-8. Total monthly savings is about $3

7. Ice Cream

• Why we do it: Fun + cheaper for the family. More wholesome ingredients, can control sugar. It’s a great activity to do with the kids too, our daughter loves it!
• How we do it: Ice cream maker makes it easy but you can make ice cream without it too, it’s just more work/effort.
• Costs: Artisanal ice creams at the store are often $8 per pint! To make a homemade vanilla ice cream with (real vanilla bean paste), the cost comes to around $3.35 per pint. We go through 2 pints per month (especially in the summer post pool!). So total monthly savings is $9.30

8. Birthday Cakes

• Why we do it: Store-bought cakes are expensive and often underwhelming, flavor wise. Buying from an actual bakery is even more expensive yet!
• How we do it: Stand mixer + an easy cake decorating set and using simple recipes we find online
• Bonus: More meaningful + customizable. It’s not just saving money—it’s creating memories
• Costs: Between the kids, ourselves and our au pair, we have 5 birthday cakes per year! If we estimate $75 on average for cakes, that’s $375 for cakes. The ingredients for the cakes are usually very inexpensive (eggs, butter, flour, sugar). Most homemade cakes cost us under $20 in ingredients. That’s a savings of $275 per year, or about $23 per month. 

What We Actually Prioritize

• Focus on high-cost, frequently purchased items
• Use tools that make it faster (not harder) – more on these below!
• Batch when possible
• Don’t aim for perfection—just replace what makes sense

What Actually Saves Us the Most

If you’re not going to do all of these, start here:

• Baby food pouches
• Birthday cakes
• Yogurt

Tools That Make This Easy

These are the tools that make these homemade swaps realistic for us—and the only reason we’ve been able to stick with it.

You definitely don’t need to buy everything new—many of ours were purchased used or refurbished.

• Baby food maker
• Reusable pouches
• Instant Pot
• High-speed blender
• Ice cream maker
• Stand mixer
• Cake decorating set

Are These Homemade Swaps Worth the Time?

For us, yes—but only because we’ve simplified it.

We batch, we repeat the same recipes, and we don’t try to do everything from scratch.

It’s not about doing more—it’s about being intentional with a few things that actually make a difference.

These small shifts might not feel like much individually, but together they’ve made a meaningful difference in our monthly budget.

And for us, that directly translates into more flexibility to travel as a family—which is always the goal.