April 2014 - According To Frankie

Recipe: Saucier Macaroni Tomato Cassarole

Posted on April 20, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Saucier Macaroni Tomato Cassarole. www.accordingtofrankie.com. Photo by Frankie Saucier

This is honestly one of my favorites. My mother-in-law, Granny Quack Quack, found this one. But like every recipe in the Saucier family, it goes through many iterations. This one is Randy’s from Easter

Saucier Macaroni Tomato Cassarole

1/2 lb elbow macaroni, cooked

2 shallots, sliced finely

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cans diced tomatoes, drained

1 bunch fresh basil leaves, chopped

1 tablespoon butter, thinly sliced

2 cups sharp cheddar

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 package Panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375. Saute shallots in butter. Add garlic and cook 2 more minutes. Add tomatoes and basil. Simmer 10 minutes. In a separate dish, mix the cheddar and Parmesan cheeses. In 1.5 quart baking dish, spoon a thin layer of sauce. Add a layer of macaroni, then top with a generous layer of the cheese mixture. Repeat until the dish is full. Top with a layer of Panko bread crumbs. Slice the tablespoon of butter into 4-6 thin slices and place on top of the bread crumbs. Bake uncovered 20 minutes or until bread crumbs are golden brown.

Cocktail Recipe: Blueberry Pomegranate Mimosas

Posted on April 20, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Blueberry Pomegranate Mimosas. www.accordingtofrankie.com. Photo by Frankie Saucier.

Blueberry Pomegranate Mimosas. www.accordingtofrankie.com. Photo by Frankie Saucier[/caption]Simple drink recipes are the best. Honestly, I usually don’t have to make my own drinks, but the simpler they are, the faster they are delivered. Here’s a good one.

Blueberry Pomegranate Mimosas

4 ounces of your favorite Champagne, chilled

2 ounces of V8 V-Fusion Pomegranate Blueberry Juice, chilled

In a fluted glass, pour the champagne. Add the V8 V-Fusion Pomegranate Blueberry juice. Then enjoy. This is a great drink because you can tell yourself it’s healthy, as it contains vegetable juice. Neat, right!

Leftover Eggs? Make PopPop’s Deviled Eggs!

Posted on April 20, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Deviled Eggs. www.accordingtofrankie.com. photo by Frankie Saucier.

Do you have leftover Easter Eggs? Wondering what to do with them? Try this simple deviled egg recipe.

PopPop’s Deviled Eggs

6 Easter eggs

3 tablespoons light mayo

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

pepper to taste

1/4 cup sweet pickle relish

paprika to taste

Peel the easter eggs carefully. Slice in half lengthwise and put yolks in a small mixing bowl. Add the mayo, mustard, and pepper. Using a fork, smash the mixture around until mostly creamy. Fold in the pickle relish. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag (if you don’t have a piping bag, use a sandwich bag and cut off the bottom corner. Voila, piping bag!). Pipe the mixture into the halved egg whites. Sprinkle paprika to taste. Plate them up and serve them, but don’t be surprised how fast they go. Might want to double the recipe. Happy Easter!

Look Fabulous in Your Clothes for Less Money

Posted on April 10, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Look Fabulous in your Clothes for Less Money. www.accordingtofrankie.com. Photo by gorgeoux.

I love shopping for new clothes. I also love saving money, but I want to wear good quality clothes that look great on me. So first, you need to go shopping. Read 8 Steps to Efficiently Updating Your Wardrobe for help with that. Pay special attention to the part where you shop at stores like TJ Maxx and Ross (oh and Stein Mart is one of my favorites too.) Look for good label items and pay particular attention to the fabric quality. You’ll also want to be sure you buy something that is a little too big rather than too small.

Next, find a tailor. That’s right! I know you just saved $30 on that jacket. So take that $30 and put it towards custom tailoring. One of the secrets to looking fabulous in your clothes is making sure they fit you really well. Off-the-rack clothing is a generalization that doesn’t work for the majority of the public. That’s ok for knock-about pieces and weekend wear like T-shirts and jeans; however at the office, it doesn’t work as well. That fabulous pants suit you just bought looks “almost” right, right? It’s “pretty close,” isn’t it? So, when you are buying staple pieces for your wardrobe like blazers, skirts and pants, having them tailored is a good investment.I promise that spending the time and energy to get quality pieces custom tailored will greatly improve your appearance in them.

6 Steps to Get More Cash Back from your Cash Back Cards

Posted on April 8, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Get more cash back from your card. www.accordingtofrankie.com. Photo by 401(K) 2012.

*Warning* I only recommend you try the suggestions in this article if you have excellent self-control with your credit cards.

I like free money. We know that nothing is really free, somebody somewhere is paying for it. So, what’s the deal with those cash back cards?

Credit card companies charge merchants a fee per transaction when you swipe your credit card at retailers in person or online. The cash back is, realistically, a cut of the money the merchant is paying the credit card company. A really small cut, but a cut nonetheless. The more times you swipe your card, the more money the credit card company makes, and the more you make.

So, how can you make more money? Here are some steps to follow:

Pick a credit card – To maximize your return, I suggest you pick one credit card to use. This ensures you get the maximum cash back as quickly as possible. Scattering spending over several cards will slow your earnings because each will likely have a minimum balance to reach before issuing your cash back.
Study up – Read all the information pertaining to the cash back program. Make sure you understand which purchases qualify, the minimum points required to receive cash back, method of cash back delivery, etc. Method is important because you want to make sure the process isn’t too complicated or time-consuming. For example, some rewards can come in the form of debit cards that are tricky to use.
Start spending – Pay all your regular expenses with your chosen credit card. Check on your monthly bills as well. Daycares, utility companies, and all sorts of places accept credit cards. This can help you get more cash back quickly.
Pay the card – Make sure to pay your credit card balance in full before the end of the balance period so that you aren’t paying interest to the credit card company. No sense in paying money for your cash back, right?
Pay attention – Each time you pay your balance, look to see if you have met the minimum requirement to request your cash back. Make sure you request to be paid out at every opportunity. Changes on the account such as closing the account or discontinuation of the program could adversely effect your ability to get your cash. So get it early and often.
Repeat – Do this over and over again.

I know that with many reward cards you can choose between gift cards and cash, and that the gift cards have a higher dollar amount than the cash back. I recommend you stick with the cash. Why? Well, even if they have a card for your favorite retailer, you may not really need items from that retailer at the time. Also, if you’re anything like me, you’ll have another $10 left on the card and wind up buying something that requires you to kick in some of your own cash. At this point you’re not just spending someone else’s money, you’re spending your own. And the point here is really to make a tiny bit of money. So, get out there and use those credit cards (but only on stuff you were going to buy anyway, and pay those things off every payday!)

Look For Coupon Codes Before Shopping Online

Posted on April 7, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Online Coupon Codes. www.accordingtofrankie.com. Image by Shirin Diamond Center.

Taking one extra minute before clicking the “Checkout” button on that online shopping cart can save you a worthwhile amount of money.

With twin three-year-old girls at home, I do a fair amount of my shopping online. Each time I fill up my cart, I stop before checking out. I open a new browser window, and I search for the name of the online retailer with the words “coupon code” at the end of the search string. This typically results in finding either a free shipping offer or some amount of savings between 5% and %20%. Most commonly the savings come from RetailMeNot. I’ve found savings on everything from floral delivery to department store deals. So, take a minute to search for a coupon code before you purchase online. You might just save enough to spend more at another store!

Thinking About Selling Your House?

Posted on April 4, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Thinking about selling your house? www.accordingtofrankie.com photo by Mark Moz.

If you’re thinking about selling your house, you may feel unsure about what to do to get your house ready for sale. I’ve got a few simple steps you can take to make sure you don’t waste time or money on unnecessary items and get the most money for your house.

6 Steps To Take Before Selling Your House

Select a Good Realtor – And, I mean a really good realtor. One that is interested in working with you.
Ask About Comps – Your realtor can tell you what the demand is for houses in your neighborhood, and the number of houses currently on the market. He can also tell you how much comparable houses have sold for recently. This is commonly referred to as “pulling comps.”
Ask What Needs to Be Fixed – Have your realtor over for dinner or coffee. Ask your realtor which repairs should be made before the house can be sold in order to maximize profit from the sale of your home.
Ask Who Should Fix It – Your realtor may have a ready list of tradespeople that can economically fix the required items.
Ask What Needs to Be Changed – Ask your realtor what changes could be made to maximize profit. Do you need to take down family photos? Eliminate clutter?
Follow Your Realtor’s Instructions – For best results, take as many of the steps recommended by your realtor as possible.

If your realtor is awesome, he or she will most likely be glad to provide these tips for you. If you do this well in advance of listing your house, you’ll have plenty of time to make the necessary changes. I even contacted our realtor before we decided on a budget for our kitchen renovation, to make sure we didn’t spend more than we’d get back. These steps will save you the hassle and expense of completing projects or repairs that won’t get you more money in the sale.

How Do I Keep My Contractor Honest?

Posted on April 4, 2014 by frankiesaucier

keep your contractor honest. accordingtofrankie.com. photo by Lisa Bunchofpants.

Do you have a contractor making repairs or improvements on your home? Ever watch HGTV’s Holmes on Holmes and worry about the job your contractor is doing? I do. and I think this: How do I keep my contractor honest? Well, here’s some information to help you out.

Dictionary.com defines a general contractor as a person who contracts for and assumes responsibility for completing a construction project and hires, supervises and pays all subcontractors. Once the contractor has taken a look at the job to be done, you should be provided an estimate or bid for the job. You can expect this bid to be either an overall fixed price to complete the job, or an arrangement where you will pay the cost of materials plus some agreed amount, commonly called a “cost-plus” bid. Either way, the estimate should include an itemized list of all the tasks that will be completed and the materials needed to complete those tasks.

Having a contractor is nice because you don’t have to worry about selecting all the trades and scheduling them to come in at the right time. If delays happen, contractors handle all the coordination. Having said that, there are some things to watch out for with contractors. We’ve recently had work done to our house, and here are some tips that can help make sure you get what you are paying for.
How Do I Keep My Contractor Honest?

Communicate Clearly – From the beginning, state your desires and expectations. Have them reflected on the estimate.
Read The Estimate – Make sure you are very familiar with the estimate and agree with all the items listed.
Ask For a Schedule – Request a rough timeline of events. As dates slip, request revised versions. This minimizes surprises on cost overruns, etc.
Refer To The Estimate – Watch for discrepancies between the work you see being done and the work described in the estimate. Mention it early.
Meet Regularly – Hold either informal phone calls or formal meetings regularly to ensure that everyone is on the same page.

These steps can help ensure that you know what to expect and that you get what you pay for.

Wait! Don’t Close all those Credit Card Accounts at One Time!

Posted on April 4, 2014 by frankiesaucier

Wait before you close those credit card accounts. www.accordingtofrankie.com. Photo by ben popken

Trying to get out of debt? Did you vow to cut up all those credit cards? Wait! Don’t close all those credit card accounts at one time! Here’s why: part of what makes up your credit score is your percentage of available credit. The more available credit you have, the better for your score. So, say you have credit limits between all your cards that total $10,000. And you have two cards maxed out at $6,000. That indicates you are using 60% of your available credit. If you close all the cards with no balance in an effort to raise your credit score, and only leave open the accounts with the $6,000 balance, you are now using 100% of your available credit. This lowers your credit score. Another part of your credit score is your length of credit history. Closing out your oldest cards shortens your length of credit history.

So what should you do? Leave all the credit card accounts open. If you think you’ll be tempted to use them, cut them up. But leave the accounts open. Once you’ve paid down your debt or paid it off, then you can close out the newest accounts if you want to. According to Dani Arthur at Bankrate.com, you want to keep revolving debt around 50% of your available credit. See 5 steps to do-it-yourself credit repair for more information.