A savvy saver has shared the one item you need to buy in November: butter.
Amy Lynn Cross, 46, has hit the headlines in recent years for her ingenious food hacks such as how to keep produce fresh for longer – including soaking produce in vinegar water to “kill off the mould spores”.
She also puts paper towels underneath berries and greens to collect the moisture and stores everything in mason jars or Pyrex glass containers in the fridge.
The mum, who has 139,100 followers on Instagram and YouTube (@thecrosslegacy ), has now revealed a money-saving tip in a reel with over 100,000 views.
“Did you know November is the best time of the year to buy butter all year long?,” Amy, who is from Washington, US, says in the clip.
“So watch those sales and when you’re grocery shopping, pick up some butter and throw it in the freezer.”
In the caption, she adds that you can “freeze butter… for up to two years so you don’t have to worry about it going bad.”
Social media users have been left stunned, with one woman rushing to Aldi to get herself eight packs.
“Yes! I just stocked up at Aldi today and bought 8,” she wrote, to which Amy replied “Good job!”.
Another user asked more about the freezing aspect and how it works, saying: “How do you freeze it? Is there something special you need to do? Sorry I am new to all this.”
“No just toss the box in the freezer. I normally write the date I purchased on the box,” Amy replied.
Shocked by the November price drop, another person said: “Never noticed. Now I will be watching.”
Jessica said: “I’ll be watching those sales! I’ve never tried freezing butter but that is so smart.”
“What?! That’s awesome that you can put it in the freezer! I had no idea,” said Lindsay.
Speaking to Jam Press in the past,“I believe washing it in vinegar water kills off the mould spores that are on produce when we buy it.
“With berries and greens, I put a piece of paper towel at the bottom of the airtight container to collect the moisture.
“I store almost everything in mason jars or Pyrex glass containers with airtight lids.”
Amy, who previously told Jam Press she spends just five minutes planning her food shop every week, has also released a book on produce tips recently called ‘I Bought It, Now, What?’.
She first started using her skills on preserving food for longer a few years ago, after her fridge at home broke down and she had to save up to buy a new one.
She said: “I buy produce in season and organic if possible, wash in vinegar water when I bring it home, then make sure it is completely dry before storing it away.
“Since we switched to glass containers instead of plastic, we have noticed that produce lasts much longer.
“Other items like asparagus and green onions I store in water like you would flowers and add water every few days.
“I buy the same staples for produce so I always know what I have on hand and in our freezers, we have a year’s worth of meat.
“If there is something that is on my [shopping] list and is shelf-stable or can go in the freezer, I try to buy a year’s quantity of it at a time, like 5lbs of salt instead of 4oz.”
A key component of making the food last for such a long time is batch cooking and filling the freezer up.
She added: “Anyone can dedicate a couple of hours once a month to prepping produce.
“If you know that to spend that energy one day a month and your family will have healthy snack and easy meals for weeks, it is worth it.”
