There are many store-bought products that are quite expensive if you consider how much cheaper it would be to make your own. They also often have chemicals and preservatives in them that we would rather not eat. When our boys (all four of them) were babies, we made our own homemade baby food by cooking, blending, and then freezing the food in ice cube trays. It worked great and saved us a bundle. We had a variety of baby food cookbooks and got the boys used to a variety of foods.
Since then we have made our own:
– applesauce
– baked beans
– hummus
– hamburger rolls
– granola bars
– taco sauce
– refried beans
– corn bread muffin mix
– onion soup mix
– hot cocoa
– and more.
Some things like taco sauce and refried beans we make on a regular basis. My husband has created his own refried beans recipe that is “out-of-this-world.” He makes a big stockpot worth and we freeze it in “Gladware soup and salad” containers and take out one pack as we need it. We make burritos, chilaquiles and other recipes with it. They make a great easy meal! (However, he admits the beans themselves does involve a lot of work. But kosher refried beans are expensive and not so good!)
One great website that has lots of good homemade ideas is Budget 101.
Related posts:
Surviving on a tight budget 
Yes, we have made these things on this list some were clearly better than others: the onion soup mix – good, cornbread mix – good (but probably only cheaper if you keep kosher), hamburger buns – terrible! hummus – mixed results none stellar.
If you are willing to forgo sleep then all sorts of things are possible!
I guess we need to try some more recipes! The refried beans, taco sauce, hummus and corn bread mix have all been great, though. And when apples are cheap, so was the applesauce.