Works for Me Wednesday: Preparing for Christmas Baking Without Breaking the Bank

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to bake! This is especially true around Christmastime. Making homemade goodies can be a frugal venture, but if you like to do a LOT of Christmas baking, it can be a bit pricey. I suppose you could budget for it and specifically set aside a certain number of dollars each week leading up to the big Christmas baking shopping trip.

My way to prepare for Christmas baking without breaking the bank is to pick up one or two baking items each time I go to the store. I like to start this the first week of November. A bag of sugar here, a bag of flour there, and a bottle of oil now and again can really ease the pain of baking being a major Christmas expense. Plus it's nice to have everything you need on-hand before you're even ready to mix your first batch of cookies.

However, this does require me to be organized. This week I plan to sit down with my recipes and decide what I'd like to make for Christmas. I know that some dessert breads will be on the list along with Ginger Cookies, Pumpkin Bundt Cake, some hard tack candy, and lots of other goodies! We also plan to make a loaf of homemade bread for each of our neighbors. Once I have a list of everything I'm making, I'll have a better idea of what I need. (Of course this list will change many times, but at least I'll have a bit more flour, sugar, and oil on-hand for whatever I end up baking.)

For more great ideas to help you get ready for the holidays, stop by this week's Works for Me Wednesday hosted by We Are THAT Family. Many of this week's tips will be geared toward getting ready for the holidays!