Free recipes to carry you through the holidays

I am a huge fan of anything free. Not because I feel I deserve it but

because in these tough economic times, anything can help. I love collecting recipes and I love cooking and before the Internet I would purchase cookbooks, large and small. It was annoying but I enjoyed it. Then the internet came into our home in the late 1990’s and I found a little nugget on the world-wide web, recipes, recipes and more recipes and all of them free. With Halloween behind us and the holiday’s fast approaching with Thanksgiving this month and Christmas and New Year’s just around the corner, there is not one person who isn’t exempt from needing a recipe for a family dinner or if you were invited to a potluck at work.

I am going to list some great sites that I use on a weekly (sometimes daily) basis. But you have that same list right in your own pantry. When I first started collecting recipe websites I just went to my pantry and started looking on the back of cans, boxes of noodles and other packaging etc. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Campbell’s Soup
• Betty Crocker
• Eagle Brand
• Kraft Foods
• Very Best Baking – Nestle, Carnation & Libby
• ButterBall Turkey
• Best Foods
• Jennie-O Turkey
• OceanSpray
• AllRecipes

Another great thing about these sites is they have FREE e-newsletters, Facebook, RSS, and some of them have free apps for your mobile device. Every day I have free recipes come to my Inbox and I can then decide to print the recipe (in different sizes), or if I create an account, I can add them to ‘My Recipe Box’. I love this as I can access ‘My Recipe Box’ from anywhere once I establish an account. These e-newsletters are also relevant to the season or holiday, so you have the most current/trendy recipes out there. I love that you can also read the reviews for variations of the recipe and you can also leave your comments for others.

A few extras that are FREE: Several of the main websites provide printable coupons, love that. Also, some sites will also provide free goodies, I just received an email from one national brand and I am now waiting for my free 2011 calendar. You will also get a sneak peek of new products that will be released soon. Some of these sites also have video demonstrations on how to make the recipe. With one national brand name, I have been selected to test new products and I receive free coupons in the mail, then I purchase, test and write a review. Not bad. There are a ton of benefits to these websites. There really isn’t a reason to purchase another cookbook again… Really! My husband loves that.

With the Internet in hand (mobile device) and your pantry filled with web addresses on the back of packaging, you will have an endless supply of recipes forever and all for free. The food companies want you to use their products, so they do have recipes on their web sites. I only listed a few websites above, but I know there are hundreds more out there. Anyone want to share a favorite recipe website that you had great success with?