Grocery Shopping Secrets: Save Money, Cut Waste, and Shop Smarter with Carol Ann Kates

I grew up in a corner market, living and breathing the grocery business. I learned my most valuable lesson about cooking from my father, who bluntly said, “Garbage in. Garbage out.” Stated more poetically: Great meals begin with shopping. The quality of the ingredients used when preparing a meal is just as important as the recipe. My dad taught me to select superior products much like other parents teach their children the alphabet. I became an expert in shopping for, selecting, and storing perishables.

After the death of my parents, I inherited co-ownership in the grocery business my father founded, and I spent the majority of my adult life operating supermarkets and delis in Northern Colorado. This experience gave me invaluable insight into the culinary preferences of the average American and expertise in the preparation of these dishes. My favorite responsibility was creating recipes for our ads, which gave our customers creative ways to use everyday ingredients. My years in the grocery business taught me the ins and outs, dos and don’ts of supermarket shopping.

After a series of unfortunate events, our markets closed. I compiled the recipes I perfected for our family business into a cookbook, Secret Recipes from the Corner Market. This book is a practical and usable collection of family-tested, customer-approved recipes and contains insider tips about selecting and storing food. It won three awards, including First Place, CIPA EVVY Awards; Honorable Mention, Writer’s Digest 14th Annual International Self-Published Book Awards… Read More