Five Frugal Things -- So Much Free Food! -

1) Portland, Oregon is heading into her rainy season, so every sunny day is to be cherished. Perfect for a walk to the library. I'd put a trio of coffee table books on hold, which meant the walk home included an upper body workout.

That bottom book was especially hefty!

Please enjoy that I'm using my Summer Reading Challenge tote bag -- I worked hard for that prize!

2) I came across this box of free parsley and what look to be heirloom tomatoes on my way home. Don't mind if I do!

3) I also passed a free pile that initially looked unappealing, but quickly realized that the rectangular box on the left held an artificial Christmas tree. We've been using the same garbage picked tree from 2015, but it's enormous and I couldn't find the motivation to put it up last year. It takes hours to assemble and is a scratchier experience than I could handle at the time.

For reference, we have ten-foot ceilings.

This one looks simpler and it'll be nice to have the choice.

4) A neighbor put out this comically large zucchini in front of their house, so I knocked on their door to confirm it was indeed free and lugged it home.

I've been procrastinating a grocery trip and can now put it off for a few more days.

I cut thin slices from the zucchini and layered them in a pie pan with sautéed red onion, dollops of pesto and the last from a jar of spaghetti sauce.

For extra flavor I added a scoop of pumpkin puree to the sauce, as well as extra paprika, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, basil, oregano, seasoned salt, steak seasoning and water. Baked it up in the oven and sprinkled parmesan on top. Think of it as a cousin to ratatouille.

It might look gloppy, but it was fantastic! I may or may not have helped myself to seconds and then thirds. I'll be repeating this dish as it only used around ⅕ of the entire zucchini.

5) The apple tree around the corner is once again dropping her fruit onto the sidewalk. Sure they get bruised and buggy, but I there's least ¾ of unblemished apple on each one.

Perfect to slice up and top with the leftover apple crisp topping that's been sitting in my freezer for months. The Frugal Girl's freezer challenge is proving to be quite the creative spark!

Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?