Sometime in the beginning of January, I bought a little bit of garlic. A medium-sized plastic tin full of pre-peeled cloves. Very practical, I thought to myself as I loaded them into that week’s grocery cart. Well done. And, for just $1.44? A steal, no doubt. Yay, me. Ever the thrifty one, yup, that’s me.
Husband arrived home that night and noticed my new purchase in the refrigerator.
Wow. He calls out to me, as I sit in the adjoining room. That’s a LOT of garlic!
Truly surprised that a) he would even notice but also that b) he thought it too much, I answered,
Well, not really. I cook with garlic all the time! I’m sure I’ll get right through it. You just don’t know how much I actually need garlic. You’ll see.
Alright. But, I can just tell in his voice that he doubts me. That he thinks I’m being wasteful…again.
I’ll show him, I thought to myself. I will.
So, today (two months later), when I went to make a baked ziti and reached for a little garlic powder before I remembered that…oh, yeeeeah. I’ve got that real garlic somewhere in here and…
Sigh. Oh, go ahead. Mark the date and time. I hereby admit, he was right.
Nuts. Hate when that happens.
Confessions of a Serial Swooper 
We’ve all been seduced by the tub of garlic. Visions of simmering sauces, braised meats, fresh bread. And then, inevitably, even your milk tastes like garlic, the house is rancid, and you feel a vague sense of nausea every time you open the fridge. Meanwhile, of all the ways to cut costs, was whole garlic REALLY that expensive? I think not.