Last week I meant to post my receipt from Shoppers, but I lost it. I spent about $30 and got baking supplies, cheese, frozen vegetables (there was a great price!), and meat -- beef heart and beef knucklebones which I used to make stock and stew last night. I also got beets and cucumbers, which I lacto-fermented and which should be ready in a couple of days.
We were out of almost everything when I went today, so I have to admit I spent too much. My goal was $40 -- I went more than $10 over. Where could I have cut it? A couple of places ... I definitely could have done better.
White onions 2.59
Whole milk 2.49
This will end up in one or two quarts of yogurt for baby and me, and I drink the rest.
75% lean ground beef 5.99
75% lean ground beef 5.99
I hope to make this last for at least four meals. Since it's Ash Wednesday tomorrow, we only have five meat-eating days this week. Not sure I can stretch the beef that far though! So the fifth night our only meat will be the chicken stock I have in the freezer from last week.
Light fruit cocktail .79
Apricot halves .99
Frozen raspberries 2.89
Light fruit cocktail .79
Apricot halves .99
Frozen raspberries 2.89
Impulse purchase ... shouldn't have ... sigh. We hadn't found much fruit that I wanted to buy, so I caved when these were by the door. But we do have mixed berries in the freezer, so I shouldn't have gotten these.
Diced tomatoes .49
Diced tomatoes .49
2 cans of tuna @ .52 each
Tomato sauce .25
Elbow macaroni (1 lb.) 1.49
Diapers 5.39
Diapers 5.39
I go through about a package every month and a half or so, because I use them out of the house. But I'm beginning to think I can manage cloth full-time, or at least on shorter trips. I usually put the baby in plastic when we go to work, but today I put him in cloth and we made it to work AND to the oil change without leaking. So I can definitely make it work! Hopefully this package of diapers will last longer than the last one.
Bananas .96
Sour cream .99
3 8 oz. packages of cheese 1.49 each
Bananas .96
Sour cream .99
3 8 oz. packages of cheese 1.49 each
Baby only wants to eat cheese nowadays. I got a pound last week and it's almost gone. But cheese prices are awful, no matter where I buy it ... perhaps I can get the baby eating more yogurt cheese (which I make from strained yogurt) at least.
Bologna .99
Ham lunch meat 2.49
Bologna .99
Ham lunch meat 2.49
Another purchase I could have cut. I was really torn about it. The baby's a real meat eater, when he's not scarfing down cheese, and I don't always have leftovers to give him. So a couple of times last week, he had bologna. And I really don't feel good about giving that to him, because it has so many additives. Only, as I got home, it occurred to me that the ham probably has additives in it as well. There's no winning, is there?
Mild salsa 1.69
Mild salsa 1.69
A "luxury" purchase ... but I do love it. Someday I'm going to make my own ... especially once I have my own garden.
Honey 4.49
Honey 4.49
I used up my last container of honey baking bread. I suppose I could use plain sugar, but I think honey's more healthful, and it goes better with whole wheat anyway.
Grapefruit .29
Grapefruit .29
Just for me, a treat. Couldn't beat the price.
Iceberg lettuce 1.49
Green peppers 1.69
Roma tomatoes 2.49
White bread .79
TOTAL $53.05
Iceberg lettuce 1.49
Green peppers 1.69
Roma tomatoes 2.49
White bread .79
TOTAL $53.05
So, that's our food for the week. Like I said, we're out of most other things, so that's pretty much what we've got, except for eggs, tortillas, and some pantry staples.
I'll do this week what I never do and actually write down my menu plan. I don't usually because the meat that I buy determines what I make -- I make the same things pretty much all the time.
Tuesday: broccoli-cheddar soup, using the chicken stock in the freezer (chicken stock, broccoli, potatoes, onions, cheddar cheese)
(Ash) Wednesday: bean burritos (beans, cheese, sour cream, salsa, lettuce, tomato)
Thursday: add meat to the burrito ingredients for tacos (beef, beans, cheese, sour cream, salsa, lettuce, tomato)
Friday: tuna-noodle casserole (tuna, macaroni, frozen peas, sour cream, cheese)
Saturday: spaghetti (beef, tomato sauce, onions, garlic, noodles)
Sunday: shepherds' pie (beef, stock, onions, peas, corn, mashed potatoes)
Monday: chili (beef, beans, diced tomatoes, onions, garlic, corn, salsa)
Lunches for John are leftovers from the night before (though I'll have to wrangle a little bit with the meatless leftovers to make sure he has meatless leftovers Wednesday and Friday) and/or baloney sandwiches. Breakfasts and lunches for me are eggs, yogurt, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, lacto-fermented veggies, and homemade bread. Food for the baby includes leftovers, cheese, yogurt, veggies, and ham.
4 comments:
We have some of the same standard meals -- tuna casserole, pasta & sauce, and beans/rice/cheese (basically burrito filling without the burrito). Our other regulars are hamburgers, salmon fillets w/ rice (definitely most expensive meal), and mac&cheese from scratch.
How much would it impact your Weds, Thurs, & Fri meals if you dropped the ground beef?
Also, we started the beans/rice/cheese meal because rice is SO much cheaper than other grains. I've included the recipe below. Good luck on your quest for healthy, frugal meals!
Rice, Beans and Cheese
3/4 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked
1 1/2 c water 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar or Colby cheese
1 can chili beans, undrained
1 tsp chili powder
Combine water and rice in medium saucepan, cover and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and let cook without uncovering or stirring for 20 minutes. When rice is cooked, stir in cheese, beans and chili powder until heated through. Don't forget to keep stirring! Serves 4
Serving suggestions:
-Serve this with a side salad.
-Roll up in tortillas and lightly brown each side of it in a frying pan.
-Serve with salsa, hot sauce or taco sauce
My husband really prefers to have meat for dinner except on fast days. So, I've occasionally done beans and rice, but I get some complaining if I do that too much. I also think it's important for all of us to get protein as often as we can, even if it's only a little stretched through a lot of rice and beans.
I myself would just as soon have meatless meals more often -- pasta with cream sauce, mac 'n' cheese, spaghetti alla carbonara (without the bacon for Fridays), but I'd have a rebellion on my hands if I tried it more than twice a week.
A good way to reduce the price of the salmon dinner is to make salmon cakes with canned salmon. Here on the East Coast, it's pretty much the only way to get wild-caught salmon for anything like a reasonable price -- but since it is always wild-caught, it still tastes good. I just mash it up with eggs and bread crumbs and serve with some dill sauce (yogurt with salt and dill).
Domestic peace is definitely worth the price of beef. :-) I'll have to give salmon cakes a try!
salmon cakes, in my family, have always been made with potatoes. Getting them to hold together, though... I can't tell whether egg helps or hinders!
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