What I Spent, What We Ate | I am SO under budget.
This week my shopping consisted of three small trips.
First, I made a quick run to a local store and spent $23.50.
Second, I stopped at Target after a date night with Mr. FG to pick up some toiletries (we party hard on date nights, people.), and I spent $17.37.
I also stopped in at Aldi for a few things (including instant oatmeal for my tonsillectomy patient. 😉 ) That cost me $51.48.
I still had lots of produce left from last week and I just didn't need a whole lot of stuff.
So, I only spent $92.35 to start off the new grocery budget month.
SWEET.
What We Ate
Monday
This was Memorial Day, but Mr. FG had to work, so it didn't feel too much like a holiday. The girls ate at a cookout with a friend, and I honestly cannot remember what the rest of us ate!
I feel like it was a rather fend-for-yourself kind of night.
Tuesday
I made chicken tortellini salad, which is a green salad with grilled chicken, cheese tortellini, tomatoes, fresh Parmesan, and Caesar dressing.
We had English muffins with that, and also fresh pineapple.
Wednesday
We had pulled pork (from the freezer) sandwiches on store-bought buns. I'd come down with the cold that was circulating around my household and I was super grateful to have an easy meal.
Kisses for March Kristen, who made extra pulled pork and froze it. 😉
Thursday
This was kind of a haphazard night due to a music rehearsal. Some of the kids ate ham sandwiches, and some of us ate cheese quesadillas and guacamole. Plus there was fruit and fruit dip.
Friday
I'm still recuperating from my cold, so we will see how motivated I am about making pizza tonight.
Speaking of pizza night, last Friday I opted to make pancakes and fried mush and Orange Julius for dinner instead of pizza, largely because I felt like Lisey would enjoy a meal that she could mostly eat.
(Orange Julius was the one part that was a no-go...too burny and acidic.)
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Your turn! Tell us about the eats at your house this week.
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P.S. If you need more meal ides, check out all of the main dish recipes I've posted.
I had to look back in my phone at my grocery list from last week, to jog my memory as to what we ate!
Monday: ribs and roasted red potatoes
Tuesday: King Ranch chicken casserole, with corn on the cob
Wednesday: my brother's wedding, where the reception was at a very upscale steakhouse. We had ribeyes the size of our heads, au gratin potatoes, and a wedge salad...and wedding cake, of course
Thursday: guess what, I had leftover steak from the night before, hubby had a meeting where they ordered pizza.
Tonight...still deciding.
I was over budget last week, but will get back on track with my shopping Saturday. It will all average out to be about what I expect to spend. I seem to spend the same amount at Aldi each week, about $75. Then I usually do a run to another store and spend about $20.
Oooh, that sounds like a delicious wedding meal.
This was a restock week after many weeks away, so I was very happy with my $103 total spend which was split between Sprouts ($24 for three full bags of produce), Trader Joes ($63), and sale items from a 'regular' store ($16).
Have made a renewed effort to eliminate processed sugar from our diet, which has been great for both our energy and pocketbook! EZ-menu prep planning, since oodles of mail and laundry awaited our return:
M- Pesto pasta salad, green salad, garlic toast
T- Veggie fajitas, black beans, green salad
W- Orange glazed chicken, brown rice, green beans
Th- Veggie burgers, roasted sweet potato, green salad
F- Family BBQ with grilled chicken, brown rice, green salad and watermelon
Instead of sugar-laden desserts, we enjoyed summer berries. Will have to give thought to what to do in this dept. come winter . .
My daughter serves frozen berries (thawed) with home whipped cream for dessert a lot -- it can be sweetened or unsweetened as you like. And a favorite apple pie in my family is made of sweet apples (like Gala or Fuji) mixed with raisins for the filling -- no sugar used at all. You can also make meringue cookies with honey instead of sugar.
You can make ersatz ice cream from milk (or cream), bananas, and other fruit. Puree it all together then follow directions for making ice cream.
Smoothie pops made of fruit smoothies - all the fruit, maybe the dairy, no sugar.
Wonderful ideas! Thank you both so much.
Google Chick pea cookies. They are delicious. I add a tablespoon or two of soymilk to make the texture smoother.
I love how, even during a tough week, you manage to cook at home! We're still trying to get over our "oh man dinner was awful, let's go get a burger" attitude.
This week we had:
Minestrone soup with grilled cheese
Sloppy joes with corn and salad
Orange chicken and rice with miso soup (a new favorite, but not easy for a weeknight!)
Corned beef hash
Meatball pizza.
I do try hard to cook at home...with six people in the house, it is just so expensive to go out to eat. Even if it's fast food, we end up spending $35-$40 for a meal, which means we don't want to do that too often.
I didn't cook much as I'm been sick, and I had a dentist appointment on Monday.
On Monday we had pizza delivered, on Tuesday we had leftovers, I can't even remember what we had on Wednesday as I had a big nap, Thursday I cooked a pork mince stirfry with 500g Aldi pork mince, an onion, and a packet of Aldi frozen stirfry veggies and rice, and tonight Rhiannon and I shared her favourite omelette, with avocado, tomato, and cheese. Her dad is having leftover stirfry.
I spent $40 on the pizza on Monday, $117 at Aldi and $27 at Woolworths the other main supermarket I use on Tuesday, and then today I spent another $84 at Woolworths. We also got 3 large pieces of venison rump and 2 large, dressed rabbits from someone my partner worked for today.
Tomorrow or Sunday I need to go back in to get eggs, bananas, potatoes and kitty litter from Aldi, so that will cost another $15-20. I usually spend up to another $50 to top up milk, bread, egg, and sundries supplies next week.
That is nearly $350 to feed 3 adults, a child, 2 cats, and a dog for 2 weeks which isn't bad.
Aww, I hope you are back to health soon!
Monday - Ribs, grilled corn and coleslaw
Tuesday - Chicken, potato salad, fruit
Wednesday - Biscuits, scrambled eggs, sausage, pudding
Thursday - Leftovers ( make a plate with multiple leftover choices)
Friday - Will be grilled chicken sausages cooked with zucchini, bell peppers, and seasoned with montreal steak seasoning (adults) unseasoned for the littles.
Groceries ended up being way over budget last month but after having five months of under budget grocery bills (thanks Mint for keeping track) I'm okay with it.
So thanks to buying all that stuff last week and the week before I was able to get away with just spending $16.68 at Aldi which was mostly on the perishables we buy weekly (fruit, veg and milk.)
Monday: We had a cookout at my grandmother's house so the usual hamburgers and hot dogs were eaten.
Tuesday: It was a "whatever" night as the wife was late coming home. I had an "egg and cheese on a bagel" breakfast sandwich and she had macaroni and cheese.
Wednesday was a "clean out the fridge" night as we had some leftovers that were starting to go south. I ended up just having a salad as there really wasn't enough of anything I eat.
Thursday: Pork chops with rice. The wife cooked green beans and I had a salad.
Friday: We're hosting some people from Bible study as our pastor is unavailable. Come to find out, we're apparently hosting a birthday party for the new girl in our group. It's a surprise party. I have no idea what to do for a girl turning 21 years old. Heck, most of the video games I play are older than she is!
The wife is making lasagna, I believe. I'm going to just eat something else (I don't do pasta dishes.)
My week at our house.
Monday-Parmesan pasta/strawberry pecan salad/garlic bread
Tuesday-ham/corn on cob/applesauce/garden salad
Wednesday-ham and mango quesadillas/corn on cob/baked beans
Thursday-grilled portobellos with goat cheese/grilled veggies (carrots, onion, zucchini, yellow pepper)/couscous
Friday-pasta bake and a salad or veggie
Saturday-yet more ham!
Sort of a fail with regards to cooking this week. I only made 2 real meals. But if I manage it tonight, it will be 3! At least I brought my lunch to work all week.
Saturday - Salad and garlic bread
Sunday/Monday - pulled pork (on a plate, not on a bun!), mashed potatoes, corn on the cob.
Tuesday - Chicken nachos from a favorite local Mexican restaurant
Wednesday - pepperoni pizza
Thursday - a bowl of raisin bran and some cottage cheese with fruit.
Friday - Not sure - maybe salad again. Or an omelet.
Battra, would board games or charades work for the surprise party?
I think they are planning on playing board games. I'm just not very good at them.
Monday-Left over grilled burgers from Memorial Day cookout and homemade Strawberry Poke hole cake.
Tuesday-Junkie night of store bought crab salad and crackers with frozen baked hot wings
Wednesday-Cereal.....I volunteered at a free clinic this night so my husband and kids ate out while I worked. Just plain ole rice crispies.
Thursday-Baked salmon, beans, and pasta salad
Friday- no idea
Let's see....
Monday, grilled ribs from the freezer, corn, gifted summer squash and home-canned sweet potatoes.
Tuesday, I don't remember! But we cooked at home with food we had in the freezer/frig/pantry; I haven't been to the store for any food all week.
Wednesday, bacon, sliced tomatoes off of our vine, cut up raw veggies, cottage cheese and watermelon. ( My husband loves cottage cheese and melon together. I don't, but that's okay!)
Thursday, blackened fish, potatoes, more raw veggies, garlic toast.
Friday -- we'll see. I have nothing planned yet, but I'll be using what we already have, since we've filled our freezer recently. I know we'll have the rest of that watermelon.
Hello Kristen, which grill do you use for making pancakes? Thank you.
I have the Broil King electric griddle that Cook's Illustrated recommended: http://amzn.to/1r5HBDj
I've had it for quite a few years and it's still working great!
Thank you, Kristen :).
Monday - pulled pork sandwiches, chips, and fruit
Tuesday - tacos with the fixings and fruit
Wednesday - my first attempt at FG Aussie chicken and it was a huge hit. Thank you! I served it with our first corn on the cob this year, and sliced baked potatoes stuffed with cheese and herbs
Thursday- my hubby was home first and made paninis which we had with a green salad
Friday - pasta with cheese sauce and CSA medley - mushrooms, bacon, asparagus, green garlic, hon tsai Tai (greens) and sunchokes. Yum! We'll have pineapple and watermelon too.
And we spent $103 on groceries this week at Aldi, Costco and a local store. May was crazy expensive so I'm back at closely tracking our budget.
So glad that the Aussie chicken was a hit. Yay!
Have to think hard on this weeks menu...
Dinner out for MIL's birthday
Skillet ziti w/ meatballs and Caesar salad
Sweet and sour pork with rice and broc
Make your own panini with balsamic zuke, chicken, and pesto along with corn and caprese salad
Turkey burgers and sausage, FF, salad
Tonight is homemade pizza with Caesar
I spent about $200 Tuesday which will see us through until at least next Wednesday. Local farmers market opens for Thursday's so that will be added to the shopping plans!!!
Ooh, lucky you! Our markets aren't open yet.
Good morning Kristen,
This week we have enjoyed-
Wednesday-Freshly caught Pearl Pearch with a big tossed salad
Thursday-Beef Ragu with oven baked Polenta
Friday-Chickpea and Zucchini Fritters with another big tossed salad
Saturday and Sunday-Chicken and Ginger Congee
Monday-Tempura Honey and Sesame Prawns with steamed Basmati Rice and English Spinach and oyster sauce
Tuesday-Red Emporer with My Thai Sauce, steamed Basmati rice and Snow Peas
I feel so very lucky that hubby is a fantastic fisherman and that we have easy access to good fishing spots. We don't eat a lot of meat as we have fresh fish in our freezer all the time. He is also a good friend with a guy who owns a trawler so that is where we get our beautiful prawns from. Hubby is a massage therapist so he barters his time for prawns, not a bad deal.
Have a splendid weekend.
Your whole post is one of the healthiest things I've ever read.
That's awesome that you have access to so much fresh seafood! I'm jealous.
Monday - I freshened some sad asparagus with your cold water trick. Hubby grilled that plus fish, topped with herbs from our garden.
Tuesday - copycat tortilla soup, salad. Not as good as the restaurant version, but fine.
Wednesday - late lunch, I just grabbed an apple and almonds that night.
Thursday - friends took us out!
Friday - I just got home and threw some chicken knto a marinade. We'll grill it and I'll magic-up a veggie.
I am losing the food battle at present. Miss 19 has rehearsals for Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat three times a week. We scurry around meals and driving for that.
On Sunday I made a huge batch of savoury mince and that made a number of dinners this week. Then I cooked chicken and vegetables for one meal. Leftover corned beef was served another night with a tonne of veg. Last night was interesting. Mum wanted Asian food for lunch and like a fool I joined her. My seafood and egg allergies were explained but as usual something was contaminated and I was unwell. Last night's dinner was bread.
Keep on trying everyone.
Here was our dinner menu:
Sun- smoked brisket, homemade bread
Mon- leftovers but I had veg soup
Tues- smoked ribs, salad, baked potatoes
Wed- creamy garlic chicken , potatoes, beans, homemade bread
Thurs- tuna sandwiches, oven fries
Fri- roast chicken in sauce, potatoes, carrots, homemade bread
Sat- shrimp fajitas tonight
Since strawberries are in season, we have alot of them and I like them with bananas. I also made chocolate chip cookies this week. I plan on making banana blueberry bread and applesauce bread, both sugarfree.
For the rest of the week, I plan on making sloppy joes with homemade rolls. grilled burgers/dogs/steaks with oven fries, chicken & cheese ravioli, baked pork chops with rice, breakfast burritos, baked fish with basil and possibly beef stew. All of the above are in my pantry but i will need v-8 juice and carrots for the stew and ketchup for the sloppy joes. So, a thrifty week for sure.
I know it was for Lisey and so not a regular purchase, but did you know that if you whizz rolled oats in the vita mix you get instant oatmeal? My kids love doing it and it's quicker than porridge in the morning 🙂
I may have trouble remembering. 🙁
Monday was leftovers
Tuesday was hotdogs and chips
Wednesday was chicken salads for adults left over hotdogs for the children
Thursday I was at a doc appt with my youngest daughter in a town 2 hours away all day so dinner ended up being take out my husband brought home. When he called me at 7 and said "what did you guys have for dinner? And I announced we just pulled in the driveway and I had no idea what I was making yet. It was expensive (with a family of 7 it's gonna be) but sooooo worth it.
Friday was hamburgers on the grill with chips
Sometimes, takeout is EXACTLY what you need.
I did two pizza mystery shops so we had free pizza on two nights. Needless to say, I'm pizza'd out. I made stuffed shells with some of a 3lb container of Knudsen cottage cheese I got at our 99 cents only store( these stores are in CA, NV, TX and a few other states). I tried to get shells and frozen spinach at our new Aldi, but they did not have either. I got a free package of frozen spinach at Ralph's( perk) and I used a 75 cent coupon on a box of Barilla shells so it cost less than 2.00 for the box. I used coupons for the mozzarella cheese. I normally make my own sauce, but I found Muir Glen organic sauce at the 99 cents only store too. I bought 1/2lb of italian chicken sausage. I added some Butoni prepared alfredo sauce to the filling too. Another purchase from the 99 cents only store. I made 6 containers of shells, 5 went into the freezer and we ate one for dinner and I had enough for lunch the next day. I made an organic chicken, brocoli, carrot, mushroom stir fry last night. We have enough left for at least 3 more meals. Chicken was reduced at Target( Just Bare). Too.
Two nights of free pizza is awesome!
I commented on your post similar to this a couple of weeks ago and mentioned that the youngest had just moved home from college for the summer and I was a bit concerned about what that might do to our grocery bill. I'm happy to report that I'm quite pleased with where we are 🙂 (thanks to menu planning and getting college girl on board!).
Last week (in no particular order):
Spaghetti sauce served over baby spinach (we have reduced our carbs)
Take & Bake Pizza from Papa Murphy's (free!)
Cauliflower Fried "Rice" w/grilled teriyaki chicken
Grilled salmon, roasted potatoes, roasted green beans
Taco Salad
Date Night
Bday celebration for college girl (family dinner out)
Last week at the grocery store: $152.00
Yesterday at the grocery store: $87.00 (and we have a menu plan in place for this week which includes dinners & lunches).
This averages $120/week for 3 adults. That's well within my target range - Woohoo!
Yay! So glad you were able to stay on budget.
Watermelons are in season so we have been eating a ton of it, at only $3.99 to boot. Also been chomping down on some eggplant casserole with whole grain pasta. About 10% of the restaurant cost for something similar!