What I Spent, What We Ate | It's only the second week of January?
For some reason, I feel like it's been January for a lot longer than 13 days. Has it really been less than two weeks since the new year? It feels like way longer than that!
What I Spent
I dropped $145.63 at the grocery store this week. And I'm sorry; no picture this week! I'll do better next week.
January Grocery Spending
Week 1: $164.64
Week 2: $145.63
What We Ate
Monday
Stir-fry (as mentioned yesterday!)
Tuesday
We had hot ham and cheese subs with lettuce and tomato.
Wednesday
Stir-fry again. This is a good week for Joshua, who generally feels the scales are tipped too far toward Tex-Mex and not far enough toward Asian food. 😉
Thursday
Mr. FG took Sonia and Zoe to a hockey game, so Lisey and I had a girl's night (we aren't faintly interested in hockey, so it would be a large waste of money for us to go!)
We stopped at Panera for dinner, and as I type this on Thursday night, the rest of my family is still out.
So, I have no idea what they ate!
Friday
Gonna go Tex-Mex tonight with some quesadillas (you knew I couldn't stay away from Tex-Mex for TOO long. 😉 )
Your new stir fry this week looks amazing! Just curious, what kind of cheese do you use in your quesadillas? Our kids love quesadillas, and I am always looking for ways to change them up some.
I usually use cheddar, colby, or colby-jack. It depends what I happen to have in the fridge.
I made roast beef in the crock pot for Monday, so we had that on Monday and again on Wednesday, only I changed out the sides -- we had mashed potatoes on Monday and rice on Wednesday, with green peas one day and cooked carrots another.
Oh, yes, I season the roast with a homemade "onion soup" mixture that I think is better than the packaged kind, and better for you. I found the recipe on the internet.
I baked sweet potatoes in the crock pot one day and made corn bread, squash, and sausage to go with it.
We had leftovers from that meal another day, too, because I made plenty.
Last night was the end of the Christmas ham, cooked in white bean soup in the crock pot -- it was crock pot week at my house-- and corn bread on the side. The husband has been asking for corn bread lately, so he now should be able to say he's had enough for a while. He loves corn bread but I won't make it too often, since bread is hard on his diabetes.
Tonight I'm not sure, but fajitas are sounding tempting.
No Friday pizza ? 😉
I'm switching it up this week!
I've been blogging my menus again, but they get changed up as the week drags on..We've been enjoying the crock pot a lot. I made a pork roast one night this week and the leftovers were made into party sammies with Hawaiian rolls - into the freezer they went for any easy dinner. I also made a double batch of mashed potatoes so I could freeze some. Last night there were only two of us so we enjoyed some free BBQ from Rudy's with a coupon - of course. I bought sides there, which wasn't frugal at all. Tonight I am making an Amish Casserole from someone's blog. Then Saturday Hubby will grill chicken thighs if we get a break from all the rain in the forecast.
Good choice with the Tex-Mex. 😉 Down here in Texas I feel like that makes up easily half our meals. This week we ate:
Monday: We had minestrone soup with homemade ciabatta garlic bread on the side. I made the base of the soup on Sunday, so all I had to do today was bring the base to a boil and stir in pasta and green beans. It's cheap, healthy, and easy. It's awesome. 🙂
Tuesday: Today we kept it easy and made tostadas. We put ground beef, homemade beans, cheese, and avocados on them. I naturally smothered mine with hot sauce.
Wednesday: We made a super-easy Rachel Ray recipe of asparagus artichoke mozzarella pasta. It's veggie heavy and cheap and delicious.
Thursday: We didn't get to do our date night last week as planned, so tonight we used our Texas Roadhouse gift card to have a nice steak dinner. We made sure to get large portions so we would have tasty leftovers for lunch on Friday. Yum!
Friday: Tonight we're making grilled pork chops. I'm not too sure about sides yet, but I'm sure it'll include rice and broccoli. It's a good chance to clean out the fridge.
We had spaghetti and meatballs on Monday, pizza on Tuesday, beef stew on Wednesday, pasta and sauce last night, and tonight we have a home group and our friends who are hosting are doing Mexican, and I need to figure out what I'm going to bring for dessert.
I know what you mean about January. December was very busy at work so I'm looking forward to the long weekend to recuperate and catch up. I'm also still getting used to the new allocation of time that's involved in a stretch goal for this year.
As for Asian meals, have you considered donburi? It's a soupy Japanese omelet that's super easy and super quick to make, and can accommodate a wide variety of meat and veggie inputs. Basic ratio: 4 eggs, 1/2 c. stock (chicken, veggie, dashi), 1/4 c. soy sauce, 1/4 c. mirin' this serves 1-2. Simmer sliced veggies and meat in the three liquids till mostly cooked. Separately, beat the eggs, then add to the simmered meat/veg. Over a low heat, simmer till the eggs are cooked. Taste to be sure - it takes a bit of practice to learn to tell when the soupy eggs are cooked. Serve over rice.
Monday: burgers (I ate mine over salad)
Tuesday: hunter-style chicken
Wednesday: cereal for me, enchiladas for hubby and baby
Thursday: work dinner for me (free) and not sure what hubby did
Friday: Baby and I are on our own tonight, so we'll probably eat leftovers, or whatever hodge-podge food I can scrounge from our fridge.
Also, I haven't had much luck with Asian-inspired dishes. My stir-fries never turn out and I have not been able to make a successful fried rice. So, woohoo to you for two successful Asian recipes in one week!
The stir fry looks great. I never make stir fries.... I should try it.
Monday: I made a veggie curry to use some veg from the fridge: rainbow potatoes, yellow peppers, green onions, and mushrooms. I also threw in some cashews. I simmered it in a curry sauce from Aldi and served it with brown rice.
Tuesday: leftovers from Monday
Wednesday: soup made with some other bits that needed to be used: the last of the pork from New Year's Day dinner, potatoes, cabbage, and a can of tomatoes. Super delicious! And I served it with homemade croutons which I made to use a loaf of bread we weren't eating.
Thursday: leftovers from Wednesday
Friday: not sure yet! I'm thinking either veggie tacos or naan pizza!
Do you make your own tortillas? They look great. I've tried and tried and just cant get it right. I have tortillas on my grocery list, perhaps I should put masa on it and try again. 🙂
We should do stir fry more often...
We ate mac and cheese, nachos, Italian wedding soup with bread, tomato soup with grilled cheese, French toast with bacon and fruit and tonight is pizza. It was definitely a week of comfort foods!!!
I spent right around $150 this week
Monday: Tortilla pizzas and blueberries.
Tuesday: Taco salad using a lot of leftovers from a taco party we held Sunday night. (We did tortilla pizzas the day before using the tortillas that people didn't eat with their tacos because it's the New Year and they aren't eating those types of foods.)
Wednesday: Turkey pot pie and pineapple.
Thursday: Chicken sandwiches, roasted broccoli, and sweet potatoes.
Friday: Mexican stuffed peppers, and something for a side... Maybe homemade fries because I have a lot of potatoes. I also have zucchini to use.
I stuck to my budget this week, spending just under $50. Most of my meals came from the freezer and pantry which allowed me to stock up on some staples and baking supplies which makes me happy.
Saturday - I made a new recipe for a pork chop and vegetable dish that was edible, but just barely. I ate it as prepared for one night and then fished out the pork chops for leftovers and tossed the mushy veggies and rice that went with them.
Sunday/Monday - left over pork chops with salad and applesauce.
Tuesday - chicken tacos
Wednesday - bacon and tomato sandwich
Thursday - I had to shovel snow after work and just wanted some thing quick, easy, and warm so I heated up a can of chicken noodle soup and made a PB&J. It totally hit the spot. Haha.
Friday - Not sure. Maybe an omelette with fajita veggies.
Monday - frugal girl tortellini soup. I count it as my new recipe as it's been a few years since I made it. I have so much sausage from our 1/3 of a hog and am happy to have found a good use for it. The soup was a huge hit.
Tuesday- spaghetti carbonara with fruit.
Wednesday- tacos - my kid's favorite. We had some pineapple on the side.
Thursday- pizza night. Pepperoni pizza, meatball pizza, broccoli and sliced fruit
Friday - macaroni and cheese bake with leftover polish sausage slices.
I can't and won't think about how much I have spent on meals this week. We are travelling and it is so ad hoc. We started iN England and now are in France. My daughter is vegan and meals are proving to be difficult.
I am looking forward to being home and cooking real food. Yum,
Reading all these menus is inspiring! I'm planning to make an "easy enchilada casserole" for dinner tonight. It's constructed like lasagna, in layers, using corn tortillas (locally made! but not by me), black beans (I cooked up myself), brown rice, shredded cheddar cheese, chopped black olives, and mild enchilada sauce. Popular with 3/4 household members. We'll probably add a spinach salad to that, plus raw bell pepper strips for my younger son instead (he is the one with the most restricted tastebuds--so far. I keep telling him that one day, hopefully soon, he's going to start trying more foods--and liking them).
It's so tough coming up with new meals! Alot of our items are in the deep freeze, so i have to have foresight to pull them out so they can thaw....That being said, I didn't cook every night from scratch. Items that were purchased this week came to about $50.
Mon-IHOP gift card (holiday gift to the family)
Tue- steak sandwiches, hot dogs, fries
Wed- smoked pork shoulder, spinach
Thurs- crockpot beef stew, juice from various fruits
Fri- leftover bbq shredded pork w/mixed veg and rolls, blueberry pie, oatmeal chip cookies
Sat- will be frozen veg/chicken dumplings, lemon chip cookies
Sun- DH is making stuffed pork chops with a basic bread stuffing
Monday: Baked chicken and mixed veggies
Tuesday: Turkey burger on a wholewheat bun with tomato and mustard, fruit
Wednesday: Spaghetti with meat sauce
Thursday: Left over spaghetti with meat sauce
Friday: Tried new pizza place called Mod. You build your own pizza. Ordered Canadian Bacon pizza with red sauce, pineapple, onions, tomatoes and cheese. It was delicious!