What I Spent, What We Ate | Does anyone NEED Nutella?
What I Spent
I spent $128 at the grocery store and $25 on my Hungry Harvest box.
This means I'd be starting October right on budget, but...I went to Costco last night.
We know how that goes.
I spent $107 at Costco, so that's going to really up my total this week. But I mostly bought things that we needed* and that were on sale, so in the long run, this is not a bad thing.
*I did pick up an $8 two-pack of Nutella, which is not anything anyone NEEDS.
SO.
October is starting off with a $260 total for one week!
What We Ate
I am having a more terrible time than usual remembering what sides we had this week. I really should write them down.
Saturday
Mr. FG and I had a date night while the girls were at a cousin's birthday sleepover.
Sunday
We had breakfast for dinner: pancakes with 3 ingredient strawberry syrup, plus sausage.
Monday
I made a pot of shrimp with orechiette (a Cook's Country super fast recipe), and of course, I made a chicken version for Zoe.
I'm sure we had some kind of produce with this, but it beats me what it was.
Tuesday
I made chicken tacos in corn tortillas (from Dinner Illustrated), and I do not remember what produce we had on the side.
Wednesday
I made summer rolls from a Cook's Illustrated magazine, and we had some raw produce with that (it was in the 90s and I didn't want to eat anything hot!).
Thursday
It was a long day, so we had a rotisserie chicken from Costco, and I made a pot of mashed potatoes.
I'd forgotten to think about any veggies or fruits so...we had sliced cucumbers and sliced apples. FANCY.
Friday
I'm using leftover rotisserie chicken to make a pan of chicken and biscuits.
I have some Romaine to use up, so I think we will have a green salad with our chicken and biscuits.
Nutella may not be necessary, but it sure is wonderful! We usually begin the month with a Costco trip, but by the end of the month it *usually* balances out thanks to ALDI.
Monday: Spanish chicken and potato stew (it also used up a produce box eggplant that needed to be used!)
Tuesday: chicken tacos with corn salsa
Wednesday: broccoli cheddar soup and no-knead bread
Thursday: friend’s house for Korean food
Friday: we’ve got friends coming over, so I’m making Italian stuffed peppers
At least on Thursday you cut the cukes and apples. I like the mini-cukes, which don't need to be cut (or peeled, which is the real reason I like them).
Sunday: Chicken stir-fry with snap peas and water chestnuts, watermelon.
Monday: The plan was sous vide carnitas from Serious Eats but I forgot to move it from the hot water to the fridge before I went to work. (A houseguest moved it for me but it spent 4-5 hours in water of uncertain temperature first. It's still sitting in my fridge while I decide how much I want to rely on my cast-iron stomach. My roommate won't touch it, nor should he - he has a delicate stomach.) Instead I hit the freezer, as usual: pork chops (sliced in half and pan fried, rather than thick and reverse seared, sob), tomatoes, baby carrots, watermelon.
Tuesday: Italian sausage, broccoli I think, watermelon.
Wednesday: Baked ribs, strawberries, watermelon, mini cukes.
Thursday: Meatballs, veg of choice, strawberries. The meatballs were to try a new recipe of Meatballs Braised in Red Wine Sauce, but I didn't feel like making the sauce and there was no cries or complaints about plain meatballs.
Friday: I don't know.
Saturday: a friend's BBQ.
I may stop buying watermelon for a while. I don't mind buying out of season produce because I value eating a variety of produce more than I value spending less and buying local. But that watermelon was styrofoamy and tasteless. OTOH, I'm not the only one eating it.
I bought nutella this week to - it was on sale!!!!!
I see your garlic press in one of the photos, and just wanted to pass a long a little tip that has allowed me to completely get rid of our garlic press:
If I'm prepping just a few cloves of garlic, I've discovered you can use a microplane to "shred" the garlic directly into whatever you're preparing. Mine happens to be made out of that metal that counteracts garlic smell, so just rinsing it and rubbing my fingertips (not against the blades!) on the metal gets rid of all garlic smell.
If I need to prepare a larger quantity, like for putting on pizza or using in a beef stew, I run a bunch of cloves through my 2-cup mini food processor. As long as I wash it out immediately, no garlic smell remains, and then I put the chopped garlic in a glass container with a metal lid (usually a mason jar!).
We haven't owned a garlic press in years, and I haven't had to clean one in over a decade. The other devices I use for many other things, and already had them in the kitchen.
That's a great idea. I keep looking at garlic presses, but know I will hate cleaning it more than I hate using it so it will just be a space waster. I already have a microplane, so I'll give it a go. Thanks!
Monday - I did a mystery shop at KFC which got me a "Chicken Little" (a small chicken sandwich). I had pulled some pulled pork out of the freezer so my husband had a pulled pork sandwich with mac & cheese
Tuesday - I grilled some chicken. I had mine in a salad and my husband had his with spinach ravioli in a white sauce
Wednesday - I worked late and somehow couldn't make it the 20 minute ride home without stopping for something. So I used a deal in the Wendy's app to get a free 6 piece spicy chicken nugget with any purchase and bought a junior-sized fries. Made my husband General Tsao's Chicken (an item I got on clearance in the freezer section) with broccoli and rice.
Thursday - I liked the sound of the homemade hamburger helper recipe from the "Don't Waste the Crumbs" blog, but I didn't have any pasta. I didn't feel like stopping at the store, so I just made it with rice. This was a weird but edible substitution.
Friday - I have a BOGO coupon for a Mexican restaurant so we are doing a date night.
Those summer rolls look awesome! Have you posted that recipe? And do you think they would work with tofu in place of the shrimp? I love shrimp, but hubby hates it, so I usually end up making the same dish but with tofu for him and shrimp for me.
Tofu is absolutely one of the traditional things to put in Summer Rolls!
During cucumber season, we have sliced cucumbers almost every day. Because we are never fancy.
Saturday: T-bone steaks, rice, steamed broccoli, leftover sauteed summer squashes
Sunday: Italian (i.e., with tomatoes and basil) stew, pasta with marinara sauce, roasted summer squash, another betty with foraged fruits--this time with peaches, plums, and pears. Another winner.
Monday: Various leftovers, cucumber/tomato/cheese salad
Tuesday: Barbecue beef, garlic bread, roasted bell pepper/onion/summer squash, raw tomatoes
Wednesday: The rest of the Italian stew with a pound of ground beef added, bread and butter, sauteed summer squash, raw tomatoes
Thursday: T-bone steaks (yes, again), mashed potatoes, sauteed summer squash (it's summer squash season!), tomato salad (and tomato season! until it freezes on Thursday, anyway)
Tonight: My husband is gone elk hunting, so I think it's going to be leftovers and some frozen mozzarella sticks someone gave us, topped off with popcorn for a kids' movie night, because any night he's not here is a night I can avoid cooking meat, hooray
It‘s been like this for me, too. I made meat-less meals only when I was cooking for myself. However, we found some fancy cooking books with delicious veggie meals that my SO made. Some became our favorite meals and so we ate them more and more. In the last month, he also read and heard more about the health and climate impact of meat and he even actively tries to reduce it. I am especially happy as the vegetarian meals reduce our food spendings notably.
Friday - Arby's because we were feeling lazy
Saturday - Pizzas from the freezer. My oldest ate something else earlier in the evening since he had Homecoming to attend.
Sunday - Homemade copy-cat Olive Garden Chicken & Gnocchi soup with Hawaiian rolls. This was pretty good but it took a lot of salt to make it taste like Olive Garden's.
Monday - Hamburger sliders
Tuesday - Fish sticks, green beans, mac n cheese
Wednesday - Kielbasa, potatoes, green beans, pierogies and biscuits
Thursday - Meatball subs
Tonight - Breakfast for dinner. A girl I work with brought in some garden tomatoes so I'll be making BLTs, scrambled eggs, and hashbrowns.
Arby’s is my weakness <3 <3 <3
Love Arby's -- not sorry!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
For the life of me I cannot remember what we had this week. However, I have spent over $300 of food over the last week and a bit. I bought lamb for birthday dinners this week. My oldest and youngest are on the same day so one big family dinner of their combined favourites this year. I have bought all the ingredients to make cakes for that day and a surprise party tomorrow. There is also meat to make meatballs and sausage rolls for tomorrow as well. Fruit is outrageous here but I will buy it because we eat it every day. I also managed to buy some meat heavily discounted. It is in the freezer. Ground beef was $24 a kilo the other days so when I saw some reduced to around the $2 mark for half a kilo it had to jump in the trolley.
The weather is warming up and at least three night this week we have had fruit plates after dinner, there was a cheese platter one night, two nights we had Japanese savoury pancakes with lots of vegetables in them and a roasted dinner as well. I am hoping to not spend much now as I have heaps of meat, vegetables and a little fruit.
No judgement on the Nutella. Do I need Aldi's pumpkin pie hummus? No. Am I ecstatic that I'm eating some on an apple right now? Absolutely.
Monday: Brats, chips, peas
Tuesday: Cheeseburgers, green beans, grilled peaches, pear slices
Wednesday: Ha. I decided to ditch my casserole plans and go for easy, so I made chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese. It became apparent that I hadn't made enough for me and my 3 little kids, so I got out a couple of mandarin oranges... Which turned into me peeling somewhere between 15 and 20 oranges for those 3 little kids.
Thursday: Hot dogs and broccoli with cheese
Friday: Stir fry and strawberries
I know you are a big fan (like me) of Gold Medal Unbleached flour that you usually buy at Target. However I have not been able to find it in Publix, Walmart or Target for the last few weeks. I assume this is due to the latest recall. Since I was about to run out of flour, I decided to try Market Pantry unbleached flour from Target for $1.39/5 lb bag (a savings of about $1/bag from Gold Medal). Reviews were mixed online but I don't see how it would make much difference in baking. Now I am off to bake something to test it out. Thought I would pass on this frugal find.
Let me know how it is! I've never been happy with store brand flour, but I haven't tried Market Pantry specifically.
I rarely buy Nutella even though my kids and I love it... my husband is a bit of a debbie downer about how unhealthy it is, lol. Maybe I should add it to the next list.
Monday- Chicken pot pies, veggie tray
Tuesday- Taco Chicken Chili, cornbread
Wednesday- Homemade Tomato Soup, grilled cheese (husband was the only one who ended up actually wanting the grilled cheese; my kids preferred bread and butter).
Thursday- Birthday dinner for my now-5-year-old... she chose chicken and jo-jos from our local pizza place... her current favorite. <3 We also had mango on the side, and birthday cupcakes for dessert.
Friday- I was going to make homemade pizza, but we have such an overabundance of leftovers, we're gonna have Kitchen Island Buffet instead.
I had to actually opt out of next week's produce box. I'm trying so hard to eat up our amazing rescued vegetables, but we have so many, and none of us are huge eaters, I'm actually starting to freak out that they're gonna go to waste if I don't freeze some or get super creative here. And we get the Small size box!! I think next week is gonna include some stuffed cabbage or homemade cole slaw to use up a head of cabbage we got. I also need to blanch some green beans, and I'll make chicken soup for all the carrots and celery.
If you aren't fancy, neither are we. I slice up cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes .... whatever is growing in the garden and can be eaten fresh is fair game. Hey, I figure that I have to string and snap the beans from the garden, so if I can hit the Easy Button from time to time, I will!
Sunday: We went on a day trip with the in-laws and ate on the excursion boat.
Monday: Bake of mashed squash and potatoes with grilled goat cheese - very delicious
Tuesday: Melted cheese which I bought on sale with bread and some salad
Wednesday: Burger at a local restaurant
Thursday: Leftovers to clean the fridge before we will be on tour for the weekend: creamy veggie sauce made of cauliflower and cabbage with potatoes
Friday: Taking sandwiches and veggie snacks for the train trip and we will eat at a restaurant when we arrive
So maybe the one good thing about my son's tree nut allergy is not being able to have Nutella in the house!
This week was what I would call basic skills meals because my husband has a half marathon this weekend and wanted to eat super-plain foods to make sure his super-delicate digestive system is on its best behavior. So dinners were mostly ham steaks, scrambled eggs, plain fish, and potatoes. I did make a big batch of vegetable soup for my son and me to round things out. I also made us a batch of cupcakes for the two of us from a mix I round in the recesses of a cupboard that was long past its best by date. I threw in some 75% chocolate chips and received no complaints.
*75% off chocolate chips. They were definitely 100% chocolate. 🙂
100% chocolate is the only kind to have!
Well, I think I have all of you beat!!! First of all, let me say that I live alone, so I don't have to worry what anyone else thinks. I bought a pork tenderloin on markdown (under $3.00) and made it with macaroni and cheese and a veggie. The rest of the week, I had some form of pork or macaroni each evening!!! 'Just made a veg and fruit and dinner was served!!!!!
Well, that sounds perfectly easy and healthy. Good for you!
Sunday and Monday- Alice Springs Chicken with mashed potatoes
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday- pot roast with carrots and potatoes
Friday- grilled hamburgers, homemade pickles, with baked sweet potatoes
Grocery bill was $69 this week for our family of 4.
Sunday sausages with mixed veggies and mashed potato.
Monday leftover sausage sandwiches or with more mashed potato.
Tuesday roast chicken tortellini, tomato sauce and garlic bread.
Wednesday chow mein with turkey mince, instant noodles, mixed stir fry veggies and coleslaw mix.
Thursday basa fillets cooked with tomatoes, garlic and herbs, mixed veggies, and potatoes.
Friday rotisserie chicken sandwiches for some people and I had the second pizza roll that I bought for lunch as I had no appetite due to suspected food poisoning.
Tonight we had leftovers, sandwiches, and I cooked myself 2 eggs in nests. I was going to make burgers with the lot but I still didn't feel well.
Sunday Chili & beans with Fritos
Monday Rice a Roni with veggies & beans
Tuesday I was sick all day, had crackers and some grape juice
Wednesday Beef fajitas was beyond thankful I felt better...
Thursday Pizza
Friday Lasagna and garlic bread
Saturday Beef stew with green beans, tiny taters, carrots, barley and quinoa
We had a salad with each meal and some sort of veggies. Temps were in the upper 30's last night so our cucumber and tomato run will be over soon...but I still have lots of raspberries on the plants.
I only spent $27 on groceries this week because we are making the most of our packed-to-the-gills freezer.
Sunday: Our vegan came over for dinner. Grilled hamburgers and veggie burgers. Made garlicky home fries and and cut up pineapple for sides.
Monday: Hot dogs and beans with Boston brown bread.
Tuesday: made a rub of baking chocolate powder, dark brown sugar, smoked paprika, sea salt, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper and cummin and applied it to a venison roast. Wrapped it in cherrywood smoked bacon; seared it to make a great crust then finished in the oven. Served it with baked potatoes and mixed veggies.
Wednesday: Breakfast for dinner! Eggs over easy, cherrywood smoked bacon and whole wheat toast.
Thursday: Made a brown gravy and made hot venison sandwiches with the leftover venison roast. Brown rice and molasses bread on the side.
Friday: Ham, turkey, cheese sandwiches dressed with onion, tomato, spinach and spicy brown mustard and minestrone soup.
Saturday: My vegetarian made a surprise visit home from college for the weekend. She was craving my homemade Mac & cheese and fresh dinner rolls.
Sunday - Sandwiches and potato chips
Monday - Chicken Pot Pie
Tuesday - Hamburgers
Wednesday - Chicken Lemon Rice Soup
Thursday - Soup and Sandwiches
Friday - Spaghetti and Meatballs
Saturday - I was home alone so I just nuked a frozen Stouffer's single serve entree
I was in Tokyo for work this week, so I ate a bunch of fish. Not being a fish lover, it wasn't the best, but it was all "free" (free because work paid). I left food for my husband & kids, but judging by the state of the fridge... they didn't eat much of that. Last night we had tacos & pico de gallo. Tonight we had lasagna. We'll be cleaning out the fridge for the rest of the week.
I don't love fish either. I wish I did, because I know it's a healthy choice...but man, I just struggle to enjoy it.
In a word - yes