WIS, WWA | $138!
What I Spent
Saturday night, we had a cookout to go to, and I spent $18.83 on drinks and chips for that, plus $10 on a pack of chicken for my freezer.
On Monday, I took a $74 trip to Aldi.
On Tuesday, I was thinking, "Oh, nuts. I really need frozen fruit from Costco, but I do not feel like making a Costco trip." And oddly enough, just a few hours later, Mr. FG called me from Costco to see if I needed anything.
YESSSS. He picked up frozen fruit and dental floss for me, which was fabulous. ($33.47)
And on Thursday, I needed buttermilk for pancakes, so I stopped at the store and bought only buttermilk ($1.89). Gold stars for me!
So, $138 for me this week.
May Spending
Week 1: $132
Week 2: $85
Week 3: $138
I'm having a very good grocery budget month so far!
What We Ate
Monday
I made a shrimp cobb salad, with hard-boiled eggs and avocados. I toasted some homemade whole wheat bread to go with that, and we had watermelon wedges.
We are awfully happy that Aldi has watermelons again. So yummy!
Tuesday
I made Swiss mushroom chicken and boy, I can't remember what we had with that.
Let's pretend we had green beans and pineapple, as in this photo. 😉
Wednesday
I pounded some pork tenderloins to ½ inch thick, grilled them, and topped them with chimichurri sauce.
And we had watermelon, apple slices, and orange slices with the pork because that was all I felt inspired to do.
Thursday
Easy button night! Mr. FG had some dental work done, so he needed something easy to chew. Pancakes seemed like a perfect option.
I made some strawberry syrup, on Lisey's request, and we topped our pancakes with whipped cream too.
Man, I love whipped cream.
If you haven't tried the strawberry syrup, do it! It's really easy and oh my word, it is SO much cheaper than fruit syrups from the store.
I have no idea why those are so expensive, but they are.
Friday
I am honestly not sure. Normally we'd have pizza, but Mr. FG probably still isn't going to be up to something that chewy. So I'll need to figure out something on the softer side.
I can't decide is listing out all the food I cook for dinner makes me proud, or bummed that I do all this every day and have to keep doing it. Lately, I'm afraid I'm leaning toward the latter.
Monday: Country-style pork ribs (on the grill! HOORAY), boiled potatoes, cucumbers with vinegar and salt, fried cabbage and onions
Tuesday: Beef--random stew meat cooked till tender then crisped in the oven with olive oil and garlic--, rice, broccoli, roasted sweet potatoes and onion, curried potato soup for the sick child
Wednesday: Cornell chicken--an upstate New York specialty grilled chicken specialty. The marinade is mostly vinegar, but there's an egg in it, which makes the chicken very crispy and brown. Boiled potatoes with green garlic, sauteed mushrooms with green garlic (the garlic is supposed to chase the cold germs away . . .), carrot sticks with ranch dip, baked custard for the sick ones
Thursday: Pork chops, pan-fried sweet potatoes, fried cabbage and onions, steamed broccoli, cornbread
Tonight: The million dollar question . . . I may need until after my second cup of coffee to formulate the entire meal (nope, not a meal planner), but at the moment I'm leaning toward London broil with green garlic butter, potatoes in some form (we have 30 pounds of seed potatoes my MiL gave us that she can't plant, neither can we, and they're starting to sprout, so this is Potato Cooking Challenge season), and salad.
Please ignore all proofreading errors. Still on the first cup of coffee . . .
You can freeze mashed potatoes and they do fine, especially if you add some butter as you are nuking them back to life.
Good to know. Though we're moving cross-country at the end of June, so long-term freezing isn't really an option.
Ooh, wow! Are you moving somewhere...warmer??
Marginally. Middle of nowhere (for real--the village has 94 people, soon to be 100 when we move in:-) in far northeastern New Mexico, about 2 hours east of Santa Fe. The elevation where we're going--6,000 feet--means that there's definitely still a winter and even some snow, but it sure won't be anything like living on the Canadian border.
Oh, wow! Are you moving there for your husband's work?
No. There isn't really work there per se, as it's a ranching community. My husband is no longer location-dependent for his job, so we decided to get closer to Arizona, as that's where 3/4 of the grandparents, half the aunts and uncles, and all the cousins for our kids are. Plus, it's waaaay cheaper to live there than in New York.
That is so great to not be location-dependent! Then you have the freedom to live wherever you want...or wherever is inexpensive.
We buy detergent natal floss from Cisco too! The blue one. I can't remember the brand.
Mr. FAF loves watermelon and watermelon smoothie, so I'm so happy to see them at the grocery store. It's still a bit expensive, so we are still waiting for the price to go down to buy one.
Monday - BBQ pork sandwiches, salad, corn
Tuesday - shredded pork on tortillas (pork tacos), corn, cantaloupe
Wednesday - pork (again), black beans, mac and cheese, salad
Thursday - Lentil stew (it was cool and rainy)
Friday- only a few of us will be home so something easy ??
Warmed applesauce from the freezer for Mr F! I am in love with homemade applesauce!
BTW-you can either substitute yogurt or milk with vinegar added for "buttermilk."
So, I've tried the milk with vinegar trick, and I don't know if I'm just really picky or what, but pancakes made that way never taste the same to me. Maybe I'm a buttermilk snob!
How about milk with lemon juice for 5 minutes instead of vinegar? That's what my cookbook recommends as a substitute in the buttermilk pancake recipe.
Plain yogurt--which I know you have on hand :-)--is all I use now when a recipe calls for buttermilk. Most of the stores near me inexplicably stopped carrying buttermilk, and the one kind I can find has weird ingredients. So yogurt it is. Works fine for everything, although my coleslaw is fractionally less delicious made with yogurt. Oh well.
Ah, I can see that working, since it's already pretty thick. I'll have to try that.
I would go to the store for buttermilk as well. I like it better than the substitutes!
To me, buttermilk is WAY different from all of these. If I have NO choice, I use plain yogurt or sour cream thinned with a little milk, but it sure doesn’t have the taste or texture of the real thing! Try it and see!
Monday- I made homemade mac & cheese, brussel sprouts, applesauce, and the
first green onions from the garden. I love green onions and used them a
lot.
Tuesday - We had spaghetti with a meat sauce, garlic bread, and green onions.
Wednesday- I made a Chef's salad.
Thursday - It was such a busy night for everyone I ended up bringing pizza home
for dinner.
Friday - Tonight is my grandson's high school graduation. After the ceremony we
are all going to Applebee's for a celebration dinner.
Mashed potato cakes are yummy with a sore mouth.
Let's see, we had steak one night, and since I am re-introducing potatoes, we had baked potatoes! I had something green, too, but who knows what.
I used leftover chicken meat and made chicken veggie soup one night.
I also used the meat in a stir-fry that I made using one of our own cabbages. It's red cabbage, so it was a very pink stir-fry. Since I can't have soy sauce yet, I added extra ginger and garlic then put in coconut aminos and fish sauce. The fish sauce was the trick!
I got home pretty late one night, so it was leftover soup for me and a cheese and bacon grilled sandwich with cole slaw for the husband.
Last night I made brined pork roast and roasted root veggies, with a side of sauteed zucchini, onions and summer squash. Brine your pork roasts -- it helps them just as much as brining chicken. My recipe calls for ginger to be steeped in hot water, then add orange zest, some orange juice, garlic, and salt. Let it brine for no more than 8 hours. Yum. It's from the Autoimmune Wellness Handbook by Mickey Trescott and Angie Alt.
I somehow spent less than $100 last week on groceries, so I'm having a good grocery month, too!
Even for not feeling like cooking, your meals sound good! This week we had:
Monday - Salads with grilled chicken, roasted corn, and gouda
Tuesday - leftover sloppy joes from Sunday, with chips
Wednesday - Stuffed Italian Shells from the freezer with some turnip greens
Thursday - Crockpot of beans with pork ribs, corn muffins
Friday - Skillet Chicken and Rice with peas
Saturday - will be YOYO, but Hubby and I will grill fish
Sunday - will be Fruited Chicken Salad on croissants
Not much in the veggie department this week, so I tried to sneak them in to various dishes - diced peppers and peas in the chicken and rice, for example.
Happy Weekend!
Monday - I made chicken Parmesan for my husband. I had leftover salad w/ grilled chicken that was leftover from our Mother's Day celebration plus a leftover pancake from my breakfast that morning
Tuesday - A small shepherd's pie for my husband (trying to clean out the freezer and I had 1 burger patty and a small amount of mashed potatoes), I had chicken enchiladas that were from the freezer.
Wednesday - It was our anniversary so we went to a local restaurant that has a patio because it was a beautiful evening and we could bring our dogs. We each had a burger and a couple beers.
Thursday - Chicken stir fry. It'd be nice if I could make it all in one pan but the only veggie he likes is broccoli so I always have to make 2 separate stir frys so that I can have pepper, onion, etc.
Friday - Tonight my sister and I are headed to the other side of Michigan to check out Grand Rapids before my mom and grandma arrive tomorrow morning for a girl's weekend. We will check out a local restaurant with good yelp reviews!
Happy anniversary!!
Monday- Fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, corn casserole, chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream
Tuesday- Salami and provolone cheese sandwiches, grapes and chocolate/vanilla pudding
Wednesday- Sausage pizza
Thursday- Turkey, stuffing, sweet potato wedges, and green beans
Friday- Zucchini noodles with marinara sauce, dinner rolls
Saturday and Sunday were chicken leftovers from the week before. During the weekdays this week I was uninspired and also had a bunch of potatoes to use up. So, on Monday we had potato soup, on Tuesday I added a ton of leeks, so we had potato leek soup, and on Wednesday I added some sausage so we had potato/leek/sausage soup. My husband is a saint who will eat anything I put in front of him without complaint, even if it is the same thing for three days. His mother was a fine woman but among the world's worst cooks and bakers, so he is just happy to have something edible for dinner every night. He heaps extravagant praise on anything I put out for him. He hates to cook, except for hamburgers, so I cook and he cleans the kitchen and does the dishes. Works for me!
On Thursday we had crepes filled with mushrooms in a sour cream sauce. Tonight we are having hamburgers, which we do almost every Friday.
Monday - I've apparently resorted back to college student standards... A friend wanted to pay me to watch her kids and when she asked what I charged, I told her my preferred method of payment was Hot N Ready pizzas. I'm 33 weeks pregnant with my third kid. So we had pizza for dinner, which seems to be happening a lot more often these days...
Tuesday - Fajitas and pineapple
Wednesday - Hot dogs over the fire and watermelon. I had carrot sticks out, but no one cared about them.
Thursday - Hubby was at a meeting so the kids and I had leftovers.
Friday - Spaghetti with meat, peppers, zucchini, and onions in the sauce, plus a side of cantaloupe. I'm also thinking about making fake ice cream with frozen bananas, peanut butter, and chocolate. Again - 33 weeks pregnant.
Whipping cream. Is there anything better?! (Haha... I guess that's all I took away from this post... must have whipping cream tonight!)
Our ways from this week:
Monday - made a turkey, so will be eating a lot of that and freezing some for meals later.
Dinner was turkey, rice, carrots and broccoli.
Tuesday - Turkey, brown rice and salad
Wednesday - Steak, roast potatoes, green beans and peas
Thursday- my mom took me and the kids out for dinner since we went out to visit her.
Friday- just got some burgers from Costco on sale last night, so burgers tonight it will be! And whipping cream! (Probably notnonbthe burgers)
There is little in the world better than whipping cream.
Mmm... buttermilk pancakes sounds great! So cheap. I don't mind them with the homemade buttermilk myself (maybe it just tastes fine to me because it's a psychological thing, it's less expensive but not any less healthy, which makes it delish in my book) but I could see where it wouldn't be the same as buying actual buttermilk to some. If It's not satisfying to you at all, frugality sometimes just matters not...
We had:
Mon: We were on vacation so we had the finest of meals in our hotel, microwaveable mac 'n' cheese cups (whole grain ones you can get at target, at least the smallest bit better than regular) topped with packets of tuna and baby carrots I think? Maybe it was peppers. Maybe both.
Tues: A big lunch out on vacation equaled my kiddo and I just snacking on nuts, the hubby fixed himself a little plate of nachos late when we got home.
Wed: My mom took us out to dinner, just because my little really loves to go to dinner with grandma. Noodles and Company now has zoodles! It's exciting.
Thurs: pizza quesadilla, strawberry and blackberry and banana salad, side of steamed swiss chard
Fri: hot dogs, cucumber slices w/ vinegar and frozen French fries, as always, I put my healthier twist on it... organic meat and produce items (including fries) and whole grain buns... still not a stellar week healthy eating-wise... my daughter graduated kindergarten last week and I guess we've been kicking off the summer hard. There's a celebratory mood around here! Managed to not break the budget, so at least from that standpoint I'm pretty satisfied.
The last week of school... why does it take so long to go from Monday to Friday?
Monday night I defrosted a container of shredded chicken for the family and heated it in BBQ.. served with a semi homemade mac N cheese for the people.. I did not eat as I had to go to a work program...
Tuesday Homemade alfredo sauce ( made with shelf stable whipping cream from Trader Joes) served over penne with fresh broccoli and diced sauted chicken... and garlic bread and fresh fruit
Wed- tossed 2 small beef roasts (manager markdown finds) into the crock pot with a bag of baby carrots and beef stock... made gravy.. served with frozen corn and boxed instant mashed potatoes... Husband asked if we had bread.. I attempted to make a quick yeast bread.. was very dense but find for gravy purposes...lol
Thursday- beautiful non rainy weather.. grilled burger patties I prepped and froze previously.. served with onion rings and french fries..
Friday night.. ordered papa johns for the people and headed to a surprise graduation dinner party for a friend....
Oh wow, I never need dental floss! I think my dentist gives me sooo much with each cleaning.
Great frugal week!
We spent $90 this week and have started to stock up for our roof tear off and replacement party.
I see you've already got some comments on the buttermilk. I have so few recipes that call for it...I always ended up throwing some out. So now I keep a small bottle of lemon juice,and just add it to our reg milk when a recipe calls for buttermilk. I think it's one tablespoon per cup of milk. And you just let it sit together 5 minutes before adding. I'm sure it's not perfect but it does the trick.