WIS, WWA | $152
What I Spent
I spent:
- $125 at Aldi
- $27 at Safeway
So, $152 total.
What We Ate
Saturday
I made Swiss mushroom chicken with a green salad on the side.
Sunday
I went for a hike and had a sandwich on the way home; while I was gone, the girls used some Red Lobster gift cards that had been sitting in my drawer for a while.
(I did give them permission to do this! It's not like they just took 'em.)
Monday
I made a creamy chicken and gnocchi soup, which I've made once before. But this time I used the potato gnocchi from Dollar Tree, and I give this a thumbs down. It had sort of a weird flavor to it!
So, now I know: it's better to get the gnocchi at a grocery store.
Tuesday
Leftover soup, plus butternut squash rolls and this cranberry-orange green salad.
Wednesday
Chicken tacos with a cilantro-radish-lime salad, and fruit on the side.
Thursday
I had gotten a marked-down pork butt at Sam's Club, so I slow-cooked that to make pulled pork, which we ate on buns. I just cut up some fruits and veggies for us to eat on the side.
Friday
Lisey has plans with a friend and Zoe's working, so hmmm...I've only got to feed myself! Easy-peasy. 🙂
WIS: $27 at the local Cooperative Market's 10% off sale for members, and $20 at Price Chopper. (The Coop is an organic/natural foods store. I rarely shop there now because it's expensive, but I'm a member from way back when, so I do try to hit the occasional sales when they happen--mainly for Equal Exchange fair trade coffee and bananas.)
WIA: The highlights were two homemade soups (chicken noodle and split pea) and an excellent chicken cacciatore, all from ingredients I already had on hand. In common with many others, I'm sure, I'm devoting part of my low-spend February to eating down the freezer and pantry.
Ooh! I see one of my favorite stickers on your chicken! 😉
WIS: 15.67 on fast food, 94.52@ local health food store, 46.15@ Giant, 78.73 on an Amazon order, 29.98@ Target and 195.45@ Aldi for a grand total of 460.50. It's been a week and I've been tired and busy, so my salads were a bit lack luster while my spending was just insane. Here's hoping next week is calmer.
WWA:
Fri: salad (mixed greens, apple slices, almonds, a diced mozzarella stick, and a strawberry mootube), pepperoni and mozzarella sourdough focaccia with marinated tomatoes and parmesan cheese.
Sat: small amounts of assorted leftovers and toppings in hard taco shells (rice, tofu and bean chili, sauteed onions and peppers, spinach, diced tomatoes, guacamole, cheddar cheese and sour cream), sourdough brie bread ring.
Sun: salad (spinach, blueberries, shredded mozzarella cheese and tomato marinade dressing), Aldi take and bake cheese pizza and tortilla cheese pizzas.
Mon: crudites (carrots, celery and cucumbers with ranch dip), Sunday gravy (on a Monday!) which is a tomato sauce that simmers all day and features 40 cloves of garlic, 3 cans of incredibly expensive san marzano tomatoes and at least 2 kinds of meat (Italian sausage and meatballs this time). It is not at all frugal, but it is delicious. We had it over ravioli purchased on sale at Aldi, so I guess that much was frugal anyway. We also had homemade biscuits with it.
Tue: watermelon slices, leftover Sunday gravy on buttery homemade hamburger buns and topped with shredded parmesan.
Wed: salad (lettuce, raisins, peanuts and ranch dressing), cubed cantaloupe, chicken and rice made in the instapot. This also had sweet peppers and canned pink beans in it and made A LOT. We will be eating it for a while, but that's ok. We like lefties around here.
Thu: watermelon slices, cheese take and bake pizza, leftover chicken and rice in hard taco shells and topped with pepper jack cheese, sour cream and chipotle cholulu sauce. Some people put pizza slices inside their taco shells. Is it a pizza taco or a taco pizza? Or is it just strange? You be the judge.
Tonight: focaccia and I will finally make a proper salad because I'm feeling sluggish this week from too many carb-heavy meals.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
@Becca, Thursday's menu sounds like a lot of fun!
Yes! The 50% off sticker!
@Becca, That sauce sounds terrific!
@Becca, It's a pizza taco, since the first word describes what's in it, and the second is the food itself. Like a jackfruit taco is a taco with jackfruit in it, and a mushroom pizza is a pizza with mushroom in it. So a taco pizza is a pizza with taco toppings, but a pizza taco is a taco of pizza. Not to get too pedantic on your assuredly rhetorical question, but I just like words, lol!
Side question - was it just a full slice sideways in an otherwise empty shell? Or was it tiny slices of pizza covered in the other taco toppings? Because if it's the latter, it would be a taco pizza taco!!! 🙂
@Becca,
What hamburger roll recipe does your husband use? We've done King Arthur and they came ok pretty good but they aren't the same as store ones.
We had a ginormous taco pizza once at a place up in the White Mountains and it was so good! If only we could attach pictures here.
I would call what you had a pizza taco and it sounds fun!
@Jaime,
Well, he has used this recipe with excellent results: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/beautiful-burger-buns-recipe
But this past week he tried a new one which used sourdough discard and was also excellent: https://www.pantrymama.com/sourdough-discard-rolls/
@Rachel,
Just a sideways slice shoved into a taco and a bit of extra cheese on top because there's no such thing as too much cheese.
I live to hear about your dinners! The pulled pork looks fantastic, but so do the tacos. I need tacos this weekend, I think. This week:
Monday - Pan Fried Tilapia, (freezer) El Dorado rice, brussels sprouts
Tuesday - (freezer) One Pot Spaghetti, broccoli, garlic toast on the side
Wednesday - Salmon Patty, brussels sprouts, baked potato
Thursday - Chicken thigh/sweet potato/onion skillet (by far the best meal of the week!)
Tonight - Grilled Cheese Sandwich, lentil and bowtie soup - HOWEVER, it also depends on how the day goes...take-out might happen
Saturday - TBD {wine club pick-up with a friend for lunch}
Sunday - Sloppy Joe Fries for one, with added bell pepper, onions
Groceries this week totaled $103.68 and included pantry staples, so next week will be a super small budget, I think.
Do you have a brand of gnocchi that you recommend? I have bought various kinds at the grocery but I always think it has a weird flavor.
I'm trying to remember what brands I have bought before! I've never gotten it at Aldi, so it has to have been a name brand from a regular grocery store.
@Tarynkay, I just gave up and decided I don't really like it all that much.
@Tarynkay,
Granted it does include a little time with cooking the potato and letting the dough rest but they aren't too difficult to make and well worth it
@Kristen,
We eat Aldi’s brand ALL the time. It’s very good!
@Tarynkay, I like the Rana brand of gnocchi. No cooking in water but pan fry the gnocchi in butter. I finish with parmesan cheese.
@Tarynkay, Trader Joe’s had good gnocchi
WIS: $75 at Food Lion, $10 at Ollie's Outlet.
WWA: Roasted chicken legs, green beans, green salads with croutons and dried cranberries, homemade bread. Made some of the chicken into barbecue chicken sandwiches on buns bought last week at Dollar Tree. Still enjoying the white bean-chicken-spinach soup I made last week and froze in single serve size containers.
WIS: $127 plus $8 for two TGTG bags
Fri: Spices chickpeas roasted in the oven, served in pitas with lettuce, guacamole and pickled red onion.
Sat: Pizza rolls. Dough and blue cheese from a TGTG bag. Spicy sausage, corn and grated cheese from the freezer. Mutti pizza sauce and red onions.
Sun: Stroganoff stew with moose instead of beef. Mashed potatoes and dinner rolls.
Mon: Red lentil soup and dinner rolls.
Tue: Cod served with boiled potatoes, kohlrabi and eggsauce. Caught the fish myself so the meal taste extra good 🙂
Wed: Homemade cauliflower soup. Had bacon on top, but will skip it next time as it overrode the taste of the soup.
Thu: Caesar salad with homemade dressing. Salad, chicken and bread to make croutons from TGTG.
Today: no idea. Still have a salad from TGTG that need to be used up.
Had kiwi and red oranges for dessert most days.
@Gunn from Northern Norway, I'm envious you can catch your own cod. Probably my favorite fish, but I've never tasted it fresh.
@Gunn from Northern Norway,
Ah - red ("blood") oranges. My favorite!
@J NL, Our Aldi has raspberry oranges. They are red, but I think the taste is different from red "blood" oranges. They are AMAZING! Everyone I work with and all of my family are now hooked
@kristin @ going country, come visit. You can catch about anything here but it's high season now for cod*. I haven't seen any whales offshore lately but they'll be back soon.
Once in the 70s, the blues were running so prodigiously my brother caught a large one in his hands just swimming on the beach. My mom grilled it.
we gave the unwanted bits to my grandmother's pet seagull. (Wild bird but could come at a hand clap.) You haven't lived till you've seen a seagull swallow something huge like a bluefish head or a chicken breast bone on its own.
@Rose,
That is so cool! I have some LI photographer friends who have captured various shore birds swallowing big fish whole. It's fascinating to me! Also whales feeding and breaching.
@Liz B., here is a whale close offshore the church we sometimes go to in the summer, in Southampton, NY.
https://ibb.co/xFPHkYF
@Gunn from Northern Norway,
What is TGTG?
@Sue M, TGTG is Too Good To Go - an app that has offers from restaurants, bakeries, some grocery stores. At the end of the day (usually, but not always) rather than throw out the food they sell it for a fraction. The only catch is that you won't know what you will get until you go and pick it up.
Reddit has a thread of what folks have received: https://www.reddit.com/r/toogoodtogo/
@Rose,
Thank you! So awesome!
WIS: $196 @ Walmart and $108 @ Costco
WWA:
Saturday: My husband and I were out together just the two of us for the whole day and we shared fajitas for dinner. Everyone else had leftover turkey chili
Sunday: Pan sauteed cod with lemon and dill, sauteed spinach with red peppers, onions, garlic, tomatoes and mushrooms, brown rice. Sliced oranges for dessert.
Monday: baked salmon with chili, cilantro & lime, sweet potatoes and leftover veggies
Tuesday: leftovers for some and I had a low carb spinach wrap with turkey breast, lettuce, tomato, onion and a bit of italian dressing
Wednesday: I used remaining turkey breast with some peas, carrots, celery, corn and homemade chicken stock to create a pot pie-ish concoction. I topped it with some frozen biscuits that have been living in my freezer for far too long & called it good.
Thursday: I made big mac sloppy joes with ground turkey on whole wheat buns and we had oven fries and pears on the side. This was a new recipe and everyone loved it.
Friday: Leftovers for some and the hubby & I are going out on a date 🙂
Happy weekend friends!
Gonna have an egg+ tonight? 🙂
Saturday: I left taco meat and beans for the rest of the family to eat while I was at a far-distant basketball game with my eldest son. My husband actually fried tortillas to make taco shells for the meat, and that was unsurprisingly very popular with the children.
Sunday: I made one cheese pizza, one with bacon, and threw some frozen green beans on the plates with the pizza. Still frozen, because that's how my kids like them, and who am I to argue with not having to cook a vegetable for them?
Monday: The school cook had given me like two dozen leftover ground beef tacos, so I heated those up for the children in a cast iron pan with oil, because the shells are kind of dry on their own. The grudging vegetable of the day was carrot sticks.
Tuesday: I baked barbecue meatballs and baked potatoes just before I left in the afternoon for another basketball game, and left the food in the warm oven. That way, it was ready to go for my husband to feed the two younger boys in the short time they had between getting home on the bus and leaving for judo, and then when I got home with the other two kids, it was ready for us, too. Convenient.
Wednesday: More cafeteria tacos, plus refried beans and cheese, prepared by my husband for the children while I was at our very delayed staff Christmas party.
Thursday: T-bone steaks, rice with chicken stock, green salad with ranch dressing, baked custard. In our house, a bad sore throat rates custard (assuming I'm home to make it and have enough eggs, milk and cream). My eldest son has yet again succumbed to the petri dish that is the basketball team, and he almost always gets a sore throat when he's sick. So the custard was for him, although of course everyone else got to have some, too.
Friday: I have some ground beef in the refrigerator that needs to be cooked, so maybe spaghetti with meat sauce for the kids. Salad for me, and nothing for my husband, who fasts Fridays.
By the way, someone in the comments asked about the sentence construction of "needs cooked" versus "needs to be cooked." IS it regional? I had never heard the former before the last couple of years--and then only online--and would certainly have changed it when I worked as a proofreader. 🙂
@kristin @ going country, "needs cooked" reminds me of "graduated high school". When did prepositions and verbs become optional?? Proofreaders and editors are Guardians of Our Language!
@kristin @ going country, In the Appalachians, I say/hear them both. Then again, I also call a creek a "crick." And no soda around here, just "pop."
I say "crick"...it's a small creek. 🙂
@Central Calif. Artist, you have to pay proofreaders and editors and no one cares enough any more.
@Rose, FTR, I care.
@CrunchyCake, ha, me too, but then I've worked as both a copy editor and proofreader!
@kristin @ going country,
I always say "done dinner" or "done dishes." Maybe it's a regional thing.
@kristin @ going country, Where I'm from (NW Ohio, now SW Ohio) we say "Needs cooking" or "needs painting/cleaning." Unless I'm writing, of course, and then I use "needs to be cleaned/painted/cooked." --signed, former English composition teacher
@Karen A., Yes, I suspected it was really a regional spoken construction that has now been commonly transcribed into writing. (I have to note that I appreciate your realizing that colloquial usage doesn't actually means it is correct in more-formal written language.)
@Central Calif. Artist, language is constantly evolving! Every word ever spoken was invented. Every language 'rule' was created. If it communicates what needs to be communicated, it's doing it's job just fine.
@JC, Western PA, definitely "needs cooked"--many other regionalisms but dropping the infinitive is universal. ("Ma haaare needs warshed.")
@Rachel, YES! Thank you! (same for spelling)
@kristin @ going country,
I never, ever heard "needs cooked" until I moved to Ohio (40-mumble mumble) years ago. I have lived on both coasts as a kid, and never heard it anywhere else. The Grammar/Word Police Person I am cringes every time I hear it.
@Liz B.,
or, really "needs [washed, cleaned, etc ]", not just "needs cooked".
@Rachel, "Its job" not "it's." Yes I understood what you meant, but "it's" is wrong there.
Any anyone who thinks that spelling/grammar rules are arbitrary and silly has never worked as an editor or proofreader. Much of the time, a reader cannot understand what someone is writing unless the grammar/usage is polished. Disinterested/uninterested? They mean different things. Done/finished? (My bete noire.) Tasks are done, people are finished. If you say "I'm done cleaning" in formal written English, you sound like a rube. Maybe that's the point--maybe not.
For those of us whose job is language, these things are important, not silly arbitrary nonsense.
I dunno; I wouldn't have any difficulty understanding what someone meant if they said they were done cleaning.
I mean, I obviously value grammar, punctuation, and vocabulary, but in all my years on the internet, there have only been a few times that I truly struggled to understand what someone was trying to say, even when the writing was pretty bad. Generally, I can figure it out. 🙂
Interestingly, I would be super confused if someone said something like, "I'm on line at the bank." I would think they were on the internet!
and FWIW I like and understand colloquialisms. "On line," as opposed to "in line." Apparently only New Yorkers say they're on line, not in line.
Some of my mom's include "chop meat" instead of of "hamburger," "cellar" for "basement" and "bummed out" to mean "not saved for best." As in "don't bum out that sweater, Rose." "The hawk is out" meaning it's cold.
@Rose, I'm on a tablet which auto-corrects, and there isn't an edit function on this site. You knew exactly what I meant, so my point still stands!
It's funny though that you say I must not have worked as an editor, because I worked in teaching and then in publishing higher education textbooks and homework sites my entire career, including editing. If you had my full name, you might find it in the front of some of Kristen's textbooks! For example, I do have strong feelings about the use of the oxford comma, as well as the updated definition of literally both meaning literally and the exact opposite of literally, ha!
That said, if anyone said 'I'm done cleaning' I would think they meant.... They are done cleaning! Point understood. A lot of discrimination happens when people get so caught up in arbitrary rules. Classism, racism, and telling people they don't belong based on their word choices all can happen. I believe in the power of words, but I'm more concerned with the people saying the words than the exact words for how they say it. So if someone has a typo or a different way of saying things, or is ESL, or just makes a mistake, or anything else, as long as I understand it, I am good to go!
For example, the word rube itself originated in the 19th century to denote classism, to specify that someone is uneducated (generally due to poverty). So it was created as a quick word to discriminate against people!
Do I believe there is there a time and a place to be extremely specific about language rules? Absolutely! Do I think it's the comment section of a site with no edit function? Nope! 🙂
@Rose, shortly after I wrote this message, I got texts from one of my best friends (who had dyslexia) and my dad (memory issues due to medication); both texts had errors. English is incredibly complicated and there are SO many reasons people don't follow all "the rules." I feel like if we understand each other (and who couldn't use more understanding in this life!), we are all doing okay.
@Rachel,
These are wonderful points. There are so many times that the written word is used informally - text messages, hand-scrawled notes, lists, and online posts. Auto correct can change the meaning of a sentence completely. I have had this happen with funny and embarrassing results.
Sometimes there is not time to proof these informal forms of communication, but the important thing is to communicate. We have much to learn from each other and much to say. If individuals believe that their writing is being judged in informal settings, they may be less likely to share and participate.
@kristin @ going country, I hear the former phrase most often & see the latter phrase in all things written. However, regarding cooking, in my lifetime as a KY resident I most often hear & use the phrases, “What are you fixing for supper?” and “I’m going to fix dinner now.”
@Bee, exactly!! It's funny, I was learning Spanish just because I felt like learning a new language, and I started trying to talk to one of my friends, who was a fluent speaker, to practice. Even though she was able to understand what I was saying, she corrected Every. Single. Thing. that I said to her. Even if what I said was technically correct, she would explain how native speakers would phrase things differently. Guess how long it took me to stop practicing with her? About two conversations!
Sadly, none of my other friends are fluent, so my learning fell off because I just had no one to practice with. It meant that we both missed out on the opportunity to use that language with each other. It was really disappointing and I don't want to perpetuate that type of attitude on to other people. I always want to be as inclusive as I possibly can with people. I like to imagine we are all just doing our very best to get along and the more that I can help by being understanding, the better off we'll be!
@Karen A.,
I'm in SW Ohio, too!
@Rose,
Lol, my mom always called it chop meat, not "hamburger". A hamburger was the sandwich of the same name, not a package of ground beef.
@Rachel, never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig likes it.
@Tiana, we all come from different places with different experiences!
With my dyslexic friend, she spelled my name wrong for months and even now will do so occasionally. At first I thought she was trying to somehow hurt my feelings, or that she didn't care enough to learn my name even after I corrected her! It honestly did hurt our friendship for awhile. But once I understood she has dyslexia, I realized I could put that hurt aside because it wasn't about her relationship with me but rather how her brain functions.
I am not trying to shame or hurt anyone, who is coming from their own place with their own viewpoint! But rather to say that perhaps there is more room for grace around the issue, and reasons why it might exist. The only way to do that is with kindness <3
Agree, agree, agree.
@Tiana, anyone notice how many younger people don’t say button, they say buh-un? And cau-un and other words dropping consonants.
WWA: I pushed the "easy" button a lot this week due to lots of afternoon appointments
Saturday: Frozen pizza
Sunday: hot dogs, tater tots, and fruit
Monday: lettuce wraps
Tuesday: ravioli with red sauce, salad, and bread
Wednesday: lettuce wraps
Thursday: baked chicken breast, broccoli, and baked potatoes
Friday: probably flatbread pizza I bought on sale
After reading an article about university students going hungry and/or scrounging for food, am feeling so very fortunate for even the humblest of meals. WWA:
Saturday - beef and veggie stir-fry on rice
Sunday - roast chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, weird store bought cake squares DH picked out
Monday - leftovers
Tuesday - home cooked smash burgers on buns (so good) and frozen French fries
Wednesday - leftover stir-fry and rice from the freezer
Thursday - homemade mac and cheese
Friday - leftover mac and cheese
Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend
@kj,
Food insecurity among college students is on the rise. My son is a graduate student and is feeling the impact of inflation on his rather dismal budget.
@Bee, I feel like our society really pushes this idea that it's okay to be a starving college student. How many times do we hear jokes about college students surviving solely on 10 cent ramen and boxed mac and cheese? Everyone deserves to be able to eat good healthy foods and not be scrounging for calories. I feel like the issue of college students not having access to good food is so often treated like a punchline and not like a crisis of hungry people in our community.
@Rachel, I was very hungry in college. So was my roommate. This was in the 1990s. I cannot imagine trying to shop and eat with the current prices.
@Stephanie, yes, I remember budgeting for Taco Bell, and looking forward to it for weeks! I was especially ill prepared coming from a home with extremely poor budgeting, especially around food. We relied heavily on convenience food growing up, and I didn't understand how to eat an inexpensive or healthy diet.
Even though I'm in a vastly better place now, I went out to eat last night for the first time in almost 3 years, and all I could think was how many times at the grocery store I put back a $2 or $3 item, or didn't buy eggs, and I was sitting there with a $17 meal. It really pulled all the excitement out of it for me.
I wish I liked cilantro! It's become popular in recipes and restaurants, which is a problem for us "it tastes like dish soap" people.
No shopping last week, but here's what I ate (I think):
Turkey heart and gizzards, roasted beets and cooked spinach.
Pork Cutlet with actual mashed white potatoes, which I can't eat often, so I sure love it when I do. I had another vegetable, but don't remember what one.
Uncured, GF-bread-wrapped hotdog with raw veggie sticks and homemade ranch dressing. Persimmon ketchup on the hotdog.
Stir fry with cabbage, carrot, celery, onion, mushroom, garlic, ginger and egg stirred in. I used fish sauce and coconut amino sauce in place of soy sauce.
Leftover chef salad (no tomatoes), brought home from our lunch at the pizzeria where a grandchild works. She makes my salads with extra olives and love (:
Grilled cheese sandwich on GF bread, and since I needed some kind of vegetable, I heated up roasted beets and had them as a second course. I got home late that night and didn't feel like doing much.
Tuna salad made with shredded veggies and fruit, as usual.
@JD, I learned about the Sawbones podcasts (“medical history”/comedy) from Kristen, and just listened to the one about ketchup/catsup, and how and why it can be made from lots of things, like persimmons!
We cooked at home but that is all there is to be said. Although I got no complaints whatsoever I felt rather uninspired this week.
What we spent: we spend about the same amount as we did before, however for the same money the food is more basic: locally grown seasonal produce is not very fancy in NL in winter. Just a little more patience until we have spring, and more variety.
Sunday-takeout as we were returning from a trip
Monday-gnocchi, green peas, garden salad, apples
Tuesday-sesame chicken, rice, oranges
Wednesday-baked chicken nachos, salad greens, oranges
Thursday-lamb burgers, roasted potatoes, sautéed red onions (in rosemary-mustard sauce), coleslaw
Friday-leftovers
Saturday-??
I’m trying to use some things up and made it my goal not to go to the grocery store this week. The fridge is looking kind of bare.
Our busy season continues, with: teen jobs, high school sports, & a few days of later meetings for me/my husband. It was not our best showing, but everyone was fed.
Egg roll in a bowl
Chicken curry with rice
Smash burgers + fries
Chicken shawarma
We had most of these 2x, or at least someone in the family had them 2x, if there wasn't enough for everyone.
Tonight is a birthday dinner out, after of course a high school soccer game. 😉 But, I don't have to cook, so it's a win!
Total at the grocery store: 68.12.
Total eating out (v. unusual for us): ??
Saturday: The kids were on their own, as DH and I went on a quick trip down South to visit our godson. We were gone all of Saturday and Sunday; we left the boys with all the fixings for homemade pizzas for their dinners and some leftover fried chicken for lunches and they thoroughly enjoyed themselves.
DH and I packed food for the trip (some keto bars, cheese, carrot sticks, yogurt) and when we arrived, treated ourselves (really, me) to food from a local Mediterranean restaurant. Probably about $40? It was very good food, I hadn't had falafel in a long time and it was the best hummus too, but probably won't go back because DH said the staff were really rude when he went to order and pickup. Oh well. Time to make my own falafel!
Sunday: Grabbed a cup of coffee at a Hardees before church. Headed home around lunchtime and I think we stopped once and had some Taco Bell, mostly so we could use the bathroom. We noticed at that stop that there was a Walmart nearby, so in the future we will go there, use their larger, cleaner bathrooms, and get grocery food instead of takeout. Spent about 12 bucks at Taco Bell.
Monday: Happily home, one of the kids made burgers and tater tots, his favorite meal to make.
Tuesday: Lasagna (three pans, one beef and cheese, two cheese), frozen green beans (cooked, obviously).
Wednesday: Hamburger stew, leftover lasagna.
Thursday: Tacos.
Tonight will be tuna burgers, chips and soup. Haven't had to hit the grocery store but once this week, and then only for some seltzers, water and taco stuff. I feel it balances out our trip with gas usage and some eating out quite nicely.
About that weird-tasting gnocchi from a Dollar Tree store: a friend's son worked at one of those dollar-type stores, and he told his mom to NEVER buy anything there that goes on or in your body! Hmmm, I wonder why he was so adamant, but it did get my attention.
@Central Calif. Artist, can you ask him why he said that and let us know?
@Jenny, I will try to remember to ask the next time I see her.
We shopped at Lidl and a Latino grocery store to stock up on beans, hot peppers etc.
Chili with toppings (both vegetarian and non-vegetarian chili)
Quesadillas with leftover chili
Grilled potatoes and butternut with chicken (and halloumi for vegetarian in the family)
Chickpea and eggplant stew over farro grain
Avocado pasta
Maybe a cookout tonight to enjoy balmier weather
Saturday - takeout from Popeyes
Sunday - birthday dinner at my parents for my mom, sister and aunt. We had pizza and 3 different types of cake (each birthday person chose their favorite so many cakes)
Monday - chicken and biscuit bake
Tuesday - Swedish meatballs and steamed broccoli and carrots
Wednesday - quick bbq chicken, steamed green beans and carrots, corn muffins from a can
Thursday - on a long weekend away with friends (longest I’ve been away from my kids ever, lots of anxiety leading up to it but now that I’m here, feeling very relaxed and enjoying the time away) We arrived at our rental this day so just had a snack dinner of cheese, crackers, veggies and other various things.
Friday - we are going out to dinner at a restaurant tonight
January is eat down the pantry and freezer month. Lots of stuff close to or beyond use by dates.
1. Mexican lasagna. Used tortillas and everything Mexican in layers with cheese. Delicious.
2. Put all vegetables about to turn, including a whole pack of mini tomatoes in vitamix- creamy veg. soup.
3. Lots of canned beans, ground turkey and beef for chili.
4. Coconut, Graham crackers, chocolate chips, condensed milk for magic bars.
5. Oatmeal raisin cookies.
6. Yeast and walnuts for cruising bread.
Oops craisin bread
Your meals look delicious- especially the Swiss mushroom chicken and I have all ingredients on hand.
Meals we ate:
Pizza takeout- lasagna pie really and it was delicious
Leftover pizza
Chicken and Caesar salad (I bought some frozen rotisserie chicken breast pieces from Costco which my picky daughter loved so that’s a win)
Pasta fagioli, garlic bread, fruit
Takeout from Olive Garden
Grilled salmon, salad, roasted sweet potatoes, garlic bread (and grilled steak for our sweet pup who turned 5)
Have a good weekend everyone!
Yesterday I went to dinner with my brother who was in town. We got sushi which was a fun treat!
Wednesday leftover broccoli cheese soup and toast.
Tuesday- homemade greek food! Pitas with pulled pork, feta, veggies, and tzatziki sauce
Monday- leftover pad Thai
Sunday- broccoli cheese soup
Saturday- homemade pad Thai
WIS: $24 at the local farm stand plus $44 at Wegman's makes $68. But, knowing I wouldn't be home at dinner twice this week, I spent $205 on takeout BBQ which will cover at least three dinners plus some lunches this week.
WWE:
Mon - Original take-out BBQ day
Tues - Fancy (meatballs & sausage) spaghetti & meatballs with cut veggies
Wed - BBQ day 2
Thurs - Ham from the post Christmas store sales, extra Thanksgiving stuffing from the freezer, mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts
Fri - Chicken noodle soup, oatmeal bread. Stock is doing its thing with a frozen turkey carcass and veggies that needed to go.
We ate chili all week. My husband was excited because I used ground beef (we mostly eat pork). I bought the ground beef at Costco so I got 7 pounds. Next week we may do burgers to use up a few more pounds of beef. Or if pork shoulder is on sale, I may buy a bunch and make tacos.
Did three mystery grocery shops this week, so no money spent out of pocket for $93 worth of food. I am still working on eating down the freezer before it starts thawing in late March (17 below last night so hard to remember that it will eventually thaw out) but we were tiring of not having fresh fruit or veggies and there was an excellent sale on chicken so I caved in and bought that even though it will go into the freezer.
Sat: Spaghetti pie and oranges
Sun/Monday: homemade pierogies, a berry salad from last summer's berries.
Tuesday: I found out I have to have yet another surgery in two weeks, after thinking the one in November was going to fix things. So, I left the doctor's office and headed straight for McDonalds for a double filet-o-fish. (I know, I know, a classic use of food for comfort, but I don't care. And I didn't care about ordering a double either.) I didn't end up wanting dinner so that was it for the day (mostly because I went to sleep at 6 pm...another coping device I favor). Husband had a can of chili and oranges.
Wednesday: salmon patties, spinach salad, oranges.
Thursday: turkey kielbasa/spinach/pierogi/mushroom soup. We will eat it again tonight, since I doubled the recipe to use up the kielbasa and aging mushrooms. Baked Italian ricotta pie, made to use up excess ricotta for dessert both nights. We are out of oranges.
@Lindsey, I’m sorry. That certainly wasn’t good news. I hope the next surgery is successful. Wishing strength and peace.
@Lindsey, what @Bee said. I'm so sorry about the "yet another" surgery (hey, doesn't the double jeopardy rule apply here??). And any use of Filet-o-Fish or anything else to help you get through this is OK by me. Hands across the miles from Central NY to Alaska.
77 dollars at Kroger pick up. 11 at ALDI. I always pick up the pick up. My hubby does the Aldi run for unavailable or forgotten items.
Sunday: hamburger stroganoff with double mushrooms to stretch white rice steamed peas
Monday: leftover 15 bean soup with tortilla chips.
Tuesday. Leftover ham stroganoff. Over baked potatoes. Cucumber salad.
Wed: Turkey burgers. Air fryer sweet potato fries. Applesauce.
Thurs. Hot ham n cheese with the last three ham buns. Cottage cheese. Cucumber salad.
Fri. Frozen pizza and bag salad. Our version of takeout.
Sat. I think I am going to make chicken fried rice. I have to make rice tonight tho. I have some bits of cooked chicken thigh in freezer. If that does not workout I will make waffles and bacon.
Those all look so good.
We had rosemary white bean soup, tacos, lemon garlic chicken with potatos and brussel sprouts, and some other stuff that I can't remember right now. We'll either have pancakes or pizza tonight. One kid has been begging for pancakes, but pizza is easier...
I had to carry someone to town so I bought stuff to make frito pies and some pasta with meat sauce. Everyone can chow down on whatever they want with salad and fruit.
@Tiana, It’s been a long time since I heard someone use the phrase “carry” meaning you gave someone a ride. I usually only hear that when talking to the old timers in southeastern KY.
WIS: Farmer's Market-$54; Neighborhood Produce-$32; Butcher-$16; Fishmonger-$29; Milk delivery-$19; TGTO-$18 Total-$168
WWA: Saturday: Buffalo chicken pot pie
Sunday: There is always one day I can't remember...this would be the day
Monday: Braised oxtail, mashed potatoes, and buttered carrots
Tuesday: Bacon wrapped halibut, glazed beets, and dijon mustard sauce
Wednesday: Leftover halibut, mashed potatoes, and carrots
Thursday: National Pizza Day- Pizza with red onions, golden beets, and ricotta
Friday: Steak stir-fry situation
Aside from the seafood on Sunday and Wednesday, everything this week was pulled from the pantry or freezer.
Friday – Sushi date night!
Saturday – Cooking Date Night: Seafood Stew and Buttermilk Biscuits. My husband and I love cooking together so we try to find fun recipes to make together.
Sunday – Spatchcock chicken with roasted cauliflower and Greek salad.
Monday – Slow cooker Mississippi Pot Roast with baked potatoes and a bagged salad. I cooked the potatoes in a slow cooker but even after 10 hours they weren’t cooked. I tried the pressure cooker and they still wouldn’t cook so we ended up having the roast over leftover biscuits
Tuesday – Soup from the freezer
Wednesday – Roasted trout with mashed potatoes and brussels sprouts
Thursday – Pulled chicken and poblano hash
Off to scour my pantry and freezer to see how much I can stretch things to avoid pre-Super Bowl Sunday grocery shopping!
WIS: $68.27 @ Walmart. I haven't been to Walmart in ages, but I needed some items, and since I was there, and was pleasantly surprised at the fantastic renovation that they had done, and that their produce section looked amazing, I decided to go ahead and do my grocery shop while I was there.
Sat: Homemade Chana Bhatura (chickpea curry), with naan and plain yogurt.
Sun: Leftover Chana Bhatura, naan and plain yogurt for me; egg salad sandwich for HB with cucumber slices on the side.
Mon: Naan pizzas to finish up the package of Naans.
Tues: Late lunch (4:44pm): 2 hard boiled eggs, toast with tomato slices and mayo, 2 hash brown potato cakes, cucumber slices. (for both HB and myself). No dinner due to eating so late.
Wed: Fish (wild cod fillets) and chips, steamed carrots and broccoli
Thursday: Leftovers from Wednesday, I added Stovetop stuffing.
Friday: For tonight I took out of the freezer, Black beans and rice, to add in with this, 2 mild Italian sausages and broccoli.
Happy weekend to everyone.
I stopped to pick up coffee today. That is all I spent.
Friday: Sausage, sauce and pasta.
Saturday: Chicken soup
Sunday: Chicken Soup
Monday: Pan-fried salmon
Tuesday: Leftover soup, chicken, pasta and sauce.
Wednesday: Leftovers from the 'frig.
Thursday: For our birthdays this year, my sister-in-law brought us a meal from a favorite local Italian restaurant. Last week for my husband's b'day, she brought him lasagna--he didn't share. My birthday is next week--she made a mistake and brought my gift this week. I shared my meatballs and sauce with my husband after I spent the day with my 4-year-old grandson.
I don't know what I am going to have tonight. I wanted to make clam chowder but I did not find the broth I wanted to use. It may end up being pancakes. I'll just be happy if I get something on the table and I am not hungry when I go to bed.
Sort of a random question, but I have never been to a Red Lobster? Am I missing out or is it pass? I love seafood and biscuits so that looks like it would be up my alley, but I don't love massive chains.
I am actually pretty proud of myself this week. With the exception of a pre-planned meal out, I have cooked at home every night. This is notable because my husband and I made the super not-stressful decision to replace all of our flooring ourselves and turn a unused upstairs nook into a laundry space and my parents decided to get covid. All in the same week.
Saturday- Pizza night. This was a planned date night using gift cards we were given a million years ago. We are on a quest to go to every well rated pizza place in LA/OC/IE
Sunday- Salmon taco bowls. Trying to use up things in the freezer
Monday- Roasted veggie flatbread to use up extra
Tuesday- Korean rice bowls. I hit up a local market to stock up on kimchi and banchan. Added a fried egg (a luxury!!! lol)
Wednesday- cacio e pepe ravioli with chicken sausage and greens.
Thursday- sushi. I leave on rotation the next day and didn't want to cook. Plus this is something I can't get at work.
Friday- who knows? I am currently eating soup and toast but we will see how the day goes.
I think Red Lobster is overrated!
@Kristen, it's been 100 years since I ate there. I thought some soup (gumbo?) was really good until I realized it had okra in it, and then I was DONE (meaning finished) with the soup and the restaurant. I am an okra wuss.
@Kristen, strongly agree! It’s a corporate chain, all over USA, and what does that tell us? Big trucks transporting “fresh fish/seafood” and packaged whatever. Look around where you are- what fish or seafood are local? What might be shipped in a day away? What families in your community own or work in restaurants? Could you tell them that you’d like fish/seafood/cheese biscuits? If out in the middle of no-where-near-water, what’s special locally?
@Heather,
I have spent my entire life on the coast. I love seafood and eat it on a regular basis. Of course, much of what I eat has been caught by family and friends. When we buy, we general purchase directly from the docks. Red Lobster just isn’t the same.
@Heather, I have a cousin who works for the Darden restaurant corporation in Orlando. Until 2014, Red Lobster was a Darden chain, so it may say something that even Darden shucked it off. Also, our local RL just shut down, so I think the chain may be on the way out. And on the few occasions I ever ate at a RL, I wasn't overly impressed. (See Bee's comment for the lowdown from a real Floridian.)
@Jenny,
I don't think there has ever been one around me. After looking it up, the only one in New England is in CT. I guess they figure they can't compete with the local seafood around here.
I completely understand the pull of an expensive nearby store vs the cheaper option further away. There’s an independent grocer 150m from my house but it is super expensive. I try to only go there if I’m out of milk or to check the clearance section.
Lol, I just saw that you said the same thing as me; we'd both understand "done cleaning".
I agree about the -isms involving language; so often there are invisible reasons that someone might not know or use the "correct" formal words. English could be their second language, they could have grown up in a home where reading was not encouraged, they could have had no access to good schooling, they might have a learning disability, their brains just might not be that good at words (maybe they're more of a math person!)....the list goes on.
And yes! about the person using the words being the most important consideration. Better to be kind to the person than be right about the words. If someone has hired you to edit their work, then it's totally fine to offer corrections. If you are just coming across someone on the internet, I don't think it's kind, generally speaking, to offer corrections.
WWS: $26 Stop & Shop; $17 Kombucha
WWA: I had been in the hospital unexpectedly (I'm fine) and felt crummy for several days after. On Saturday, I went out to eat with family and had a grinder (proper, CT style). It tasted so good, that I decided that was all that I wanted to eat all week (I did make my own after Sunday).
Sunday: grinder
Monday: grinder
Tuesday: grinder
Wednesday: grinder
Thursday: grinder
Friday: grinder.
I think it is now out of my system.
@BettafrmdaVille, what is "grinder"?
@Central Calif. Artist, it is a sub/hoagie/hero typically found in Connecticut. Getting the correct bread is important (soft, with a little bit of chew), Italian meat (Genoa salami is my jam), shredded iceberg lettuce and topped with olive oil and Italian seasoning and, if you are feeling sassy, "hots" (small diced/minced pickled hot peppers).
We had a terrible week here and it hurts my head too much to think about what we ate. I do know that I cooked 2 pasta dishes on Sunday and then Monday which my daughter ate all week and even took in her thermos to school. So that's something. We did not eat out and we did not do take out. I think I might have had grilled cheese one night and cereal another. Oooh, one sister brought split pea and ham soup and another brought broccoli soup so we ate those too. It's all coming back to me!
I also didn't shop at all. Ate out of fridge and cupboards. Not great but not so terrible after all.
@Leann,
It sounds like you had a very frugal week despite how terrible it was. I hope next week is better! ❤️