WIS, WWA | a tidy $100
What I Spent
This week I spent:
- $80 at Sam's Club
- $20 at Chick-fil-A
So, a tidy $100 for me this week.
I have some Dinnerly meals on my menu this week, but they are from the box I got last week. Just didn't want you to be confused about why no Dinnerly box is listed in my spending!
What We Ate
Saturday
I got a rotisserie chicken from Sam's Club and on the side, we had mashed sweet potatoes and some cut-up raw veggies.
Sunday
I made some Dinnerly green enchiladas, which were supposed to be vegetarian. But I added some of the rotisserie chicken for some extra protein.
Monday
More rotisserie chicken-using: this time I made some chicken quesadillas, with pico de gallo.
Tuesday
I made a Dinnerly meal, which was Mediterranean beef pita pizzas:
Zoe and I both liked these (sorta like an easy gyro), so I'll probably put this meal idea into our rotation even if I don't get it straight from Dinnerly.
This was a night I was super glad to have a Dinnerly meal option in the fridge when I got home from school! It definitely saved me from takeout.
We also had a fruit salad:
Wednesday
I made Zoe's favorite baked ham sandwiches, which are always an easy fallback option.
I also made these roasted carrots and I cut up some fruit.
Thursday
I had a day full of exhausting happenings (none of which were school-related) and by the time dinner rolled around, I was not in good shape to cook. And Zoe was down with a cold.
Sooo, I picked up Chick-Fil-A for the two of us.
On my way back from picking it up, someone inexplicably came to an almost complete stop on the highway, which meant I had to step on my brakes pretty hard, and Zoe's milkshake went flying. But luckily, milkshakes are pretty thick, so only some of it spilled on my floor mat.
And that is why I have a floor mat drying in my bathtub right now. No one wants a sticky floor mat!
Friday
I have some chili in the freezer, and I'm thinking I'll get that out for dinner.
Those pita gyros do look good...hmm...ideas...
WIS: 60.11 @Aldi, but only about half of it was food because I bought a few things from the random crap aisle...
WWA:
Fri: salad greens with Asian trail mix and honey mustard dressing, jasmine rice, garlic naan, chicken tikja masala using boneless skinless chicken thighs and jarred Tikka masala sauce. I think there was also an onion and an orange pepper in this. It was delicious.
Sat: arugula and tomatoes drizzled with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, assorted leftovers: chicken Tikka masala over rice, ground turkey soup over rice, chicken and collard biscuit ring
Sun: arugula, tomatoes and Parmesan salad with balsamic vinegar, leftover Tikka masala and leftover ground turkey soup.
Mon: I had a late work meeting, so husband made salad nicoise so I wouldn't need to make a salad. It was a bed of warm kale with chopped toppings: red pepper, olives, hard boiled eggs, air fried mini potatoes, pan seared tuna steak pieces and halves tomatoes. They were beautiful and delicious.
Tue: arugula salad, pasta with peas, egg and Parm, garlic baguettes with butter. Why yes we did use Halloween shaped pasta purchased on clearance about this time last year, how did you know?
Wed: carrots, celery and hummus, chicken, cheese and kale biscuit ring (husband used hamburger flavors this time with mustard, ketchup and pickle juice). This is a family favorite now and pretty easy/cheap using prepared biscuit dough and canned chicken.
Thu: applesauce, and spicy tofu with vegetables in a jarred korma sauce over rice. Thankfully my youngest threw up BEFORE eating it...it would not have been pleasant the second time around I don't think...
Tonight: since the small one is barfing, we will do something lighter than focaccia maybe apple sauce and toast for him and leftovers for the rest of us. We also cancelled our trip to visit my mother-in-law. Too much sickness. 🙁 Here's hoping the weekend is restorative.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
@Becca, Ugh. Sorry about your canceled travel. I hope everyone recovers quickly.
Did we eat elk this week? Of course . . .
Saturday: Elk stew, garlic bread made the day before and re-heated
Sunday: Bull and bean enchilada casserole, steamed carrots and broccoli, chocolate pudding
Monday: Leftovers of the casserole
Tuesday: Elk steaks, rice cooked in chicken stock, frozen green peas
Wednesday: A vaguely Mexican skillet meal of diced elk, leftover rice, salsa, and cheese
Thursday: I poached a few big bone-in chicken breasts and used some of the chicken for chicken-rice soup, some for sandwiches. The sandwiches were for the children who were with me at a basketball game an hour from home at dinner time. I used leftover bacon from breakfast in the sandwiches, which of course made them very popular with the children.
Tonight: Not sure. The basketball tournament (in which I have a son participating) continues, and there's a possibility the last game will be at 6 p.m. Depends on whether they win their 9 a.m. game. My husband is out of town, leaving me with all four children, one of whom is in the tournament, one of whom is recovering from illness, two of whom are young and easily bored. I still have quite a bit of soup, so if we're at home, we can eat that. If we're not at home, we will have gone to the store for the big Thanksgiving run and I can get something there for dinner at the tournament. Do I want to go to a store for this big of a shopping list, with all my children, in combination with an all-day basketball tournament? Absolutely not. But I also don't want to drive an extra 200 miles for a dedicated shopping trip later, and the tournament is in a town about 25 miles from a real grocery store. Realities of rural living. 🙂
@kristin @ going country,
Your elk meals make me laugh and also remind me of Monty python's "spam, spam, egg ham and spam".
But seriously you do manage to cook the elk (and bull) in many different ways!
@J NL, OK, your mention of Monty Python in connection with elk just sent me down the Internet rabbit hole. I ended up going over to YouTube to refresh my memory of the opening credits for Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Unfortunately, it was moose rather than elk that got all the attention there!
First, Kristen, I'm so glad it was only the milkshake (and not you) that went flying when you had to hit the brakes!
Now, WIS: $16 at the Regional Market, $30 at Price Chopper, $68 at Wegmans, and $52 at Ollie's. Fairly big spending for me, but some Christmas shopping at Wegmans and Ollie's was included.
WIA: Highlights included a beef barley soup with pot roast leftovers that got thumbs up from the Bestest Neighbors and my next-door neighbor. (Frankly, the soup was better than the pot roast!) I also roasted two RFQS Cornish hens from Wegmans; after eating the dark meat, I turned the white meat into a small chicken salad and saved the bones for a future poultry stock.
I know, right? Even if we'd lost the whole milkshake, that's nothing compared to having an accident.
Greek food is always a win for me. We randomly have multiple families who own Greek restaurants and who go to my school, so sometimes they provide lunch for the teachers. It's always the best surprise!
Sunday: Dinner with family to celebrate a cousin's birthday, we provided guac.
Monday: A new curry dish. Not wonderful, not bad. It will be eaten but probably not made again.
Tuesday: Preschooler's choice, mac and cheese this time.
Wednesday: Spaghetti with more Autumn pasta sauce from Trader Joe's. We can't get enough!
Thursday: Sandwiches. All three of us actually ended up having different types, but everyone was fed and we were able to talk around the dinner table.
Friday: We're having tacos at a friend's house, we're bringing some of the toppings. Afterwards we're going to play a new game that they just received to review.
Saturday: Leftovers
The week started with money down the drain….
Saturday - abandoned cooking shortly after starting due to sewer line blockage (thankfully caught before there was a huge mess) and ate snacks while waiting for the plumber to arrive
Sunday - the shrimp tacos that were intended for Saturday, store bought turtle cookies
Monday - baked pork chops, spaetzle, sautéed red cabbage, steamed broccoli, cookies
Tuesday - balsamic roasted chicken thighs, couscous, roasted broccoli and zucchini
Wednesday - leftovers
Thursday - Italian sausage and tortellini soup made in the slow cooker
Friday - planning on spaghetti and (homemade) meatballs, using up partial jars of pasta sauce from the freezer (thanks to Kristen for that idea)
Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend without sewer issues
I sure miss Chik-Fil-A! Haven't been in a while, but might consider that for lunch today.
This week at my house:
Monday - Crockpot boneless pork ribs, (freezer) twiced bakes, BBQ beans
Tuesday - Market Spice Bowl, Cava style (rice, romaine, red onion, tzatziki, cucumber, yellow bell pepper, frozen falafel, garlic dressing) This was merely OK - next time I will make my own falafel.
Wednesday - Chicken Francaise, mashed potatoes, peas (this dish was like Chicken Piccata, but a garlic lemon version)
Thursday - Smash Burger, melon, chips
Friday - Skillet Tilapia, zucchini, (freezer) rice
Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed
***I've been thinking lately that I want to go back where I only feed myself and let anyone else fend for themselves. I was really getting into my single girl life - less cooking and fewer dishes!*** Happy Weekend! https://cannaryfamily.blogspot.com/
Oof, well, we spent a total of $435 at Kroger, but some of that was a deep discounted turkey (21 pounds for $10!), and other Thanksgiving food items. I prefer to spread out my Thanksgiving shopping the week or two before, rather than panic when I get to the store on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving to find they're out of canned pumpkin or gravy. That's happened!
Also $60 at Chik Fil a for six of us.
Saturday/Sunday: homemade pizzas. Turkey was cheaper than ground beef, so we tried that, and all the boys loved it. It was pronounced superior, and so when it's a better deal, we use that and everyone's happy.
Monday: Baked chicken, roasted broccoli, rice. I had tofu instead of chicken, since I'm trying to incorporate more soy into my diet. Also I'm not a big dark meat fan, but everyone else is, and it's easier/cheaper to just buy chicken thighs and a block of tofu rather than a mix of different meats.
Tuesday: Burgers and salad bar. Gosh, I love salads. I once had a friend who flatly declared to me, when we were discussing meal plans, "I don't like salads," with a look that suggested she didn't completely trust anybody who said they loved a good salad. Well, more salad for me, then!
Wednesday: Hamburger stew, mac and cheese for the Selective Eater.
Thursday: Cat shelter night! Chik Fil A for everyone.
Friday (Tonight): will be tacos. Don't know yet whether it will be turkey or beef, as I forgot to put meat on our grocery list (oops) but DH is picking up meat on the way home. Selective Eater is hoping it's turkey, as he puts it, "Turkey is less greasy than beef in a taco!" So say we all.
That fruit salad looks great!
We had:
- Fish peanut sauce over rice
- Beans and rice x2 (what can I say, it's my go to meal and we all like it)
- Fried rice
- Vegetarian spaghetti, then for dinner I put that sauce over other noodles and added cheese on top and baked it.
- Baked chicken.... And I don't remember what I served with it. I was trying a new recipe that I want to use for our Thanksgiving get together. Chicken is much easier to get here thank turkey.
We are finally getting cool enough to feel good about using an oven again. To some, that probably sounds hard to believe, I know. It is to me, too, and I've lived here 46 years.
WIS: Nada, it was my off-week for shopping. This coming week I will pick up a large order of more staples for holiday cooking: cocoa, powdered sugar, nuts, raisins, etc., from Azure Standard plus a larger than usual order of beef, so it will be painful.
WIA:
I used the oven to roast a large pan of pork chops, a pan of okra roasted with a little RBG (Required Bacon Grease, not the late judge), and a casserole dish of Sunshine carrots - sliced carrots baked in lemon juice, honey and butter.
Pork chop leftovers with a blend of cauliflower, broccoli and (not-Sunshine) carrots. I made cassava biscuits with this and had them with butter and homemade roselle jelly.
Veggie blend from above, served with freshly cooked goat steak.
Gizzards with leftover Sunshine carrots and okra. The gizzards were cooked in the crock pot.
Gizzards again! With an assortment of leftover veggies pulled from the fridge. I would have done something else, but this was the night I got home at almost 9 and I was wiped out.
Uncured hot dog and my mom's recipe for Waldorf salad, which is one of my favorite fall salads - chopped, unpeeled, crisp apple, chopped celery, broken pecans and just enough mayo to bind. It may not "go" with hot dog, but I had the hot dogs and I wanted the salad, and I had no inclination to actually cook.
Tonight: TBD. I'm thinking cassava pasta with spinach, onion and mushrooms.
@JD, okra with Not the Late Justice RBG? Yes please! (I think I've said this before, but it's worth repeating.)
@A. Marie,
Always okra with RBG!
Lets see--- Sam's Club $87.16 Meijer $63.15 (but got overcharged on scan price compared to shelf price & need to have adjusted $1 plus scan law difference) Subway $20.07 (with tip)
What we ate---
● shake & bake pork chops & garlic mashed potatoes with pumpkin pie
● Rigatoni with cheesey garlic toast
● slider burgers with shells & cheese
● Steak with garlic mashed potatoes & cheesey garlic toast & pumpkin pie
● chicken strips with mashed potatoes
● teen eating plenty of popcorn everyday
● Subway after long day of leaves
● Rotisserie chicken & donuts
● breakfast for dinner--- eggs, bacon & American fries.
I deboned 2 Rotisserie chickens last night & decided to attempt to make stock in the crock pot overnight for my first time. Has anyone ever added the skin into the chicken bones or by itself to make stock? I usually give cooked chicken skin to rescue dogs but wondered if possible to use as part of making to stock.
@Regina, teen wants to make jumbo (shapes) sugar cookies to decorate this weekend & I needed to pick up some food coloring to add to frosting. OMG-- exspensive! The tiny bottles in a box were just over $1.25 each bottle/color in box of 4, so I spent $10 for 2 tiny boxes of food coloring.
Yes, I brown the bones/skin on the stovetop, with onions, and then add the water.
Nothing remarkable for us this week, except for roasted halved Brussels sprouts with cashew nuts and sweet soy sauce. Putting that on the table again because it was very tasty (more so than cooked sprouts) and we have guests who like seasonal veg.
Also we had a non inspired dinner which was homemade applesauce with beans and bacon. Ready within 10 mind.
The other meals were okayish.
Our beans, and a comment from one of the readers this week on Apathy Dinner makes me think that I wouldn't mind a separate post on Apathy Dinners. We all know the Cooke one freeze one drill - but what even you're even too worn out/run down/overwhelmed to unfrost? I'd be interested to hear from the readers. Here's one that was recommended by a colleague, we have it once in a while when totally caught up by events: cook pasta, sweat onion and garlic, add a little bacon. When done, stir in an egg and a glug of cream, season. The egg will cook and bind the "sauce". Within 10 mins, again. If you have 2 minutes more, grate some parmezan on top.
Takeout all week, pretty much. Last night, very underwhelming white pizza without enough onions on it. For heaven's sake, it's not caviar!
Today I'm going to visit my mom in civilization, so I'm planning to get California Pizza Kitchen. Wish we had a Chick-Fil-A closer than two hours' drive, sigh.
@Rose, I don't know why, but onions are now my favorite pizza topping. In fact, they seem to be my favorite topping for everything. Why is that? It's a sort of new thing (maybe the last two years).
@Jody S., I cannot have too many onions on anything. My mother always made creamed onions for Thanksgiving--loved them! (We're eating out this year.) Future goal: the all-onion meal, ha.
You might be losing some of your sweet tooth and becoming more savory. Back in the day, a slice of Roquefort was often presented as a dessert option with sugary stuff. YES PLEASE! My daughter makes brownies often ish and I have zero problem not eating a single one. Shrug?
"a dessert option as opposed to sugary stuff. Cake, pie, etc."
Look on old menus--I LOVE perusing them--and you'll see.
https://menus.nypl.org/
@Jody S.,
I like onions too. I can't eat too many of them raw or I get heartburn, but I do like the taste. What I LOVE about onions lately is the smell! My husband will be chopping and I will say "oh! What smells so good?" Then he'll be all like "it's literally just fifteen cents worth of raw onion, Becca..." Then I'll reply "ooh, ooh...are you going to fry them in butter?" And he'll just roll his eyes at me. But what can I say? I'm easy to please.
@Rose, One of my favorite meals that my Oma made? Onion strudel. Yum. But the onion flavor doesn't dominate in it, but I always serve it with a cucumber salad with plenty of raw onion.
@Becca, I am easy to please, too. I think that makes it much easier to be happy.
@Becca, So funny, I was just watching Jaques Pepin sharing his wife's favorite sandwich: mayo and onion on bread. I cannot fathom eating such a thing, but I think it would be right up your alley! (find the video on youtube from KQED).
I got my new Altra shoes yesterday! I think I'm going to love them. Wore them around the house. Such a pleasant experience to have a wide toebox. I might order another pair to keep in the closet, for $70 it's a deal. They have a color that is $60 but it's peach and I just don't think I can....Thank you again!
It is so nice to be able to wiggle your toes, isn't it?
WIS - $83 between Costco & Meijer & $72 for dinner out with my girls
WWA - Saturday my Mom invited my daughter and I over for dinner.
Sunday - I invited my mom & sister for dinner. I grilled some brats that were in my freezer, fried potatoes and mixed frozen veggies.
Monday - dinner out with my mom, sister and two of my daughters.
Tuesday - rotisserie chicken from Costco, the rest of the frozen vegetables and some weird german dumplings that were in my pantry.
Wednesday - rotisserie chicken and salad.
Thursday - Chicken sandwiches on onion rolls.
Friday - I'm making a casserole with the leftover rotisserie chicken and inviting my mom & sister for dinner again.
Glad you did not come to an accident, Kristen!
Sunday: Raviolis with a burrata salad on the side
Monday: Lentil soup, bread and cheese dip
Tuesday: Lentil curry over rice from the leftover soup, added green peas to it and kefir as I couldn't find coconut milk in my pantry. Turned out decent and used up all leftovers.
Wednesday: FG cilantro chicken kebabs, made them for the first time 🙂 For the vegetarian version I made them out of tofu, and it would have been perfect except I accidentally bought soft tofu instead of firm and it all kind of came to a mush. Very yummy nevertheless, and we ate them wrapped in Taiwanese scallion pancakes from Trader Joes. Will make these again!
Thursday: Simple pasta with tomato sauce, ground beef and grilled Brussel sprouts. My kids love this kind of meal.
Friday: I will be making spinach crepes, served with cottage cheese and cranberry sauce
Saturday - takeout dim sum
Sunday - husband made some ribs on the smoker, I made corns muffins and steamed broccoli and carrots to go with them
Monday - baked ziti
Tuesday - impossible burgers for adults, leftover sloppy joes from the freezer for kids, steamed carrots and peas for everyone
Wednesday - I was at a work conference and was so delighted to have a hotel room all to myself that I just quickly ate a Cobb salad at the hotel restaurant and then relaxed in my room all evening!
Thursday - still at the conference, my husband joined me with our youngest though. We just ate some happy hour appetizers for dinner at the hotel restaurant (I went out and had good lunches during this conference at least, even if dinners were all at the hotel)
Friday - I get back home today and did not plan anything. Maybe there will still be leftover baked ziti to reheat, or I have some canned soup we can have.
O just another question, what kind of foods can you get at Chick Fil A?
@J NL,
I don't eat there for a variety of reasons, but my parents do. It is basically fast food centered around chicken, so think chicken nuggets, chicken sandwiches (grilled and breaded patties), etc and then your standard fast food sides like fries and drinks.
Glad the entire milkshake wasn't lost! 🙂
Here's what we had for dinners this week:
Friday - DH made the kids leftovers, as I got back from a flight later than expected. I believe it was grilled burgers (grilled another night, heated up), along with fruit & cut up veggies.
Saturday - both teens were out, so we had something easy from the freezer that escapes me. Perhaps garlic shrimp?
Sunday - DS17 brought an unexpected friend to dinner, so I had to scrap my Korean beef bowl recipe, and instead made a chicken fajita rice skillet. I was in a rush, and didn't taste it ahead of serving, and it was pretty bland.
Monday - I was at a soccer parents meeting, so DH grilled kebabs & made rice.
Tuesday - leftover chicken fajita rice skillet, this time doctored with salsa, sour cream, guac, etc.
Wednesday - the school was doing a grad night fundraiser for DS17's senior class, so we did Greek food, which included gyros. I had a gyro bowl, which is my favorite.
Thursday - The teens wanted to each much later than me, so I had the leftovers of my gyro bowl & an apple, and then made them the much requested pizza bites + fruit. It's not a healthy meal, but the pizza bites are now out of the freezer, and everyone was fed.
As for tonight, it's DS16 first school soccer game of the year, and varsity starts at 7 pm, so a late game. I'm thinking I'll make pizza + salad.
Saturday: Out to lunner (lunch dinner) for husbands birthday. German food.
Sunday: Roasted a chicken and had corn bread stuffing, mashing potatoes, green beans. Leftovers went into 5 lunch containers, chicken salad and some pulled chicken.
Monday: Tikka Masala with turkey meatballs instead of chicken
Tuesday: Pulled chicken with mac and cheese (I think)
Wednesday: Stromboli from nephews school fundraiser.
Thursday: Threw last chicken/stuffing/green beans lunch into a leftover gravy over mashed potatoes.
Friday: Meatloaf, sweet potatoes, and roasted veggie.
WIS: Revoke my frugal card because I cannot remember due to so many errands this week that involved pet supplies and household supplies. I did for sure spend $42 at Aldi on eight loaves of bread, cheese, and a frozen duck for Christmas.
WWA: Beef barley soup, salmon patties with cheesy broccoli, apple-walnut salad, tomato soup with rye crispbread spread with Laughing Cow cheese, various sandwiches. We did not eat out.
@Ruby, revoke your frugal card?? I don't think that any of us has that authority, even Kristen. 🙂
And I see that great minds were running in the same direction with beef barley soup (see my comment above).
Haha, yeah. I made the most un-frugal decision of my entire life when I decided to leave my marriage, so I am NOT about to revoke anyone's frugal cards. 😉
@Kristen,
I think if you distill your life decisions down to a black and white cost analysis, you end up removing the true purpose of frugality (in my opinion) which is to live a life according to your values. Without knowing all the details and only reading between the lines, it sounds like this expensive decision was one you needed to make in order to live according to your values as well as in order to live a life in which you are valued. Therefore I challenge you to consider all of these unfortunate expenses as necessary and not frugal fails. You are investing in the most important factor of a frugal lifestyle: yourself and your own sense of self worth. It's somewhat like thinking about the value of one's time...like looking at the black and white numbers, you might think making all your own clothing using what you have at home is more frugal, but not if you don't enjoy it and doing so takes up too much of your valuable time, which is another finite resource that needs to be considered in the frugality equation. In your situation, you had to think of your time overall-how many more years of your life are left and how do you want to spend them to be in closest alignment to what matters to you? If you reframe the way you think about expenses (even frustrating ones) that way, it removes a lot of self doubt and second guessing. There's literally no amount of money that you shouldn't consider worth it to assert your value in the world. I'm sure other readers would agree. Sending you love and encouragement, as always.
Oh yes, I agree with all of this. Sometimes, in certain situations, you decide that saving money is not the highest priority...that it is worth it to lose/spend money in order to gain something greater. Such as...freedom. 🙂
WIS: $61 @ Grocery Outlet for pantry basics to qualify for $8 turkey (14.74 lbs)
$11.48 @ Costco for rotisserie chicken and flour tortillas
WWA:
S: Elk stew w/cheesy pull apart rolls, green salad
M: grilled burgers, air fried potato wedges
T: fajitas
W: fajita soup, green salad
Th: Pork steak dinner
F: Pork noodles, fruit
Sat: Elk camp - pizza
We are hosting framily this week for elk camp
Funny, not funny story about a milk shake. 30 years ago my daughter's friend put her milkshake on the back seat while I was driving, it spilled, she was embarrassed and covered it up with the floor mat. A week later it was a moldy mucky mess ! Steam cleaning the carpets, deodorizing...it took weeks to get the smell out. Why they ever put carpet in trucks, I'll never know.
Friday: Jambalaya – we had a friend over for dinner and I was very excited to be able to cook dinner for her so I made a recipe from one of my very favorite restaurants in our area.
Saturday: Dinner date with Husband’s friends
Sunday: Spinach Feta Chicken Meatballs with brown rice and roasted veggies. New recipe and it was absolutely amazing. It needed a sauce though!
Monday: Honey Siracha Salmon Bowls
Tuesday: Green Chili Chicken Enchilada Soup
Wednesday: Cottage Pie
Thursday: Leftover night
Monday: Roasted chicken, roasted potatoes, and kale. I used Kristen's old tutorial on par-cooking the potatoes in the microwave and it worked nicely.
Tuesday: Chicken noodle soup with the leftover chicken and broth from the freezer.
Wednesday: Tomato-lentil soup and grilled cheese
Thursday: Pasta with tomato sauce, but no one was hungry or feeling that great.
Friday: Mr. B's is making something and I blissfully turn all responsibility to him!
Got some frugal (free) items this week......square pan that is perfect for 6 slices of bacon, 2 bags of embroidery floss for decorating shirts, etc, Tupperware, medium size cutting board, and free desserts like big frosted peanut butter cookie bar with bread that is for animal feed. Sometimes bread is just squished a bit.
I made carrot chowder with Italian sausage. I make it with beef bouillon. Otherwise, it is too rich with just homemade tomato soup and cream of mushroom. It was a way to use carrots my son forgot to put in sand when he dug.
I made lots of applesauce and a pie. We got bushels of apples for juice,etc. I made a beef barley vegetable soup with leftover round steak. I use seasonings/spices when I cook or bake so food is delicious. I dried 5 jars of basil this season. My family loves it. One is 3/4 gone. I am making a roast so with leftovers, a different soup will be made with rice or noodles and garden produce. Sometimes my son gets free cheese curds where he works so we deep fry those on the weekend.
Your fruit salad looks so pretty and fresh and delicious! Nice job on that! Yummmmm
You all impress me greatly with your menu variety and creativity, along with keeping track of what you spend.
Our shopping habits are that about every 6-7 weeks, I do a big Winco run, taking the pickup with 3 ice chests because it is too much of a squeeze in my 2-door Accord. I supplement using Amazon for toiletries or occasionally coffee beans. Weekly, my husband shops at the super-high-priced local market for vegetables and milk for his coffee or for me to make yogurt. I don't keep track of the $. (Or more likely $$$)
He fixes most of the dinners, rotating through BBQ'd salmon, BBQ'd chicken, BBQ'd steak, always with a massive green salad, and a piece of toast for him. Once in awhile I will make soup or a pasta dish, that I invariably call Slop in a Skillet. In spite of the lack of variety, I will NEVER complain about the repetition on the menu.
There are very few restaurants where we live, no chains, no fast food, no delivery, and nothing that really tempts us, being frugal homebodies. When tourists ask where is the best place for dinner, we often say "at home". (The 1 very outstanding restaurant is only open for lunch).
So, I skim through the Friday comments, marvel at the astonishing menu options, feel a little envious of the quick dinner options, and feel thankful that we live without too many temptations in the foothills of heart of California's flyover country.
Good for you Kristen. It is nice to eat out; but it can be so expensive. Monday, my friend took me out to lunch because she was appreciative of something I did. Today, I took my friend out to lunch post-birthday. She has kept me employed in my later life.
WIS: Shaw's $66.66 bought the on sale meat for the freezer; Aldi $57.95 Thanksgiving shopping; Job Lot $14.21 my coffee + pie plates for pie lessons; Trucchi's $21.77 pie making ingredients (extra for a gift for my pie making instructor--she does a lot of baking, especially the holidays; Roche Bros $8.50 seafood topping & pumpkin brioche bread ? French toast anyone?)
WWA, Working hard at eating from the 'fridge
Sat: Steak, salad, vegetable
Sun: We had Thanksgiving dinner fundraiser from one of the local churches
Mon: I had gone out to lunch and had half a sandwich left, which I gave to my husband and then we shared a chicken fricassee that my daughter had brought home over the weekend.
Tues: Cheeseburgers and salad with leftover steak, greens, pecans, mandarin oranges, cranberries--whatever got in the way.
Wed: I ate out at the Sr. Center. The police and college put on an annual Thanksgiving dinner for the seniors.
Thurs: Pork chops, oven roasted potatoes and carrots
This week is just eating from the fridge. I think I'll make lasagna rolls, some fish, and stuffed squash and maybe a pizza. That should get us to Thanksgiving.
I'm very late to the game this week. I had my aneurysm embolization procedure Friday and I am finally home! Yay!
I spent a fortune it seems last week...$245.76. BUT I bought most of my holiday stuff including 3 hams, stocked up on many items, baking supplies for Christmas, etc. I planned for one of the hams after I was home from the hospital and that has worked out well.
Saturday we had italian sausages, arincini, and salad
Sunday tortilla soup and bean burritos
Monday swedish meatballs and noodles with salad
Tuesday was a mix of different leftovers
Wednesday was a chicken casserole with veggies
Thursday was ham, baked potato, green beans.
I love fall/winter food so much more than summer/spring food.