Finally friday

For the first time in at least 50 years, I am not going to grocery shop this week.  We have errands to run and other than a a few things to entertain  this week, I don't need anything.

My twelve year old car didn't pass the emission control test.  Ot cost a minimum of 150.00 to bail it out.

I'll do meal plans from my freezer and pantry.  It's a luxury to not have to shop if the grocers are on strike, or an family emergency happens. I have been out of work with kids mouths to feed.  It's nice to know that we can eat and I paid  1/2 price or less for most of it.

I have a Jane outline for meals.

2 beef
2 chicken or pork
2 vegetarian
1 fish or shellfish

It makes it easy to provide a variety of meals for the family, with less time.

My mother tried several ways to do that.  One time we had hamburger every day, a zillion different ways.  There was a period of time when you knew what day of the week it was by what was cooking on the stove when you got home from school.  Thursday was bread and pizza day.  Fridays was clam chowder or a yummy egg dish that puffed up on the oven.  It was fun to watch it fall when she took it out!

I digress.
Meal plans

1) tacos , rice and beans, lettuce, tomato, cheese, taco sauce
2) beef tips , mashed potatoes, green beans, salad
3) chicken pot pie, apple pie
4) pork spareribs , French bread, corn salad
5) 4 cheese Mac and cheese, mixed veggies
6) eggs, hash browns, fruit and yogurt cups
7) shrimp stir fry.  Rice

There are a lot of things going on here.  tacos mean I can thaw some chicken shreds and not cook two meals to satisfy the semi vegetarians.  Rice is a stair step.  I'll cook a double batch for shrimp stirfry a second day.  Beef tips are ready made because I got the, cheaper than scratch.  Good for a work day.
The chicken pot pie uses the rest of the chicken from the tacos.  I got a lot of shredded cheeses from grocery outlet, we like a combination of cheeses for Mac and cheese.  It kicks it up a notch .  Eggs are a cheap source of protein, and again, I don't have to cook a double meal.

The cost of the taco meat was 2 dollars a pound.
The cost of the tips was 3.20 a pound
The chicken 1.00
Pork spareribs 3.00
Shrimp was 5.00 a pound
Eggs were 1.25 a dozen.  1/2 dozen .62.

Total protein 15.82.
Divided by 7 equals 2.21 cents a meal.  Average

Mixing your meats, balancing an inexpensive protein with an expensive one makes you have a variety of meals, and makes you feel like you are not deprived because you are cooking on the cheap.
Moderation is the key.  No one needs to eat a whole  pound a shrimp in a sitting. Eating vegetables and rice to makes for a balanced meal.  Your dinners  should average five bucks a meal when your SNAP is 300.00.  That is the average I have heard from people.  Five  dollars allows you five for breakfast and lunch.  Some children get free lunches at school. I average five dollars for three adults and the baby just because I can.  I want to be sure what I am writing is true.  In the Pacific Northwest anyway. Obviously, you are not going to buy two dollar and fifty cent asparagus and five dollar a gallon milk on this plan.  LOL but I usually have the biggest drawer of the fridge full of fresh fruits and vegetables along with the counter.  Right now, we have apples, tomatoes, bananas and a couple of oranges.  Grapes, lettuce, carrots, celery and salad greens and cucumbers.

I am basing these meals on our family,  our family has stats of 141.00 a week.  A family of two middle aged adults and two teenage boys, for instance, has a stat of 168.00.  I actually spend average of 72.00 a week.  These figures are for actual food eaten.  My 72.00 includes building a stock.  It will be interesting to see what I average when we start eating down the pantry.

Thanks for stopping by

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Jane