LIfe is just one balancing act.

Yesterday I took advantage of the fact  that the house was very quiet and I organized my download d recipes and cleaned out the coupon binder.   I also watched a fair amount of grocery hauls.    A lot of family of four for two have noted dollars for two weeks.   A lot more for a lot more.  

A little kitchen management goes a long ways to cut your food budget drastically and still eat well and healthy.    I don't mean run five miles a day and eat sprouts for lunch healthy -- which by the way I am hearing that sprouts are not good for you, along with white,chocolate and strawberries that aren't organic.   Organic strawberries were twice as much as regular ones when I checked.   

I intend to plant the deck pots with food this year.   I already have chives.    

I found recipes for cornbread mix.   I am the only one that likes cornbread on the house, so I didn't jump  on that one.   I also find recipes for BBQ sauce.   Honestly, when I can get BBQ sauce for .55, it's not worth my time for the little we use it.   I do want to learn how to make a good enchilada sauce.   I down loaded a couple or recipes and will try them.   The ingredients are cheap and it costs a lot to buy.   Pick your battles.   

I am on a quest to eat well, without spending the entire lay heck and standing on my feet all day.  We already eat well on less than four dollars a day.   Now, I want to lower that amount and eat more scratch food.   It sounds impossible , but I have already mastered the less than four dollar a day part.  I'm just working on the lower the fat, sugar and salt and hydrogenated oils and scratch cook without spending my days on my feet in the kitchen part.   LOL.  

Appliances that save time and money- some can be found at garage or estate sales, or at the thrift shops.   In order of low cost to higher.   

1. Slow cooker.   - there is something really special about coming home to a hot cooked meal.  The smell is divine. 
2. Food processor.  For bulk cooking, it's a lifesaver.  Along with grating cheese and making bread crumbs and pizza dough.  
3. Blender - if you like smoothies . 
4. Bread baker.   - better bread, cheaper .   Even bread outlet bread is pricey .   It's easy and cheaper to make your own.    
5. Pressure cooker.   The new electronic ones are safer and do multiples of things- everything from making yogurt to slow cooking as well as pressure cooking- homemade soup in minutes that tastes like you have been cooking all day- healthier than a box or can.  That  doesn't mean that I'm not going to stock my canned goods .   It just gives me another option.   Some things are cheaper ready made.   Some are too labor ontensive to make it worth my while.  Nobody ever accused me of being a foodie!   LOL. 

Most of those can be purchased used or for little money with coupons etc at the department stores The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.   

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Scratch or ready made.

Age old question, ismotmchesoer to buy something or make it from scratch.   Believe it or not , sometimes it is cheaper to buy the ingredient ready made.    The USDA hinted to that when the price of beef went up dramatically.  

In a quest to make more from scratch I did the math.  The recipe for pizza that was published in Woman's Day , used part of a small can of tomato sauce and Italian herbs.  The cost of a can  of tomato sauce lately has been 3/1 .   Which would make about three pizzas.    The cost of a pinch of Italian seasoning is too small to calculate.     That's roughly 11 cents a pizza.   It is not the same taste or texture as real pizza sauce.  

The scratch recipes researched were a lot more.   The lest expensive that is regular pizza sauce is in a jar at the dollar  store.  The problem with it, is that it makes numerous pizzas - if that is a problem.    The solution is to put it in an ice cube tray and freeze it.   It doesn't take long.  Then pop the cubes out and place on a bag and return to freezer.   It takes a few minutes to defrost either on the counter or in the microwave and you are good to go.   It takes about three cubes to make two large pizzas.  

Scratch pizza sauce recipes all came to at least two dollars.    You could freeze them the same, but the cost is more.  

By the way, if you don't have ice cube trays, they are at the dollar store too.   They also have glass small bowls for 4/1 in a package-  that's a fraction of what I paid for mesinplas bowls.  

My next attempt - scratch pizza crust .  

I did cost BBQ sauce, that , too is cheaper bought on sale with coupons.  

Kitchen time is best spent on things that either taste way better or are a lot cheaper to make scratch.  


Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Fred Meyers

We needed a dairy run.   The last time milk was a dollar at FM , we bought 2 gallons.   We had a quart left.   I got 2 more gallons and some berries and ice cream.    I have be n watching food prep and grocery hauls.   Trying to beef up my culinary skills and make more from scratch.    My goal is to  cut the grocery bill some more and have healthier meals , and be efficient at it too.    I am thinking the pressure  cooker might be an asset in this endeavor.  

I like preping in the morning for the evening meal.    My evening I am not feeling the ambition I have in the morning.    This staves off the drive through demons and makes for a more efficient dinner-- especially when I have to adapt for a vegetarian.

My dad always said the more you do, the more you want to do.   Always keep growing.    

Tonight we were home alone and we just had leftovers.   Waste not.  want not .

I watched a lady prep for her week.   She broke down her meal plan and chopped amd prepped anything she could for the week.  Another lady put plastic shoe boxes in her fridge with each day's ingredients.  I'm not quite that ambitious. But it would help someone that has te ms that are dinner before you can make dinner or of you work late and have to get dinner in a hurry or have a teen or other family member start dinner.

Even something  as simple as washing my your greens for salad and Pittsburgh not the, in a bowl with a dry paper towel is a good way to cut time in the kitchen at dinner time.  

I like the idea of making a bunch of salads in the summer time and rotating a grill or other easy entre protein.    You just replenish or add a salad as the week progresses.   It keeps you out of a hot kitchen.
Hamburgers or black bean burgers, chicken skewers, hot dogs, a steak of you are lucky enough to find a sale.

Using a crock pot or pressure cooker makes dinner easy and keeps the kitchen cool.

Broken record.

It seems to me that I'm a broken record these days.  Almost all the kids were home today-- at least the ones from the PNW.    I made pizzas and we had the watermelon I bought today.   Good job I did, it was very ripe.   It was a dollar and we had enough to make 5 of us have a decent serving.

Costing out two pizzas was an eye opener.     Two ready made crusts were 2. At the dollar store.   A jar of pizza sauce was a dollar, but I got at least six pizzas from it ( I poured it into an ice cube tray, froze it, and  dumped the cubes  into  a gallon bag.   That's 2.33 without any toppings.  I got Freschetta and De jiorno pizzas for 2.44 at Super Bowl time.   I suspect that when I venture into finding a thin pizza crust to make from scratch, the price will go down.  The pizza sauce at the dollar store is cheaper than scratch.  If I use a small can of tomato salad de and incorporate the rest to another dish, or could be cheaper.    I always have two dollar a pound cheese in the freezers and toppings as well.
 Today, I found red and yellow peppers at grocery outlet for 5/3.00.  Sausage I fry and defat and keep on the freezer.  Pepperoni I usually get for free with coupons at the dollar store.   Sliced black olives are .70 at Winco.  

Crust
Sauce - 1/6 jar of pizza sauce -.17
Cheese - 1 cup - .50
Pepperoni (BOGO w coupon ) .50 - .25
Black olives - 1/2 can - .35
Total 1.27 plus a crust.  

This still makes a frozen pizza on sale with a coupon cheaper.    I'm not convinced that anything less than the big guys is a better pizza than scratch.

I am finding a lot of casserole type dishes that give you the essence of pizza without the typical crust pizza.  



Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Persphective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will get 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Grocery outlet and dollar tree,

Grocery outlet

Honey roasted peanut butter .99
Spaghetti, (red sauce) 1 liter bag .50
Watermelon .99
Sweet peppers (5) 2.99

Total 5.47

Dollar tree
Snyders pretzels
Pizza crust
Muffin mix , Fleishmann's Greek yogurt
Muffin mix

Total 4.00
I also bought  meisenplas bowls 4/1 .  Glass.  

Total 10.47.  


Most of that was not stock items.  

Know your prices.   I only bought things we n ended that were a bargain.   I can see the sweet red sauce with meatballs, pineapple, and some of the peppers over rice.  

Knowing my husband and I are on our own one night, I bought individual pizza crusts .  

Name brand pretzels are always a bargain at a buck.   A good inexpensive snack.   Add some hummus.

The muffins are yummy and have added calcium.  

Meal plans - 10 days?

I did meal plans this morning.  I'm still on a quest to eat down the pantry and only buy perishables or something I need to replenish.  I am also trying to broaden my skills and use appliances to my best interest in efficiently cooking economical good food.  

First, I took inventory, noting what needed to be eaten quickly.   I incorporated Saturday through next Sunday,    Two of those days, some of us aren't going to be home.  

• Pizza, green salad 
• Out to dinner 
• Pasta in the pressure cooker , salad ( tomatoes and cucumbers ) 
• Breakfast for dinner - eggs, bacon, muffins ( banana , Greek yogurt from the dollar store) ,fruit 
• Not refried beans and rice in the pressure  cooker,  taco salad 
• Sausage, vegetable soup, leftover vegetable bean soup (vegetarians ) 
• Hot dogs, hamburgers. Salad, fruit 
• Pulled pork sandwiches. Fruit, potato salad 
• Pork roast, baked potatoes. Green salad, green beans. 

I found a dinner roll recipe without yeast on Pinterest.    It sounds really good and has the basic ingredients.  As children, my mother always had a stock for certain things on the house so we knew of we wanted to bake, we could pick from a limited number of items.   She would only buy cornflakes or puffed wheat in bags when we were kids.   Imagine her surprise when I found a recipe to make Carmel  (corn?) from puffed wheat.    LOL.  Peanut butter cookies,snickerdoodles, and a blond brownie rounded out our expertise.   She used to buy angel food cake mixes. But that was about all the mixes she bought.   Everything was scratch.   

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Fred Meyers ad -- tomorrow's

Fred Meyers ad for tomorrow.



Sunday and Monday only
Cauliflower .99
Ground turkey 2.88
Sirloin steak 397
Tomatoes .88


 Strawberries 3.49-2 lbs
Milk .99@@
Barilla 1.00
Red Barron pizza 3/10
Peaches 1.99
Corn 2-1
Kale 1.49


About it.    Some prices are cheaper at Winco.  

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Winco prices

all close to a dollar 

Celery .88

Carrots .98 a bag 

Roma's .88

English cucumbers .78

Corn .24 

Romaine bag 2.98

Potato salad 3.98

Buns .68

Best laid plans.

Meal plans are a necessity in cooking in the cheap.  But, sometimes, being flexible with those plans works too.   I got crescent rolls for 2/1 at grocery outlet yesterday.    I asked my granddaughter what she wanted for dinner.    She sold soup with beans in it.    It took me a minute, but realized she meant vegetable bean soup.   It's one of her favorites.    It's cheap ( about three dollars a full crockpot) and full of no fat nutrition.   I will add the cheezy rolls with it ( crescent rolls with some grated cheese inside, ) one of the fastest dinners you can make and a good one of you hav family members arriving home at different times.  

I don't know of it works on the pressure cooker, I'll have to do some research,  

Kenmore dollar tree still has pronto speghetti.    I had one last coupon.    New coupons come out the first of the month.   For some reason, my mail insert was a smart source.   I didn't see a r d plum this week.  

Vegetable bean soup .   it's a dump soup
Place in crockpot.  

1. 2 cans of diced tomatoes.    ( Italian works - just dint add seasoning ) 
2. 2 cans beans, rinsed and drained.   - I use two different kinds 
3. 4 cups broth - any kind will work 
4. 1/2 cup celery, and 2 carrots, chopped and sautéed  until soft.   
5. 1 T Italian seasoning, 
6. 1 tsp chopped garlic.   

I don't add onions, because we don't like them.   If your family eats them, you can add them.  

Cover and cook 6-8 hours on low.   

You can always substitute cooked beans for the canned  ones.   

I have been seeing u tubes that suggest you make a huge pot of rice or beans and eat them all week.   That is a mistake,    Beans and rice spoil fast- and faster when they are in something,    Especially if you have a compromised immune system, don't keep beans and rice around more than two days or so.  Rice and beans are both inexpensive when bought in bulk.   You are much safer making small batches,    Better safe than sorry.     Rice in a pressure cooker or rice cooker is almost effortless.   

Beans can be cooked on a pressure cooker, or crockpot as well.    I cooked them without soaking them, and they were fine,    

I love appliances that let me set it and forget it. 

The biggest assets you can have to cut your food bill are 

1. Know your prices and always buy at RBP process for the things you use in a regular basis.   
2. Meal plan using family favorites that use inexpensive ingredients that ar efficient cooking. 
3. Stock so you are not caught paying that ugly f word---full price.    
4. Coupon when it makes sense.   A coupon for junk food doesn't make sense.   

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

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Time or money?

I just saw a u tube that said you can save time, or you can save money.    No, you can save time AND money.    It all about balance.    Now, what else would you expect a libra to say!     LOL.  

Just like housework, if you can stop for a minute and say to yourself...what comes first....what can I do that will do itself , while I do something else.   What takes the longest to cook.   And then move forward from there.    That's why one pot meals are so popular .  You can get on and out of the kitchen fast.   I like things that pretty much cook themselves......the only thing better is the things my husband cooks.

Today, we decoded to get out of the house and try to find a few things I saw on a u tube from the dollar store.   I didn't find the princess castle , but I did find an adult coloring book -  they sell for seven dollars elsewhere and are supposed to help your brain and help you to d stress.    Also found the elf eye shadow base I was looking for.    I also found pound cake for our strawberry shortcake for our picnic dinner.  

Grocery outlet netted crescent rolls and sliced cheese .   Crescent rolls we will have for dinner tomorrow.  

Terrific Thursday

we are having picnic food tonight.  I bought two ears of corn in th cob and we have buns that need to be used.    I plan on corn in the cob, hamburgers  and hot dogs and tomato/cucumber salad.

Last night's dinner,    Sometimes we get onto just cooking and not stopping to cost anything out.   Every once  in a while, I cost things -- it's either the accountant in me, or the fact that I check to see how much on target I am.    

1) hamburger - 1.50

2) lettuce .75 

3) black olives .70

4) tomato .50

Cheese .25 

 Total for salad : 3.70/2 is 1.85 ( 1/2 is leftover for lunch . ) 

Refried beans 

1) beans .40

2) cheese  .25 

3) salsa ..20

Total .85    

This makes the equivalent of two cans of beans for .60 or .30 a can.    The cheese I add to canned as well as homemade refried beans, the added bonus is there is No fat in homemade refried beans,   

Rice : .17 

Total meal 2.87 

Not fried  , refried beans are not time consuming if you use a crock pot or pressure cooker.    I used my food processor  the second time I made them.   The first time I used the potato masher.   

The second time I us d the insta pot recipe and we liked it better.   I added water to reheat them and put cheese on top.    If I hadn't out the cheese on top, I would have covered the beans with vented plastic wrap or a silicone top.    

On a quest to figure out how to make scratch without standing in your feet for hours in the kitchen.    

Efficient cooking is a key in grocery shopping on the cheap.    It's not about cheap food.    It's about good food, cheap.    Spending more time on the front end of shopping and planning, and less time cooking allows you the luxury of 1/2 price meals and an added bonus of a stockpile for emergencies.   

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Dinner

 

Dinner : taco salad, refried beans, rice.   

All scratch : the only can opened was the black olives 

Tuesday ads on Wednesday

I went to the dollar tree .  I had found Fleishmann's muffin mix earlier.   If something is new, I don't want to buy a lot until I find out of our family likes it,   It was easy and delicious,    It makes 12 calorie conscious muffins with good nutrition.    I bought four more.    I also found ore-Ida frozen potatoes , 1.5 pounds for a dollar.    ...and who says all the food from the dollar store comes from China?    I always read the labels carefully.    Knowing that China has barcodes that start with 6 is a quick reference,   Tiwaiian has 472 I believe.  

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2. 

The dinners on the right are for my daughter.  Sometomes she forgets her lunch and these are emergency rations, LOL.   

QFC 

1.  Grapes 1.99
2. Berries 2/4
3. Butter 2/5
4. Tomatoes 1.99
5. Corn 2/1
6. Pie 3.49

Alberways 

1. Tomatoes .99
2. Baked beans / bush's 3/5
3. Tillamook 2/5 -   5/27-5/30 

Five dollar Friday 

Shrimp

Pork tenderloins

There may be some coupons out there for pork tenderloin and baked beans.    

My pick for a rotation would be woncom 318 - 7 percent hambirger of it's still on,    Winco has no ad, so you just have to check.   Another option would be the fish at Winco.     

Tuesday cooking,

Watching a lot of pressure cooker videos on rice cooking is confusing.   I tried three recipes.  I finally got one that worked.

1:1.5 ratio of rice to liquid , high for 8 minutes.  

Finally decent rice 

While the rice was cooking, I made a apple dump cake for a potluck.  

Easy desert.   Three ingredients.   

Meanwhile I washed the kitchen cabinets, swept and washed the kitchen and hall floors, gathered the recycling. And loaded the dishwasher.   

Tuesday

Yesterday , I made rice - several times, trying to use the pressure cooker.   5the second time wasn't too bad, still not the perfect rice.    I did make non fried refried beans.   They were good.  

We also tried the bubble taco bake... I could have done something wrong, but we didn't like it.    The dough was cooked on the top amd still raw on the bottom.  There was no way it was going to get cooked on the bottom before the top was burned.   I was glad we had the rice and beans,   I also made de fatted crumbles.for the freezer.    I bagged a little more than three pounds of beef into six bags and placed the small bags on a gallon bag.    It makes for a neater freezer and better packaging .   

I am trying to get more efficient in the kitchen, to cut cooking time, make food meals with less fat, sugar,  and salt, and lower the food bill.    No easy task....I know, I want it all!   LOL.   

I think it can be done.   It just might take some time to perfect.    Trial and error.    I'm sitting at 72.00 a  week this quarter so far.    If I can maintain a buy only perishable month, that should go down.   

Four people at four dollars a day is 112.00 a week.   My daughter does buy her alternative food to fill in; but we stock  a lot of food ; the bottom line should be under the 112.00 all things considered.   

My granddaughter loves meatballs.   My husband dished her up a hamburger and tater tots.    She looked at it, took the bun  off and ate the pickles.   I told her the hamburger patty was just like a meatball pancake.    She ate the patty.    

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

The 

Batch cooking

Oops!  Started off great.   Didn't intend on sweeping quite this soon!   

Recipe in pressure cooker.   Beans, spices, salsa and an onion and water.   I rinsed out the salsa bottle for the water.   

Cooked beans .

Mashing the beans . 

Ready for a second  manual mashing.    

While the non fried , refried beans were cooking, I batched cooked and de fatted three pounds of ground beef and cleaned the kitchen floor and fridge.   Loaded dishwasher as I went.  

Next: rice 

Monday madness

It's Monday. Time to get organized after the weekend.   Got ground beef ( 7 percent) for 3.18 at Winco and need to batch cook it.    I only domthdo pounds or so because only three of us eat  meat.

I plan to make non fried refried beans and rice to be ready for dinner.    Making things in the morning works because I'm fresh and the house is quiet.    Batch cooking is more efficient than cooking one meal at a time,   When it's time for dinner, your cooking time is cut at least in half and it makes being able to have a more elaborate meal without the hard work.   I'm not all about standing for an hour and cooking dinner.

By cooking efficiently, you can spend more time planning a shopping trip and that's where the savings comes in.

This week, I only bought a few treats that were drastically  reduced in price and what o needed to fill in what we were short of.    I only keep a small stock or things like chillies and 8 ounce tomato paste, but they are nice to have.  I bought BBQ sauce because I could get it about 67 percent off.   BBQ and picnic supplies go on sale at holiday times in the summer.   It's a good time to buy the years supply when you can get three for the price of one.     I have seven BBQ sauces, enough to last us all year.  
This saves a lot of money and frustration.    Walking to the pantry is a lot easier than driving to the store - especially with a toddler in tow.   LOL

We spent about 35.00 this week because I already have a good stock and we are trying to eat down the pantry.

I am also trying to stretch myself and cook some things from scratch that I haven't tried before.  It helps me grow and eating in the cheap is an ongoing education.
I've developed my shopping plan over fifty years.    It's still evolving , times change, prices change and some things just go full circle.    Coffee has taken a big jump again. I remember the coffee shortage of the 70's .   We resorted to chicory coffee blend.   This time, I used a dollar off coupon.   My husband actually checked the can  sizes between the two coupons I had.  

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Winco haul - prices

small Winco haul.   I'm up to 35.00 for the week with Fred Meyers

1. 7 percent hambirger 3.18 
2. 5 ounces Romano- parmesean cheese 1.98 - regularly 3 plus.   
3. Green chillies.58
4. 1.5 dozen eggs 1.38.  ( 169 dozen at Fred Meyers ) 
5. 2.41 lbs bananas 1.16 ( close to Costco price) 

Total 15.73 

Shopping at two  stores that have the best prices saves a lot of money.   Blues were about the same price at Winco.    

Fred Meyer haul. -almost all perishable!

Fred Meyers haul.   Mostly perishable..goodies are perishables ....right.    They don't last long in this house.    LOL.  
43 percent savings.  

BBQ sauce : this is the time to stock for the year.    Price stacking coupons netted .55.  
Cup cakes were an impulse buy- something I almost never do, but six cupcakes were .29.  
My no sugar added chocolate was 4/5.   It is usually at least 2.49 and I have seen it for 2.79.  
Corn on cob 2/1
Ice cream 2.49- Tillamook.

Total 19.77

Tomorrows Fred Meyers ad

Here is tomorrow's Fred Meyers ad.  

Cantaloupe or watermelon 2/4
Blueberries -18 oz.  3.99
Tillamook ice cream 2.49@@
Buns .88@@ ( they are that orice without a coupon at Winco )
BBQ sauce .88@@
Freschetta pizza 4.99$$
Pie 3.49
Best foods 239@@
Butter 2/5 ( same price  as Costco always,   )
Foster farms chicken breast .97

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Suddenly Saturday 5/21/16

Last night we had an enchilada pie.   I had made similar Years ago, but didn't call it that.   This layered tortillas with a hamburger mixture wth taco type seasonings, mild chilies, enchilada sauce and cheese.  Top with cheese and bake.    I called for corn, but that didn't appeal to me, I could have added black olives.    Winco has small cans for .70.    Th chopped ones would have worked well.  

My made  up one had a layer of taco meat, and cheese and a layer of refried beans.    You could also add whole beans to the taco layer.    I add lettuce and tomato.    

It's efficient tacos!   

There are recipes for chicken enchilada pie as well.    I might try that one next.    

Let's talk about equipment.    My mother never liked small appliances,   She had a toaster and a mix master,   Her cooking style was plain and hearty.   She made banana cream pies and cream brûlée to die for.   

I tend to have appliances that make my life easy. 

1. A rice cooker -   I can't make ice without it.   I tried every method I could find.   I had success with a 16.00 black and decker rice cooker.   
2. Toaster.     That's a given 
3. Food processor.     I make everything from bread to bread crumbs, grate cheese, chop veggies when. I am  making large amounts,   
4. Kitchen aid mixer - for large baking orijects and mostly for grinding hamburger.    When a piece of meat is cheaper than ground round, we grind our own.   You can control the fat,   
5. Pressure cooker: makes beans in a hurry.   Makes split pea soup and just about anything and is a work horse in the kitchen.   
6. Slow cooker.   I have several sizes.    Makes everything from to die for chocolate desert to vegetable bean soup,   A great help if you need dinner when you walk in the door.   
7. Bread machine - better, cheaper, faster 

Some of these can be found at estate sales and the goodwill.    They are all workhorses in the kitchen.   

I just bought an insta pot.   It's supposed to do jut about everything,   I am anxious to try it.   It has been my experience that one thing does a lot of things, it doesn't do everything well.    I'll have to see.   My main objective was to be able to cook things in small quantities.    

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Meal plans

Since I am going to try to eat our way through the panty, I though making meal plans that emphasize the things that have closer pull dates is in order.    I had rebate money, so I used it to buy the things we were running short of that I buy in bulk.  

I know we need to use up yogurt, some pulled pork, sausage, some bread, and tomatoes and cucumber.    This probably means we will be breaking my one processed food a week rule.  

I can freeze the orange yogurt for frozen yogurt for grandchild.

Meal plans : from Friday Through the following Sunday.  

1. Pork tenderloin, baked potatoes , peas ( bought new) 
2. Sausage, roasted root vegetables, brown and serve sourdough bread 
3. Enchilada pie.  Lettuce and tomatoes 
4. Pulled pork sandwiches, tater tots , green salad 
5. Meat ball subs, tomato and cucumber salad 
6. Baked potato bar 
7. Tomato soup, cheese Quesedas 
8. Mexican bubble tacos 
9. Shrimp stir fry 
10. Chicken pot pie 

Notes : frozen vegetables from Winco are not amoung the recall list.   The list is getting bigger and bigger to include Kroger , Safeways, trader joes, and Costco.    

I am trying to introduce one new recipe a week or so.    It shakes things up and makes life more interesting. I sat down and made a long lost of recipes and main dishes we eat with a variety of proteins.    It makes meal planning easier.    I also have a matrix ( outline ) in order to keep us eating a variety of meats. Adding two vegetarian meals cuts the average cost and sometimes the fat, and keeps everybody happy.    

My matrix : 

1-2 beef 

2-3 chicken or pork 

2 vegetarian

1 fish 

Between a list of ideas, and a matrix, meal planning takes almost no time.   

A little time on the front end , saves a lot of time on the back end.   If you keep a well stocked kitchen that you have paid  half price for (so you can afford to keep a well stocked kitchen) ., you can avoid running to the store in the middle of cooking dinner.  You already have a variety of meats in the freezer and can pull whatever you want to use.   It just makes shopping and cooking easier .  When you run into one of those I didn't plan for this days, you have things you can pull together in a hurry.  

The organizational part of this for the most part is  a one time only project.  It will save you countless time and money in the long run.  If you aren't an organizational person or hate to shop, consider delegating or pretend. think of the time you are going to save and how happy you are going to be getting out of the kitchen faster without depending on fast food that isn't good for your family or your pocketbook.   

I get this method of shopping isn't for everyone.   Sometimes you don't have a choice.  Of overspending is going to mean you have no food at the end of the month, it should be a given that it's worth the effort.   If using a different method saves a lot of. Only that you can spend on a vacation or it means that you have money for other necessities, it is totally worth it.   

Shopping with a category list instead of a exact list is a lot easier.   You are basically going to walk around the perimeter of the store with your sales flyer and a small list of what you absolutely have to have and get in and out of the store.   Your fridge has specific dairy that you always have, you always need bread and you know which kind you buy and where you buy it, you fill in the vegetables and fruit that are on sale you need to fill on your meals, and a (so called loss leader) protein if there is one.   Some weeks, there are none, some weeks there are two.  You are going to buy a stock item if you need to and if they are at a RBP.   Sometimes this is seasonal and you need to stock for the year.  Catsup comes to mind as well as BBQ sauce unless you make your own.   

This week, for us, it was white fish at Winco.  

I most generally shop two chains a week-- Winco and which ever one has the best prices on the things I need.    I fill in things at specialty stores when I am on the area.    Certain stores are always good for certain things.   If we are running other errands, I will take a quick look at some stores and pull the things I most generally buy from that store if I need them.   

• Grocery outlet : Sliced cheese, taco shell kits and sometimes a .50 deal that needs to be see soon.   I check the coffee price. 
• Dollar tree : Barilla pasta if I have a coupon, wax paper, parchment paper, pretzels, jenne-0 bacon, uncle bens rice if I have a coupon, Betty Crocker potatoes if I have  a coupon.   
• Big lots : on their twenty percent off everything sales.  
• Fran's bakery outlet - watch your prices

It might be appropriate to note that I rarely go to any other stores.  

That was not what I intended to pop up with my paste button, but WTH, it's good information.    I am working on perfecting  no- dry refried beans.   

Dried Bean GuideUse this guide to gauge how much dried beans to cook.
1/3 cup dry beans =	1 cup cooked beans
1/2 cup dry beans =	1 1/2 cups cooked beans
2/3 cup dry beans =	2 cup cooked beans
1 cup dry beans =	3 cups cooked beans
2 cups (1 pound) dry beans =	6 cups cooked beans

What to buy where

I apologize up front, these prices are for the Seattle area and are the best shot I have,  I very well could have missed a good buy.  I can't be everywhere.  I shop at the places well known for their regular food at low prices.  

Dairy :
Eggs - Winco - there are low prices at Costco too, but we can't use five dozen eggs at a time.
Milk - Fred Meyers puts milk, amd chocolate milk on for a dollar a 1/2 gallon about once a month.
Milk, dried - Winco bulk isle,
Butter, unless there is a good sake, Costco is the best bet
Cheese - Costco or grocery outlet - my target price is close to two dollars a pound.   Buying a 1/2 pound bag  is the priciest way to buy it.
Cleese, sliced - grocery outlet
Sour cream- Fred Meyers has it for a dollar  at times, otherwise, of you use a lot Costco.
Cottage cheese - same as sour cream
Yogurt - yoplait - Winco or Fred Meyers, usually you can find a coupon that gives you ten cents off , or makes it .40

Meat :
Ground beef - Winco or Fred Meyers - I want 7-9 percent for close to three dollars.
Pork loin - just about everywhere when it is 1.69-1.79
Pork tenderloin - on sale at Winco for two dollars a pound was my best price, so,stomps on Alberways 5 dollar Friday.  
Jimmy Dean sausage, bulk : Costco is close to 2.00 a pound in three pound chub.
Dinner sausage : grocery outlet has chicken with veggies for anywhere from 1-3 dollars at times.  Ise coupons ( stacked) at Fred Meyers or womcowinco has a good price with coupons.
( I use the processed meat  on a limited basis )
Hot dogs - Winco has Nathan's on sale a lot- use coupons this time of year.  We generally on,y eat hot dogs in the summer .   ( limit use)
Whole  chickens - Fred Meyers sometimes has them for .87.   Winco always has 1.08 or close to a dollar for a two pack all the time.   - I only buy Foster farms or draper valley .
Chicken parts- thighs: Winco has had them for as low as .68. Their sandstorm? brand comes from Idaho.   Fred Meyers has them on sale at times for a dollar or so.  

Notes : if a roast or round steak is cheaper than ground beef, you can so,stores make out grinding your own.

The most efficient, cost effective way to buy protein is to buy in bulk and cook and portion control, or portion control if it makes more sense( pork loin) when it is at its lowest price.    Buy enough to take you through a four week cycle.    IE: if you eat ground beef once a week, you need to buy enough for 4 meals.   If o a, using ground beef, I buy three to five pounds and make a meatloaf, some meatballs, and some crumbles or taco meat.

I buy rice in 25 pound bags at Costco.   I buy beans wherever I find them the cheapest. The cheapest dry beans (pinto) I have found are at the dollar  tree. Otherwise, they Re cheapest at Winco and sometimes Fred Meyers on sale - usually with an in ad coupon it ha limit.

Diced tomatoes are .58 often at Winco and .50 sometomes with an in  ad coupon , limits with beans also.

I worry about the things I use a lot- our staples.
THE BEST TOOL YOU CAN HAVE TO CUT YOUR GROCERY BILL IS TO KNOW YOUR RBP's - you don't have to know everything on the store, just the things that you use on a regular basis.
I have a rule of thu,b - I want cheese and meat at less than two dollars a pound.   I want veggies less than a dollar.  That price used to be .39, then it was .69, now it's a dollar.  

Try not to get caught spending more than the RBP for anything.   Buy enough to last you until it goes on sale again ( non perishables) .  When perishables are at their peak price, ( eggs this winter) buy just what you may need for the week: when they are closer to a dollar, buy a months worth so you don't have to worry about those again for a month.

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

The basics

It has been a long time since the subject if the basics has been brought up.

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stabll/ freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.    

Getting started 

1. List the low cost sources of protein your family will eat.   Nothing is a bargain of your family won't eat it.   In our family that is beans, rice, cheese, eggs, chicken, pork, amd beef.    
2. Now list main dishes that you cook with these ingredients. Seven is good, fourteen is better.   
3. Now list the shelf- ready or freezer  non- perishables that you will use to make these dishes.   These are our stock  items.   In our house that would be beans, rice, diced tomatoes, pasta sauce, canned tuna and salmon, black olives, mild green chillies.   
4. Now, start a price book or log on the computer ( excel spread  sheet ) to track the lowest price f these items.   IE     Diced tomatoes. 15.5 ounce can , Winco .58 5/10/16  add other sales as you find them.   
5. You are looking for the RBP.  ( rock bottom orice )  when you find it buy :  a) as many as you can afford to buy or b) as many as a limit allows, or c) as many as you need to complete your self-imposed stock limit.    Whichever comes first.    Decide how many items you use in a week and times by the amount of weeks inventory you want to carry,   At first it might just be two cans. Because you buy the item at 1/2 price or less, you can buy one and use one at first and eventually you build a stock. -- one can at a time.   Like running a business, you reinvest your profits at first to build the stock.  
6. Eventually, you will just be replenishing your stock.   The advantage is that you always have something to make a meal from if you need to.   

Example :   I make a lot of things from diced tomatoes.    

1. Salsa in a pinch 
2. Vegetable bean soup 
3. Cheeseburger macaroni 
4. Nachos f tomatoes are too expensive in the winter.   
5. ...and the list goes on,   

I  use about four cans a week.    Four cans times 12 weeks is 48 cans.   

Some people gauge how many weeks between sales.   Some pick a set amount of time- like how many I use in three months.  I build to the third quarter and try for six months by then.   I know I will have higher expenses the fourth quarter, and the stock will carry me through and we can eat down to three months again.   

Pasta has a very long shelf life.   According to a show that BYU adored a few years back, it's about 8 years.   I don't think that I would keep it that long, but I do keep it past its shelf date.    A lot of things last more than their shelf date.    The USDA has guidelines on them.    Things like dry milk last pretty much forever.    LOL.   

Dollar tree haul

I went to Costco for vitamins and wound up spending twenty dollars. I bought dairy and produce as well as the vitamins and a thirty percent off magazine on cooking,  

I also went to th dollar store.   I bought a handful of snacks and things with coupons-- not exactly a no spend trip , but well worth my while.  I spent eight dollars including tax.    I got four boxes of pronto pasta.   The cost at the regular grocery store would have been six dollars alone.   I spent 2.90 for the four.    I also got two muffin mixes for a dollar each - a major name brand.   A wax paper for my studio---I ise the insides of cereal boxes in the kitchen.    I also bought a bag of pretzels.    It is a good cheap snack.    And, two pounds of pinto beans.  

Eight dollars including tax ( almost  ten percent on non food ) 

Groceries on the cheap is looking at the Put Dinner On The Table meal train from a different

 Perspective . The  emphasis is on purchasing good food( shelf- stable / freezer staples )at the lowest possible cost and purchasing enough to last you until it goes on sale again -- Keeping a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a regular basis. It means that when you shop, rather than purchasing just what you need for a day or a week, you  buy a loss leader protein, produce you will 

need on sale, a stock item if it's a RBP, and dairy instead.    This allows you to put well balanced meals 

on the table consistently  for a four dollar a day budget per person.   You spend more time on the 

planning and shopping end of the meal train and less on the cooking end by cooking efficiently.    

Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap.   My premise is that of you can do it on four dollars a day, spending more isn't hard.   You still get more bang for your buck.