Dinner : corn on to cob. Leftover rice with leftover veggies, ribs.
Friday, July 1, 2016
And then....
we went to grocery outlet and dollar tree this morning, and then to feed Meyers because I needed a couplemofmfill On my way! from Fred Meyers and I want to grab bags from the dollar store.
Naturally, they were out of grab bags at the dollar tree, but o did get the berry savers and edifices for the kitchen drawer that had a 40 plus yo broken divider......its soooo old that it is harvest gold! Lol.
Grocery outlet netted ribs for dinner ( 3.99) and green giant green beans 2/.79.
Fred Meyers netted best foods mayonaise with a coupon (in store) and a printed coupon - 1.50
Corn,on the cob for dinner with our ribs.
A free 42 ounce bottle of low carb ocean spray juice.
And I replenished the parm. It was on sale for 299
About all.
Freaky Friday
This is the second anniversary of my breaking my hip. It's still not well. It happened in a split second. It's just a reminder that life has its hiccups. And stocking a pantry makes it easier to keep home fires burning when you are away or not able to do things yourself.
That's where stocking and having some freezer meals ready saves the day. Take out is usually not the best nutrition and its expensive and can get old in a hurry. Pre cooking saves money and gives a lot of piece of mind in the process.
I really can't see how some of the freezer meals help - the ones that just take meat and add a can of this and a can of that. It only takes a few minutes to add a few cans of something to a pot. It doesn't make sense to take something that is taking pantry space and put it on the freezer. Our freezer space is more limited. Now, the things that take a lot of chopping is a different matter. This works especially if you piggy back some recipes that take the same meat ( you can buy bulk) and the same basic ingredients. Use your food processor or a mandolin to bulk chop vegetables. Make double batches of anything you know your family will like. I wouldn't make huge batches of a new recipe.
I went to a class on cooking for a day and making a months worth of meals a few decades ago. It doesn't make sense to me. It is an exhausting task, and freezer meals could get old after a while. That being said, different people have different obstacles to overcome. If the main cook is away at dinner time because of work or school, it would make more sense to have a crockpot at the ready for family to eat when you aren't there.
It would have been handy if I had known I was going to break my hip and land in rehab for a month. As it was, my daughter stepped up to the plate and cooked for the month. She made things like chilli that would last a couple of days. Since we have been retired, my husband has helped me dump things in the slow cooker. He could probably do it himself.
There is a lady on Pinterest that posted a lot of freezer meals. Some are even vegetarian.
http://www.livingrichwithcoupons.com/2015/10/slow-cooker-freezer-meals-20-meals-for-under-120.html
Some of these are really looking good. Some, not so much. A lot take a chicken breast, cubed. An easy task with boneless chicken breasts ( made from chicken split breasts) . That keeps the chicken at about a dollar for a whole large breast. The quantity may be enough to make more than one meal.
My budget on the seventies for protein at a meal was two dollars for two adults and a small child. The prices have skyrocketed since then. I could get hambirger for .69 , Tuna was .28, chicken parts could be as low as .10. I still use two dollars as a guideline. We have two adults and a small child eating meat. Our daughter is a vegetarian and eats more of the vegetables. The difference is that we eat less meat (more healthy) and we eat different cuts of meat and supplement vegetarian two nights a week.
The best advice I could give someone that has to make a life change is to learn to roll with the punches. Pick yourself up, and put your big person pants on and be creative. I can't bend at the waist after hip surgery. You would really be surprised what one can do with their toes-- the dustpan on a stick from the dollar tree helps too. LOL.
I once cooked a huge package of chicken necks amd pulled the meat off of them. They were .10 a pound and I spent .35. I added white sauce and chopped mushrooms and filled home made manicotti aka pasta rolls. A little nutmeg and parsley goes a long ways.
In the 70s liver was supposed to be good for you. You could get a cottage cheese sized container for .35. My mother always made it with tomato and green pepper and braised it. You could cut it with a fork. My sister used to make chicken gizzard speghetti. There so a lot you can do when you are just plain under water on your budget.
Thankfully, there were times when being frugal with the budget was a game and not something I just had to do. And, I have a bit more money so we can eat better and normal food on a really limited budget. Last year my average was 68.00 a week. This year so far it has been 63.00 a week. That's a compilation of a years worth of food divided by 52 weeks. That does not include beverages other than coffee and tea, and it doesn't count the few times we went out to dinner- that's the entertainment budget. That feeds the two of us and supplements daughter and granddaughter. To benchmark. The USDA stats for my husband and I is almost a hundred dollars a week. They consider food eaten at home, that doesn't include keeping a stockpile. Our pantry is full and the freezers are pretty full too. I have restocked a lot since the freezer quit. That bumped up our grocery totals a lot as well as buying ten pounds of oatmeal amd twenty-five pounds of rice, amd a big jar of popcorn. Two batches of hamburger and two packages of chicken breast.
Winco had chicken quarters for .39 a pound. I was hesitant and didn't buy them because we don't like dark meat that well and I don't know where it has been. I am a chicken snob. I will only buy chicken grown and processed in the PNW. ( Idaho and California are OK in a pinch. ) I have reasons I won't discuss here.
On another note, the FDA has come out with the same guidelines for raw flour as for raw meat. Don't eat raw dough, wash the utensils and cutting boards or counters thorally after baking. I always disinfect the counter tops. I use a spray bottle with dishwashing soap, water, and hydrogen peroxide. Best to wear an old apron because like bleach, it will bleach your clothes. Hydrogen peroxide is really cheap. You can get a big bottle at the dollar tree- aka the tree. They also have spray bottles and 100 percent cotton t shirts. I wear them whenever I'm doing anything nasty in the
house. It's so much less traumatic of you ruin a dollar t shirt than ruining a expensive well liked top.
Dollar tree is supposed to, according to u tubers that do dollar tree hauls, have grab bags for 2/1. They sold for a lot more. They fit across the sides of the grocery cart and hold your food. They have done studies on the basket where you put your purse and the bottom of the grocery cart. It often has feces germs on it. We are putting our veggies in that cart and then transferring them to the conveyor belt. Regardless of wanting to save the planet, put your veggies in plastic bags. Your families health comes first. E. coli is just plain nasty. Having the bags keeps your food off the bottom of the cart.
Just a note. I once got a hamburger from Burger King . It was not cooked thorally. I discovered ot two bites in when I got a mushy bite. I spit it out. Regardless , I was so sick. I would never like to go through that again. I haven't been back to Burger King since.
There is a lot of listeria and E. coli recalls lately. Cook things thorally . Wash your veggies with vinegar water. Clean your counters often, and use new rags often. I get school bus yellow rags from the automotive department at Costco. Their cheap and I use several during my cooking sessions. Another reason to batch cook. Meat is cooked, batched, and put in the freezer. You don't have raw meat hanging around several days -just one cooking session.
That's where stocking and having some freezer meals ready saves the day. Take out is usually not the best nutrition and its expensive and can get old in a hurry. Pre cooking saves money and gives a lot of piece of mind in the process.
I really can't see how some of the freezer meals help - the ones that just take meat and add a can of this and a can of that. It only takes a few minutes to add a few cans of something to a pot. It doesn't make sense to take something that is taking pantry space and put it on the freezer. Our freezer space is more limited. Now, the things that take a lot of chopping is a different matter. This works especially if you piggy back some recipes that take the same meat ( you can buy bulk) and the same basic ingredients. Use your food processor or a mandolin to bulk chop vegetables. Make double batches of anything you know your family will like. I wouldn't make huge batches of a new recipe.
I went to a class on cooking for a day and making a months worth of meals a few decades ago. It doesn't make sense to me. It is an exhausting task, and freezer meals could get old after a while. That being said, different people have different obstacles to overcome. If the main cook is away at dinner time because of work or school, it would make more sense to have a crockpot at the ready for family to eat when you aren't there.
It would have been handy if I had known I was going to break my hip and land in rehab for a month. As it was, my daughter stepped up to the plate and cooked for the month. She made things like chilli that would last a couple of days. Since we have been retired, my husband has helped me dump things in the slow cooker. He could probably do it himself.
There is a lady on Pinterest that posted a lot of freezer meals. Some are even vegetarian.
http://www.livingrichwithcoupons.com/2015/10/slow-cooker-freezer-meals-20-meals-for-under-120.html
Some of these are really looking good. Some, not so much. A lot take a chicken breast, cubed. An easy task with boneless chicken breasts ( made from chicken split breasts) . That keeps the chicken at about a dollar for a whole large breast. The quantity may be enough to make more than one meal.
My budget on the seventies for protein at a meal was two dollars for two adults and a small child. The prices have skyrocketed since then. I could get hambirger for .69 , Tuna was .28, chicken parts could be as low as .10. I still use two dollars as a guideline. We have two adults and a small child eating meat. Our daughter is a vegetarian and eats more of the vegetables. The difference is that we eat less meat (more healthy) and we eat different cuts of meat and supplement vegetarian two nights a week.
The best advice I could give someone that has to make a life change is to learn to roll with the punches. Pick yourself up, and put your big person pants on and be creative. I can't bend at the waist after hip surgery. You would really be surprised what one can do with their toes-- the dustpan on a stick from the dollar tree helps too. LOL.
I once cooked a huge package of chicken necks amd pulled the meat off of them. They were .10 a pound and I spent .35. I added white sauce and chopped mushrooms and filled home made manicotti aka pasta rolls. A little nutmeg and parsley goes a long ways.
In the 70s liver was supposed to be good for you. You could get a cottage cheese sized container for .35. My mother always made it with tomato and green pepper and braised it. You could cut it with a fork. My sister used to make chicken gizzard speghetti. There so a lot you can do when you are just plain under water on your budget.
Thankfully, there were times when being frugal with the budget was a game and not something I just had to do. And, I have a bit more money so we can eat better and normal food on a really limited budget. Last year my average was 68.00 a week. This year so far it has been 63.00 a week. That's a compilation of a years worth of food divided by 52 weeks. That does not include beverages other than coffee and tea, and it doesn't count the few times we went out to dinner- that's the entertainment budget. That feeds the two of us and supplements daughter and granddaughter. To benchmark. The USDA stats for my husband and I is almost a hundred dollars a week. They consider food eaten at home, that doesn't include keeping a stockpile. Our pantry is full and the freezers are pretty full too. I have restocked a lot since the freezer quit. That bumped up our grocery totals a lot as well as buying ten pounds of oatmeal amd twenty-five pounds of rice, amd a big jar of popcorn. Two batches of hamburger and two packages of chicken breast.
Winco had chicken quarters for .39 a pound. I was hesitant and didn't buy them because we don't like dark meat that well and I don't know where it has been. I am a chicken snob. I will only buy chicken grown and processed in the PNW. ( Idaho and California are OK in a pinch. ) I have reasons I won't discuss here.
On another note, the FDA has come out with the same guidelines for raw flour as for raw meat. Don't eat raw dough, wash the utensils and cutting boards or counters thorally after baking. I always disinfect the counter tops. I use a spray bottle with dishwashing soap, water, and hydrogen peroxide. Best to wear an old apron because like bleach, it will bleach your clothes. Hydrogen peroxide is really cheap. You can get a big bottle at the dollar tree- aka the tree. They also have spray bottles and 100 percent cotton t shirts. I wear them whenever I'm doing anything nasty in the
house. It's so much less traumatic of you ruin a dollar t shirt than ruining a expensive well liked top.
Dollar tree is supposed to, according to u tubers that do dollar tree hauls, have grab bags for 2/1. They sold for a lot more. They fit across the sides of the grocery cart and hold your food. They have done studies on the basket where you put your purse and the bottom of the grocery cart. It often has feces germs on it. We are putting our veggies in that cart and then transferring them to the conveyor belt. Regardless of wanting to save the planet, put your veggies in plastic bags. Your families health comes first. E. coli is just plain nasty. Having the bags keeps your food off the bottom of the cart.
Just a note. I once got a hamburger from Burger King . It was not cooked thorally. I discovered ot two bites in when I got a mushy bite. I spit it out. Regardless , I was so sick. I would never like to go through that again. I haven't been back to Burger King since.
There is a lot of listeria and E. coli recalls lately. Cook things thorally . Wash your veggies with vinegar water. Clean your counters often, and use new rags often. I get school bus yellow rags from the automotive department at Costco. Their cheap and I use several during my cooking sessions. Another reason to batch cook. Meat is cooked, batched, and put in the freezer. You don't have raw meat hanging around several days -just one cooking session.
Thursday, June 30, 2016
Grocery haul - stock up sale.
QFC grocery haul. Saved a lot. Used five dollar coupons. Lunch entrees were .88. Doughnuts 2.00. Vegetables a dollar, cheese , sliced cheese, sargento for 2.00. Blue bunny ice cream were 1.00 off two. You can do well with this sale and coupons. There are coupons for BBQ sauce, cheese, Cheerios, and vegetables.
The dollar store was supposed to have two canvas grocery bags that hang on the grocery cart. They didn't have any. They also doesn't have any berry boxes. Our dollar tree is about the worst of all of them. I walked out without spending anything.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Best plans....sometimes change
There is a saying, failing to plan is to plan to fail. Meal plans are a necessary part of saving money on food. We don't get down to what to have specifically each particular day.mdexoding on the morning taking into consideration the weather and what our day is like activity wise,
That being said, there is always room for change, I discovered while cleaning the pantry yesterday , that we have yummy roasted red pepper and tomato soup. I also have half and half on the fridge. I think we will have tomato, basil and blue cheese soup and toasted cheese or cheezy Bisquits instead of split pea soup.
There is a good buy six,mace three sake at QFC. There are coupons to go with the sales, so if you choose wisely, you can score big savings, I am not going to go because our pantry is full and we don't need any more. So, I will virtual shop.
BBQ sauce ref 1.59. On sale for .99 a coupons for 100 off three. Reg 4.77. Pay 1.97 savings 2.80
Cheerios regular 1.99. On sale, coupons nets 199. Savings in two. 1.98
Steam fresh veggies 1.99. On sale with coupon. .99. Save 2.00
Total savings 6.78. Retail 11.14.
Savings 61 percent.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
That being said, there is always room for change, I discovered while cleaning the pantry yesterday , that we have yummy roasted red pepper and tomato soup. I also have half and half on the fridge. I think we will have tomato, basil and blue cheese soup and toasted cheese or cheezy Bisquits instead of split pea soup.
There is a good buy six,mace three sake at QFC. There are coupons to go with the sales, so if you choose wisely, you can score big savings, I am not going to go because our pantry is full and we don't need any more. So, I will virtual shop.
BBQ sauce ref 1.59. On sale for .99 a coupons for 100 off three. Reg 4.77. Pay 1.97 savings 2.80
Cheerios regular 1.99. On sale, coupons nets 199. Savings in two. 1.98
Steam fresh veggies 1.99. On sale with coupon. .99. Save 2.00
Total savings 6.78. Retail 11.14.
Savings 61 percent.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
The best of the ads
usually a holiday week end is not a good stock weekend. It is, however a good weekend to look for picnic supplies to stock. It's usually the lowest price you will ever see during the year.
Alberways.
7 percent ground beef 3.76
Hillshire farms smoked sausage
Corn 3/1
Top round 3.99
Dryers 2/6 - note Tillamook is 2/5 before Saturday.
Friday deals
Doughnuts
QFC
Buy 6. Save 3. This is usually not a great bargain unless you can stack coupons. Net prices
Cheerios.....1.49$$ coupons for 1.00 on 2 makes them a dollar.
Hillshire farm smoked sausage 1.99
FrenchS mustard .99.
Birds eye steam fresh 1.49. There are coupons for 1.00 off two. Makes them a dollar.
Sweet baby rays BBQ sauce -there are coupons for 100 off three net notice before coupons is .99. After coupons .66.
Better buys in veggies at Winco.
Mustard is .79 at Fred Meyers
Note: I have target prices ( nothing to do with the store with the big red balls.) . If something is way over a target price, I don't list it.
I try for under two dollars a pound for meat. Average.
A dollar a pound for veggies
Canned soup has to be under .75
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Alberways.
7 percent ground beef 3.76
Hillshire farms smoked sausage
Corn 3/1
Top round 3.99
Dryers 2/6 - note Tillamook is 2/5 before Saturday.
Friday deals
Doughnuts
QFC
Buy 6. Save 3. This is usually not a great bargain unless you can stack coupons. Net prices
Cheerios.....1.49$$ coupons for 1.00 on 2 makes them a dollar.
Hillshire farm smoked sausage 1.99
FrenchS mustard .99.
Birds eye steam fresh 1.49. There are coupons for 1.00 off two. Makes them a dollar.
Sweet baby rays BBQ sauce -there are coupons for 100 off three net notice before coupons is .99. After coupons .66.
Better buys in veggies at Winco.
Mustard is .79 at Fred Meyers
Note: I have target prices ( nothing to do with the store with the big red balls.) . If something is way over a target price, I don't list it.
I try for under two dollars a pound for meat. Average.
A dollar a pound for veggies
Canned soup has to be under .75
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Wonderful Wednesday
It's going to be hot again today. I don't pay much attention to the weather when I did the meal plans. Yesterday, we went to happy hour with friends. My daughter made vegetarian tacos. ( black beans, onions, and red peppers. I think we will do chicken stir fry tonight. When I batch cooked chicken breast, I divided the breasts and cooked the bones that I had left a lot of meat on. The meat from the bones netted two cups of pieces. I averaged - little more than .50 a meal for chicken and chicken breast.
I was watching a u tube about summer recipes. The lady cut stars out of watermelon- a neat idea for 4th of July! She also wrapped her ingredients for foil packets for the girl, first on parchment, and then in foil. There is some concern that cooking in aluminum has a link to memory loss.
FYI. A lot of the recipes I post could be enhanced with the addition of onion. My husband won't eat onions, green peppers or mushrooms. I compensate for the onions with onion powder or cook with very large pieces of onion that I can remove before serving. I use red or orange peppers and no mushrooms. Celery is a good substitute for mushrooms to add back the bulk that the mushrooms would have supplied.
Which brings me to a concept that my daughter hasn't learned yet. Other than baking recipes that take chemistry to make things rise, recipes can be altered of you don't have an ingredient, or an ingredient is too pricey. You can substitute onion strips with onion powder,nor grate an onion if someone doesn't like to bite into an onion. I use celery often to create the bulk of a vegetable that is too pricy. A lot of fresh fruit can be substituted with canned. Rinse canned fruit under cold water and don't use the liquid from the can. That reduces the sugar a lot.
We had to throw away the stir fry veggies from Costco because they were recalled. We are going to use celery, carrot, and peppers. I will add top ramen noodles, cooked without the seasoning packet ( too much salt. I also have some broccoli. I don't have snow peas, so I'll sub broccoli.
Don't throw away the baby with the bath water. Just because a good recipe calls for a pricy or other ingredient you either don't like or don't have, if it's. It the main ingredient, punt!
I always have chicken granules ( low sodium) better than boullion, and vegetable granules. They are always at the ready and far cheaper than the canned or boxed alternatives. I also make stock when I'm batch cooking. Our great grandmothers made vegetable stock from the peelings. I don't do it because that's where a lot of the pesticide residue is. I have taken to washing my veggies in vinegar water. I have a brush I got from the dollar tree ( it's a cute lady bug ) that I use to scrub inky vegetables. You can stick it on the top rack of the dishwasher. I only use it for vegetables. I use a brush that holds liquid soap for cleaning baked on grime. It os a Brillo brand and is at the dollar tree too. It saves my nails and does a great job.
I make a mix to replace cream soups. I only buy cream soups about thanksgiving time with a coupon, This saves about a dollar a can. The mix saves more.
We care try much stick to the basics in veggies. We use the fresh more pricy veggies for a treat. I want the granddaughter to be introduced to a wide variety of food. We just can't afford on a strict low budget to have those things every day. Besides the fact that grandpa wouldn't eat it.
By paying 1/2 price for your food, you can afford a trmemT every now and then. I found a personal watermelon for a dollar. It was just right for five of us to have watermelon. Watermelon is full of
sugar and one of the highest in the glycemic index.
We pretty much stick to
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen )by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
I was watching a u tube about summer recipes. The lady cut stars out of watermelon- a neat idea for 4th of July! She also wrapped her ingredients for foil packets for the girl, first on parchment, and then in foil. There is some concern that cooking in aluminum has a link to memory loss.
FYI. A lot of the recipes I post could be enhanced with the addition of onion. My husband won't eat onions, green peppers or mushrooms. I compensate for the onions with onion powder or cook with very large pieces of onion that I can remove before serving. I use red or orange peppers and no mushrooms. Celery is a good substitute for mushrooms to add back the bulk that the mushrooms would have supplied.
Which brings me to a concept that my daughter hasn't learned yet. Other than baking recipes that take chemistry to make things rise, recipes can be altered of you don't have an ingredient, or an ingredient is too pricey. You can substitute onion strips with onion powder,nor grate an onion if someone doesn't like to bite into an onion. I use celery often to create the bulk of a vegetable that is too pricy. A lot of fresh fruit can be substituted with canned. Rinse canned fruit under cold water and don't use the liquid from the can. That reduces the sugar a lot.
We had to throw away the stir fry veggies from Costco because they were recalled. We are going to use celery, carrot, and peppers. I will add top ramen noodles, cooked without the seasoning packet ( too much salt. I also have some broccoli. I don't have snow peas, so I'll sub broccoli.
Don't throw away the baby with the bath water. Just because a good recipe calls for a pricy or other ingredient you either don't like or don't have, if it's. It the main ingredient, punt!
I always have chicken granules ( low sodium) better than boullion, and vegetable granules. They are always at the ready and far cheaper than the canned or boxed alternatives. I also make stock when I'm batch cooking. Our great grandmothers made vegetable stock from the peelings. I don't do it because that's where a lot of the pesticide residue is. I have taken to washing my veggies in vinegar water. I have a brush I got from the dollar tree ( it's a cute lady bug ) that I use to scrub inky vegetables. You can stick it on the top rack of the dishwasher. I only use it for vegetables. I use a brush that holds liquid soap for cleaning baked on grime. It os a Brillo brand and is at the dollar tree too. It saves my nails and does a great job.
I make a mix to replace cream soups. I only buy cream soups about thanksgiving time with a coupon, This saves about a dollar a can. The mix saves more.
We care try much stick to the basics in veggies. We use the fresh more pricy veggies for a treat. I want the granddaughter to be introduced to a wide variety of food. We just can't afford on a strict low budget to have those things every day. Besides the fact that grandpa wouldn't eat it.
By paying 1/2 price for your food, you can afford a trmemT every now and then. I found a personal watermelon for a dollar. It was just right for five of us to have watermelon. Watermelon is full of
sugar and one of the highest in the glycemic index.
We pretty much stick to
- Carrots
- Celery
- Peppers
- Green beans
- Corn
- Peas
- Apples
- Grapes
- Tomatoes
- Lettuce
- Romaine
- Cucumbers
- English cucumbers
- Cantaloupe in season
- Cabbage if I hubby ate it.
- Berries in season
- Blueberries
- Potatoes
- Red potatoes on occasion
- Corn on the cob in season
- Bananas
I probably forgot something. You can post more on the comments of you like.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen )by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
Dinner
last night we had hamburgers, French fries and fruit salad and corn on the cob. My daughter substituted a veggie Berger. That was still close to a five dollar dinner.
Four people. One meal. Five bucks. Five dollars is my cost limit (-average ) for the four of us. That's a target amount in order to stick to a four dollar a day budget. We actually eat well on less than a four dollar a day budget. The trick is to pay 1/2 price for your food, it takes some work. I post my hauls and what I find to take some of the work out of it for some people in the Seattle area.
For the most part, I have concluded that the fresh food market is more expensive and lesser quality than Winco. Winco and Fred Meyers are the lowest price source seen.
Grocery outlet is more expensive on a lot of things-- you can still find a sleeper every now and then. Usually, I know that the sliced cheese is 2.39. Coffee is sometimes cheaper. They have date related mark downs -- really cheap. Check the dates. Sometimes it's a matter of changing meal plans to use it up. They had mayonaise for 3/97. It was really stale dated and I didn't know how long safe was. When in doubt, throw it out rules applied, we didn't get it. Coffee used to be cheaper,I check every time.
There are a few American brands of things at the dollar store. The dollar store takes coupons. Watch pull dates. Watch package sizes. Watch the product origin. ( China has a bar code starting with a 6, or 47 . Some prices are more than the grocery store. Their cheese isn't always real cheese.
Some of it is junk food and some of it is convenience food this better made scratch.
I go to Alberways if they have a bulk sale that makes sense--especially of it is enhanced with a basket coupon.
I hear the Asian market has good prices. We don't eat a lot of Asian food, but we are low on soy sauce, so I might do some price comparison. My husband makes beef jerky and uses a lot.
Costco is best for dairy unless there is a big sale , bananas, oatmeal, and bulk sausage.
No store has the best prices on everything. The best you can do is to pick the two chain stores that best suit your needs by carrying the items you buy most often. Do a SAMs club or Costco run for bulk items once a month or so. That should give you the most bang for your buck without spending an exorbitant amount of time shopping, plan your trips and go with a good idea (list) of what you are looking for-- even if that "list" is a vague.....stock meat, and veggies to go with meals.
I know when I'm walking into a store, what I angling to buy. Unless a real bargain gets up and jumps at me, or so,etching really looks nasty, I am probably going to stick to the list. Example-- by grouping like things in the fridge and freezer, I can tell at a glance what we need soon. I walked onto Winco, tater tots were 1.28 for two pounds. Anything under a dollar a pound for frozen veggies or potatoes is a bargain. I bought ine so we could try the out. They turned out tasting fine, they were just a little thinner than the name brand. I liked that because they cooked faster.
Get in a store, get what you need, amd get out. The more time you spend in a store, the more money you will spend.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Four people. One meal. Five bucks. Five dollars is my cost limit (-average ) for the four of us. That's a target amount in order to stick to a four dollar a day budget. We actually eat well on less than a four dollar a day budget. The trick is to pay 1/2 price for your food, it takes some work. I post my hauls and what I find to take some of the work out of it for some people in the Seattle area.
For the most part, I have concluded that the fresh food market is more expensive and lesser quality than Winco. Winco and Fred Meyers are the lowest price source seen.
Grocery outlet is more expensive on a lot of things-- you can still find a sleeper every now and then. Usually, I know that the sliced cheese is 2.39. Coffee is sometimes cheaper. They have date related mark downs -- really cheap. Check the dates. Sometimes it's a matter of changing meal plans to use it up. They had mayonaise for 3/97. It was really stale dated and I didn't know how long safe was. When in doubt, throw it out rules applied, we didn't get it. Coffee used to be cheaper,I check every time.
There are a few American brands of things at the dollar store. The dollar store takes coupons. Watch pull dates. Watch package sizes. Watch the product origin. ( China has a bar code starting with a 6, or 47 . Some prices are more than the grocery store. Their cheese isn't always real cheese.
Some of it is junk food and some of it is convenience food this better made scratch.
I go to Alberways if they have a bulk sale that makes sense--especially of it is enhanced with a basket coupon.
I hear the Asian market has good prices. We don't eat a lot of Asian food, but we are low on soy sauce, so I might do some price comparison. My husband makes beef jerky and uses a lot.
Costco is best for dairy unless there is a big sale , bananas, oatmeal, and bulk sausage.
No store has the best prices on everything. The best you can do is to pick the two chain stores that best suit your needs by carrying the items you buy most often. Do a SAMs club or Costco run for bulk items once a month or so. That should give you the most bang for your buck without spending an exorbitant amount of time shopping, plan your trips and go with a good idea (list) of what you are looking for-- even if that "list" is a vague.....stock meat, and veggies to go with meals.
I know when I'm walking into a store, what I angling to buy. Unless a real bargain gets up and jumps at me, or so,etching really looks nasty, I am probably going to stick to the list. Example-- by grouping like things in the fridge and freezer, I can tell at a glance what we need soon. I walked onto Winco, tater tots were 1.28 for two pounds. Anything under a dollar a pound for frozen veggies or potatoes is a bargain. I bought ine so we could try the out. They turned out tasting fine, they were just a little thinner than the name brand. I liked that because they cooked faster.
Get in a store, get what you need, amd get out. The more time you spend in a store, the more money you will spend.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Monday, June 27, 2016
Each or per pound.
My daughter went to the fresh food stand. Came bought a lot of veggies to juice. she said that peppers were .69 each.
We were going to town to run an errand,. I stopped at th dollar tree/ grocery outlet , the fresh veggie stand and Winco because we were out of ice cream. Ice crea, that is low carb is a good desert for me. It has a good balance of sugar, fat, and protein.
Peppers were 1.25 at grocery outlet. There were bags of yellow peppers. Bit, lone knew how much they cost. They did have the sliced cheese we normally get for 2.39 And I got diet cranberry juice inexpensive - 3'carbs a glass.
Peppers at the fresh fruit stand were 1.98 a pound except green peppers. My husband won't eat green peppers. We found cheap cherries,
Winco had cheaper prices on almost every veggie and fruit than the fresh food market. I got cantaloupe for .58 a pound. Raspberries. And peppers for .88. And the hamburger buns were .68.
I didn't buy them, but plums and nectarines were cheaper too. I didn't spend much, but filled in cheese and produce, dairy.
When something is priced per pound. It pays to weigh the item. It may be cheaper somewhere else proces each.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen ) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
We were going to town to run an errand,. I stopped at th dollar tree/ grocery outlet , the fresh veggie stand and Winco because we were out of ice cream. Ice crea, that is low carb is a good desert for me. It has a good balance of sugar, fat, and protein.
Peppers were 1.25 at grocery outlet. There were bags of yellow peppers. Bit, lone knew how much they cost. They did have the sliced cheese we normally get for 2.39 And I got diet cranberry juice inexpensive - 3'carbs a glass.
Peppers at the fresh fruit stand were 1.98 a pound except green peppers. My husband won't eat green peppers. We found cheap cherries,
Winco had cheaper prices on almost every veggie and fruit than the fresh food market. I got cantaloupe for .58 a pound. Raspberries. And peppers for .88. And the hamburger buns were .68.
I didn't buy them, but plums and nectarines were cheaper too. I didn't spend much, but filled in cheese and produce, dairy.
When something is priced per pound. It pays to weigh the item. It may be cheaper somewhere else proces each.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen ) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Costco
ot seems almost impossible to get out of Costco for under a hundred dollars. I did it.....but not by much! LOL. It was one of those to,Es when we needed to stock on some things that last far more than a month. It is sooo much cheaper that it is worth the investment.
Rice is a lot cheaper. I thought that twenty five pounds was a lot of rice, but we had gone through ten pounds in a couple off months. I did try every recipe and every way to cook rice until I got a rice that was easy and to our liking. It finally came down to using a black and decker 16.00 rice cooker. I have a very large rice cooker, but for four of us, this is a better option.
Popcorn is 12.00 for a gallon sized container. That lasts a really long time. If you factor in how many bags of potato chips and the like you can get for 12.00 even at grocery outlet, it's not hard to see the savings. Not to mention the fact that it is better for you. If you air pop ( Kohls for 15.00) the corn, you can control the butter and salt -- no harsh chemicals that microwave popcorn has.
Over the counter , Doctor prescribed medicine is a lot cheaper. So much cheaper that I got a years supply of one of them for three dollars more than a month copay. It pays to investigate. My entire SSA check goes for medical, I save as much as I can to reverse that statistic. It also reduced the amount the insurance pays, and stretches out the doughnut hole.
Dawn dishwashing soap is the only kind I will buy. It a lot cheaper on the gallon type jug. We fill a glass bottle ( shaped like a fish) with it and I lit a bar-those dispenser top on it. It makes washing dishes easy, The other thing that makes cleaning pans easier and less harsh in your manicure, is a Brillo brush that you can fill with soap. ( dollar tree) .
I priced the cost of bulk pinto beans. They are more expensive than at the dollar store. And, yes, they are grown in the USA and have no GMO. 5 cups of beans to a package makes them twenty cents a cup.
I got ten pounds of organic carrots. When I got home, I chopped what we had in the produce drawer and bagged them for the freezer. They are ready for soup. I also cut celery that speared on my fridge amd froze it.
My daughter bought a huge bag of fruit at the fresh food stand so we washed it all its vinegar and she juiced a lot. Peppers were .69 for really big ones.
I digress
Hamburger patties were 2.50 a pound in the frozen food section. Hamburger bins are cheapest at Winco. You have to look for them. The more expensive ones are up front. The smaller ones we prefer ( less carbs) are parallel to the checkouts and further south than the entrance.
Bananas are always cheaper and not fluctuate with prices through the year.
About all.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Sunday, June 26, 2016
Meal plans
Went to Costco. We were running low on big staple items. Dawn, popcorn, rice.
Meal plans using what I have in stock.
- Breakfast for dinner - bacon, eggs, raspberry muffins, fruit.
- Split pea soup. Cheezy biscuits ( use carrots and celery in freezer
- Tacos or pizza
- Hamburgers , suddenly salad, fruits - hamburger patties were 249- a pound at Costco.
- BBQ chicken parts , fries, salad ( thighs)
- Fish packets ( green beans )
- Sausage w root vegetables, roasted (radish)
- Chicken stir fry and noodles. ( ramen)
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Saturday, June 25, 2016
The ads
Fred Meyers Fourth of July ad TOMORROW
As usual, the holiday is not the best time for bargains, except for picnic supplies.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
As usual, the holiday is not the best time for bargains, except for picnic supplies.
- Personal watermelon. 1.99
- Cherries 1.88
- Tillamook ice cream 2/5@@
- Zucchini .99
- Best foods 2.39@@
- Mustard .79@@
- BBQ sauce .79@@
- Strawberries 3.99
- Corn 5/2 ( .40 each)
- Coffee 4.99
That's about all.
If I was going to pick a rotation, it would be chicken breast ( last day today ) at Fred Meyers and/or 20 percent hambirger in chubs at Safeways. Safeways also has a basket coupon for 3.00 on just for u. Of your careful, that makes your meat 2.00 a pound. Be sure to de-fat it. Sloppy joes are cheaper than hamburger patties. Don't buy the sauce in a can. Homemade is a lot cheaper. I use a recipe that calls for a base of catsup with mustard, water, and liquid smoke.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Facts of life.....
I was watching a untie last night...couldn't sleep.... A lady was talking about why she stocks and doesn't coupon. I disagree. You can look for sales and still coupon,,,,double dipping discounts is great. But, she said something really profound......they were trying to pay off debt load. She could either work more, or spend less and spending less seemed to be easier. Working more when I was a single mom would have been finding more daycare, paying more daycare , amd not giving my child my quality time.
Despite the fact that the congress doesn't think the COL went up this year, our mandatory expenses have gone up sixteen hundred dollars. On our budget that's a lot of money. That is almost my husband's entire pension for the year. Since we are getting too old to work amd we have a four year old we are responsible for every afternoon, the only thing left is to spend less.
Because I have already cut our food bill in half, it is a real adventure to cut in more. But, cutting it more will give readers more ideas to cut their food bill. If you are on snap, it might afford you the luxury of a stockpile or the opportunity to have a special treat some of the time. Having a stockpile gives you the satisfaction of a job well done as well as the security of knowing there is food in the house im case something goes south......and you can't get to a store.
A lot of grocery stores have been closed because of Safeways and Albertsons merging. Fortunately, it was because there was another store close buy, but that give you less competition or choices . Both stores are keeping their names, but the ad prices are the same. I've taken to calling it alberways . I don't see the benefit of the redundance of posting both stores ads. LOL?
My next step is to cook from scratch efficiently some of the things that I bought ready made previously. I have tried and succeeded at refried beans that are not fried. I started making or bread.
It's a lot cheaper even than the bakery outlet. I made breadsticks in the bread machine. It still took several hours. Pizza dough was almost as long I was able to put the raw dough in the refrigerator and Roll it out later.
It is still possible to get some mixes and barbecue sauce cheaper then cooking scratch. I got barbecue sauce for $.55 memorial day weekend with coupons. Picnic supplies are best stocked on summer holidays. Using coupons cuts the cost more. I have got catsup for as low as .75 with no preservatives. BBQ sauce, the best brand was .55. Mustard is on sale at Fred Meyers. You can get these for a dollar at the dollar store year round. They even have the designer types of mustard.
I am sure that scratch cakes are cheaper than mixes, even though I lay a dollar or less for mixes. I do keep a yellow cake mix on hand because I want the capability of a easy fast desert. Apple dump cake from Betty Crocker is easy, fast, amd less sugar than other dump cakes. I'm not fond of the sugar or price of canned pie filling. It bumps up the price and plain apples are more desirable, There is plenty of sugar in the cake mix.
There are recipes for your own cookie and cornbread mixes on the Internet. I have not priced them, but I would assume that you can buy the ingredients for less money,
Prices are strange. Sometomes logic doesn't hold true, Case in point, bulk pinto beans are more expensive at Winco in the bulk isle than the two pound bag at the dollar store. That price is even cheaper than buying a twenty five pound bag at Costco. Save your storage space for the things that pay you to buy in bulk. Rice is cheaper in bulk at Costco. I , fortunately saved pickle Lars from way back when they came in glass. We used to have a second big fridge and could keep a gallon of pickles. With three kids in the house, we went through a lot of pickles. Now they come on plastic and you probably couldn't get the smell out of it.
You can't always assume that bigger is better and a calculator from the dollar store can be your best friend, Costco breaks down unit proces in ounces. That makes it hard to compare cans of things.
It's great for dry goods and dishwasher pods, but not much help with cans, I, constantly doing the math,
One last note. Proces on cherries are per pound usually, not per bag and weight can tricky, The bags I checked were almost ten dollars. Buyer beware!
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Despite the fact that the congress doesn't think the COL went up this year, our mandatory expenses have gone up sixteen hundred dollars. On our budget that's a lot of money. That is almost my husband's entire pension for the year. Since we are getting too old to work amd we have a four year old we are responsible for every afternoon, the only thing left is to spend less.
Because I have already cut our food bill in half, it is a real adventure to cut in more. But, cutting it more will give readers more ideas to cut their food bill. If you are on snap, it might afford you the luxury of a stockpile or the opportunity to have a special treat some of the time. Having a stockpile gives you the satisfaction of a job well done as well as the security of knowing there is food in the house im case something goes south......and you can't get to a store.
A lot of grocery stores have been closed because of Safeways and Albertsons merging. Fortunately, it was because there was another store close buy, but that give you less competition or choices . Both stores are keeping their names, but the ad prices are the same. I've taken to calling it alberways . I don't see the benefit of the redundance of posting both stores ads. LOL?
My next step is to cook from scratch efficiently some of the things that I bought ready made previously. I have tried and succeeded at refried beans that are not fried. I started making or bread.
It's a lot cheaper even than the bakery outlet. I made breadsticks in the bread machine. It still took several hours. Pizza dough was almost as long I was able to put the raw dough in the refrigerator and Roll it out later.
It is still possible to get some mixes and barbecue sauce cheaper then cooking scratch. I got barbecue sauce for $.55 memorial day weekend with coupons. Picnic supplies are best stocked on summer holidays. Using coupons cuts the cost more. I have got catsup for as low as .75 with no preservatives. BBQ sauce, the best brand was .55. Mustard is on sale at Fred Meyers. You can get these for a dollar at the dollar store year round. They even have the designer types of mustard.
I am sure that scratch cakes are cheaper than mixes, even though I lay a dollar or less for mixes. I do keep a yellow cake mix on hand because I want the capability of a easy fast desert. Apple dump cake from Betty Crocker is easy, fast, amd less sugar than other dump cakes. I'm not fond of the sugar or price of canned pie filling. It bumps up the price and plain apples are more desirable, There is plenty of sugar in the cake mix.
There are recipes for your own cookie and cornbread mixes on the Internet. I have not priced them, but I would assume that you can buy the ingredients for less money,
Prices are strange. Sometomes logic doesn't hold true, Case in point, bulk pinto beans are more expensive at Winco in the bulk isle than the two pound bag at the dollar store. That price is even cheaper than buying a twenty five pound bag at Costco. Save your storage space for the things that pay you to buy in bulk. Rice is cheaper in bulk at Costco. I , fortunately saved pickle Lars from way back when they came in glass. We used to have a second big fridge and could keep a gallon of pickles. With three kids in the house, we went through a lot of pickles. Now they come on plastic and you probably couldn't get the smell out of it.
You can't always assume that bigger is better and a calculator from the dollar store can be your best friend, Costco breaks down unit proces in ounces. That makes it hard to compare cans of things.
It's great for dry goods and dishwasher pods, but not much help with cans, I, constantly doing the math,
One last note. Proces on cherries are per pound usually, not per bag and weight can tricky, The bags I checked were almost ten dollars. Buyer beware!
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Friday, June 24, 2016
Dinner......and other notes
We went to Dollar tree yesterday. I ran out of rug cleaner and need to clean the stairs . I also ran out of cupcake liners and had made delicious raspberry muffins with the fleishmans muffin mix from dollar tree. It takes vanilla Greek yogurt.
I priced the pinto beans, They are made in USA and nonGMO. They are cheaper than Costco's bulk, and cheaper than Wincos bulk. --.50 a lb.
There are a few things at dollar tree that are cheaper and work as well as anything else on the market.
I'm not inclined to buy cheap throw away toys. The workbooks, on the other hand, are very good.
You can find good expensive books there,. The cleaning products are good for the most part. They carry Brillo products. I bought a brunch that holds liquid soap. It's really handy for ore long stuck on thing before the dishwasher. I keep ot on a small pitcher that sits on the counter.
They have name brand cosmetics and soaps. Watch the quantities. Some are smaller. Bar soap is name brands,
Betty Crocker kitchen implements are good. The measuring cups and spoons can't go in the dishwasher well. The markings wash off. But the kitchen shears are good and I like to have several pairs. When I'm cooking, I change them out often. I don't want to cross contaminate- especially when I'm cooking meat. I put them through the dishwasher with the blades separated . Great for cutting chives or parsley. They have a small spatula that works great for small jars.
Some of the things are made in China. I avoid China made food. As for other products. Take a look at the things I your grocery store, They are made on China too. So, why pay more-- especially if it is something you are going to throw away...single use items like cupcake liners.
Sundry items are almost never cheaper at the grocery store. They are there for convenience and convenience almost always starts with $$$.
Rarely, does something made for saving you time, save you money too. The price of pasta sauce with coupons or on sale with coupons is a rare exception. By the time you buy the tomatoes to make sauce, you can spend more than ready made. I got Alfredo sauce for .48 a jar. The cheese and the cream would cost more. If you are a foodie and have th Bucks it might be worth it,, but we neither have the excess money nor are we really particular. It has to taste good, but gourmet isn't our middle name, LOL.
I can cut up my own fruit. I control how I clean it and how big the pieces are and it's lots cheaper.
Studies have proven that washed greens are cleaner than of you wash them at home. They tested washed greens, then, they washed the greens. They had more germs after washing than before.
I can't spend all day in the kitchen and I am retired. I would venture to bet that working mothers can't either, besides working, they have to shop, pay bills, clean house, and take children where they need to be-- not to mention the laundry. Been there, done that, you can involve children in cooking. There is a lot of lessons to be learned -- everything from how to fold on an ingredient to fractions in measuring, Some adults I've seen on u tube don't know the difference between a liquid measuring cup and a dry one. Glass measuring cups are for liquids because you can get a more accurate measurement . Dry measures fill to the top and you can level them with a case knife. Also, of you are baking and have two liquid ingredients , you can use the same cup and bring the sewing ingredient to the combined total measurement. IE measure 1/2 cup of oil, then if the recipe calls for 1/4 cup of water. Add water to the 3/4 line.
I usually mix all the wet ingredients and then all the dry ingredients in different bowls. Them fold one onto the other. Over mixing makes the dough tough. I also break eggs in a separate bowl just in case one is bad. Mesinplas bowls are 4/1 at the dollar store.
Also, over mixing your mixture of ground meat can make it tough too.
Speaking if meat, jenne-0 turkey bacon is at the dollar store. Eggs are at the dollar store for a buck a dozen, Also. They are a dollar at Walgreens this week too. Dollar store also has Betty Crocker mixes, uncle ben's rice, zatarans , Libby's, There are other things on the freezer that are name brands, be careful, they are sometimes more expensive than the regular store. Name brand catsup is always a buck. I have got ot for .80 at Safeways lately. The BBQ sauce is more expensive at dollar tree than on sale . Hunts pasta sauce is more expensive too.
The linens at the dollar store are poor quality. The Best Buy I have found for kitchen linens is to buy seasonal , holiday linens at a regular store or Joanne's -- past the season. They are marked down sometimes as low as 90 percent. They dry the dishes, who cares what print they have on them. You can out out whatever season is aooropriate and use the rest. My mother one time got towels with turning leaves on them for a dime. She bought each of we three girls and herself ten of them. Virtually, four of us got 40 towels for the price of one or two.
Now you know where I learned to shop wisely. LOL.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Chicken noodle casserole
Stop by step chicken noodle casserole. Defrost peas and place them in bottom of greased (Pam) baking dish,
Divide bag of noodles in half. ( I weighed six ounces since three of us eat meat. )
I boiled water, salted it, amd cooked noodles until they were tender. ( you can cut the, easily with a fork.)
I defrosted the chicken I cut from bones while de-boning chicken breasts. ( cooked)
Prepare cream base from mix. Let it come to a boil and thicken.
I added a couple of handfuls of grated cheese.
Stor all imgredients together in baking dish.
Make 1/4 cup bread crumb topping : Bread crumbs, parm cheese, and 1 T ranch dressing mix.
The cream soup base, bread crumbs and ranch dressing mix are homemade.
Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until heated through.
Total cost 1.50.
I would serve it with some Italian bread and / or broccoli.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
The ads
THe ads for this week are for Alberways and QFC.
Grapes 1,79
Shrimp 3.99@@
20 percent hamburger 2.99
Tomatoes .99
Berries 2/6
Buy5, save 5
Ice cream Bars Asst. 2.49
Ore ida potatoes 1,99
Coffee 6.99
BOGO
Catsup
Tortilla chips
Old El Paso $$
Best foods
BBQ sauce
I don't know the prices of the BOGO, so I can't tell if they are a bargain or not.
QFC
Ground turkey 2.99
Zucchini .99
Berries 2/4
Draper valley chicken .99
Corn 2/1
Yoplait 10/5
Buy 6, save 3. (.50)
Cheerios. 1.49$$
Hillshire farms sausage 2.49$$
Best foods 2,99
That's about it.
@@. In ad coupon needed
$$ there is probably a coupon out there in cyberland.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Grapes 1,79
Shrimp 3.99@@
20 percent hamburger 2.99
Tomatoes .99
Berries 2/6
Buy5, save 5
Ice cream Bars Asst. 2.49
Ore ida potatoes 1,99
Coffee 6.99
BOGO
Catsup
Tortilla chips
Old El Paso $$
Best foods
BBQ sauce
I don't know the prices of the BOGO, so I can't tell if they are a bargain or not.
QFC
Ground turkey 2.99
Zucchini .99
Berries 2/4
Draper valley chicken .99
Corn 2/1
Yoplait 10/5
Buy 6, save 3. (.50)
Cheerios. 1.49$$
Hillshire farms sausage 2.49$$
Best foods 2,99
That's about it.
@@. In ad coupon needed
$$ there is probably a coupon out there in cyberland.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Tuesday, June 21, 2016
Winco
I got Ragu for .48. Cantaloupe for .38 a pound and nectarines for 128. Blue bunny ice cream comes were 3.25 and olives for .78. Some of that was with coupons. Meatballs , 14 ounces .98. Coupons in Winco web site....expire today. You snooze, you loose! LOL.
Also there is a u tube that addresses a lot of inexpensive recipes. It is,called "livimginadime". Recipe for homemade brown sugar.
Also there is a u tube that addresses a lot of inexpensive recipes. It is,called "livimginadime". Recipe for homemade brown sugar.
Meals and their cost
7 meals and their cost when bought at RBP.
For three adults and 1 child or toe adults and two school aged children.
I don't always cost meals out, it's. Ice everyone and the to do a reality check.
Scratch pizza , one with black olives and red peppers, one with pepperoni, 2.43 with leftovers
Soup from leftover beef tips ( factor in leftover price ) biscuits 3.18
Chicken noodle casserole with peas and carrots. 2.76
Baked white fish, fries salad. 5.00
Chicken stir fry : chicken pieces. Celery, peppers, ramen noodles, celery and carrots 1.76
Chicken tacos, rice and fried beans 2.05 -
Breakfast for dinner : blueberry waffles. Vanilla yogurt parfaits, bacon. 4.20
Total. 21.38. Average 3.05 a meal.
Notes : pepperoni is at the dollar store and there is in essence BOGO coupon.
Peppers were 5/3 at grocery outlet, I cut them in pieces and froze them.
Black olives. Sliced were .58 at Winco
Leftover soup from tips we had 1/2 package of meat was 2.00 and 1/2'can tomatoes .25. Add
Celery and carrots.
Ten pounds of split chicken breast were ten dollars. I devones the breasts, saving the tenders aside. The rest of the bones with meat were cooked for stock and the meat was pulled from the bones. That left 16 half breasts (1.25 pounds each) chicken tenders, amd two cups of chicken pieces. 19 meal s for .53 a meal. Meat stretch further if you don't serve individual pieces. The RDA of protein is 6 ounces per day which should include eggs.
Peas and mixed veggies I paid .60 a pound bag for with coupon at Winco. Frozen
Fries are a dollar a bag, or five pounds for 300 amd change at Winco, I bought ore-Ida at the dollar tree.
Use chicken pieces for stirfry and add a top ramen noodle pack - always dove or sox for a dollar at dollar store.
Taco kits are a dollar at grocery outlet. Use the rest of the chicken meat or the chicken tenders , bulk rice and homemade re- fried beans not fried.
Breakfast for dinner : use waffles homemade or pancakes. Plain yogurt layers in small tall glass with blueberroes or other chesp fruit in season and top with some granola. That can be made from scratch too. I have also found it at the dollar store- a name brand.
Jenne-o turkey bacon is at the dollar store.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
For three adults and 1 child or toe adults and two school aged children.
I don't always cost meals out, it's. Ice everyone and the to do a reality check.
Scratch pizza , one with black olives and red peppers, one with pepperoni, 2.43 with leftovers
Soup from leftover beef tips ( factor in leftover price ) biscuits 3.18
Chicken noodle casserole with peas and carrots. 2.76
Baked white fish, fries salad. 5.00
Chicken stir fry : chicken pieces. Celery, peppers, ramen noodles, celery and carrots 1.76
Chicken tacos, rice and fried beans 2.05 -
Breakfast for dinner : blueberry waffles. Vanilla yogurt parfaits, bacon. 4.20
Total. 21.38. Average 3.05 a meal.
Notes : pepperoni is at the dollar store and there is in essence BOGO coupon.
Peppers were 5/3 at grocery outlet, I cut them in pieces and froze them.
Black olives. Sliced were .58 at Winco
Leftover soup from tips we had 1/2 package of meat was 2.00 and 1/2'can tomatoes .25. Add
Celery and carrots.
Ten pounds of split chicken breast were ten dollars. I devones the breasts, saving the tenders aside. The rest of the bones with meat were cooked for stock and the meat was pulled from the bones. That left 16 half breasts (1.25 pounds each) chicken tenders, amd two cups of chicken pieces. 19 meal s for .53 a meal. Meat stretch further if you don't serve individual pieces. The RDA of protein is 6 ounces per day which should include eggs.
Peas and mixed veggies I paid .60 a pound bag for with coupon at Winco. Frozen
Fries are a dollar a bag, or five pounds for 300 amd change at Winco, I bought ore-Ida at the dollar tree.
Use chicken pieces for stirfry and add a top ramen noodle pack - always dove or sox for a dollar at dollar store.
Taco kits are a dollar at grocery outlet. Use the rest of the chicken meat or the chicken tenders , bulk rice and homemade re- fried beans not fried.
Breakfast for dinner : use waffles homemade or pancakes. Plain yogurt layers in small tall glass with blueberroes or other chesp fruit in season and top with some granola. That can be made from scratch too. I have also found it at the dollar store- a name brand.
Jenne-o turkey bacon is at the dollar store.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Monday, June 20, 2016
Green enchilada sauce
Gather ingredients : calls for 1.5 cups of chicken or vegetable stock .
Also I small can of green chillies , drained and rinsed.
Betty Crocker can drainer is a great help. Drain and rinse.
Recipe is in a sheet protected from the dollar store. Keeps it clean.
Make a roux of garlic in oil and flour.
Add in vegetable broth and stir until thickened. Add spices and green chillies.
Having everything on a tray keeps you from forgetting anything if you are pulled away.
Take used things off the tray as you use them.
Simmer finished sauce 30 minutes. Cool and place in covered container. Top will skim .
Sunday, June 19, 2016
Meal plans
Meal plans
- Sausage, oven roasted root veggies : radish, potato, carrots , Bisquits
- Homemade pizza , salad ( pepperoni .50. Homemade crust. Part of a jar of pizza sauce, motts cheese.
- Soup from sirloin tip leftovers
- Sweet and sour meatballs over rice
- Breakfast for dinner : blueberry waffles, yogurt parfaits.
- Shrimp stir fry
- Mac and cheese, ( homemade ) peas and carrots
- Sausage and oven roasted veggies
- Chicken soup, cheezy rolls
- Tacos, rice and refried beans
- Speghetti and meatballs, salad
- BLTs with soup or fries
- Baked potato bar
- Baked fish , fries. Fruit salad
Fred Meyer haul
just a disclosure, I have spent more this month because of the freezer thawing and needing to replenish at least some of our stock. We are still lower than the USDA stats for my husband and I and we subsidize the daughter and granddaughter. Their USDA stats are 69.00 more.
Google : cost of food at home USDA for your stats.
Our freezer is pretty much full.
Google : cost of food at home USDA for your stats.
Our freezer is pretty much full.
Fred Meyers haul. 3 pounds of beef made 8 dinners ; two approx 5 pound chicken breast made 8 breasts plus some chicken tenders, plus chicken stock and enough chicken pieces for several casseroles and or chicken pizza. Three Red Baron pizzas. 2 gallons of milk, 2 lbs of butter, 2 blue bunny ice creams and 2 suddenly salads that were .50 with coupon and sale. Low low carb yogurt
was .40. I bought four to see if I liked them. - Kroger spaghetti was .89 and a dollar for chocolate fudge cycles for granddaughter.
Freezer with labeled bins.
All the sauces and vegetables and cheese is in the big freezer.
We came home from the store and my husband cooked the ground beef (7 percent fat ) and separated it into crumbles and taco meat, then seasoned the taco meat. I bagged it into portion controlled quart bags and then bagged the quart bags accordingly.
While he was cooking the meat, I was debonong the chicken split breasts. They left the chicken tenders on so I cut them off and put them in a separate bag. The bones and the meat I left on the, are simmering for stock and chicken pieces for soup or casseroles or pizza. Buffalo chicken pizza is really good.
Kitchen management is sometimes the key to eating well on four dollars a day budget. I am still with restocking the freezer less than the four dollars a day and we have more than two weeks worth of meals. Between kitchen management and purchasing food at least 1/2 price, you can eat well for a limited budget amount,
At QFC, suddenly salad was 2.69. I paid .50. Boneless, skinless chicken breast are 6.00 a pound and you don't always know where they came from. I paid a dollar a pound. I deboned eight breasts in less time than it took hubby to cook three pounds of beef in the frying pan. Frozen chicken breast take 8 minutes to cook in the pressure cooker or you can thaw them in the fridge the night before you want to cook them.
I used 11.50 worth of coupons this week end .
Sunday notes
Yesterday was a good day to clean out the freezer and wash the inside. I took the opportunity to wash the baskets and organize them , putting one vegetable into each basket. Corn, green beans and edamame , peas and peas and carrots, and mixed veggies. Potatoes went in the bottom bin. I'm leaving it to vegetables and cheese until I'm sure it works ok, That means I have meat and a few things like pizza sauce in my refrigerator freezer. It has drawers and I marked them with the type of meat with a grease pencil. ( it washes off) I use a grease pencil for the egg keepers as well, it washes off and I can put the pull date on the top.
Which brings me to refrigerator / freezer/ pantry hacks .
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
Which brings me to refrigerator / freezer/ pantry hacks .
- Pizza sauce is a dollar for a good sized jar. It makes about four pizzas. I put the contents of a jar in a ice cube tray and freeze it. When it is frozen, I dump them in a zip lock bag
- When I am chopping anything that can go on a pizza during a meal prep, I put veggies in a bag in the freezer door. Meat can be pulled away in separate bags-- sausage, bacon, ham, chicken pieces - when you are ready to make a pizza you are all ready to make a pizza in a snap. You can buy thin pizza crusts at big lots or the dollar store, make pizza dough from scratch ( it can be frozen) or buy inexpensive pizzas and add toppings. Or, use French bread.
- I freeze cheese, grated. If I grate my own, I add a little cornstarch . I usually keep ot to motts and Mexican blend.
- Buy bulk -loss leader meats and cook/ portion control when apropriate . No thawing and cooking - it's really easy right out of the freezer. Thawing cooked ground meat is fast .
- Foster farms chicken breast is on sale for about a dollar often. It takes about ten minutes to debone split chicken breast package. The difference in cost can be as much as five dollars a pound and you know where this chicken comes from. Not all chickens are alike. I wrap each half breast separately and then put them all on a gallon bag. It is easier to get them out of the bag and makes for a more organized freezer.
- Organizing freezer and pantry space lets you see at a glance what you need to replenish when it's on sale. Usually, I kept the ads trigger my investigation of stock levels.
- Dollar store baskets are a good tool to harness small cans - green chillies, tomato sauce, chopped or sliced black olives.
- Some markers wash off slick services. You can use them to mark pull dates on lock and lock egg cartons, or on the shelf pulls of the freezer. Things get lost when they are just stashed willy - Nilly.
- A little time in the freezer and pantry will save you lots of money - not buying things again.
- Keeping track of things that might go bad and prepping them for the freezer helps eliminate waste.
- Some people cut cooking time and stress by making crock pot meals ahead and putting them in the freezer. I would probably forget to take it out of the freezer the night before. You would probably be more efficient.
- Having a pressure cooker allows you to cook frozen fast and keep food moist. A frozen chicken breast is ready in eight minutes plus the time it takes to come up to pressure. It gives you time to prepare the rest of dinner while the chicken is cooking. No watched pot.
- Slow cookers and pasta cookers are another no watched pot helpers on the kitchen .
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until it goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Saturday, June 18, 2016
BRINNER - breakfast for dinner
Tonight's dinner :
BRINNER: eggs, biscuits .50 and bacon .78/2, fruit.
Restocking the freezer, one piece at a time.
OOPS! Someone , or a goblin, left the freezer door open or the freezer malfunctioned. Needless to say, we took six bags of meat and ice cream and pizza to the dump. It's not worth taking a chance eating food that may be spoiled and risking health of family members.
So, I start over. I will post as I go along for those that are just starting to stock on a dime,
Today, I went to Costco. The only stock thing I purchased was shrimp.
Then to QFC where I bought one package of cod and sale ice cream.
I don't want to load up the freezer until I am sure it's not going to malfunction.
Tomorrow I will go to Fred Meyers, chicken is on sale and I can debone chickens. I'm only going to stock ice cream and veggies in the downstairs freezer Until I am sure it works properly.
I haven't restocked pizzas because they were to high priced.
We can eat the meat in the upstairs side by side and replenish with loss leaders in time.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
So, I start over. I will post as I go along for those that are just starting to stock on a dime,
Today, I went to Costco. The only stock thing I purchased was shrimp.
Then to QFC where I bought one package of cod and sale ice cream.
I don't want to load up the freezer until I am sure it's not going to malfunction.
Tomorrow I will go to Fred Meyers, chicken is on sale and I can debone chickens. I'm only going to stock ice cream and veggies in the downstairs freezer Until I am sure it works properly.
I haven't restocked pizzas because they were to high priced.
We can eat the meat in the upstairs side by side and replenish with loss leaders in time.
Groceries on the cheap is looking at the "put the meal on the table train" from a different perspective.
The emphasis is on purchasing good shelf stable or frozen food for a RBP in quantity - enough to last you until ot goes on sale again or to keep a controlled non-perishable stock of the things you use on a weekly basis.
This means that instead of shopping daily or weekly for just the things you need to cook your meals for the week. You go to two stores and buy :
1) a protein that is a RBP - enough to make that meal for x number of days. (I.e.: if you eat it once a week, buy enough for 4 meals.)
2) produce and dairy you will need to fill in the meals for the week.
3) a stock item, if you need to and it is on a RBP - enough to fill in to your self imposed stock level.
You often are paying 1/2 price for your food. This allows you to put well-balanced meals on the table consistently on a four dollar a day per person budget. You spend more time on the locomotive ( planning and shopping ) end of the train, and less time in the caboose ( kitchen j) by cooking more efficiently.
Four dollars a day is the target amount for people on snap. My premise is that of you can do it on 4 dollars a day, spending more is not difficult and you still get more nutrition for your buck.
Repost:'life is just one big pasta salad
Yesterday, I made a big pasta salad to take to a happy hour picnic. Reflecting on my life, I think that life is like a big pasta salad. The pasta is the base. Our moral values, or its what we are made of. The veggies and stuff that we throw into it is the life experiences that get thrown at us. We can process them so that we wind up with a gourmet delight, or not. The dressing so how we pull it together. How we find a positive, out of a negative situation.
Back in the days when we went without a 10 inch black and white tv with rabbit ears, I would have never dreamed I would have a thirty something flat screen with hundreds of channels. We listened to old time radio. Now, I listen to old time radio because I want to and enjoy it. I can listen and still work in my studio or fold clothes .
When I studied everything I could get my hands on to learn to stretch a buck, I learned valuable life's lessons. Life's lessons I am trying to teach others. Making a positive out of what could have been a negative. My mother always said that no one ever gets through life without paying their dues. What you do with the experience is the key to a " flop or a gourmet salad."
So, I write this blog to help those people who, by their own volition want to stretch a buck or because someone is in a position to Have to stretch their food dollar, can make informed decisions and eat better for less.
My way of turning a negative into a positive.
The little feedback I get is telling me that people take different things from this blog. Some like to try a new recipe, some like a way to get out of the kitchen faster, or streamline the hectic dinner hour. Some just like to laugh at my terrible keyboard skills on the I pad! LOL. Whatever the reason, thanks for stopping by, and I hope you are sharing so that I can reach more people. They can take what they want from it. I do not get paid for doing this, I am doing it to try to help people eat better for less. Better, cheaper, faster,
Again, thanks for stopping by
Jane
Back in the days when we went without a 10 inch black and white tv with rabbit ears, I would have never dreamed I would have a thirty something flat screen with hundreds of channels. We listened to old time radio. Now, I listen to old time radio because I want to and enjoy it. I can listen and still work in my studio or fold clothes .
When I studied everything I could get my hands on to learn to stretch a buck, I learned valuable life's lessons. Life's lessons I am trying to teach others. Making a positive out of what could have been a negative. My mother always said that no one ever gets through life without paying their dues. What you do with the experience is the key to a " flop or a gourmet salad."
So, I write this blog to help those people who, by their own volition want to stretch a buck or because someone is in a position to Have to stretch their food dollar, can make informed decisions and eat better for less.
My way of turning a negative into a positive.
The little feedback I get is telling me that people take different things from this blog. Some like to try a new recipe, some like a way to get out of the kitchen faster, or streamline the hectic dinner hour. Some just like to laugh at my terrible keyboard skills on the I pad! LOL. Whatever the reason, thanks for stopping by, and I hope you are sharing so that I can reach more people. They can take what they want from it. I do not get paid for doing this, I am doing it to try to help people eat better for less. Better, cheaper, faster,
Again, thanks for stopping by
Jane
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