Sunday, November 13, 2016

Meal plans

meal plans for the week of November 14. Not necessarily im chronological  .  order.  


  1. Chicken sandwiches 🍔
  2. French fries or oven roasted vegetables 🍟
  3. Vegetable sticks 

  1. Pizza 🍕
  2. Green salad 

  1. Chicken enchaladas 
  2. Rice 

  1. Vegetable bean soup with parmesean cheese garnish 🍲
  2. Bread sticks 
  1. chili 
  2. Beer bread 🍺

  1. Tuna casserole 
  2. Broccoli , steamed w lemon 🍋 



  1. Breakfast 4 dinner 🍇🍑🍞🍳







Fred Meyers ad

Thanksgiving ad for Freddies.  

Turkey .49 when you buy 50.00 Fred Meyers
Turkey free when you buy 150.00 Alberways
Turkey at Winco will match prices. I don't know if there is a minimum purchase.  There wasn't last year.  


Spiral ham 1.69
Breast of turkey 1.69
Broccoli .99
Milk 1.00

Tillamook cheese 3/5@@$$
Idahoan potatoes .87
Berries 2/4
Mandarines 4.99
Pears .99
Cranberries 2/4
Cream cheese, jello, pudding 10/10
Pumpkin 2/3 Libby's
Evaporated milk .99
Cranberry sauce 2/3

Pie 3.99
Ice cream - tillamook 2/7
Frozen fruit 2/5@@kroger sausage or meatballs 2/5@@


Saturday, November 12, 2016

Ten things not to buy at the grocers

Ten things NOT to buy at the grocery store : ..some ever......


  1. Pop, soda. It's just bad for you.  So,e studies say that the fizz leeches calcium from   your bones.    It's empty calories.   Even if it's zero calories. You are not getting nutrition for your buck.  .     I have recently changed  my sloppy Joe recipe not to include ketchup  .   Most ketchup   has high fructose order to serve as one of the ingredients. This is not good nutrition.
  2.  Personally hygiene items. Those things are the moneymakers for the grocery store. You're better off by name brands from the dollar store or big lots. 
  3.  Everything else that's not food. Impulse buys  prostitute 70% of a Market Basket. Many are high profit items which means you're paying too much. 
  4.  The things that my mother used to call peanuts popcorn and cracker jacks. And other words junk food. That's a good source of protein. Air popped popcorn from scratch is a good snack.    But already popped  popcorn,  crackers and Potato chips are expensive and not much good nutrition.    
  5. Out of season  produce. You're going to pay more money  and less quality. Four instance, right now in the Northwest we are getting  raspberries and cranberries. Strawberries are past their prime and more expensive.     Used trade-offs. Buy something with the same nutritional contents instead 
  6.  Most single packaged items. Would you buy single packaged items you're creating more garbage for the landfill  and your pain sometimes almost double. 
  7. Anything  with high fructose corn syrup , high concentration of sugar, high trans fats,  or hydrogenated oil. Fake butter  sometimes has hydrogenated oil's. If it's not olive oil, or canola oil in its  ingredients don't buy it.  You're better off with a moderate amount of butter. Recently I was able to get a mixture of butter and canola oil for the same price as butter.    Coconut  oil has more trans fats that a beef steak.    
  8. Most processed foods.   Be a label reader.   The ingredients on the nutrition label are on order of volume.  If you  are buying potatoes, potatoes should be the first item on the list.    Elite have to read the label once.  If it doesn't cut the mustard, delete from your list.     Look at the  fat and carb level per serving. Glance at the serving size. Is it realistic. 20 g of sugar  Per serving is too much for a child. Some juices and sub fruit cups have 20 or over grams of sugar.  
  9.  Most meal boxes. They may be quick but honestly you can't make it from scratch just about as fast. The bill box my daughter and I dissected  had a little over 4 ounces of pasta  and 1.57 ounces  including the tare weight of cheese sauce mix  that had no cholesterol in it.    I have never known a cheese I didn't like, and I have never known a cheese without cholesterol.   LOL . The ingredients read like a Who's Who of additives and preservatives.    It's better, cheaper and faster to make scratch.   You still have to add milk and meat.  And, when I  did the math, that "cheese"  sauce cost $13 a pound.

Friday, November 11, 2016

scratch pizza crust


  • The last week has been a waste.  It's time to move on.   


QFC has their buy 10 sale this week as well.   Spaghetti is .50 - a good time to stock.   .50 and a .88 can of pasta sauce makes a cheap and fast meal.   You can make bread sticks from pizza dough.  

Pizza dough can be made easily on a food processor, but it also can be made by hand,   You barely have to knead dough from the food processor.    In the time it takes to go to the store and buy the door, you can have dough.  

Pizza dough, quick and easy.   In food processor bowl with the plastic blade. put


  • 2 cups flour. ( spoon into cups and level off   
  • 1.5 tspoons actove dry yeast ( Costco or bulk at Winco) 
  • 3/4 tsp salt - regular table salt 
Turn on the processor and blend for a few seconds.   
Pour into a glass measuring cup
  •  six ounces of 105-110 degree water ( hot  but not burning 
  • 2 teaspoons olive or canola oil 
Pour the water and oil mixture through the tube while the processor is running.   Mix until the dough forms a ball.   

Turn the dough onto a flour covered board and knead until smooth.   Add enough flour to make a dough consistency.  In our climate I have to add flour in the fall and winter.   

Firm into a ball and place in a small bowl that has been lightly coated with oil.  Cover and let rise on the counter until it doubles in size.   This should take 10 monitesmin a warm,itchen, or longer in a cooler kitchen.  

Pat or roll flat to for, a pizza crust.   We bake the crust  at 400 degrees on a sheet pan, or on the pizza stone that has been primed with corn meal for about 8 minutes, then take it out of the oven and fill with sauce, cheese, and toppings. 

Return to oven and bake until the crust is done and the cheese is melted.    

This makes one crust.   

Bread stick option.    
Pat dough into a sheet pan about nine by thirteen.   
Brush with olive oil or melted butter
Add sea salt. herbs, and or garlic 

Bake until done , about   Fifteen minutes.   
Cut into fingers about an inch and a half wide crosswise. And in half lengthwise.   

This is a recipe that cost about  forty cents.   

Cost of speghetti with meat sauce and bread sticks ?  One dollar and seventy  eight cents if you buy on sale in bulk.   

Add green beans (.33) at Winco or a salad .    







Thursday, November 10, 2016

Shopping?

I haven't shopped since Monday when I went to the dollar store, grocery outlet, and Costco.   Costco was for meds.   I did buy a Christmas gift and some cranberries and raspberries.       Grocery outlet netted coffee, and tomato broth and no sugar added  pears for  granddaughters lunch.  

The dollar store netted some Christmas decor, pounder glasses, enchalada sauce, glass jar of peaches,

Not much there.    We don't need much.    I have been purchasing a supply of old El Paso enchilada sauce because it is 3/1.00 at dollar tree.   It has come out that catsup has high fructose corn syrup on it and I am trying to stay away from that.   My sloppy joe recipe called for catsup.   My new one calls for enchalada sauce and taco seasoning.    Also, I bought no sugar  added pear cups  the granddaughter for her lunches.   They were six for a dollar  and a half.   That is better than the jar of peaches because with onky one child in school, we would waste fruit if I opened a jar for one school lunch.    Regular fruit cups have over twenty grams of sugar EACH.   That's way too much sugar for a child.   In contrast, I am allowed forty five carbs for an adult full meal.  

If you oit a box of apples juice  and a tub of fruit in a child's lunch, they are getting far to many carbs, most of which is coming from sugar.  

It's a fine line to buy your food for half price and still make sure you don't have too much salt, sugar, and saturated or hydrogenated oils or fats.  

Once you have a reasonable set of dinner recipes , your mealolans and dinner cooking should be a snap.   Most people have ten to twenty dishes that they make in a regular basis.  

Our recipes tend to have the same group of ingredients.   Listing them and their RBP is the first step in groceries on the  cheap.    I, not so worried about what I spend on that can of cranberries that inbuy once a year.    It's the can of diced tomatoes that I use at least once a week that creates a large impact on my bottom line.  




Wednesday, November 9, 2016

The ads

QFC was a two week ad last week.   The buy 10  sale is still on.

Alberways has its thanksgiving ad out.  Like usual, holiday ads don't usually reap a lot of good buys. They figure you are going to buy this stuff anyway, it's tradition, and they dont have to give a lot of bargains.  

Free turkey if you soend 150.00.  That a mighty big floor.   It yet to be seen if the prices are low enough for that to be worth your while.   Use just 4 you coupons electronic

Ham 1.88
Naval oranges .88
Canned veggies 2/1@@
Butter 199@@
Stove top .99
Cranberry sauce .99

Digital only .49 for tuna

Frozen pumpkin pie 2/7

Five dollar Friday

Shrimp
FF breaded chicken - $$ for 3.75 off of three

Progresso soup ,99@@$$
Dreyers 2,99@@
Ritz 3/5@@
Cake mix .99@@
Cranberries 2/5

That's about it.  I would suspect that Fred Meyers will have a better turkey price, we won't know until Saturday.   Winco usually matches.  






Tuesday, November 8, 2016

What you can do with 20.00

Let's pretend, I'm broke, I have twenty dollars and martians have wiped out my grocery supply.    What do I buy to get by until payday.   Based on dollar tree  and grocery outlet and two people.  

  1. One and a half pounds of pinto beans 
  2. A pound of rice 
  3. 2 pronto pasta with a coupon.    (1.00) 
  4. 2 .cans of pasta sauce.    
  5. Pizza crust 
  6. Package of tortillas 
  7. Eggs
  8. Package of brown and serve rolls 
  9. Box of oatmeal 
That's ten dollars 

Grocery outlet 
  1. Grated cheese - white and yellow or Mexican blend 
  2. 2 cans of tomato paste ( .80) 
  3. Lettuce 
  4. Peppers 
  5. Apples 
  6. Milk 
  7. Bananas 
  8. Tomatoes 
Makes 
Speghetti 
Pizza 
Quesedas 
Rice and beans 
Burritos 
Oatmeal 
Eggs
Salad with eggs 



What you can do with 20.00

Let's pretend, I'm broke, I have twenty dollars and martians have wiped out my grocery supply.    What do I buy to get by until payday.   Based on dollar tree  and grocery outlet and two people.  

  1. One and a half pounds of pinto beans 
  2. A pound of rice 
  3. 2 pronto pasta with a coupon.    (1.00) 
  4. 2 .cans of pasta sauce.    
  5. Pizza crust 
  6. Package of tortillas 
  7. Eggs
  8. Package of brown and serve rolls 
  9. Box of oatmeal 
That's ten dollars 

Grocery outlet 
  1. Grated cheese - white and yellow or Mexican blend 
  2. 2 cans of tomato paste ( .80) 
  3. Lettuce 
  4. Peppers 
  5. Apples 
  6. Milk 
  7. Bananas 
  8. Tomatoes 
Makes 
Speghetti 
Pizza 
Quesedas 
Rice and beans 
Burritos 
Oatmeal 
Eggs
Salad with eggs 



Monday, November 7, 2016

Fred Meyers haul

Fred Meyers had a lot of veggies on sale.    They also had two rotation meats on sale.   I just happened to have plenty of rotation meat.    I have four drawers  in my side by side freezer.   I marked them with a marker: beef, chicken, pork and fish .    Some bins are short but they have overfkow  others.  

Total of Fred Meyers haul was 31.34.    I bought a lot of produce , probably enough for a couple of weeks.

3 boxes of crackers ( holidays ) were 3/5 and I had a .75 coupon,  
Stove top stuffing was .99.
A box of ham slices 3.00

The rest was produce / veggies

2 frozen , 2 pound bags of French fries.   2/3

Grapes
Naval oranges
Raspberries
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Celery
Apples

A good rule of thumb is that a quarter of your plate should be protein, a quarter starch, and a half vegetables or fruit.  

The first thing I am ever asked when someone hears that infeed is on three or four dollars a day is. Do you eat fresh veggies.    The answer is yes.    We have had fresh fruit all summer.   We always have carrots and celery.  I add other veggies as we need them.   I also have canned and frozen veggies.   I operate on the food pyramid.  I have tried to avoid lots of salt, sugar, and fat, especially hydrogenated oil and trans fats.  I have always opted for the middle of the road-- a safe place unless you are, quite literally  driving a car.   LOL.







Sunday, November 6, 2016

Meal plans for week of Nov 7th

Meal plans 


  1. Breakfast 4 Dinner ( we have an abundance of eggs @ .05 each) 
  2. Pizza 
  3. cajin chicken pasta , bread sticks 
  4. Salmon patties , rice mix , green beans 
  5. Chilli, beer bread 
  6. Chicken tenders, French fries. Carrot and celery sticks 
  7. Sausage, bean, and vegetable soup , leftover beer bread 

Notes : 

  1. Eggs are about five cents  each when you get them for 18/1.00. Averaging a really inexpensive dinner with a more expensive one, keeps you in budget, but affords you  some luxury too) 
  2. Homemade pizza crust cost about .40.   Pizza sauce costs a dollar at the tree and is he same brand and size as other stores.    Freeze on ice cube trays and take out just what you need.   (.20) cheese is still two dollars a pound,    A cup of grated cheese is 4 ounces or .50.   Total 1.10 
  3. Cajin chicken pasta , bread sticks ( make double batch of pizza dough.   Spread dough on a baking sheet and top with melted butter, salt, garlic , and herbs. After baking, cut into sticks.  ) speghetti was .50 at QFC this week, chicken breast is 1.28 at times at Freddies and I De-bone  it and cook the bones for the meat ( casserole or pizza ) and stock. Diced tomatoes are .49 at QFC.    
  4. Salmon patties are at Winco - a bit pricy or you can make them from amcan of salmon and egg and breadcrumbs.    Rice mix is homemeade with  chicken stock and herbs.  Green beans were .33 at Winco.   
  5. Chilli in the crockpot. Beans cooked in the pressure cooker. Beer bread is a 4 ingredient quick bread.    
  6. Seasoned chicken tenders. Homemade oven fries. Celery and carrot sticks.    Potatoes were .20 a pound, chicken tenders were 1.25 with coupon in bulk.  
  7. Sausage was 1.50 a pound on sale with coupons. Beans cooked on the pressure cooker, tomatoes were .49 at QFC and .50 at Freddies.     Celery and carrots.   Leftover beer bread . 
Corn bread can be substituted for beer bread .    




Saturday, November 5, 2016

The ads

Fred Meyers

Gala apples .88
Russet potatoes .88 ( 10 lbs. )
FF chicken .88


Cottage cheese/sour cream 4/5@@
Stove top .99@@
Ragu  2/3


Pork chops 1.47
Half loin 1.99

Raspberries 2/4
Mandarines 4.99
Romas .89

Friday, November 4, 2016

Meal plan help

One  of the things you can do in order to make meal planning quick is to make yourself a master list.  

Divide a paper in sections and head a column with the main protein ingredient or the type of dish .  
And list diner ideas.   Then, when it is time  to meal plan with a matrix  and the list it should be a snap.  

Eggs 

Quiche
Scrambled
Omlettes
Muffin sandwiches
Hard cooked eggs for chef salad



Cheese 
Mac and cheese
Burritos with beans
Toasted cheese and soup
Stuffed potatoes
Pizza


Chicken 

Chicken noodle soup
Chicken BBQ thighs
Chicken, rice and broccoli casserole
Chicken pot pie
Buffalo chicken pizza




Pork 
Ham quiche
Ham and split pea soup
Poor chops with apple bread dressing
BBQ pork sandwich
Pork roast
Sausage bean soupsausage and oven roasted root veggies


Ground beef 
Speghetti and meatballs
Tacos
Enchaladas
Burrito
Meatballs
Stuffed peppers
Meatloaf
Hamburgers
Sloppy joes
Mexican sloppy joes
Cowboy speghetti

Soups 
Vegetable bean
Chilli
Split pea
Potato
Chicken noodle
Beef barley
Clam chowder
Seafood

Fish
Tuna casserole
Salmon burgers
Salmon
Tilipa
Clam chowder
Crab cakes
Fish packets






Thursday, November 3, 2016

QFC haul

The weeks groceries - this isn't about me talking about what I buy.    This is to a) let you know if you are in the Seattle area, what's on sale, and give an example of how groceries on the cheap buy groceries with a different mindset than other people.     Most people buy what they need to get them through until the next paycheck,    Groceries on the cheap has a different approach,   You buy what osmat a RBP, and buy enough to last you intel you can find another sale.    What you buy in any given week is different than the week before with the exception of the basic produce and dairy.  The object is to never pay full price.   So you can spend four dollars a day and eat like you spent eight dollars a day.  

Fred Meyers and QFC are both Kroger stores.    QFC typically has higher prices.     Except of they are running a huge sale.

At QFC. I spent 36.59 some of which was not food.   12.00 was Kleenex, freezer  bags and pasta I took to the food bank.    Nets 24.59
At Fred Meyers.  I spent 35.11, but was overcharged 4.29 to be returned.  30.82

Total real food 55.41

Foster farms chicken frozen cooked : retail 7.00, sale 4.99 less 3.75 coupon nets 3.75 for three bags full, about 5 meals.    Certainly less than two dollars a meal.

Butter : 2.50 less .50 coupon.   Is 2.00 for a hybrid that reduces the sat fat.

Diced ham 2.00 - another bargain that makes two meals




Cream cheese 1.25 - holidays are coming

Chocolate milk .99

Powdered sugar, brown sugar .99 each - holiday baking

Grapes, broccoli.


QFC
Cake mix   .69
Butter 2.00
Raspberries 2.00
Pumpkin pie 2.99
☃️Ice cream comes 349
Progresso soup .75 w coupons

Del minute diced tomatoes .49 ( nite if you buy seasoned tomatoes, it saves. Ones because you aren't using your slices and it saves time too.

Basis     I bought ham cubes for quiche and split pea soup.    I bought 21.00 worth of ez chicken for 11.21 -- a good save for when mom just is too sick to cook or sick of cooking LOL.

I stocked for holiday baking,  

I bought raspberries, broccoli and grapes to fill on the produce.  

I bought 18 eggs for a buck.  - another couple of protein meals.

I  ought  chocolate milk for a treat for DDG.


If you don't deny yourself everything, you will stay on budget a lot longer and not be tempted to stray.   A list and meal plans and planning your trip helps to keep you on track.  

We eat well, we eat normal food, we just eat what's on sale,    Buying your food at 1/2 price affords us a  70.06 a week budget that feeds three of us and stocks a pantry and freezer.  

We are heading into a no spend month or six weeks to cover the donut hole.   I am going to try to just buy dairy and produce.    We'll see how that works.  









Wednesday, November 2, 2016

The ads

QFC

Honey crisp apples 1.99
Berries 2/4


Buy 10, save 5
Butter 1.99 $$
Progresso soup .99$$
Milk .99
Stove top 99
Hummus 2.99
Pillsbury cake mix .69
Pasta .49
Ragu 1.49
Hefty slider bags .99$$
Kleenex .99




18 eggs .99
Pumpkin pie 3.99


Alberways

Halos 4.99
Salad ,89
Prego 1.49@@$$


Notes :
0bciousky, QFC is the better store this week,     Buy 10 has a lot of stacking possibilities.    If you can't come up with ten items, consider buying pasta for .50 and taking it to the food bank.    Pasta and a jar ormcan ofnoasta sauce makes a good, cheap dinner,  



Tuesday, November 1, 2016

New, simple recipe

Last night being Halloween, I decided to break from the meal plan and make Mexican sloppy joes.    I already had day old hambirgermbinsnthat needed to be used up.  I had hamburger akreadyncooked in the freezer and I had bought enchilada sauce for 3/1 at the dollar  tree.   I always have diced mild peppers in a can that I get from Winco for .58.    

It was a five minute or less project to our a pound of cooked hamburger, a can of enchilada sauce and the oeooers in the slow cooker and turn it on for 4 hours.   Please refer to enchalada slopoynjoes on Betty Crocker ( Google ) theynadd onionsm but my family doesn't like them.  

It made dinner easy and everyone could eat when it was convenient before or after trick or treating.     

Meat 2.97 
Buns .40 
Enchalada sauce .33
Diced oeooers .58 

Total for 4 people 

4.28 or 107 each,    







Monday, October 31, 2016

Happy Halloween

Its Halloween.   Great time for children.    Granddaughter went o school with treat bags I made for her classmates.

Monday is clean the pantry and do kitchen  management day.   Pewpping next weeks dinners makes life really easy come  hectic  dinner time,     My mother always made chilli for Halloween dinner.

Yesterday I went to Fred Meyers and stocked for the holiday baking season,   I usually bake something a couple of times a week,    I don't buy a lot of junk food,   I did buy a pumpkin  pie a couple of weeks ago.  It was 2.99 - almost the same price as making it from scratch.   Buying a lot of snack foods can really Play havoc with your food budget.    I also after watching many many food hauls, have noticed that there is a direct correlation between the amount of junk food and soda pop being bought and the plumpness of the buyers.  That, probably comes as no surprise.  

A good rule of thumb is to only buy things that have nutrition in them.   Don't waste your money on empty calories with the exception of coffee.    Coffee is actually good for you in moderation.  

Kitchen management




  • Take things out of the fridge and clean the shelves.    Wash off any bottle that needs it,    Specify certain shelves, bins, or door buckets for certain items     It's much easier and faster when you need to find something in a hurry.   Don't waste time hunting for something.   
  • Door bins have 1) milk or juice 2) salad dressing 3) anything sweet 4) anything condiment like hot oeooer sauce, w sauce, mustard etc.   
  • top shelf: anything too tall for other shelves and mayo ,pickles etc.  
  • eggs, tortillas. Bread to be baked 
  • Dairy: yogurt, sour cream.  Cottage cheese 
  • Two kinds of grated  cheese on lock n locks, celery crisper. Leftovers 
  • Meat and cheese drawer for lunch meat, sliced cheese, etc. 
  • vegetable bin.   Line  with a towel or paper towel.    
  • Cheese drawer.     
Go through each shelf and dump  anything dead or set aside anything that you need to use soon.    A plastic box in the fridge for these things helps to isolate them so you can incorporate into meals .  
Make it a game.    Betty Crocker and some other sites allow you to plug on an ingredient and have recipes that use it up.   

  1. The first week of the month, put your fan filters through the dishwasher.    Clean all the countertops.    
  2. Go through your meal plans and prep  anything you can prep early.   Remember rice and beans have a short fridge life.   They are some of the cheapest ingredients, and also some of the fastest to spoil.   
  3. Wash up any dishes and sweep the floor.   
  4. Straighten the pantry and make note of anything you are short of to watch for a sale.   
All this takes about an hour to an hour and a half.   When granddaughter was a baby, I gave her the plastics cupboard to play with.   She had a ball, and I could get things done while she was playing .   
Now, she's older and she can help do anything that doesn't relate to hot or sharp.    

That's usually the day when I file any recipes I've printed during the week.    I have been getting old el also enchalada sauce for 3/1.   Betty Crocker just posted enchilada sauce sloppy joes recipe.    I have buns and meat we ground a week or so ago.    

You can deviate from a plan. You just need a plan.    














Sunday, October 30, 2016

Meal plans week of oct 31

Weekly meal plans.    I was still inset the weather and ktheremwas no school s couple of days , so we had the 4yo.   I just punted dinner,  we did manage to stay away from the drive through andnscratch cook the meals.    Tonight we are having crab cakes and tomato soup.  

Meal plans for next week in no particular order.  


  • Breakfast 4 dinner 
  • Pizza 
  • Steak 
  • Sausage w root veggies 
  • Chicken enchaladas 
  • Salmon,mr ice, green beans 
  • Chicken pot pot 

Notes : 

Eggs are 1.00 for 1.5 dozen :
Pizza  from scratch
Night out : steak with friends
Sausage, oven roasted potatoes, carrots, radishes. 
Chicken enchaladas. - enchalada sauce 3/1.  
Salmon, squash, salad 
Chicken pot pie.   


Saturday, October 29, 2016

Fred Meyers ad

tomorrows Fred Meyers ad

2 day sale - Sunday and Monday

Grapes 1.28
Digiorno pizza 3.99


Butter 2/5
Eggs .99 fir 1.5 dozen
Milk .99 @@
Broccoli ,99
Brown, dark brown, or powdered sugar .99@@ 2 lbs
Cream cheese 4:5@@




Friday, October 28, 2016

Stats

The USDA has stats on the cost of food at home with the food dollars broken down by classes of budgets and age groups of family members,  

Our amount for the lowest group is 114.30.   Our actual including maintaining a large stock is 70.06.  
That's 61 percent of the lowest budget or a 39 percent savings, not taking into consideration that the pantry is full as well as the freezer.  

I would assume that of the 294.00 we spend , at least 50.00 is for stock.   That leaves 244.00 divided by three is  81.33 or 2.71 a day actual food eaten.    Without assuming a stock, that would be 3.27 a day.   Less than the 4.00 that food stamps is based on.  

If we can do it in a state with one of the highest COl, you can do it too.    It takes less time than the oersin that goes every one or two days to buy just what they need for one or two days.   Spending more time planning and shopping, and less time cooking just makes money and sense.   I'm still talking maybe two hours a week.  A few minutes a day to prep and cook dinner and you eat well for less.  

A child can do some of the things and it's a good learning tool.    Kids these days are computer savvy, They know what you buy.   They can print coupons.  They can separate coupons into  categories and file.  Older children can do the Ibotta thing.   Kids can help take inventory .   I usually just glance at bins or shelf space and can see if we are short.   When something is running low, I make  a mental note and start watching for a sale.   On things that I keel a limited supply of, I remember what we have eaten the week before and if it is still at it's normal orixe for me, I replentish what we used.  

Instead of buying what you need and hoping you have remembered to buy it or having to go back after you make meal plans, you have in stock what you need, and reolentish it when it's at a RBP.  
This saves a ton of money.    You never , or almost never get stuck paying full price.   That nasty f word-- full price!  




 full price.  





Thursday, October 27, 2016

Soup. ,

I asked my granddaughter what we should write about,    How about soup!    That's yummy!  

Soup is one of those dinners that is easy, quick as far as non- passive time and cheap.   A comfort food -- what's not to like,  


  1. Chicken is on sale this week for .79 a pound,    You can cook a chicken on less than ten minutes non passive time in the crockpot.   Just rough chop a peeled onion, place the chicken on the pot and rib it with a dry slice rib and cook for an hour a pound on high,    It makes really good stock and you can add veggies and noodles for chicken noodle soup.   One of our favorite go along is cheezy biscuits.  Roll biscuit dough into a rectangle  . Sorinklemwoth grated cheese and rolluo like a jelly roll.   Cut into one inch slices and bake according to the biscuit instructions   .
  2. Tomato soup.    Costco has roasted red pepper and tomato soup in a box ( organic ) for around two dollars .  ( not all the time, itos hit and miss) we add blue cheese , basil, and a little milk or cream.    Yum!   If you don't like blie cheese, add Romano or parm instead.   
  3. Taco soup with tortilla chips 
  4. Potato soup or clam chowder 
  5. Vegetable bean soup with or without sausage 
  6. Chilli
  7. Bean and bacon 
  8. Depression stew 
  9. Split pea with or without ham
  10. Beef and barley