Let's Eat: Aug. 31 - Sept 6th

Weekly Menu Plan 
August 31- September 6

Breakfast

• Zucchini bread
• Bagel
• Smoothie
• Eggs
• Toast w/peanut butter
• Pancakes
• Oatmeal

Lunch

• Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
• Chicken Nuggets
• Corn dog Muffins
• Mini Calzones
• Left Overs
• Turkey and Cheese Pinwheels
• Quesadilla

Dinner

• Lasagna
• King's Ranch Chicken
• Cheeseburger cups
• Baked Chicken Nuggets (tenders)
• Sloppy Joes
• Left Overs x 2 (we have a number of left overs in our freezer that I want to use up).

I Did It!!

Woo-Hoo, we stayed just within our grocery budget this month (unless we go to the store between now and midnight, which I don't see happening).  We ended the month with just over $6 to spare. 

I needed to buy milk, but I decided to wait because we did not have to have milk and I was afraid that if I went to the store to buy milk, I would also pick up another item or two and go over budget.  Those are the shopping trips that seem to cause me the most trouble: I go to the store with just one or two items on my list, and I walk out with additional items that we will use, but we did not necessarily need at that time.

For the month of September, my goal is to once again stay just at or under $400.  Since my husband wants us to have a two-week supply of food on hand in case of an emergency, I plan to pick up a few more items to add to the stash, but I do not foresee any unusual purchases this month.  I still have plenty of meat left over from our July purchase.  I am hoping the beef will last at least until November. 

I am also planning to spend some time at the beginning of the week prepping for our meals later in the week.  I saw this idea on the Living Well Spending Less blog and I want to start implementing it on a regular basis.  I am hoping it will help me plan my shopping trips to be more focused on what we actually need for each meal so I can pick them up in one trip and not have to make an additional trip to the store for that week.

Now, to work on other categories of our budget . . .

Let's Eat: August 24-30

Weekly Menu Plan 

August 24-30

Breakfast

• Zucchini bread
• Bagel
• Smoothie
• Eggs
• Toast w/peanut butter
• Pancakes
• Oatmeal

Lunch

• Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
• Chicken Nuggets
• Cheeseburger cups
• Corn dogs
• Mini Calzones
• Mini meatloaf
• Eat out x 2

Dinner

• Italian crescent bake
• Meatballs
• Chicken Chili
• King's Ranch Chicken
• Hamburger
• Chicken Sandwich
• Eat out

Recent Shopping Trips

I started this weekend with about $85 left in our shopping budget, which is $20 more than I originally thought (for some reason I had it in my head that I only had $65).  After my shopping trips this weekend, we have a little over $10 left, which should be enough for milk and some produce, which is all I foresee needing to buy the remainder of this week.  I am really going to try to not spend more than what we officially have left in the budget. 

I spent $31.18 at Target on the following items:

• Peanut Butter Crackers - 1.99
• Welch's Fruit Snacks - 3.99 x 2
• Baking Powder - 1.59
• Baking Soda - 1.24
• Frozen peas - .84 x 2
• Frozen corn - .84 x 2 & .89 x 1
• Frozen green beans - .89 x 2
• Bagels - 1.36
• Gogurt - 3.60
• Butter - 3.49
• Cereal - 4.24

 I spent $30.35 at Aldi:

• Whipped topping - 2.39
• Deli cheese - 2.19
• Turkey breast sandwich meat - 2.29
• Mozzarella - 1.99
• Cheddar - 1.99
• Coffee - 4.99
• Crescent Rolls - 1.49
• Deli Rolls - 1.49
• Strawberries - 1.25 x 2
• Angel Hair pasta - 1.49
• Sweet corn - 1.25
• Watermelon - 2.99
• Baby carrots - .69
• Diced tomatoes with chiles - .59

Finally, I spent $5.97 at Dillon's:

• Raspberries -  .99
• Tortilla chips - .60
• Eggs - free!
• Yogurt - 1.99 x 2

11 Days to Go

With 11 days left this month, I have just under $85 left to spend.  Looking back at our budgeting software for this year, I see that I typically go over our budget by 10 to 30 dollars each month.  So, I come pretty close each month, but for one reason or another, I end up going over. 

I think that some of my problem is that we begin to run out of items at the end of the month, so I plan to a trip to the store.  While I am there, I invariably pick up an item or two that we do not really need either because it is a store I might not shop at very often or the item is on sale. 

I would like to see this month be the month that I finally stay completely within our budget.  Except for some perishable items, we are doing pretty well grocery wise.  Now I just need to maintain my focus and just say no to the extra items we don't really need at this time.

Dillon's Trip

I received a e-coupon from Dillon's for $15 off a $70 purchase, so I figured that receiving an additional 20% my groceries was worth an extra trip to Dillon's this week.

Since we are trying to stock up on some items that can sit on the shelf for a long period of time, I made it a point to try and use this opportunity to buy some of these products.  I also wanted to take advantage of their $5 off of 5 items deals since I had some good coupons to go with the sale.

Finally, I had the opportunity to go to the store today without my kids and I won't be able to go shopping this weekend, so this was the best day to go.

My total after all my coupons was 62.73 (tax included).  By carefully entering the price of every product into my calculator app, I kept my initial grocery total close to $70.  I think I might have missed one item because I thought I was only over by about $1.

Trip Breakdown
Wheat Thins x 2 - $1.49
Cheez-Its x 2 - $1.99
Minute Rice (brown) - $2.99
Chocolate Cheerios - $1.64
Cinnamon Toast Crunch x 2 - $1.49
Honey Nut Cheerios -$1.79
Crunchy Honey Nut Cheerios - $1.49
Love Granola - $2.99 (I thought I had picked up Bear Naked Granola for which I had a $1 off coupon.  When I learned of my mistake, I did not want to have to take the time to replace the product just for $1).
V-8 Fusion x 3 - $1.69
Barilla Rotini - $1
Ragu Spaghetti Sauce x 2 - $1.29
Fritos x 2 - $1.49
Great Northern Beans x 2 - $.69
Kroger Cheddar Cheese (8oz) x 2 - $1.77
Kraft Cheddar Cheese (8oz) x 2 - $1.50
Blueberries x 2 - $1.28
Soft Scrub - $1.19
Tomato Sauce (15oz) x 3 - $.69
Land O Lakes Spreadable Butter - $1.88
Land O Lakes Butter Quarters (1lb) - $2.50
Kroger Black Beans x 2 - $.89
Kroger Diced Tomatoes w/green chiles x 2 - $.77
Williams Chicken Chili Seasoning x 2 - $1.87
Oscar Mayer Selects Turkey Hot Dog - $2.99
Smucker's Strawberry Preserves - $.99
Bananas - $1.45 (I just realized that the cashier charged me full price for the bananas when they should have been marked down)
Dillon's Whole Milk Gallon - $2.50
Dillon's 1% Milk Gallon  - $2.50
Kroger Bath Tissue - $4.99

I bought a total of 44 items, so the average was $1.42 per item (after tax and the $15 dollars off).  For me, that is a pretty successful Dillon's trip.

Summer Berries Baked Oatmeal

I wanted to try something new for breakfast this week, so I decided to make some baked oatmeal to have on hand for breakfast tomorrow. 

Since I had a few berries on hand, I decided to make Summer Berries Baked Oatmeal.  I only had blueberries, so I just used blueberries in my dish. 

I've tried a little bit of the dish this evening.  It definitely is not overly sweet.  I like the simplicity of the ingredients and I am sure my kids will enjoy eating it in the morning.

Taco Meat

We often eat tacos at our house.  Cheap and easy, some version of tacos often make it on my menu plans.  A few months ago, I tried this Oven Baked Taco recipe.  Instead of using baked tortillas, I just used store bought crunchy taco shells.  The family liked the overall effect of the recipe, but my husband really liked the meat.

Now, my husband is not a fan of refried beans, so when I first made the recipe, I reduced the amount of beans that I used; today, I use the full amount.  Since I like to make a big batch of taco meat so I can freeze some for later use, I have changed the recipe slightly.

Taco Meat

• 3 lbs ground beef (I actually only use 39 oz of meat. I often use 13oz of meat when a recipe calls for a pound in order to help make the meat last longer)
• 1 can refried beans
• 15 oz tomato sauce
• 8 oz water
• 1/2 cup taco seasoning (or two packets)

1. Brown the ground beef and drain
2. Add refried beans, tomato sauce, water, and taco seasoning
3. Mix together
4. Bring to a simmer and let it cook over low heat for at least 30 minutes 

I often use one third of the recipe for our evening meal and then freeze the other two. This recipe is great because you can adjust the recipe to suit your tastes.

Looking Forward to August

So last month I did not quite stay within my budget goal of $400.  I went over by $22.46, which is not too bad but it still is not within the budget.  Looking back over the last four or five months, I typically go over by at least $10 and no more than $50. 

I did some shopping this weekend and have already spent $125.  My husband is gearing up for a big hiking trip this weekend, so it has added to our normal purchases.  We have also decided to try to build up a better stockpile of foods in case of an emergency, so I bought a few extra canned beans and fruit while I was at Aldi the other day.

I am finding it hard to think about buying canned foods to stockpile when I have been trying decrease our use of canned foods over the last few years.  I know that there is still a shelf-life on those canned goods, so at some point in time, we will need to eat them.

This weekend's grocery shopping included Target, Dillon's, and Aldi.

Here is what I bought:

Target:

• Market Pantry Bagels and Welch's Fruit Snacks - $5.46

Dillon's:

• Bananas - $1.75 (I know that they are cheaper at Aldi, but I don't have good luck with the bags)
• Coffee - $4.99
• 16 oz cheddar cheese - $3.50 (definitely cheaper than Aldi cheese)
• Ragu spaghetti sauce x 2 - $1.29 each
• Cheerios (big box) -$2.49
• KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce - $1.49 (my son is allergic to an ingredient in many sauces, so we have to stick with this brand)
• Smucker's cherry preserves - $.49 (I had an great $1 off coupon that I could use with their mega sale savings!)
• Cheez-Its - $1.99 
• Bacon - $3.99 
• Eggs x 2 - $.99 each  (they had marked their eggs down to 99 cents - hurray!)
• Capri Sun - $1.49

Aldi:

• Sweet corn x 2 - $1.89 each
• Romaine hearts - $1.99
• Crescent rolls - $1.49 each
• Flour - $1.38
• Frozen chicken breasts - $5.99
• Crunchy peanut butter - $2.99
• Deli rolls - $1.49
• Baby spinach - $2.49
• Sugar - $1.39
• Deli sliced cheddar cheese - $2.19
• Deli turkey meat - $2.29
• 8 oz mozzarella - $1.99
• Brown sugar - $1.19
• Tomato sauce x 8 - $.25 each
• Refried beans x 2 -  $.79 each
• Pork & beans x 4 - $.49 each
• Granola cereal - $1.99
• Mandarin oranges - $.89 each
• Fresh peaches x 4 - $.29 each
• Coffee creamer - $2.19
• Unsalted peanuts - 2.39
• Spaghetti sauce - $1.19
• Baby carrots - $.69
• BBQ potato chips - $1.49
• Red grapes - $1.58
• Unsalted butter - $2.49
• Steamable corn x 2 - $.95 each
• Frozen peas - $.95
• Fresh blueberries - $.99
• Quart bags - $1.99

 My husband also did some shopping for his trip at Wal Mart this weekend.  He spent $25 on food he can easily take and use at the camp site.

Let's Eat: August 3 - August 9

Weekly Menu

August 3 - August 9

Breakfast

• Bagel w/scrambled eggs
• Toast w/peanut butter
• Baked Oatmeal w/yogurt
• Smoothie w/toast
• Cinnamon toast
• Quick bread/muffin
• Pancakes

Lunch

• Left overs
• Chicken nuggets
• Turkey and cheese pinwheel
• Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
• Grilled Cheese
• Cheese and crackers
• Mini Calzones

Supper

• Hamburger w/corn on the cob and baked beans
• Tacos w/chips and salsa
• Pizza Bake w/bread sticks and vegetable
• King Ranch Chicken w/vegetable
• Chicken Parmesan w/pasta and vegetable
• BBQ chicken w/vegetable
• Corn dogs w/vegetable

Let's Eat: July 27 - August 2

Weekly Menu

July 27 - August 2

Breakfast

• French Toast
• Bagel
• Smoothie
• Eggs
• Toast w/peanut butter
• Pancakes
• Oatmeal

Lunch

• Eat Out
• Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
• Quesadilla
• Corn Dogs
• Peanut Butter crackers
• Grilled Cheese
• Pizza

Dinner

• Pizza
• Taco Bread
• Cheesy Chicken Casserole
• Grilled Chicken Sandwich
• Pizza Bake
• Italian Crescent Casserole (I did not make this last week because I used up the crescent rolls for other recipes)
• Hamburgers

Didn't Quite Make It

Well, in the interest of full disclosure, I have officially gone over our grocery budget for the month.  As of today, we have gone over by $18.80.  I don't foresee having the buy any groceries before Friday, so I am hoping this will be all the overage we have this month.

Of course, the total would be a little higher, but my mom bought my groceries at Sam's the other night.  I had discussed the Sam's trip with my husband and the possibility of going over.  We do not have a Sam's membership, so we were willing to go over since the opportunity had presented itself.

Part of our overage came from our habit of drinking Coke Zero.  We were nearly out and Target had it on sale 4 for $12.  Unfortunately, I had to by 4 packs in order to get it at that price, so it set me over.  Do we need to drink Coke Zero?  No.  On most days, we only drink a can or two each, but that does add up rather quickly. 

I'm pretty optimistic about next month since we only went over by $20 and that was with buying 40 lbs of beef at the beginning of the month.  I won't need to buy any more beef for 2 or 3 months at least, so I won't have that expense for a while. 

Cinnamon Crescent Rolls

This morning I decided to make a little treat for breakfast.  I have seen this idea on Pinterest before, but I did not follow a specific recipe.

Cinnamon Crescent Rolls

• 1 refrigerated tube of crescent roll dough (I used some I picked up at Aldi)
• Spreadable butter
• Cinnamon and Sugar mixture (I keep a shaker filled with cinnamon and sugar, so I don't have any exact ratios.  I usually just add cinnamon to the white sugar until it is mostly brown).

1. Unroll and separate the crescent dough
2. Spread a thin layer of butter on one side of the dough
3. Sprinkle the butter with the cinnamon and sugar mixture until covered
4. Roll up the crescent roll, beginning with the long end
5. Place crescent rolls on a baking sheet
6. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes. (I baked mine in a large toaster oven and they came out pretty good).
7. Bake until golden brown
8. Let cool
9. Eat!

Hanging in There

We were out of town over the weekend, which helped with the food budget this month.  Fortunately, we managed to go through all our perishable items before we left, so nothing went bad while we were gone.

Of course, that meant I needed to go to the store almost immediately after we got back.  My husband took Monday off as well, so I was able to go to the store without the little ones in tow. 

I went to both Aldi's and Dillon's and tried to only buy what we absolutely needed. 

I spent $14.04 at Dillon's. I was disappointed that I missed the $1 dozen egg sale, but I did score a deal on the 1% milk.  The store had it marked down to $1 per half gallon because it expired on the 30th.  I bought cheese for less than the price at Aldi's because of the special coupon offer that week.  Unfortunately, our Dillon's does not sell Kraft Mozzarella, so I had to buy store brand.  I had a coupon for the store brand as well, so it was still cheaper than the price at Aldi's.

On our trip, we ate little fresh produce, so I was eager to go to Aldi's to pick some up.  My kids actually were begging me for the fruit faster than I could clean it.  I spent $35.42 on this trip.

At this point, I have a little over $21 left in my grocery budget for the month.  With just one week to go, this should be doable.  I just need to remain focused and not give into any excuses to go ahead and spend a little extra.

Let's Eat: July 20-26

Weekly Menu

July 20 - July 26

Breakfast:

• Waffles
• Bagels
• Scrambled Eggs
• Cinnamon toast and smoothie
• Toast w/peanut butter
• Buttermilk Blueberry Breakfast cake
• Oatmeal pancakes 

 Lunch:

• Eat out
• Cheeseburger cups
• Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich
• Corn dogs
• Macaroni and cheese
• Quesadilla
• Grilled cheese

Dinner:

• BBQ chicken
• Homemade pizza
• Sloppy Joes
• Chicken Tacos
• BBQ Meatballs
• Italian crescent bake
• Grilled Chicken

I am working to improve our breakfast and lunch variety.  Since I have two children under the age of 4, I am often hesitant to try new recipes even though I know it would be best to do so.

A Little Bit of Baking

I love to bake.  I usually hate to buy baked goods at the store because I know that I can make the same product at home that will often cost less and taste a little better.

Yesterday, I took advantage of the cooler weather and made some banana bread.  Before bed, I mixed up the ingredients for Buttermilk-Blueberry Breakfast Cake so I could bake it this morning. 

I did not get a picture of the banana bread (it is already half eaten), but here is a view of the cake.  The cake did great after sitting in the refrigerator over night.  I sent some of it to work with my husband, and I placed what we did not eat this morning in the freezer so we can have it for breakfast again another time. 

I do not typically keep buttermilk in the house, so I added a 1/2 tblsp of lemon juice to the 1/2 cup of milk instead.  The result is definitely cake-like.  I did not sprinkle the extra sugar on top, but it would add a little more sweetness to the cake.  One could also make a glaze to put on top, and it would be quite delicious.

Cooking Chicken in the Pressure Cooker

The pressure cooker is my go to method for cooking chicken, especially when I need shredded chicken for different recipes.  Growing up, I can remember my mom cooking whole chickens in her pressure cooker and using the meat for different recipes.  She did not use just chicken breasts, but this was before the big eat-chicken craze, so buying just chicken breasts (specifically boneless, skinless ones) was not a common option.

I typically use frozen boneless skinless chicken.  When I use a 3lb bag from Aldi, I can use the cooked meat for at least 4 meals.  With the current price of $5.99, it only makes the meat $1.50 per meal. 

Not only does the pressure cooker cook the meat quickly (about 25 minutes from start to finish if frozen), I also end up with about 2 cups of broth with each batch.

When I cook the meat, I often only use half the bag and add 2 cups of water.  I then add some spices and maybe some cut up mini peppers if I have any.  A person can add whatever spices she would like.  I have used a few teaspoons of Mrs. Dash when I have it, or I have added spices like garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper to give the chicken and broth a little more flavor.

My pressure cooker usually takes about 10 minutes to reach full pressure, and then I let the meat cook for another 12 minutes.  My pressure cooker instructions say to let the pressure decrease on its own.  That usually takes an additional 20 minutes or so.

If I need broth on my recipe that night, I will use what is left from the cooking process.  If I don't need, I put it in a plastic bag and store it in the freezer.  I currently have quite a few bags in my freezer right now.  I don't think I will ever have to buy broth from the store again.

Let's Eat

Our Weekly Meal Plan

July 13 - July19

Breakfast

• Toast w/ peanut butter
• Scrambled Eggs and bagel
• Muffin/Quick Bread and smoothie (I just bought some blueberries, so I am thinking about making blueberry breakfast cake)
• Oatmeal Pancakes and yogurt
• French Toast
• Eat out x 2

Lunch

• Hot dog
• Quesadilla
• Cheeseburger cups
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
• Chicken Nuggets
• Eat out x 2

Dinner 

• Hamburgers, corn on the cob, baked beans
• Chicken and rice, peas
• King Ranch Chicken, tortillas, salsa (I usually only make half of the recipe)
• Lasagna, corn, bread sticks
• Sandwiches
• Eat out x 2

Next weekend is my birthday, so we have some special events planned and I will not have to make as many meals.

Seeking to Stay on Track

I am very lucky to live three miles from an intersection that includes Aldi, Dillon's, Wal Mart Neighborhood Market, and even a Braum's, so shopping at different stores for the best deals does not require much gas and travel time. 

Typically I only shop at Dillon's or Aldi.  I have not been that impressed with the Wal Mart Neighborhood Market.  If I need to go to Wal Mart, I can go three miles north of my house and go to a full Wal Mart.  If a Target were to move in within 3 miles of my house, I would be set!

Today I decide to take the time to shop at both Aldi and Dillon's to try and get the best prices.  I did not do too bad.  I think the only items I bought at Aldi where I would have paid less at Dillon's were a couple of 8oz bars of cheeses.  I had a coupon for Kroger cheese, so I could have saved about 40 cents total.  The coupon is good for a while, so I can still use it later.

My Dillon's trip came to $23.37 and the Aldi trip came to $22.68.  I tried to keep my purchases to only items that we needed.  As I look at what I bought, I see a few items I could have done without like the sliced cheddar cheese from Aldi and the sandwich rolls.  Looking at our budgeting software (YNAB), I have a little over $75 for the rest of the month (I made some small produce purchases throughout the week -- apparently a little more than I remembered).  I will need to buckle down even more and really watch my purchases for these next two weeks.

Yogurt Prices

I mentioned in an earlier post that I do not plan to buy yogurt from Aldi's because the only non-Greek yogurt they sell contains aspartame, so while I stopped at Target the other day, I went to check out their yogurt prices and received quite a shock.

I could not believe the price of the non-Greek yogurt, even for the store brand.  Not that long ago, the store brand cost $1.99 for a quart, but earlier this week the shelf listed $2.49 as the price.  The previous $2.49 price for Dannon yogurt now reads over $3.00. 

I decided to wait and check out the price at Dillon's since I needed to stop by there to pick up milk.  Fortunately, the store brand was on sale for $1.99. 

If the price increase at Target is an indicator of prices to come, I might have to really cut back on our yogurt consumption or else try my hand at making my own.