For February, the plan is to only spend one hundred dollars on groceries for the month and to whittle down and use what we already have in the cupboards/fridge/freezer.
And so far things are going really well.
I made pancakes and topped them with {frozen} blueberries I warmed on the stovetop. Twice!
I also made eggs with a side of sweet potatoes and spinach {twice!}. I scored a bag of 5 pounds of sweet potatoes last week for $3.49 from Costco and we’ve been enjoying them ever since.
Normally I just buy sweet potatoes around the holidays, but I thought 5 pounds for $3.49 was such a great deal, I bought a bag. And I’m so glad I did.
Maybe the way I eat is boring, but I like simple foods.
Using inexpensive items like eggs, potatoes, rice, beans and whatever produce is on sale at the grocery store, can really help stretch your budget.
Tuna salad bowl with relish, chopped onion and chopped apple. Yes please! I could eat this every day.
Same goes for chicken salad. I like to buy the 6-packs of canned chicken from Costco a couple of times of year to have on hand.
In addition to using the canned chicken for chicken salad, I also use it in soups and chili. Sometimes I even use it in chicken enchiladas!
This past week I even used some canned chicken in chicken quesadillas. With homemade tortillas of course.
Fact: If you’ve never made homemade tortillas before they are SO EASY! Plus they taste better than any tortillas you can buy at the store.
I have absolutely no idea how long the little zip baggie of ground beef I found in the freezer was in there, but it was still good. 😉
Ground beef, Spanish rice, salsa, cheese, lettuce, plain yogurt… What do you put in your tacos?
I also made a loaf of cinnamon raisin Dutch oven bread. This week I think I’ll make a loaf of Jalapeno cheddar.
And of course there were homemade chocolate chip cookies {with pecans}.
These cookies were probably the #1 thing I missed the most last month when I was doing my one hundred dollars a month food budget from scratch challenge.
I like to make a batch, scoop the dough into balls and then freeze the dough. That way I can bake a few at a time instead of an entire batch.
The HH offered to make linner one afternoon. We had Heinz beans and toast. 😉
Costco $11.88
I didn’t stop to take as many pictures as I would have liked too, but we ate well and only popped by the store {Costco} for a 10 pound box of oats and a bag of mandarin oranges.
So far this month we’ve spent $79.98 at the store. That leaves $20.02 for the rest of the month. Luckily the only things on my grocery list for this weekend are milk and bananas.
I think I’ll make some banana muffins {and use those ripe bananas that have been sitting in our freezer for a few months} and a batch of homemade granola too.
Maybe some pasta, for sure Saturday night beans and who knows what else. How about YOU? What’s on your dinner menu for the next few days? Anything exciting?
I hope you have a great weekend,
~Mavis
Sam says
Nothing boring to me about your meals. I haven’t thought about apples in tuna but I will try it. We’re loaded with tuna right now and I’m aiming for a low spend February but not nearly as low as yours.
Sue says
Why is it that when husbands offer to make dinner, it involves an unholy amount of carbs and little to no veg? Or is it just mine?
DH will make sesame noodles, beans & weens, margherita pizza (no, tomato sauce and a few basil leaves do not count), pancakes and pork sausage, cheese brats in buns–you get the picture. Not even so much as a carrot or celery stick in sight.
But last night’s pork carnitas with keto tortillas, shredded romaine, cucumbers, tomatoes, pickled carrots/onions, AND slaw had him digging in the fridge, muttering, “I really need more veggies than just this.”
Grrrr…