As I start to meal plan I am trying to keep a close eye on the recipes I decide to make. I do not like eating the same thing for dinner every night. I'm one of those people who loves to cook but I don't always have the time and I can't eat the same over and over again. I usually only do this for Taco Tuesday because the children will revolt if I take that away! We started pizzas on Sunday because it's so yummy when you make it at home and the toppings are endless! I don't think I have made the same pizza twice! Go to Meal Planning Week 1 for the dough recipe I like the best so far.
Back to ingredients, keep it simple and use the spices and flavors you have already purchased. The spice isle is where your budget can be blown up. Also, the spices in your cabinets are going to go bad if you don't use them so...use them! I have ground beef, chicken and veggies stored up in the fridge from Costco so I need to use those before I start buying other core ingredients.
Before I forget, let's talk Costco. I am still new in this grocery super warehouse arena and struggle to see the cost benefit over my local Fry's (Kroger) store with coupons. I did buy some fruit and veggies which I split up and froze so that was helpful, not sure if it was less $$ but it was organic which I appreciated.
I also got a NurtiChef Vacuum Sealer * system a while ago which I really like and has helped me to not eat out as much. Since we are a blended family and there are nights when it is
just my husband, Peeps, and I
OR we have 2 adults and 3 kids
OR 2 adults and 2 kids
OR all 6 of us,
I have to plan for different sized meals most nights of the week, which can make a normal person lose their marbles. Being able to portion our meat and veggies then freeze them saves us from cooking too much food and then wasting it because only 2 of us in the family will attempt to eat leftovers.
For breakfasts we keep it simple:
Yogurt with sausage links
Toast with PB
Egg Scrambled with salsa and cheese
Pancakes (premake a ton and freeze them)
Smoothies (Froze fruit)
For lunch, the kids usually get their lunch at school (it's free as of this year) OR they make
Turkey and Bacon sammies
Salad with Rotisserie Chicken (Turn it into a wrap for something different)
Chicken Nuggets with fruit
Hummus, veggies, crackers, cheese
Tuna Salad + crackers
Below you will find this weeks meal plan! I don't always follow the recipe to the T. If I don't have something or have it frozen (like the corn for the Shepherd's Pie) I will just use that instead of buying more ingredients. For the Hawaiian Pork Sammies - I am using the crockpot because I don't have an Instant Pot and I will be working a long day, then papa and I have an eye appointment, so I just need it done by the time we get home. I will have our oldest get the bread and toppings ready so we can assemble and sit down together quickly for dinner. This also works well if we end up being too late and they need to eat before we get home. They have a warm meal and we will have a warm meal. Win Win.
Grocery Bill this week so far: $146.75
Last week: We made a couple extra stops and some coffee runs. It was definitely better than usual but we still have some planning and adjusting to do. I sort of forgot papa's lunch staples, whoopsies! The children are slowly becoming aware of the no grocery run midweek policy! LOL Make those chips and cereals last!
$17.24
$10.84
$4.80
$29.96
$114.62
$29.04 (restock of cleaning supplies)
Total: $206.50
Running Total for July: $353.25
Budget we have remaining for July: $246.75 YIKES! Wish us luck!
* Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an affiliate commission if you click through the link and finalize a purchase.
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