FREEPER KITCHEN: LIVING ON A BUDGET/MENUS

[HungarianGypsy]

While reading another thread I noticed someone speaking of how they were able to spend $400 per month to feed their small family very well. So, I had an idea of asking how everyone budgets for groceries,

[HungarianGypsy]

I was on an e-list with a lady who said she fed her family of seven (as large as mine) on $50-100 per week. I am one who is amazed if I can somehow sneak in under $140 per week, since Family Circus's "Not Me" seems to be living hear and eating our food.

Recently, I split my grocery bill between the sale and 50% items at Fresh N Easy and the $15 per laundry sized basket local produce co-op.

This is the time to pull out old cookbooks and family recipes that are simple. Talk about basic menus. Just little things that help economically. Let's see if we can get a thread going.

[Ann Archy]

COUPONS and SALES and PLANNING.

[Califreak]

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/index1.htm

Hillbilly Housewife has 2 emergency menus.

$45.00 a week can feed a family of four.

Lots of recipes and links for frugal living.

[6323cd]

Shepherd’s Pie is a favorite of ours - a layer of ground beef (browned and fat drained off) with a little onion, then a layer of creamed corn, topped with mashed potatoes.

[WakeUpAndVote]

Ping for later read and post.

[silverleaf]

Use the Dave Ramsey method of putting your grocery budget in cash in a monthly or weekly envelope- and when it is gone, live off what’s in the pantry!

I find it hard to budget when I shop with the check book

One tip- my kids “LOVE” having “breakfast for dinner” one night a week- omelets, pancakes or french toast. We mak a big batch of pancakes for Sunday breakfast, then freeze the leftover pancakes for dinner on Thursday night

[arizonarachel]

Fresh & Easy is the best!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I head there 2-3x week for the 50% off meat, and freeze it. Chuck roast is 1.99/lb there right now!!

And I’m going in with a friend for the $15 co-op fruits and veggies - we’re splitting them since neither of us can eat all of it. (we both have husbands and toddlers, no big kids)

I didn’t realize you were here in AZ!!

[HungarianGypsy]

**Freeper Kitchen Ping**

[DieHard the Hunter]

Take that exact same recipe for shepherd’s pie, drop the creamed corn (ewwww, yuck!) and substitute one tin of condensed Cream of Mushroom soup. Add fresh ground black pepper. Beautiful!

[boxerblues]

Just the 2 of us now but I was used to cooking for a small Army, buy in bulk all extras meals go into the freezer. I stocked up on the small individual container so I could pretty much make my own TV dinners, very little goes to waste

[LauraJean]

I like to bake a lot so that takes care of cookies and bread. Produce stores are usually cheaper and I like Aldis for meat and canned goods.
I take out a certain amount of money every 2 weeks and try to keep within that amount for my those 2 weeks. If I have extra saved I save it for something I want to buy. For example I’m saving for a color laser printer right now. When I have the money saved I can buy it.

[peggybac]

My four dependents eat up the bulk of my grocery money - 2 dogs and 2 cats!

[ladtx]

It’s hard to find anything as good and as cheap as the old standby; pinto beans and cornbread. And when you’re feeling a little crazy fry some potatoes to go with it. HMMMMMMMMMMM

[HungarianGypsy]

Aw! You are doing Bountiful Baskets, too. :) I was in the original group (you probably get the confirmation emails from Tanya and Sally). It started as a teeny group in Mesa where we would drop our baskets off at the leader of that week's house and they would go to the produce house. If we had 12 or 15 baskets at a time that was a lot. Tanya found out if we could get 50, then the produce house would deliver to the park. Then, it just KA-BOOMED!! I was only peeved that I had been telling people about the co-op for two years and they didn't show up until they saw it written up in the newspaper.

If you ever want to split the meat order they do every once in a while a few ways, let me know and I'll go in on it with you.

[dirtboy]

1) Figure out what stores are cheaper for what products. For example, I can get a 10-lb bag of spuds at Aldi for $3.25 everyday, and I also get their store tortillas, beans and tortilla chips - I like their dollar bag of chips better than Tostitos, and they actually have less salt. Food Basics is cheap for all other produce, and they consistenly have the cheapest non-sale chicken ($1.09 /lb for split chicken breasts everyday). Giant has the cheapest canned tomatoes most days and has very good quality store-brand frozen veggies that are a lot cheaper than national brands, and usually has olive oil for $4/bottle. The point is, every store has loss leaders and products that they keep at a low price, so do your grocery shopping in a circuit to hit 2-3 stores. Just make sure you ain't blowing more than an extra couple bucks in gas to get your savings.

2) Avoid 'convenience' foods. A carton of chicken broth costs $2 on sale. Buy a whole chicken, boil it for 45 minutes to cook it, and you have both broth and chicken that way.

3) Figure out which store brands are good, and when they are on sale, stock up, those will be your best deal.

4) As someone else noted, pay attention to sales and coupons - buy your meats and plan you menu by what is the best sale that week.

5) Check out produce stores if you have a large family - some have dirt-cheap prices for large purchases, but shop carefully for quality.

6) Be wary of sales that are not really good sales - for example, Redner's runs a 5-for-$20 promotion - 5 packs of a range of meat products for $4 each. However, often times, for a given item, that is NOT the best sale price you will see over the course of two months - a whole chicken might be $4, but will be a cheaper price per pound when on sale separately.

7) Create dishes where meat is a seasoning, and not the main course, such as ham-and-bean soup or chili. Beans are an excellent food source for protein and nutrients. Beans and cheese and rice are a complete protein source without meat.

8) When shopping for bread, make sure you are not paying for air - compare weights and not just loaf price.

[ravingnutter]

Bump for later reading.

[HungarianGypsy]

I think I have a recipe somewhere for Italian Shepherd’s Pie somewhere. But, it’s funny you mention it, since my husband was wanting some last night.

[Jen]

Check out Angel Food Ministries. My mom has been purchasing a box of food from them for awhile and it's enough food for a senior for almost a month and costs $30. The menu changes monthly and you can order more than one box. See the site for details.

[Marie]

I dropped my grocery bill with canning.

I had to invest $300 in supplies, which paid for itself in one month.

My favorite things (so far) are:

beef stew
chicken stew (very cheap!)
split pea soup (vegetarian)
chili

Next year we’ll have a garden, that that will go down more. I’m hoping for a good tomato crop for sauces.

A freezer is also a great investment. You can buy things on sale and stock up.

Finally, DON’T WASTE LEFTOVERS! :-) Keep your bits!

About once a week we end up having a leftover night where one person gets spaghetti, another gets chicken and potato salad and someone else has to live with MORE SOUP! lol!

(I love this topic!)

:-D

[6323cd]

Topped with rigatoni instead of potatoes?