A $300/month Grocery Budget?

I mentioned back in December that we were considering setting the grocery budget at a mere $300 for a month and that we were going to switch to cash while doing so.  And then we were hit with some dietary challenges that will make this budget a lot bit harder to stick to.  I will get to that in a minute but for now let’s look at the numbers…

Yes, we were OVER budget by $105.24. Let me break it down as to WHY I’m still convinced we can make $300/mo happen.  Let’s first remember that January was 5 pay weeks instead of the normal 4 so even sticking to a $75/week budget that would have been $375 allocated to groceries for the month.  Ok so maybe the $405.24 isn’t looking soooo bad now.

In January, we ran into some great stock up pricing on ground beef, chicken and pork.  We took advantage of this and currently our freezer has 12lbs of ground beef, maybe 6lbs of chicken and 18 pork chops and one pork roast.  This will save us money in the coming months when we use our stockpile rather than purchasing new at over $1.50 more per pound.

Also in January, I decided to jump on the freezer cooking bandwagon.  Sticking to our new dietary restrictions I purchased spices and ingredients for a Paleo plan that will provide us with 8 dinners and approximately 12-15 leftover lunches.  The spices and recipes were through Tastefully Simple and are amazingly easy!  I managed to put all the meals together with no pre-prep in about an hour!  Most of the meals can be prepared in the crockpot and since all the prep is done, all you need to do is remember to thaw – absolutely fabulous for working days! And most of the meals included 6 servings which is at least 2 meals for our small family.  The best part is they all fit in my tiny freezer! We have no deep freeze and I was able to fit them in our refrigerator freezer along with our stockpile of meat!  Contact me if you are interested in this plan and I can put you in touch with my Tastefully Simple consultant (who also happens to be my sister) for more details.

And as mentioned above, we are eating differently.  Due to some health considerations, we have gone to a lower carbohydrate diet. This means less processed foods (less opportunity for coupons!), more meat and produce.  Meat is expensive in general and produce can be.  Pasta, rice and beans are out… these are the backbones of every budget friendly meal plan I have ever found on Pinterest! I’ve gotten boxes of pasta for as little as $0.25 with sales and coupons and now they are sitting in my pantry useless.  But the dietary changes are working and eating this way will stay for a while.  I’m now challenged to find the best deals on whole foods like meat, fruits, veggies and dairy and am cutting out most processed food items (basically most anything with a brand name).  Thankfully, Grocery University – while being a coupon heavy guide to saving money – has provided me with valuable tips to saving money even on these non-branded items.

And possibly our saving grace to keeping positive about our $300/mo grocery budget is the opening of Aldi in our town!  They have had amazing prices on fruits, veggies and several other items we buy. Some items have been less than half the cost of our local grocery store.   It’s time for me to peruse some of those 25 Meals for $150 pins I’ve saved and see if they will work for our family!

So while technically we lost the $300 grocery challenge in January, I’m looking forward to the challenge in the upcoming months.

Do you have any special dietary restrictions that make meal planning challenging?  Have you found any tricks to stay within a small grocery budget while meeting the dietary needs of your family?

Delectable Banana Bread

Now that fall is upon us, I’m back into baking mode!  I love baking bread, cakes and cookies but we don’t have air conditioning so here in the South that means summer is a barren wasteland for all things homemade baked goods.  It’s just too darn hot to run the oven!  But summer also means lots of fresh fruits… some of which just don’t get eaten before they start to go bad.  In the spirit of saving money, I try to stick fruits in the freezer before they spoil too much so we can use them up when we get a chance.  This is how I came to have 8 blackened bananas in a gallon baggie in my freezer.

We always seem to have 1 or 2 bananas that just don’t get eaten before they start to go bad and I hate to waste them.  I remember when (ok showing my age here…) you could get bananas for $0.25/lb and now they average about $0.59/lb.  I hate spending that much but I actually like bananas so I try to buy them when they go on sale.  But with just 1 or 2 bananas leftover every few weeks you can’t do much so when I get one that is turning I stick it in a gallon baggie and pop it in my freezer. Then I just add to the baggie each time we have extras until I get 6-8 very ripe bananas. 

And then this delicious bread happens.

For this recipe you need about 3 cups of banana which is between 6-8 bananas.  BUT if you don’t have enough and are really craving banana bread you can substitute the missing portion of banana with applesauce.  I have made it with up to one cup of applesauce and it was just as banana-y as if I had used all banana!

First you want to combine your sugar and butter until it’s light and fluffy.  I don’t know the why behind this step but I do it, its pretty easy.

Next, you add the eggs and bananas (and applesauce if you choose). Mix well.

Finally, sift together your dry ingredients. (I will fully admit I totally skip this step – hey I have a toddler to get back to!) Then mix the dry ingredients with your banana mixture until just blended together.

Grease your loaf pans well.  I like to use butter and a paper towel to coat the pan but cooking spray works just fine.  If you have trouble with sticking, make sure to coat the corners really well.  Then fill your pans with the mixture until they are about 1/2-3/4 full.  I usually get 2 loaves with this recipe. One large and one medium sized.

Then bake for 45-60mins or until the centers come clean when you stick a knife or toothpick in. (My medium sized loaf took about 45mins and the larger loaf took closer to 60mins.)  Let them cool in the pan for about 10 mins and then remove from pan to finish cooling. Slice and enjoy with some butter or ice cream! Ready to start baking?  Here’s the recipe:

Delectable Banana Bread

3 cups	Banana, mashed (about 6-8 ripe bananas)
2 cups	Sugar
1 cup	Butter
4	Eggs, beaten
2.5 cups	Flour (I use all purpose)
2 tsp	Baking Soda
1 tsp	Salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

With electric mixer, cream the sugar and butter together.  Add the bananas and eggs and beat until well mixed. (You can substitute the banana with applesauce if you don’t have quite 3 cups.)

Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Blend the dry mixture with the banana mixture until just mixed.

Pour into 2 greased loaf pans.  Bake for 45-60minutes or until a knife or toothpicks comes out clean from the middle. You can also watch for the edges to start to separate from the pans – mine sometimes don’t do this so I always use the toothpick method.

Cool in pans for about 10 minutes then remove from pans and let cool.  Enjoy!

Frugal tip: If your family can’t eat both loaves before they go bad – not a problem in my house – you can freeze one loaf for later use!

Asian Lettuce Wraps

So I mentioned that one of my “good deals” at the grocery store this past weekend was antibiotic and hormone free ground chicken.  I have never bought this before because its generally too pricey but this week it was less than the ground beef!  So what to make?  We have a favorite ground beef recipe that I decided might just work with ground chicken.  I was right and it was delicious!  Its similar to a very popular restaurant chain’s lettuce wrap appetizer… so if you like those, you need to try this recipe.

Asian Lettuce Wraps:
1 Lb Ground Chicken
1/2 can Water Chestnuts, chopped
2-3 stalks Celery, chopped
1/2c. Brown Sugar – not packed
1/4c. Soy Sauce
1 Tbs Sesame Oil
3 cloves of Garlic, minced
1/2 tsp freshly grated Ginger (can also use 1/4 tsp ground ginger)
1/2-1 tsp crushed red pepper (the full amount is SPICY!)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix together the brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger & red pepper and set aside.  Brown the ground chicken with the water chestnuts, celery, minced garlic, salt, pepper and sesame oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Drain the fat and place back in the skillet.  Add the brown sugar/soy sauce mixture and stir to coat.  Simmer for 3-4minutes to blend the flavors.  Serve over rice or wrapped in your favorite lettuce leaf. 
Recipe slightly adapted from Six Sisters’ Stuff.

This recipe also works very well with ground beef and has become a favorite in our house. The hubs actually requests it weekly, although it doesn’t get made quite that often!  The next time I make this I’m thinking of adding roasted peanuts to the mix.

If you make this, let me know if your family likes it!

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken Burritos

I mentioned that this week our grocery bill was a whopping $36 because we are making do with mostly on hand items. When I searched my shelves and fridge I found a can of black beans, frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I stock up on these when I find a good sale on the hormone and antibiotic free kind), a half used bulk jar of salsa and about 6 large flour tortillas leftover from quesadilla night.  So what did I come up with for dinner?

Salsa Chicken Burritos!

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken Burritos:
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 medium sized jar mild salsa (I used about 20oz or so)
1 can black beans, drained
Tastefully Simple Fiesta Party Dip Mix
Large flour tortillas
Shredded cheddar cheese
Sour cream

Place chicken in your slow cooker.  Cover chicken with salsa completely. Sprinkle Fiesta Party Dip Mix over top to taste. (I used about a teaspoon or so just to give it a little kick) Set slow cooker on low and let it cook for about 5 hours or until chicken is falling apart. Take 2 forks and shred the chicken breasts. Add the black beans and mix the chicken, salsa and beans thoroughly. Cook for an additional half hour.

Take a large flour tortilla and sprinkle with cheese. Place chicken mixture on top of cheese and roll like a burrito. Add a dollop of sour cream to finish.

Viola! Completely easy and tasty dinner packed with a little extra protein!  Enjoy!