Our first week of the Pantry Challenge went pretty good. We ate sensibly and were able to eat a few things from the freezer. I had a big cooking day with my sister-in-law on Tuesday. We made Swedish Meatballs with Mushroom Gravy, White Bean Soup with Veggies, and Mix and Match Muffin Mix. I also met with my girl’s group to swap freezer meals. We meet monthly to exchange freezer meals. We each quadruple 2 meals for a total of 8 freezer meals. At the swap we exchange meals and each take home 8 different meals. It has worked nicely and we have been doing this for a couple of years now. As far as having less in my freezer, that is not the case, but I am consciously trying to use what I have on hand to decrease the stockpile a little and save a little cash this month. My goal at the start was to only spend $50 a week on groceries. My grocery store trip ended up costing me a little more than I expected this week. I didn’t use any coupons and shopped at our higher end grocery because I was looking for some organic coconut. My list consisted mostly of dairy and produce.I went in looking for produce and fruit, and noticed spiral ham on sale which I couldn’t pass up. Milk has gone up and I also picked up a few healthy foods for the hubs who is trying to shed a few pounds. My grand total is shown below.
I spent $51.40.
So I was $1.40 over my goal. I am still happy with it since it was $48.60 under my usual weekly budget. Here is a rundown of our menu this week. I didn’t necessarily eat all the breakfast and lunch items on the menu this week. Some of the items only the kids ate. I am trying to calorie count to shed a few pounds as well.
Monday -
B-leftover powdered donuts (we had a mouse hunt which delayed our breakfast) I had Slimfast©
L- Snack tray (celery, carrots, cantaloupe, crackers, kiwi, cheese)
D- Country fried steak, leftover potatoes, corn, blackeyed peas, salad
Tuesday -
B- The kids got up later than expected so we had cereal
L- Hot Dogs at my SIL during our cooking day
D-Swedish Meatballs with Mushroom Gravy over noodles, salad.
Wednesday -
B- Egg in the hole (sunny side up egg in whole wheat toast)
L- Ham wraps(whole wheat tortillas)
D- Dinner at church (spaghetti)
Thursday -
B- Pioneer’s Porridge ( a hot whole grain cereal we purchase at a grist mill each fall)
L- Macaroni and Cheese ( I had cottage cheese and fruit)
D – Turkey Chili
Friday -
B- French Toast Sticks ( homemade on freezer cooking day) & homemade Greek yogurt
L- leftover Chinese food ( I had a ham sandwich on sandwich thins), fruit
D- Planned to have ham and beans, but the beans didn’t get done for some reason. Put them in the crockpot for tomorrow. Backup plan was breakfast. Biscuits, eggs, cheese grits and sausage.
That sums up my menu for the week. Find more information about the pantry challenge at Good Cheap Eats.
What was on your menu this week? Are you taking the challenge with me?
3 comments
Aunt Kay
January 22, 2013 at 7:24 pm (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Two questions : was the Greek yogurt good? I have thought about making some in the crockpot. And how did you have leftover Chinese food when you didn’t have it on a previous day? Lol.
Jennifer
January 23, 2013 at 7:09 am (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Aunt Kay,
Question #1 -I really like the yogurt. For the kids, I mix in a teaspoon of homemade strawberry jam. For myself, I usually add a little Splenda and top with some homemade granola. I also use as a substitute for mayo and sour cream at times.
Question #2 – I didn’t list my menu for the weekend. I was working two twelve hour shifts. David picked up Chinese takeout for the kids on Sunday after church.
Aunt Kay
January 23, 2013 at 8:01 pm (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I think I will make the yogurt. Thanks!