Groceries 7/6/13

When Aldi has certain special buys, I stock up.  This week, they had special buys on Feta crumbles and Goat Cheese crumbles.  Plus, they had a salad spinner for $8.99 , and I need one - especially with the lettuce in the yard growing and being eaten like it is.  :-)  Salad shrimp was $3.99, so I picked up 5.  I also wanted to take advantage of their watermelon price and cantaloupe deals for the week.

Flat Leaf Spinach 2@ 1.69                                            $ 3.38

Turkey Bacon  2@ 2.19                                                $ 4.38

12 oz hot dogs 5@ .75                                                   $ 3.75

Shredded Cheddar 2@ 3.29                                          $ 6.58

12 Grain Bread                                                              $ 3.38

Seedless Watermelon 2@3.99                                       $ 7.98

Cantaloupe    2@ 1.29                                                   $ 2.58

Strawberries  4@.99                                                      $ 3.96

Goat Crumbles 6@ 1.99                                                $11.94

Feta Crumbles  6@1.99                                                 $11.94

Dried Cranberries 5@1.19                                             $ 5.95

Large Eggs  6@ 1.29                                                     $ 7.74

Almond Milk 3@ 2.49                                                   $ 7.47

All Natural Fruit Snack                                                  $ 3.69

Salad Spinner                                                                 $ 8.99

Salad Shrimp  5@ 3.99                                                  $19.95

Tax                                                                                 $  5.56

                                                                TOTAL =    $119.22

With the Spaghetti Squash that I bought the other day, I have enough for 2 dinners of Uncle Foodie's AMAZING Spaghetti.

I have chicken thigh quarters languishing in the deep freeze that can become Chicken in Mustard and Chicken Cacciatore.

I have shrimp in the deep freeze, so with the addition of the turkey bacon from today, I can have Bacon BBQ Bundled Shrimp a la Hungry Girl.

I have a few steaks that I need to cook.  I have never cooked steak, so I will be looking up how to do that well.  I want to pair them with mashed sweet potatoes, and I need to cook the sweet potatoes soon. Wish me luck!

My goal is to turn over the inventory in my deep freezer, so that I can start looking into buying an entire cow, or half of a cow.  If I commit to buying that much meat, the per lb price goes down, and I will more readily be able to afford grass fed beef if bought in large lots and used over time.

I will keep you posted on how that pans out.

t

Groceries 7/3/13

After coming home from a trip with more food than I brought, I did not need a whole heck of a lot from the store.

I came home with three quart sized bags of Uncle Foodie's Amazing Spaghetti Sauce.  A few times a year, especially when the family gets together in Branson, he makes a large batch of sauce which yields 4 or 5 gallon sized bags of sauce.  We got 4 bags in our freezer to utilize over the week that we were staying.  I wound up bringing 3 of the bags home.  (LUCKY ME!!!)

I had purchased 2 Hawaiian Chicken dinners, 2 Turkey Breast stuffed with artichoke and spinach, and a twin pack of Chicken Piccata.  Never having made Chicken Piccata before, I was unaware of the fact that they are lightly breaded.  It was not until half way through the first chicken breast that I realized this, then it was such a negligible amount of breading, it did not give me any trouble.  Those are the things that I brought with me.

Once in Branson, my sister and I hit the Wal-mart for veggies, kid snacks, cheeses, chicken and burgers, and various other food and sun protection items.  Then, the second day of our trip, a family emergency made my Aunt and Uncle need to leave, and they emptied their refrigerator into ours, giving us multiple salads, cheeses, and some snack items.  It helped extend our food a bit.  Also, on the second day, my favorite brother in law (FAVBIL) got the grills going.  He barbecued chicken thighs, chicken breasts, and hamburger patties.  I had bought a large box of patties at Wal-Mart on sale, and FAVBIL went ahead and cooked them all up, and we used them all week long.  I added them to eggs in the morning, diced them up and tossed them on salads, and fed them to kids for a couple of lunches.  I wound up bringing the Hawaiian Chicken and the Turkey Breasts back home, and they became 4 meals here.

I needed Spaghetti Squash in order to serve some of Uncle Foodie's kick butt Spaghetti Sauce, and that wiped out my stock - necessitating a trip to Harps.  While I was at Harps, I also picked up a few small items.

Mangos  2 for 1.00                                         $ 1.00
Celery                                                             $ 1.69
Spaghetti Squash @ 1.49 per lb 2.46 lbs        $ 3.67
Spaghetti Squash @ 1.49 per lb 2.50 lbs        $ 3.73
Spaghetti Squash @ 1.49 per lb 2.39 lbs        $ 3.56
Spaghetti Squash @ 1.49 per lb 2.64 lbs        $ 3.93
Pecan Halves @ 17.99 per lb  .33 lb              $ 5.94
Tax                                                                 $ 1.06
                                                  TOTAL =   $ 24.58

I also found out a great new way to cook Spaghetti Squash - in the microwave!!!  :-)  Looking on my phone for the pre-heat setting, a microwave way popped up.  I followed the instructions and poked holes in the skin, then cooked it for 12 minutes.  The directions were for 10-12 minutes.  12 minutes made it a bit mushy, so I have been cooking for 10 minutes since then, and have been pleased with the mildly crunchy texture of the squash.

t

365 Day Spending Fast Update - May and June

Reminder:  The grocery budget is set by the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program limitations in my state for a family of 4.  That amount is $668.00.  While not personally in need of the SNAP program, I was curious as to whether or not a family could eat in a paleo-esque way while staying under the SNAP guidelines.

May -  $124.49 in un-budgeted expenses.

Husband will be rueing the day that he showed me how to order through Amazon Prime on his account.  It has been my downfall!  I ordered Pink Himalayan salt - 2 different kinds.  Total?  38.03.  Now, I had planned on trying Himalayan Pink Salt, but I only budgeted $15.00 for it.  So, $23.03 in un-budgeted expenditures.  I also bought several books, and a couple of other food items.
5/15 Great Lakes Unflavored Gelatin, pack of 2           42.32
5/15 Tulsi Tea                                                                  4.98
5/22 2 copies of "No Regrets Parenting"                        12.00
5/25 "Paleo Slow Cooking" by Chrissy Gower             18.16
5/25 "The Best 4 Years" by Adam Shepard                   24.00

I was inspired by this blog to try to Tulsi Tea Jello for Hormone Healing  http://empoweredsustenance.com/tulsi-gelee-for-natural-hormone-healing/

When I ordered the Gelatin, I got it almost immediately.  It took almost a month for the tea to come in, and by that time summer was in full swing, and I am just now getting to slow down and think about making this Gelee this weekend.  I will let y'all know how it goes.  :-)

Groceries for May - $514.90 (Underage of $153.10 to be added to the grocery rollover of $135.93 for a total of $289.03 in the grocery rollover slush fund)


June -  $260.06 in un-budgeted expenses.

June has shown me that Summer is not the time to try to do a spending fast.  The kids are home, and we are on the go more.  We have taken 2 trips to Branson and had loads of fun at Silver Dollar City and White Water. I did not take the time to pack any snacks or quick treats, and I wound up utilizing drive-thru way too often.  I know better.  My lack of preparation for our trips cost resources to the tune of $183.78 in the month of June.  I am annoyed with myself, because I KNOW better.  Ugh.  From that, I can tell you that Chick-fil-a's Grilled Market Salad is DELICIOUS, but it is also $6.99.  McDolalds' side salad is also nice, but I have to order three or four of them as a meal, so it is a good thing they are a buck each.  I also found out that I am much more inclined to hit the drive through when my girls have a friend or two in tow.

My kids went to my Mom's house (Camp Grandma) one at a time, so they each got a week on their town, thus a two week separation and I got one kids for a week for two weeks in a row.  Since my Mom fed my kids while they were at her house, I thought covering the meal on the way to Camp Grandma would be the thing to do.  It was $41.28 at Denny's for 5 people.

I have a good friend whose husband is in a group of guys from work who get together and smoke meats.  Husband has purchased racks of ribs from these guys before for 20 bucks a rack.  These suckers are AMAZINGLY GOOD!  My lovely friend told me that her husband, Handsome, was going to  be smoking some meat, and did I want to get my hands on some?  YES!!!!  She went to Sam's Club for some racks of ribs, where there are three in a pack. We agreed that I would get one pack.  She asked me for the money for the ribs themselves (sssshhhhhhh, don't tell her Handsome that he was working for free) so I got three racks of AMAZING ribs for $35.00.  Totally un-budgeted, but definitely worth it!

One of the trips to Branson was to have fun with my sister and her husband, with their 4 youngest children.  At the very beginning of the week, Uncle Foodie's father died, and he and my Aunt left to go to his funeral.  They emptied their refrigerator into our two refrigerators in our condo's.  I have never met the man, but I am very fond of his son, and my Aunt sings his praises, calling him the closest thing to a saint that has ever walked the earth.  He will be very missed.

As a result of their upending their perishables into our laps, and added to the fact that my sister and her husband live a 12 hour drive away, I wound up taking home quite a bit of the vacation food.  I had made entree purchases large enough to feed 2 families for each meal.  When I brought them home, each planned vacation meal became - in fact - two meals for my family.  I can foresee buying only odds and ends to supplement what I have in my freezer for a couple of more weeks before having to make a large food run.  That could be good, or that could be bad.  When I do my large haul once a month, I keep to my list and am efficient.  In my weekly trips, I also stay fairly on point.  My worry is that by going to the store as I need things, I might get a little off track and impulse buy more often.  I will watch for that tendency.

Groceries for June - $479.75 (Underage of  $178.25, added to $289.03 for a grand rolling total of $467.28 in the grocery rollover amount)

In consideration of the fact that I was the recipient of the contents of my Aunt's refrigerator, I am going to deduct $150.00 from the rollover amount.  $150.00 is an definite over-estimation, but I like to over-estimate, rather then under-estimate for budgeting purposes.

So.... New rollover amount? $317.28  :-)

t

Bacon Wrapped Dates

A couple of months ago, I injured my foot trying a 5k.  I have a lovely friend that offered to bring my family dinner, and one of the tasties that she brought over was cream cheese filled bacon wrapped dates.  My family fell on them like they had not eaten in weeks, and Thing1 asked me f I could ever make them for our family at our house, and could I make them every day, pretty please?  My wonderfully lovely (bordering on goddess, really - not gonna lie) friend has kindly given me the recipe, and I am trying my hand at it.  This recipe can utilize cream cheese for a paleo-esque experience, or simply dates and bacon for hard core Paleo eaters.

I find my dates in the baking aisle.  Whole dates are next to the chopped dates you can use for baking.  Slice open the date so that you can stuff it with plain cream cheese.

1 8oz bag of pitted dates                                                $  3.08
1 box cream cheese                                                       $  1.59
1 package bacon                                                            $  3.49
                                                                     TOTAL = $ 8.16 (and worth EVERY PENNY!!)

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees.

Dates cut in half

Closer look at dates cut in half

 Then, put a schmear of cream cheese into each date...

I cut my bacon into three parts, and that worked fine for wrapping, but I think that in the future, I will only cut the bacon in half due to shrinkage in the cooking process.

 Wrap the cream cheese stuffed dates...

Now, place the bacon wrapped dates on a foil lined cookie sheet...

And, cook at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

When I took them out of the oven, I set them on the stove top to cool.  When I walked by 5 minutes later, I saw something that convinced me that I should have taken my "after" photo as soon as they were done.

I think they are a HIT!!  ;-)

t

UPDATE: With the bacon cut into halves, instead of thirds, it took longer for the bacon to cook.  I baked at 375 for 35 minutes, and they were wonderful, if I do say so myself.  ;-)

ANOTHER UPDATE:  Use some leftover mashed sweet potatoes for the filling!!!  It is FABULOUS!!!

Laundry Soap Recipe.

I know it is not a food recipe, but it is one that I make a few times a year.  I sent the recipe to a friend, complete with pictures, then I thought I would post it here for some other friends to see.  I have a High Efficiency washer, and have found no issues with using it all the time.  Of course, I regularly put vinegar through my machine with the towels, so that definitely helps cut any soapy build up or any "off" smells in my HE machine.

I used Fels-Naptha for this batch, but I have also used Ivory Soap.  Fels-Naptha is 97 cents per bar at Wal-Mart, but Ivory Soap is 99 cents for 3 bars, and it only takes a bar of either per 4 cup mix.  It is kind of what mood I am in, and how rich I feel, as to which one I pick up.  If I am feeling wealthy, I splurge on Fels-Naptha.

I started making my own soap as a frugal hack, but then found out that Husband's sensitive skin improved, so I doubt that I will ever go back to buying commercially made laundry soap, no matter how "hypo-allergenic" it is.  Plus, it takes about 2 seconds to get everything together and make it.

The last time I made it, one of Thing1's friends was over, and she was kind of surprised to see that it is possible to make your own laundry soap.

One year supply of laundry detergent:
Fels Naptha   4 bars @ 97 each                                                                 $ 3.88
Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda                                                    $ 3.87
20 Mule Team Borax                                                                                 $ 4.15
                                                                                         TOTAL =         $11.90

Grate a bar of Fels-Naptha.  It will look like grated cheddar.

 You will eventually be measuring out 2 cups each of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda, and 20 Mule Team Borax.

I put 1 cup each of the Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda and the Borax, along with half the grated soap bar, into a small 2 cup food processor that I keep for that purpose.  About once a quarter, I grab everything, spend about 10 minutes making the soap.  So, 40 minutes a year plus ingredients, yields a supply of laundry soap adequate to the needs of my 4 person family.

Once everything is all blended into a fine powder in my little handy-dandy food processor, I break out the Folgers reusable plastic canister.

And, I dump in the fine powder that I just made...  Then, I make another batch with 2 more cups of stuff and the other half of the shredded soap.

The shredded cheese looking Fels Naptha has been processed into small bits that dissolve more easily than the larger, original, slivers.

I add one level (maybe a little bit rounded) Tablespoon of detergent per load.  I have added two for particularly dirty/smelly loads.

I also bought a container of Purex Crystals last year, and have added them to my loads with sheets and blankets, so that those items get a softening agent.  For towels, I add 1/2 a cup of plain white vinegar to the laundry with the soap to keep them fresh smelling and soft.

I have also toyed with the idea of buying a small box of Gain (by far my favorite smelling laundry detergent) and adding a scoop of Gain (the equivalent of one load) to my mix for the quarter.  If I decide to do so, I will update you.  I hesitate to do this, since I do not know if even this small amount might irritate Husband's skin.  (That is kind of part of the beauty of making your own, and it being so affordable.  If it does irritate his skin, I give that batch away and make another.  No biggie!)

So, there you have it.  A year's supply of laundry detergent for roughly $12.00.  And, our clothes are clean and fresh smelling.

t

Update: Because of some sort of a latent OCD on my part, when someone asked me how much it was per use for my laundry soap, I felt an urgent need to figure out the per use cost.
The bar is 5.5 ounces, and there are 2 tbsp per oz.
Each cup of Borax or Washing Soda is 16 tbsp.
4 C. x 16 = 64 tbsp in the powders, and 11 tbsp in the bar = 75 loads of laundry per quarterly recipe.
$11.90 for the year / 4 quarters = 2.975, or $2.98 per quarter
$2.98 / 75 loads = .0397333, or 4 cents per load.  And, that's with the more expensive soap option.

If I were to utilize Zote, which comes in a larger bar (so I only use 1/2 a bar per recipe) or if I use Ivory Soap @ 99 cents for 3 bars, my cost per load reduces to 3 cents per load  :-)

Groceries 6/10/13

Aldi's does not have acorn squash, and they do not sell hard cider either, so Wal-Mart was my destination today.

3lb bag of chicken breast                                            $ 5.98
Almond Milk  2 @ 2.88                                             $ 5.76
Sweet Potatoes 4.52 lbs @ .88                                   $ 3.98
3 Acorn Squash  5.25 lbs @ 1.38 per lb                     $ 7.25
Woodchuck Hard Cider 12 pack                                $13.97
Turkey Franks 5 @ .98                                               $ 4.90
Dates 2 packages @ 3.08                                           $ 6.16
                                                         TOTAL =        $48.00

I will be trying my hand at some bacon wrapped dates.  A friend of mine made some for me in the meal that she brought over to me when i hurt my foot, and I got the recipe from her, so I will be trying them in the near future.  :-)

t

Update: The bacon wrapped dates were GREAT!!  http://paleoonthecheap.blogspot.com/2013/06/bacon-wrapped-dates.html

Stuffed Acorn Squash, a-la Paleo

I tried another of Chrissy Gower's recipes from "Paleo slow cooking, Gluten Free Recipes Made Simple"

http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Title/book--q1Yej_iI0SMMcmyuc2Hdg/page1.html?utm_source=productlistings&utm_medium=g&utm_campaign=title-Paleo+Slow+Cooking%3a+Gluten+Free+Recipes+Made+Simple&gclid=CLCx9dKP4bcCFXRk7AodtSQAzA 

I had never before had stuffed acorn squash.  I had never had acorn squash, but the picture in the book looked so good, that I HAD to try it for myself.

The stuffing is simple, a pound of Italian Sausage, onion, mushrooms, spinach, and the squash.

3 Acorn Squash 5.25 lbs @ 1.38 per lb                    $ 7.25
2 onions                                                                     $   .40
Mushrooms - 8oz clamshell                                       $ 1.59
1 lb mild italian Pork Sausage                                    $ 2.79
spinach leaves (1/2 an 8 oz bag)                                $   .75
                                                              TOTAL  = $ 12.78 (or 2.13 per serving)

I finally made a salad from my own home grown lettuce! Large bowl of lettuce from the garden, and some odds and ends from the refrigerator (1/2 a leftover tomato, handful of olives the kids had leftover from a snack, and half a carrot from a smoothie that I had made earlier.)  So, a basically free salad.

In a sauté pan, I caramelized my onions, then added my mushrooms.  After a few minutes, I added the Italian Pork Sausage, after cutting it out of the casings.  While that cooked, I bisected my acorn squash lengthwise, and scooped out the seeds.  I added the seeds to my garden beds, just in case I get them to grow.  :-)

Instead of using my crock pot, because there would not have been enough room for everything, I used the alternate cooking directions for the oven.  350 degrees for an hour.  They turned out fabulously!

I would suggest having a hand towel on hand, because we found it difficult to try to dig each bite out individually.  Much easier to get your entire serving onto your plate, and go from there. :-)  We took a hand towel doubled over for the protection of our hand, then scooped the squash totally empty and down to it's skin onto our plates, and dug in.  AMAZING TASTE!

For the $12.78, we got 4 really good dinner servings, and enough leftovers for two more full meals.

The next morning, I took one of the servings, mashed it a bit, and fried it up with some eggs for Husband and myself, and it was delicious!  He put Sriracha over his for an extra kick, and I took mine plain.  SO GOOD!

Okay, so that breakfast breakdown was one serving of the acorn squash ($2..13) and 5 eggs (@ 10 cents each = $ .50) So, a nice breakfast for 2 for $2.63, and I would put it up against any breakfast at any restaurant - especially at $1.32 per serving!!  Wait, I forgot the sprinkle of cheese, so add $.15 per serving, for a grand total of $1.47 per breakfast for Husband and myself.

t