So far this month I have spent $196.26 on groceries.
Yikes!
To be clear I have also:
-included non-consumable items in the total.
-not included wine/beer
-not included eating out
We had a pretty well stocked pantry to begin with. Lots of dry ingredients like grains, rice and beans. Also, we are not vegetarian so there have been meat and fish purchases which can significantly bump up totals at the register. I only buy organic produce, meats from a local purveyor and get my fish from a quality monger. That alone can make already high prices, even higher.
I've had fun utilizing my resources and being creative in stretching meals.
We had a dinner guest on Monday so I whipped up a crock pot meal of country style ribs and served it with a sweet potato and swiss chard gratin.
I used the veggie scraps to make a stock and that was used in the braising liquid, along with some red wine, for the ribs.
Taking this challenge has pushed me to use cheaper cuts of meat. A challenge I happily accept. They usually have more flavor but take longer to cook. In my opinion, it's worth the little extra effort.
-not included wine/beer
-not included eating out
We had a pretty well stocked pantry to begin with. Lots of dry ingredients like grains, rice and beans. Also, we are not vegetarian so there have been meat and fish purchases which can significantly bump up totals at the register. I only buy organic produce, meats from a local purveyor and get my fish from a quality monger. That alone can make already high prices, even higher.
I've had fun utilizing my resources and being creative in stretching meals.
One night we had salmon over curried lentils...
...and the next morning I had leftover lentils with a fried egg and a piece of naan.
Our fish monger also sells local dairy and by returning our glass bottles we recieve a discount.
I also made use of some cookbooks I had gotten from the library like this one.
Flipping through it I realized I had an unopened container of ricotta cheese that I had no plans for and made this "Warm Ricotta Custard" recipe which provided multiple desserts, snacks and even lunch for the nugget.
I used the veggie scraps to make a stock and that was used in the braising liquid, along with some red wine, for the ribs.
Taking this challenge has pushed me to use cheaper cuts of meat. A challenge I happily accept. They usually have more flavor but take longer to cook. In my opinion, it's worth the little extra effort.
I also whipped up my famous blender chocolate mousse which is little more than chocolate chips, hot water and 3 egg whites. A recipe I will share later.
I saved the yolks and used them in the gratin.
This meal is still feeding us.
All in all I don't feel like we've had to sacrifice much. We still have guests, we still eat meat and fish (not every night), and we still eat local and organic produce.
I've just had to be more creative in how and where I spend our money.
The next trip to the grocery store will have to be well planned out and heavy with coupons if I'm going to stay within the budget though.
If you want to find out more about this challenge and/or follow along with other participants, click on the Grocery Challenge badge in my sidebar.
Happy Saving!
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