Skip to main content

Menu Plan #141


Our meals need to be nutritious, clean, flexible, quick and cost effective.
Between our work schedules and after school activities, we need to carefully
plan our meals so that we do not end up ordering out.  We try hard to keep our
total food and household products to under $100.00 per week. 
Goal: $500.00
What did we spend? 
Week 1- $127.66
Meijer: $67.25
Aldi: $23.79
Kroger: $36.62
Rebates: $14.75
IBOTTA: $14.75
Kroger Cash: $11.49
Week 2- $99.63
CVS: $1.92
Kroger: $60.40 
Meijer: $8.36
Aldi: $28.95
Fresh Thyme: $14.67
Rebates: $15.00
IBOTTA: $13.00
Shopkicks: $2.00
Kroger Cash: $9.00
Week 3-  $119.77
Aldi: $71.35
Kroger: $48.42
CVS: $1.08 
CVS: $2.53
Rebate: 
IBOTTA: $10.00
Kroger Cash: $6.25
Shopkicks: 
CVS ECB = $8.00 
Week 4- 
Rebate: 
Week 5- 
Rebate: 
Total:$361.73
Rebate Total: $39.75
Final Total: $321.98
NOTE: Rebate total DOESN’T include Kroger Cash or Refunds because they
will come off of the Kroger Bill automatically the following week.   In addition, I
don’t count CVS as part of the grocery bill because I normally use gift cards
and ECB to get my items for free, so in the end the money is usually to my
benefit.   
Grocery Shopping Tips:    When comparing fruit prices, don’t just compare
them by the weight, but instead compare the number of servings you will get
out of each item.   For example, I picked up a bag of 11 Gala Apples for $2.99
or $0.27 per serving.    However, I also picked up a whole watermelon for
$1.99 (20 servings) or $0.10 per serving.   
Let’s take a look at what we ate this week. 
Breakfast Options: 
Yogurt
Fruit 
Hard Boiled Eggs
Monday
Hamburgers
French Fries
Corn
Tuesday
Quesadillas
Chips and Salsa
Wednesday
Kielbasa 
Peppers and Onions
Mac and Cheese
Thursday
Shrimp Stir Fry
Rice
Wonton Soup 
Friday
Pizza
Salad
Stuffed Mushrooms 
Saturday
Grilled Chicken
Roasted Potatoes
Salad
Squash
Sunday
Salmon
Rice
Greens
Salad
This week’s rough plan: 
M- Spanish Chicken
T- Quesadilla 
W- Pasta
Th- Hoagies
F- Pizza
Sat-  Coconut Lime Shrimp
Sun-  Jambalaya 

* Indicate that the recipe is a new one for our family.    
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Menu Planning: #245

  NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of preparation of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.      March USDA Thrifty Food Plan ccording to this plan our family would have a budget of $186.20 per week.  Given our health concerns, we struggle to maintain this budget, but I am going to try to make this happen.    Cost Saving Tip of the Week: Check your sale flyers for loss leaders.   Each week grocery stores advertise specific products at a great price to get you in the store.   Recently, I have noticed a very specific time frame for getting these deals.   Good luck and happy hunting.   Here is what we did this week to make our week easier:   Refrigerator Clean Out Pre-cut all vegetables for the week Pulled older items to the front for easier consumption C...
Post a Comment
Read more

Menu Planning: #250

  NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of preparation of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.      March USDA Thrifty Food Plan According to this plan our family would have a budget of $186.20 per week.  Given our health concerns, we struggle to maintain this budget, but I am going to try to make this happen.    Cost Saving Tip of the Week: When I purchase fruit for the week, it helps to calculate the cost per serving vs. the cost in general.   For example, this week a whole watermelon was on sale for $3.99 each.    When it is cut up, the watermelon will yield at least 20 servings which will place the cost per serving at $0.20.    Here is what we did this week to make our week easier: Breakfast Options:  Hard Boiled Eggs Yogurt Homemade Breakfast ba...
Post a Comment
Read more

2025 Updated Breakfast Under $1.00

On the USDA Website, their thrifty grocery budgets range from  $25.70 to $72.80 per week ($3.67 - $10.40 per day) per person.   The two factors that determine the amount allocated are age and sex.  With such a small amount of money allocated daily for food and my attempt to eat healthily, I need to plan each week carefully.     With the Bird Flu hitting America hard recently, the egg is no longer a humble star but is turning into a luxury.     A dozen eggs cost $5.49 or $0.46 each.  At this price, I am looking at other options for breakfast.   Breakfast is a great place to add value to your meal planning.    It can be the cheapest or most expensive meal.  The choice is up to you.    NOTE: Prices are for the Northeast area for March 1,  2025 Let’s look at breakfasts that come in at or under $1.00.     Beagle and Cream Cheese ($0.69 per serving) Kroger Prices Bagels (6ct)- $2...
Post a Comment
Read more