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Menu Plan: #342

 

Menu Plan #342

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 these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.     


Published March 2026:  USDA Thrifty Food Plan

According to this plan, our family’s weekly budget is $192.80.  Since June  has 4 Sundays, our monthly budget is $771.20.   With my son’s Court of Honor coming up, we’re planning ahead so the refreshment costs don’t catch us off guard.

Rather than scrambling at the last minute, I’m taking a slow‑and‑steady approach: strategic purchases over the next two months and rolling any leftover grocery money into a small sinking fund dedicated to the event.


Grocery Shopping Tip:      

  • Leveraging your Money:   This week Kroger had a rock bottom sale on soda.    One case of diet coke for $8.99 with a limit of 5.    Although I wasn’t planning on purchasing soda this week, I picked up 5 cases and placed them in the closet.     This impacted my grocery bill by $44.95.  The regular price for the same amount of soda is $119.90.       


Budget Tracking: 

  • Week 1: Walmart: $5.74 + Costco: $166.35= $172.09

      Aldi: $36.59 + Kroger: 76.35 + Meijer:$30.60 = 143.54

               Total = 172.09 + 143.54 = 315.59

  • Week 2: Kroger: $69,02 + Meijer: $29.57 + Aldi: $34.88 = $133.47

  • Week 3: Kroger: $78.03


Running Total:  $771.20 - $527.09= $244.11


Here is what we did this week to make our week easier: 

  • Meal Plan 

  • Clean the Refrigerator

  • Grill Chicken 

  • Create salad containers for the week

  • Bake Oatmeal breakfast bars

  • Make pudding 



Breakfast Options: 

Yogurt Parfait 

Oatmeal Bake

Avocado Toast


Lunch Options:

Salad

Flat Bread


Monday

Grilled Chicken

Rice

Broccoli


Tuesday

Chicken Enchiladas

Salad

Chips w/ Salsa


Wednesday

Chicken 

Rice

Mixed Vegetables


Thursday

Hamburgers

Roasted Potatoes

Salad


Friday

Pizza

Salad


Saturday

Date Night

Winges


Sunday

Salmon

Asparagus

Salad


M- Salmon Cakes

T-  Taco Salad

W-  Butter Chicken

TH- Steak Salad

Fri- Pizza

Sat- Grilled Chicken

Sun- Pork Chops


* Indicate that this recipe is new to our family.    

Flexible Meals indicate using up what is in our refrigerator and/or pantry. 


If you are interested in last week’s Plan,  the link is below. 


Menu Plan #341


What is your meal plan for this week?


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