Food Spending July Week 1 & Meal Planning July Week 2

Now is a great time to be eating seasonally in the Northern Hemisphere!  The fresh veggies and fruits are beginning to come in to your local market and/or farm stand.  And while they are fresh and found locally, deals on those lovely veggies can be found!  It shouldn't cost you a fortune in the coming month or two to eat well for a reasonable amount of cash.

So be sure to get out there and find some deals on fresh produce.

***********************
And here is the "meal plan" that actually happened last week.....

SUNDAY--Steak, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Salad
MONDAY--Baked Potatoes and toppings

TUESDAY--Salad, Grilled Cheese, Watermelon

WEDNESDAY--BBQ Ribs, Macaroni Salad, Baked Beans, Watermelon

THURSDAY--Chinese Take-Out

FRIDAY--Smoked Chicken, leftover sides

SATURDAY--Ribs, Mac Salad, Raw veggies and dip

Since the daughter was working nights at the store, she wasn't home to eat much, so after the big smoker/grill-out on Wednesday we basically just ate leftovers, except for Thursday when we took a break and had Chinese take-out.  It's Monday and we are STILL working on leftovers!lol

You may notice that my planned LOBSTER DINNER didn't happen.  Hubs stopped at Price Chopper on his way home Tuesday and they had no $5.88lb. sized lobsters.....didn't seem like they ever got them either!  The fishmonger was trying to upsell to the $7.99lb sized ones they did have.  You KNOW I don't play that....so we cobbled together some foods to eat instead.  I have grilled cheese and a salad, Hubs opted for burritos I believe.  Maybe next time I'll actually get my lobster.

Last week was wickedly hot!  Running the oven was NOT an option!!  We got around that by using the grill(steak), the smoker(ribs,chicken), the crockpot(crockpot, beans) and the microwave.  And I used the stovetop to make a grilled cheese sammie.

The weekly food spending was $7.62 for mostly produce and milk.  We made 2 trips to the ShurSave affiliated market.  I sent Hubs or daughter and I didn't even go to the store last week.  It was too hot to go for me!
The regular retail value was $18.83 so I had a 59.53% savings rate.  Well, if you count the $65.53 worth of stuff I got at Rite-Aid last week for no $ OOP, the rate goes way higher!lol

As I reset my July Food Budget to $300, I now have $292.38 left to spend on food/toiletries this month.

Going into the new week I have the following leftovers to use up......some steak, 2 servings of ribs, 2 servings of baked beans, a LOT of macaroni salad, half a smoked chicken.

***********************

This week's menu.....
SUNDAY--Smoked Chicken, Cornbread, mixed Veggies in Chinese Sauce
MONDAY--using up the leftover steak....steak sandwiches, steak salad-not sure yet

TUESDAY--Ribs, Beans, Macaroni Salad(yet again!lol)

WEDNESDAY--Fajitas with smoked Chicken

THURSDAY--Stuffed Shells, Salad

FRIDAY--Squash Casserole, Grilled Salmon

SATURDAY--Marin Joe's Special, Glass of wine

 

What I need to buy this week to serve this menu?.....

Well, I have everything through Tuesday to make those dishes, since it's mostly leftovers anyway.lol

After that I need.....mushrooms, peppers, onions(maybe), salad greens, yellow squash, frozen spinach.

Add in some seasonal fruit and we are all good.  There will be more spending though for Daughter's needs, which will be mostly breakfast type items(bagels), milk(for her protein drinks)and other things she hadn't told me about yet.

 

I have premade shells and shredded cheese in the freezer as well as raw salmon and ground beef for Friday's and Saturday's meal. 

 

I'm figuring about $30 for this week, besides any stocking up opportunities I may find.


So what's on deck for your menu this week?

Sluggy