We're starting the Whole30 on Saturday so my goal is to clean out the bits and bobs before then.
The pantry challenge has gone pretty well. We've been sick and not quite up to par most of the last couple of weeks so our appetites haven't been normal. I've used up a lot of things but we still have some odds and ends.
Last weekend, I made a huge pot of chicken broth with bones and veggie scraps I'd saved in the freezer. I also added a package of chicken legs which added a good flavor. I made a big pot of chicken soup since we were sick which not only used the chicken from the broth but also a few carrots and celery that were nearing expiration. We ate on the soup for several days. Besides the soup, I was able to freeze 8 quarts of broth for later use. We were out of broth so this will come in handy in the weeks to come. Yay for getting a 16 quart stockpot for Christmas!
My initial goal for the challenge was to spend $0 for the two weeks in order to save the grocery budget for the Whole30. First, we were sick and needed a few supplies, then Andy's parents came to visit this past weekend so I bought a few extra things because of having company. Turned out to be a good move since I was sick while they were here. My sweet mother-in-law ended up cooking! I was a terrible hostess...:-)
In preparation for the weekend, I did make banana muffins from frozen bananas and baked an apple pie I had frozen. My mother-in-law brought some grapes, a bag of salad, an apple, a cucumber and some green onions which she thought might go bad at her house so we're eating those things up too!
Total we've spent to date is $41.03. Not too bad and a few food items will carry over to our Whole30 meal plan.
I scrawled a tentative meal plan for the week. We'll see how it goes from day to day. It really depends on how much we feel like eating! Some of the combinations are super weird-- we may change them up as the week goes on but really, who cares? We're eating things up!
Breakfasts:
- Hard boiled eggs, banana muffins, grapes
- Creamed eggs and waffles (I really want waffles before starting the Whole30!)
- Eggs in various forms
- hot dogs and buns (left from weekend)
- Chicken Cordon Bleu casserole from freezer (2 servings)
- Southwestern Lentils from freezer (1 serving)
- Chick-fil-a soup --free this month with the 2014 Chick-fil-a Calendar card
- Brown Rice, Carrot and Ginger Cakes with leftover cooked lentils and rice
- Any other leftovers!
- Texas Chili (no beans; from this cookbook) with cheese, sour cream, green onions and olives, salad
- Thai Chicken with Peanut Sauce (from freezer), Cheesy Potato Balls (from freezer; made with leftover mashed potatoes from Thanksgiving!), steamed broccoli
- Spaghetti--have a half bag of rice pasta to use and a small jar of spaghetti sauce from freezer or we may use leftover Texas Chili on the pasta--we'll see! Also have a small amount of Parmesan cheese to use up.
- Cheeseburger Soup (from freezer), Sweet Potato Souffle (from freezer; from Thanksgiving!)
- Fish or chicken with whatever veggies and sides we have left or random leftovers
**This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday over at I'm An Organizing Junkie!
2 comments:
thanks for always sharing your recipes AND good ideas too!!
That's awesome that you are able to save so much on groceries. I like to use everything up in the house before we shop again, but my husband on the other hand will find a reason to pop in the grocery store almost everyday. I'm going to share your challenge with him in hopes he's willing to try!!
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