Week starting Monday 22nd

Meatless Monday: Pasta & Broccoli-white clam sauce and salad
Shopping list and price paid:
Pasta:                 1.00
Broccoli:               .46 ($1.00/lb)
Parsley:                 .67
Salad:                 2.50
*My store did not have white clam sauce*
Total for meal:     4.63

I steamed the broccoli and chopped it up, chopped up the parsley and stirred all of it into the cooked pasta (we used penne). I also added garlic salt, butter and olive oil. The salad was our standard baby spinach, dried cranberries and croutons.

Tuesday: chicken fried rice, stir fried sugar snap peas
Shopping list and price paid:
Stir-fry sauce:          1.92
Sugar snap peas:     2.68
Total for meal:         4.60
We didn’t have this meal, for some reason I just didn’t want it!
The chicken and rice were left over from Sunday. So you will heat them both in a skillet, add a couple beaten eggs, allow to cook. Then add stir-fry sauce, and scallions if you wish.

Wednesday: Naan pizza, baby greens & cherry tomato salad
Shopping list and price:
Naan:                                   2.50 (for 2 pieces)
Roasted peppers:                  2.13
Artichoke hearts (canned):    1.72
Mozzarella:                          2.12
Salad: Leftovers from Monday
Cherry tomatoes:                  2.98
Total for meal:                    11.48

Spread marinara sauce (I always have this on hand) onto Naan, top with cheese, peppers and artichoke hearts. Bake for 8 minutes at 450.

These were GREAT! And so easy.

Thursday: Deviled beef steaks and potatoes au gratin
Shopping list and price:
Steaks:                              8.50
Dijon mustard: I had
Seasoned bread crumbs: I had
Potato au gratin mix:         1.00
Total for meal:                  9.50

Coat steaks in mustard, then dredge in bread crumbs. Pan fry in oil until done to your liking.

These were actually really good; I was a little scared about the Dijon mustard. But I really enjoyed the taste, and the crispy breadcrumbs made it even better.

Friday: We cheated and had Jack in the Box! Woops


Saturday: Tandoori Chicken w/mango chutney, basmati rice and cauliflower
Shopping list and price:
Chicken (breast, leg,whatever): I already had some in the freezer
Plain yogurt:          1.93
Cauliflower:           1.50
Basmati Rice:         3.66
Ground cumin: Already had
Minced garlic: Already had
Paprika: Already had
Pepper: Already had 
Price for meal:        7.06 







Mix 1 cup yogurt with 2 tsp cumin, 2 tsp paprika, 2 tsp garlic and 1/4 tsp pepper. Marinate chicken for a minimum of 30 minutes. Broil approx. 10 minutes each side.


Make Basmati rice according to package. I added turmeric, ginger and a little cumin.


Steam cauliflower as you would any veggie.


This meal was great! We really enjoyed it, and it only took about 20 minutes to make. The taste of the chicken was amazing, and the rice was fantastic.
 

A little catching up...

I started this "challenge" two weeks ago, so I'm going to go over those two weeks now. I can't believe the money I've saved already! We used to spend approximately $100 - $150 A WEEK! we're saving an average of % per week now!


I always go shopping on Saturdays, so my weeks will be Sunday to Saturday.


Week of  Feb. 15, 2009
I shopped at Wal*Mart, which always had good deals for groceries. I spent a total of 36.43!!


Meatless Monday: Breaded Fish Sandwiches and oven fries
Shopping List & Price Paid:
Frozen Fish Fillets:              3.98
Burger buns:                        1.18
Frozen french fries:              2.28
Tartar sauce:                        1.38
Total for meal:                     8.82


Make fish fillets as directed; put tartar sauce on buns and enjoy!


I’m not a big fish fan, and I had only had tartar sauce once before. But surprisingly, these were quite good. I got herb and garlic fillets, and they were great with the tartar sauce.


Tuesday: Quesadillas with leftover brisket from Sunday, spinach salad
Shopping list and price paid:
Flour tortillas:                  1.78
Shredded cheese:            2.12
Organic baby spinach:     2.50
I already had salad dressing, dried cranberries and croutons
Total for meal:                6.40


Put cheese and brisket between flour tortillas and pan fry until cheese melts.


I made a total of four quesadillas, but they were all different variations. In one I did the recipe above, in another I did that but added Pico de gallo to it, in another I did just cheese and pico de gallo and the last one was just cheese. So we had a nice platter of different quesadillas to choose from. It was fantastic!


Wednesday: Broiled Turkey Sausages and steamed potatoes
Shopping list and price paid:
Turkey sausages:          2.98
Honey mustard:            1.50
I already had potatoes.
Total for meal:              4.48


Coat turkey sausages in mustard, put under broiler for a few minutes.


This was such an easy meal, and also tasty. The turkey sausage I purchased had cheese inside of it which added an extra flavor, and it was good.


Thursday: Baked Ziti and Spinach Salad
Shopping list and price paid:
Ziti;                                1.00
Shredded Parmesan:     2.48
Pasta sauce:                   1.33
Left over cheese from Tuesday
Left over Spinach salad from Tuesday (They’re pretty big packages)
Total for meal:              4.88


This meal was quite good. I did add some El Pato sauce which made it a little spicy, and it was fantastic!
Cost for El Pato:         0.46


Friday: Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwiches
Shopping list and price paid:
Ham - lunch meat -      2.50
Sliced cheese:              2.98  (You can find this cheaper, I just like Velveeta)
Bread:                         1.23
Total for meal:             6.71


Just a standard grilled cheese sandwiches.


Saturday:
We weren’t particularly interested in Eggs in Tomato Sauce, so we opted to order pizza this night!


Please let me know if you don't like the format this is in, or if there is more information needed. Any feedback is great!!!






Start of the challenge!

I recently started using the Woman's Day monthly menu. We decided to start using it because a) we needed to save money and b) we needed more variety in our meals.
It has been great! Not only are we saving money, but we are eating healthier and we have a lot of variety in our meals. In this blog I will be talking about the meals, posting how much money I spent each week, and if we made any changes to the menu, etc. 
I hope that this helps people. 
The schedule of posts will be as follows (for now): Saturday night I will post how much I spent at the store for the following week and the menu (with our changes if there are any). Sundays I will post our experiences with the prior weeks menu. 

 Please stay tuned for upcoming posts! And enjoy!

Jillian