Healthy Eating On the Cheap Part II

A couple weeks a go I did a post called, Challenge: Living Life On a Budget. I thought I would follow up on that post by answering a question that you all had.

#1 Question People Asked: PLEASE tell me how you only spend $50-60 on groceries for the week? That is one of our biggest expenses.

I know it seems hard to eat healthy and cheap, but it can be done! This week I went shopping to show you all what our weekly list of groceries looks like. I think this will help some of you see where I tend to save.

1. The first thing I do before I go shopping is SCAN the fridge,freezer, and pantry to see what we already have.
2. Then I sit down and write out a list of the meals I will be cooking for the week (lunch and breakfast included).
3. Figure out what stores have most all the foods so that I don’t have to make multiple trips.

Meals for the week:

For breakfast I eat lots of Oatmeal, and hubby eat his Cheerios. So I will need oats, almond milk,bananas,fruit and granola for toppings. He needs Cheerios and milk.

Snacks for her: Apple and Cheese, Yogurt and Granola, or Z bar and a piece of fruit. I like Z bars because they taste good, are healthy and cheap!

Snacks for Him: 100 calorie packs or Fiber one Bars.

Lunches: I tend to eat a lot of soup and salad combos. I make a big pot of lentil soup on the weekend, and then bring lettuce, veggies,friut on the side. I also tend to have hummus and pita chips with it too.

Hubby;s Lunches: He likes Lean Pockets and Peanut butter sandwiches(he’s so simple).

Dinners:

Sunday:Cook Bean Soup that will last all week for lunch with a salad. Enjoy some for dinner too.
Monday: Hubby Lean Pocket or PB Sandwiche, My Ritual Bowl of cereal ( I teach AKB until 9pm).
Tuesday:Taco Night!
Wednesday: Date Night/ or stay home and make whole wheat spaghetti with turkey meat balls.
Thursday: Hubby Lemon chicken, and for me Pad Thai with Tofu
Friday: Pizza Night
Saturday: Mini Meat Loafs, Baked Potato for hubby and Sweet Potato fries for me. With a veggie of course.

My Grocery Bill:

*Stater Brothers(local grocery store):

• mozzarella cheese: 3.00
• 4 yogurts: 2.50
• whole wheat tortillas: 1.99
• black beans: .79
• garbanzo beans: .79
• diced tomatoes: .75
• 1 chicken breast: 1.66
• ground turkey: 2.49
• ambrosia apples: 2.37
• bananas: 1.01
• romaine lettuce: 1.99
• green bell pepper: .99
• kiwi(5): 1.45
• lemon and lime:.50
• mushrooms:1.99 Total: $25.61

* Trader Joe’s:

• Almond Milk: 1.69
• Soup tomatoes: 1.89
• Mireplox (carrots,onions,and celery chopped) 2.39
• Organic Joe's O’s: 1.49
• Greek Yogurt :1.99
• 17 bean and barley mix: 1.69
• Pad Thai noodles: 1.69
• Whole Wheat Pizza Dough: 1.29
• 4 Z bars: 2.07
• Firm tofu: 1.69 Total: 18.48

For a grand total of $44.09

>>>Now we did have some staples on hand that I didn’t have to buy this week like, hubby’s non fat milk, and bread. We also had eggs,strawberries,rice, oats, granola, blueberries and potatoes.

We also make a Costco Run once a month and this is what this bill looks like:

*Costco:

• 100 calorie packs(30): 8.69
• My 12 pack of almond snack packs: 8.69
• Green Beans: 6.49
• Honey Nut Cheerios: 7.19
• Laughing Cow Cheeses: 8.35
• Mini Peppers: 3.49
• Ground turkey: 14.20
• Pecans: 8.89
• Avocados: 5.29
• Chicken broth: 5.79
• Tomatoes Paste:4.88
• Whole Wheat Pasta’s variety Pack: 8.69 Total $90.64

Half of these things we don’t have to buy every month, like chicken broth, green beans. and tomato paste. Like last month instead of chicken broth we bought Peanut Butter, and instead of tomatoes paste we bought oats.

So if you take our monthly grocery bill ($44.09)times it by four($176), and add in the one time Costco run($27) and divide it by 4, it comes out to about $66 a week.

Heather from Hangrypants, was so gracious to send me this link which has helped me even more with my shopping. Her and Mark did a budget challenge where they tried to keep the grocery shopping budget lower. Here are some key tips they give:

• To get your protein, buy dried beans
• Buy the larger container of yogurt or cottage cheese. It's cheaper than buying the individual serving size containers.
• Buy rice, oatmeal, and other grains in bulk.
• Look for produce that's on sale instead of grabbing the fruits and veggies you love.
• Make your own nut butter. Buy almonds or peanuts in bulk and then use your food processor to grind them up.
• Bring a calculator and add up what's in your cart as you go along. That way you won't be shocked when the cashier tells you what you owe .

I love the idea of bringing a calculator (or for me using my cell phone) to keep track what I am buying, puts thing in a whole new prospective!

I hoped this helped some of you with your healthy grocery shopping. I am trying very hard to stick to the budget, these days it’s actually a fun personal challenge. Who knew I could ever be so FRUGAL!!! Not me:) If you have any other questions please send them my way!!!!

Alight friends, what do you think? How do you save money on healthy food options? Do you think it is possible to eat healthy for a reasonable price?