Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for a New Year

I finished up most of January's grocery shopping this week. Of course, there wasn't a whole lot on the list. I picked up a few pounds of bananas, a head of cabbage, a jar of decaf coffee, 5 cans of pumpkin (on clearance), 9 gallons of 2% milk ($1.19 each), fruitcake fruit, Pringles potato chips (only bought 1 can -- 79 cents), a pound of mushrooms ($1.69), pumpkin-spice marshmallows (29 cents/bag, bought 3 bags), about 6 lbs of apples, 1 package hot dogs, a free energy bar, 40 lbs of oranges, 15 dozen eggs, and 10 lbs of carrots. I spent $62.91 this week, leaving me with $25.02 leftover in  January's budget of $106.04. Our fridges, freezers, and pantry are bursting right now. When the wintry weather finally hits our area, I think we'll be just fine, as far as supplies go.

In case you're curious -- a 40-lb case of oranges has between 72 and 88 oranges, which will probably last us through mid-February. With the eggs, our family goes through 6 dozen or so per month, if we're regularly using eggs in baking, for breakfasts/lunches, and for dinner entrees, such as quiches. So, 15 dozen should be about a 2-month supply for us, with a couple dozen for freezing, as well. I like having some eggs in the freezer, to use in those weeks when I'm waiting to find a good deal on eggs.

Friday's and Saturday's dinners used some of the ham that was baked on New Year's Day. It felt like we were eating a lot of meat over the holidays. So, by Sunday, I was pretty happy to have vegetarian dinners again.

I'm sorry, I didn't take many photos this week.

Friday
leftover ham
roasted butternut squash
leftover potato casserole
leftover marinated artichoke hearts (clearance- dented can)

Saturday

Saturday
lentil, ham, and carrot soup
roasted butternut squash
Christmas candy for dessert

Sunday
refried beans and salsa
brown rice
tortilla chips
carrot sticks


Monday
lentil-based minestrone
butternut-spice muffins
cheddar cheese slices
peanut butter cookies

Tuesday (daughter cooked)
Traditional Vulcan Breakfast -- Plomeek Soup, a vegetable soup, using beets, carrots, and sweet potatoes, among other veggies --my daughter used this recipe, it freezes well
grilled cheese sandwiches
blackberries (frozen) topped with dusting of sugar

Wednesday

Wednesday
leftover lentil minestrone soup from Monday
egg, bread, cheese strata
orange wedges

Thursday (other daughter cooked)
tuna-noodle casserole, adding peas and some celery leaves
canned green beans


Tonight is the night that we take our tree down. I've planned a dinner of homemade pizza, cole slaw, and snack mix made from mixed nuts, raisins, and pretzels.

The holidays featured a lot of rich or snacky foods. I think it'll will be a lovely change to sink into menus of soup, homemade breads, and simple desserts. You may have noticed, 4 of the 7 nights featured soup this past week for us.

You may be wondering a bit about the Vulcan soup. I previously mentioned that my two daughters are big Star Trek fans. One of my daughters came across Vulcan recipes and thought she'd try this out. The soup was surprisingly delicious, and it used up a bag of beets that I'd dug in late fall and had been sitting in the fridge. (Without the leaves, beet roots can keep in cold storage for several weeks. I did use the greens within days of harvesting the beets.)

That's my week of suppers. What was on your menu this past week? After a rich and decadent holiday season, what was the simpler food that you craved the most?

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Nipping My Internal Whining in the Bud

a casserole of egg strata

I'm writing this today as much to convince myself as anything else. Sometimes, saving lots of money on groceries is not at all convenient, easy, or pleasant. I say this, not as a complaint, but as a realistic statement about this part of my role in my household. It's my job to make our money stretch as far as possible, so there will be enough money to care for ourselves. We stretch our money in just about every department. Some of that is second-nature, but some of it is work.

Yesterday, I had a project, money-earning tasks, and cleaning on my agenda. My time slots were completely filled for the day. Then an unexpected opportunity to use our family car midday came up. I had a moment where I thought to decline the opportunity and continue in my original plans for the day. Then I thought maybe I could use this opportunity to pick up some of the last of my grocery items before the rest of the locals decide to hit the stores in advance of this impending snowstorm.

I went online to check prices at my last store from my shopping list. To my family's and my fortune, both eggs and oranges were on sale at an even further discount from what I'd thought I'd be saving. Cash & Carry (our restaurant supply that also sells to the public) had 15-dozen cases of eggs for $12.59 (about 84 cents/dozen -- fab price for eggs this time of year) and 40-lb cases of oranges for $15.95 (about 40 cents/lb). These prices were too good to pass up. Yet, going to Cash & Carry also meant I'd have to interrupt my current work and switch around my tasks for the week. But, I'd save about $8 on these two items alone.

What kept going through my head was "this is not convenient today." Yet, I remembered that it isn't exactly convenient for my husband to leave the house around 6 each morning to get to his job. And it isn't exactly convenient for small business owners to work 7 days a week at times. And it isn't exactly convenient for people to make those miserable commutes in rush-hour traffic for an hour or more each way, each day. My own inconvenience is beginning to pale in comparison.

So, my job has some inconvenient aspects to it. I often have to drop whatever I'm doing to tend to someone else's need or schedule. But that is part of my "job." And I know that no job is completely convenient. That's why they call them "work," right?


It helps me to remind myself of how much money I saved by rearranging my plans. Yes, I would probably feel better if after my run out to get those eggs, oranges and other items, if someone had placed a $10 bill in the palm of my hand. 

The appreciation for my work may not come in the form of a paycheck, but instead it comes in the happiness my husband and daughters experience being able to have an abundance of good foods around for snacks, breakfasts, and lunches. 


To refocus myself after this little whining session, I took an additional 30 minutes from my scheduled activities and made a delicious strata that would double as a side dish to dinner and a grab-and-go breakfast the next morning. With an abundance of eggs, milk, ham fat, and onions, plus some stale bread, such a strata was very do-able. Breakfast was easy and filling for my family this morning. Making my family happy can be a reward in itself.