Pantry Challenge Week 1: Sticking to a Grocery Budget

At the beginning of the year, my plan was to stick to a smaller grocery budget.  I did okay for a few months, but I gradually got less serious about watching my spending.  This past month ended up with me going over my old budget by quite a bit.  I am sticking to a $25 per week spending limit for at least the next month until we get things under control.

Here is what I bought last week followed by what we ate.

Canned frosting*
Soda*
Chips
Crackers (W's lunch)
Chipotles
Grapes (W's lunch - on sale)
Lettuce
Fresh Corn on the Cob (first of the season)
Sour Cream
Half & Half

My total was $25.55.  I had the change in my wallet so did not count it as going over.

*These items were for a birthday party for one of my Bible class children.

Breakfasts here are always "whatever".  W's usually eats cereal or eggs.  I have a muffin, smoothie, or leftover pancakes from the freezer.

Corn Dogs and French Fries:  I did homemade corn dogs.  I used to buy the beef ones but everything I saw at the grocery store started with "mechanically separated...".  That is beyond wrong.  W gave these a high rating so this recipe is a keeper.

Lima Beans and Rice:  This was a cheap meal.  I cooked dried lima beans with a ham bone I saved from a spiral ham.  This gets served over rice with or without onions.

Chicken Tenders and Corn on the Cob:  I baked the chicken tenders and boiled the corn on the cob.  The first corn of the year is always so good.  It is best served dripping with butter and topped with salt and pepper.

Grilled Chipotle Chicken and Cheese Sandwiches with Chips/Dip:  The shredded chicken was meant for tacos, but at the last minute I decided sandwiches would be better.  I made dip using a homemade spice mix and a mixture of sour cream and Greek yogurt.

Fish Sandwiches and French Fries:  I am loving my new toaster oven.  It is large enough to cook two trays of items so I need the big oven less and less.  That is a good thing when it is already near 90 degrees.

Ribs, Potato Salad, Green Beans:  I started digging around in the freezer and discovered we had a pile of food that needed to be eaten.  These ribs were one of the items I found.  I added a homemade barbecue sauce and put them in the slow cooker.

Tomato Soup & Salad:  Fortunately we had one more cool day this week as I had discovered a container of homemade tomato basil soup in the freezer.  We ate it and salads one evening for supper.

Leftovers:  These nights are buffet style.  We have a choice of anything leftover.  Anything not eaten, gets put in the freezer as homemade frozen dinners to be eater later.