What to Eat During a Pantry Challenge? Week of 3-26-18

The month of March is dedicated to a month-long pantry challenge! I’ve committed to spending only $25 a week on fresh produce, milk, and eggs for the whole month of March. Curious about what to buy on a pantry challenge? Read on to find out, and click here to sign up and join me!

Well, we made it. This is the last week of my pantry challenge, and I’m pretty excited for it to be over.

To be honest, it hasn’t been too bad. We’ve been able to buy the produce we needed, and I’ve cleared out a bunch of my pantry and freezer. But I miss being able to buy whatever I want and stocking up on those good clearance deals.

This week I’m making a really big push to clear out my pantry. Lots of easy meals with few ingredients; and by the end of the week, my pantry should be very empty! I can’t wait to show you pictures once it’s all done.

Here’s what I plan on using up in my pantry this week:

• Jar of Alfredo sauce
• My last box of Annie’s mac and cheese
• Bag of frozen peas (My last bag of frozen veggies!)
• Cinnamon swirl bread from the freezer
• Hamburger buns and a package of Sandwich Thins, for sandwiches. I still have at least 2 or 3 packages of Sandwich Thins, so I’ll try to use those in the next couple weeks too.
• My last can of pumpkin puree
• The last of my chicken breasts from the freezer
• Both bags of Simply Jell-o Pudding- chocolate and vanilla. Nice desserts to end this challenge!

The only thing I don’t know what to do with is the other huge turkey in my freezer. I want to defrost the deep freezer at the end of the month; so I’ll either try to stick it in my small freezer or just put it in the fridge to use next week. We’ll see!

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Kroger

Pretzels: $1.19. It’s one of the only non-produce/fresh food purchases I’ve made this month; Allison didn’t like my homemade cheese crackers so I needed to get these.

• Used $.30/1 Kroger digital coupon
• Final Cost: $.89

Green grapes, 2.02 pounds: $1.96

Total: $2.85

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Aldi

6 cups of Greek yogurt: 4 were $.69, 2 were $.65 each
Bananas, 3.03 pounds: $1.15
Yogurt tubes: $1.55
Sliced cheddar: $1.79
Green bell peppers: $1.59
2 bags spinach: $1.49 each
Shredded lettuce: $1.29
Frozen broccoli: $1.19
Carrots, 2-pound bag: $1.29
Green grapes, 1.64 pounds: $1.62
Vinegar: $.79
Sweet potatoes, 3-pound bag: $1.99
Milk: $1.07
2 dozen eggs: $.78 each

Total: $23.92
Weekly Total: $26.77

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Menu

Lunch is always leftovers. Items marked with an asterisk (*) were purchased in previous weeks.

Dinner
Chicken* Alfredo* over spaghetti*, frozen broccoli
Burrito bowls (Rice*, turkey breakfast sausage from freezer*, lettuce, salsa), roasted sweet potatoes
Peanut butter* and jelly* sandwiches, banana
Grilled cheese, roasted sweet potatoes, grapes
Tomato Basil Chicken*, Annie’s mac and cheese*, frozen peas*
Dinner out
Leftovers

Breakfast
French toast using cinnamon swirl bread from freezer
Carrot Pancakes
Chia pudding (Chia seeds*, PBFit powder*, milk)

Miscellaneous
Pumpkin Oat Chocolate Chip Muffins for Allison’s lunch
Spinach Mozzarella Egg Bake for MOPS (Adding breakfast sausage from freezer)

What’s on your menu this week? Share in the comments below!