$30 Weekly Shopping and Menu 7-9-18

I’m making some changes for the unforeseeable future!

In case you missed it last week, John is currently unemployed and looking for a new job. In order to make sure our money stretches as much as possible, I’ve lowered our grocery budget from $75 a week down to $30 a week. We’ve done it before and I’m interested in seeing how we’ll do again this time!

Here are some things to consider when reading my grocery posts from here on out:

• I’ve lowered our grocery budget by choice. We’ve chosen not to pursue government assistance.
• My pantry contains essentials such as rice, pasta, peanut butter, and baking items, as well as a little meat in the freezer. You may not be able to recreate this menu for $30 as I’m not exactly starting from scratch every week.
• I’m buying whole foods as much as possible- I won’t be perfect, but I’ll do what I can with the money we have.
• My menu may have more vegetarian meals, or just less meat in general- But I still aim to keep my diet high-protein due to my workouts, which is why you’ll see lots of Greek yogurt, eggs, and cottage cheese.

With all that being said, this week went well! Part of it is because I had an extra $9.00 from last week. I was going to buy chicken but it wasn’t on sale, so that helped with buying vanilla extract and a couple other things we had run out of. Next week may be closer to $30. Here’s what I bought this week:

Meijer

Crest kids toothpaste: $2.59
Panko bread crumbs: $1.69

Total: $2.46 after a $2.00 reward I got last week

Aldi

2 cans crushed tomatoes: $.79 each
2 packages zucchini: $1.11 each
Rolled oats: $2.39
Tomato sauce: $.25
Cottage cheese: $1.79
Greek yogurt: $3.49
2 cans tuna: $.78
2 gallons milk: $1.07
Tomato paste: $.39
Brown sugar: $1.29
2 packages strawberries: $.99 each
Vanilla extract: $3.55
Yellow onions, 3-pound bag: $1.29
Eggs: $.48
Block of Colby cheese: $1.69
Pretzels: $.59
Cabbage: $1.29
2 cans diced tomatoes: $.45 each
Hot sauce: $.85
Sweet potatoes, 3-pound bag: $1.79
Bananas, 2.53 pounds: $.51
Crisp rice cereal: $1.19

Total: $33.41
Weekly Total: $35.87. I had a small overage from last week and I still have an extra $3.00 to carry over into next week.

Menu

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

Dinner
Tuna patties, frozen vegetables*, roasted sweet potatoes
Pasta* with meat sauce*, frozen veggies*- The sauce is just crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and spices with a half pound of ground beef from the freezer.
Unstuffed cabbage– Using the other half pound of ground beef from my freezer, and adding rice*
Small group- Making 2 loaves Crusty French Bread
Banana pancakes
Kings Island date night- We eat for free there
Leftovers

Breakfast
Leftover biscuits and gravy casserole from last week
Banana Pancakes
Oatmeal- Oats, milk, PBFit powder, and bananas/strawberries

Miscellaneous
Homemade Clif Bars– I’m addicted, but don’t want to pay 88 cents to a dollar each! I’ve committed to not buying snack bars until our budget goes up- which if you know me, may be the hardest part of eating on a low budget!

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

Jaime Bacon

Jaime is a Nutrition Coach through the ISSA and professional writer. She has 4 years experience coaching and 9 years experience in writing. She enjoys cooking easy meals, running, and learning more about food.

Jaime specializes in helping women with ADHD learn to meal plan and cook healthier meals without getting overwhelmed.

See full bio here