$75 Weekly Shopping and Menu 4-9-18

Who here loves Trader Joe’s? We made a visit there over the weekend because so many people say how awesome it is. It’s a 30-minute drive, so it’s definitely not an every-week trip; but I really enjoyed looking around. I got a couple random things; but to be honest, a lot of it is pretty expensive. I’m not strictly an organic-only person, so none of that really appealed to me. However, there are a few specialty items I might go back for whenever we’re in the area again. What are your favorite Trader Joe’s buys?

I feel like I’m shopping for an army (Take a look at that massive Aldi haul), but there’s only 3 of us. It’s definitely because I eat a ton of food (Half Marathon yesterday, anyone?); and thankfully we’ve got a good cushion of $75 a week to support my bottomless stomach. Sometimes I like to see how many different kinds of food I can put on my plate and still eat it all.

At the end of March I created the entire dinner menu for April just to give me something to work with for the month. So far it’s working out well! I can easily see what I’ve already made, and I can switch things around if I need to. Last week I ditched the marinated chicken for something else, but will probably make it later this month instead.

Here’s everything I bought this week:

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Kroger

9 pounds of ground chuck, 80/20: $16.92, or $1.88/lb! Part of our stock-up money, not grocery.
Whole wheat rolls: $.69, on clearance
Whole wheat rotini: $1.49
RXBar: Free from Free Friday Download
Reeses peanut butter eggs: $1.80, on clearance
2 bags peanut butter M&M eggs: $1.17 each, on clearance. Great treat for my long runs!

Total: $6.32, not including the ground chuck

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Aldi

Mandarins: $2.49
2 dozen eggs: $1.19 each
Parmesan cheese: $2.29
2 bags sweet potatoes, 3 pounds each: $.99 each, marked down
Guacamole mini cups: $2.99
Ground turkey: $1.89
Bananas, 2.94 pounds: $1.12
2 gallons milk: $1.07 each
Applesauce: $1.89
Kidney beans: $.55
Jarred jalapenos: $1.49
Cottage cheese: $1.79
Salsa: $1.49
2 cans tomato sauce: $.25 each
2 containers hummus: $1.99 each, both for Allison’s preschool snack
Garlic: $1.79
2 packages zucchini: $1.69 each
Broccoli: $1.49
Ground sausage: $1.99
Multi-colored peppers: $1.89
Turkey pepperoni: $2.19
Grape tomatoes: $1.69
Romaine hearts: $1.99
White mushrooms: $1.29
Italian chicken sausages: $2.99
Baby carrots: $.99
Yellow onions, 3-pound bag: $1.29
6 cups Greek yogurt: $.65 each
Spinach: $1.49

Total: $57.33

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Trader Joes

2 Larry’s Cookies: $.89 each. I’ve heard these are really good, and have 8 grams of protein!
Mini cheese sandwich crackers: $2.69
Strawberry cereal bars: $1.99
Cup of yogurt: $.99
Mini chicken cilantro wontons: $2.99. My friends have eaten these and they look amazing!
Tea: $1.99

Total: $12.43
Weekly Total: $76.08

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BONUS: Big Lots

4 cans tuna: $.68 each
Pinto beans, 1-pound bag: $1.08
Black beans, 1-pound bag: $1.04
Brown rice, 2-pound bag: $1.20
4 bottles seasonings- French fry spice, nutmeg, garlic powder, cajun spice: $.80 each
Quinoa: $2.80
Banana Bread Larabars, 16-count: $6.40
Almonds: $3.00
Chapstick: $.80

Total: $22.30 with the 20% off Friends and Family discount. Used stock-up money, not grocery.

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Menu

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

Dinner
Buffalo chicken bowls (Chicken*, buffalo sauce*, rice, roasted broccoli, zucchini noodles)
Dinner out- Thai food!
Turkey Meatloaf Muffins, roasted sweet potatoes, slow cooker ranch carrots
Biscuits and gravy, fruit
Red beans and rice, roasted zucchini
Healthy Pizza Pasta Bake, salad
Leftovers

Breakfast
Egg casserole (Recipe coming next week!), bread/fruit
Carrot pancakes

Miscellaneous
Buffalo Chicken Dip for MOPS

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