I received a question by email last week from a reader that I thought I should clear up. She asked whether our grocery costs include toiletries, cleaning supplies, etc. The answer is usually no. I find that prices at the grocery store for these items are typically a lot higher than I can get them at Target or CVS.

Sometimes I’ll pick something up at the grocery store if it’s a great deal or if I really need it and I’m too pressed for time to make a trip to another store. For the most part our grocery costs include only food items.

Our total this week was $51. We’ve been struggling with higher prices lately as I’ve begun purchasing snacks like yogurt and fruit to tide me over between lunch and dinner since I’m going to the gym every day after work now. The snacks have made my workout a lot easier and more productive, but the snack foods have taken a toll on our grocery budget.

Here’s our menu plan for the week:

Saturday: Ravioli with marinara sauce and garlic bread
Sunday: Broccoli cheddar soup (a knock-off of the Panera version. It’s delicious!)
Monday: Leftovers/sandwiches
Tuesday: Spaghetti with meat sauce
Wednesday: Bean and cheese burritos
Thursday: Homemade pizza
Friday: Dinner in Washington DC!

Now head over to OrgJunkie for more menu plans. Have a great week!

We had a lovely and relaxing Super Bowl Sunday … even though it didn’t involve the Super Bowl. Aside from my husband flipping over to check the score every now and then, we didn’t watch it.

Instead we spent the afternoon at a local history museum for free admission day. Because of the Super Bowl, it was mostly empty, which made it even more enjoyable. It was also free. :)

At the grocery store, we only spent $50. We’ve been doing great lately. Even though we’re going to a pot luck on Friday, we’re still cooking the same amount of meals this week because Tony doesn’t have class Monday night, so we’re making a meal instead of eating leftovers. I’m also still bringing snacks to work like apples and yogurt. I don’t know what’s changed, but I’ll take it.

We’re still experimenting with healthier versions of our favorite meals. Here’s the menu plan:

Saturday: Homemade pizza
Sunday: Lean burgers and chips
Monday: Oven baked chicken, collard greens and red potatoes
Tuesday: Steak fajitas
Wednesday: Macaroni and cheese with cauliflower (more cauliflower, less cheese)
Thursday: Spinach and tomato pasta
Friday: Pot luck dinner with friends

The oven baked chicken is a faux-fried chicken coated in Dijon mustard and cornflakes and baked in the oven. We got that recipe as well as the healthier version of mac and cheese from this month’s issue of Real Simple. I’ll let you know how it turns out!

Now head over to OrgJunkie for more menu plans.

Despite the extra healthy snack foods on our list, this week’s total was back within our budget. Yay!

Our total for the week was $54. And I feel like our cart was stuffed!

Here’s our menu plan for the week:

Saturday: Chicken & vegetable pot pie (We used a store-bought pie crust to make the recipe easier, and substituted heavy cream for 1% milk to make it a little healthier. And of course I limited my portion size.)

Sunday: Stuffed manicotti (We omitted the beef and added spinach to the stuffing instead. We also left out the butter, and used low-fat cheeses.)

Monday: Sandwiches/leftovers

Tuesday: Beef tacos with refried beans

Wednesday: Grilled chicken sandwiches

Thursday: BLTs with baked oven fries

Friday: Homemade pizza

Looking back over this menu, it doesn’t include the healthiest of meals. But I find that as long as I’m careful with portioning, I can avoid eating too many calories for the day.

For more menu plans, visit OrgJunkie.

Well, it’s back to reality, which means menu planning and grocery shopping. We cleaned out our refrigerator and pantry before heading out on vacation, so we had to restock meats and some staples. No worries, though. Our grocery store had chicken breasts on sale for under $2 a pound, so we stocked up with enough chicken to last us more than two months.

After replenishing our freezer and pantry, our grand total was way over budget – about $85. Yikes! But with all the meat and several items like coffee and cheese that we buy in bulk each month, I’m not too worried about it.

For almost two weeks we’ve been eating holiday foods and restaurant meals while traveling (including an entire day of fast food yesterday as we drove 14 hours in one day — yuck!). We’re both really looking forward to getting back into the kitchen to cook some healthy homemade meals.

Here’s our first menu plan of 2009:

Sunday: Roasted chicken and red potatoes (We’ll make chicken stock with the leftovers.)
Monday: Chicken quesadillas
Tuesday: Chicken fajita tortilla soup
Wednesday: Chef’s salad
Thursday: Bean and cheese burritos
Friday: Homemade sushi (more on that later :) )

Now head over to OrgJunkie for more menu plans!