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Sunday, October 05, 2008

meal planning 101 - the grocery trip

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In continuation of my last post, hubs, Lil' Z and I ventured out to the grocery store(s) today....and it reminded me of why I despise grocery shopping on Sundays. It was a bit of a zoo....between a number of tottering seniors (and yes, I FULLY realize not all seniors totter...but these ones WERE tottering, particularly in the produce section), and sprawling families with massive strollers and rangy kids everywhere...ugh.

I need to get myself in a mental happy place before going in a place like that. Lil' Z was the picture of serenity however, letting us know of her boredom by snoozing her way through the shops today. :)

In the interest of being honest and open, I thought I'd share the real cost of everything we're eating this week. I ended up having to go to two grocery stores (this is a common occurence for us - I start at the cheapo store - Food Basics, in this case - and then go to a snazzier store for any strange ingredients I wasn't able to locate at the cheap place). Hubs patiently waited with Lil' Z while I ran into the second store, all the while reminding me that he was missing the beginning minues of the all-important hockey game...

Anyway, here is our list. I've italicized the off-list stuff we bought.

dozen eggs - $2.29
2 boxes of frozen chopped spinach - $ 1.78
activia yogourt (8) - $4.99
flat-leaf parsley - $0.99
2L skim milk - $3.79
1 lb dried pigeon peas - $1.39
1 lb dried chick peas - $1.39

1L half and half cream - $3.19
chives - $1.39
mint - $1.39
3 cans baby clams - $ 5.82 (total)
6 whole wheat english muffins - $1.29
romano beans (can) - $0.69
red kidney beans (can) - $0.69
5 green peppers - $2.25
2L extra-virgin olive oil (good sale!) - $11.98
celery - $0.99
2 lbs tomatoes - $1.94
1/2 lb feta - $2.77
5lbs carrots - $1.99
frozen corn - $1.99
jalapeno pepers - $1.00
1 lb low-sodium bacon -$2.99
2 lbs parsnips - $3.98

Food Basics Total: $62.76

As I said, there were a few things I couldn't find at FB and a couple of things I forgot while we were there. So we stopped in at Loblaws on the way home.

cilantro - $0.99
3 bottles of clam juice - $5.67
1 L maple syrup - $12.99
lemon - $0.79
can green chiles - $1.99

Loblaws Total - $22.13

Total for the week: $84.89

Now, keep in mind this total isn't really fair....there are a few things on the list that weren't planned for, some that are expensive (like the syrup), but will last for MUCH more than what I need this week. AND...there's a lot of stuff I already had on hand - like 2 pork tenderloins (which would have been about $7, because I only buy it on sale) and the fish.

At any rate, it's a pretty fair representation of what a week of planned meals will cost you. This makes WAY too much food for 2 people (Lil Z doesn't count, as she gets it all second-hand!). This will make dinners for 4-5 people every night - we eat the leftovers for lunch the next day, but if you had a larger family to feed, this would definitely feed 'em.

I do let myself stray from my list, mostly for sale items, or for pantry staples...we don't have a super strict grocery budget, so it's not a big deal for us. I also keep a pretty well-stocked pantry (okay, ridiculously overstocked, as you may witness below...oof).

my pantry is full

My fridge isn't much better....
my fridge is full

I think I should probably do an 'eating for free' week again soon, eh?

3 comments:

dinah34 said...

wowzers! you can get 1/2 pound of feta for under 3 bucks? how is that possible...here these little tiny containers are like 4 bucks?

i'm going to check out feta prices next time we're at the store.

Unknown said...

Nice totals. Mine would not look like that because it is missing a few vital things: cereal and milk. My 2 kids, and hubby, go through 3-4 club sized boxes of cereal a week, sometimes more.

Anonymous said...

Speaking of saving! Try using coupons, too! I've just discovered www.save.ca and www.frugalshopper.ca. They're GREAT! Oh, and I wish my pantry were that organized. I don't know why Brad always thinks I'm such a neat freak... my pantry is a DISASTER. :)

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