How To Tell You Are In The Country:

When the menu includes neckbones, rutabagas, and fried okra.

Restocked and Ready To Go

We made it out of Wal-Mart alive and with at least some money left in the bank. Whew! It was a marathon of shopping, but we got it all done. I felt a little bit like we were on that game show, Supermarket Sweep, only not quite that fast. FabGrandpa had his list and I had mine, and we took off in different directions. Two carts full. And we had been to Frye's first. Grand total, to steal a phrase from one of my favorite bloggers, Oh Mah Holy Hell! $416.33!!!



But, for all that dough, we do have lots of potential meals. The cupboard is no longer bare. The fridge and the freezer, and the little fridge, all full. We can have some cooking fun now!


One of the reasons the total was so high this time was that we were out of every gluten free thing. I got some gluten free baking mix, gluten free cornbread mix, gluten free spaghetti, and gluten free noodles. And of course, we got some little treats again, too. MMMM, fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. Those garlic stuffed olives FabGrandpa loves. Stuff to make this. OOO, and stuff to make shrimp and sausage gumbo. Oh, and I found some spring roll wrappers, a new item I have been wanting to try. Don't know yet exactly what I am going to do with them. Yes. I am a fool for food.



So after all that shopping, what did we eat for dinner tonight? Tuna salad with crackers. You didn't expect me to cook after all that did you? I had to put all that shit away, you know.


My goal for the next five weeks, or until I have to go shopping again, is to blog my dinner recipe every day. Here are some of the things I am going to make this month:

Mexican Seafood Soup
Chicken Salad with Guacamole
Stuffed Cabbage
Stuffed Peppers
Shrimp and Sausage Gumbo
Italian Mushroom Stew
Eggplant Parmesean
Fried Chicken Livers (so some days are better than others)

So some days are better than others.

And just in case you want it:

Tuna Salad

2 small cans tuna, drained
1/2 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 boiled eggs, chopped
1/3 cup mayonaise

Mix all together well. Served over romaine lettuce with cherry tomatos and crackers.

Budget Report Week 10 Cash Monday

We did really good this week. We decided to only take out $120 from the bank. At the end of the week, this morning I had $5 and some change in my pocket, and FabGrandpa had $6.00. We did go out to eat and use the debit card, for $27.00. So, even though we used the debit card, we are still under budget because we didn’t take out the entire $300.


Also, before we left Phoenix we went grocery shopping and spent somewhere around $300. That was 3 weeks ago, and we have only had to buy milk and bread since then. So, today, we drove over to Buckeye, Arizona, 80 miles away, to Wal-Mart to replenish the pantry.


Here is the menu for the next 3 weeks—we are going to try to make it 4 weeks this time before going back to buy groceries:


Salmon Patties/Peas/Mashed potatoes
Tuna A La King with Rice and canned fruit
Spaghetti/Salad/Garlic Toast
Mac & Cheese/Fried Chicken/Green Beans
Pork Roast/Potatoes/Carrots
Leftover Pork/Rice/Baby Lima Beans
Chicken with Salsa/Rice/Pear Salad
Meatloaf/Fried Okra/Diced Potatoes
Blackeyed Peas/Collards/Cornbread
Eggplant Parmesean/Brussells Sprouts
Chili/Cornbread
Black Bean Nachos
Beef Stew/Biscuits
Chicken with Garlic and Spinach over noodles
Bean Soup/Cornbread
Pork Chops/Green Beans/Mashed Potatoes
Tuna A La King/Rice
Goulash/Rice
Pizza/Salad
Salmon Patties/Corn/Potatoes
Roasted Chicken/Green Beans/Potatoes
Italian Mushroom Stew with Italian Sausage


We probably won’t eat all those meals in the order listed, but I listed them to show that I was able to get all the ingredients I needed to make these 22 dinner meals (plus breakfast and lunch stuff, and snacks) for under $300 for two people. And with leftovers, we should be able to stretch this out for a whole month.


I got us a couple of treats, too. Some garlic stuffed olives in Napa Valley Chardonay; some Black Olive Tapanade; some of those Mexican cookies FabGrandpa loves so much, the Surtido Rico ones. So we’re not even doing without good stuff, y’all!


Just so those of you who read this who love us and all, we are not on the brink of bankruptcy. We are just trying to eat a healthy diet without spending all our money on food. It is a challenge to do this, so it has become sort of a game to spend as little as possible and still have good food. With the prices of gluten free items out the roof, it is even more of a challenge. So, in addition to the Monday Cash thing, we are adding this monthly grocery shopping into the mix.


And as usual, I will let you know in a month how we did on this.