WWS & WWA | March 19th - 25th

-

Can you say cheese? Shaw's was running a great sale on one-pound blocks of cheese this week, at $2.77/lb this is about the lowest cheese prices will go for cheddar (even beating out bulk prices at Sam's Club). Cheese lasts months in the fridge, and even longer in the freezer. We had the opportunity to tour Cabot Creamery's factory a few years ago, and they shared that the date on the shrink wrap (for cheddar, and most other hard cheeses) only indicates the date upon which the cheese enters the next "aging category" (ie, what you bought was aged for 6 months, the date on the wrapper is the date for when the cheese will be 9 months old, it is not a best by date, if anything, the flavor is better!). We keep an eye on the quality of the wrapper seal, freezing blocks that look like they may be losing their seal. This allows us to always have cheese on hand!

In the meal prep realm, I turned to one of my favorite meal prep tricks - sheet pan meals! We have two standard half-sheet pans from Sam's Club that provide a ton of room to roast a variety of food at once, I highly recommend investing in one or two if your looking to maximize your oven capacity. This week we did fish, chicken, sausages, cabbage, and tomatoes, which were mixed and matched for dinners and lunches throughout the week.

What We Spent 

Market Basket

  • 7.24lbs Fresh Green Bean - $7.35 (why, um, yes, green beans are a favorite around here)
  • Soft Oatmeal Bread - $2.00
  • Polar Seltzer - $0.75
  • Tax & Bottle Deposit: $0.09
    Total: $10.19

Shaw's
  • Lay's Cheddar & Sour Cream Chips - $1.97
  • 8 Polar 1 Liter Seltzers - $3.76
  • (10) 1lb. Blocks Cheddar Cheese - $27.70
  • 1/2 Gallon 1% Milk - $2.29
  • (2) 1lb. Blocks Dragone Mozzarella - $5.98
  • 2-Pack of Toothbrushes - $0 (store freebie)
  • 6.34lbs. Beef Steak Tips - $37.85
  • (4) 1lb. Packages Butterball Turkey Bacon - $3.96 (clearance)
  • 8 Boxes Nature Valley Granola Bars: $6.76
  • Garlic Bread - $1.24 (clearance)
  • 2 Bagels - $1.48 (clearance)
  • 1 Dozen Eggs: $0.77
  • Whole Rotisserie Chicken - $4.97
  • $3 off $30
  • Tax & Bottle Deposit: $1.54
    Total: $97.27
Part of Our Shaw's Groceries (a few things were picked up on a separate day)

Papa's Produce
  • 2lbs. Strawberries - $3.00
  • 1/2 Pint Blackberries - $1.50
    Total: $4.50


Total for 2nd Week of March: $111.96
Total for March: $281.05
Cumulative Total for 2021: $725.27

What We Ate

Planned & Prepped - Did it Go as Planned?

This week was another great example of how well ingredient prepping works for our two-person household. We were able to make a nice variety of lunches and dinners with minimal time spent in the kitchen on busy week nights!

What we Actually Ate:

  • Breakfasts
    • Breakfast Quesadillas
    • Cereal w/ Milk
    • Toast w/ Peanut Butter
    • Everything Bagel w/ Cream Cheese
    • Pancakes w/ Bacon

  • Lunches
    • Chicken, Lemon Herb Pasta, & Green Beans or Cabbage
    • Roasted Garlic Sausage, Roasted Cabbage, Knorr Rice Sides
    • Burger & Fries from McDonalds (impromptu parking lot lunch date!)
    • Burrito from a Local Restaurant for Ben
    • Leftover Steak, Mac & Cheese, & Green Beans
    • Leftover Chicken, Roasted Potatoes, & Green Beans

  • Dinners
    • Friday - Leftover Chicken, Potato Skins, Potato Pancakes, and Beets
    • Saturday - Sandwiches
    • Sunday - Chicken, Sundried Tomato Tilapia, Lemon Herb Pasta, Green Beans
Sunday & Monday Dinners
    • Monday - Rotisserie Chicken, Roasted Potatoes, Garlic Bread, Green Beans
    • Tuesday - Sheet Pan Nachos w/ Queso
Sheet Pan Nachos & Queso for Dinner
    • Wednesday - Pan Seared Steak Tips w/ Herb Butter, Sheet Pan Mac & Cheese, Green Beans
    • Thursday - Leftover Chicken, Potatoes, Green Beans, Garlic Bread

How did your meal prep and planning go this week?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why a Blog?

-
Image
So, why a blog? A few reasons really. Sit tight. Probably the most obvious, especially if we've met in "real-life," is that I like talking about food - shopping, recipes, whose got the best deal, my favorite store (Market Basket if you were wondering), etc. Many friends have asked for tips on lowering their food budget, so I thought, why not put all those tips in one place? Plus, I'd like to capture ideas and recipes for myself in a fun curated manner. Next - surprise surprise - I like reading food blogs. I follow a multitude of food bloggers who cover everything from baking, budget meals, canning/preserving, frugal living, and cooking for two. Over the years I've taken inspiration from these bloggers, tested their recipes, tried out their tips, and followed their lives and blogging journey. I feel that for a long time this has been a one-sided relationship, and that since I enjoy the content and effort others have put out their, maybe I should contribute my own i
Read more

Currently Crafting... DMC "Roses" Cross-Stitch

-
Image
 This past week I decided to ignore my various in-progress creations and start on this small DMC cross-stitch kit, titled "Roses." Even though I've been cross-stitching for years and have a large collection of patterns and floss, kits like these are still my favorite to make - probably because the planning piece is done for me. This is my first progress shot, this was after two sittings, maybe about two hours of work? These flowers have a lot of short color runs, so it takes more time to switch colors than actually stitch I find. Last night I moved on to the second (top) flower, which took about an hour to stitch. I have a few spots left on the large lower flower that I will return to, as they only require short pieces of floss. I plan to move on to the leaves next, as they are longer runs of color and provide a nice break from fiddly color changes. Here is a picture of what the completed item will look like from DMC's website, for perspective. I will probably finish
Read more

Currently Crafting - DMC Roses Complete (mostly....)

-
Image
 This past week I finished my DMC Roses Cross Stitch kit. I still need to iron the piece and frame it, likely in the hoop, which is probably my least favorite part of the process. I typically use felt to cover the back of the hoop, so I will need to pick some up the next time I'm out. Overall I was super happy with this DMC kit, they provided plenty of floss to complete the project, which is not always the case. After I completed the Roses kit, I was itching to start on something else. So I pulled out this Dimensions 'Meow' kit that I received as a gift last Christmas. This sweet cat cross stitch looks a lot like Grayson, and I might make a second with Ebisu's colors. I have completed a few dimensions kits in the past, and I find they often run a bit short on the floss they provide, so I am trying to plan out my stitching to ensure I being efficient with each strand. Unfortunately you can see in the lower left section of the photo that the hoop has splintered slightly.
Read more