Thanks for all your great feedback on the menu planning method. I'm so glad it's working for so many of you. Here are my weekly menus for April. Please let me know if these are helpful for you to see, or if you don't really need to see monthly menus.

Keeping groceries within our budget can be a big challenge for us. We love to cook and eat and our grocery store spending can easily get out of hand. When we are really tightening our belts I can get our budget down to $200/300 per month but that isn't very sustainable for us. We set our budget at $450 which gives us enough to eat wholesome foods, create a couple recipes and maybe splurge on ice cream.

Top Tips for Grocery Shopping on a Budget

Buy everything you can at the start of each month.
When I make my monthly menus I also make my whole months worth (four in total) of grocery lists. I put everything I can on the list for week one. Anything non-perishable goes on the first shopping list for the month. That way I spend the bulk of my grocery budget up front and I can keep that in mind the rest of the month. This really helps be know approximately how much I have left to spend each week. You can read about this in depth here.

Only buy what is totally necessary from the organic section.
I used to buy all organic but our spending dropped significantly when I started buying conventional again and only buying what was totally necessary from the organic section. This summer we'll have a big garden planted and the local farmers' market will be up and running so we will be able to eat more organic vegetables then! I just can't afford to buy them from the store at this time in our life.

The most important things to buy organic are thin skinned fruits (apples, peaches, nectarines, grapes), thin skinned or exposed vegetables (bell peppers, celery, spinach, kale, collard greens, lettuce), potatoes, tomatoes, berries (especially strawberries and blueberries), red meat, high fat dairy (milk, butter). Organic dairy isn't in our budget so I buy the Sunshine brand which is rbST free.

Wash and store fruits and vegetables properly.
Always make sure to wash and store your fruits and veggie immediately. I soak leafy greens and fresh herbs in a cold water bath, wrap them in paper towels and store them in ziploc bags. Quickly rinse fruits and store them in the proper drawer or in a fruit bowl on the counter. When I do this I find that the veggies last longer because they're stored properly and I'm more apt to use them because they're already washed! Likewise when the fruits are clean and on the counter in a nice bowl I use them quickly because they look appealing and are at my fingertips.

Buy in bulk whenever possible.
I buy everything I can in bulk. Mostly I buy dried fruit, flour, olive oil, dried beans, corn meal, rice, spices and herbs, oats, nuts, vanilla and honey. Even buying the bag of organic potatoes vs. individual potatoes can save quite a bit! The cost per volume is almost always better when you are buying in bulk.

Be thoughtful about what you stock up on.
I used to stock up on everything... I'd just buy three of things when they were on sale. But I found that cans of this or that sat around forever so I was actually wasting money up front (rather than saving it). The main things I stock up on now are broths (I love the low sodium, organic Trader Joe's brand of chicken and veggie broths. I buy a case of each when we go!) I also stock up on cheeses like goat cheese, Parmesan, mozzarella and cheddar. As long as the cheese is sealed in it's original packaging it should last for quite some time. Trader Joe's is also a great place to buy cheese! Now when we go to Costco we only buy household products and skip the majority of the food. It's so easy to buy things you don't need because they're such a good deal!

Buy and freeze.
The main things I buy and freeze are whole grain bread and chicken. In fact I only buy bread when it's on sale. Often whole grain bread can be 50% off when it's close to the expiration date. I'll buy two and freeze them both. I try to only buy chicken when it's on sale, and usually in larger quantities like the "fryer packs", then I divide it up into dinner size ziploc bags, write the date on them and pop them in the freezer. Because the menu planning is done for the month all at once I have plenty of time to see what I already have and pull it out to defrost in the fridge.

Make one, freeze one.
One big thing I do is to double recipes and freeze one. I especially try to do this with meals that are inexpensive like my Tuna Noodle Casserole, Enchiladas, and lasagnas. But I also do it with Chocolate Chip Cookies, homemade pizzas... anything that will freeze well. This gives us convenient, inexpensive meals and it doesn't add much time to make two instead of one.

Skip the boneless, skinless variety of chicken breasts.
You can save a ton by buying bone in, skin on breasts instead of boneless skinless breasts and they cook so much better! A little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper roasted on a cookie sheet at 375 degrees F for about 45 minutes and you'll have the most tender, flavorful chicken breasts. Once they've cooled a tiny bit just remove the skin and cut the meat from the bone. I shred these for enchiladas and salads, dice them for chicken salad sandwiches, etc.

Use what you have.
This may seem obvious but it's easy to get lazy when making menus and not get up to look to see if you already have a can of tomatoes in the pantry or a bottle of red wine vinegar in the fridge. A few dollars here and there really adds up. Because the menu planning and grocery list making is all done at once (with my method) that means you only have to search through the back of the pantry/spice cabinet/freezer once each month!

Also we always have a couple of "pantry meals" towards the end of the month when we try to use the other half of the jar of pasta sauce, the half used box of pasta, the milk that's about to expire, the vegetables on the edge of perishing. They aren't always the most creative, fun, or prettiest meals but it feels good to know that we used everything we could and didn't waste anything!

Keep the season in mind.
It's always less expensive (not too mention better for the environment) to buy what's in season and grown locally. During the fall and winter our grocery spending always goes up since it's harder to buy seasonal/local during the colder months. I try to pinch pennies but using hearty herbs like thyme, sage and rosemary in the fall and using dried herbs in the winter. I avoid buying things like fresh tomatoes, tropical fruits, etc. in the colder months. In just a few weeks we will be planting all of our vegetables in the ground and then we'll be counting the days until our garden is in full bloom!

Edit your recipes.
I always try to edit recipes by omitting things that I don't feel are totally necessary. I cut out things that are expensive or specialty items that are hard to find or will cost too much. I do this each month when I'm making the grocery list... when I come across an item I know is pricey I simply make the choice whether or not we can afford it within our budget. A lot of times I cut out the fresh herbs like basil or mint during the fall and winter, and if it's appropriate, I substitute with less expensive options like flat leaf parsley. I also substitute expensive items like Gruyere cheese for a little blend of mozzarella and Parmesan. It does effect the recipes to some extent but I can't afford to spend $2.50 on a handful of fresh herbs that are a garnish.

Shop at more than one grocery store.
I have to admit, I hate this step, but it's a necessary one. For some reason I hate going to Safeway but they often have items that are less expensive than our favorite grocery store. I get everything I can from our main store but set aside a few things on our list from Safeway or another store... I buy all of our wine at the drug store where it's usually a couple dollars less! To be honest I usually make Kyle do the Safeway run because he can do it on his way home from work and I don't have to drag Gigi to another store.

Skip the processed foods.
Processed foods are expensive! The only things we buy from the middle of the grocery store (where processed foods are kept) are bread, canned/jarred tomato products, frozen berries, wine/beer, vinegars, mustard, coffee and tea. I never buy crackers or cookies or things like that. You can save a lot of money by making your own salad dressings, dry rubs or marinades. My favorite salad dressing is the Caesar Salad Dressing in this recipe.

Top Tips for Fun and Efficient Grocery Shopping (with kids)

Make it as fun as possible.
I don't always look forward to going grocery shopping. In fact, sometimes I dread it. But I try to keep in mind that grocery shopping is something I will be doing every week for the rest of my life so I may as well make the best of it. Also, if I'm not having fun, neither will my kids. When I am in a good mood about it, organized, and upbeat, it usually ends up being a pretty fun errand. It's a chance to teach Gigi about food, interact with other people, and do something that benefits my family.

Plan menus by the month.
By menu planning by the month (as opposed to week by week) I save a ton of time. The time is spent in one big chunk up front at the start of each month and the first grocery shopping trip is the most time intensive, but the rest of the month the trips are short and sweet. I just pick up fresh fruit and produce, meat, eggs and dairy. After the first big trip we usually go out for a little lunch or I plan something simple like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We always come home hungry and since I'm spending the time putting away our groceries and washing our veggies it works best if I have something simple planned. You can read about monthy menu planning in depth here.

Don't give kids food at the store.
With the exception of a slice of apple which Gigi's favorite produce guy slices for her, I don't let her have any food at the store. I know a lot of parents who give their kids treats upon entering the store, or at the end of shopping as a bribe and I don't doubt that it works well but we stick to our French Kids Eat Everything ways and I don't let her snack and I don't use food as a bribe or reward (sometimes I wish I did). Because I've been really consistant about this Gigi doesn't usually ask for food while we are shopping. Occasionally she'll spot a squeeze packet of baby food and will say, "I need dat! Peeeeeease Mama? I ask nicely." But I stick to my rule and tell her, "No but as soon as we get home we're going to have _________ (something fun) for lunch!" She usually handles this just fine. If she gets frustrated, I talk to her about how great lunch is going to be, how I got strawberry jam for her sandwiches, etc. Just talking about food she's going to get to have is enough of a distraction.

Give kids a food related activity.
A great activity for kids at the store is to give them their own list. Gigi was always grabbing mine and didn't want to give it up when I actually needed it. So I make her her own list with little drawings of items are on our list for the week/month. I draw little pictures and write the names of the foods next to them... I try to focus on new foods that we're introducing. Then I give her a pen and she "helps". The list usually gets tossed aside or torn into pieces by the end of our big trip to the store but it buys quite a bit of time and it gives us a chance to talk about new foods we are introducing that month! (You can download her March list below but I'm not exactly an accomplished artist)

Meal Planning // Step Two

Yesterday I posted Step One of my Menu Planning Method which is all about going through your cookbooks and getting them your recipes organized in a way that's easy to reference and use.

The second step is using those recipes to create a monthly menu that is full of variety and sticks to your budget. I think shopping within a reasonable budget is the hardest part of meal planning. It definitely the most "troublesome" part of our family budget. It's a challenge to stay under $450 (our monthly goal) but this method makes it easier. I also have some tips for budget friendly grocery shopping that I'll share in Step Three.

I've broken my monthly planning down into week by week menus. I plan out breakfasts, lunches, snacks and dinners. I don't plan out desserts since we don't have it every night. Lately, when I'm at the store I just buy whatever fruit looks good, then we'll share an apple or a banana and a few chocolate chips. If we have ice cream, or if Gigi and I have baked a little cake then we'll have that. I plan out each week using a little budget code (under $5 / $=5-10 / $$=10-15 / $$$=15-20 / $$$$ = 20+). I write in my estimate next to the meal and I try to keep most of my meals in the "under $5" category. A - indicates that there is no cost because it's leftovers. It depends on your budget and the size of your family, but I find that this little system helps me see when I'm planning too many pricey meals. These menu plans actually end up covering a little over a month since we usually do a day here and there using up what we have in the fridge, or we get invited out to dinner and have extra food on hand for a meal or two.

Here is what the blank format looks like... (you can print weeks 1-4 at the end of the post)

And here's my filled out menu plan for week one of March... (you can print the full March Menu at the end of the post)

So, I fill out the menu using my recipe document and selecting this off of my favorite foodie blogs. I make my menu plan on the computer which makes it easy because I can just copy and past the recipe from my cookbook document or hyperlink the online recipe directly into this format. I try to keep notes about what new foods I introduced to Gigi to keep in mind the French Kids Eat Everything method we've been following. I also make sure to note when I can "make one, freeze one" and double that recipe and put one in the chest freezer in the garage. Where you see "RECIPE" written out is a meal that I've dedicated to creating or working on a new recipe. You could also leave space for spontaneous meal planning.

Once I've created the entire months menu I get down the coresponding cookbooks and pull up the food blogs. Then I go week by week to create a grocery shopping list for each week. I put everything I can (non-perishables) onto the week one grocery list. By buying everything I can at the start of the month I accomplish a few things. First, it allows me to spend the bulk ofmy grocery budget up front and then I know how much I can spend the remaining three weeks. Second, it means I have one big grocery shopping trip each month. The rest of the month I have short trips to pick up fresh produce, poultry and dairy. Third, it gives me a chance to look for things on sale and buy them early on and stick them in the freezer for later in the month. Finally, this also means that I only have to look through the pantry/freezer/spice cabinet once each month instead of weekly to see if we already have this or that!

Important Note: I lkeep the menus on the fridge so I can always see what's coming up for the week. This keeps me excited about what on the menu, aware of what I've alreaady spent money on and far less likely to order take out.

I love grocery shopping with my daughter but sometimes it feels like it takes up the entire day! I split my grocery list up into "parts of the store" which makes it easier to efficeintly shop, it also makes it easier for Kyle when I send him to the store. I spend so much less time criss-crossing the store becuase I forgot something on the other side! This might vary a little depending on the layout of your store. I also added a separate section of stopping by the co-op or farmer's market, and for things we need from Safeway or Trader Joe's (which aren't our usual grocery stores).

Here is a look at my blank document for grocery shopping... (you can print this at the end of the post)

And here's what a few of my lists look like...

You can see my grocery list for Week 1 is bigger than the others! Last month I spent $95 week one and I've spent around $50 each additional week. Along with little trips to the store here and there we are sticking pretty close to our budget.

I know this all looks like a lot of work (and it is) but it's totally worth it! I find a day at the end of the month and spend long morning making up the menu and grocery lists for the month. Then the work is done for the whole month! I don't have to stress about it every Sunday, I just grab the next week's menu and list. A major benefit to planning this way is that, once you have several months of menus made up you can always go back and print an old month when you're in a time crunch. Our baby is due May 30th and I plan on adapting some of my older menu plans to the summer season but leaving a lot as is to save us time and make things easy when our baby girl arrives!

I will try to post my menus each month for you!

Menu Planning // Step One

One issue I continuously had when menu planning was that I can't always find the time to browse through my cookbooks for inspiration and recipe ideas. Before we had Gigi, Kyle and I would spend our Sunday morning in bed, with our cookbooks and our coffee, making a menu for the week... now I need this process to be much more efficient. I used to plan for a week at a time but I personally find that doing a month at a time makes it so much easier, takes less time, and helps me keep our whole month's budget in mind.

I went through every cookbook we owned, one at a time, using little Post-It's to flag the recipes that looked good, that I regularly made, or that I had always wanted to make. If I went through a cookbook and only found one of two recipes that I liked/used I just put that cookbook in the pile for a the used bookstore... there are so many amazing cookbooks and recipes and streamlining the number of cookbooks I had really helped this process.

THEN I went through the cookbooks and typed all the recipe titles into the following categories: Breakfast. Lunch. Snack. Dinner (split into entrees/sides and main courses). Dessert. Drinks. Basics and Techniques. I also created hyperlinks in my document to my favorite food blogs. You could create as many or as few categories as you need for your family. Since I'm a stay at home mama who loves to cook (and eat) I needed all of them! Each section is divided up with headings for each cookbook. For example under BREAKFAST I have six different cookbooks that I took recipes from.

The BREAKFAST section looks like this:

BREAKFAST

My Father’s Daughters.Gwyneth Paltrow

sweet rice bowl GP.236

morning pancakes GP. 221

spiced apple crumb muffins GP.224

favorite granola GP.227

bruce’s world-famous pancakes GP.239



Sprouted Kitchen.Sarah Forte

breakfast tostadas SK.28

scrambled eggs and leeks SK.32

vegetable eggs benedict SK.31

softly scrambled eggs with creamy leeks SK.32

carrot-date muffins SK.34

creamy coconut barley with pomegranate molasses SK.39

tofu quiche in rosemary-almond meal crust SK.44

granola protein bars SK.154

green smoothie SK.162



...you get the idea. I gave each cookbook and a code before the page number so when I'm menu planning I don't have to write our "Sprouted Kitchen" every time, just SK and the page number!

You can dowload a PDF of my whole Menu Ideas document at the end of this post!

This process took a couple of weeks to complete but it was really enjoyable, I made tea and flipped through my beloved cookbooks with a stack of Post-It's at hand. Admittedly putting them into a document on the computer felt a little tedious but I just I tackled one cookbook every other day or so and now that it's done I've found that the menu creating process is really fast and filled with variety.

Here is a list of my current cookbooks:
My Father's Daughter // Gwyneth Paltrow
The Sprouted Kitchen // Sarah Forte
Start Fresh // Tyler Florence
Super Natural Every Day // Hedid Swanson
Joy the Baker // Joy Wilson
Very Fond of Food // Sophie Dahl
Spain: A Culinary Road Trip // Mario Batali
Tyler's Ultimate // Tyler Florence
Jamie's Kitchen // Jamie Oliver
Everyday Italian // Giada de Laurentiis

I also have some bigger cookbooks like America's Test/Cook's Illustrated Kitchen Family Cookbook, Interational Recipes, and New Best Recipes. I also have Mastering the Art of French Cooking and The Joy of Cooking. I didn't go through these since they are so packed with recipes. I tend to reference them as needed or when I'm looking for something specific.

Some cookbooks on my wishlist:
Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights: Recipes for Every Season, Mood, and Appetite
Tender: A Cook and His Vegetable Patch
The Art of Simple Food: Notes, Lessons, and Recipes from a Delicious Revolution
Plenty: Vibrant Recipes from London's Ottolenghi
The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
What Katie Ate: Recipes and Other Bits and Pieces
It's All Good: Delicious, Easy Recipes That Will Make You Look Good and Feel Great
Miette: Recipes from San Francisco's Most Charming Pastry Shop
The Sugar Cube: 50 Deliciously Twisted Treats from the Sweetest Little Food Cart on the Planet
Tartine
Home Made
Bouchon Bakery
...and so many more! What are your favorite cookbooks?

My favorite food blogs:
Gorge in the Gorge
 (this is my food blog so i use a lot of recipes from here!)

GOOP
Joy the Baker
Orangette
101 Cookbooks

Call Me Cupcake

Cannelle et Vanille

Dinner or Dessert

La Domestique

Love and Olive Oil

Naturally Ella

Not Without Salt

Reclaiming Provincial

Smitten Kitchen

Sprouted Kitchen

Sunday Suppers

Tartelette

The Forest Feast
What Katie Ate

Over the past months I've been working to figure out an efficient, easy, fun and budget conscience approach to menu planning and grocery shopping. In fact it feels like I've been working on this method for years! I finally feel like I've gotten it down and I'm ready to share it. It requires some work in the beginning to make things easier in the long term but I'm finding that it's totally worth it.

After reading French Kids Eat Everything and following that approach to menu planing for the past six months, I reworked the way I was menu planning to meet the new way I was feeding my family. This meant not only planning dinners but also planning out breakfasts, lunches and snacks. At first I found this really overwhelming and couldn't figure out a way to keep track of it all. After all huge percentage of French kids are at school for lunch which is the biggest meal of the day in France. I struggled (and still do sometimes) with trying to cover the entire days worth of food, seven days a week for my family but this method has streamlined the process and made it enjoyable and affordable!

It can seems a little overwhelming at first so I've broken it up into a few separate blog posts, so here you go...

Three Steps to Menu Planning

STEP ONE // COOKBOOKS & ORGANIZTION

STEP TWO // MONTHLY MENU PLANNING & GROCERY SHOPPING LISTS

STEP THREE // TIPS FOR EFFICIENT, & FUN GROCERY SHOPPING ON A BUDGET

You can refer back to this post and access all of the steps! I've created a link on the sidebar to make it easy to access.

I can't believe it's already halfway through January.  I try and get these menu posts up early in the month but January is flying by!  Last month we spent $263 on our groceries... a little over budget goal of $50 a week, but not too bad.  This month I've already gone grocery shopping twice so I've included more photos and more menu options.  From now on I'm not going to list everything.  I'll only list the things that aren't obvious, or include if I have a special note about it.

A lot of the stuff I bought this month was for making Gwyneth some super healthy baby food.  The carrots, broccoli, green beans, kale, sweet potatoes, apples, and beets were all for her.


This photo is of my shopping from this morning.  I got lots of veggies, some healthy lunch options, eggs for making pasta, and some snacks for Gigi.


Buying stuff in the bulk section is saving us a lot of money.  It's a great way to get lots of Organic grains, pasta, and spices without spending a ton.


Gigi's drinking Organic milk now which is definitely an expensive (but important) purchase. 

One easy way to make your herbs last longer is to trim and rinse them right away.  Then, while they are still wet, wrap them gently in a paper towel and seal them in a small storage container.  They will stay fresh a lot longer.

On our menu this month: 
-Chicken Enchiladas
-Baked Sweet Potatoes with Chili Beans
-Turkey Burgers and oven baked fries
-Thai Soba Noodle Bowl (I didn't love the way this turned out so I bought more ingredients for it this week and will post an adapted recipe as soon as I can)
-Red Beans and Rice Kyle made a vegetarian version for me because I'm not eating red meat for the next few months (I go through a vegetarian phase every year)
-Tacos
-Roasted Chicken and Potatoes (already had the chicken in the freezer)
-Grilled Kale Caesar Salad and Roasted Sweet Potatoes
-Ravioli from scratch (I was going to make my Butternut Squash and Roasted Garlic Ravioli but the store was out of Butternut squash so I'm going to try a version with sweet potato)
-Spicy Vegetarian Chili (this chili is delicious but HOT. Do not add more chipotle then it says... you may even want to do less)
-White Bean Soup

Happy cooking!

I got so much feedback last month about my grocery shopping post so I thought, at least for the time-being, I would stick with this style of menu.  Last month, we spent a total of $279 on groceries (not including Thanksgiving) which also included $35 Organic baby formula for Gigi.  Which is pretty great!  My goal is $50 a week but, honestly, I'm pretty happy with $70 a week.  I did two big grocery shopping trips with dinners in mind and we picked up little things inbetween.  

We are really struggling to make ends meet... actually, I think it's safe to say we are not making ends meet.  As challenging as that is, I am finding that grocery shopping on an extreme budget is helping me feel somewhat in control of our financial situation.  It feels great to spend so little and still be able to cook so many wonderful, healthy and delicious dinners for my family.  I did have to buy mostly non-Organic produce this month but at least all of Gigi's food is Organic!

Here's a look at this months first trip to the store.  This should last us a couple of weeks.  I spent $86 on...

Onions: I bought eleven onions for the month.  I use onions in lots of soups and scrambles.  They are an easy way to add a lot of flavor.

Eggs: Our farm egg connection is hit and miss these days so I bought one dozen eggs (they weren't on sale). 

Chicken Thighs: I bought two packages of chicken thighs because they were on sale.  (Last month I bought bone in skin on breasts so I still have lots of breasts in the freezer).  I plan on using some to make paella and I will freeze the rest.  I spent $13 on 26 thighs.

Yogurt: Lowfat plain yogurt for me and whole maple yogurt for Gigi.  Both on sale.

Mozzarella cheese: for Vegetarian French Onion Soup.  I'm not using it until next week but it was on sale this week so I bought it.  You can buy cheese pretty far in advance and leave don't open it until you need it.

Cream cheese and heavy cream: for making cheesecake when we had guests.

Lemons: I always buy tons of lemons.  I use them when roasting chicken, making hot toddy's and cozy evening drinks.

Feta, cheddar and parmesan cheese: for topping lots of dishes.  The Parmesan and cheddar were on sale.

Beets, parsnips, turnip, carrots, shallots: for roasting.

Crimini mushrooms: I love making risotto.  Mushroom risotto is really easy and inexpensive and the leftovers are great.

Eggplant and zucchini: For roasting, serving with pasta.

Green Apples: I love green apples.  Ever since I was pregnant I make toast with peanut butter and have green apple.  They don't have them Organic.  Lord knows what's on them if they don't even grow them Organic.  But, I love them.

Potatoes: a big bag of Organic potatoes.  Great for baking, mashing, adding to soups, making baked fries, etc.

13 Bean Soup Mix:  I bought this in the bulk section for making soup.

Pasta: it was on sale so I stocked up.

Milk

With all these things I bought I will be able to make the following:  Hot Toddy's, Vegetarian 13 Bean Soup, Chicken Noodle Soup,  Tuna Noodle Casserole, Vegetarian French Onion Soup, Mushroom Risotto with Peas, Roasted Root Vegetables with Goat Cheese and Honey (I adapted this recipe from Tyler Florence's cookbook Tyler's Ultimate), roasted eggplant and zucchini over pasta with red sauce, Baked Spaghetti with Mushrooms, Salted Caramel Cheesecake, egg scrambles. 

Again, I'd love your thoughts!  I also have to apologize for not posting ANY recipes last month.  To be honest, things have been a bit overwhelming around here.  Gigi's nap schedule is changing, she's been waking up around 5a.m., she may or may not be getting a cold and/or teething, and I've been struggling to get everything done.  I love this blog and it provides me with a creative outlet so I'm doing my best to find time to blog but, if I'm a bit MIA over the next couple of weeks, forgive me!

To see tips from last month, click here.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

I thought I would try something a little different this month.  We were able to keep our food budget really low last month and I wanted to do it again this month (aiming to spend about $50 each week or $200 for the whole month).  Most of the responses I've gotten to my Monthly Menus has been, "How do you only spend $50 a week?".  I love putting together menus from my cookbooks but, especially lately, it's just not affordable to do all of my recipes out of my favorite cookbooks or from my favorite foodie blogs.  On the other hand, I got pretty bored last month only eating potatoes and beans!  Today I decided to go to the store with no list.  I decided just to buy veggies that are fresh and organic and in season (and local when possible) and only buy protein that was on sale.  I tried to let the food inspire the meals.  I took my time and walked around slowly thinking over what I could use each ingredient for.  I'm sure I will use some of my cookbooks for a special dinner here or there but this is for basic, healthy meals.  I hope this is somewhat instructive or inspiring...

Bread: I usually buy Dave's Killer Sprouted Grain Bread but at $5 a loaf it's too much for us right now.  These whole grain loaves were on sale.  I froze one.

Eggs: Our farm egg connection is hit and miss these days so I bought two dozen Organic, Free-Range eggs on sale. 

Split Chicken Breasts: Buying your chicken breasts with bone in and skin on is a great way to save money.  They are way less expensive and I actually prefer them too the boneless skinless kind.  You can roast them, peel the skin off and cut them from the bone and they are moist and great for shredding for salads or pureeing into baby food, making chicken salad, enchiladas etc.  These packages of four large breasts were about $6 each.  They were on sale for $1.29/lb so I bought two and froze one. 

Tofu: Organic tofu for Gigi.  Not on sale.

Local, Grass Fed Ribeye Steak:  I bought one for us to share.  It was on sale.

Vanilla Yogurt: Kyle uses this with granola that I make. Not on sale.

Ben and Jerry's:  Okay, so I splurged a little.  I've been waiting for weeks for this to go on sale so I could but the Red Velvet flavor and they were finally on sale.  Really, I saved money by not buying them before!

Organic, Local Beets: Not sure what I'm going to do with them yet.  Maybe something like this, or maybe just roasted up with honey?

Organic, Local Kale:  I'll use this in egg scrambles, make Kale Chips and indoor Kale Ceasar Salad.

Organic Yellow and Red Onions:  For scrambles, soups and everything else

Organic Zucchini: For Gigi and for egg scrambles

Organic Broccoli: For Gigi and for egg scrambles and snacking

Organic, Local Mushrooms: For Portobello Sandwiches

Organic, Local Celery Root: I'm going to make soup from this.  Never done it before!

Organic, Local Leek: For making soup with the celery root.

Organic Sweet Potatoes:  I'm going to bake these up for us and Gigi.

Organic Bell Peppers: For Portobello Sandwiches

Frozen Organic Corn and Edamame: For Gigi

Organic Lettuce, Organic Potatoes, Organic Garlic

With all these things I bought I will be able to make the following:  Baked Potatoes (my recipe coming soon), sauteed veggie egg scrambles, Celery Root and Leek Soup, Enchiladas, Portobello Sandwiches (my recipe coming soon),  Grilled Kale Ceasar Salad (with chicken), black bean quesadillas, steak and salad, roasted beets or a Fall version of this, Kale Chips, Potatoes Au Gratin (my recipe coming soon), Veggie Pasta, Baked Sweet Potates, Chicken Salad Sandwiches (my recipe coming soon), and hopefully more!  We obvisouly have some things already at the house, pasta, beans, tortillas, broths and other pantry items that will supplement this weeks shopping.  All the veggies I bought should last us through the next couple of weeks, and the protein should last for a few.  I only spent $105! $33 was spent on protein and $61 was spent on Organic veggies and $11 on other stuff (bread and icecream).  I'll obviously have to add a few things throughout the month to get us through, milk, fresh veggies, fruit, etc. but this solid grocery trip is a great start to a month of healthy eating.

I'd love your thoughts on this style of menu making!!  Is it helpful to see what I bought and how I plan to use it?  I know that for a lot of people the idea of going to the grocery store with no list is not doable.  I'm hoping that with my menu ideas above you may be able to make a list while also seeing how I do it on such a tight budget.  What are your favorite meals to prepare when you're on a budget?  I'd really love feedback about this! Happy cooking!

October Menus

Roasted Eggplant with Za'Atar Pizza

We are so excited to get back to cooking this month in the new kitchen.  We are nearly done and I promise to share it with you as soon as possible!  There are a couple of considerations headed into this months menus... now that I don't have my weekly income, we will be eating on a very tight budget.  We are going to be aiming to spend no more than $50 on groceries.  We've done it before and it feels great to find ways to save money at the store.  The other consideration is that our cookbooks are still packed up in a box in the garage with the majority of our kitchen stuff so this menu consists of recipes already on the blog/online!  Since I'm posting these a little late there's only three weeks of menus but we will be back in full cooking mode by the end of the month and I promise to post fantastic November menus!

October 10th-15th
Mon: Healthy 13 Bean Soup with Kacie's Garlic Bread
Tues: Leftovers
Wed: Vietnamese Salad with Tofu
Thurs: Leftovers
Fri: Baked Potatoes
Sat: Leftovers

October 16th-22nd
Sun: Kacie's Vegetarian French Onion Soup
Mon: Leftovers
Tues: Tacos
Wed: Leftovers
Thurs: Linguini with Pea Pesto
Fri: Portobello Sandwiches
Sat: Leftovers

October 23rd-29th
Sun: Roasted Eggplant with Za'Atar Pizza
Mon: Leftovers
Tues: Tuna Noodle Casserole
Wed: Leftovers
Thurs: Fettucini Alfredo with Kacie's Garlic Bread
Fri: Leftovers
Sat: Kacie's Quiche

Octbober 30th-31st
Sun: Hunter's Minestrone
Mon: HALLOWEEN!  Candy for dinner... we'll probably go out for pizza.

This month I'll post my recipes for Healthy 13 Bean Soup and my family's favorite Lemon Ginger Drink that is perfect for this time of year!  Happy, cozy cooking!

August Menus

Skirt Steak with Bloody Mary Tomato Salsa from July Menus

Hope you guy enjoyed last months menu.  I loved using My Father's Daughter by Gwyneth Paltrow all month.  Have any of you had a chance to check it out?  There are so many great recipes in it.  This month I'll be using it again, along with Tyler's Ultimate (Tyler Florence) and my favorite online foodie sites and some of my own recipes.  Here you go!

August 3rd-6th
Thurs: Grilled veggie salad with pine nuts, craisins and goat cheese
Fri: Linguini with Pea Pesto
Sat: Roasted Eggplant with Za'Atar Pizza (might do a grilled version if it's warm out!)

August 7th-13th
Sun: late lunch/early dinner at Fire on the Mountain
Mon: Chicken Thighs with Wide Butter Noodles, Fennel, and Grapes (Tyler's Ult p.142)
Tues: Tuna Noodle Casserole (with leftovers for Kyle)
Weds: Kacie and G out of town
Thurs:-
Fri: Kacie and G home late
Sat: 2nd Wedding Anniversary and Marion & Co. in town.  Somethin' special!

August 14th-20th
Sun: Lemon Fish and Grilled Corn Polenta
Mon: Dinner out
Tues: Sicilian-Style Spaghetti (Tyler's Ult p.168) and Kacie' Garlic Bread
Weds: Gazpacho (Father's D p.62 ) and Garlic Croutons
Thurs: Grilled Tuna Rolls
Fri: Leftovers
Sat: Grilled Fish and Grilled Eggplant with Lemon, Yogurt, Pomegranate and Mint (Tyler's Ult p.210)

August 21st-27th
Sun: Chicken and Dumplings (Father's D p.159)
Mon: Leftovers
Tues: The Ultimate Ratatoille (Tyler's Ult p.210) with Kacie' Garlic Bread
Weds: Sunny Eggs and Mustard Creamed Chard
Thurs: Leftovers (make Weds dinner fresh again)
Fri: Cold Nicoise Salad (Father's D p.83)
Sat: Leftovers

August 28-31st
Sun: Cheesy Stuffed Burgers (Father's D p.99)
Mon: Leftovers
Tues: Fried Sole Sandwiches with Spicy Mayo and Pickles (Father's D p. 113)
Weds: Leftovers
This month I'll share my recipes with you for my Grilled Veggie Salad and Garlic Croutons and I'll have an update on my Margarita Recipe... before it was for one drink and I now have perfected the recipe to make a whole pitcher of mix.

Happy cooking.

I'm a week late posting the menus!  Sorry.  Man, these summer weeks just fly by.  In the summer I love to keep things really simple, cook with what's available, in season, local and fresh so some of the menu items may seem a bit vague because they will be "in the moment" kind of cooking days.  Also... to keep things simple I'm using my recipes, some recipes from online foodie blogs and only one cookbook.  This month I'm using Gywneth Paltrow's cookbook, My Father's Daughter. 

 I'm totally obsessed with it.  The recipes are easy, light, adaptable, fun and healthy.  The cookbook is very in sync with my style of laid back cooking and everything we've made from it so far has been really delicious!  I got it on Amazon for under $20.  All of the recipes from this cookbook are in red.

July 10-16th

Sunday: Skirt Steak with Bloody Mary Tomato Salad

Monday: Aglio, Olio e Pepperoncino (spaghetti w/chopped: garlic, parsley and tomatoes, olive oil and crushed red pepper)

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Tuna and Ginger Burgers

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Date night!  Harry Potter Finale!  Popcorn and M&M's for dinner! ;-)

Saturday: BBQ'd chicken and Italian Chopped Salad

July 17th-23rd

Sunday: Chicken Milanese and Slow-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Arugula

Monday: Leftovers

Tuesday: Linguini with Pea Pesto

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: Mini-vacation!

Friday: -

Saturday: -

Sunday: Home from mini-vacation!

July 24th-31st

Sunday: Strawberry and Leek Quesadillas 

Monday: BBQ'd something and grilled summer veggies

Tuesday: Leftover BBQ'd something and Simple Summer Beat Salad

Wednesday: Bruce Paltrow's World-Famous Pancakes (recipe below) and eggs

Thursday: Chicken Salad Sandwiches and  

Friday:  Grilled fish and Panzanella with Roasted Peppers, Tomatoes and Basil

Saturday: Steak and Kacie's Fennel Coleslaw

Copied from www.goop.com...

Bruce Paltrow’s World Famous Pancakes

• 3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons fine salt
• 3 cups buttermilk
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled, plus more butter for cooking
• 6 organic large eggs
• Up to 1 cup milk, as needed to thin batter
• Real Vermont maple syrup, warmed

Whew, okay, so I'm posting this a week late but I'm really excited about it!  We both have finals this week and everything is a bit crazy. But, as soon as this week is over, I will be done with classes for the year and Kyle will get to take a few weeks off from studying!  Now, back to the cooking... Spring and summer are my favorite cooking seasons.  I love grilling veggies and simple meats, making fresh salads and light dinners.  Most of the recipes this month are from my own kitchen and I promise recipes for the rest of the dishes (Baked BBQ Chicken, Turkey Tacos, Pizza, Grilled Shrimp and Veggie Salad, Butternut Squash Pasta Salad, Quinoa burritos and Chicken Salad Sandwiches) over the next couple of months. Happy eating...

Kacie's Coleslaw

6/8-6/11

This month I'll post my recipes for Coleslaw and BLT's!  I'm also going to experiment making Ginger Ale so I'll let you know how that goes!

It's been a month and a half since Kyle and I set out on our Spring Detox/Budget Crackdown.  In a nutshell, we made the commitment to be really active and eat healthy everyday and to reduce our grocery budget in half for the month of April!   Major goals!  So how did we do?  Pretty great actually!  

EXERCISE:  

THE GOAL: Our goals for exercising are... to do something active (workout, go for a walk, shoot some hoops) five days out of the week.  Rain or shine.  No matter what.  

THE RESULT:

Okay, so we weren't active every single day, but I went for lots of walks, did some dance cardio and spent less time sitting on my bum.  Kyle works so hard during the day at the brewery that he is active without having to try!  It helps that the weather is starting to improve and we've been getting outside more.  I've been walking with Poppy to ballet and to pick her up from school and this weekend I went for a four hour walk!  Yeah, seriously.  It was soooo nice out and the lilacs were in bloom and Gigi was wearing her finest Parisian ensemble and all I wanted to do was to be outside so I just... kept... walking!  I was hoping to keep my back pain at bay by increasing my activity.  Unfortunately, despite my efforts, my back pain is returning with a vengeance.  It's incredibly frustrating and disappointing.  The fact that I have seriously considered getting pregnant again (which includes the whole giving birth thing) in order to alleviate it is an indication of how bad it is.  I'm back to slapping on icy-hot patches and popping ibuprofen every night and squirming all over the place because I can't sit still.  Not sure what to do now... I have no real desire to become like that weird mom with the 20 kids so I'll have to find some other remedy that doesn't involve pregnancy!

A great bonus to the healthy eating is that I dropped the last of my pregnancy weight!  From 131 to 125 which is exactly what I weighed when I got pregnant.  I also lost one more inch on my waistline (from 37-28-37 to 37-27-37).  I have to admit it feels pretty great to be back to "my old self".  Growing up as a gymnast, dancer and diver I have always felt the best when I felt healthy and fit.  Here's a little snapshot of me now...

I can't believe it's already the last days of March.  I sat down this morning to plan out our April Menus.  The goal for this month is to eat as healthy as possible and to get a jump start on exercising.  Kind of a April Boot Camp to get a kick start on a super healthy and active summer.  If we don't do something we're gonna look like this... 

This morning Kyle pointed out to me that we are incredibly broke.  Like, really, really broke.  Like, can barely pay our bills broke.  We already live paycheck to paycheck but having a few thousand dollars in doc bills and taking a week off of work to go to Mexico (which was wonderful!) and having to pay for school and the new health insurance and... well, you get the point.  March expenses really put us in pinch, financially speaking, for spring.  After discussing the grocery budget with a few friends, it turns out that most of us spend between $400-$700 each month on our groceries.  The last three months we've spent about $475.  That's taking into account that we eat all organic, free range, etc. and we don't eat out often.  I love to cook and we love to eat at home together so our grocery budget kind of doubles as our entertainment budget.  Anyway, long story short, not only have I attempted to make super healthy April Menus, but I'm also hoping to only spend $50 per week!  Luckily, we recently stocked up at Costco so that should help us get by.  We won't be able to buy coffee and at $8 a pop, it looks like I might have to cut out wine.  Maybe.  Okay, probably not.

Our goals for eating are... for the entire month of April we are cutting out as much as possible of the following: fried foods, refined foods, processed foods, bad saturated fats and desserts/sugar.  

Our goals for exercising are... to do something active (workout, go for a walk, shoot some hoops) five days out of the week.  Rain or shine.  No matter what.  

Here's our April Menus!

This month I'll add recipes for Spanish Spinach and Grilled Kale Caesar Salad!

Here's to a healthy and inexpensive April!  I'll let you know how we do!

Chicken Saltimbocca and Sautéed Kale with Lemon and Olive Oil

I got such a enthusiastic response after my Menu Planning (in advance) post that I have made an entire list of my menus for the month of January.  This time, in an effort to make sure you could actually use the plans for your own lives, I focused on my "Food Network" cookbooks (since most of their recipes are available online), my own recipes (that are posted on the blog) and other recipes that are available online.  You should be able to copy a lot of the menus exactly or you can substitute wherever needed/wanted!  I've put little *'s next to the recipes that I just "make" (I'll get a move on posting these recipes so you'll have them in the future).  I tried to use just a few cookbooks this month so that it would be inexpensive to purchase them and use them!  I've just done my grocery shopping for the month and bought everything possible in advance so that all we have to do is zip to the store for the fresh ingredients.  I hope this makes your January a bit easier in the grocery shopping/menu planning/enjoyable dinner department.