This Week’s Menu
Monday
Breakfast: 2 fried eggs
Lunch: Takeout rotisserie chicken and sweet potato fries
Dinner: Tacos out
Tuesday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover rotisserie chicken and the veggies it came with
Dinner: Pan-Roasted Chicken With Broccoli & Corn (recipe coming soon)
Wednesday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover rotisserie chicken salad with a peach, red cabbage and broccoli slaw
Dinner: Zoodles with fried egg, leftover chicken & bacon
Thursday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: See: yesterday
Dinner: Fried lamb fries with warm potato salad
Friday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover rotisserie chicken salad with a peach, red cabbage and broccoli slaw
Dinner: Out
Sunday
Breakfast: Out
Lunch: Out
Dinner: Out
This Week’s Grocery List
Bacon ends and pieces ($3.49 @ Trader Joe’s)
Side dish – Broccoli slaw ($1.99 @ Trader Joe’s)
Potatoes 1.5 lb. bag baby reds ($1.79 @ Trader Joe’s)
Shallots ($0.99 @ Trader Joe’s)
Peaches ($2.79 @ Trader Joe’s)
Smoothie Supplies
Ginger ($1.39 @ Trader Joe’s)
Coconut water ($3.69 at Trader Joe’s)
4 Apples ($3.16 at Trader Joe’s)
1 lb. limes ($2.49 at Trader Joe’s)
4 small avocados ($4.49 at Trader Joe’s)
Bagged kale (2) ($2.29 ea at Trader Joe’s)
Bagged spinach ($2.29 at Trader Joe’s)
Impulse Buys
Sriracha roasted garlic bbq sauce ($2.99 @ Trader Joe’s)
Thai lime & chili cashews ($6.99 @ Trader Joe’s)
Raw unsalted almonds ($6.49 @ Trader Joe’s)
Sugar snap peas ($2.99 @ Trader Joe’s)
Bananas (4) ($0.76 @ Trader Joe’s)
Totals
Overage from last week: $21.52
Trader Joe’s: $53.31
Budget Breakout
This week, I spent $74.83; $25.17 under budget. Ok, so maybe I need to start thinking of my CSA season grocery budget in two week intervals instead of weekly like the rest of the year. Last week, I went over by $21.52, but that translated into really not having to buy much this week.
Note: Smoothie supplies – limes, apples, coconut water and spinach were all a little more expensive this week than usual.
Leftovers From This Week
At the end of the week, I have lamb kidneys, a few carrots, half a bunch of celery, 1 zucchini and a few cucumbers left over. I need to incorporate these items into my menu for next week.
—
Think eating healthfully is too expensive for you? Think again. According to the USDA, to ensure a nutritious diet as of December 2014, a family of two aged 19-59 years should spend between $388.90 and $776.10 on food per month, or $89.80 – $179.30 per week. Source
For my family of two adults, I spend roughly $400 a month on groceries or $100 a week – and we eat well. Not caviar and lobster well, but I do manage to serve a predominately paleo diet with little to no processed foods, and I get to throw in a few luxuries here and there (like expensive snacks for the hubbs and the occasional ridiculously expensive bag of coffee). We even manage to buy “good” meat (grass fed beef and free-range chicken) most of the time – and I make this budget work even on the weeks we pay for convenience by getting delivery groceries. I make: 10 breakfasts, 5 lunches, and 10 dinners a week – plus enough snacks to satisfy and fuel two active adults.
I’m hoping that this series will help shed a little light on the day-to-day things a “paleo” person really eats — and how that way of eating can work on a budget. I want to nudge anyone sitting on the fence right over the edge by showing that it *can* be done and that you don’t just eat meat, meat, meat and more meat.
Gastography 