The Importance of Food Planning

Welcome to the October Carnival of Natural Parenting: Money Matters

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants have shared how finances affect their parenting choices. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.

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Though I feel like a hypocrite for writing this right now, I’m doing it anyway. Why do I feel this way? Read on and I will illuminate your mind.

When I started feeding the two mouths of my children “real” food on a regular basis, I also started to understand how beneficial it would be to make meal plans and a monthly food budget so as to get the most for our money. Of course, some things are always easier said than done and though I set a budget right away, I wasn’t great with the meal planning aspect. I tried my first weekly meal plan when I started my blog in January, but it didn’t make an appearance on my blog again for months.

In the beginning, I created a budget of $300 a month for food. It worked for a little while, but when I noticed just how much my children can eat when they are growing, I quickly decided that $300 was not enough. Some months I could do it, spending $302 or something close to that, but I eventually decided that I needed an extra hundred and settled on a $400 budget.

Four hundred dollars a month for food works out pretty well because it equates to $100 a week. Of course, some months are longer and it feels tight towards the end, but that is when I draw upon my pantry stash to sustain our regular eating habits. So, how do I spend that $100 a week? Let's break it down.

Fresh Veggies/Fruits: It's very important for me to have a wide variety of fresh ingredients to work with, making everything in my pantry a bit more nutritious and appetizing. Right now, I like to spend around $20 at the farmers market each week and I do my best to buy as many fresh items from other local farm stands as possible before going to the store. This includes whatever is in season, of course, but I always need to have lettuce, some sort of greens, broccoli, green beans and/or artichokes otherwise my fridge feels empty. Also, we always need apples and bananas and whatever other fruit is on sale.

Restocking: This varies every week and every month since I do not always run out of the same things at the same time, but I like to spend as much as needed each week to rebuild my stores of product. If it isn't essential that I purchase anything particular item, I'll have more money to spend in other areas, but I generally like to purchase another of the same item once I have started using it. For example, once I open a jar of salsa or peanut butter, I purchase a new one when I go to the store so I'm always sure not to run out. (What would I do if I ran out of peanut butter or salsa?)

New Ideas: On rare occasions, I try new recipes and need new ingredients that I've never used before. At other times, I've wanted to try something for a really long time and never got around to purchasing it, so I try to reserve part of the food budget for interesting finds whenever I can. This means that, whenever possible, I try to spend closer to $80 per week so I have a bit more to work with.

This sounds all peachy keen, right? Sure, especially if you plan out your meals every week or month and only take one day to do all your shopping so you save even further by not using as much gas. Yeah, once upon a time, this worked pretty well.

Before I became a vegetarian, I was really good at meal planning. Ever since I made the switch, I have been having a rough time coming up with interesting meals all week long ahead of time. Making a food formula helped me out a lot, but I still feel like I spend more at the store now than I *should.*

Yes, I am here spouting the benefits of food planning yet have fallen out of the habit of doing it myself. (Secretly, I'm hoping that all of you will virtually slap me and tell me I'm acting silly and hopefully, that will make me do it again.) I do think that the importance of food planning cannot be underestimated, especially in larger families. So I humbly ask you to set aside the fact that I have neglected my own meal planning duties, look at the value of it and see how much you can save by knowing what you want to buy before you do it. If you do it right, it is possible to live on a tight food budget while still purchasing high quality foods.

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Visit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

• Money Matter$ — Jenny at I'm a full-time mummy shares her experiences on several ways to save money as a parent.
• A different kind of life... — Mrs Green from Little Green Blog shares her utopian life and how it differs from her current one!
• Show Me The Money! — Arpita of Up, Down & Natural shares her experience of planning for parenting costs while also balancing the financial aspect of infertility treatments.
• Material v Spiritual Wealth - Living a Very Frugal Life with Kids — Amy at Peace 4 Parents shares her family's realizations about the differences between material and spiritual wealth.
• If I Had a Money Tree — Sheila at A Gift Universe lists the things she would buy for her children if money were no object.
• Financial Sacrifices, Budgets, and the Single Income Family — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama looks at the importance of living within your means, the basics of crafting a budget, and the "real cost" of working outside of the home.
• Overcoming My Fear of All Things Financial — Christine at African Babies Don't Cry shares how she is currently overcoming her fear of money and trying to rectify her ignorance of all things financial.
• Confessions of a Cheapskate — Adrienne at Mommying My Way admits that her cheapskate tendencies that were present pre-motherhood only compounded post-baby.
• Money Matters — Witch Mom hates money; here's why.
• Money? What Money?! — Alicia C. at McCrenshaw's Newest Thoughts describes how decisions she's made have resulted in little income, yet a green lifestyle for her and her family.
• What matters. — Laura at Our Messy Messy Life might worry about spending too much money on the grocery budget, but she will not sacrifice quality to save a dollar.
• Making Ends Meet — Abbie at Farmer's Daughter shares about being a working mom and natural parent.
• Poor People, Wealthy Ways — Sylvia at MaMammalia discusses how existing on very little money allows her to set an example of how to live conscientiously and with love.
• The Green Stuff — Amyables at Toddler In Tow shares how natural parenting has bettered her budget - and her perspective on creating and mothering.
• Jemma's Money — Take a sneak peek at That Mama Gretchen's monthly budget and how Jemma fits into it.
• 5 Tips for How to Save Time and Money by Eating Healthier — Family meal prep can be expensive and time-consuming without a plan! Dionna at Code Name: Mama shares five easy tips for how to make your cooking life (and budget) easier.
• Belonging in the Countryside — Lack of money led Phoebe at Little Tinker Tales towards natural parenting, but it also hinders her from realizing her dream.
• Total Disclosure and Total Reform — Claire at The Adventures of Lactating Girl gets down to the nitty gritty of her money problems with hopes that you all can help her get her budget under control.
• Save Money by Using What You Have — Gaby at Tmuffin is only good with money because she's lazy, has trouble throwing things away, and is indecisive. Here are some money-saving tips that helped her manage to quit her job and save enough money to become a WAHM.
• Two Hippos & Ten Euros: A Lesson in Budgeting — MudpieMama shares all about how her boys managed a tight budget at a recent zoo outing.
• ABBA said it — Laura from A Pug in the Kitchen ponders where her family has come from, where they are now and her hopes for her children's financial future.

• Money vs. Time — Momma Jorje writes about cutting back on junk, bills, and then ultimately on income as well ~ to gain something of greater value: Time.
• An Unexpected Cost of Parenting — Moorea at MamaLady shares how medical crises changed how she feels about planning for parenthood.
• 5 Ways This Stay at Home Mom Saves Money — Charise at I Thought I Knew Mama shares 5 self-imposed guidelines that help her spend as little money as possible.
• Frugal Parenting — Lisa at My World Edenwild shares 8 ways she saves money and enriches her family's lives at the same time.
• Conscious Cash Conscious — Zoie at TouchstoneZ shares her 5 money-conscious considerations that balance her family’s joy with their eco-friendly ideals.
• Money, Sex and Having it All — Patti at Jazzy Mama explains how she's willing to give up one thing to get another. (And just for fun, she pretends to give advice on how to build capital in the bedroom.)
• Money could buy me ... a clone? — With no local family to help out, Jessica Claire at Crunchy-Chewy Mama wants childcare so she can take care of her health.
• Spending Intentionally — CatholicMommy loves to budget! Join her to learn what to buy, what not to buy, and, most importantly, where to buy.
• New lessons from an allowance — Lauren at Hobo Mama welcomes a follow-up guest post from Sam about the latest lessons their four-year-old's learned from having his own spending money.
• How to Homeschool without Spending a Fortune — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now shares tips and links to many resources for saving money while homeschooling from preschool through high school.
• It's Not a Baby Crisis. It's Not Even a Professional Crisis. — Why paid maternity leave, you may ask? Rachael at The Variegated Life has some answers.
• "Making" Money — Do you like to do-it-yourself? Amy at Anktangle uses her crafty skills to save her family money and live a little greener.
• Money On My Mind — Luschka at Diary of a First Child has been thinking about money and her relationship with it, specifically how it impacts on her parenting, her parenting choices, and ultimately her lifestyle.
• Spending, Saving, and Finding a Balance — Melissa at The New Mommy Files discusses the various choices she and her family have made that affect their finances, and finds it all to be worth it in the end.
• Accounting for Taste — Cassie at There's a Pickle in My Life shares their budget and talks about how they decided food is the most important item to budget for.
• Money Matters... But Not Too Much — Mamapoekie at Authentic Parenting shares how her family approaches money without putting too much of a focus onto it.
• Parenting While Owning a Home Business — In a guest post at Natural Parents Network, Lauren at Hobo Mama lays out the pros and cons of balancing parenting with working from home.
• Crunchy Living is SO Expensive...Or Is It? — Kelly at Becoming Crunchy talks about her biggest objection to natural living - and her surprise at what she learned.
• Mo' Money, Mo' Problems — Sarah at Parenting God's Children shares how a financial accountability partner changed her family's finances.
• The Importance of Food Planning — Amanda at Let's Take the Metro discusses how food budgeting and planning has helped her, even if she doesn't always do it.
• Kids & Money: Starting an Allowance for Preschoolers — Kristin at Intrepid Murmurings discusses her family's approach and experiences with starting an allowance for preschoolers.

Organic on a Budget

If you enjoyed reading what I keep on hand, you might also be interested in knowing what I choose to buy organic and what I will buy conventionally. This has everything to do with my budget, of course, but since I believe in organic food and want to give my children the best I can afford, I tend to specifically focus on 'The Dirty Dozen.' The Eco Logical Mom actually posted the updated list of these foods in January, so visit that page to see it in its entirety.  

What I Buy Organic:

• Apples: I try to give H & P an apple every day, usually shredded because it's easier for Piper to eat (apple snow). Even though I peel them anyway, again because it's easier for them to eat (or has been up until now), I don't know how many pesticides get beneath the skin. Most of the time, I get a bag at Giant or Wegmans for $4.99 and yes, I feel it's worth it.

• Potatoes: Sometimes, Whole Foods has them on sale, but I found that Wegmans actually has the cheapest bag of Organic potatoes at $3.49 (at Whole Foods and Giant a bag is $4.99).

• Celery: I was holding off on this for a while, but I was recently made aware how bad regular celery really is, so now I only get organic (and no I don't remember how much it is off the top of my head, sorry).

• Salad: In case you haven't noticed, we try to eat salad a lot. Since I don't have a garden right now, nor are the farmer's markets alive, I must resort to the store. Whole Foods has the best deal on Organic romaine hearts, three for $2.49. Elsewhere you might pay close to $5 for the same. I find that buying actual heads of lettuce versus bags of salad is the most economical way to go since the heads go a lot further and cost significantly less. 

• Greens: While I do try to buy things like kale, spinach and collard greens fairly often, I do not get them all the time (depending on my mood). But when I do, I get them at Whole Foods because the bunches are usually $2.49 and you can pick a fairly large one that will last through a few meals, plus the stems can be used for stock or composting. 

• Other Fruits: I do not always buy fruit beyond bananas and apples simply because of their expense. However, if I get pears or peaches or berries (very rarely!) I do get them Organic.

• Meat/Eggs/Dairy: OK, I don't actually buy these Organic all the time, but what I do get is cage free, hormone free, grass-fed, vegetarian diet, antibiotic free animal products. In some ways, animal products scare me even more than the pesticides on general foods. The idea that my children could be ingesting growth hormones or whatever antibiotics were given to these animals literally makes me sick. Luckily, I can get the type of animal product I am willing to put in my mouth and their mouths at both Giant and Whole Foods. This is really, really important to me. Remember, everything that that animal ate or was given is what YOU are eating. Think about it.

What I Don't Buy Organic:

• Onions: They're clean. As clean as an onion can be...

• Bananas: The skin is so thick it probably wouldn't matter if you put pesticides all over them. Plus, you peel it all off anyway so you don't have much to worry about. I am trying to buy more Fair Trade bananas from Sam's Club or Whole Foods, but if I really, really need them I'll get them wherever. (I noticed that the Fair Trade bananas seem to ripen weirdly, turning an odd shade of brownish green rather than yellow...has anyone else noticed this?)

• Asparagus: It's low on the list, so if I can get them for less than $2.99/lb, I pick them up. At the Polish store near me, when they have asparagus, they often have it for $.99 a bunch = awesome. 

•  Peas: You may remember that my children eat peas like they're going out of style, which is why I always have several bags in the freezer. Lucky for me, I don't have to buy them organic because I would be very poor by now.

• Citrus Fruits: Lemons, oranges and grapefruits don't matter to me much, aside from picking nice looking ones. I can get 10 oranges for $2 at that Polish store and that makes me happy.  

• Garlic: I don't know anything about the levels of pesticides on garlic, but I've never seen it on a 'bad' list, so I get it where I can.

• Carrots: These are iffy for me. Sometimes I buy them Organic, sometimes I don't. I've been leaning towards getting them Organic more often than not, but it depends where I go to get them. Again, I'm not sure what the pesticide level of this vegetable is, so I can't really put it on my 'Must Buy Organic' list just yet. 

• Kiwi: It's also clean, so when I can get 5 for $2.00, I get them. 

• Peanut Butter: This is the only peanut butter I buy. While I do not buy Organic, I do buy the one that contains the following ingredients: Peanuts and salt. The end.

• Jelly: I realize that this is counter intuitive to my pact to buy Organic berries and fruits, but Organic jelly is so darn expensive, I just can't do it. However, I always pay attention to labels and for most of my life, this is the only jelly I have purchased, one with no sugar added. (P.S. If you can find the blueberry, it's awesome!)

• Maple Syrup: Another thing I don't know much about, but I like to think that people don't randomly spray Maple trees with pesticides and that even if they do, it doesn't seep all the way into the syrup. Correct me if I'm wrong. Still, I will not buy anything but 100% pure because if you have to put something else in it and continue to call it 'maple syrup,'  you should be shot.

• Ketchup (and other condiments): There is a significant difference between the price of 'regular' ketchup and Organic ketchup, and when the ingredients are fairly similar, I opt for the regular.

• Pasta: I just don't do it.Wait, I take that back. Sometimes I do buy Organic vegetable pasta for H & P because they really love it. Otherwise, I can't serve anything to Mr. Man that isn't white because he'll look at it and make faces. 

• Canned Tomato Stuff: All the pasta sauce, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and canned tomatoes I buy are usually not Organic. I did, however, buy some Organic diced tomatoes at Whole Foods the other day because they were on sale, but as a rule I don't go out of my way for them.

If you know more information about any of these products, please let me know. I'm always willing to learn more about what I'm eating. Also, please remember that even if I don't buy something Organic, I will only buy the product that contains the fewest ingredients, the least amount of sodium and/or sugar and the closest to real I can find. I can't wait to start finding and visiting the local Farmer's Markets because then I will be able to save even more on good food. :) 

How To Make Dinner When You Have No Money (But Have What I Have On Hand)

I ran out of grocery money a week ago (boo, hiss) so I knew this week I would need to be EXTREMELY creative with what I have. If you know what I have on hand, this will make a lot more sense to you.OK, on we go.

Monday: Tilapia with lemon sauce, rice pilaf and salad.

Tuesday: Polenta with homemade sauce, salad. 

Wednesday: Steak (from Steve), noodles and broccoli. Oh, and salad.

Thursday: Oven-baked rice pilaf with lentils and.....salad!

Friday: I had no clue, so I started peeling potatoes and ultimately came up with the idea to make a chili-esque skillet thing over mashed potatoes.


If you are interested in any of the recipes I used this week, here they are:



Tilapia with Lemon Sauce
(Also known as Orange Roughy with Lemon Sauce, but I don't regularly keep Orange Roughy)

1 lb fresh or frozen orange roughy or red snapper fillets (or tilapia)
1 pound asparagus spears (or not if you don't have them)
1 14 oz can chicken broth
2 tsp finely shredded lemon peel
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 medium yellow sweet pepper, cut into strips
4 tsp cornstarch
2 tblsp fresh chives (I didn't use these either)
2 cups hot cooked rice or couscous

1. Thaw fish if frozen. Rinse fish; pat dry. Snap off and discard woody bases from asparagus. Cut asparagus in half; set aside.
2. In large skillet, combine 1 cup of broth, lemon peel and black pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Carefully add fish and asparagus. Cook, covered over medium-low heat for 4 minutes. Add sweet pepper strips. Cook, covered 2 minutes more or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Using slotted spatula, transfer fish and vegetables to a serving plate, reserving liquid in skillet. Keep fish and vegetables warm while preparing sauce.
3. For sauce, stir together remaining broth and cornstarch. Stir into liquid in skillet. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Stir in chives. Arrange fish and vegetables on couscous or rice; spoon sauce over top.
I did not prepare the fish like this. I made the sauce in a separate pan and browned the fish by itself, then served the sauce over it. Heidi took one bite and said "I like fish!"

To make the polenta, I just followed the instructions on the package. Crazy, right? It actually turned out really good. For the sauce, I used:

1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
About 1/2 can tomato paste
1 onion, chopped
2 or 3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
Oregano, basil, salt, pepper and parsley

I sauteed the onion, garlic and celery for a few minutes in coconut oil because it's awesome, then I added everything else, reduced the heat and let it simmer for many hours. I used a lot of oregano because I refuse to put sugar into my pasta sauce.



Here's the basic recipe for the Oven-Cooked Rice Pilaf:
1 1/2 cups boiling chicken broth
1 tblsp butter
3/4 cup uncooked long grain rice
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup sliced green onion
1/4 cup chopped carrot

In a 1-quart casserole combine boiling water and butter; stir until butter is melted. Stir in rice. Bake, covered in 350 degree oven about 35 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork before serving.

Of course, being who I am, I did not do this exact recipe. I did not use butter, but I sprinkled olive oil all over the rice mixture before I put it in. I used 1/2 cup barley, 1/2 lentils and 1 cup of a wild and brown rice mix instead of regular rice. I used about 4 3/4 cups of my own homemade vegetable broth and also threw in some garlic with the vegetables (and regular onion instead of green). I baked it for 40 minutes and then let it sit for another 5-10 until all the liquid was absorbed. In order to conserve dishes, I put my rice into my empty salad bowl, that still had some dressing in it, and boy was that tasty! Heidi ate most of her portion, then finished my portion and finally turned her sights on Piper's. And when I got seconds, she gobbled right on that too. I always say I don't necessarily care how she eats it, as long as she's eating, and that she did.

Finally, I made a really quick dinner tonight off the top of my head that may sound weird but was actually pretty good. Some people eat chili on baked potatoes, so why not have something similar over mashed potatoes?

I used:
1 can each black beans and kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 onion
3 cloves of garlic
2 carrots
2 cans of tomato sauce
1 tblsp tomato paste left over from pasta sauce the other day
(And I used some leftover broth to mash the potatoes with)

I sauteed the onion, garlic and carrot in coconut oil for a couple of minutes, then added both cans of beans, the two cans of tomato sauce and the tomato paste. I seasoned with salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder and cumin. Brought the mixture to a boil, reduced heat and let it simmer until I changed diapers.

I mashed the potatoes with however much butter was left in the end of a stick, a little bit of broth, salt and some cayenne. In a pinch, it worked.

Things I Always Keep On Hand

For those of you wondering how I generally manage to get by on around $300 per month for food, I decided to put together a list of what I always have in my house (food related) to better illustrate how I am able to accomplish this feat. Feel free to tell me what I'm missing!

Pantry

• Beans: I generally keep cans of black, kidney, and cannolini beans at all times, but I also use pinto beans on occasion. Lately I've been buying beans at Whole Foods because they are fairly cheap and contain the fewest ingredients of all brands of canned beans. If I'm running low, I allot myself $5 to stock up, but on most shopping trips, I will buy one or two cans anyway.
• Lentils: Currently I have some red lentils, regular brown ones (or whatever they are) and some French ones that I mixed in with the 'regular' ones at Whole Foods. Since I found out that lentils really make Piper's bowels move (and I know you wanted to know that), I've always kept them in the cupboard. 
• Rice: Right now, I have white, brown, arborio and two wild rice mixes in my cupboard. I'm trying to use less white rice and more brown so I've been buying it from the bulk bins at Whole Foods every time I go to fill up my rice container. If you read my previous post about Near East's Original Rice Pilaf, you have probably also gathered that I keep this in my house too. This is true, however, I will only buy it if it is around $2 or less. Thus, I do not always have it. But I find that keeping both the original and the Spanish rice varieties on hand can really help me in a pinch.
• Pasta: I love starch. I try to keep just about every type/shape of pasta in the house because I'm a fan of variety. My favorites are angel hair and orzo and I love ditalini for making pasta fagioli. I also try not to spend more than $1 on pasta, which presents a problem when looking for healthier varieties. Unfortunately, Steve generally refuses to eat any pasta that even resembles whole wheat or similar, so I am left with looking for those with the fewest ingredients. There is a store near me that carries Polish products and their imported pastas have 3 ingredients and cost only $.99. 
• Tomato Sauce: And by that I mean the 8 oz cans. The versatility of these wonderful cans of tomato goodness literally boggle my mind. I use them all the time and as an added bonus, they're cheap! I usually buy at least four when I go to the store, more if I'm running low. They're a great addition to soups, beans and can help turn plain ground beef into sloppy joes. 
• Diced Tomatoes (canned): For the same reason as the tomato sauce, I like to keep at least a few of these around because I never know when I might need them. Add a can to soups, sautes or whatever you fancy.
• Tomato Paste: It comes in handy more often than you'd think!
• Pasta Sauce: I have not perfected the act of making my own sauce and even if I had, I wouldn't have anywhere to store it. Thus, I always pick up two or three jars of various types of Classico sauce because they are one of the most inexpensive brands that does not include a lot of crap in their sauce. Also to note here is that I will not buy any product (specifically of the canned tomato variety) that adds sugar where it is not needed. Some of Classico's sauces do not have sugar, but some do so I only buy those that don't.   
• Broths: While I do like to make my own vegetable stock, I do not have the space to keep infinite amounts of it in my freezer (nor do I always have it on hand). Plus, sometimes you do need a chicken broth/stock or a beef one and I do not often have the chance to make those. Instead, when they're on sale, I buy the best broths/stocks I can so that I always have them in a pinch for whatever I might need. Granted, I do also use water to help my stock go a little further, but I think stock/broth generally gives a better flavor. 
• Baking Supplies: Since there are so many and they vary by household, I decided to lump them together rather than make this post twenty pages long. I usually try to keep two kinds of flour (regular and whole wheat), many different spices, extracts, sugars and baking powder, soda and shortening. 
• Quinoa: Recently I made some chocolate cupcakes with this fabulous grain and I think they were fantastic! I like to have this to put into soups, mostly, but I also mix it with lentils to make a protein powerhouse. I don't really use it that much in other respects, but I hope to start. 
• Bulgar Wheat: This is another ingredient I like to put into soups to thicken it up a bit and add some extra nutrients. Also something I don't do much with, but I like having it because I never know when I'll find a great new recipe to try.
• Barley: I still have more barley than I'll ever know what to do with, but that means I'm always prepared. One recipe in particular that I enjoy barley in is this one I posted not long ago for Chicken Pot Pie.
• Pancake Mix: Call me lazy, but I don't always get the chance to make pancakes from scratch. I actually did it once, but I find this mix to be infinitely easier and quicker, especially when I have two hungry children crying for pancakes. I've tried a couple different ones, but I think the one we liked the best was Arrowhead Mills' pancake mix (the site won't work right now, but I'm pretty sure it was the buckwheat one). Right now we're using Bob's Red Mill Pancake Mix (I think it's this one) and I just don't find it to be as good.
• Salsa: I never thought this would be a staple in my life, but it has become very important to me (sounds like I'm talking about my children!) I LOVE salsa on baked potatoes (sometimes with butter, sometimes without) and having it around means I can always whip up a nice black bean dish and some homemade tortillas and have a nice Mexican dinner. Mmm...is it dinner time yet?

Freezer

• Peas: I don't like peas, but both Heidi and Piper love them and eat them plain, even straight out of the fridge. I usually have two bags at any given time because in a pinch, I can boil them quickly and give them as a snack or a veggie addition to any meal.
• Green Beans: Green beans are one of my favorite vegetables and I like to throw them in wherever I can. Both girls also enjoy eating them plain so I will often combine them with the peas. At Wegmans, I can get large bags of both 'cut' and 'french style' for $.99 so I stock up on them whenever I have room in my freezer.
• Waffles: I know they're not the best food to eat, but I don't think they're the worst either. At Sam's Club, I can get a box of 60 Eggo waffles that lasts me a few weeks considering I eat a peanut butter and jelly waffle sandwich every day for breakfast. On occasion, I also give Heidi and now Piper a waffle for breakfast on days I don't feel like doing much.
• Tilapia: Another Sam's Club staple, I enjoy having their industrial size bag in my freezer for those days when I want a really easy, totally oven based meal. Tilapia is an extremely versatile fish because of its light flavor, so it can really go with just about any seasoning and side dishes.

Fridge

• Eggs: Now that Piper is over age 1, we go through four eggs every other day. Heidi has been eating two eggs (scrambled) for a long time and now Piper has joined her so in order to keep my shopping trips to a minimal, I often buy two dozen eggs at a time. Of course, I also use them for baking and other things, so it's probably time for us to consider owning some chickens.
• Butter (Salted and Unsalted): Eh, you know what this is for...artichoke sauce!
• Bragg's Liquid Aminos: Obviously I always have this. To read why, click here.
• Lemons: I tend to put lemon on almost every vegetable, along with Bragg's and onion powder. Besides that, it has a lot of other uses, even for cleaning. Plus it smells nice. 
• Yogurt: Heidi eats yogurt about every other day, but I stopped buying flavored yogurt several months ago. Instead, I buy plain organic yogurt and put honey and vanilla into it and she gobbles it down.
• Salad: Sometimes, there's nothing better than a nice fresh salad with some tasty dressing to please the palate. Lately I've taken to buying romaine hearts at Whole Foods because they are organic and only cost $2.49, which is really good compared to organic romaine at other stores. I also hit the organic field mix bin at Wegmans whenever it's around because I can usually get enough for two salads (for all four of us) for under $2, but it doesn't keep as well as the romaine. Of course in the summer time I grow my own so this is not necessary.

Counter


Since I do not have infinite pantry space, my counter picks up the slack. These are the items I just don't have room for anywhere else.

• Onions: I could not live without onions. I use them in practically every dish I make so not having them literally causes me to scratch my head wondering what I could possibly make. I usually buy another bag when I have one or two onions left because I am that anal. 
• Garlic: Much like onions, I try to use garlic all the time. It has many health benefits, plus everything tastes better with it anyway :)
• Potatoes: The potato is such a versatile vegetable, healthy and tasty it is another one of my absolute staples. When I'm all out of ideas, I make roasted potatoes as an easy side dish for dinner using olive oil and rosemary garlic seasoning. Mmmmm.
• Apples: I try to give Heidi and Piper fruit at every meal, or at least two out of three (and sometimes in between), and apples are a great option because they keep for a reasonably long time and can be used for so many things. I usually shred one apple into my muffin mixes, regardless of type, I bake them with cinnamon or I make 'apple snow' (plain shredded apple, sometimes topped with cinnamon, specifically for those who do not chew as well).
• Bananas: I keep meaning to keep track of how many pounds of bananas we go through in a month or in a week, but I always forget. Let's just say, it's a lot. There was a time when Heidi would eat two bananas a day, every day for a solid two or three months (she must have needed potassium!). Bananas are a great snack and an all around great fruit to have on hand because they help regulate blood sugar levels and also help you sleep. Plus they're cheap and it is not necessary to buy them organic, so I can get them just about anywhere. (Just a side note, Sam's Club specifically advertises their bananas as 'Free Trade,' but I have not seen many other places besides Whole Foods do the same.)
• Olive Oil: I use olive oil almost as much as I use onions and garlic, especially since I make my own salad dressing, which I will post about sooner or later. We buy two different types: the light olive oil for sauteing and salad dressings and the regular for just about anything else. 

I'm 99% sure that this includes everything, short of every random condiment I have in my fridge that you don't need to know about. As I said above, if there's something that you have that I don't, or you think would make my life easier, please share! I'm always looking for new, nutritious foods to feed my children. :)

I Haven't Done the Math Yet, But...

I think I spent LESS than $300 on food this past month!!

Yes, I know it was a short month. And yes, 3/4 of us were sick for a week(ish) and didn't eat many family meals. So, OK, it's really not that impressive, but at least it's more money for the future!

Budget

I just want to say that, for the month of January, I spent LESS than $400 on food for the ENTIRE MONTH!

I'm very proud to have accomplished this feat because it means I can put a little money away in our 'savings jar' and also have some money to spend already for next month, which is tomorrow. This makes me happy.