A number of people I know are completely flabbergasted when contemplating sticking to a budget while eating a primarily “paleo” diet. I’m hoping to shed a little light on that issue for those of you on the fence about eating healthfully in this manner – it *can* be done – and done well – without spending all the money. All it takes is a little planning. 

A little background: I live in Brooklyn, NY, and the grocery prices here are definitely not the same as what you will find in other areas of the country. If you live in say, Raleigh NC for example – you may very well be able to cut this grocery bill by a third, depending upon where you shop. For where I live, where I shop and what I buy, $100 a week is a doable budget without having to sacrifice the quality I want too much. My DH thinks $130 is probably more realistic with our morning smoothie supplies, but I want to shoot for $100. I aim to make 4-5 dinners for two and 5 lunches per week, plus two smoothies per day six days of the week with my budgetary allowance and update you all weekly on what’s going on. Let’s see if I can make it. 

Last Week (Week of May 26 – 30)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Road snacks on the drive back from vacation. Hopefully nothing too terrible.
• Reality – We did pretty well here. I had unsalted mixed nuts and some fairly healthy jerky to snack on, and the choices we got from gas stations and travel plazas along the way were actually not that bad – a cheese cube & cured meat cup for the hubbs and fresh cut fruit for me. Go, good gas stations.

Tuesday

• The Plan – ?????
• Reality – We stopped for a bite on the way to grocery shopping.

Wednesday

• The Plan – Something from the grocery store – menu planning on the fly
• Reality – I picked up some pre-marinated adobo chicken from Trader Joe’s and broccolini. Dinner was decent.

Thursday

• The Plan – Something from the grocery store – menu planning on the fly
• Reality – I picked up pork chops, leeks and peas and made a nice little simple dinner with them.

Friday

• The Plan – Something from the grocery store – menu planning on the fly
• Reality – I bought my favorite standby – burgers and sweet potato fries – but we ended up going out before grocery shopping for next week.

Lunches

• The Plan – Something from the grocery store – menu planning on the fly
• Reality – I grabbed my favorite Cruciferous Crunch mix from TJ’s, plus pre-cooked chicken and strawberries and had variations of that all week. Yum.

Extras

• The Plan – Strawberries
• Reality – My nightly snack was balsamic and black pepper strawberries a few nights and man, were they good.

This Week: June 2 – 6

Whoo hoo – we get a “normal” week again. Back to the big meat for 3 nights + 2 extra nights formula.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: “Noodle” salad with caramelized chicken and chili oil
• Tuesday: Shredded beef with some sort of side
• Wednesday: Shredded beef with some sort of side
• Thursday: Shredded beef with some sort of side
• Friday: Picadillo with Spanish yellow butternut squash or cauli rice
• Lunch: Apple dill chicken salad
• Extras: None planned

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

Grocery Store Key: TJ = Trader Joe’s, WF = Whole Foods, O = Optional if budget allows

This week, I have my full budget for groceries.

Shopping List

2 bags kale – $5 est – ($2.29 x 2 @ TJ)
1 bag spinach – $2 est – ($1.99 @ TJ)
Cilantro – $2 est – ($1.79 @ TJ)
Scallions – $1 est – ($1.29 @ TJ)
Celery – $2 est – Did not buy. I remembered having extras at the house.
Cucumber – $1 est – ($2.49 @ TJ)
Zucchini or other noodle – $2 est  – (subbed for broccoli slaw: $1.99 @ TJ)
Butternut Squash or Cauliflower – $3 est – (butternut squash: $2.29 @ TJ)
3 sides – $9 est  – (Side 1: Artichokes $2.99 @ TJ), (Side 2: Sugar snap peas $2.99 @ TJ), (Side 3: Cauliflower mash $2.49 @ TJ)
5 apples – $4 est – (2 lb. bag: $2.99 @ TJ)
Apple – $1 est – (I swear I bought this, but I’m not seeing it on the receipt)
5 limes – $3 est – The great lime shortage of ’14 has hit Trader Joe’s. Not a lime in sight this week.
Onions (2) – $2 est – ($1.58 @ TJ)
Red pepper – $1 est – ($1.19 @ TJ)
Ginger – $2 est – ($1.39 @ TJ)
3 avocados – $3 est – ($4.47 @ TJ)
Green olives – $2 est – ($2.29 @ TJ)
1 coconut water – $4 est – ($3.69 @ TJ)
Coconut Milk – $1 est – ($0.99 @ TJ)
Tomato Paste – $1 est – ($0.89 @ TJ)
2 cans diced tomatoes – $2 est – ($1.69 x2 @ TJ)
Capers – $2 est – ($2.69 @ TJ)
Chicken  – $7 est – ($4.89 @ WF)
Big Chuck Roast – $30 est – ($21.31 @ WF)
Ground Meat – $7 est – (ground pork: $7.99 @ WF)
Coffee – $10 est – ($5.38 @ WF)

$99 estimated total (minus coffee)

Extras: I had hoped for some fruit, but nothing was looking great this week. Bummer.

Total TJ: $50.44
Total WF: $39.57

Total For The Week: $90.01; $9.99 under budget. Whoo hoo! I ended up having enough in the budget to buy my coffee, plus kick a little toward my hubby’s beer allowance for the week. Score.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, celery for the smoothies. 

A number of people I know are completely flabbergasted when contemplating sticking to a budget while eating a primarily “paleo” diet. I’m hoping to shed a little light on that issue for those of you on the fence about eating healthfully in this manner – it *can* be done – and done well – without spending all the money. All it takes is a little planning. 

A little background: I live in Brooklyn, NY, and the grocery prices here are definitely not the same as what you will find in other areas of the country. If you live in say, Raleigh NC for example – you may very well be able to cut this grocery bill by a third, depending upon where you shop. For where I live, where I shop and what I buy, $100 a week is a doable budget without having to sacrifice the quality I want too much. My DH thinks $130 is probably more realistic with our morning smoothie supplies, but I want to shoot for $100. I aim to make 4-5 dinners for two and 5 lunches per week, plus two smoothies per day six days of the week with my budgetary allowance and update you all weekly on what’s going on. Let’s see if I can make it. 

Last Week (Week of May 19 – 23)

The Plan vs. Reality

This week we were on vacation. We brought our Vitamix with every intention of making breakfast smoothies … and then didn’t make it to the grocery store. So, that didn’t happen and our amount spent on actual groceries was $0.

This Week: May 26 – 30

After coming back from vacation, orderly and budget-regimented grocery shopping was the last thing on our minds. I didn’t plan a menu for this week and we spent under our budgeted allowance. How much under, I can’t remember.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Road junk driving back from vacation
• Tuesday: Ate out before grocery shopping
• Wednesday: Adobo chicken with broccolini
• Thursday: Pork chops with peas and leeks
• Friday: Burgers with sweet potato fries
• Lunch: Cruciferous crunch and chicken
• Extras: Strawberries

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

Grocery Store Key: TJ = Trader Joe’s, WF = Whole Foods, O = Optional if budget allows

We’ll see this feature again next week.

Shopping List – 1 week of smoothies

No real grocery store plan for this week. I picked up smoothie supplies and staples for quick and easy meals.

I spent under my budget allotment, but no idea how far under since I forgot to save the receipt.