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 12 – 16)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Some sort of big pork with Broccolini and a strawberry/mint/shallot/tomato salsa
• Reality – The pork happened (slow cooked with a simple spice blend and pulled). The broccolini was good; I forgot about the salsa.

Tuesday

• The Plan – Big pork leftovers with green beans
• Reality – Bumped. My DH’s cousin came into town and we played tour guides – and then ate out.

Wednesday

• The Plan – Vietnamese pork with pico de daikon and sriracha over broccoli slaw
• Reality – Yummy.

Thursday

• The Plan – Vietnamese fish tacos with napa cabbage wrappers & some sort of side
• Reality – Not tacos, but yummy. Served with green beans.

Friday

• The Plan – Butter chicken with paleo naan or cauli rice
• Reality – Despite not reading the recipe carefully enough to have all the needed ingredients, the dish turned out well. I opted for the cauli rice.

Lunches

• The Plan – I grabbed some Cruciferous Crunch from Trader Joe’s and I hope to have leftover pork
• Reality – I made the strawberry salsa I had intended for dinner during lunch and had that a couple days with pork & salad (magnificent). The other days were filled with more pork and fish leftovers.

Extras

• The Plan – None planned here
• Reality – And nothing extra accomplished. Canning season where for art thou?

 

This Week: May 19-23

We are leaving for vacation on Tuesday. The plan for Monday night is to scrounge leftovers before heading out. And I hope to stock up on road snacks sometime this weekend so I don’t end up eating utter garbage on the 9-hour drive ahead of us.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Leftovers that may or may not go together well
• Tuesday: Road junk
• Wednesday: Vacation Food – hopefully something not too unhealthy
• Thursday: Vacation Food – hopefully something not too unhealthy
• Friday: Vacation Food – hopefully something not too unhealthy
• Lunch: Vacation Food – hopefully something not too unhealthy
• Extras: None planned because I’m slacking – normally, I’d have a laundry list of travel snacks I need to make.

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. We will, however, be shopping for smoothie supplies while on vacation.

Shopping List – 1 week of smoothies

1 bag spinach – $2 est
2 bags kale – $5 est
Celery – $3 est
Cilantro – $2 est
5 apples – $4 est
5 Limes – $4 est
3 avocados – $4 est
Ginger – $2 est
Coconut water – $4 est
Orange juice – $4 est

It is estimated that we will spend $34 on smoothie supplies this next week (probably a little less, because we will only need to make 3 days of smoothies – Wednesday, Thursday and Friday).

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 5-9)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Chicken in coconut milk with lemongrass and some sort of side
• Reality – Tasty. I made with carrots and bok choy and it was a light and satisfying meal.

Tuesday

• The Plan – “Rogan Josh” with cauliflower rice & paleo naan
• Reality – I ended up grabbing beef and being too lazy to either rice the cauliflower or make naan – dinner was great despite the laziness.

Wednesday

• The Plan – Leftover chicken in some sort of green curry sauce with broccoli and peppers
• Reality – This ended up being pretty good.

Thursday

• The Plan – Larb spiced ground pork with roasted carrot matchsticks
• Reality – Yum.

Friday

• The Plan – Sausages or burgers with sweet potato fries
• Reality – Had errands to run and ended up eating out.

Lunches

• The Plan – Grab something I can make while I wait for leftovers to make themselves available
• Reality – I impulse bought broccoli slaw, cherry tomatoes and pre-cooked chicken breast and had tasty salads 3 days this week. The other 2 days were luckily filled with leftovers.

Extras

• The Plan – Bacon Maple Sandwiches
• Reality – I finally made these this week – and they were magnificent.

 

This Week: May 12-16

This is the last full week before we leave for vacation and we have a bunch of things we need to take care of. We shall see if the plan gets made.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Big pork with some sort of side and a strawberry/mint/shallot/tomato salsa
• Tuesday: Butter chicken with naan or cauli rice
• Wednesday: Leftover pork with somehting
• Thursday: Vietnamese Cha Ca Fish Tacos with napa cabbage wrappers and some sort of side
• Friday: Thit Nuong Tacos with pico de diakon and sriracha over broccoli slaw
• Lunch: Nothing planned – hoping for leftovers
• 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 an extra $10 in rollover money from last week, whoo hoo!

Shopping List

1 bag spinach – $2 est ($1.99 @ TJs)
2 bags kale – $5 est ($2.29 x 2 @ TJs)

Side for pork – $3 est  (broccolini – $2.79 @ TJs)
Side for fish tacos – $3 est  (haricots verts – $2.69 @ TJs)
Napa cabbage – $2 est ($2.95 @ WF)
Broccoli slaw – $2 est  ($1.99 @ TJs)
Cauliflower – $3 est  ($2.49 @ TJs)
Daikon – $3 est  (regular radishes – $1.49 @ WF)
Celery – $3 est  ($1.79 @ TJs)

Cilantro – $2 est  ($1.79 @ TJs)
Mint – $2 est  ($1.69 @ TJs)
Dill – $2 est  ($1.69 @ TJs)

Fruit for me – $3 est  (1 lb. strawberries – $2.49 @ TJs)
6 apples – $4 est  ($4.14 @ TJs)
Lemons – $2 est – Did not get
6+ Limes – $4 est  (1 lb. – $2.79 @ TJs)
Orange – $1 est  ($0.89 @ TJs)

Onion – $1 est  ($1.09 @ TJs)
Jalapeño – $1 est  (8 ounces – $1.69 @ TJs)
Chiles – $2 est – Did not get
3 avocados – $4 est  ($4.47 @ TJs)
Ginger – $2 est ($1.39 @ TJs)
Tomatoes – $3 est  ($3.49 @ TJs)
Shallot – $1 est ($0.99 x 2 @ TJs)

Pork – $30 est ($20.88 @ WF)
Chicken – $7 est ($5.84 @ WF)

Coconut water – $4 est  ($3.69 @ TJs)
Butter – $4 est  ($3.19 @ TJs)
Coffee milk – $3 est – Did not get
(2) Coconut milk – $2 est  ($0.99 x 2 @ TJs)
Hoisin – $4 est – O – Did not get
Msg – $2 est – O – Did not get
Fenugreek – $2 est – O – Did not get
Tomato paste – $1 est  ($0.89 @ TJs)
Snacks for the DH – $7 est  ($7.49 @ TJs)
Coffee – $13 est – ($10.99 @ WF)

$119 estimated without the coffee and snacks, $111 without the Optional items

Extras: Cruciferous Crunch salad mix for my lunches – $2.29 @ TJs.

Total TJ: $67.44
Total WF: $31.16

Total For The Week: $98.60; $1.40 under budget. Yes! And with the extra cash, I grabbed my Gorilla coffee for $10.99. *insert happy dance here*

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, fish a friend brought us.

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 April 28-May 2)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – A burger or sausages with some sort of side sweet potato fries
• Reality – Bacon burgers with sweet potato fries

Tuesday

• The Plan – Spinach, parmesan & prosciutto stuffed pork loin with some sort of side roasted parsnips
• Reality – Yum.

Wednesday

• The Plan – Leftover pork repurposed into a stir-fry with peppers, celery and broccoli
• Reality – I wasn’t feeling the saltiness required for a stir-fry, so I went with plain boiled and buttered broccoli. Yum.

Thursday

• The Plan – Marinated London broil with some sort of side broccolini
• Reality – Another win – and a super easy no cleanup 1 cookie sheet under the broil type of meal.

Friday

• The Plan – Carrot Ginger Lime Pasta with Crispy Ground Poultry (from last week)
• Reality – This didn’t happen again this week and I think I’m giving up for now. Went grocery shopping again this Friday.

Lunches

• The Plan – I gave up on the egg foo youngs ever happening
• Reality – I had the last of the leftover ham from Easter + whatever else I could cobble together for my lunches

Extras

• The Plan – Bacon Maple Sandwiches
• Reality – I forgot that Mudderella isn’t for another week – luckily, I bought really green bananas and they are still acceptably ripe going into this week. I need to make the pancake portion of the recipe soon, though, or they won’t be.

This Week: May 5-9 

I had every intention of visiting my favorite butcher again this week, but they happened to not be open yet when we walked past, and we needed to go to Whole Foods anyways. Luckily Whole Foods had what we needed and we were doing well enough on budget to be able to get what we wanted to get.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Something Rogan Josh with cauliflower rice and paleo naan
• Tuesday: Chicken in coconut milk with lemongrass and some sort of side
• Wednesday: Leftovers from the chicken in green curry with broccoli and peppers
• Thursday: Larb spiced ground poultry with some sort of carroty something
• Friday: Sausages or burgers with sweet potato fries
• Lunch: Nothing planned – hoping for leftovers, though I really need to find some wiggle in the budget to grab some protein
• Extras: Bacon maple sandwiches for Saturday’s breakfast

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

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

This week, I have $100 to spend for my weekly groceries, and I hope to stick to it.

Shopping List

Ghee – $5 est – ($3.29 @ TJs)
Eggs – $3 est – ($2.99 @ TJs)
4 cans coconut milk – $4 est – ($0.99 x 3 @ TJs)
Lemon – $3 est – (3 – $1.47 @ TJs)
Lemongrass – $2 est  – ($2.80 @ WF)
Greens (2 c) – $2.50 est – did not get – using frozen spinach instead
Cauliflower – $3 est – ($2.49 @ TJs)
Parsnips or something else to serve with chicken – $3 set – (bok choy – $2.29 @ TJs)
Sweet potatoes – $2 est – ($0.98 @ TJs)
Green curry – $4 set – ($3.79 @ WF)
Broccoli – $3 est – ($1.99 @ TJs)
Pepper – $1 est – ($0.99 @ TJs)
Sriracha – $3 est – ($2.99 @ TJs)
Limes – $3 est – bought a few extra with the smoothies bunch

2 bags kale – $5 est – ($2.29 x 2 @ TJs)
1 bag spinach – $2 est – ($1.99 @ TJs)
3 avocados – $4 est – ($4.47 @ TJs)
5 apples – $5 est – ($3.45 @ TJs)
5 limes – $4 est – (1 lb bag – $2.79 @ TJs)
Cilantro – $2 est – ($1.79 @ TJs)
Ginger – $2 est – ($1.39 @ TJs)
Orange juice – $4 est – ($2.99 @ TJs)
Celery – $3 est – I thought we bought this, but it didn’t show up on the receipts…

Extras: roast chicken for my lunches  – ($6.99 @ TJs), broccoli slaw for my lunches  – ($1.99 @ TJs), scallions  – ($1.29 @ TJs), impulse buy of a pint of cherry tomatoes because they were grown on the roof of the building and that is just freaking awesome – ($5.49 @ WF)

Butcher’s List

1 chicken (2 meals) – $15 est – ($7.27 @ WF)
1 lb. stew beef – $9 set – ($8.95 @ WF)
Ground pork – $6.50 — Use leftover poultry instead
Meat – $9.50 or less – beef & bacon burgers, or sausages – (Bacon cheddar burgers – $4.17 @ WF)

Total TJ: $56.17
Total WF: $34.48

Total For The Week: $90.65; $9.35 under budget. I thought for sure I’d be over this week, with all the little extras I bought.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, Monday’s dinner.

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 April 21-25)

The Plan vs. Reality

Sunday

• The Plan – Easter Dinner – Ham, peas and lemony thyme smashed fingerlings
• Reality – A holiday meal that was economical, quick to prepare, and filled with good taste.

Monday

• The Plan – Vaguely Mexican chuck roast over broccoli – a sort of Mexi-bowl affair
• Reality – Delicious. The meat turned out really well, and the dinner was quick to throw together.

Tuesday

• The Plan – Leftover chuck with sweet potato/onion/green pepper hash and fried eggs
• Reality – Hash is one of my favorite foods – this one was no exception.

Wednesday

• The Plan – Banh Mi pork with brussels
• Reality – Really, really tasty dinner – recipe coming soon!

Thursday

• The Plan – Leftover chuck in a Shepherd’s pie
• Reality – Another win, though my mashed cauliflower topper sank

Friday

• The Plan – Carrot ginger lime pasta with crispy ground poultry
• Reality – We walked to the butcher and grabbed dinner while out instead

Lunches

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Still didn’t happen for me. Leftovers. I think I’m giving up.
• The Plan – Leftovers
• Reality – I had enough left over to scrape together lunch every day.

Extras

• The Plan – Nothing planned here.
• Reality – And nothing accomplished.

This Week: April 28-May 2 

It’s another ‘source what you can as best you can’ week – and I don’t have any freezer meat to fall back on. While on my favorite butcher’s website trying to scope the price of their fantastic sausages, I stumbled upon a great ‘how to plan budget meals using our meat’ feature – it gave me tons of ideas on how to shop there for $50 or under a week (something I thought was impossible), and I’m happy to be giving it a go with this week’s budget.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Carrot ginger lime pasta with crispy ground poultry – carried over from last week
• Tuesday: Spinach, parmesan & prosciutto stuffed pork loin with ???
• Wednesday: Leftover pork loin stir fry with celery & broccoli
• Thursday: London broil with ???
• Friday: Sausages or burgers with sweet potato fries
• Lunch: Nothing planned – hoping for leftovers
• Extras: Bacon maple sandwiches for Saturday’s breakfast

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

Grocery Store Key: TJ = Trader Joe’s, F= Butcher, KF = Key Food, O = Optional if budget allows

This week, I have $100 to spend for my weekly groceries, and I hope to stick to it.

Shopping List

TJs
Coconut milk (2) – $2 est ($0.99 x 2 @ TJs)
Snacks – $15 est – O – (Almonds – $5.99 @ TJs)
Garlic – $1 est – ($1.24 @ KF)
SIDE – $3 est – (Broccolini – $2.99 @ KF)
SIDE – $3 est – (Parsnips – $2.31 @ KF)
SIDE – $3 est – (Sweet potatoes $2.00 @ KF)
SIDE – $3 est – (Broccoli slaw – $2.99 @ KF)
Broccoli – $3 est – ($3.16 @ KF)
Pepper – $1 est – ($1.21 @ KF)
Onion – $1 est – Don’t need afterall
Frozen spinach – $1 est – ($1.00 @ KF)
Parmesan – $6 est – O – ($3.50 @ KF)
Prosciutto – $4 est – ($3.99 @ KF)
bacon – $4 est – O – ($4.99 @ TJs)
banana – $1 est – ($0.82 @ KF)
eggs – $3 est – Decided not to get

Grocery estimate TJs: $60

2 bags kale – $5 est – ($2.29 x 2 @ TJs)
1 bag spinach – $2 est – ($1.99 @ TJs)
1 coconut water – $4 est – ($3.69 @ TJs)
Celery – $2 est – ($2.99 @ KF)
5 apples – $4 est – ($3.45 @ TJs)
Ginger – $2 est – ($1.40 @ KF)
Cilantro – $2 est – ($0.79 @ KF)
2 avocados – $3 est – ($2.98 @ TJs)

Smoothie estimate TJs: $18

Fleisher’s
Pork sirloin roast 2 lb. (18) – 2 nights 
London broil 1 lb. (10) – 1 night
Sausages 1 lb. (11) – switch to ground beef if needed & buy from TJs (7)

Total Fleisher’s: $40 est

After Friday’s Shopping
Spent $44.38 at Fleisher’s; $9.89 of that should be taken out of the entertainment budget
Spent $45.53 at Key Foods; $11.99 of that should be taken out of the entertainment budget
$68.03 spent out of the grocery budget in total, leaving $31.07 left to shop @TJs.

$25 estimated cost for groceries (this total doesn’t take snacks into consideration)

I also want coffee – $15 est – Not enough in budget for coffee this week

Estimated total: $118 before coffee — $89 if I cut the optionals and switch to TJs ground beef for burgers 

I also bought some strawberries at Key Food for $2 on impulse.

Total TJ: $29.65
Total KF: $33.54
Total F: $34.49

Total For The Week: $97.68; $2.32 under budget. This was another week I thought managing to get everything I needed was going to be impossible. But, with proper planning, it wasn’t. I bought my coffee out of another budget, picked up everything I needed for dinners this week, and even gave in to my fruit craving and bought some strawberries. I *did* forget to pick up limes – I forgot to even add them to the list this week – and our smoothies will suffer for it.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, Monday’s dinner.

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 April 14-18)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Lemon thyme chicken thighs with Spanish asparagus
• Reality – Boneless, skinless breasts were what was available – so those got the lemon thyme treatment; and capers were out of the budget, so I broiled the asparagus with some lemon and shallot and served a fresh tomato salad

Tuesday

• The Plan – Carolina rub pulled pork with Korean bbq sauced broiled green beans and onions
• Reality – The pork was fantastic, as were the green beans – I forgot the onions

Wednesday

• The Plan – Indian spiced meatballs with smashed sweet potatoes
• Reality – Really successful. You’ll see the recipe for the balls here soon.

Thursday

• The Plan – Carolina rub pulled pork tacos with spice-crusted carrots & harissa crema
• Reality – Pretty successful. I made my favorite taco wrappers with the Paleo Magic Wonder Dough and the carrots were tasty. The crema wasn’t really a crema – more like a thin sauce – but it was good.

Friday

• The Plan – The last of the Carolina rub pulled pork with spicy broccoli slaw and vinegar sauce
• Reality – Broccoli was not to be had this week, so I picked up shredded brussels sprouts. None of that ended up mattering, since we decided to go grocery shopping early and ate while we were out.

Lunches

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Still didn’t happen for me. Leftovers.
• The Plan – Leftovers
• Reality – The balance of this week’s lunches incorporated a hodge-podge of leftovers combined in .. interesting ways. I planned poorly again this week on the protein front, and ended up scrounging lots of hard boiled eggs.

Extras

• The Plan – Nothing planned here.
• Reality – And nothing accomplished.

This Week: April 21-25 

It’s another ‘source what you can as best you can’ week – and I don’t have any freezer meat to fall back on. I bought most of Easter dinner last week, and I’ll be buying the meat for it with this week’s budget. Hopefully.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Holiday Dinner: A small amount of lamb with an herbed crust, lemony thymey smashed fingerling potatoes, peas, some version of a wine sauce, maybe rolls for the hubbs
• Monday: Shredded chuck tacos with roasted broccoli
• Tuesday: Leftover beef hash with eggs
• Wednesday: Leftover beef “shepherd’s pie”
• Thursday: Carrot ginger lime pasta with crispy ground poultry nuggets
• Friday: Banh mi pork with some sort of side
• Lunch: Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches) – hey, maybe it will happen this week
• Lunch: Ham and cabbage steaks

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

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

This week, I have $100 to spend for my weekly groceries, and dammit, I’m sticking to it.

Shopping List

Rolls – $2 est – ($1.69 @ TJ)

Lamb for Easter – $16 est – (ended up with ham instead – $14.14 @ WF)
Chuck roast – $30 est – ($21.25 @ WF)
ground poultry – $7 est – ($3.99 @ TJ)
ground pork – $7 est – ($6.85 @ WF)
Ham – $5 est – will use some from Easter dinner
Eggs – $3 est – ($2.99 @ TJ)

Onion (3) – $3 est – ($2.37 @ TJ)
Sweet potato – $1 est – ($0.98 @ TJ)
Pepper – $1 est – didn’t end up needing
Guacamole or avocado – $2 est – did not get
Ginger – $1.50 est – ($1.39 @ TJ)
Limes – $3 est – ($2.79 @ TJ)
3 avocados – $4 est – ($4.17 @ TJ)

Root veg or cauliflower – $3 est – ($2.49 @ TJ)
3 bags carrots – $3 est – ($2.67 @ TJ)
Peas – $3.50 est – didn’t end up needing
Cabbage – $3 est – ($1.69 @ TJ)
Radish – $2 est – ($1.49 @ WF)
Cucumber – $1 est – ($0.69 @ TJ)
Lettuce or other wrap – $1.50 set – O – did not get
Side dish for banh mi – $3 est – didn’t end up needing
1 bag kale – $2.50 est – ($2.29 @ TJ)
1 bag spinach – $2 est – ($1.99 @ TJ)
Cilantro – $2 est – ($1.99 @ WF)

1 coconut water – $4 est – ($3.69 @ TJ)
Olive oil – $5 est – O – ($6.99 @ TJ)

Estimated expenditure: $120 – cut olive oil ($5), cabbage ($3), and see what I can do about the rest — this week’s grocery shopping looks like it’s going to be challenging.  

Last-minute extras: Dark chocolate peanut butter cups ($0.99) and 1 apple ($0.69) at Trader Joe’s + gouda for the hubbs to snack on ($4.32) and dinner for the evening ($13.33) at Whole Foods.

Total TJ: $44.64
Total WF: $64.10

Total For The Week: $100; dead on budget. On paper, this week looked impossible. I had $120 in estimated cost, and not a lot of wiggle room for making things less expensive. But, I switched some things around, ran up on a little luck, and managed to fit everything I needed – plus a few extras. And I even ended up having enough left over to cover most of dinner for Saturday night. The balance was rolled into our weekly entertainment budget.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, broccoli, brussels sprouts, pepper, peas.

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 April 7-11)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Some sort of big meat with a puree
• Reality – Pork shoulder was the most economical big meat at Whole Foods this week, so I went with carnitas and served with a chili powder mashed sweet potato. Yum

Tuesday

• The Plan – Big meat pizzas? tacos? with something
• Reality – I made carnitas tacos with my favorite paleo dough and served with some really simple sauteed green beans

Wednesday

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s smashed steak skewers with cherry bbq sauce
• Reality – Y-U-M. I didn’t do skewers, but this sauce is frickin delicious. I served with the brussels sprouts leftover from last week cooked in a little bacon fat

Thursday

• The Plan – Harissa cauliflower rice with lemon-roasted fennel and chicken
• Reality – This turned out pretty well. It looked dreadful, but was tasty

Friday

• The Plan – The last of the big meat with broccoli in some sort of bowl
• Reality – We went out to eat again – the weather was beautiful and a walk was needed

Lunches

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Still didn’t happen for me. Leftovers.
• The Plan – Some sort of salady thing with the cruciferous crunch mix I bought and the last of the rotisserie chicken
• Reality – Yum! The cruciferous crunch only stretched 2 days, as did the chicken
• The Plan – Leftovers
• Reality – The balance of this week’s lunches incorporated a hodge-podge of leftovers combined in .. interesting ways. I also had to break into the very last of my freezered Momofuku pork because I planned poorly and didn’t have enough protein to go around.

Extras

• The Plan – Nothing planned here.
• Reality – And nothing accomplished.

This Week: April 14-18  

It’s another ‘source what you can as best you can’ week – luckily, I freezered half the pork I bought last week, so I have that to use. This weekend is Easter – let’s see if I can manage to squeeze some sort of lamb into the budget for this week.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Carolina rub pulled pork with spicy broccoli slaw
• Tuesday: Carolina rub pulled pork with Korean bbq sauced green beans and onions
• Wednesday: Carolina rub pulled pork tacos with spice-crusted carrots and harissa crema
• Thursday: Lemon thyme chicken thighs with spanish asparagus
• Friday: Indian spiced meatballs with smashed sweet potatoes
• Lunch: Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches) – hey, maybe it will happen this week
• Lunch: Leftovers
• Holiday Dinner: A small amount of lamb rack with an herbed crust, lemony thymey smashed fingerling potatoes, peas or green beans, some version of a wine sauce, maybe rolls for the hubbs

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

Grocery Store Key: TJ = Trader Joe’s, KF = Key Food, O = Optional if budget allows

This week, I have $100 to spend for my weekly groceries, and dammit, I’m sticking to it.

Shopping List

A roll? – $2 est – Did not get

Kale (2 bags) – $5 est – ($2.29 x 2 @ TJ)
Spinach (1 bag) – $3 est – ($1.99 @ TJ)
Broccoli slaw – $3 est – (No broccoli slaw; I got brussels sprouts instead – $2.79 @ TJ)

Green beans – $3 est – ($2.69 @ TJ)
Carrots – $1 est – ($0.89 @ TJ)
Asparagus – $3 est – ($2.99 @ TJ)
Peas or green beans – $3 est – ($3.49 @ TJ)
Celery – $2 est – ($2.29 @ TJ)
Thyme – $2 est – ($1.69 @ TJ)
Cilantro – $2 est – Did not get – turns out, I had enough
Parsley – $2 est – ($1.79 @ TJ)

Lemons (4) – $3 est – (1 lb. bag – $1.49 @ TJ)
5 Limes – $3 est – (1 lb. bag – $2.79 @ TJ)
5 apples – $4 est – (5 lb. bag $4.49 @ TJ)
Tomatoes (3 plum) – $3 est – (1 lb. kumato browns – $3.49 @ TJ)
Onion – $1 est – ($0.89 @ TJ)
Sweet potatoes – $2 est – (2 for $0.98 @ TJ)
Fingerling potatoes – $2 est – (1 lb. bag teeny tiny potatoes – $2.29 @ TJ)
2 avocados – $3 est – ($1.39 each – $2.78 @ TJ)
Some color of pepper – $1 est – ($0.79 @ TJ)
Ginger – $2 est – ($1.39 @ TJ)

Chicken – $7 est – (1 lb. boneless skinless ‘happy chicken’ breasts – $7.64 @ KF)
Ground meat – $7 est – (1 lb. grass fed beef $6.99 @ TJ)
Lamb – $13 est – Did not buy

Coconut water – $3 est – ($3.69 @ TJ)

Butter – $3 est – (Kerrygold – $3.19 @ TJ)
Eggs – $5 est – ($2.99 @ TJ)

Pepper – $2 est – ($1.99 @ TJ)
Coconut milk (2 cans) – $3 est – ($0.99 x 2 @ TJ)
Olive oil – $5 est  – O – Did not get
Coffee – $10 est – O – Purchased through another budget slot
Capers – $3 est – O – Did not get

Almonds – $6 est – ($5.99 @ TJ)

$113 estimated total with optionals purchased; $95 with no optionals

The DH had also asked for pistachios to snack on – I didn’t think they’d fit into the budget, so I didn’t put them on the list. I ended up having room for them  – ($7.49 @ TJ)

I also grabbed some ground grass fed beef and sweet potatoes for Sunday dinner while at Key Foods. This usually comes out of another budget slot, but this time I had room in the grocery budget – (1 lb. grass fed ground beef $8.99 @ KF) +  (2 yams $1.73 @ KF)

Total TJ: $80.88
Total KF: $18.36

Total For The Week: $99.24; $0.76 under budget. I got some things for the upcoming holiday dinner – and will pick the meat and rolls up next weekend. I forgot that Easter is still a week away. Excited that I stuck on budget this week.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, pork shoulder.

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 March 31 – April 4)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Cauliflower risotto with chicken and leeks
• Reality – Yum.

Tuesday

• The Plan – Minute steaks with asparagus and herbed aioli
• Reality – The steaks were gross and dry, but we choked them down. The asparagus and aioli were a hit.

Wednesday

• The Plan – Meatloaf muffins with cauliflower mash
• Reality – Y-U-M

Thursday

• The Plan – Tuna meatballs with tomato sauce and zoodles
• Reality – Y-U-M

Friday

• The Plan – The last of the minute steaks with brussels sprouts
• Reality – Life happened and we ended up eating out tonight

Lunches

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Still didn’t happen for me. Leftovers.
• The Plan – Some sort of salady thing with the cruciferous crunch mix I bought
• Reality – Yum! The cruciferous crunch only stretched 2 days – and I had it with some rotisserie chicken left over from the weekend
• The Plan – Leftovers
• Reality – Leftovers happened this week. Yum.

Extras

• The Plan – Coconut lime chia seed puddings for snacks.
• Reality – Yick. My pudding didn’t set up as well as I wanted and the flavors were off. Disappointment.

This Week: April 7 – 11 

This week, I’m completely out of meat from my last big order, so I will be sourcing where I can and of the quality available. We are also throwing a gaming get-together in celebration of International Tabletop Day, so I expect to go over on the budget this week.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Big Meat – carnitas or shredded beef over some sort of puree
• Tuesday: Leftover big meat with some sort of side
• Wednesday: Nom Nom Paleo’s smashed steak with cherry bbq sauce & some sort of side
• Thursday: Harissa cauliflower rice with lemon-roasted chicken and fennel
• Friday: The last of the big meat on a pizza
• Lunch: Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches) – hey, maybe it will happen this week
• Lunch: Leftovers
• For The Party: Zucchini hummus, red pepper dip, Magic Wonder Dough crackers, bacon jalapeno burger balls, sammitches, flourless almond cake and chocolate whiskey pot de cremes

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

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

This week, I have $100 to spend for my weekly groceries, but I know I’ll be going over that budget for the party.

Shopping List

Hawaiian rolls – $4 est ($1.99 @ TJ)

2 bags kale – $5 est ($4.58 @ TJ)
1 bag spinach – $2.50 est ($1.99 @ TJ)
Some sort of good side – broccoli? – $3 est ($2.79 @ TJ)
Fennel – $3 est ($2.49 @ TJ)
Cilantro – $2 est ($1.79 @ TJ)
Dill – $3 est ($1.69 @ TJ)
Scallions – $2 est ($1.29 @ TJ)
Zucchini – $3 est ($2.29 @ TJ)
Side dish – something to go with steak skewers – brussels? something else? – $3 est (haricots verts $2.69 @ TJ)
Something to puree – root veg – $3 est (sweet potatoes $0.98 for 2 @ TJ)
Tomato – $1 est ($2.23 @ WF)
Lemons – 4 or so – $4 est ($1.49 for a 1 lb. bag @ TJ)
4 apples – $5 est ($3.45 @ TJ)
5 limes – $3 est ($2.79 for a 1 lb. bag @ TJ)
Onion – $1 est ($0.89 @ TJ)
Shallot – $1 est ($0.99 @ TJ)
Garlic – $1 est ($1.29 @ TJ)
2 avocados – $3 est ($2.78 @ TJ)
Ginger – $2 est Did Not Buy

Ham – $4 est ($3.99 @ TJ)
Ground beef – $6 est ($6.99 @ TJ)
Big Meat (pork shoulder, chuck roast, flank steak – whatever is big and looks good) – $40 est ($26.02 @ WF)
Flank Steak – $8 est ($22.76 @ WF)
Chicken – $6 est ($7.06 @ WF)

1 c. extra sharp cheddar – $5 est ($3.35 @ TJ)
Swiss cheese – $4 est ($3.99 @ TJ)

Harissa – $4 est ($7.99 @ WF)
Balsamic (cheapie) – $2 est ($2.29 @ TJ)
Roasted red peppers (jar) – $3 est ($1.99 @ TJ)
Coconut milk (2-3 cans) – $4.50 est ($1.49 (coconut cream) + 0.99 + 0.99 (coconut milk) @ TJ)
14-18 ounces dark chocolate – $10 est ($5.97 + $1.49 @ TJ)
Coconut water – $3 est ($3.69 @ TJ)

Cruciferous Crunch ($2.29 @ TJ) – Wasn’t On List
Bkn Fig/Pumpkin NP – No freaking idea what this was ($1.29 @ WF)
Brooklyn Brown Beer ($10.99 @ WF)
Uinta Baba Black Beer ($12.99 @ WF)
Key Lime Juice ($4.99 @ WF) – Wasn’t On List
Eggs ($3.49 @ WF) – Wasn’t On List
Navel Orange ($1.52 @ WF) – Wasn’t On List
Coconut Water ($1.50 x 2 @ WF) – Wasn’t On List
The hubbs’ mac & cheese for lunch ($2.99 @ TJ) – Wasn’t On List

Orange juice – $3 est – Did Not Buy
Apple juice (small is fine) – $1.50 est ($1.69 @ WF)
10 ounces frozen cherries – $3 est ($3.99 @ WF)

$162 estimated total (weekly + party groceries), minus beer – I’m estimating $30 for beer/wine.

Total TJ: $80.75
Total WF: $112.34

Total For The Week: $193.09; $93.09 over budget. I knew I was going over this week, and it was pretty much as bad as I thought it would be. I will try to recoup the cost if possible throughout the rest of the month, but if I can’t, I’m not sweating it too much – being able to share great food and games with friends was totally worth the overage.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, cauliflower rice.

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 March 24-29)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Flank steak fajita “guts” with onions & peppers and sweet potato fries
• Reality – Yum.

Tuesday

• The Plan – Sirloin Tip Steak with Crispy Fried Brussels
• Reality – Not bad. The crispy brussels are ok – need a little work

Wednesday

• The Plan – Bacon Apple Smothered Pork Chops from Nom Nom Paleo with broccolini
• Reality – Y-U-M

Thursday

• The Plan – London broil with Meyer Lemon Roasted Carrot Strings
• Reality – Y-U-M

Friday

• The Plan – Leftover flank steak with Cauliflower Kung Pao
• Reality – The flank steak didn’t stretch as far as anticipated, and I ended up serving Flat Iron steak that I thankfully had left over from earlier in the month. Yum.

Lunches

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Still didn’t happen for me. Leftovers.
• The Plan – Some sort of salady thing with the cruciferous crunch mix I bought
• Reality – Yum! I made salads 3 days with some leftover Momofuku pork from the freezer + Meyer lemons – they were simple salads, but good.
• The Plan – Leftovers – preferably using the Arugula that is on death’s door
• Reality – Leftover Mexican beef – 2 days! 1 with arugula, 1 with a couple tortillas + butternut squash

This Week: March 31 – April 1

This week, I will be using up the very last of my big US Wellness Meats* order (whose cost has already been deferred – so yay, “free” meat!), supplemented by the best meats my budget and grocery store choices will allow.

*No, I’m not being paid by US Wellness meats for advertising, nor do they know I exist as anything other than a customer number in the system. I happen to like their quality and think their prices are reasonable, compared to comparable quality items in my area.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Cauliflower risotto with chicken and leeks
• Tuesday: Meatloaf with garlic mashed cauliflower
• Wednesday: Tuna meatballs with tomato sauce and zoodles
• Thursday: Minute steaks with asparagus and herbed aioli
• Friday: Flat iron steaks with some sort of side dish – whatever looks good
• Lunch: Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Lunch: Leftovers?
• Extras: Coconut lime chia pudding

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

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

This week, I have $100 to spend, because the cost for the leftover meat from the big order has already been covered.

This week’s shopping was a success! Since I wasn’t buying much meat, I came in happily under budget – and even had enough left over to buy some wine. Win!

Shopping List

Rice vinegar ($1.99 @ TJ)
Pistachios for the hubby to snack on ($7.49 @ TJ)
Bacon ($4.49 @ TJ)
Onions (2) ($1.58 @ TJ)
Cauliflower (2) ($2.49 x 2 @ TJ)
Frozen Mac & Cheese for the hubbs ($2.99 @ TJ)
Coconut Milk (2 cans) ($0.99 x 2 @ TJ)
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs ($6.60 @ TJ)
Zucchini (18 oz) ($2.29 @ TJ)
Asparagus (12 oz) ($2.99 @ TJ)
Carrot juice ($1.99 @ TJ)
Leeks ($2.99 @ TJ)
Shaved brussels sprouts ($2.79 @ TJ)
Zico coconut water ($3.69 @ TJ)
Celery hearts (2) ($1.79 @ TJ)
Cruciferous Crunch salad mix ($2.29 @ TJ)
Cilantro ($1.79 @ TJ)
Almonds for my snacks ($5.99 @ TJ)
Granny Smith apples (5) ($3.45 @ TJ)
Grass fed ground beef ($6.99 @ TJ)
Avocados (3) ($4.17 @ TJ)
Albacore tuna ($1.69 @ TJ)
Kale (10 oz bag) ($1.99 @ TJ)
Ginger (4 oz) ($1.39 @ TJ)
Limes (1 lb bag) ($2.79 @ TJ)
Rosemary ($1.69 @ TJ)
Pinot Grigio ($4.49 @ TJ)

$76 estimated for essentials

Buy: tea ($6), nuts ($5), rice vinegar ($3), wine ($10) if budget allows

 

Total TJ: $85.65 (main trip) + $4.89 (wine trip)

Total PathMark: $0.00

Total WF: $0.00

Total For The Week: $90.54; $9.46 under budget. Whoo hoo! Second week in a row my mental estimation paid off at the store – and it was very good to know that grabbing a few snacks wouldn’t put us over budget. And wine!

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, stock starter, 2 nights’ worth of meat.

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 March 17-22)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Mexican Beef from Nom Nom Paleo with guac, salsa and something like cauli rice
• Reality – The Vietnamese Shaking Beef with arugula and carrot strings from last week

Tuesday

• The Plan – Tacos or tostadas with some of the leftover Mexican beef with an Asiany broccoli slaw on the side
• Reality – Monday’s Mexican Beef with a spiced cauli puree, guac and salsa

Wednesday

• The Plan – Enchiladas with the last of the leftover Mexican beef with something
• Reality – Tacos with no Asiany slaw because the broccoli slaw I just bought from Trader Joe’s was already smelling funky and looking slimy. Luckily, I had some leftover snow peas – enough for 1 serving – and the hubbs ate a late lunch and didn’t want dinner.

Thursday

• The Plan – Deconstructed Samosas from Nom Nom Paleo with curried broccoli
• Reality – Y-U-M, except for the overly-burnt broccoli, which I liked.

Friday

• The Plan – The second serving of Flat Iron Steak with some sort of rub and sweet potato fries
• Reality – Well, that didn’t happen. I ended up making sauteed carrots, a simple arugula lemon salad, and pulling out some of the Momofuku pork I still have in the freezer and reheating that. It was good, but not what I had intended.

Lunches

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Didn’t happen. I ended up eating leftovers some days and squash the others. And I ran out of eggs. I had leftover tacos on Thursday and leftover beef with cauli mash on Friday.
• The Plan – Salad of roast squash, sautéed pea shoots & shredded hard boiled egg with horseradish vinaigrette (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – I had half a roast squash with fried eggs and balsamic vinegar
• The Plan – Baked sweet potato with walnut and chive (and horseradish sauce)
• Reality – I had the rest of the squash with fried eggs, hot sauce and kale pesto

This Week: March 24-29

This week’s planned portion of meat from my big US Wellness Meats* order is: The rest of the London Broil, 2 nights of Flank Steak, 1 night of Sirloin Tip Steak, and the last of the Pork Chops.

*No, I’m not being paid by US Wellness meats for advertising, nor do they know I exist as anything other than a customer number in the system. I happen to like their quality and think their prices are reasonable, compared to comparable quality items in my area.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Bacon Apple Smothered Pork Chops from Nom Nom Paleo with broccolini
• Tuesday: London Broil with Meyer Lemon Roasted Carrot Strings
• Wednesday: Flank Steak fajita guts with Sweet Potato Fries
• Thursday: Flank Steak with Cauliflower Kung Pao
• Friday: Sirloin Tip Steak with Crispy Fried Brussels
• Lunch: Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Lunch: Leftovers? Cruciferous crunch!
• Extras: No extras planned this week

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

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

This week, I have $53.22 to spend, after taking out this week’s portion of the big meat purchase.

This week’s shopping went much more smoothly than last week. Mainly because I didn’t delete my shopping list. I estimated before I got to the store and planned shortcuts and things I could cut if needed – and I still had room in the budget to grab something a little exciting for myself for lunch.

Planned Meal Components

Eggs – $3 est ($2.99 @ TJ)
Cauliflower – $3 est ($2.49 @ TJ)
Colored peppers – 4 – $5 est – cheaper if possible ($5.60 @TJ)
Brussels sprouts – $3 est ($2.79 @ TJ)
Onion – $1 est ($0.79 @ TJ)
Steak Seasoning – $3 est – Cut if needed ($1.99 @ TJ)
Carrots – $1 est ($0.89 @ TJ)
Meyer lemon – $3 est – Cheaper if possible ($1.99 @ TJ)
Chicken stock – $3 set – Cut if needed – Cut because I couldn’t find a brand with no oil or added junk
Broccolini – $3 est ($2.79 @ TJ)
1 apple – $0.70 est ($0.69 @ TJ)
3 limes ($1.47 – est) (1 lb. bag – $2.79 @ TJ)

Smoothie Supplies

Kale (2 bags) ($2.29 x 2 @TJ)
Spinach (1 bag) ($1.99 @ TJ)
5 apples ($3.45 @TJ)
2 avocados ($1.39 x 2 @TJ)
Coconut water ($3.69 @TJ)
3 limes ($1.47 @TJ)
Ginger ($1.39 @TJ)
Cilantro ($2 ish @TJ) – ended up getting at PathMark for $1.79 because I thought we had it. I also forgot to buy celery this week – also because I thought we had it.

Incidentals/Snacks for the Hubbs/Shopping lunch for me

Frozen mac & cheese – in red package ($2.99 @ TJ)
And I bought myself a bag of cruciferous crunch (brussels, kale & cabbage) greens for lunch. ($2.29 @ TJ)

Total TJ: $47.92

Total PathMark: $1.79

Total WF: $0.00

Total For The Week: $49.71; $3.51 under budget. Whoo whoo! With the leftovers from this week, I will have enough leftover to purchase a side dish for Monday’s dinner – Monday is the last day of the month.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, maybe stock starter, bacon.

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 March 10-15)

The Plan vs. Reality

Monday

• The Plan – Marinated minute steaks with Union Square Cafe’s Hashed Brussels Sprouts with Poppy Seeds & Lemon
• Reality – The steaks were fantastic; the brussels less so.

Tuesday

• The Plan – Skirt steak with chimichurri and plantains – maybe some callaloo
• Reality – Skirt steak with sauteed butternut squash and chimichurri. The grocery store I hit did not have plantains and callaloo was out of the budget for the week. Dinner was still tasty.

Wednesday

• The Plan – Pork chops with bacon, apple/brandy compote, butter mount and crispy sweet potatoes
• Reality – Yum. I forgot the bacon, but I’m totally sharing this meal with you guys soon.

Thursday

• The Plan – London Broil with Whole Roasted Cauliflower
• Reality – I used the lemon called for in this recipe earlier in the week, so the cauliflower was out. I made a curry lime cauli instead (recipe to come for this one, too) and my standard London Broil. It was a satisfying meal.

Friday

• The Plan – Vietnamese Shaking Beef with some sort of compliant noodle and arugula
• Reality – The hubbs was craving BBQ, so we went out for dinner instead.

Lunches

• The Plan – Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Didn’t happen. I ended up eating leftovers all week.
• The Plan – Salad of roast squash, sautéed pea shoots & shredded hard boiled egg with horseradish vinaigrette (2-3 lunches)
• Reality – Still didn’t happen. Leftovers.
• The Plan – Baked sweet potato with walnut and chive (and horseradish sauce)
• Reality – Was this really intended, or just an option? Leftovers again.

This Week: March 17-22

This week’s planned portion of meat from my big US Wellness Meats* order is: 1 chuck roast (3 meals), 1 flat iron steak (1 meal), 1 pound ground pork (1 meal). For more on my big meat order, click here.

*No, I’m not being paid by US Wellness meats for advertising, nor do they know I exist as anything other than a customer number in the system. I happen to like their quality and think their prices are reasonable, compared to comparable quality items in my area.

This Week’s Proposed Menu

• Monday: Mexican Beef from Nom Nom Paleo with guacamole, salsa & something either pureed or cauliflower rice
• Tuesday: Tacos or tostadas with the leftover beef & a side of apple/radish broccoli slaw
• Wednesday: Enchiladas with the rest of the beef
• Thursday: Pork samosas from Nom Nom Paleo with curried broccoli
• Friday: Flat iron steak with some sort of rub and something I can turn into a fry
• Lunch: Nom Nom Paleo’s Egg Foo Young (2-3 lunches)
• Lunch: Salad of roast squash, sautéed pea shoots & shredded hard boiled egg (with horseradish sauce) (2-4 lunches)
• Extras: Playing with macadamia nut ricotta – lime/basil & orange/honey – awesome and recipes coming soon

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

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

This week, I have $53.22 to spend, after taking out this week’s portion of the big meat purchase.

This week’s grocery shopping was a comedy of errors. I use Evernote to plan my menus and shopping lists and managed to somehow erase my grocery list about halfway through shopping. Needless to say, I was freaking out a little – in the crazy crowded grocery store – while worrying about staying within budget. Good times. And a few things didn’t get purchased. Oh, and then on the way home, my receipt went flying down the road in the wind storm.

Planned Meal Components

Limes (2 for home)
Lemons
Apple – did not get
Radishes – did not get
Cauliflower or parsnip – got cauliflower
Broccoli
Broccoli slaw
Cilantro
2 jalapeños – did not get
Guacamole – did not get
Salsa – got jarred only
3 onions – did not get
Sweet potatoes
Steak rub – did not get
Coconut oil
Coconut milk
Tomato paste
Diced tomatoes (14.5 ounce can) – got tomatoes + chiles in one
Red enchilada sauce (15 ounce can) – did not get
Diced chiles (4 ounce can) – did not get
Roasted salsa
Chicken stock – did not get
Eggs – did not get

Smoothie Supplies

Kale (2 bags) ($2.29 x 2 @TJ)
Spinach (1 bag) ($1.99 @ TJ)
5 apples ($3.45 @TJ)
2 avocados (I think he grabbed 4)
Coconut water ($3.69 @TJ)
3 limes ($1.47 @TJ)
Ginger ($1.39 @TJ)
Orange juice ($3 ish @TJ)

Incidentals/Snacks for the Hubbs/Shopping lunch for me

Frozen mac & cheese – in red package ($2.99 @ TJ)

Total TJ: $49.something

Total WF: $0.00

Total For The Week: $49; $4.22 under budget. Let’s see what I can cobble together with what I bought. I think I can make most of what I wanted; it will all just be a little plainer than anticipated. And last Friday’s projected meal is now Monday’s meal.

Pantry/items repurposed from last week: fats, spices, snow peas, squash, dinner from last Friday.