Gastography

This Week’s Menu

Monday

Breakfast: Green smoothie

Lunch: Out – holiday

Dinner: Out – holiday

Tuesday

Breakfast: Green smoothie

Lunch: Leftovers from last week

Dinner: Ground pork & veggie stir-fry with CSA goods

Wednesday

Breakfast: Green smoothie

Lunch: Leftover stir-fry

Dinner: Braised chicken leg with corn, sweet potatoes and celery

Thursday

Breakfast: Green smoothie

Lunch: Leftovers

Dinner: Broiled lamb steaks with corn on the cob

Friday

Breakfast: Green smoothie

Lunch: Leftover braised veggies with bacon and eggs

Dinner: Out

Sunday

Breakfast: Out

Lunch: Out

Dinner: Out

 

This Week’s Grocery List

Almonds ($5.99 @ Whole Foods)
Choula ($3.99 @ Whole Foods)

Smoothie Supplies

Orange juice ($2.99 @ Whole Foods)
4 Apples ($3.70 @ Whole Foods)
5 limes ($3.79 @ Whole Foods)
4 Avocados ($10.00 @ Whole Foods)
Bagged kale (1 lb.) ($2.99 @ Whole Foods)
Bagged spinach ($4.49 @ Whole Foods)

 

Totals

Carryover From Last Week: $34.68
Whole Foods: $39.02

 

Budget Breakout

This week, I spent $73.70; $26.30 under budget. Whoo hoo! Budgetary breathing room! This week I was lucky – I didn’t really need any dinner supplies, because my CSA was bountiful, and I had a short week due to the holiday.

 

Leftovers From This Week

At the end of the week, I have a bunch of CSA meats and veggies left over. I need to incorporate these items into my menu for next week.

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Think eating healthfully is too expensive for you? Think again. According to the USDA, to ensure a nutritious diet as of December 2014, a family of two aged 19-59 years should spend between $388.90 and $776.10 on food per month, or $89.80 – $179.30 per week. Source 

For my family of two adults, I spend roughly $400 a month on groceries or $100 a week – and we eat well. Not caviar and lobster well, but I do manage to serve a predominately paleo diet with little to no processed foods, and I get to throw in a few luxuries here and there (like expensive snacks for the hubbs and the occasional ridiculously expensive bag of coffee). We even manage to buy “good” meat (grass fed beef and free-range chicken) most of the time – and I make this budget work even on the weeks we pay for convenience by getting delivery groceries. I make: 10 breakfasts, 5 lunches, and 10 dinners a week – plus enough snacks to satisfy and fuel two active adults.

I’m hoping that this series will help shed a little light on the day-to-day things a “paleo” person really eats — and how that way of eating can work on a budget. I want to nudge anyone sitting on the fence right over the edge by showing that it *can* be done and that you don’t just eat meat, meat, meat and more meat.