A Budget Meal Challenge: Local Shopping on $25, Part 2

 

My second stop for shopping was at our local grocery.  This store is still fairly new to us, less than a year old and most welcomed in the community after nearly 3 years without anything but a Dollar General.  I don't mind pointing out that is a true story for many small old towns these days.  The local grocery has shut up and gone and the residents are left with Dollar General.

At the local grocery, I spent $24.26.    I acted as though I had not just spent $27 over at Dollar General, because I wanted to see what I could come up with for meals from just what I'd purchased at each store, first.  

I bought:

almost 2 pounds ground beef    $3.83

                                                    3.95

Jiffy corn bread mix                      .99

Green Beans, 1 can                     1.09

Diced Tomatoes, 1 can                1.09

Chili Beans, 1 can                       1.29

1 Bell pepper                               1.09

1/2 gal. milk                                2.29

8 ounces cheese                          2.99

1 dozen eggs                               3.12

1 white onion                                .64

1 packet of instant potatoes        1.09

1 pound bag of rice                   $1.00

                                                $24.43

I can't recall now how much tax was but this total did not go over $25.  So, we'll just call it $25 and leave it at that.  

Again, I planned to use some pantry basics from home, mostly seasonings, but this time also 2 cups of flour, and a box of macaroni (on my expired shelf).

Here was my menu plan for two people:  

Meal #1.  Chili served over rice:  1/2-pound ground beef, 1/2 c chopped onion, 1 can chili beans, 1/2 can tomatoes, 1/2 c of the bell pepper, chili powder, oregano, salt and pepper. Enough water to rinse the can of beans clean.  Cook half the package of rice.  Mix up cornbread muffins and serve two with this meal. The muffins require 2 spoons of melted butter (or any oil really), 1 egg and 1/3 cup of milk.

2.  Burritos:  I expected to have chili and rice leftover.  This time I planned to draw on my pantry. I figured I could make up a batch of tortillas (essentially flour and water and a bit of oil and salt).  Shredded cheese. Even if there's not much left of the chili and rice, it's a great filling for a tortilla and would make a tasty lunch.

 3.  Shepherd's Pie: using my old favorite recipe this time I'm subbing in ketchup for the tomato soup the recipe calls for.   1 pound of ground beef, about 1/2 cup of onion, garlic powder, salt and pepper, ketchup.   Spread drained green beans on bottom of 8 x 8 pan.  Top with hamburger meat.  Mix potato packet with water and spread over meat mixture.  Sprinkle of cheddar cheese (not much cheese required here perhaps 1/4 cup.  Serve with 2 cornbread muffins.  4.  This casserole will serve four, so two servings without the muffins (could have tortillas though) for lunch the next day.

5.  Pasta Bake: 1/2 pound ground beef, remaining onion, rest of bell pepper, rest of can of tomatoes, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper, cooked pasta from the mac and cheese packet.  Mix and sprinkle remaining cheese over top. Served with 2 cornbread muffins.

That leaves me with Tortillas and Eggs, half a package of rice, milk.   Again, we could make a rice cereal (or go one better and make a rice pudding for dessert but these meals have enough carbs in my opinion, so I'd save the rice for breakfast (6).  And of course, eggs and tortillas could be eaten for breakfasts. (7 and 8).

Again, the meals seem poor, and that's partly because I couldn't figure out how much I should dig into my pantry and fill things out.  I decided to just go with what I'd purchased with the exception of the macaroni package and flour.  

What I noted was that Dollar General is the place to buy canned vegetables which I've noted once before when doing one of these challenges.  Eggs were much cheaper at the grocery than at Dollar General as was milk.  Hamburger was $3.99/pound for freshly ground meat at the grocery.  The chicken was at least as high as the frozen at Dollar General.  I did think to price the whole birds.  They were the size of Cornish game hens and while a good buy, one would about feed one person, once the meat was removed from the bone.  

I did price romaine lettuce the day I was in the store and while it was fresh looking, the package was about $3.29, which oddly is a better price than I've paid at Kroger (about $4.29).   Still, lettuce was too dear an item to consider on this budget.  And potatoes were less expensive than at Dollar General, but I was trying to get as many meals as I could out of this, and they were too dear in cost to warrant buying.

Now, I want to do one more post, this time not actually going shopping but revamping what I bought at both stores and (now that I know prices) adding in a few items to see what I might make with $50 worth of groceries.  

Please leave any comments.  I'm interested to hear what your thought are and what you might have done with the same ingredients.