Food prices are going up! Fewer things seem to be on sale each season, as far as fresh fruits and veggies. The convenience, pre-packaged stuff still seems to be easy to find cheap, and I am sooo tempted to pick up some of them because of their low prices. BUT, I am trying really hard to stick with our healthy eating!
I absolutely cannot go back to buying meat at the store (unless it’s an emergency and I grab some decent meat at Whole Foods). The taste of local, well-raised and handled meat is undeniably better. Not to gross you all out, but eating meat from the store makes me a little nauseated….thinking about the hormones, the antibiotics, the pink slime fiasco, etc. Yuck. Being pregnant actually exaggerates all these feelings, so I haven’t wavered on buying good meat. It is so much more costly, though, and I am searching for more and more meatless recipes to get us through the week. Thankfully (I think), Buddy doesn’t like very many meats – nothing ground, unless it’s in a sauce, and not really any roasts. So, I am happy to provide him with beans and quinoa and couscous to get him his protein. Oh, and peanut butter….that kid LOVES peanut butter! 🙂
This week I had a mini mental meltdown trying to make my grocery list and menu plan. Because I make most everything from scratch, our pantry needs to hold A LOT of staples (flours, sugars/honey, oats, etc) and it just so happened that I was almost out of most of them. This cut into my meat budget a bit, which made me sad. I found a solution in buying a 4 lb ham and a whole chicken from our meat lady. Figured I could make that ham go at least 2 meals and the whole chicken could make 3 meals and some broth.
Even when I worry about food costs, God already has it all under control (duh! I don’t know why I ever doubt Him.). Turned out the meat lady didn’t have any 3 lb chickens left (for my order), so she graciously gave us two 2 lb chickens and only charged me for 3 lbs! Might not seem like a big deal, but I got a pound of chicken for free!! And when I pay $5 a pound for a whole chicken, that’s huge for us! She really is a great lady….so willing to share.
AND, I realized that I have a TON of veggie scraps in the freezer that I’ve been neglecting. They are ready and waiting to be turned into broth, so that brightened my week a bit…knowing I can make some “liquid gold” and freeze it. I did buy some organic broth at the store (haven’t done that in MONTHS!), so I can just add that to our backup stuff and use the homemade for now. See? God really does have a plan, even when I’m freaking out! 🙂
So, all that rambling to say I have a tasty menu this week! Cream of potato soup is becoming a weekly meal, I think. We all love it, and Arthur even said it’s his favorite soup….so, this winter we will be eating lots of “buh-taties” (which is how Lily refers to potatoes….yes, she’s 5 but it’s still cute).
BREAKFAST:
Pancakes, Fruit x 2
Eggs, Toast, Fruit
Waffles (store-bought!), fruit
Oatmeal or cereal, Fruit
Banana Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal, Fruit x 2
LUNCH:
PB & Honey, fruit, yogurt x 2
Leftovers x 3
Buttered noodles, fruit, oatmeal raisin cookies
PB and/or Nutella on crackers, carrot sticks, applesauce
DINNER:
Cream of Potato Soup, applesauce, homemade bread (meatless)
Ham and Cheese Scalloped Potatoes, Green Beans, carrot sticks
Ham Risotto, Corn, Salad
Chicken and Barley Soup, Applesauce, bread
Chicken and Orzo Casserole, Carrots
Rice Pilaf, Salad, Corn, homemade bread (yes, lots of carbs) (meatless)
Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese, salad – Halloween night….and it was so yummy after a cold evening of trick or treating! (meatless)
SNACKS:
Granola Bars
Zucchini Snack Cake Squares
HOMEMADE:
Bread x 3
Veggie Broth
Chicken Broth
Creamy Veggie Bake – just the soupy portion of it (make ahead for freezer – for after baby is here)
Related articles
- Monday Menu ~ Chicken Soup (withjustabitofmagic.com)
- Chicken Pot Pie Soup (noshmyway.com)
- Meatless Monday with Rich Celery Soup and Baked Leeks (planetforward.ca)
- Menu Plan: October 22 – 31 (lifeasmomknowsit.wordpress.com)
- Menu Plan: October 15 – 22 (lifeasmomknowsit.wordpress.com)
