Menu Plan Monday!

• Monday: Chicken & Veggie Kabobs (chicken breast chunks, red and yellow and green bell peppers, red onions, tomatoes, and cucumbers grilled on kabob sticks)
• Tuesday: Hamburgers (extra-lean ground beef patties on whole wheat buns, loaded with lots of veggies)
• Wednesday: Mexican Roll-ups (ground turkey breast, lettuce, tomato, salsa, fat-free sour cream, and whole-wheat tortilla)
• Thursday: Pecan-Crusted Chicken Breasts (b/s chicken breasts, dipped in egg white, and coated in minced toasted pecans, chopped fresh parsley leaves, and a dash of salt, then baked)
• Friday: Shrimp & Salmon (pan-seared salmon fillets, and shrimp scampi)
• Saturday: Black Bean and Salsa Soup (used reduced sodium black beans, and modified recipe a little)
• Sunday: Pot Roast

Groceries 5/4 - 5/10

TARGET BUDGET: $50.00 or less

BuyLow Market (1st transaction)

• $1.39 ~ 1 bottle honey mustard
• $1.67 ~ 1 gallon skim milk
• $1.49 ~ 1.69 lbs small gala apples @ $.88/lb
• $.67 ~ 1.33 lbs bananas @ $.50/lb
• $1.00 ~ 5 large lemons @ $.20/ea
• $1.40 ~ 4.19 lb canteloupe @ 3 lbs/$1.00
• $.25 ~ .49 lbs red onions @ $.50/lb
• $.99 ~ 1 yellow bell pepper
• $.99 ~ 1 red bell pepper
• $.99 ~ 1 green bell pepper
• $3.79 ~ 1 package sliced turkey breast
• $3.79 ~ 1 package sliced ham
• $.55 ~ tax

Total spent: $18.97

Albertsons

• $2.97 ~ 3 dozen large AA eggs @ $.99/ea
• $.09 ~ tax

Total spent: $3.06

Smith's

• $.36 ~ small handful of bulk pecans (that's all I needed for a recipe)
• $1.56 ~ 4 diabetic-friendly yogurts @ $.39/ea
• $.06 ~ tax

Total spent: $1.98

BuyLow Market (2nd transaction)

• $1.00 ~ 1 can vegetable broth
• $1.55 ~ 1 jar medium chunky salsa
• $9.98 ~ 2 lbs raw peeled shrimp
• $.91 ~ 2.73 lbs small Fuji apples @ 3 lbs/$1.00
• $.16 ~ .49 lbs broccoli crowns @ 3 lbs/$1.00 (I am only now realizing that she charged me for broccoli rather than red onions)
• $.66 ~ 2 loose garlic @ $.33/ea
• $.60 ~ 3 large lemons @ $.20/ea
• $.23 ~ 1.15 lbs yellow onions @ $.20/lb
• $.45 ~ tax

Total spent: $15.54

Sunflower Farmers Market

• $1.52 ~ 1.97 lbs red seedless grapes @ $.77/lb
• $.77 ~ red leaf lettuce
• $.50 ~ fresh parsley
• $1.17 ~ 1.18 lbs cluster tomatoes @ $.99/lb
• $.80 ~ 4 large ears corn on the cob @ $.20/ea
• $.14 ~ tax

Total spent: $4.90

TOTAL SPENT FOR THE WEEK: $44.45

Mini Turkey Tostadas

For more great recipe ideas, visit The Grocery Cart Challenge.




Ingredients:

Baked Tostitos Scoops
1 lb. extra-lean ground turkey breast
dash of salt
dash of ground black pepper
salsa, to taste
fat-free sour cream, to taste (optional)
shredded cheddar cheese, to taste (optional)

Directions:

Season the ground turkey with salt and pepper, then brown over medium-high heat (lightly spray the pan with olive oil spray first). Once it is no longer pink, stir in the salsa (about 1 cup, give or take), then remove from heat. Scoop the mixture into the scooped chips (which should be arranged on a plate or platter), then top with desired condiments. I dropped a fraction of a teaspoon of fat-free sour cream on each, and a few strands of shredded cheese.

Nutritional Info:

The nutrional info was gather based on how I prepared the meal. If you choose to add more condiments, or leave some out, nutritional content will vary. Nutritional info is per serving, and one serving consists of 10 chips, with about 1/4 of the meat mixture distributed evenly.

~220 calories
~29 g protein
~4 g fat
~1 g fiber
~200 mg sodium

My Opinion:

I thought this meal was delicious! I tried them with and without the cheese and sour cream, but since I'm a lover of both, I definitely preferred them with. Next time, I might try it with a little cilantro mixed in just to see how it tastes. Extra-lean ground turkey can be more expensive than ground beef, but it is definitely a healthier option. If you watch for sales and stock up, then you can save money.

What's been going on

Okay, for any loyal followers of this blog (few if any), I'm sorry that I have taken a hiatus from posting. Part of the problem is that I have experienced a short blogger's burnout spell, and both my money-saving blog and my family blog have suffered. It hasn't helped that April has been a crazy-busy month with my wedding anniversary, my son's birthday, my husband's college finals, a weekend visiting the in-laws, a visit from my father, and a weekend visit from Great-Grandma included in the mix.

As an update on my weight loss, I am ashamed to admit that I fell off the wagon for about a week and a half. It started with a weekend trip to my in-laws. I was nervous to start with, because I would not be in charge of what food options there would be. The first dinner of the weekend, the whole family went out to eat at a favorite Chinese restaurant in which the food is served family-style. By family-style, I mean that each person orders one large entree, then all the entrees are placed in the middle of the table for everybody to share, family-style. So, it was impossible for me to order just a salad to enjoy for myself. Not only that, but the food was all divinely delicious, not to mention saturated in high-sodium soy sauce. I was hit from all sides, and my self-control went out the window. After dinner, my conscience-stricken husband and myself went for a 2-mile jog (right after starting, it started pouring, then hailing), which helped a little, but not much. Our Sunday dinner before we drove home was another sinfully delicious dinner, with turkey, potatoes, and all the strappings that go with it. Strike 2. Add that to the fact that I was away from my gym for the whole weekend, and it was Strike 3, I'm out.

Immediately upon returning home, my husband and I celebrated our 6-year wedding anniversary by eating out at a favorite Japanese restaurant. This time, we made more wise menu decisions, but still....

To make everything worse, I was only able to make it to the gym once last week. I normally go early in the morning, but there were some scheduling conflicts that prevented that last week. When this happens, I would usually go later in the day, and take my kids to the gym's daycare. However, with confirmed cases of swine flu in 2 of my neighboring counties, I just couldn't bring myself to do that.

So, I tightened my menu plan up this week, and returned to the gym earlier this week. I was vastly relieved to discover that over the 1.5 week break that I took, I still lost 1.2 lbs (bringing me officially over my halfway point), but I'm determined to do better!

The Scale: 4.18.09

I lost .8 lb this week.
Stupid Easter Bunny. Where ever you are, know that I am taking your name in vain.

Groceries 4/6 - 4/12

Once again, a chaotic shopping day prevented me from taking pictures of my purchases, but I did manage to hang on to my receipts this time to show off my amazing deals!!! (Thank you Grocery Smarts!)

SuperTarget

• $.25 ~ 1 can Campbells cream of chicken soup
• $.49 ~ 1 lb asparagus
• $21.26 ~ 1 Hormel Cure 81 spiral cut ham (8.86 lbs) ~ will use the rebate I pictured HERE.
• $.99 ~ 1 lb fresh strawberries
• $.49 ~ 1 dozen large eggs

Total spent: $24.19



Smith's

• $5.96 ~ 4 gallons milk (2 whole, 2 skim) @ $1.49/ea
• $1.25 ~ 1 pkg 6-count whole wheat English muffins

Total spent: $7.43



Albertsons

• $1.20 ~ 4 boxes Lipton's dry soup mix @ $.30/ea
• $1.80 ~ 4 bottles (7 oz.) Wishbone salad spritzer @ $.45/ea
• $.25 ~ 1 bottle (9.5 oz) Wishbone Bountifuls salad dressing
• $1.80 ~ 2 jars (26 oz) Ragu pasta sauce @ $.90/ea
• $4.95 ~ 6 jars (16.3 oz) Skippy reduced-fat peanut butter @ $.825/ea
• $1.60 ~ 2 jars (16.3 oz) Skippy reduced-fat peanut butter @ $.80/ea
• $.70 ~ 1 bottles (8 oz) I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray
• $.80 ~ 1 bottles (8 oz) I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray
• $2.40 ~ 3 tubs (15 oz) I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spread @ $.80/ea
• $2.50 ~ 2 pouches (8 oz) shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese @ $1.25/ea
• $2.78 ~ 2 bottles Axe shower gel @ $1.39/ea
• $1.00 ~ 2 bottles (10 oz) Vaseline lotion @ $.50/ea
• $10.03 ~ 2 beef rump roasts (5.34 lbs)
• $10.26 ~ 1 Cook's shank portion ham (10.36 lbs)

I used a Catalina coupon off my purchase total, making it:
Total spent: $38.81 (Total saved: $109.60 ~ 75.37%)

PLUS: will receive a $20 rebate from Unilever off the ham purchased at Target.

Total spent for the week: $70.43 (under budget by $4.57!)

Menu Plan Monday (I mean Wednesday!)

Wow! I am really late posting this. Sorry!

Monday: Chicken Tacos

• Whole-wheat tortillas, ground chicken breast cooked with Mrs. Dash (salt-free) southwest chipotle seasoning, a little grated cheese, lots of tomatoes, green onions, jalapenos, and spinach leaves.
• Approximately 325 calories

Tuesday: Tostadas

• Whole wheat tortillas "fried" (lightly sprayed with olive oil and toasted in a frying pan to make it crisp), thin layer of fat-free refried beans, thin layer of grated cheese, lots of tomatoes, green onions, jalapenos, and a dollop of fat-free sour cream.
• Approximately 325 calories

Wednesday: Enchilada Chicken

I'm not going to post the recipe for this because it was rather bland. I may try to tweak it in the future. If I'm successful, I will then post the recipe.

Thursday: Chicken Sandwich

• Grilled and sliced chicken breasts (seasoned with garlic, pepper, and a touch of salt), spinach leaves, red onion slices, tomato slices, and cucumber slices on whole wheat bread - the sauce for the bread was a mixture of roasted red pepper hummus and fat-free plain yogurt
• Approximately 350 calories

Friday: Lemon Pepper Salmon

• I don't have the recipe because my husband took me out to dinner, but it was yummy!

Saturday: Asian Chicken Salad from Applebees (double date with friends)

• I don't have the recipe for this, but it was a yummy salad, and I ordered my dressing on the side - and used less than half of it

Sunday: Baked Chicken Chimichangas

• I don't have the recipe for this either, because my husband discovered the recipe somewhere online, made the dinner, and is keeping the recipe in his 'secret recipe' collection. I can basically describe it though: whole wheat tortillas, thin layer of fat-free refried beans, diced grilled chicken breasts, cumin, cinnamon, chili powder, salsa, and a dollop of fat-free sour cream (optional). To bake them and still have the crispy shell, you simply lightly spray your tortillas with extra-virgin olive oil, then roll the chimichangas up like normal, lay them in the baking dish, and bake them. They were so yummy! And I think we calculated them at about 350 calories each!

The Scale 4.11.09

I was not expecting a happy number displayed on the scale today for a number of reasons.
Let's face it, there are times when a woman gains a couple pounds, and if she doesn't actually gain them, then she feels like she does. These 'times' come around oh, every month or so. This has been one of those times for me. So not only have I felt fat this week, but I have been craving chocolate (another terrible symptom of 'the time'). Unfortunately for me, there just happened to be some peanut butter cups stashed (used as treat for my 4-year-old when he behaves at the grocery store) and peanut butter cups are my very favorite candy. To be honest, I indulged in more than a few this week.
So I was expecting my relationship with the scale to be on the rocks again this week. That is why I was thrilled to discover a little 2-lb weight loss this week. 2 lbs never seemed so huge to me. As a side note, I'm almost half-way to my goal! Yippee!

Groceries: Beer Rebates

(For more great shopping success stories, visit The Grocery Cart Challenge!)

Grocery shopping went very well for me this week, but I have no proof to show you! It all started out badly last Monday with my first trip to the grocery store. As soon as I arrived home, my children started acting like they were going to die an instant death if I did not feed them lunch immediately. So, before I could get any pictures of my purchase, some of the food was broken into and consumed. After lunch, we had to leave the house again, so I had to put all the food away. Realizing that the chances of me getting the food out again to take a picture of it was slim (read: nonexistent), I gave a mental shrug and decided that there would be no pictures this week. I would still be able to list what I purchased and the deals that I got, though, so I created a pile on the desk by my computer for the grocery receipts for the week.

The receipts collected there until Thursday evening, when my sweet, dear husband decided to surprise me by cleaning the whole house while I was away. He really was thorough, cleaning the microwave and inside the fridge... and of course throwing my receipts away, then taking the trash out. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, I gave another mental shrug, then thanked and kissed my husband.

I know I started the week with $154 cash to last for 2 weeks of groceries. I ended the week with $85 cash, so my total grocery bill for the week was approximately $69. Woohoo, under budget! Hooray!

So, instead of displaying and listing my wonderful deals for the last week, I am instead going to be showing off the fabulous rebates I am mailing off today. I live in a state in which no alcoholic purchase is necessary to submit and receive beer rebates (which is good, since I don't drink alcohol). I never know what rebates I will find, and I often don't find them until the latter part of a month, so I keep all my receipts throughout the month in a page protector (unless my hubby tosses them first!), then evaluate at the end of the month what I need to purchase to qualify.

Last week, I counted up my rebates, matched them to the receipts I had, and realized that I only needed to purchase one bag of pretzels ($1.24) to finish off my purchases, and I should receive $53 back! :) I love getting what is essentially free food! Especially if it is food that I have already bought, or am already planning on buying.

Here are the rebates I'm submitting: