As promised here is my first weeks meal plan. Don't get used to me doing things when I say I will. I am a self proclaimed flake but try super hard to follow through!
Monday- Monday happens to be my husbands day off so we will be spending the day in Avila. We will also be taking my niece home after her week long stay with us. We are going to a birthday party at 4pm so i did not plan a dinner for the day, assuming there will be food at the party. If not lucky for us I have plenty of food in the freezer!
Tuesday- Tuesday is Taco night. My family LOVES tacos! We eat them any way they come but will be having ground beef tacos. Tacos are easy and filling. Since i preseason and freeze all my meats it is super simple to pull out a ziplock bag in the morning and have it defrosted and ready to cook by 5. I make all of our own tortillas (thanks to my bestie showing me how). They take about 1.5 hours from mixing to cooked so those will be done at some point during the day. We typically have lettuce, tomatoes, beans, cheese, and sour cream in our tacos. I grate all of our cheese in bulk as well as cut all our lettuce and keep it in tupperware. I make two cups of pinto beans in my crock pot weekly which i mash into refried beans ahead of time. I buy my beans and flour at costco for around $8 each. It costs me about .25 to make a 15 tortillas! I havent priced out what my refried beans cost but i know it is less than even the generic store bought brands. All in all i say this dinner costs around $10-$12 making this meal under $2.50 per person.
Wednesday- I mentioned in my first post that my children help me make our menu so don't judge me for this meal haha. Chili cheese fries! None of which are homemade! I purchased a large can of chili at the store for $4.89, a bag of frozen fries for $1.98, and i will top with cheese and sour cream. I guestimate this is an $8 junk food night
Thursday- Fourth of July! We were fortunate enough to be invited to two different parties but this year will be attending a fourth of July bbq put on by my Aunt and Uncle. Good times are always had when over there and my grandparents will be providing burgers and dogs for everyone. I am awaiting a phone call to find out what side dish we need to provide. So no estimate of costs as of this post..
Friday- One of my favorite meals! Six cheese tortellini, yum yum. I buy my tortellini in bulk at costco it comes in two presectioned containers for $9.xx so i'll say $5 each. We typically top our pasta with a little bit of Ken's Zesty Italian salad dressing. I was able to stock up on Ken's a couple months back for.25 per bottle thanks to Albertson's and coupons. yay for $6 dinner!!!
Saturday- Also a night my kids chose. Chicken sandwiches. I purchase frozen 100% chicken patties at costco for $10ish a box (which lasts us two months). I also make our own hamburger buns. My buns cost me .75 per 8 buns. We will also have a veggie or salad with this meal.
Sunday- My daughters personal favorite, chicken, rice, and broccoli. I learned years ago my kids do not like chicken alone...but they will eat it if it is mixed in with other foods! Whew, that makes my life a bit easier. I pre-marinade my chicken. One chicken breast will feed me and all three kids if it is mixed in with other items. I buy brown rice in bulk and frozen broccoli when on sale. so my guestimate here is between $5-$10 depending on sales.
I try to plan all of my meals for under $10. Home cooking does not need to be expensive! I budget $400/month to feed my family of five. I found a website several months ago that said the national average cost to feed a family of 5 was $400-$600 a month. Of course i now can not find that website so i could be totally wrong. If i find it again i will post a link. My "goal" is to keep my monthly food purchases around $350/month but anything under $400 is good in my book.
Next week our menu has two meals i found on pinterest that are new to us as well as our favorite broccoli cheese soup!
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