Weekly spend at the grocery store - Family of 4? And a vent...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It would be nice to keep a thread going with more ideas. Like recipes and such. I am always at a loss for what to make

to the PP who mentioned cheaper to buy 2 boxes of mac and cheese vs making it homemade.

My homemade version (and the only one my daycare and own kids will eat) consists of a $1 box of elbow noodles (i only use maybe half the box), milk and margarine (already on hand) and about 8 slices of american cheese (usually on hand but you can get a package for a couple bucks, only using half the pack for this so maybe $1-1.50). My kids wont touch the boxes stuff and the USDA food program says it has to be home made. My kids wont touch it if I use cheddar cheese and I dont find cc gives much taste anyway. They scarf this down, a large amount, for 3 kids at lunch and leftover for whoever wants it for dinner. For maybe $2-2.50. Not bad.

Maybe this is my problem. When I make mac and cheese, I buy organic noodles, different type of RBST free cheeses (gouda, swiss and cheddar) mix with cream, milk, a little nutmeg and bake. The cheeses cost a lot and we usually don't finish them before they go bad! I guess my ingredients are too expensive. I made potato soup the other night and my family only ate 1/2 of it and refused to eat the rest (hubby HATES leftovers). So I ended up throwing it away and it cost a lot to make -- 10 organic potatoes, cumin, milk, cream, onions, garlic (all stuff I had to go buy b/c I was out of it). I was so annoyed. If I had opened a can of potato soup, would have saved me a lot of money!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think we save alot by shopping at Trader Joes. I only buy organic milk and generally buy organic fruit and veggies which can be expensive but there are decent/affordable organic options at TJ's. I have also been known to use Washington Green Grocer when I'm having a tough time finding enough organic produce. for a small $37 organic box, we get a box that lasts us about 1.5-2 weeks (though we end up buying extra bananas/apples on the 2nd week). You do have to get creative to come up with recipes for a random assortment of produce. Also, we don't really eat large portions of meat/poultry. I grew up in an immigrant household, and it was always small bits of meat within a dish -- if any meat at all. We also ate alot of vegetarian dishes. So, I still cook like that...and mostly cook "ethnic" dishes which I think can help minimize the amount of meats used. We probably spend about $115 a week on groceries -- but if i was more organized, I think I could take it down a bit. I'm just not that organized...

I am thinking about using washington green grocers but scared I will get veggies that I won't use! We also don't eat much meat at home --- only a little chicken sometimes and that's it. I am basically a vegetarian.

[Anonymous]

My problem is FRUIT. I eat like 2 apples a day and my kids do as well! SO i end up buying like 20 apples a week and it's SO EXPENSIVE. Bananas too are popular in my house and they are pricey unless you go to trader joes. But my kids tend to snack on fruit instead of crackers, etc, so it's gets really pricey. I also snack on fruit meaning I can eat as much as 2 apples, 2 bananas and an orange and grapes in one day. Let me tell you, when you do that everyday, your fruit bill becomes astromonical.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My problem is FRUIT. I eat like 2 apples a day and my kids do as well! SO i end up buying like 20 apples a week and it's SO EXPENSIVE. Bananas too are popular in my house and they are pricey unless you go to trader joes. But my kids tend to snack on fruit instead of crackers, etc, so it's gets really pricey. I also snack on fruit meaning I can eat as much as 2 apples, 2 bananas and an orange and grapes in one day. Let me tell you, when you do that everyday, your fruit bill becomes astromonical.

Bestway has fresh fruits and veggies at a fraction of the cost in the grocery store. I dont buy any of my fruits in the grocery store unless i happened to be there for something else, the fruit is the only other thing I may need to get through the last day or two of the week. Otherwise, I run into bestway to pick up what i need there

[Anonymous]

90-130 spender per week here for a family of 4...

I buy apples and bananas so we have them at all times. I never spend more than $3 for a large bunch of bananas and $5-6 on a bag of apples.

For homemade mac n cheese, I buy a block of store-brand monterey jack and a block of store-brand sharp cheddar ($2.50-3/block - total $6 tops). Usually I do fancy it up and buy smoked gouda or asiago - adds another $6.

However, I make 1lb of cooked elbow macaroni - the Kraft box is only 7.25 oz INCLUDING the cheese packet. I'd guess at most there is 6oz of macaroni there. You'd need 3.5 boxes to make as much as I do homemade; that's at LEAST $5. AND it doesn't reheat well!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It would be nice to keep a thread going with more ideas. Like recipes and such. I am always at a loss for what to make

to the PP who mentioned cheaper to buy 2 boxes of mac and cheese vs making it homemade.

My homemade version (and the only one my daycare and own kids will eat) consists of a $1 box of elbow noodles (i only use maybe half the box), milk and margarine (already on hand) and about 8 slices of american cheese (usually on hand but you can get a package for a couple bucks, only using half the pack for this so maybe $1-1.50). My kids wont touch the boxes stuff and the USDA food program says it has to be home made. My kids wont touch it if I use cheddar cheese and I dont find cc gives much taste anyway. They scarf this down, a large amount, for 3 kids at lunch and leftover for whoever wants it for dinner. For maybe $2-2.50. Not bad.

Maybe this is my problem. When I make mac and cheese, I buy organic noodles, different type of RBST free cheeses (gouda, swiss and cheddar) mix with cream, milk, a little nutmeg and bake. The cheeses cost a lot and we usually don't finish them before they go bad! I guess my ingredients are too expensive. I made potato soup the other night and my family only ate 1/2 of it and refused to eat the rest (hubby HATES leftovers). So I ended up throwing it away and it cost a lot to make -- 10 organic potatoes, cumin, milk, cream, onions, garlic (all stuff I had to go buy b/c I was out of it). I was so annoyed. If I had opened a can of potato soup, would have saved me a lot of money!

You are much nicer than I am. If leftovers are on the menu and no one wants them, they have to find their own dinner. Maybe if you quantified how much extra $$ you were spending because your husband doesnt like leftovers, it would help him see what that's costing the family. Or, in the future, you could freeze the leftovers and then use them as a base for a casserole or soup the next week.... I bet no one would know the difference.

Also, we always intentionally make a mac and cheese dish if we see cheese is starting to mold. My husband used to work in the cheese dept at a major grocery store in another state and said that they used to just cut moldy bits off the cheese and repackage it... so we don't have any qualms about cutting off the bad bits of cheese and using the rest (especially if you're going to bake something at high temp)

[Anonymous]

I agree with PP. Leftovers are always used up around here, for next day lunches, or as a base for another meal if it can be. What a shame to waste food like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I shop Aldi in Takoma Park. There's one near Prince Georges Plaza and I think there is one in the Safeway plaza near Capitol Hill. To the poster who says Aldi grosses you out, I wish I could invite you to my house to see how we eat. I think you would be surprised!

Aldi is (or used to be) owned by the same company as Trader Joe's. I am familiar with Aldi from Germany. Didn't love it but it was easy.

[Anonymous]

Hmmm, is the Takoma Park Aldi's near Chevy Chase? I want to try it out.

We're big fruit eaters and I also do a lot of vegetarian meals. Right now I'm just counting the days until the Costco opens in Wheaton. Our savings on the milk bill alone will pay for the membership in about two months.

[Anonymous]

Takoma Park Aldi shopper here. It is not near Chevy Chase. It's a world away, and might not appeal to many folks in Chevy Chase. Try H-Mart in Wheaton.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It would be nice to keep a thread going with more ideas. Like recipes and such. I am always at a loss for what to make

to the PP who mentioned cheaper to buy 2 boxes of mac and cheese vs making it homemade.

My homemade version (and the only one my daycare and own kids will eat) consists of a $1 box of elbow noodles (i only use maybe half the box), milk and margarine (already on hand) and about 8 slices of american cheese (usually on hand but you can get a package for a couple bucks, only using half the pack for this so maybe $1-1.50). My kids wont touch the boxes stuff and the USDA food program says it has to be home made. My kids wont touch it if I use cheddar cheese and I dont find cc gives much taste anyway. They scarf this down, a large amount, for 3 kids at lunch and leftover for whoever wants it for dinner. For maybe $2-2.50. Not bad.

Maybe this is my problem. When I make mac and cheese, I buy organic noodles, different type of RBST free cheeses (gouda, swiss and cheddar) mix with cream, milk, a little nutmeg and bake. The cheeses cost a lot and we usually don't finish them before they go bad! I guess my ingredients are too expensive. I made potato soup the other night and my family only ate 1/2 of it and refused to eat the rest (hubby HATES leftovers). So I ended up throwing it away and it cost a lot to make -- 10 organic potatoes, cumin, milk, cream, onions, garlic (all stuff I had to go buy b/c I was out of it). I was so annoyed. If I had opened a can of potato soup, would have saved me a lot of money!

Why didn't you freeze the 1/2 left over, and serve it in the following week? He wouldn't have noticed/remembered and even if he did, well, tough!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It would be nice to keep a thread going with more ideas. Like recipes and such. I am always at a loss for what to make

to the PP who mentioned cheaper to buy 2 boxes of mac and cheese vs making it homemade.

My homemade version (and the only one my daycare and own kids will eat) consists of a $1 box of elbow noodles (i only use maybe half the box), milk and margarine (already on hand) and about 8 slices of american cheese (usually on hand but you can get a package for a couple bucks, only using half the pack for this so maybe $1-1.50). My kids wont touch the boxes stuff and the USDA food program says it has to be home made. My kids wont touch it if I use cheddar cheese and I dont find cc gives much taste anyway. They scarf this down, a large amount, for 3 kids at lunch and leftover for whoever wants it for dinner. For maybe $2-2.50. Not bad.

Maybe this is my problem. When I make mac and cheese, I buy organic noodles, different type of RBST free cheeses (gouda, swiss and cheddar) mix with cream, milk, a little nutmeg and bake. The cheeses cost a lot and we usually don't finish them before they go bad! I guess my ingredients are too expensive. I made potato soup the other night and my family only ate 1/2 of it and refused to eat the rest (hubby HATES leftovers). So I ended up throwing it away and it cost a lot to make -- 10 organic potatoes, cumin, milk, cream, onions, garlic (all stuff I had to go buy b/c I was out of it). I was so annoyed. If I had opened a can of potato soup, would have saved me a lot of money!

Saturday dinner in our house growing up was "fend for yourself night". My mom cooked at least 4-5 nights during the week, but never on Saturday. There were always plenty of leftovers to choose from. I actually really like leftovers and bring them for lunch or will eat them as dinner again. Thankfully, DH will eat leftovers, too!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

We're big fruit eaters and I also do a lot of vegetarian meals. Right now I'm just counting the days until the Costco opens in Wheaton. Our savings on the milk bill alone will pay for the membership in about two months.

Target's prices for organic milk are about the same as Costco's last I checked.

[Anonymous]

Reviving an old post. I'm looking for ways to keep vegetables and fruit the main part of our diet. Where is a good place to buy fresh vegetables/fruits within a budget?

[Anonymous]

$150/week, family of 3. And it's not enough.