Welcome to our $100 A Month Grocery Budget For 2 – Week 28 of 52. So far our current grocery store purchases for 2023 comes to $1094.97. Well, the good news is we didn’t spend a dime on groceries this past week thanks to the major stock up trip the HH did at Costco a week and a half ago.
Our fridge is still packed with all sorts of ready made goodness and CHEESE. And tons of fruits and vegetables. Which is a good thing because our garden isn’t faring so well this year due to the record amount of rain we’ve been getting up here in Maine.
We also received another 2, YES 2 care packages from my Mother In Law. {She is in LOVE with the website GoldBelly.} I don’t know what to say. Some people love QVC and others, well, they like Gold Belly I guess.
I’M NOT COMPLAINING.
I think Lucy might be a little confused though. 😉
This time around it was a a giant box of fruits and vegetables. Anyone got any ideas on what to do with all the ginger!?
And then there was a 5 pound box of cherries. {It took us 3 days to eat those.}
I don’t know man… Maybe all this rain we’ve been having is a good thing. I mean, who doesn’t love a care package? Or twenty?
With all this produce in the fridge though, mealtime is starting to get a little interesting around here. HA HA HA…
If we want to stay on track with our $100 a month grocery budget for 2 this year, that would mean we only have $106.93 left to spend for the year {about $4.45 a week for the next 24 weeks}. I’m not holding my breath. But who knows. 😉
How’s it going at YOUR place these days? Have you been eating anything exciting lately?
~Mavis
*****
Total Spent This Past Week on Groceries $0
- Total Spent on Groceries for July $376.89
- Total Spent on Groceries in June $41.56
- Total Spent on Groceries in May $288.51
- Total Spent on Groceries in April $35.36
- Total Spent on Groceries in March $82.28
- Total Spent on Groceries in February $101.14
- Total Spent on Groceries in January $167.33 {this includes buying groceries on Fair Isle}
- Total Spent on Groceries in 2023 $1093.07 for my $100 a month grocery budget for 2
Lynda says
Peel, chop and freeze the ginger bits. Easy, peasy when a recipe calls for ginger.
Jam says
This is what I do too. I mince it, freeze it flat on a cookie sheet and then put in a couple ziploc bags to pull from for months.
Rhonda says
I also mince it, but then I put about 1/3-1/2 cup in a zippered sandwich bag and press it really flat. Then I freeze it laying flat and break off a little piece when I need it for a recipe. If there is too much ginger in the bag and it is too thick in the bag, it is difficult to break off a small chunk.
I use it with teriyaki sauce, Korean beef, Ethiopian food, and many other meals.
Anna Himes says
I love lemon ginger tea, homemade beef and broccoli, and egg roll in a bowl.
Julie says
Can the ginger be dehydrated to use later for tea? I like pickled ginger. You could have a bake-a-thon making gingerbread and ginger cookies. Your mother-in-law has a big heart thinking about you and wanting you both to be healthy with all the fresh produce she is sending.
Alice says
Throw the entire ginger in the freezer in a baggie and grate from it whenever you need ginger. Stays good for a long time. No need to peel before freezing. I also slice the frozen ginger for stir fry.
Joely says
I do the same. it lasts forever!
Margo says
I didn’t know you didn’t need to peel it first. I peel, then cut into chunks, wrap each chunk in a little wax paper, and freeze them in a baggie. Then I can use my micro plane to get fresh ginger as I want. Maybe I’ll skip a few steps next time and just freeze it. Thanks!
Ca says
Ditto, I used to toss out a lot ginger until I found this trick.
Mary G says
This is what I do too!
Emily says
Run the ginger through the food processor and freeze in portions that you would use in a recipe. I have several curry recipes that use a half tsp, so that’s the increments I use. The best part is you don’t even have to peel it before food processing.
Carrie says
What attachment do you use on the processor? A grater or the blade at the bottom?
Beth says
Your MIL is awesome for sending you wonderful gift boxes! My daughter and I went to Whole Foods last week because they had ice cream and frozen treats on sale and if you’re a prime member, it was 35% off. We decided to buy expensive pints of ice cream we’ve never had and boy oh boy did we find a winner! Van Leeuwen ice cream…it’s the bomb! We got a few flavors and all are delicious…apparently they have ice cream shops but not in Idaho.
This week is supposed to be 100 degrees or more every day except today so I think salads, fruit, sandwiches and pickety bits are on the menu for this week. Oh and ice cream and popsicles! I purchased 4 popsicle molds from Target that are so cute- sharks, unicorns, monsters and cat/dog- I love them because they stack on top of each other and they are so fun.
Melonie K. says
I make ginger syrup for adding to seltzer, lemonade – also handy for helping with itchy throat or clearing sinuses (with some honey & warm water) during allergy and cold/flu seasons. And I looooove pickled ginger!
Molly says
I love you, Mavis, but it seems a little disingenuous to say you are only going to spend so much on groceries per year while getting really expensive care packages from your mother-in-law. I appreciate you mentioning that you’re getting the care packages but realistically they should be added to your budget because you are eating them as groceries. I went to that site because I was interested in doing a care package for my son who is across the country. Everything was very expensive!
Realistically, I don’t think it is possible to spend $100 a month ($1200 a year) on groceries. Maybe 10 or 20 years ago but definitely not today. It’s a nice exercise in self restraint and being aware of what you’re buying, but it’s just not feasible in today’s world. Not without some help!
Mavis Butterfield says
There is nothing disingenuous about it. We didn’t ask for a care package. It was a gift.
If a neighbor brought over a pie, or a giant basket of vegetables from their garden, would you count it as “grocery money spent”? I wouldn’t. A gift is a gift. 🙂
We gave our old neighbor Kiln Guy buckets and buckets of tomatoes last summer from our garden and they turned them into sauce and salsa. Pretty cool if you ask me. https://www.onehundreddollarsamonth.com/stocking-up-on-canned-goods/
Elise says
Absolutely spot on Mavis!
Couldn’t agree more. Fancy food gifts like that are given with love, not meant to supplement a lack of food. I receive food gifts every Christmas, I dont rely on them, I enjoy them!
Also I have to defend that $100/month is still totally doable. It just requires adjusting what we eat (ahem, more beans & rice and soups)!
Monica Brown says
Totally agree, Mavis. Nothing disingenuous about it at all! It is a gift and I am SO GLAD you share your gifts with us.
Brianna says
I think there is a stage in life when you just send people what you know they will love. Some people like stuff, others edibles, others experiences, etc. I always send my friends and family edible gifts because they do not want more “stuff” at their age. It is just a nice way to let someone know you are thinking of them and the greatest gift as the giver is knowing your gift will be an enjoyed splurge by the recipient. MIL is trying to show some compassion for the fruits of their labor potentially lost with a genuine care and concern for the disappointment Mavis and Hubby feel.
If you know some of the background, this family has an interesting history of food gifts…..from boxes of corn on the cob for birthdays to shoeboxes filled with hotel toiletries and swag to trading veggies for items from Mrs. HB pantry to collecting ugly/damaged produce from a grocery store to feed the chickens.
Natsi says
This is really funny! I just got a meal delivered by a friend. Do I count up what it may have cost her to prepare it and add that to my budget?!
Deanna says
I don’t think this is disingenuous at all – the packages are not “groceries” as much as gifts/treats and they definitely are not something you would buy for yourself at those prices. I would love to get 3-5 pounds of perfect cherries as a gift and while I regularly buy cherries at the farmers market, they are not the perfect gift cherries being sent. Mavis has no control over how much her MIL spends on these gifts so expecting her to reduce her own budget on groceries is not realistic. I applaud your MIL for understanding what type of gift will bring you real joy – I hope I am as good at figuring out what my kids really want in the future!
Ashley Bananas says
As much as I agree that there are other supplements to the food budget in Mavis’ household, it’s her blog so I understand she’s counting up what she spends on food only in these posts. I think it’s great that she also shows that there are other sources of food coming into the home from gifts or gardening, she also documents when they eat out.
Once a long time ago I asked if she would consider adding things like toiletries etc to this list, but for her it’s just the food she is buying. I do think if you added in pet food for Lucy, toiletries, paper products for the kitchen/bath, and then garden expenses it would be a much higher total. But for the purpose of the Monday blog posts the focus is on food purchased.
Mel says
Ginger iced tea, ginger cookies, stir fry, teriyaki sauce, etc.
Mavis Butterfield says
Ginger cookies! Now there’s an idea.
Mel says
I forgot ginger ice cream! Make ice cream sandwiches with the cookies too.
Linda Sand says
Ginger is helpful to reduce nausea. Motion sickness or morning sickness–it helps with both. I’m currently eating ginger snaps to help with motion sickness as I get used to new bifocals.
I make a dish of boneless chicken breasts topped with pears and ginger before baking.
Tracy says
Your mother-in-law sounds pretty fabulous. And I’m sorry for all the rain you’ve been having. We’re suffering the same thing in southern NY state. 🙁
Cecile Hoare says
Slice up all that ginger in your food processor or mandolin and boil up some simple syrup, toss in the ginger add to jars then water bath process it. It will last practically forever sealed. Your little Weck’s jars would be great to use for this, smaller containers so you don’t have to unseal a huge jar. When I get mine from our food delivery guys I tend to slice it up and add it to a half litre jar of unpasteurized honey then pop it in the refrigerator. Starting in mid October I take a tbsp of the ginger infused honey syrup every day through to the end of February/mid March to ward off the bugs! Following it up with a hot lemon tea is perfect for the cold weather. If you want it just for flavour add it directly to the hot tea!
Cecile Hoare says
I forgot to mention, I use the slices of ginger from the honey jar in recipes, specially Asian dishes and baking!
Leslie says
Well, it would be interesting, budget wise, to add a supplemental column that includes gifts — obviously these are supplementing budget. Meanwhile, I’d also count the amount spent on the garden/gardening, even if you only get one tomato. You bought hundreds of dollars of tomato and other plants this year, I think.
That way you’d have a more accurate idea of the cost of the food you eat, even if you didn’t buy it yourself.
And for some reason, her mother-in-law sends this stuff frequently — not just during a wet summer.
Kris says
Thank you for this series! It’s my favorite. I have learned so much from you about stretching food dollars. I love that you introduced big salads on plates with everything piled high to pickety bits. Those are some of our family favorites now and I can use up all bits and bobs from my fridge and pantry. 🙂 We also eat your homemade soups year round. Next, I am going to try to recreate your Dutch oven bread.
Lisa Manis says
For the ginger, wellness shots, and switch.
Kathleen W says
I love the term bits and bobs
When my daughter was little she decided she wouldn’t eat leftovers because her babysitter’s husband wouldn’t. So I renamed them little bit of this and little bit of that. That worked! Bits and Bobs sounds cuter
Vy says
Plant the ginger and then sell it at the farm stand next year 🙂 I’ve had good luck, it grows easily.
Chyrl says
I think your MIL is a sweetheart! I love Goldbelly! We order lobster roll kits from some of Maine’s lobster shacks because you’re not going to run across one in Texas. I also order what our family thinks is the best coconut cake ever from a bakery in Mississippi. As for a couple of the commenters on this post, well bless your heart!
Chris M says
While we were traveling in Scotland last year, we discovered rhubarb ginger jam. It was delicious! I found a recipe online and made it. It did use a form of dried ginger in addition to the fresh ginger, which I got at Trader Joe’s.
Cindy Brick says
Hey Mavis —
Garden? What garden? All I have now is ONE small tomato…which the grasshoppers, who decimated everything else, ignored. Unless you count a lot of leafless sticks.
The only gardening success was the two peppermint cuttings, which have rooted nicely. But the last mint I planted, at our old house, dominated the flowerbed. I suspect it had visions of moving into the house and routing (rooting?) us out of bed. Truly, it was scary.
It’s too late to plant anything here for now, since the summer heat has kicked in. I might try some greens later IF the grasshoppers are gone. They’re getting bigger, and trying to get into the house — which I suspect means they’re toward the end of their cycle.
I have had good success keeping ginger for MONTHS by submerging it in a jar of sherry or Chinese wine. The alcohol takes on a nice flavor as I use up the ginger in Chinese dishes. (Or I add more as the level gets lowers.)
Pickled ginger is good alongside sushi.
Karen says
Make crystallized ginger – not sure how easy it is to make – but its lovely!
Holley says
A little while ago I made ginger biscotti! They were delicious!!!
Mary Keen says
Mavis you do you. I think it is wonderful to receive food as gifts. I don’t need a list of what is a gift. Just enjoy the love folks. It is just fun to see what your budget is anyways.
Enjoy
kari says
Make switchel with the ginger! I also freeze ginger whole, grate what I need and place it back in the freezer.