It was another money saving week in the grocery department here at Camp Butterfield. Money saving not because I bought groceries, but money saving because I dug through the freezers and prepared meals using things I already had on hand.
And the good news is, we are officially out of frozen soup, frozen desserts and prepared freezer meals with the exception of one last freezer meal lasagna.
It took nearly 8 weeks, but we did it! Now all that’s left in our two small chest freezers are a few packages of bacon, 2 whole chickens, 1 package of chicken breasts, some weenies and {still} a boatload of frozen fruit.
Oh, and there are a few more single serve guacamole cups in there too. But that’s pretty much it.
No ready made meals. What a weird feeling! I think I’m going to try and see if I can get all the food moved over to one freezer and unplug the other one for now.
Last week I tried a new chicken dish {it was just okay, no need to share the recipe} and made a pot of our favorite curry chicken. Both meals lasted us a few days, so that was nice.
We also used up the rest of the tomato and 8 can chicken taco soup that was in the freezer. Luckily I still have some canned tomatoes so I won’t be without my all time favorite soup for long.
We also used up the rest of the HH’s store bought bread for avocado toast and grilled cheese sandwiches. Which means I’ll need to make a loaf of no knead Dutch oven crusty bread this week so we have something to spread all that jam we have on.
And we did go out to eat once… To one of our favorite lobster shacks. Only I ordered the fish tacos and the HH had a burger.
It’s just a matter of weeks before most of the food joints shut down around here as the summer tourists have gone home. Then it will be back to crockpot meals and comfort food for us.
There was also cake! I only had a little bit of coconut left though so I couldn’t make the whole thing a German chocolate cake… But it all worked out in the end because it was like 2 cakes in one. Chocolate cake one day and German chocolate the next. 😉
Now that the freezers are pretty much cleaned out, it’s time to head to the store.
On my shopping list:
Cauliflower
Broccoli
Butternut Squash
Bananas
Apples
Heath baking chips
Marshmallows
Crackers
Milk
Eggs
While we have enough beans and rice to last the next millennium, without a fully stocked canning cupboard this year, we do need some “add ins”. So it’s back to the store for me. 🙁
While I’m excited to add more variety to our mealtimes, I’m not so excited about heading back to the grocery store. Maybe I should just do one giant stock up trip for the year and get it over with? We’ll see.
SO… How did you do this past week? Did you find any good deals?
~Mavis
Total Spent This Past Week on Groceries $0
- Total Spent in September on Groceries $0
- Total Spent in August for Groceries $13.04
- 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 $1,112.65 for our $100 a month grocery budget for 2
Rosemary says
I bought some “meal prep” aluminum pans from Publix (they were BOGO). My plan is to start saving leftovers in those pans and freezing it. That way we aren’t eating the same thing for days. When I cook, it is usually more than we can eat at one time. While I love leftovers, I also love not having to cook! Freezing the leftovers give me options – do I want to cook or not cook? Raspberries were on sale at Publix (BOGO) – I bought some so that I can make raspberry vinegar. In about 2 weeks I will know if it came out okay (or not).
I found a good deal on BabyBel cheese at Costco. It was on sale for 9.49 for a pack of 36 pieces (25.4oz). These make a great snack when you just need a little something to take away the munchies. I also bought cream cheese at Costco – a package of 6 (8oz) pks for 7.69. We go thru a lot of cream cheese . . .
AND, we have stayed within our budget so far this month! Not sure if we will end up that way, but for now all is good.
Lana says
We put together a trip to Publix utilizing the sales and ecoupons along with iBotta and came away with $102 worth of food for $22. We were pretty stoked!
Samantha says
I am with you on NOT going to the grocery store as often as possible..lol. I do stock ups for the freezer and pantry with Azure Standard and Costco a few times a year and then fill in with canning produce from my garden and the local farm stand. It’s so nice to be able to “shop” my pantry. I am hoping to have some luck this year with a fall/winter garden to carry us through with greens this winter. We will see how it goes!
Terry McA says
My freezer has bags of vegetables, a few packages of bacon, 1 whole chicken, and a pound of ground chicken. I took out the 2nd container of chili my mother brought me last week.
Last week was a hassle, I hope to never move again. If I do, I’m hiring a company to do it for me. Between the stress and hassle, school started so I am back to work! Meals this week will include chicken and dumplings, bacon & lettuce sammies, egg roll in a bowl, and leftovers. Tonight it’s the container of chili, I really don’t feel like cooking!
I have to take a trip after work on Friday to a nearby town that has a dent-and-bent grocery. I absolutely love shopping there, although they don’t have everything I usually need, they have quite a few items at half the price I would pay in the regular store. Looking forward to it!
Hope you all have a great week.
Rachel says
Great job on eating out of the freezer. You do know, don’t you, that freezers actually work better when they are full, even if it’s just jugs of water!
Linda Y says
I agree; however, it is good to do what Mavis is doing — emptying the freezer — because sometimes things get lost in the abyss. Maybe she wants to fill it with a Maine Moose? That would be something. 😉