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The EASIEST Extreme Budget Meal Plan to Tame the Grocery BudgetBudget meal planning -
A creamy, tomato-y pasta is always a good idea. This one absolutely does not feel like a budget meal! Once hot, add the sausage, break it up with a spatula, and cook it through. Once cooked, remove any excess grease from the pot, then add the remaining ingredients.
Stir, cover with a lid, and bring to a simmer. DO NOT BOIL, or the milk will separate. Let simmer, stirring often, for minutes or until the pasta is tender. Lentils are such a wholesome ingredient and are so inexpensive.
All you have to do is rinse them with water and do a quick pass for any little pebbles that may have snuck through during packing. To a large Dutch oven or pot on the stove over medium heat, add the olive oil. Once hot, add the onion and let cook for a few minutes, or until softened a bit.
Add the remaining ingredients, stir, and bring to a simmer. Let simmer, covered, for minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the lentils are tender, serve and enjoy!
As I mentioned before, lentils are a staple in my extreme budget meal plan. For this recipe, I use chili powder and paprika to pair with the enchilada sauce. Cook lentils according to the package instructions and remove any excess liquid from the cooked lentils.
Stir in all of the seasonings. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with nonstick spray. Pour half of the can of the enchilada sauce into the baking dish. Place the rest of the corn tortillas over the top and pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the tortillas.
Sprinkle cheese on top, if using. Bake for 30 minutes. Top with your favorite taco toppings, serve, and enjoy! Canned tuna is an amazing affordable protein that is filling and nutritious.
Boil the pasta according to the package instructions. To a large skillet over medium heat, add the oil. Once hot, add the onion and frozen vegetables and cook for minutes. Stir in the flour, then slowly stir in the milk and pasta water. Once simmering not boiling , add the tuna and seasonings and cook for a couple minutes, until warmed through.
Stir in the cooked pasta, serve, and enjoy. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Sign me up for the newsletter!
Welcome here! I'm Julia, a wife and mother to two lovely daughters who LOVES cooking for my family! You only need basic kitchen items to cook with me! Subscribe to my Youtube or my newsletter for new recipes weekly!
Thank you for all the support 🧡. Email address:. Home » Extreme Budget Meal Plan. Extreme Budget Grocery List: To make seven meals, you only need to grab about 20 items from the store!
Potato Sausage Casserole One of my secret ingredients is frozen hash browns! Also, home made tomato soup is SUPER EASY! and you can make big batches and freeze them for later. Hi Kate, hope this will help Steph over at Cheapskatecook. com and Beth at Budget Bytes. com have wonderful inexpensive recipes Merissa at Little House Living as well.
We have Farm Share that comes to our area no qualifying also food banks and local churches. Sending lots of positive thoughts and prayers your way. There are four grocery stores within a few miles of my house.
The sales get very predictable after a while. Here are some examples. The list of cheap foods goes on forever. My foods always tastes good because I rarely rush to cook a meal. I take my time to make sure that I get every detail as perfect as possible. Attention to details can make anything including oatmeal taste great.
Here is another example. Put your glasses in the freezer about an hour before super. At the last minute put refrigerated water in the glasses and serve. I get lots of compliments from my family because I make water seem special with white frost on the glass. This is plain ordinary tap water.
That is great idea with the water glasses. I am not terribly excited when it is just plain glass of water. Thank you so much! This is fantastic!! And as a base set up for you to go on to feed your family, SPOT ON!!
I buy any meat on sale.. we at in the backwoods so we hunt and fish frequently so those meats are used prior to buying more. This has saved us a ton!! This is for real life!
My friends keep encouraging me to try meal plans that will RAISE my food budget. This looks doable and would LOWER the food budget! Thankyou for posting this. We are a family of 7 and find it really hard right now to feed our kids. You can make it through!
I signed up for the download a total of three times and no link appeared or did I receive anything in my email. Hi Diana!
Send me an email here: tiffany at dontwastethecrumbs dot com and I can get it sorted out for you! I literally cried when I read this. Thank you so much for posting! I had to quit my job because my Lupus was getting too bad to work, and then my husband had his hours cut.
I knew I had to make some major cuts, and this article makes me feel much better and much more motivated. I can do this! God bless you and thank you again xoxox. I have a family of 5. Stealing from another meal plan that I am combining to incorporate different ideas, hard boiled eggs for lunch is a good protein and also filling.
My two three year olds even peel them by themselves. Surprises me every time. You can pair this with a fruit and go to town.
I use some to make a quiche. It is a protein, great veggie, and a dairy with calcium. You can add toast if you can afford the extra bread. Adding eggs does not increase your budget a lot and they can go very far. This is definitely a way I would add variety.
For breakfast, consider cinnamon toast a little butter and some cinnamon. Also, mine like to have yogurt and dip apples in it. To beef up the protein content in this, I use vanilla greek yogurt that I buy by the tub. This lasts a long time.
Lastly, a box of pancake mix and smash bananas up in your pancakes. This makes them include a little something extra and even oatmeal tastes good in these if you have it from your other breakfasts. I have taught mine to like pancakes without syrup.
I cut it up into strips so they eat it with their hands that way. It was something new and different and was an easy transition away from sugary syrup. Pancake mix will last a long time so if you get a decent, but cheap box you can use it for a few weeks. Lastly, carrots are pretty cheap.
I buy the petite ones, a few bags at aldis. I boil them or steam them. My kids still prefer their carrots soft. Your nine month old could probably eat them too. Mine will eat half a bag if they are soft and I am not watching them.
i live in NJ, not sure if the food price is lower here. i think the price of the foods play such a big role in this. i only buy the things that go on sale also or shop at walmart only.
i usually get a little lost when it comes to lunch time lol so thank you so much for this post. Also do you have downloadable recipes anywhere? My husband is in medical school and we just moved to a new state so I stay home with our three month old until I can find a job and someone to watch her.
We have a very low monthly grocery budget and I need help! Hi Alex! The link to download appears towards the end, a few seconds after the page loads. Like a simple roasted chicken, that can be made into multiple meals like chicken salad, or chicken enchiladas and chicken stock!
Freezing veggie cut offs from celery, onions, carrots etc and making stock. Using basic pantry ingredients to make sauces, soups, marinades, and dressings. Also, much healthier! I can whip up smoothies, sorbets, ice creams, and most anything using up scraps.
I agree with everything you said, including the blender. I wish my family could live off of this much food. My husband is training for an ultra marathon and needs a lot of calories and protein.
Chicken, berries, Budgef milk were Healthy aging workshops sale this week — so I built my grocery list from plwnning. I Vegan athlete performance enhancers let the flyer Healthy aging workshops dictate plnning my Healthy aging workshops will look like, but I always Budgt it to provide inspiration. When I look at what different meats, produce, and pantry staples are on sale, I decide what direction I'll take. This also includes getting creative with leftovers. Sometimes, eating leftovers all the time can get old, but I try to remember that I can always use different components of my leftovers to create new meals. This also means that we don't always need to be scared of higher cost items.Budget meal planning -
When I ask them to help pick out recipes usually with them looking at pictures , I find that they are more excited to eat them.
I will also let them pick what they want for their lunch, snacks, and fruit and veggies for the week! I don't supply endless options. I'm not going to overbuy produce that will end up going bad in the fridge without being used. I'm not going to be a vending machine for pantry snacks.
My kids get to pick what they want their non-recipe veggies, fruits, and snacks to be for the week, and we usually pick two options for each category.
One budget flop I did make this week was accidentally spending more than intended on the dried cranberries. Oftentimes, I will add things to my shopping list way in advance so that I don't forget to add them when it comes time to shop.
A past version of me decided it would be a good time to stock the pantry with dried cranberries. I made my sourdough starter using flour and water awhile back. Although I didn't create the actual starter this week, it's one staple now in my house that we always lean on.
Last week, I tried to give my 2-year-old a store-bought piece of bread, and she threw an absolute fit telling me she wanted the homemade sourdough.
At the end of the day, it's shocking how much money I save each week by taking minutes every few days that's the pace in our house to make a loaf or two! Many Instant Pots have a specific 'yogurt' function — but mine does not, so I use these instructions. This process is extremely simple, but it does take patience.
I also roasted a few chicken thighs and put the remaining thighs in the freezer for later in the week. After lots of ideas of what I could tell them they were called, I ended up going with "they're purple and special, eat them.
I ended up yielding about 2. Since most of us made burrito bowls Monday night instead of actual burritos, we had a lot of tortillas left, making it a perfect swap for my son.
The granola has such a subtle sweetness, which I love, and it only takes about 5 minutes to prepare. The rest of the time it takes to prepare is very hands-off with just baking and cooling.
A quick side note: I've also added oat butter into the yogurt bowl before and that is so creamy and a delicious addition. I was prepared to have a lot of rice to utilize for the week, so while I made some to pair with the Greek chicken, I made sure to make double what I normally would.
I still thought this was a delicious, cold breakfast — but I definitely enjoyed it more while it was warm! I didn't have all the required ingredients for the exact recipe so I improvised with the leftover blood oranges, yogurt, and orange juice.
The blood oranges turned the whole thing purple, which worked well because that just happens to be my daughter's favorite color. I love prepping breakfast sandwiches, and making the eggs on a sheet pan is the ultimate trick! The eggs come out flat, which is perfect for stacking on a sandwich, and it allows you to easily assemble a large amount of sandwiches in a short amount of time.
I used the biscuits as the bread component and wrapped them for the freezer for later in the week. My 4-year-old loved this meal. We had to tell her a few times to use her silverware because she kept digging in with her hands.
When I make this again, I'd add a bit more liquid! This could be an alteration needed due to higher elevation, but thought I'd mention it. We are hoping for a prosperous garden this year so that we can rely more on our homegrown herbs and veggies! I wasn't really sure how the noodles would play out, but I figured the lemon flavors would be a natural fit with the rest of the recipe.
I thawed the chicken thighs I put in the freezer earlier in the week and got to slicin'. Since I was also using the leftover pasta, I wasn't sure we had the full 8 oz the recipe called for. I knew adding in extra veggies would be a good way to bulk everything up!
I was really thankful I used the lemon noodles for this dish, because the bright flavors still shined through! Follow these tips for creating a healthy meal plan on a budget each week. Proteins, like chicken or beef, tend to be the most costly items on the grocery list, so build a meal plan around items that are on sale.
Consider seasonal produce, which tends to be cheaper, like asparagus in the spring and fresh berries in the summer. Keep a stock of cheap staples like eggs and canned tuna that can be used in multiple meals throughout the week.
Hard-boiled eggs add protein to your morning avocado toast or your kid's lunchbox. Canned tuna becomes an easy meal-prep filling for lunch wraps and doubles as melts for a quick dinner.
When shopping, keep an eye out for deals and stock up when stuff goes on sale. Pound for pound, plant-based proteins like lentils and canned beans are a steal compared to animal proteins.
Plus, research suggests that eating more plants is good for our health. Add in a few meatless options throughout the week for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.
Assigning theme-night meals based on different meal types—like Slow-Cooker Sunday, Meatless Monday or Stir-Fry Friday—or based on pantry staples like brown rice and whole-grain pasta think Rice Bowl Thursday or Pasta Wednesday is a good way to stick to your budget and also reduce meal-planning decision fatigue.
Adding in a leftover night or two! is also a good idea. Pack up tonight's leftovers for tomorrow's lunch, or transform whatever is left into another meal for the family. Make loaded sweet potatoes with leftover chili, a frittata to use up any remaining cooked spaghetti noodles, or burritos with the last of a roasted chicken.
This week, I'm keeping things simple with no-cook breakfast options , versatile meal-prep lunches and kid-friendly dinners that come together in about 30 minutes or less. To minimize food waste and save on groceries, I'll use many of the same ingredients for multiple meals.
Planning simple, quick breakfasts I can serve in minutes is key to less-chaotic mornings in our house. I'll meal-prep a big batch of overnight oats to be eaten on demand during the week or packed up to-go. Or, I'll toast a stack of whole-wheat bread and let everyone choose their toppings.
On the Menu. Budget Ingredients. Rolled oats, whole-wheat bread, bananas, frozen berries. Creamy Blueberry-Pecan Overnight Oatmeal. Everything Bagel Avocado Toast. Peanut Butter-Banana Cinnamon Toast. We keep lunch extra-easy in my house with snack-style lunches for the kids and salads or rice bowls for the adults.
Meal-prepping a few ingredients in advance minimizes cooking during the week and allows everyone to help assemble their own lunch. I like to have a couple of protein options, a batch of cooked grains, and some washed lettuce and cut vegetables on hand.
Check out our best base recipes for meal prep for inspiration for what to make. Eggs, canned black beans, brown rice, leftover vegetables from dinner. Egg Salad Lettuce Wraps. I rely heavily on a well-planned dinner menu because this is where I spend the bulk of my grocery budget plus it ensures I'm not scrambling to find something to serve come 6 p.
Stir in all of the seasonings. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with nonstick spray. Pour half of the can of the enchilada sauce into the baking dish. Place the rest of the corn tortillas over the top and pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the tortillas.
Sprinkle cheese on top, if using. Bake for 30 minutes. Top with your favorite taco toppings, serve, and enjoy! Canned tuna is an amazing affordable protein that is filling and nutritious.
Boil the pasta according to the package instructions. To a large skillet over medium heat, add the oil. Once hot, add the onion and frozen vegetables and cook for minutes. Stir in the flour, then slowly stir in the milk and pasta water. Once simmering not boiling , add the tuna and seasonings and cook for a couple minutes, until warmed through.
Stir in the cooked pasta, serve, and enjoy. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Sign me up for the newsletter! Welcome here! I'm Julia, a wife and mother to two lovely daughters who LOVES cooking for my family!
You only need basic kitchen items to cook with me! Subscribe to my Youtube or my newsletter for new recipes weekly! Thank you for all the support 🧡. Email address:. Home » Extreme Budget Meal Plan. Extreme Budget Grocery List: To make seven meals, you only need to grab about 20 items from the store!
Potato Sausage Casserole One of my secret ingredients is frozen hash browns! Potato Hot Dog Dinner Variations of hot dog stews and hashes have been around for the last century.
One Pot Sausage Pasta A creamy, tomato-y pasta is always a good idea.
A Healthy aging workshops, planningg dinner meal Mindful eating habits to mela you time and money Planniing week. According to the U. Mexl of Agriculture USDAAmericans are spending, on average, Thankfully, meal planning and cooking at home can help you save some serious cash. Combine this meal plan with budget-friendly breakfast and lunch recipes to save even more during the week. Get the Printable Shopping List Here. Pictured Recipe: Tomato Bun Tuna Melt.
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