Week 9

Week 9
03/18/2012
Cumin 1.99
Tomatoes 1.21
Green leaf lettuce 1.49
Almonds, diced 2.99
Cottage cheese 1.49
Vanilla ice cream 4.49
Salsa 2.50
Maraschino cherries 1.49
Green cabbage .88
Grocery 1.89 (??)
Oranges 1.22
Bananas 1.02
Sweet potatoes 1.79
Half and half 2.39
Onions 2.37
Neuchatel cream cheese 1.69
Raisins 1.10
Ginger root .15
Butter 3.99
Flour 2.29
Brown sugar 2.29
Sugar, 5lb. 3.99
Cheese 2.99
Stew meat 4.00
Ground beef 3.63
Total 55.33

Overbudget? Not exactly, in the long run I will be on budget. I have my son coming home in a couple of days for Spring Break for about 7 or 8 days. When he was here over Christmas, I did not have to shop after he left for much for about a month after. That was in January and I hardly spent anything on food for about 4 to 5 weeks after. I like to have premade - my own homemade, premade foods in the frig for him so he can easily heat things up.
Yes, you can see, I bought ice cream, maraschino cherries and nuts - a splurge and I made hot fudge sauce...a treat for myself that will last for a long time. See my previous blog for the Hot Fudge recipe, keep it in the frig and it will last about a month. A little rich decadence, once in a while, goes a long way!
I am thrilled Chris will be home, if only for a short time! And like any mom, I like to feed him my own home cooking and I know he loves it. Often he will ask when walks in 'What kind of baked goods do you have?' When he left for school, I sent him with homemade bread and pumpkin bread and brownies.
One item grocery - I am not quite sure what this is, will have to double check my cupboards and frig again - beats me. I tried to watch carefully as she rang me up, so I am sure all the prices are right, this one eludes me but I'll figure it out. Hmmm, this is interesting, I, also, bought green onions and broccoli and both of these are not on the receipt. Maybe they were put in together? The price of 1.89 would be about right for the both of them and would fall under the category grocery. Interesting. Learn always to watch as they ring you up - and read your receipt thoroughly for any mistakes. This does not seem like a costly mistake on either end, so I won't take my receipt back. If I felt I was overcharged or owed more for something - I'd go back.
You will notice I buy stew meat often. It's great for stews and chili but last night I made a great stir fry - a huge stir fry that will last a few days and is great to take to lunch. I cut the meat into smaller pieces and broke some spaghetti(cooked) and tossed that in with broccoli, onions, cabbage, ginger and garlic. This was a huge, filling meal with lots of flavor from soy sauce and a little toasted sesame oil.
I'm sure I'll shop once more while Chris is here, and any excess will go into the freezer or be sent with him as a care package.
Overbudget??? Just watch, it will balance out with plenty leftover!