2013 $50 Weekly Menu Plan Week #17

2013 $50 Weekly Menu Plan Week #17: Spring veggies are available in abundance at reasonable prices at the local farmers market this week! Check out this weeks Frugal menu plan on a Budget, which happens to include some decent steaks, fried ice cream and fresh grilled asparagus. . ..

Picked up the following: Green Peppers, Corn on the Cob, Fresh Asparagus Spears, sweet peppers (red/yellow/orange), Baking Potatoes, Canola Oil, dried cherries, blueberries, lemons, pineapple, steaks, tomatoes, tea, milk, yogurt, apples, cream cheese, cantaloupe, vanilla ice cream, strawberries, total spent $44.19

Breakfast Choices this week:

• Egg White Omelets (Egg whites, diced veggies, seasonings)
• Blueberry Muffins
• Cinnamon Cherry Raisin French Toast
• Toasted English Muffins or Morning Sunrise Sandwiches
• Guilt Free Strawberry Shortcake Muffins
• Eggs- Poached, scrambled, fried, etc
• Raspberry Cream French Toast Fingers
• Fresh Fruit (always available) (Cantaloupe, Apples, Bananas, strawberries, pineapple)
• Fruit & Yogurt Parfaits(Blueberries/Strawberries/granola)

MondayApril 22nd, 2013: Earth Day

• Lunch: Leftover Macaroni Salad (Got to munch it before it goes to waste, next time I won’t make so much!)
• Dinner:Sesame Chicken, Jasmine Rice, Steamed Asparagus (cooking extra rice to use for tomorrows dinner!)

Tuesday April 23rd:

• Lunch: Honey Dijon Egg Salad Wraps
• Dinner: Sausage Stuffed Bell Peppers, Salad

Wednesday April 24th:

• Lunch: Leftover Sesame Chicken in Wraps
• Dinner:Montreal Grilled Steak, corn on the cob, Salad

Thursday April 25th:

• Lunch: Steak Wraps (thinly sliced steak, lettuce, tomatoes, jalapeno slices and touch of cheese in a wrap)
• Dinner:Swiss Crab Quiche (recipe will be available for viewing on 4/24/13!)

Friday April 26th:

• Lunch: Tuna Salad Wraps
• Dinner:Grilled Pork Loin, Mashed Potatoes, Copycat KFC Gravy, Salad

Saturday April 27th:

• Lunch: Shredded BBQ Pork Sandwiches (using homemade copycat applebees babyback rib sauce)
• Dinner: Asparagus Stuffed Chicken Breasts, Salad, Twice Baked Potato

Sunday April 28th:

• Brunch:Get together with friends, we’re supplying the eggs – making Raspberry Cream French Toast Fingers, friends are bringing various dishes including Spicy Sausage Crockpot Grits, homefries, etc.
• Dinner: Various Leftovers aka “Restaurant Night”

Various Snacks:

• Fresh Fruit– Apples, Bananas, blueberries, strawberries, pineapple
• Honey Crunch Granola Bars
• Pickled Eggs
• Microwave Popcorn
• Deviled Egg Dip & Veggies
• Fried Ice Cream

Drinks Available:A note about our drink offerings, while we do always have coffee and tea in the house, coffee is usually with breakfast, hot tea is usually in the evening and for the most part our other drinks consist of Water. We don’t “drink milk” at all, it is usually used in making homemade yogurt, or in cereals, baking, etc.
* Iced Tea (Unsweetened & Sweet Tea, various flavors)
* Coffee
* Hot Chocolate/Cocoa
* Lemonade

A few things we’d like to share with you: I know that we’ve mentioned that we raise chickens, but folks, when I say we have Eggs, I don’t mean that we have a dozen or two, I mean that we’re getting an average of 15-18 DOZEN per week!! So If you suddenly start seeing recipes, recipes and more recipes using eggs, I do apologize in advance. Rather than have our weekly get together in the late afternoon/early evening this week, we decided we’d rather do Brunch!

The most difficult part of sharing our $50 weekly menu plans is that we often get discouraging comments from people who are sitting back on their couch, judging what we eat. You would think, from some of these comments, that the majority of Americans are size 2-4 with perfectly shaped bodies and flawless skin, but the reality is, they’re not. The ones making these derogatory comments are more than likely just judgemental folks with nothing better to do than down other people and so I’ve learned to ignore those comments, for the most part. While we do like to occasionally indulge in treats like Fried Ice Cream or homemade churros, generally, our menus are very well balanced with fresh fruits, veggies and healthy proteins. The menus that we share are what we actually eat, as you can see by the plate photos, receipt scans and grocery photos that I sometimes manage to take before I put everything away. We understand that our menu doesn’t fit every family and it’s not supposed to, it’s what we eat, what we like and we share them to help other people realize that it Can be done with just a little bit of effort.

FYI Section:
It has been brought to our attention that a few folks who are just joining us are getting the wrong impression that we purchase EVERYTHING at once for each weeks menu plan. This is not the case at all, nor do we recommend it. We are incorporating items purchased or home canned weeks ago into the menu plan this week.

For Further reading/help we recommend the following:

• The 2012 Family Guide to Groceries under $250 a Month– a guide of how and where to cut grocery expenses to get spending under control while providing an eye-opening view of the dirty manipulation tactics retailers use to keep you spending. By the way, this eBook is FREE This Weekend April 26th & 27th!! So don’t forget to download your copy!!

• $50 Weekly Menu Plan Help across the USA–Do you find yourself struggling to reduce your grocery bill each month? Check out our Menu plan help across the USA to see if your area has been featured for more 1-on-1 help, if not, feel free to add your request to have your city/state featured.

• April Sales Trends-not sure what Should be on sale right now? Here is a list of the current Sales trends for the month of April, so you know what savings to expect

• Making Fruits & Veggies Last: At the beginning of each week we prepare the vegetables and fruits to make meal preparation easier during the week and to save money by preventing waste. You can read more about that here.

• How Spending $25 Now can save you Hundreds Later

• $50 Dollar Menu Frequently Asked Questions– a few of the most often asked questions regarding our $50 menu plans

  • Basic Questions– Why we don’t provide a shopping list, Random ingredients that aren’t in the shopping list, are groceries cheaper , etc
  • More Questions– more in depth questions regarding dietary guidelines, dealing with picky eaters, junk food and more