Cook good food.
It sounds so simple, right? Eating out and take out is the easiest way to overspend! I remember years ago when my Winnipeg Besty and I were starting to figure out money, as in why we worked all the time and still didn’t have any of it?? 😂 As we went through our bank statements, we looked at our debit purchases and almost all of them were fast food. It’s crazy how much McDoubles can add up!
The biggest reason why we eat out is because we don’t plan well enough. Every morning if you wake up with that same question, what am I gonna make for dinner tonight? You set yourself up for failure. Once you make a plan for the week, Shop for those ingredients and print out the recipes, you are more than likely going to cook that dinner.
The key is to plan dinners that excite you. That’s what I do at least! Sometimes they don’t work out. Sometimes I love them and my kids hate them. Sometimes my kids love them and Ninja and I don’t 😂 However, once you start cooking good dinners, you won’t want to go out because you won’t want to spend stupid amounts of money on crappy food that makes you feel bloated, heavy, and guilty. Not when you can cook much better food at home! Not saying, you shouldn’t treat yourself, you should! I do, we usually have takeout once a week and try to support local 2 to 4 times a month. but on a day-to-day basis, I keep to my budget, because I make a plan, and stick to it, and I make good food.
To help you with your planning, I did another weekly meal plan staying under my budget of $156.62! That’s half of what economists think Canadians spend on groceries on a weekly basis. I want you to have all the tools to be able to feed your family 7 healthy(ish) meals, while not putting yourself into the poorhouse! I hope you enjoy and please let me know if you follow this weekly plan and if you were able to stick to the budget!
MENU
Sunday: Honey Mustard Pork Chops with Potatoes & Broccoli
Monday: Spinach Garlic Parmesan Orzo with Crispy Bacon
Tuesday: Ginger Beef, Mushroom & Spinach Stir Fry with Rice
Wednesday: Mexican Casserole with Tortilla Chips
Thursday: Eggs Benedict Breakfast Pastry with Strawberry Spinach Salad
Friday: Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
Saturday: Baked Bean Hotdogs with French Fries
These items are ALWAYS in my pantry or fridge. This tip bares repeating… As soon as I see an item running out it goes on the my shopping list. If they come up on my PC Points list or go on sale, I buy them. We have a second fridge in the garage, so I always have eggs, mayo, soy sauce, etc. on hand. It may take you a while and some money to get this system going but once you do… your wallet will thank you 🙂
Things I need for this week’s menu that I already have in my kitchen (my staple items) are listed below and in red.
Shopping List
salt and pepper
5 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 ½ teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoon cumin
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Tortilla Chips
1 cup cheese
2 green onions
2 tablespoons corn starch
1 packet of Hollandaise Sauce
1 jalapeño
2 red onion (I had 1)
I stock up on meat when it’s on sale so I only needed to buy the steak for this week. This is the meat we need at the prices of each.
I had a large pork loin I bought for $1.99/lb we cut it into 4 meals = $2.98/meal
3 chicken breasts:
I bought 9 breasts for $25.32 = $8.44 for 3 bre
MEAT = $25.27
Meat $25.27
Menu $57.04
Lunches & Stock Up $64.06
TOTAL= $146.37
$10.25 UNDER!!
Adapted from The Cookie Rookie
1 lb baby potatoes
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 boneless pork chops
salt and pepper to taste
½ cup chicken broth
⅓ cup honey
⅓ cup Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon ground paprika
Par-boil the baby potatoes in a pot with salted water until tender when pierced with a fork.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet and cook the baby potatoes until the skin in golden brown. Set aside.
Pat the pork chops dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper.
Using the same skillet, add another tablespoon olive oil and pork chops. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side, until cooked through. Set aside on a plate and cover with aluminum foil to rest.
In a small bowl, whisk together remaining olive oil, chicken broth, honey, mustard, and seasonings until well blended. Add to the skillet and cook on medium high heat until sauce thickens.
Return the potatoes and pork chops to the skillet and toss in the sauce. Serve with broccoli on the side.
8 slices bacon
1 2/3 cup uncooked orzo pasta
1/2 cup reserved pasta water, after pasta is done boiling
1 tablespoon butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, cut into matchsticks
1 can corn, drained
1 red bell pepper, cut into chunks
2 handfuls spinach
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
salt and pepper
Add bacon to a large skillet and place over medium heat, cook bacon until crispy. When done, reserve about a tablespoon of bacon grease in the pan and blot the bacon with a paper towel, then chop into pieces and set aside.
Place a large pot of water over high heat and add in a generous amount of salt. Once water boils, stir in the orzo and cook until al dente about 7-9 minutes. Once orzo is done cooking, drain pasta and set aside in the colander. Remember to reserve ½ cup of the pasta water.
Place the pan with the bacon grease over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, carrot, corn, mushrooms and bell pepper and sauté for 2 minutes.
Add the spinach and cook until the spinach wilts, about 2 minutes. Add the cooked orzo back into the pan and turn the heat to low. Stir in the reserved pasta water, parmesan, garlic powder and red chili pepper flakes.
Finally, stir in bacon crumbles. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Adapted from Gimmie Some Oven
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons corn starch
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 lb. sirloin steak, cut across the grain into thin strips
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
8 ounces mushrooms, halved
4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, halved
3 cups spinach, chopped
2 green onions, thinly sliced
Add soy sauce, chicken broth, rice wine vinegar, corn starch, ginger, black pepper to a ziplock bag and shake to combine. Add the steak and gently toss to combine. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Remove steak from marinade with a slotted spoon, reserving the marinade, and add to saute pan with garlic. Saute for about 2-3 minutes until browned, stirring occasionally. Remove steak with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan. Then add in the mushrooms, spinach, and reserved marinade, and stir to combine. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the spinach is wilted, the sauce has thickened and come to a boil, and the mushrooms have cooked, stirring regularly so that sauce does not burn. Add in the steak, and toss to combine.
Serve with rice garnished with green onions.
Mexican Casserole
Adapted from Pinch of Yum
2 assorted bell peppers
1 jalapeño
1/2 red onion (I had a bit of white onion so I threw that in too.)
1 can corn, drained
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup Mexican cheese (I used marble cheese)
2 flour tortillas tortillas
1 can refried beans
1 can red enchilada sauce
cilantro and sour cream for topping
Heat a large nonstick skillet with a little bit of oil over high heat. Add the onion and peppers and corn, sprinkle with chili and cumin, and stir until browning on the outside of the veggies. Add spinach (if using) and stir until wilted. Sprinkle the roasted veggies with a little bit of salt and toss to coat. Set aside.
Layer in order: half of the bean covered tortilla strips, half of the veggies, half of the sauce, half of the cheese. Cover with the other half of the tortilla strips, veggies, sauce, and cheese.
Cover loosely with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted. Serve with cilantro and sour cream.
Adapted from The Tipsy Housewife
1 tube of crescent rolls
4 eggs
6 slices of deli ham, finely diced
salt and pepper
Dry herb of your choice (I used everything bagel spice)
1 packet of Hollandaise Sauce
Unroll the the crescent rolls. Make four sections and s
eal the perforations to make 4 complete rectangles. Add the rectangles to a cookie sheet sprayed with non stick spray or a baking mat. Roll the edges of each rectangle to make a border. Crack an egg into each one carefully. Use a pastry brush and brush the edges with some of the egg whites that are in each pastry. Add the ham to each rectangle. Season with salt, pepper, and dried herbs of your choice.
Make the hollandaise sauce according to the package directions.
Strawberry Spinach Salad
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons white onion, minced
Tear spinach into bite-sized pieces. Cut strawberries into quarters. Combine sugar, oil, vinegar, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, paprika,
Worcestershire sauce, and onion and mix well. Toss with spinach and strawberries.
On Cinco de Mayo, we ate delicious chicken fajitas! This recipe is so freaking easy I almost feel guilty, sharing it with you! Mix everything together, put it on a sheet pan to bake, and then eat! Add salsa, sour cream, or make a batch of fresh pico and you have yourself an amazingly simple, but absolutely delicious Mexican dinner!
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
1 lbs chicken breasts, cut into strips
2 bell peppers, cut into strips
1 red onion, cut into strips
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste
2 cloves garlic, minced
4-6 flour tortillas
toppings: sour cream, cilantro and salsa
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a very large rimmed baking sheet with baking mat or spray with cooking spray.
In a bowl, combine the olive oil, lime juice, seasonings, and garlic. Mix in the chicken, bell peppers, and onion.
Microwave tortilla wraps for 15 seconds, top warm tortillas with fajita mix, cilantro, sour cream and salsa.
Baked Bean Hotdogs with French Fries
4-6 slices bacon
1 can beans in tomato sauce
1/4 cup white onion, diced
4 teaspoons yellow mustard
BBQ hot dogs and then place in buns with a slice of bacon each. Top each hotdog with baked beans, onion and yellow mustard. Serve with fries.
