Welcome to Frugal Workshop where every Monday I share the simple strategies used to save money in my kitchen over the past week, along with the meals that made it to our dinner table. You'll find practical tips on how we saved money on food hopefully to inspire your own meal planning using the foods you have in your own pantry.
My Frugal Week
Last Monday I stopped at the local peach orchard and picked up some of the season’s first peaches. The kind where the juice runs down your arm when you eat one and they are so sweet.
Bailey had an event in Chattanooga on Saturday afternoon and needed a designated driver, so I volunteered. After dropping her off, I headed to Whole Foods.
I packed most of my salad ingredients from home in my food thermos and just picked up a few items from the salad bar since I was out of lettuce.
I don’t know if you’ve ever bought and made your own salad at Whole Foods, but they can get expensive since they are $9.99 per pound.
So, once at the salad bar I put lettuce, dried cranberries, red bell peppers, croutons, chickpeas, and black beans into one of their food containers. At the table I added my own ingredients brought from home and make a very nice salad for my lunch. I used cottage cheese from home as my dressing.
The salad bar items I picked came to just $3.10, and by topping it with the ingredients I brought from home, I ended up with a fresh, filling meal for very little money. A little planning can definitely save some money.
And finally, this week’s haul from the Mennonite Farm Stand. Corn, melons, red onions, red peppers, and tomatoes. The corn came from the People Helping People store and was free while the other fresh vegetables came from the actual farm stand. I drove up there on Thursday and picked up and paid for those vegetables.
What’s for Dinner
Monday & Tuesday ~ Steak Tacos, Corn
Wednesday ~ Grilled Chicken Tenders, Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Cauliflower, Grilled Peaches.
Thursday ~ Turkey Tacos
Friday ~ Bailey had book club, so we ate dinner separately. She had nachos using the turkey taco meat from Thursday and I made myself a salad for dinner.
Saturday ~ Murder Smash burgers at Lo Main in Chattanooga.
Cameron Parker is a food critic in Chattanooga and gave the murder burger at Lo Main a ten out of ten. Bailey and I have been wanting to try this since last October and Saturday created that opportunity for us.
The burger has two smashed beef patties, American cheese, diced onions, lettuce, Garam Masala mayonnaise, and blackened seasoning on a brioche bun. It was very well seasoned and very good.
Sunday ~ Roasted Turkey, Baked Sweet Potatoes, Grilled Peaches, and Corn on the Cob.
What’s been on the menu in your home this past week?
Belinda
Homemaker at Heart
~ Living within our Means ~Frugal Workshop Linktree
~ She looketh well to the ways of her household ~Proverbs 31:27
Yum! Love all the fresh veggies and I bet they taste amazing. What a great idea to pack some of your salad and purchase some fixins at the salad bar. That burger sounds delicious, would you give it a 10 score too?
ReplyDeleteHave a great week and stay cool.
Thank you, Kathy. The burger was really good and I would give the burger itself a 10, but I wouldn’t give it a 10 for the toppings because I find them spicy, but it was good.
DeleteThe red peppers were picked fresh that morning and were so, so good! We are going again later this week to get more.
I hope you have a great week and stay cool like you said.
Belinda
The gricery store near me has a really nice salad bar for $9.99 a pound. My sister took a pt post retirement job there after being bored in retirement and said people often misread abs thought $9.99 a container. They'd fill up then not realize how much they put in the container and suddenly their salad was over $20! Those pasta salads weigh a lot very quickly.
ReplyDeleteYes! I had a salad that came to over $15 at Whole Foods one time, so I understand!
DeleteBelinda
The pictures are beautiful - I love pics of fresh fruits and veggies. The peaches sound heavenly. All your meals sound so good.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Cheryl. I love their potato salad summertime fruits and vegetables.
DeleteBelinda
That was a great option to bring your own food & combine it with the Whole Foods salad. Smart! - Hawaii Planner
ReplyDeleteThank you, it definitely saved me money.
DeleteBelinda
Dear Belinda, your photos of the vegetables look beautiful and refreshing. You did so well at saving and stretching your budget. Thank you for sharing, and I hope you have a lovely week.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Linda. I hope you’re also having a a lovely week.
DeleteBelinda