Eat for a week on $15 Challenge

[bouche]

Last week, ms.hux and I set off with a meal plan to eat from monday to friday with only $10 each and one shopping trip.

We pulled it off, but we also had the help of a couple of things tucked away from before, like a jar of chili, and some frozen dim sum supplies.

However, most of the other meals consisted of Chickpea dishes and other beans, Borscht, veggie quesadillas, and other plates with very cheap yet nutritious ingredients.

I figure for 2 people with $15 each ($30 total for you elementary school dropouts), a meal plan could be made that would create 1 meal a night for 2 that would also allow for leftovers for the next day's lunch.

This is what I'm curious to see other people do.

1. Generate a meal plan (for 2) for mon-friday with only $30.

2. Meals must carry over and supply your lunch for the following day.

3. Foods must all be prepared with either fresh, canned or frozen INGREDIENTS. No Ramen Noodles, no frozend dinners.

4. Peanut Butter Sandwich is not a meal.

I think there could be a better defined set of rules, but I think this will do.

[phorbesie]

4. Peanut Butter Sandwich is not a meal.

hehehe this made me laugh

i won't tell velvet you said that

[Ms.Huxtable]

Here's what we did (no process or prepared food at all, we still cooked every night.):

MONDAY - Borscht w/ ham & swiss Bagels (leftovers for lunch)

TUESDAY - Tuna Casserole (leftovers for lunch)

WEDNESDAY - Layered Bean soup (leftovers for lunch)

THURSDAY - Meat pie and corn (leftovers for lunch)

FRIDAY - Spring rolls, dumplings and wonton soup

Like Mike said we did have a lot of things in our pantry and freezer that helped make the $10 budget acheivable. We had to buy:

3 beets

1 green cabbage

onions

tomatoe paste

dill

sliced ham

sliced swiss cheese

tuna

frozen peas

Weddings aren't cheap ya'll. Gotta save them pennies!

[phishtaper]

impressive.

i could never do this. im way too lazy.

[snarfmaster C]

what a coincidence. i was looking in my kitchen this morning scheming on how i could make it through the week without grocery shopping. (my car won't start )

here's what i'm doing, and i've approximated prices, though these are based on the case-load sizes i usually buy (yes, i am stocked for armageddon)

breakfasts - lunches (these are seamless small snack-fests for me at work):

($3) homemade banana bread

($4) fresh fruit (i only have 1 apple and 1 grapefruit left, so i will have to head to the store this week)

($2) homemade homous (it's damn good too - with roasted red peppers - yum!)

($2) ryvita crackers

dinners:

($4) casserole -- rice, cauliflower, mushroom, onion, dijon, nutr. yeast, herbs&spices (just made it - probably 3 meals worth. tasty ex-perry-ment yes, lee scratch was helping)

($4?) - tvp (or lentil maybe), onion, garlic, tomato sauce on pasta (3 meals worth)

so what's that make my total - $19, with 6 dinners probably. although I will only be spending $4 of that, the rest is cupboard stash.

yay budget! got my property tax bill on friday

[Ms Zimmy]

I thought about doing this all week, but there is no way, I eat WAY too many fresh fruit and veggies...

[rubberdinghy]

and I eat too much meat...well, you can never have too much meat

[Jaimoe]

Next time, try the same financial test on an organic diet. I dare you! I don't think it can be done, but it's the healthiest way to live.

[bouche]

it can be done. Shop at the loblaws with self-checkouts. You can put in codes for non-organic veggies and bulk items and get away with it

I am surprised how expensive organics still are. I think you just need to double the allowance and it'll work.

[SolarGarlic]

May I suggest finding a local food co-op?? We belong to one and the prices will DESTROY any retailer in town. It's not-for-profit and run by volunteers as time becomes available. Prices are often around half what things cost in the store.

[bouche]

we may start up with a weekly basket from the vegetable/fruit market in the Ottawa market this summer. I don't know of a local co-op though.