Monday, August 27, 2018

August Grocery Shopping - Week 4

8/26 Groceries



I went grocery shopping on Sunday morning.  I went to the Armenian store and bought:
3 salmon steaks @ $4.99/lb
3 beef steaks @ $2.99/lb
1 lb. lean ground beef @ $2.99/lb
2 packets of raw whole cashews @ $8.99/lb = $3.87 + $3.64
4 lb. bag of jasmine rice = $2.99
bananas (6) @ $.49/lb = $.84
peaches (4) @ $.49/lb = $1.09
onions @ $.20/lb = $.34
beets @ $.39/lb = $.49
1 cauliflower @ $.49/lb = $1.10
2 yucca @ $.79/lb = $1.19
green beans @ $1.89/lb = $1,23 + $.77 (I bought 2 bags)
okra @ $1.99/lb = $.46
tomatoes @ $.49/lb = $.98
2 zucchini @ $.79/lb = $.68
Total = $34.45

(I don't have the receipt with me to give the exact amounts for each item and I didn't take a very good picture of the receipt, either!)


8/26 Grocery Receipt

In addition, daughter stopped by a favorite bakery after the movie and bought a loaf of French bread and two bagels for us, at my request, yesterday; she said the total came to $6.43.

August Grocery Budget = $100 - $12.92 overspent in July - $87.08
Spent to date = $35.89 + $2.86 + $7.47 + $34.45 + $6.43 = $87.10
Balance remaining = $87.08 - $87.10 = -$.02

I think it is OK to ignore that minus two cents, don't you?  Especially since I shared most of the groceries I bought yesterday with daughter!  I sent half of just about everything back, with her - except the cauliflower (there was no room in her case for it!) and the tomatoes (she said she had plenty of tomatoes).

I cooked the salmon steaks, yesterday, with onions and tomato and gave daughter two of the three salmon steaks to take back with her.

I cut the beef steaks into thin strips and stir fried them with onions and teriyaki sauce and gave daughter half of it to take back with her.

Then, today, I cooked the ground beef, added onions, carrots, celery, and the rest of the mashed potatoes my cousin had brought for me after my medical procedures, and made curry puffs using puff pastry squares I had in the freezer.  I gave half of them to my daughter to take back with her. 

I will be starting September with a grocery budget of $100.

Dancer inspecting everything, as usual

How did you do with your August grocery budget? 

8 comments:

  1. Bless, your grocery budget always amazes me! You really do a great job sticking to a pretty lean budget but eating very well. I am really amazed by your produce prices -- and you found great stuff! Anyway. As I mentioned in my own post on my blog, we're changing a bit how we (I) think about food and for the most part this has meant upping the budget but also purchasing less and focusing on eating what we have rather than storing for the future. I've found myself going a bit longer between grocery trips just because we have food on hand and I really don't want to shop! But one thing that continues to be a "downfall" is prepared snacks -- not only do we love them, I tend to want take advantage of BOGO prices so end up with more than we need (but not more than we'll eat, lol!).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am able to keep to this grocery budget only because the ethnic grocery stores have good prices. Usually, they are cheaper than the regular supermarket prices and this particular store has the best produce prices, I think. In general, I only buy their weekly specials - for example, I will wait until the zucchini goes on sale for $.39/lb before I buy any, but I bought some at $.79/lb so daughter could take them back with her (regular supermarket price is $.99/lb).

      I go back and forth on stocking up and eating what's on hand. Occasionally, it leads to food waste because I just can't eat everything before it spoils!

      Delete
  2. Dancer is just so adorable. I love that expression on his face while doing his inspection. Too cute!

    You have done so, so extremely well with your groceries this past month. It was so nice of you to send back some meals with your daughter. I know she uses up part of her weekend to cook batches ahead, and not having the weekend at home to do that, she must be very appreciative of your generosity.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dancer does take his responsibilities seriously, doesn't he? :D

      I am glad that I don't have to carry over a debit into next month!

      Yes, daughter was very grateful to receive the cooked food and extra groceries. All she has to do is cook some of the vegetables and rice and she'll have enough meals for the week.

      Delete
  3. Like Laura mentioned, you are really good at finding great deals, Bless. I can't find any vegetable that cheap here. Even at ethnic stores the prices are higher than your prices.

    Your daughter is lucky to be able to visit you often and taste your delicious meals. I wish my mom lived closer. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm sure your mom wishes you lived closer to her, too, Nil. :) I'm sure she misses you.

      I know I am spoiled by the prices I find at the Armenian store! As a result, I rarely buy fresh produce at the regular grocery stores, these days.

      Delete
  4. You did well with your budget in August. I way overspent, I am going to live off my stores in September and I am going to use your word "shelftember" if you dont mind.
    I am always amazed at the low prices of your food, steak here is $19 a kilo ($10 a pound) I bought 500 gm of raw cashews last week for $14 and thought I got a good deal!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Sharon. I am happy with the August grocery spending. For the first time in several months, I didn't go over by more than a couple of cents. :) You are more than welcome to use the word "shelftember"! I didn't coin it, by the way - someone else in blog land did. Another blogger whose blog I read decided to participate in it, last year, and I decided to join, too.

      Thank you for posting your prices - the better cuts of steak do sell for much higher prices at the grocery stores. I just don't even look at them! The one I bought were called "shoulder blade steaks", it was about the cheapest cut of beef they had (same price as the lean ground beef). Cashews are becoming a high priced luxury! I need to check their price at one other store and then, buy for the December almsgiving.

      Delete

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