Two Week Meal Plan

I usually try to stick to a budget when I go food shopping. However, for the past few weeks, need for convenience took over my need for frugality. I also recently purchased a carpet steamcleaner and some cool weather clothing for work. To balance this off, I have decided to do 2 really frugal weeks of meals. Yesterday I spent $37 at Trader Joe's, and I anticipate needing to buy more salad fixin's within the next 2 weeks, but that should still put me under $50 for 2 weeks worth of meals. The entirety of this menu probably costs more than $50, when I through in pantry staples and frozen things I already have on hand. These are just my dinner ideas. For breakfast I will probably have cereal or a smoothie. I also still have some breakfast bars I bought a few weeks ago to share at a retreat. Bill doesn't eat breakfast, but might have a smoothie if I hand one to him while he's on his way out the door in the morning. Lunch for us usually consists of leftovers from last night (or a pbj or hummus and pita), accompanied by fruit, maybe a small snack like pretzels or fruit leathers, and yogurt for Bill. Ok, without further adieu, here is my frugal 2 week dinner plan.

Tonight!: caramelized onions, broccoli and white beans sauteed with pasta, topped with fresh Parmesan, salad of spinach and (God willing) garden tomatoes.

Wednesday: going out to eat. Opps! this will go outside of the frugal plan, but we already made plans to go out with friends. We probably will not spend very much money though.

Thursday: on Thursdays, the lovely woman who hosts our small group cooks a big (vegetarian!) dinner for the entire group. It has been a huge blessing to be served a home cooked, vegetarian meal once a week.

Friday: soft tacos with refried pinto beans, soy chorizo, and vegan cheezy sauce, green salad

Saturday: one of Bryanna Clark Grogan' turkey roasts, brown gravy, sauteed green beans, and corn

Sunday: Leftover roast on homemade bread, green salad

Monday: 3 bean chili, homemade bread, green salad

Tuesday: chickpeas romesco, garlic bread, green salad

Wednesday: either ginger tofu soup, or potato soup

Thursday: small group dinner again!

Friday: veggie stir fry with frozen chicken style pieces, over brown rice

Saturday: spaghetti and bean balls, green salad

Sunday: cajun style red beans and rice

Of course, this is all subject to change. I just wanted to reassure myself that I could make it 2 more weeks without a big grocery shopping trip, using up what we already have on hand. I'll probably throw some desserts in there and some fancy weekend breakfasts. I'll also try to post pics, as well as recipes or recipe sources.

Also view your reading pleasure, here is my list of cheap pantry staples that I always have on hand, helping me to make cheap, mostly balanced vegetarian (usually vegan) meals:
-bulk grains (rice, quinoa, and pasta are standbys, with other less common grains making the occasional appearance).
-herbs and spices
-beans, dried and canned. dried beans can be made in large quantities in the crockpot with minimal effort, and frozen for later use
-canned tomatoes, in many varieties. Can be used in soup, chilli, pasta sauces, etc.
-bulk grains
-frozen veggies, which are often cheaper than fresh, but still retain most of the nutrients. this is especially helpful to me in cutting down waste. with only 2 of us, sometimes frsh veggies go bad before we get a chance to use them all up (we do still, however incorporate fresh veggies often).
-bulk olive oil. its much cheaper to buy quality oil in large quantities, and i go through it enough for that to make sense.