Due to expenses for my husband's birthday last week and the 8 year old's upcoming birthday in a few weeks in addition to both my husband and me expecting expense checks from our jobs that didn't come through, we got a little behind the 8 ball this week. Rather than dip into savings or our emergency fund, we decided we'd try to make meal planning work from what I had in my meager stockpile in the pantry and the freezer.
I didn't buy any meat at the grocery store this week, and most everything else I bought at the farmer's market and grocery were perishables. The one exception was the ingredients I needed to make my husbands birthday cake. (Check out the recipes: strawberry cake and cream cheese frosting.)
Sunday - Crawfish and Sausage Etouffee, Salad
I'd bought a pound of crawfish, which I'd never worked with before, on manager's special last week. Turns out a pound of whole crawfish yields about 1/4 pound of meat once it's cleaned. So I added in some smoked sausage I had hiding in the freezer. My friend Valeria gave me a couple tomatoes, and I had one left. The only thing I had to buy for this meal this week was the lettuce, which will last me this week and part of next.
Monday - Slow Cooker Pork Loin, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans
A few months back I bought a 6 pound pork loin and split it up into four roasts. I'll be using that, potatoes left from a few weeks ago, and green beans my friend Valeria gave me from her garden.
Tuesday - Linguine with Onions and Tomatoes, Salad
I did have to purchase tomatoes and the gluten free linguine, but both will last at least a few meals. This is a vegetarian meal, though, so no expense for meat.
Wednesday - Pinto Beans, Cornbread, Kale Salad
Last time I made a batch of pinto beans, I froze half of it, so we'll eat that. I have all the ingredients on hand for the cornbread. I did buy a very large bag of kale at the farmers market for $2.00 with the intention of sauteing and freezing for later, but I'll use some along with a golden delicious apple from my best friend Jennifer's parent's farm for the salad. I'm thinking of doing a balsamic honey dressing for it.
Thursday - Out/Leftovers
The 8 year old has a playdate and by this point in the week, I do expect we'll have a few leftovers if I don't eat them for lunch. So we'll probably get something out for the 8 year old while my husband and I eat what we can find.
Friday - Creamy Chicken Enchiladas, Rice, Salad
There are some bags of shredded chicken and at least one batch of yellow rice in the freezer. I did need to buy sour cream and gluten free tortillas, but both are pretty much a staple in our house anyway, so the remainder will get used no problem.
Saturday - Grill night.
Either cod or burgers both purchased on managers special within the last month. I'll buy fresh corn on the cob at the farmers market Saturday morning and we'll have either a salad or the last of a bag of french fries.
Other items bought this week were milk, juice, corn on the cob (for Saturday night), Asian pears for the 8 year old's lunch box, cucumbers, sandwich bread, and eggs (for breakfast).
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