February 2016 Grocery Goals
$400 is the target — with the additional goal that we will NOT eat out AT ALL. January was a big-spending month since we went out three times for special dinners. I did my February grocery shopping this week (here’s how to grocery shop for an entire month), so I have already spent most of the money, leaving back a little bit in case we need to pick up anything like milk or more fruit later in February.
To make this monthly shopping thing work, I do the bulk of my shopping at Aldi and fill in the few things I can’t get there with items from other stores.
This budget and menu reflect my winter once-a-month shopping style. (Who really wants to drive 25-35 miles to a grocery store on bad roads?) I got an AMAZING deal on boneless skinless chicken thighs — 75¢/lb *faint* — so I brought home 160 pounds and have made a chicken-heavy menu for the month.
The boneless skinless chicken thighs came from Gordon Food Service. I don’t know if they have GFS stores everywhere, but I love them because you can sometimes get basic food items super-cheap and they don’t charge a membership fee like Sam’s Club. My husband and I spent about an hour packaging the chicken for the freezer — very worth the time! Hilary at Pulling Curls has a great post on how to deal with bulk chicken purchases. But we’re pretty lazy — just bag and freeze it flat in approximately 3-pound amounts.
We have a 14 cubic foot freezer that holds plenty of food. I make the meals that use more perishable vegetables earlier in the month, saving the root vegetables and frozen peas and green beans for later.
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The Menu
These meals are in no particular order, and I have left a few open nights because we usually end up eating leftovers once a week or so.
- Oven-fried chicken drumsticks x 2 (coating recipe), sauteed cabbage or carrots
- Campbell’s One-Dish Chicken & Stuffing Bake, green beans
- Copycat Olive Garden Chicken & Gnocchi Soup
- Chicken alfredo, broccoli
- Cheeseburger Meatloaf, carrots
- Mostly Mushroom, Bacon and Corn Chowder (new recipe from Lil’ Suburban Homestead)
- Beef & bean nachos x 2 (I’ve tried making more economical chicken nachos but the family didn’t care for them)
- Teriyaki chicken drumsticks, fried rice
- Fried cabbage with sausage
- Smothered b/s chicken thighs
- Red beans & rice
- Oriental chicken salad
- Copycat Zuppa Toscana
- Roasted chicken, biscuits, peas
- Roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, glazed carrots
- Ham, green beans
- Canadian Cheese Soup
- Spaghetti, breadsticks, peas
- Oven fried pork chops, roasted vegetables
- Homemade pizza x 2
- Tacos
- Pasta Carbonara, peas
- Chinese-style chicken & broccoli, fried rice
Last month I wrote out the base prices for the meals, but I don’t know if it was helpful to anyone or not. Let me know if you would like me to do that. Prices vary so much, it can be difficult to determine whether you should be spending the same amount for the same style of meal.
I have linked most of the recipes I make to my Pinterest board for main dish recipes.
Hi Julie,
Bulk grocery shopping is great! I wish I could do that, but right now, we shop every week. (I managed to plan better before I had my second daughter.) I can’t believe that you got chicken for $.75 per pound! That’s incredible! My husband and I do exactly what ya’ll do with your chicken- freeze it. Last year, we bought five turkeys and put them in our deep freeze, so we were set for a few months. 🙂 I love these recipe ideas. I’ve been wanting new recipes, and I’ll definitely check them out. Thanks! 🙂
Hi Ardelia – thank you so much for visiting! It’s true, bulk shopping is definitely much easier without little ones. I hope you find some recipes you and your family enjoy! I’ll be posting a new menu for March at the end of next week, probably with more chicken recipes. 😉
What a great post!! I’m following your blog for sure! And Thanks for sharing on the “what’s for dinner” linky!
Helen, thanks for visiting and following! I hope you enjoy the recipes.
Isn’t Aldi wonderful? It’s a great place to stretch a budget and develop a lovely menu plan like this.
Blessings, Leigh
Leigh, welcome to Filling the Jars and thank you for your kind comment! Aldi really is a fantastic store! Great prices and a compact shopping layout – nothing could be better! 🙂