What's for Dinner March 2012?

[SoonerTexan]

Totally making the soup

[oceanchild]

It's good!

Soup is in the crockpot as we speak (or type or post or whatever!). The house smells really good!

[houseelf]

You all are so fancy!

I made pork tenderloin basted in apricot jam tonight and we're grilling chicken and veggies tomorrow.

That's all I got.

By the way, when did groceries get so outrageous? Seriously, $200 worth of groceries don't even get me through a full week.

[Ladybug]

Groceries are insane! I cant afford this family. The coupons are crap too. They're mostly processed stuff. I rarely find stuff we eat. . Veggies, fruits and semi natural meats are expensive. Blah. It is what it is, as DH says. I feel like a coupon, budgeting mom failure though.

[corn poffi]

Groceries are ridiculous. And it's just me! $60 for two bags the other day! I don't know how some of you do it!

[Thirteen]

Homemade mushroom korma (obviously vegetarian), basmati rice, and some oven-roasted zucchini.
http://www.indobase.com/recipes/deta...room-korma.php

Not too shabby. Quite satisfying - I added carrots for an additional texture. If you want it to be creamy, you can add about 1/4 cu of 1/2 and 1/2 to your liking.
Either way, it's super tasty.
I subbed out veggie oil with coconut oil.

[ladymoreta]

Pizza Hut here. I'm that awesome.

[Thirteen]

CP,
To answer your question: we stopped buying snack foods and processed foods. That alone has tremendously lowered our grocery bill. In addition, we don't eat meat with every meal anymore.
To give you an idea: we purchase 5 bags worth of produce and some dry goods last week, and spent $96.
We buy our rice in bulk (it's our main grain in the house), and all our cooking oils in bulk.
I also do not selectively buy food based on recipes: I find that if I try to plan out a week's worth of meals, I wind up spending a lot more. We have staple foods in our diet, and we just make combinations/find recipes that fit.
(Occasionally, purchases outside of the box are made, but not often enough to rack up a large grocery bill).

[corn poffi]

I don't cook meat, and never buy snack foods (there's always tons of it at work!). I never thought about that before, but I think you're right, buying for recipes is what screws me over. I always seem to end up with random ingredients I don't use more than once or twice. I think my other problem is trying to shop for one person. Since I spend 40% of time time at my place, and 60% at his, I end up buying things that are individually packaged, which often cost more. And I know I have to stop taking advantage of the pre-cut produce. That whole convince thing gets me every time.

Also, I end up throwing so much produce out...I think that's what bothers me the most. I love fresh fruits and veggies, but just can't seem to get the right amount to buy down. So much goes bad before I get the chance to eat it, and I would rather not have to make several grocery trips in a week. I've only been living alone for four years, you'd think I'd be used to it by now!

Ok hijack over. Post more yummy recipes please!

It's official, that soup is awesome. DH had 2 servings. I used a can of diced tomatoes because I didn't feel like going to the store to get tomatillos and it was still great. And I used canned beans because that's what I had. DH says it's a keeper and told me to pass along his thanks!

[ladymoreta]

Also, I end up throwing so much produce out...I think that's what bothers me the most. I love fresh fruits and veggies, but just can't seem to get the right amount to buy down. So much goes bad before I get the chance to eat it, and I would rather not have to make several grocery trips in a week.

Ooh, I have a suggestion for this! Tupperware Fridge Smart containers. They keep fruits and vegetables good for so much longer than the crisper drawer. They're a little expensive, but they'll pay for themselves quickly. Here's a link: http://order.tupperware.com/pls/htprod_www/!tw$shop.p_category?pv_ic_code=25000

ETA: Well, my link didn't work, but you can copy/paste it or just look it up on the tupperware site. Sorry!

[corn poffi]

Thanks for the suggestion! I've never seen those before. I'll have to check them out! There's actually a bar near my work that hosts a "ladies night" after work once a month. This event has reps from Tupperware, Mary Kay, Lia Sophia, etc...and the next one is a week from tomorrow! One of my friends has been trying to get be to go since I moved here. Looks like she'll get her wish!

[ladymoreta]

Neat! Have fun!!! And if you try one and like it, consider having a party instead of buying more. You can get it for much cheaper or free as a hostess. (I promise I'm not getting commission! I just love Tupperware and used to sell it, so I know how much you can save by hosting even just an average party. And they're fun!)

[SoonerTexan]

OceanChild, I'm making that soup tomorrow. Looks AMAZING.

As for groceries, I'm no poster child, but we've gotten better. I buy most of my stuff at Sunflower Market (a Sprouts copycat). Their produce is really cheap and I plan my weekly recipes around what is on sale. About once a month they have ground beef and chicken breasts on sale for $1.99/lb. I stock up big time and freeze it. It's better quality than the national brands too (they don't shoot their chicken up with saline solution) They also have their in-house made chicken sausage (yummy stuff like Italian, chicken & apple, etc.) on sale for $1.99/lb every once in awhile too. Wednesday is Double Ad day, so I sent DH today (this whole husband shopping thing is awesome. He can do great things with a very detailed shopping list)

We go to Wal-Mart or Target every 3-4 weeks to stock up on canned food items and other staples, but I don't like their produce.

I do have one go-to easy recipe I can contribute to my own thread.

Sausage Skillet (serves about 4)

1 onion chopped
1 lb sausage (we use chicken, but pork or turkey is fine)
1 head broccoli, chopped
1 TB Olive oil
2 red potatoes or 1 large russet potato diced
1 can corn kernels, drained (optional)

Saute the potatoes and onion in the olive oil. When the potato is starting to cook, squeeze the sausage out of its casing and cook until no longer pink. You'll have to stir and scrape often. Then throw in the broccoli and corn kernels and cook until the broccoli is fully done. I like to throw in some water or white wine when I cook the veggies so things don't stick so much.