Frugal - Weekly Shopping

I shop and cook in an entirely different way now than I did 2 years ago.  Back then we would go to the grocery store and STOCK up on canned goods, frozen pizzas, chips on sale, sweets, and diet coke.  We kept a deep fryer on the counter top and shopped at Sam's Club to "save money".  I still watched for "sales" but with an entirely different eye.. it was all about $ per serving of food... how cheap could we make a meal.. and how did it taste.

Of course eating like that kept us battling our weight.  When we were "dieting" we bought all low fat foods, temporarily retired the deep fryer, bought sugar-free stuff, and tried to eat more vegetables and fruits..   that really did not work for the long term and we could lose a few pounds but not sustain that weight.  Our energy was low, our bodies ached, we were aging, and our children were also suffering with weight issues.

There has been a complete paradigm shift, I would say, at our house.  It all started when we discovered and researched things like the benefits of organic foods, importance of assisting our bodies to cleanse the toxins, dangers of GMOs, and the addition of chemicals to processed and manufactured foods. Yes, I would say I am on a mission in this home to do all I can to reduce the bad stuff while increasing the nutrition content of what we eat.  Food is FUEL that also can be quite tasty!  Without the right fuel, our bodies rebel in ways we don't even identify or totally understand.

Now you may be thinking that your budget is too tight to shop organically or that good food is more expensive.. and you are right to an extent.  It usually is.  It took a few months for me to eat up the canned goods we still had around and begin to fill the cupboards with staples and real food that are the basis for making anything that can be bought in the store in a can or plastic bag.  But I think we are there finally.

I don't have an unlimited income.. in fact we are a one-income family!  We make choices where our money is spent.  For instance, our cars are paid for finally and we continue to drive them... they are in decent shape and reliable but we are over the need to have a new car (complete with monthly payment) to drive.  I am selling all my expensive Silpada jewelry on ebay right now and banking the money to help buy the things I would like to have, like a Kitchen Aid Dough Stand Mixer, that will help me in the kitchen!  We don't need things... things do not make us happy in this house.  We look for bargains and watch our spending, just like all other families.

To save money on the food budget while eating more healthy food:

• Instead of eating out, I try to recreate our favorite recipes at home from fresh ingredients that I prepare (like the recipe for Biaggi's Foccacia Bread)
• Instead of expensive coffee drinks I fill a to-go cup with coffee and flavor it with one of the wonderful real flavored creamers that I keep on hand (another recipe just posted yesterday)
• I shop from 4 stores every week.  It does not take a long time but I watch the Tuesday sale ads and make lists accordingly.  Yesterday I got a whole lot of bananas from HyVee for .39 per pound... then I went to Dahls for my beef roasts at 2.99 per pound and while there I found bananas in a bag for 1.49 for about 7 pounds of them.. I bought 3 bags and am dehydrating them and freezing them for use in snacking and baking later.
• Instead of pre-packaged snacks to satisfy our snacking needs, I always keep homemade cookies and homemade granola or protein bars handy in the refrigerator.  It keeps us from ever feeling deprived!!
• I stock the freezer and pantry when the prices are low on foods.  I keep plenty of dried goods on hand like dried beans, rice pilaf, dehydrated carrots, celery, herbs and spices, sprouted nuts, dried fruits, etc.  
• When buying organic, I think I have found pretty good prices at Whole Foods.  I carry my list of the dirty dozen with me in my wallet so I remember what I should pay a premium for versus what I can buy from traditional grocery stores.  Whatever type of organic apple is lowest price that week, I buy.  If the organic pears are a decent price I buy those to supplement the apples.  I keep organic celery and carrots available both fresh and dehydrated for cooking.
• Meat is still an issue.. I believe in a good quantity of protein, and while I am confident I get good quality organic whey protein in my shakes every day, our family also eats meat and eggs.  We try to purchase as good a quality as we can but I am not to completely grass fed organic beef yet.  We are going to buy from a local farm friend this spring when she takes her cows to the locker but in the meantime I buy at the grocery store..  I love Fareway because they guarantee no filler in their ground beef.  I also make sure and trim all the fat I can from my meat prior to cooking, because as we have found out, fat is where we animals store the excess toxins..  not necessarily in the muscle tissue as much.
• Dairy - I insist on milk that is the least processed.  Our local Creamery, Pickett Fence sells milk that is pasteurized but not homogenized and we buy their whole milk at Whole Foods or when I can get up north, the creamery itself.  Butter, cheese, and sour cream I insist on buying organic or at least without added hormones.  

Like I said, going to a more healthy diet is a process... takes some time.  There are good, better, and best choices..  take the steps you are comfortable with and take them a little at a time.