flashback grocery haul

This post was first written and posted to my original blog, Which Name?, on November 2, 2010. Even the photo is old! I am re-posting it here, because I was looking for something else on my old blog and came across this post, having forgotten that I ever wrote it. I have been enjoying following other frugal families on Instagram, seeing video reels of their grocery hauls, and budgeting, but I don't currently want to create videos for IG. My kiddos were dinky when I wrote this, so our food consumption has changed, Lala Bug's sensory differences around food and her ARFID were not so pronounced at this time, but what really stood out to me was how much explaining and justifying I felt like I had to do. I notice this happening, still (but on IG) with younger families. With age comes experience and comfort in what works differently for each of us. Progress, not perfection.

 

So with limited photo distraction, here is my text heavy October frugal foodie summary.

This month, I spent $435.51 on groceries. For where that money went and why, see below. I should note that "groceries" for me shifts and changes. For this post, I limited it to food and pet food/supplies (chickens), since they provide food. In the past, it has included health & body, cleaning supplies, and anything related to our household that I might also buy at the grocery store.

I also want to note that this was probably the worst month to choose to track in this way, as it was my first full month of going gluten free. Where I shop, what I need, and how much of each item has changed so drastically for me, that this probably isn't the best guide to us and food, although our spending did come out about the same in the end. I have learned a few lessons of what not to buy or where not to buy it this month and have been updating my price list again.

How we shop and eat and where we live affects our grocery spending:

• This is key: We live in an area of the country with a climate that sustains fresh food all year round. In fact, it is an area that grows much of the fresh food that rest of the country eats when winter sets in in colder regions. And it is all local to me. This means it is less expensive for me in general and less expensive for us to eat sustainably. (Yet, do note that I obviously still find it difficult shop 100% sustainably! We don't.)
  
• We eat primarily vegetarian. I am vegetarian (dairy and seafood eating). Mike and the kids aren't, however because I shop and am the main cook, we eat little meat. The kids don't really like it, despite it being offered occasionally. This cuts costs hugely. When I do buy chicken or beef, I try and buy good, organic portions now. That said, good seafood can be costly, despite living by the ocean. We do not live in a fishing area, so most seafood is not local.
• We eat a variety of items, but we have our staples, too. We eat a varied diet and where we live, many fresh foods are available year round. We take advantage of this, however we have our favorite recipes and seem to go in cycles of what we eat a lot of for awhile, before moving on to the next cycle. October was clearly quick bread and hummus month! (See below.)
  
• We cook a lot from scratch. I haven't even been buying the gluten free (GF) baking mix flours, I have been experimenting with scratch versions. We buy and cook dry beans. We make a lot (most) foods ourselves. This includes yogurt, hummus, breads, treats, salad dressing, popsicles, and more.
• Although I try and shop locally and in season, I admit to regular exceptions. We maintain a Costco membership for bulk goods and other services. This pays for itself through an annual dividend and while it is not an independent store (and I am not putting my money where I lie politically), I can purchase a wide range of local, organic items there. I shop at Trader Joe's. We accidentally ended up with an Amazon Prime membership and I am currently working out whether or not it is worth maintaining it as the most economical source for gluten free oats and other grains. I buy bananas. (I battle with myself on this bullet point. Living in the area we do, fresh, local food is available year round. I am aware that others who are not fortunate in this way, still manage 365 days of local and banana free eating.)
• We do grow a small garden, although this year, our chickens ate most of our summer garden.
• We use foods to their fullest. See links under the photo, below.
  

We use every last bit of most foods. The jack o' lanterns were carved on Halloween day, then dissected, baked, and the pumpkin pulp pureed and frozen for breads, soups, and pies. The seeds were toasted and are being eaten. We do this with veggies for broth, as well.

At first, I thought it might be helpful to record what we ate for the month, but several days into it, I quit, because I noticed a pattern. Here it is:

• Breakfasts are oatmeal or eggs and toast or granola. Oatmeal has often been served with protein powder, but will no longer be when this bag is gone. Partly cost, partly gluten, partly that I know longer think we need the extra protein in this form. F will be one sad boy. He likes his oatmeal with powder. Eggs, until recently, were store bought cage free organic. Now they are home raised eggs. Toast for the kids right now is either store bought whole grain bread or homemade gluten free. Granola is homemade gluten-free. We drink water with breakfast. Mike and I have coffee and tea, respectively. We have only recently begun adding more variation to breakfast. Banana bread, applesauce, cottage cheese, have all made appearances and been welcomed. Weekend breakfasts often boast waffles or pancakes.
• Snacks are veggies, fruits, hummus, almond butter, toast, rice crackers, etc.
• Kids. The kids still eat different dinners and lunches from us. Mostly due to timing and location (school or out and about on errands/activities). I always serve them vegetables, fruits, protein, and whole grain carb, but only recently have they begun to like some one-dish-all-food-group meals, like lasagna and some soups. Pizza is the one, long time exception to that. My kids, Lala especially, like and need to eat a little bit, often. So their meals are almost like snacks all day long. This is fine with me (although I dislike bedtime "I'm hungry!" cries), so I just try and keep what they are eating balanced and healthy throughout the day.
• Lunch is generally leftover dinners for both Mike me. I pack lunches for him to take to work.
• Dinners are always simple. Mike is the better cook (he is good and loves to cook), but I am the more frequent cook. Our "old stand by" meals always revolve around beans, which I cook in bulk and freeze in quarts. We cook and eat other things, too, though! I love salads. We live in a climate where we can eat them, in season, much of the year. (Don't hate me too much, please.) I love always to have a salad or raw veggies. (I don't really like cooked veggies just as a side dish. In things they are fine.) Sometimes Mike is home late and eats before he comes home or has eaten his lunch late and isn't hungry. I graze if this is the case. I might just eat veggies with hummus and a piece of toast. Or a bowl of granola and a cup of cottage cheese. If we are eating together, I try and a make a real meal.
  

Here is what we bought this month:

10/1
Bought: Feed Store $28.68: 50lb laying pellets, huge bale of wood shavings.

10/3
Bought: Trader Joe's $22.80: fresh flowers, 2 can frozen OJ concentrate, jar lemon curd, box popsicles, package of dried, salted seaweed, sourdough baguette, jar of peanut butter, box of eggs, 10 bananas. (Okay, I love how I started the month admitting that I bought popsicles (they were a treat for Lala), peanut butter (Lala rejects my homemade peanut butter, but we make our own almond and sunflower seed butters), OJ concentrate (we rarely drink juice, but I like to have it on hand. Concentrate works for this reason and makes great popsicles when I am not buying them as treats!) The baguette was another treat for my gluten eaters. You cannot beat San Francisco sourdough bread...I miss it! The lemond curd is my latest vice. And the bananas...a non-local food I won't give up.)

Made: GF waffles, GF pizza, GF granola, and GF sandwich bread

10/4
Bought: Costco $129.63: 4lb butter, large jar organic salsa, bag of organic milled flax, 3lb cottage cheese, California black olives, 2 gallon organic California milk, case non-alcoholic beer, 3lb organic, shade grown coffee imported by a local coffee company, 3lb trout, package flour tortillas, huge bag frozen organic blueberries, gluten free vanilla extract, 2 loaves multi grain bread.

Local produce market (where I can buy locally grown produce) $28.56 (used $3 coupon): carrots, 2 cucumbers, organic spinach, cantaloupe, decorative gourd, onion, raspberries, 2 organic bell peppers, organic grapes, beet, broccoli, organic celery, nori, and bulk sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, sliced almonds, and popcorn.

Made: hummus

10/6
Made: a meal for a friend (whose daughter is in the hospital), a huge batch of hummus (which was gone by the 9th), and yummy GF peanut butter chocolate chip cookies (via Shivaya Naturals).

10/9
Made: honey oatmeal bread (gluten-free, recipe from 1000 Gluten Free Recipes by Carol Fenster.)

10/11
Bought: Local bulk food store $ 51.70. Guar gum, 6 vanilla beans, elbow of ginger, package sorghum flour, bulk gelatin, potato starch, corn starch, garbanzo beans, sunflower seeds,

Made: hummus, sunflower seed butter, dal, GF granola

10/12
Bought: Costco FREE (I used our annual dividend. The total was actually ~$58.80 (plus non-food items), but I am not counting it towards my total, because I do count the annual membership towards my grocery bill when we pay it and this is one of the membership rewards. I received change.) 3lb almonds, 3lb bananas, two 3lb cottage cheeses, 2 loaves bread, goat cheese, carrots, sea salt, 2 gal organic milk.

10/14
Bought: Local produce market (everything is local) $28.75. Gluten free tamari, cantaloupe, organic spinach, basil, cilantro, organic grapes, organic strawberries, organic peppers, organic fingerling potatoes, 2 cucumbers, red beet.

Made: GF pizza (version 1)

10/16:
Made: hummus (4th time?!), brown rice flour bread (in "new" free bread machine!), GF banana bread (in "new" free bread machine!)

10/17:
Made: GF pizza (version 2 - liked better)

10/18:
Bought: Trader Joe's. $30.87: 2 bottles wine, 5lb local clementines, rice cakes, OJ concentrate (We've had illnesses this month. I don't normally buy OJ, but I do like the frozen so I can keep it on hand.), cream cheese, 4 local avocados, dozen organic eggs. (Our chickens' egg production dropped when we moved them into a fenced area. They are rebelling by not laying.)

Made: GF banana bread (in machine), yogurt

10/21:
Made: GF granola, GF quick bread (in machine)

10/22:
Bought: local bulk food store $27. Tapoioca flour, brown rice flour, sliced almonds (bad move...way too expensive!), red lentils (again...way too expensive here), unshelled peanuts, white rice flour.

10/25:
Bought: Costco $80.20: organic tomato paste, organic tomato sauce, 4 gallons organic milk, 6lb mozzarella, 4 loaves healthy bread (for kids), 3lb walnuts, package wheat flour tortillas, block of pecorino romano cheese

Made: gluten free chocolate chip cookies (dangerous, those things)

10/27:
Bought: Trader Joe's and local produce market (My friend and I share shopping duties, then swap groceries...each of us goes to one store and buys for both of us, saving time and effort.) $35.88: 1.5 cups of fresh dates, 8 organic apples, 2 cucumbers, sack of spinach, 2 lb clementine oranges, 6 bananas, 1 pot of fresh basil, 2 packages of rice cakes, 2 packages of rice pasta, 1 pack wheat pasta, 2 jars peanut butter, 2 bottles of wine.