Chef Gaynol

Hunger Challenge - Where Did the Money Go?

As most of you know I went over my $60 limit by 96 cents.  Darn that Parmesan cheese!  I thought it would be interesting to break down how I spent the money this week.  So here goes:

Vice Food  3%   

This is basically my daily diet coke fix, trust me you want me to have this to be a fully functioning member of society.

Staples 6%

I included items in this category like flour, sugar, molasses, baking powder, canola oil and spices.

Bread and Grains 16%

These were our bagels, tortillas, rice, wheat bran and pasta.

Dairy  27%

Butter, sour cream, cream cheese and the three different cheeses used in the recipes.

Protein  18 %

I included eggs in this category, along with the bacon and the pinto and black beans.

Fruits and Veggies 29%

Hunger Challenge - Dinners

For dinner this week I decided on two entrees.  The first being a economy version of my Pasta with Parmesan, Pancetta and Peas. To reduce the cost, I substituted good bacon for the pancetta and reduced the amount of Parmesan cheese.  The result was just as good but much cheaper as pancetta sells for $14.99 a pound

Pasta, one pound box on sale for                                1.25

Niman Ranch Bacon                                                     4.79 

Frozen peas, 16 ounces                                                   1.49

Parmesan cheese, 5 ounces                                           5.00

Total    12.53 or $3.13 a serving

The bacon I used was selling for $6.19 at my grocery store, so I ended up buying it at Trader Joe's for 4.79.  The Parmesan is $15.99 a pound, but it has such great flavor, I wanted to use as much as my budget would allow.

Hunger Challenge - Lunches

Cameo Apple, Jicama and Orange Salad

So it was what passes for hot here today and I was in the mood for something light and fruity.  Also, I wanted to make sure we were getting our fruits and veggies in and this salad was the way to do it.  Remember that orange, I zested when I made the Bran Muffins with Golden Raisins?  It was just sitting in a plastic bag looking all scrapped and pathetic, so I peeled it, sliced it into strips and threw it together with some  jicama and apple.  For dressing, I squeezed a couple of the orange segments dry and used the juice that was left from the baby lemon.   Fruit Salad on the cheap!

Orange (already accounted for)            0.00

Jicama about 1 pound                               1.47

Cameo apples 1 pound                            1.48

Lemon juice (already accounted for)    0.00

Total for eight servings                            2.95 or   .36 a serving

Hunger Challenge - Bulk Bins, Diet Coke and Childhood

I did a lot of costing and price comparisons before I made my decisions on what to buy this week.    The bulk bins were a real saving grace because there was no way I could get the menu in under budget buying five pound bags of staples and whole jars of spices.   The only problem is in terms of price per unit, I payed  A LOT more than if I'd been able to afford a larger size.    Here's an example,  flour is $ 1.19 per pound out of the bulk bins, but had I been able to buy the five pound bag of Gold Medal Flour I would have payed just .60 cents per pound.   So it is really a trade off between being able to buy a little this week or saving up and being able to buy a lot more, at a better price next week.  The problem is what if you really NEED flour this week?  What do you do?  You buy the thing you need at the best price you can get, regardless if the item is a good value or not.  I think this is one of the traps you can fall into if you have a very limited food budget.  You literally end up being nickle and dimed to death over basic necessities.  I can see how you would wind up with very little or nothing at all left over at the end of the week both in terms of money to spend and staples to fill your shelves with.

When I was little we were on a pretty strict food budget.  My mom was a divorced, working mom when none of those things were socially acceptable.  We'd go grocery shopping and mom would keep a running total going.  If we went over our allotted amount, then something had to go back, no matter how badly we wanted it.   Participating in this challenge has made me realize it has been a very long time since I had to give up something I wanted from the grocery store. 

In terms of giving things up, I will not be giving up diet coke this week.  I think those closest to me will be relieved to hear that.  I found a six pack of diet coke for $1.99 at our grocery store so that will be caffeine for the week.  Limiting myself to one a day will be fine.  I drink too much of the stuff anyway.  In my defense, several years ago I was drinking between ten and twelve cans a day.  My ob/gyn was horrified and told me I was not going to have any bones left and to knock it off.  So I weaned myself down over a series of several months and now I'm down to a couple a day.   A girl's got to have a few vices.

I'll be posting lunches on Wednesday and dinners on Thursday so stay tuned.

So with the $1.99 we're down to $39.35 for the week.

Hunger Challenge - Breakfast

So a lot of planning, online searching and running around has resulted in a menu that is coming in below budget.  I've set aside some money to pick up a few fruit and vegetable items later in the week and I found a sale on Diet Coke which will allow me to have my much needed caffeine boost in the morning. 

I had some advantages that other people living on this same food budget might not have.

1)  A computer and online access.  Viva la internet!  I could shop the sales and flyers without leaving my house.

2)  A car.  It is really easy to shop when you've got the wheels to do so.  Plus, let's not forget that big trunk that stores everything so nicely.  When I commuted back and forth to Seattle, I did so on the bus.  That meant a lot of hauling of grocery bags and chef paraphernalia on public transit.  It is not easy to do, and missing the bus on any given day or not making a connection means your frozen peas are melting and sogging up your bread.

3) A really well-stocked grocery store with a bitchin bulk bin section.