This Week's Shopping List

This week was a whopper, cost-wise. No, it wasn't the bulk order of organic ground beef. That, which is only $28 for 8 lbs (what a deal!), will actually be picked up in a week or two, as it turns out. This week's high price tag was because of one 4 lb. non-organic piece of meat that made its grand entrance on our dinner table Saturday evening to celebrate Hanukkah's 7th night. The kosher brisket: sometimes, tradition costs money ... about 50 bucks, in this case.

Apart from that, it was a relatively normal shopping week. We were spared one dinner at home when we went to a cousin's house for the 4th night of Hanukkah. But we hosted a group of eight last night, so that probably evens out.

Here is the week's menu:

Lunch: Barley & Asparagus "Risotto"

Dinner:
- Buffalo and BBQ chicken “wings” with sweet potato chips and carrot & celery sticks (leftover from last week)
- Bean Burrito Casserole (I add chopped kale to this) with Spicy Guacamole
- Hanukkah Dinner:
* Curried Squash & Red Lentil Soup with Mint
* Kale Salad
* BBQ Brisket
* Potato Latkes with Applesauce
* Roasted Brussel Sprouts
* Soofganiyot with Cinnamon-Orange Syrup (I used margarine to keep parve)


Here is the shopping list (* indicates non-organic):

kale*
butternut squash
leeks
fresh mint
Yukon Gold potatoes
scallions
carrots
brussel sprouts*
apples
pomegranate
pears
bananas
grapes
oranges
parsley
asparagus* (1.99/lb)
celery
garlic
onions
avocado
tomato
jalapeno*
currants
pinto beans
tomato sauce ($1 coupon)
soymilk (1.77 32 oz.)
red lentils
eggs (3.99)
cheese
milk
yogurt ($0.75 coupon, doubled)
frozen peas
apple cider
Tree Ripe OJ* (1.77)
tortillas
dehydrated peas
brisket*

I was unable to make the trip to my usual health food store this week because of the holiday busies, so I went to a store that isn't as well stocked in organic produce. Hence the several items that would usually be organic, but are not this week.

There were only two items on the list that I could not get: dehydrated peas and grapes. I'm sure I could have gotten non-organic grapes, but I prefer not to. I also added a few sale items: The flatbreads I had been looking for the week before were actually on sale this week (2/$5), so I picked up a couple of those. Eden canned beans were on sale (4/$5), so in addition to the pinto beans, I stocked up on some others. Seltzer was still on sale (3/$1), so I stocked up on that, as well. Frozen spinach was on sale ($2.19), so I got one of those.

The total for the week, including the brisket, came to a whopping $149.87. Sheesh! This puts us in the red by $6. We're sure to be back in black within a few weeks, but it may not be next week, as we're expecting company twice next week. We still have our ground beef order and a trip to Costco waiting in the wings, and those will also add to our food bill (but will save us considerably in the long run).

Happy and healthy new year to all!