Healthy Grocery List Week #11 (Really Cheap, Easy, and Toddler Friendly)

This week is all about cheap hearty food that fills you up. I really love being able to repurpose parts of meals for other meals later on, so you will see a lot of that.

I use a lot of fresh produce, basic ingredients, and try not to have a lot of waste. We will be using every inch of the items that we buy and anything leftover can be frozen for later or used for snacks!

Family Meal Planning with Toddlers

Toddlers are funny little creatures that can be very adventurous at mealtime, but mostly they want simple foods that are easy to eat. Mine don’t like most sauces and can’t stand casseroles, so I have learned to adapt to what they will regularly eat.

Here is our family meal plan of breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and a sweet treat for a family of 4 (2 adults and 2 young kids).

Breakfasts

Spinach Egg Bites with Cottage Cheese & Bananas
Cottage Cheese with Pineapple & Blueberries
Egg & Cheese Biscuits with Apple Slices
Mini Monkey Bread with Blueberries
Scrambled Eggs, Pepperoni, and Apple Slices

Spinach Egg Bites with Cottage Cheese– These little copycat egg bites with spinach are super easy and I add even more protein by sneaking some cottage cheese into the mix. I typically make these in a muffin or mini muffing tin, and I start with about 4-5 eggs. I add a handful of chopped spinach, a splash of milk, about a cup of shredded mozzarella cheese, and some basic seasoning like garlic powder, salt, and pepper. I bake these at 350 degrees for about about 25 minutes until lightly golden brown and firm. My kids love these and they usually last for two mornings for breakfast or a snack. To reheat, I just microwave for about 20 seconds.

Cottage Cheese with Pineapple & Blueberries- The pineapple for this breakfast is leftover from our Upside Down Pineapple Cake, so I will typically serve this midweek. I just top the cottage cheese with a few blueberries and pineapple pieces for a super quick breakfast.

Egg & Cheese Biscuits– I typically make this dish on a sunday morning but you can make it anytime. I use half of a can of biscuits to make super simple sandwiches of scrambled eggs and cheese served on a biscuit. You can serve the cheesy eggs and biscuits side by side instead of as a sandwich if you like. I always want to include a fruit at breakfast, so some simple apple slices work really well.

Mini Monkey Bread– This is where the other half of that can of biscuits comes in handy. I take each biscuit and cut it into 4-6 pieces depending on the size. I then roll each piece into a mixture of white sugar and cinnamon; then place it into a loaf pan. (Typically, you make this using a Bundt pan but honestly it just makes too much so i use a large loaf pan and it comes out just enough!) Now you take melted butter and brown sugar mixed together and pour it over your biscuit pieces. I bake this for about 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven. The kids love this for breakfast and I usually serve it with a handful of blueberries on the side.

Scrambled Eggs, Pepperoni, and Apple Slices– By the end of the week, breakfasts are typically just using up leftover ingredients, so I like to make it easy. This one is just scrambled eggs, a few slices of pepperoni, and some apples wedges.

Lunches

Chicken Salad with Celery & Saltines
Black Bean Hummus Quesadillas & Carrots with Ranch
Leftover Dinners

Chicken Salad– After our leg quarters are baked in the oven, I like to go ahead and pull the meat before I put them away in the fridge. I will put all the bones in one container to make the soup, and then I will take all the pulled meat and make chicken salad. I do a very basic chicken salad and prefer to use Ranch dressing instead of mayonnaise. I will also add a little diced onion and celery, but not much seasoning since the Ranch dressing already has some. We will serve this as a dip with celery and saltine crackers.

Black Bean Hummus Quesadillas– A whole can of black beans is a little too many beans for enchiladas, so I usually have about 1/2 a can leftover. An easy way to use these up is to make a black bean hummus. I will put the black beans in a food processor with a little vegetable oil and seasonings like garlic powder, salt, and pepper. For the adults, I add a little hot sauce, but for the kids I leave it plain. To make the quesadillas, I simple spread a spoon full on the tortilla, top with some cheese, and then either pop it in the toaster oven or sauté in a pan on the stovetop.

Leftover Dinner– We will have a bit of leftovers this week, which is great for lunches!

Dinners

Herb Chicken Leg Quarters with Sweet Potatoes & California Blend veggies
Chicken and Rice Soup with Spinach Salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, cheese, & ranch dressing)
Ground Beef and Black Bean Enchiladas with Cilantro Lime Rice & Canned Corn
Ground Beef Chili with Red Kidney Beans (served with tortillas, sour cream, & cheese) and California Blend veggies & Cornbread.
BBQ pulled chicken sandwiches with coleslaw and baked beans
Mini Pepperoni Pizzas with Spinach Salad

Herb Chicken Leg Quarters– I am all about quick and easy dinners, and this is definitely one of those. Plus it will cook the chicken for a couple more meals too! I like to get a large bowl and place my leg quarters in it, then drizzle with vegetable oil and sprinkle with a seasoning blend. I then place the leg quarters on a large sheet pan, cook in a 350 degree oven until done. (Bone In Chicken can take longer than boneless, so this typically takes about 45 minutes. I usually flip at the half way mark so they get golden brown on both sides. After the chicken is fully cooked, I will serve some for tonight, and then pull all the chicken and save the bones for later.

For the Sweet Potatoes, I like to peel them, and then slice them in circles. I drizzle with oil and salt and pepper. You can cut them thicker for like home fries, or cut them thinner for similar to baked chips. Both ways are super yummy! I typically go easy on the side dish and do a microwave steam in the bag of California blend vegetables. After they are steamed, I may add a little butter but most of the time the kids like them plain.

Chicken and Rice Soup– Now we will take those leftover chicken bones, and make some easy soup on the stovetop. You could make this in the crockpot, but I always forget to use it. I start with some chopped celery, carrots, and onion in the bottom and cook until softened about 5-8 minutes. Next, I add my chicken bones and add enough water to cover. (If you have a lot of chicken bones you can make two batches, or freeze them for later on.) I simmer this for 1-2 hours on the stove and will add some seasoning if needed, but this chicken already had seasoning on it so usually I don’t need it. For the rice part, I like to add already cooked rice at the end of the cooking, as well as some of our pulled chicken. We will typically serve this soup with a spinach salad on the side!

Ground Beef and Black Bean Enchiladas– We will be using 1/2 of the ground beef for this recipe, but I will go ahead and cook the full amount now, and save the other half for another dinner. I do like to add a little taco seasoning to the cooked ground beef for flavor. After the beef is cooked, I like to go ahead and make a simple enchiladas sauce. I found this recipe from BudgetBytes and I have tweaked it just a tad bit since we already use taco seasoning on the beef. I skip the cayenne pepper & cumin, and I substitute basic tomato sauce instead of tomato paste. (When I open the can of tomato sauce, I only use what I need and will save the rest for when we make chili and pizzas.) For the black beans, I rinse them with cold water and add half of a can to the cooked ground beef. To assemble, I take a good scoop of meat and beans and place on a tortilla with a little shredded cheddar cheese. Then roll them up and place them seam side down in a casserole dish. I top with the enchiladas sauce and bake for about 20 minutes. You can add extra shredded cheddar cheese to the top and serve with sour cream.

For the Cilantro Lime Rice, I make a basic white rice with a little leftover chicken broth from the soup and juice from 1 lime. After it is cooked, I like to add the zest from my lime and chopped cilantro to the end with butter. (I will chop all the cilantro up and freeze it for later use.) I serve this with simple canned corn, and any corn leftover will get added to our cornbread.

Ground Beef Chili with Red Kidney Beans– Our ground beef is already cooked, so this chili comes together super quick! I add 1 can of diced tomatoes and 1 can of rinsed red kidney beans. Then I add my chili powder and stir. I start with a little and keep adding until it is just right. We will serve this with tortilla chips, shredded cheese, and sour cream.

For the side dishes, we will have some leftover California blend veggies and we will make a batch of cornbread using a mix. I add any leftover canned corn to the cornbread to make it a little heartier. (You can add some chopped cilantro to the cornbread too if you want!)

BBQ pulled chicken sandwiches- This is another super quick dinner to pull together since the chicken is already cooked and pulled. I will mix the chicken and BBQ sauce together and microwave for about 30 seconds, then stir, and microwave again until warm. We serve this on hamburger buns and then cut them in half for the kids to eat.

For the side dishes, I actually make the coleslaw in the morning before work, so it has enough time to refrigerate until dinner. I have started making my own coleslaw dressing with mayonnaise, lemon or lime juice, sugar, and vinegar. The baked beans just really need to be heated up before dinner, so this meal is a super quick one for those busy nights!

Mini Pepperoni Pizzas– I am a huge fan of homemade pizza, but I don’t always remember or have the time to make the dough, so for a super quick meal I make pizza with frozen garlic bread! I like to cook the garlic bread about halfway, and then take it out of the oven and top with tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella cheese, and pepperoni slices. My kids love these, and we typically use a whole box of garlic bread for one night! For an easy side we will finish off the spinach and have a simple salad.

Snacks

Apple Slices
Celery & Carrots with Ranch Dressing
Saltine Crackers
Bananas & Blueberries
Tortilla Chips

Sweet Treat

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Pineapple Upside Down Cake– We are all about simple this week, and the sweet treat is just as simple. We start by melting 1/2 a cup of butter at the bottom of 9 x 13 pan in a 350 degree oven. Once melted, I sprinkle about 1 cup of brown sugar and use a fork to mix it with the butter. Then I drain the juice from the pineapple but i keep it on the side. I only use about 1/2 of the can of pineapple tidbits or chunks because I think it gives good coverage and save the rest for breakfast or snacks. Once the pineapple is spread on the bottom in the butter mixture, I go ahead and make my cake mix according to the directions because they are all a little different. I will substitute the water in the mix for pineapple juice and if I don’t have enough, I will add water to get the right measurement. Once mixed, I pour the batter over the pineapple and bake in the oven until golden brown. (If you want to use cherries, you can but I have found it isn’t a make-or-break ingredient.)

Once this is baked, you can remove it from the pan or leave it in the pan. My cake pan has a convenient lid, so I leave mine in it and put the whole pan in the fridge once cooled. This dessert usually lasts 3-4 nights because we don’t make huge portions. If there is room in your budget, you can add some whipped topping to it as well! (To reheat the cake later on, I just microwave for 15 seconds.)

Shopping List for a Family of 4

Look through this broken-down by section grocery list and see if you have any of these items already in your pantry or freezer. This will help lower your grocery costs by using what you already have.

We have 2 adults and 2 young kids, and these are the amounts that we use, so you may need to tweak the amounts a little if your family is bigger.

This is all the fresh vegetables and fruits we need for the week.

Item	Have on Hand?
Bananas x5
Blueberries
Apples
Carrots
Celery
Spinach
Sweet Potatoes (need 4)
Tomato
Cabbage (small)
Cucumber
Lime
Cilantro
Total: (12 items)

This is all the meats that we will need from the deli and meat counter.

Item	Have on Hand?
Chicken Leg Quarters (need 5lbs)
Ground Beef (need 1 pound)
Pepperoni Slices
Total: (3 items)

This is all the dry goods and shelf stable items that we need for our meal plan.

Item	Have on Hand?
Canned Pineapple
Brown Sugar
Yellow Cake Mix
Tortillas
Black Beans (can)
Ranch Dressing
Hamburger Buns
Baked Beans
Tomato Sauce
Diced Tomatoes (can)
Chili Powder
Corn (can)
White Rice
Taco Seasoning
Kidney Beans (can)
Tortilla Chips
Cornbread Mix
Garlic Herb Seasoning Blend
Barbeque Sauce
Total: (18 items)

These are the frozen items needed for this week’s meal plan.

Item	Have on Hand?
California Blend Veggies
Garlic Bread
Total: (2 items)

These are all the dairy items needed like milk and cheeses.

Item	Have on Hand?
Eggs
Cottage Cheese
Milk (1/2 gallon)
Biscuits (can)
Butter
Cheddar Cheese
Mozzarella Cheese
Total: (7 items)

Cheap Meal Plan for a Week

I have priced out this meal plan at multiple stores, and at most places it typically runs about $100. If you have some of the items like the dry goods already in your pantry, you can spend even less!

Store	Total
Stater Bros Market (Apple Valley, CA)	$102.73
Walmart (Apple Valley, CA)	$80.44
Aldi (Westerville, OH)	$89.35
Kroger (Westerville, OH)	$87.09
Albertsons (Battle Ground, WA)	$104.02
Safeway (Battle Ground, WA)	$104.02
Winn Dixie (Hattiesburg, MS)	$106.40
Target (Hattiesburg, MS)	$97.01
Rouses Market (Saraland, AL)	$103.70
Publix (Saraland, AL)	$116.98
Wegmans (Bel Air, MD)	$110.37
Giant Foods (Bel Air, MD)	$105.48
Stop & Shop (Pennington, NJ)	$100.07
ShopRite (Pennington, NJ)	$94.75
Meijer (Rockford, IL)	$85.74
Schnucks (Rockford, Il)	$100.23
Harris Teeter (Portsmouth, VA)	$102.10
Lidl (Portsmouth, VA)	$103.26
Smart & Final (Phoenix, AZ)	$106.55
Fry’s (Phoenix, AZ)	$96.04
Total Stores (20)	Average Total: $99.82