Feed your Family Well for Less: Healthy Grocery List on a Budget #8

Fall is almost here, and I am ready for chilly weather and a little pumpkin spice! This week we will start incorporating some cold weather classics.

We are going to grab the crockpot this week and make some super easy dinners that taste great too. If you don’t have a crockpot, you can still make these dishes on a stove top or in the oven.

Our meal plans try to use as many healthy ingredients as possible and stay on a tight budget. We do include snack and a sweet treat because skipping those is not realistic in most households.

7-day family meal plan

Breakfasts

Pumpkin Smoothies
Swiss Cheese and Tomato Toast w/ Scrambled Eggs with a Banana
Ham and Cheese on English Muffins with a Banana
Overnight Pumpkin Pie Oats
Yogurt Parfait with Banana and Homemade Granola

Pumpkin Smoothies- This is a super quick smoothie that doesn’t even require a blender. I like to make these in mason jars. I start with 2 tbsp canned pumpkin puree in each jar. Then add a little brown sugar and cinnamon. I will go ahead and use a spoon to mix the puree and spices together. Next, I add 2 tbsp of vanilla yogurt and about 1/2 cup of 2% milk. Add the lid to mason jar and shake until combined! My kids love to drink these straight out of the jar with a straw.

Swiss Cheese and Tomato Toast w/ Scrambled Eggs with a Banana– My kids think these are mini pizzas for breakfast. We take a few slices of bread and butter them, add a slice of Swiss cheese, and top with a slice of tomato. Pop them in the toaster oven or regular oven until the cheese is melted. We typically serve with some scrambled eggs and half of a banana.

Ham and Cheese on English Muffins with a Banana- Very similar to the toast above, I like to butter the English muffins and then top with some sliced ham lunchmeat and cheese. I pop these in the toaster oven to melt the cheese. My kids are still small so each kid will get half of an English muffin and eat it open faced. For the adults, we leave one side of the English muffin plain with just butter and then make a sandwich. This breakfast is really easy on the go, and we serve with a banana.

Overnight Pumpkin Pie Oats- I love being able to make breakfast the night before for busy mornings. These overnight oats are super simple to make in a mason jar. Start with a spoonful of pumpkin puree at the bottom, some brown sugar, and a dash of cinnamon. You can add a little yogurt to the top or skip it. We top with 1/2 cup of quick oats and then fill the mason jar with milk to cover the oats. I give the jar a shake before I put it in the fridge overnight. These oats are great heated up in the microwave or if you want to eat them cold.

Yogurt Parfait with Banana and Homemade Granola- Homemade granola is so easy and so cheap compared to the store-bought kind. We are going to make a 1/2 batch, so we have enough for a few breakfasts and as a snack. I take 1 1/2 cup of quick oats in a bowl and add 1/4 cup oil, 1/4 cup honey, dash of cinnamon, dash of salt, and mix well. Then spread the mixture on a sheet pan and bake for about 15 minutes. After it is baked, I let it cool and put the mixture in a Ziploc bag with 1/2 cup of raisins.

To make the parfait, I start my cups with a little yogurt on the bottom, then a spoonful of granola. I top the granola with a few slices of banana, and then do another layer of yogurt and granola. This breakfast is a huge winner with my kids! For more information about homemade granola, check out “Is it Cheaper to make or buy Granola?“

Lunches

Mexican Dip (refried beans, salsa, sour cream) with Homemade Tortilla Chips
Cuban-ish Quesadillas (leftover pork, sliced ham, Swiss cheese, and pickles) and Carrot Sticks
Fried Egg Grilled Swiss Cheese Sandwich with Leftover Soup
Spinach Salad with Sliced Ham, Tomatoes & Cucumbers
Dinner Leftovers

Mexican Dip with Homemade Tortillas– We know that we will need at least 4 tortillas for quesadillas later in the week, so I make sure to only use half the bag. Take each tortilla and using a knife or pizza cutter, cut each one into 8 triangles. In a small bowl I will mix a little vegetable oil, chili powder or taco seasoning, and a little salt. With a small brush I will apply the oil mixture to each side of the tortilla. Then spread out the triangles on a baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes. While these are baking, I mix together 1/3 of the can of refried beans, about 1/2 cup of salsa, and a 1/4 cup of sour cream. If we have some extra shredded cheddar cheese, I will usually add that too. This dip is so filling and so tasty!

Cuban-ish Quesadillas with Carrot Sticks- For this lunch, we are going to take a little bit of the leftover pork loin and make quesadillas. These super simple quesadillas start with a slice of ham lunch meat, a little pulled pork, a slice of Swiss cheese, and some pickles. Then we fold them over and do a quick sauté on both sides in a pan on the stove. This quesadilla is pretty filling, so we serve it with carrot sticks and any leftover tortilla chips.

Fried Egg Grilled Swiss Cheese Sandwich with Leftover Soup– I recently have become a huge fan of fried eggs, so we have started to make them more for lunches. There are a couple ways to make them, but I like having two pans going at once. I will make a standard grilled cheese in one pan, and then make my fried egg in another pan. Once the grilled cheese is done, I will pull the bread apart and put my egg inside and usually a slice of tomato. Grilled Cheese always goes well with soup, so we will have some leftover Beef and Vegetable soup on the side. (Since this sandwich is pretty hearty, we will do small bowls of soup or else we will all be in a yummy food coma.)

Spinach Salad with Sliced Ham, Tomatoes & Cucumbers- We still have a couple of slices of ham lunch meat left, so I will chop this up and add it to a spinach salad with tomatoes and cucumber. We typically have some dressing leftover in the fridge so we could use an Italian dressing or ranch dressing for this simple salad. If you have some eggs leftover, you can add some hard-boiled eggs to make this even more filling.

Dinners

Beef Tamale Casserole with Sliced Cucumbers
Brown Sugar Chicken Thighs with Potato Wedges and Green Beans
Beef, Vegetable, & Rice Soup with Spinach Salad
Chicken, Squash, and Carrot Rice Bowls
Crockpot Ranch Pork Loin with Mashed Potatoes & Carrots
Leftover Pork Pasta with Spinach & Tomatoes in Creamy Sauce

Beef Tamale Casserole with Sliced Cucumbers– This super simple casserole is always a big hit! We start with a box of cornbread mix, and we mix it together with the can of corn, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup of milk, and 1 cup of cheese. Pour this cornbread mixture into a greased casserole dish and bake at 400 for 20 minutes. While the cornbread is baking, you will go ahead and cook the full pound of ground beef in a pan. Once you drain the fat, we will save 1/3 of the meat for our soup later on. The 2/3 of the pound of meat will have some taco seasoning and water added and cooked until thickened. Now we will add our can of enchilada sauce to the beef and stir it well. After the cornbread is fully baked, we are going to top it with our beef enchilada sauce mixture. Next, we will add some shredded cheese to the top. Then we bake for another 10 minutes until the cheese is fully melted. We like to serve this with a little sour cream on top and some sliced cucumbers on the side.

Brown Sugar Chicken Thighs with Potato Wedges and Green Beans– For the chicken thighs we are going to place them in a bowl and drizzle some vegetable oil on them. Next, we will make our spice blend in a small bowl. I like to start with 2 tbsp brown sugar, 2 tsp of seasoning salt (or plain salt), 2 tsp of pepper, and 1 tsp of garlic powder and onion powder. Mix the seasonings all together and then sprinkle it over the chicken thighs. Using my hand, I just toss the chicken in the oil and seasoning until well coated. Then I will put the chicken thighs in a casserole dish and bake at 400 in the oven for about 30-40 minutes. Depending on the size of your thighs, it may take longer. While my chicken is baking, I will go ahead and take 4 potatoes and slice them in edges. Similar to the chicken, I will drizzle the potatoes in oil and some seasoning like French fry or garlic and herb seasoning. Pour the coated potatoes onto a sheet pan and bake in the oven with the chicken thighs for about 30-40 minutes. I typically serve this with canned green beans that I have drained and added butter, salt, and pepper. Since this dish is mostly cooked in the oven, I might get to fold a load or two of clothes while it bakes!

Chicken, Squash, and Carrot Rice Bowls– For this dinner we are going to pull the chicken off the leftover chicken thighs. In a sauté pan with vegetable oil we will cook the carrots and the squash. I like to keep the seasoning pretty mild because the chicken is already seasoned. I typically use salt, pepper, and garlic powder on the vegetables. In a separate pan, I will go ahead and cook the white rice. I am going to make 2 cups of dry rice, because whatever is leftover will go in our Beef, Vegetable, and Rice Soup. Once the vegetables are fully cooked, I will add the chicken to the pan to warm it up. I serve the chicken and vegetables over the rice. You can add soy sauce or yum yum sauce to the top if you want more flavor!

Pro Tip: If the store doesn’t have yellow squash, you can use zucchini or even sweet potatoes to make this quick rice bowl dish.

Beef, Vegetable, & Rice Soup with Spinach Salad– This soup is the ultimate in comfort food. We are going to start by taking our precooked ground beef and heating that up in a big pan. Next, we will add 1-2 beef bouillon cubes depending on how strong you like your broth and water. Now we will add our bag of mixed vegetables, a can of diced tomatoes, and our leftover cooked rice. I let this simmer for about 20-30 minutes. You can add whatever seasoning you like, but I add salt, pepper, garlic powder, and an Italian seasoning blend. We serve this with a small spinach side salad with tomatoes and cucumbers.

Crockpot Ranch Pork Loin with Mashed Potatoes & Carrots– This is a super quick and tasty crockpot meal for a busy night. We start by taking ranch powder and combining it with 1 block of cream cheese. We place the pork loin in the crockpot and use a butter knife to slather the edges with the cream cheese mixture. Now we place large chopped (1-2 inches thick) carrot and potatoes around the pork loin. I like to cook this on high for about 4 hours, and my machine switches over to low for the last 4 hours. Once the pork loin is done, it will be super tender and fall apart. I like to serve this in a large bowl so the meat, carrots, and potatoes are all covered in the gravy.

Leftover Pork Pasta with Spinach & Tomatoes in Creamy Sauce– Every time we make the crockpot pork loin the potatoes and carrots go fast but we end up with a little gravy and a decent amount of pork left. We will save a little but of the pork for the lunch quesadillas, and the rest of pork will be made into a pasta. In a large pot I will boil my pasta until done. In another pan, I am going to take 1 block of cream cheese and melt it with a little bit of water. This will be the base for my cream sauce. Next, we will add the end of our spinach. I like to rough chop it and then add my leftover tomatoes. We will season our sauce with some salt, pepper, and a garlic herb seasoning blend. Once the pasta is done, I add it back to the big pot and more the sauce onto of the pasta. If we have any leftover shredded cheese, I will add that on top too, but it isn’t necessary. We typically will serve this filling pasta with some butter bread or garlic bread on the side.

Snacks

Carrot Sticks
Popcorn
Homemade Granola

Carrot Sticks– I like to go ahead and clean, peel, and cut the carrots early in the week so these are ready to go whenever they are needed. Leftover carrots will be used in the Chicken & Squash Bowl.

Sweet Treat

Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Banana Oatmeal Cookies– These 3 ingredient cookies are so simple to make! To make your bananas ripen quicker, you can put them in the fridge or freezer overnight. To make these cookies, I use 2 medium ripe bananas that I smash with a fork. Then I add 1/4 cup of brown sugar and 1 cup of quick oats. Use a spoon to combine mixture. Then use your spoon to portion out cookie mounds on a cookie sheet. I bake these in a 350-degree oven for about 15 minutes and it makes roughly 16 cookies depending on size. This used to be my favorite way to use up forgotten bananas but now my kids ask for them all the time!

Grocery List for a Week

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.

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

Produce Items	Have on Hand?
Bananas x6
Tomatoes x3
Spinach
Cucumber
Carrots
Potatoes
Yellow Squash
Total: (7 items)

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

Meat Items	Have on Hand?
Ground Beef (1lb)
Chicken Thighs (6-8)
Pork Loin
Ham Lunchmeat
Total: (4 items)

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

Dry Goods Items	Have on Hand?
Pumpkin Puree
Brown Sugar
Sandwich Bread
English Muffins
Quick Oats
Refried beans
Tortillas
Pickle Slices
Salsa
Canned Corn
Cornbread Mix
Enchilada Sauce
Taco Seasoning
Canned Green Beans
Beef Boullion
Diced Tomatoes
White Rice
Soy Sauce
Ranch Powder
Microwave Popcorn
Honey
Raisins
Cinnamon
Pasta
Total: (23 items)

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

Frozen Items	Have on Hand?
Mixed vegetables
Total: (1 items)

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

Dairy Items	Have on Hand?
Vanilla Yogurt
2% Milk
Sliced Swiss Cheese
Eggs
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Cream Cheese x2
Total: (6 items)

Budget Family Meal Plan

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

Store	Total
Walmart (Las Vegas, NV)	$83.53
Smith’s (Las Vegas, NV)	$97.02
Family Fare (Fargo, ND)	$102.59
Hornbacher’s (Fargo, ND)	$108.80
Kroger (Columbus, OH)	$92.07
Meijer (Columbus, OH)	$95.88
Target (Tulsa, OK)	$97.06
The Fresh Market (Tulsa, OK)	$159.72
Hannaford (Burlington, VT)	$105.20
Market 32 (Burlington, VT)	$117.62
Harmons (Salt Lake City, UT)	$126.27
Smith’s (Salt Lake City, UT)	$92.98
Albertsons (Glendale, AZ)	$108.97
Fry’s (Glendale, AZ)	$89.94
Price Chopper (Roeland Park, KS)	$105.23
Aldi (Roeland Park, KS)	$102.27
Wegmans (Raleigh, NC)	$106.65
Publix (Raleigh, NC)	$129.72
Smart & Final (Salinas, CA)	$128.43
Safeway (Salinas, CA)	$137.13
Total Stores (20)	Average Total: $118.23