March 29, 2010

A peek inside my grocery cart

I think we all like to look into other people's lives a little bit, and that's why blogs are so popular. That's also why it's so much fun to look into other people's carts when grocery shopping and see what kind of stuff they buy (or at least...it's fun for me...maybe I'm a freak...). In celebration of a much needed shopping trip, and to give some ideas to those who are less inspired while grocery shopping, here is what was in my grocery cart this weekend:

whole wheat pita bread
flour tortillas
hummus
shredded chedder
shredded mozzarella
a ball of pre-made pizza dough
whatever fish is on sale that week (this week, halibut)
ground beef
local made pork beer brats
round steaks
chicken breasts
no bone pork chops
broccoli
field greens (salad mix)
sweet potatos
small red potatos
cilantro
avocados
baby carrots
cucumbers
tomatoes
apples
oranges
bananas
lemons
limes
grapefruit
light vanilla soy milk
half and half
yogurt with no hf corn syrup, and active cultures, my fav is Cascade Fresh
butter...sweet amazing REAL butter. I gave up on the smart balance type stuff because, taste wise, it just does not compare. I do use it sparingly however :)
eggs from a local eco friendly farm
granola with whole grains and low sugar
dark chocolate covered orange sticks (so delicious)
tortilla chips
organic salsa
coffee
when Zak is with me: diet pepsi :)


These are basically all the items we need to buy about every other week. Things like fresh produce, meat and dairy, not to mention treats! For these things, I go to Sunflower Market, it's a grocer that specializes in local, and natural food. Their meat is all hormone free and mostly comes from local farms, that treat the animals ethically. The things I buy at Sunflower are very affordable, some things are just a few cents more than what you would buy at a regular store (like safeway or target) their produce and meat are actually cheaper (seriously, 2 steaks for $5)!

For other staples like flour, spices, zip lock bags, parchment paper, and toiletries I go to King Soopers because they are the cheapest in my neighborhood. When I shop, I look for what's on sale, then base all my meals around that. This way you can save A LOT of money. I also always look at the lables of what I am buying to quickly check to make sure there is no hf corn syrup, low sugar content, and to make sure the ingredient list isn't full of stuff I can't pronouce.

All in all, we spend a little more on groceries (about $300-400 a month) but it's worth it for me, and I compensate for it by going out to eat very rarely (once or twice a month), and going to starbucks very rarley (once a week or less).

Stay tuned this week, I will be posting some awesome old family photos of my grandparents and their horse ranch!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

if you really buy hummus that frequently, i have an awesome recipe if you want it. it's way better than packaged, and lasts quite a long time.
m

Ali said...

It's amazing how much money you can save by preparing your own meals at home. It's nice to have control over your portions and to know exactly what's going into your food. I like to light a few candles (even if we're just having homemade pizza) for added ambiance, lol.

Mmm...beer brats. Those sound sooo good.

Jessi B. said...

M I would love the recipe, I really do eat hummus almost everyday at work and so does my husband. I have been wanting to make my own because it can be pretty expensive to get the good stuff, you can find my email in my profile, thanks!!

Ali, you are so right, eating at home is much better than eating out in almost every way. It's also a great way to spend a little quality time with your partner during the busy week. I love that you light candles!