The challenge is on!
Here's our packed fridge/freezer
and chest freezer, and three soups that don't fit in the fridge, so they sit in the garage, where it is like a freezer!
and the pantry, plus a bit of overflow.
(oops - I forgot about the other pantry cupboard...not pictured)
Here's what our menu has looked like for the past 9 days:
Jan 1 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!
Jan 2 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!
Jan 3 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. Made one loaf of bread. Went grocery shopping at Costco, spent $19.95 on the following, which was nearly half of my projected budget of $50...$30.05 remaining for the month.
3 gallons of milk (should last us 2 weeks)
10 lbs apples (should last us the whole month)
5 lbs limes (should last approx 3 months)
Jan 4 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!
Jan 5 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, made 1 half-loaf of raisin bread and 1 half-loaf of french bread, made teriyaki rice for the kids and added it to my leftover veggie soup. And I've got to say, I'm getting sick of leftovers!!!
Jan 6 - Breakfast & lunch: leftovers. Stuck the remaining leftover soups (about 4 portions worth) into the freezer; still have bbq pork, calico beans, some tuna leftovers in the fridge...and I'm sure I'm forgetting something! Dinner: made tater tot casserole. Hooray for something new! :) No grocery shopping!
Jan 7 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!
Jan 8 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking - well, I made a salad, but that's not really cooking.
Jan 9 - Breakfast: made pancakes, Lunch & Dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping!
Jan 2 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!
Jan 3 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. Made one loaf of bread. Went grocery shopping at Costco, spent $19.95 on the following, which was nearly half of my projected budget of $50...$30.05 remaining for the month.
3 gallons of milk (should last us 2 weeks)
10 lbs apples (should last us the whole month)
5 lbs limes (should last approx 3 months)
Jan 4 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!
Jan 5 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, made 1 half-loaf of raisin bread and 1 half-loaf of french bread, made teriyaki rice for the kids and added it to my leftover veggie soup. And I've got to say, I'm getting sick of leftovers!!!
Jan 6 - Breakfast & lunch: leftovers. Stuck the remaining leftover soups (about 4 portions worth) into the freezer; still have bbq pork, calico beans, some tuna leftovers in the fridge...and I'm sure I'm forgetting something! Dinner: made tater tot casserole. Hooray for something new! :) No grocery shopping!
Jan 7 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!
Jan 8 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking - well, I made a salad, but that's not really cooking.
Jan 9 - Breakfast: made pancakes, Lunch & Dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping!
And here's our menu plan for the next week:
(breakfasts are usually cereal and/or fruit)
(breakfasts are usually cereal and/or fruit)
Jan 10 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Kung Pao Chicken
Jan 11 - Lunch: Greek Chicken Wraps; Dinner: Tacos
Jan 12 - Lunch & dinner: leftovers
Jan 13 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Egg Casserole
Jan 14 - Lunch: Fettuccine with Spicy Sausage; Dinner: leftovers
Jan 15 - Lunch: frozen pizza; Dinner: leftovers
Jan 16 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Chicken Tortilla Soup
Jan 11 - Lunch: Greek Chicken Wraps; Dinner: Tacos
Jan 12 - Lunch & dinner: leftovers
Jan 13 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Egg Casserole
Jan 14 - Lunch: Fettuccine with Spicy Sausage; Dinner: leftovers
Jan 15 - Lunch: frozen pizza; Dinner: leftovers
Jan 16 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Chicken Tortilla Soup
That's a lot of leftovers. We saw that when my fiance's stepdad died...his mom had food for DAYS. We don't have a spare freezer.
ReplyDeleteWow! That's a LOT of stuff! We are doing the same. We should have enough supplies for another week or so, then the house will be bare! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteYour garage freezer made me laugh. We refer to our garage as the walk-in refrigerator. Recently, on the garage floor, we had sodas, bottled waters, frog eye salad, a turkey, pumpkin pie, and who knows what else. Drinks from the garage are colder than those from our indoor refrigerator.
ReplyDeleteIt's good to use what we have - especially since so many of us really do have a lot of food in our homes. Encouraging post!
That's wild about your garage. I never thought people could use it as a refrigerator in the winter months.
ReplyDeleteMine is so hot in the summer I almost pass out. I can't clean it out my car during those months, because the heat sends my heart into an arrhythmia. I know it has risen to over 120 because it broke the thermometer in there. On the positive note my water heater doesn't have to run as much.
such a good idea to plan like that. I need to get my butt in gear. I'm always finding ingredients gone bad in the fridge because i didn't plan. But this is inspiring me! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to let you know you have an award waiting for you. :) Here's the direct link:
ReplyDeletehttp://brittanyciara.blogspot.com/2010/01/my-first-bloggy-award.html
Happy Saturday!
Okay so I cracked up when I saw your three pots of soup being refrigerated in the garage. If I tried that here, they would grow mold. Too funny!! You are doing awesome with this little challenge. Way to go!
ReplyDeleteOh my gracious sakes! That's a ton of food! I'm comin' to your house next hurricane season, LOL
ReplyDelete