We all try to watch our waistlines and our wallets as we try to feed ourselves and our families. So, I’m embarking on a new adventure: taking tally of what I’m eating and what I’m spending. We all know that cooking at home is cheaper than eating out, but there’s a myth that you need to sacrifice flavor for funds. I’m learning as I cook more and more at home, that not only can I eat really well, but my wallet doesn’t have to suffer.
My meals are always approachable and made with ingredients that can be found in any grocery store. I try to use fresh produce as often as possible and try to get quality ingredients that are healthy for me.
I don’t have a goal of keeping each serving price under $5 or anything, but just keeping tally of what everything costs. Some meals will be really cheap, while others will be more of a splurge.
RECIPES: the majority of my recipes these days come from too many several food blogs I stalk each day and the few cookbooks I have in my kitchen. Some recipes will be ones that I’m just trying out, others will be the good-ole stand-bys while others will be meals I grew up with (note to self: ask my mom for her lasagna recipe). I’ll provide the recipe, any images I took during the meal and preparation process, and the link to where I found the recipe. Then I will breakdown the cost of the recipe … a few of the ingredients will be approximations since I won’t be using all that I have to buy (for instance, when I buy a tub of gorgonzola, but only need ½ cup, I’ll just estimate how much it cost for that ½ cup).
RECEIPTS: I am very grateful to have a pretty cheap grocery store by my work that I frequent about once a week, so that’s partly why my bills are pretty low. They have a great produce section, as well as bulk section, but also keep in mind that Seattle is one of the most expensive cities in the country to buy food (10% higher than the rest of the country), so it probably evens out to what you’d be able to buy. I’m a big sale shopper (although I’m not a coupon cutter), so I’ll let you know what I got on sale as well. When I can, I’ll give brands for the products I bought and I’ll let you know when I bought organic.
I’ll break down the costs of each ingredient, add it all together and divide by the number of servings I get out of the meal to get an overall servings cost. I will not include the cost of Oils, Salt and Pepper and several Spices. If they are a staple in the kitchen, it probably won’t be included in the costing (it’s kind of hard to cost what a “pinch of garlic salt” will come out to).
Photo is cropped from my sister's wedding; beautifully shot by Matthew Morgan Photography. I'll get an actual photo up here one day or another.
