Poll of the Day > What $50 a week for food looks like.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I shop at safeway mostly, I've mentioned that before, because of the specials/deals I get. While other places like Winco and Walmart have lower base prices (usually by about 10%), Safeway usually has specials/deals and just 4 u coupons (digital) that end up reducing the prices by around 50-60% when I'm done.

Thing is, I say this, but most people don't really believe it, or see the impact of it just from what I say.

So I thought I would break down my shopping for this week of food. The specific deals that I used, and the actual meals I have made/will make this week based on it.

First off my Safeway had (until Tuesday) a special for T-bone steaks for $6 a pound. T-bones are basically half NY strip and half Filet Mignion. I always use my safeway points (3 of them...2 of which I get for spending over $50 when I shop free, the last I get just from purchases) to add the $7 off any meat product to my coupons. So I got 4 nice large T-bones (this week, I made them open them to ensure they all had decent filet portions). The package has 4 steaks in it, about a pound each so was 24$ normally, but remove the 7$ and I got it for $17 total. I have used one so far, will use the filet portions of the last 3 for a meal tonight and freeze the rest for stir fry (I use 1 per stir fry meal).

Total spent 17$....which is the largest expense, but makes some damn good meals. Tonight I'll have about 1 1/2 pounds of filet mignion in fact.

Next up, yummy pasta sauce. Got prego Basil and Garlic sauces for $2 each on sale (2 of them). Also got 30% off hamburger meat that was already on sale, so paid $1.70 for a pound. One package of itallian mild sausage for $3.50. 4 packages of Barrilla spagetti for $4 total. I use about half a bottle of prego per meal (after adding everything in it etc), and half a package of pasta per meal. Net total was 14$, for 4 meals (but enough pasta for a ton more.

Total cost so far 31$

I got 4 packages of Lucern Swiss Cheese, on sale for $1.50 each (just 4 u), total $6 but makes around 16 lunches.

$37

4 cans (max with sale) chicken of the sea tuna fish in oil. for $3 (75 cents each)

$40 (makes 4 lunches, I have a big thing of mayo I got on sale in the fridge already that I won't run out of for along time).

Got 1 franscico's French Rolls, 6 very yummy (my favorite kind) french rolls, for $3 (J4u).

$43

Few minor items (2 bell peppers for the sauce and stir fry 1.83 cents, box of sugar (use it with my tea) $1
box of sliced crimini mushrooms $1.50 (j4u), box of diced onions $2 (convience...same price as a whole onion, lasts longer though and already diced for stir fry).

Got a free donut (still have one more to get) from monopoly instant win). Bought 2 Crystal Gyser Alpine spring water 1 gallon bottles @ 83 cents each (1.63 total).

Net total was 52.53. Gained 3 bonus points (2 for spending over 50 and 1 for spending 50$)...which is exactly as many as I used for the $7 off.

All of that was WHILE they had the crappy monopoly thing going which means they don't have any other specials like 20% off your order if you spend over $100, or 5$ off if you spend 50, or buy one get one free offers or any of the tons of waaaay better deals they have then crappy monopoly (my least favorite time of the year for shopping.

I don't eat breakfasts, just a lunch and dinner. I also don't always eat at home, I go out and eat fairly often, but, that is more then enough food for a full week (two in fact). I don't actually need a full NY strip for my stir fry. I use 1/2 a package of spagetti with it, some bell pepper, onions, mushrooms, and sauces in my fridge (spicy seschuan and teryiaki). It's delicious, and becuase I prep it all in advance, can be made almost instantly.

Pasta sauce as well, can be used within a few days, or frozen in a zip lock bag (in personal sized portions, heat it up in warm water and your good to go).
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Should be mentioned that I also donated food this week. 4 boxes of pasta (Barrilla), 4 boxes of Kraft Mac and Cheese, 2 large cans of Bush's baked beans, 2 cans of cambles chuncky beef stew, 1 can of mixed veggies (got free from monopolyor I would never have bought), 2 jars of ragu in meat sauce, 4 cans of tuna fish.

I generally try and donate food when I have extra, or when there are good sales etc. This food I had put into a cabinate for my roomates if they ran out/where hungry but they have not used it in 3 months, so I donated it all. Usually I donate based on having large # of items I bought with a very good sale, that I have not used for awhile.
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Where are the pictures? You said this is what $50 a week for food looks like. Yet it's only words!
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"What $50 a week for food looks like"

wolfy42 posted...

a novel

I've been bamboozled.
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Words = pictures in your mind!!! *hehe*

Seriously I mudded for years, words are more visual for me, then....sight!

I might take a pic and post it when I make my steaks tonight though:)
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How many actually read that entire wall?
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Zangulus posted...

Ok

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I wasn't expecting a picture. However, I was expecting a nice, tidy list, instead of paragraphs of rambling text. You know, like:

loaf of bread, $2.99
40 oz. peanut butter, $5.99
12 oz. jelly, $1.98

So much easier to digest.
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Golden Road posted...

I wasn't expecting a picture. However, I was expecting a nice, tidy list, instead of paragraphs of rambling text. You know, like:

loaf of bread, $2.99
40 oz. peanut butter, $5.99
12 oz. jelly, $1.98

So much easier to digest.

i'm gluten intolerant, ok?
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Meat
Meat
Meat
Meat
Processed food
Junk food
More meat

Damn eat a vegetable for once in your life
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wolfy42 posted...

Words = pictures in your mind!!! *hehe*

Seriously I mudded for years, words are more visual for me, then....sight!

I might take a pic and post it when I make my steaks tonight though:)

Tv ruined my imagination.
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I bought this for 44 dollars Canadian



That was easy
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If you're trying to see what's the least you can live on you're buying a lot of processed food which costs more than unprocessed foods.

But if you're just showing what you decided to eat for a week, okay.
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Doctor Foxx posted...

I bought this for 44 dollars Canadian



That was easy

pssh, I could get all that for free by going to the food bank
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Nah, I could eat for WAY less than that, just wanted a picture of what you can get for $50 a week.

Basically lets me have steak 5 out of 7 nights (either as a steak or as stir fry), make really yummy pasta the other two nights, and have a swiss cheese (grilled) or Tuna sandwiches for lunch. You could mix in chicken or more healthy foods in there if you want. I'm good with that though (Also I won't actually have steak/stir fry 5 of the nights, but it makes at least that many meals all together).

Sorry I tend to ramble on, I try and fight it, but food conversations bring out the worst in my long post tendencies.
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Not my type of food. But I guess thats good...
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tl;dr

I thought there was gonna be a picture. I just woke up here.
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I read that.

Your vegetables for the entire week consist of two bell peppers?
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kangolcone posted...

Your vegetables for the entire week consist of two bell peppers?

Are you saying she should have more?
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LinkPizza posted...

kangolcone posted...

Your vegetables for the entire week consist of two bell peppers?

Are you saying she should have more?

Wolfy absolutely should be eating more vegetables, that's a terribly fiber deficient diet
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Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

A tbone is absolutely not half New York half filet

I just eat a whole broccoli stalk everyday.
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JSebastianBach posted...

Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

I was talking about Doctor Foxx. I thought @kangolcone was asking Doctor Foxx about the peppers...
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LinkPizza posted...

JSebastianBach posted...

Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

I was talking about Doctor Foxx. I thought @kangolcone was asking Doctor Foxx about the peppers...

There's way more vegetables than peppers in that picture

Like if you can't see the big bright bag of carrots, or broccoli, or the enormous bag of spinach... Idk man
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Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

JSebastianBach posted...

Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

I was talking about Doctor Foxx. I thought @kangolcone was asking Doctor Foxx about the peppers...

There's way more vegetables than peppers in that picture

See. What I thought he meant was that you should have more peppers. But not that the only vegetables were peppers. I just read it differently. Thats all. Haha.
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LinkPizza posted...

Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

JSebastianBach posted...

Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

I was talking about Doctor Foxx. I thought @kangolcone was asking Doctor Foxx about the peppers...

There's way more vegetables than peppers in that picture

See. What I thought he meant was that you should have more peppers. But not that the only vegetables were peppers. I just read it differently. Thats all. Haha.

Nah... Wolfy needs more vegetables

I'd gladly eat more of them too but I am not lacking in my diet
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Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

JSebastianBach posted...

Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

I was talking about Doctor Foxx. I thought @kangolcone was asking Doctor Foxx about the peppers...

There's way more vegetables than peppers in that picture

See. What I thought he meant was that you should have more peppers. But not that the only vegetables were peppers. I just read it differently. Thats all. Haha.

Nah... Wolfy needs more vegetables

I'd gladly eat more of them too but I am not lacking in my diet

Oh. I dont think youre lacking. The way I read it was something like, You got all those veggies for the week, but only 2 bell peppers. So, I read it as he thought you should have more. I havent Read wolfys wall of text yet. It was a lot...
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LinkPizza posted...

Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

JSebastianBach posted...

Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

I was talking about Doctor Foxx. I thought @kangolcone was asking Doctor Foxx about the peppers...

There's way more vegetables than peppers in that picture

See. What I thought he meant was that you should have more peppers. But not that the only vegetables were peppers. I just read it differently. Thats all. Haha.

Nah... Wolfy needs more vegetables

I'd gladly eat more of them too but I am not lacking in my diet

Oh. I dont think youre lacking. The way I read it was something like, You got all those veggies for the week, but only 2 bell peppers. So, I read it as he thought you should have more. I havent Read wolfys wall of text yet. It was a lot...

If you read the topic you'd see Wolfy bought 2 bell peppers with some pre-cut onions and mushrooms and that was it for his vegetables. Yiiiiikes
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Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

Doctor Foxx posted...

LinkPizza posted...

JSebastianBach posted...

Wait is wolfy transgender now or is that just a trademark LinkPizza typo

Cause I'd remember him (her?) saying things about feeling vaguely effeminate

I was talking about Doctor Foxx. I thought @kangolcone was asking Doctor Foxx about the peppers...

There's way more vegetables than peppers in that picture

See. What I thought he meant was that you should have more peppers. But not that the only vegetables were peppers. I just read it differently. Thats all. Haha.

Nah... Wolfy needs more vegetables

I'd gladly eat more of them too but I am not lacking in my diet

Oh. I dont think youre lacking. The way I read it was something like, You got all those veggies for the week, but only 2 bell peppers. So, I read it as he thought you should have more. I havent Read wolfys wall of text yet. It was a lot...

If you read the topic you'd see Wolfy bought 2 bell peppers with some pre-cut onions and mushrooms and that was it for his vegetables. Yiiiiikes

Ill probably read it at some point... But, when I first clicked on the topic, like many others, I was expected a picture. Like how you had one. But it was a wall of text... I dont even know how many veggies I get a week. But I dont buy food by the week or anything. I recently just started buying food when I have the money and need food. Haha.
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That is just what I bought at the time. I still had almost a full 2 pound bag of brocolli for the stir fry in my fridge. I don't eat that many veggies though it's true. Never had. I joke(ish) that I'm a carnivor.

I eat onions, celery, brocolli, brussel sprouts, potatoes primarily as my veggies and at a very small ratio to my meat/cheese/carbs (trying hard to avoid the carbs though).

Most of the time when I eat chineese (Even though there are no really good places here sigh), I get brocolli beef (with rice). I use brocolli in my stir fry (usually at least 1-2 times a week) and I like to make brussel sprouts with my steaks (charred a bit in a frying pan, then soaks in the steak juice for super yum).

I use bell peppers in my stir fry/pasta sauce/roasts etc as well. Broccolli again with my roasted chickens (also with roasted potatoes). I do go out and have beef stew sometimes which has carrots (don't usually like them cooked, but it's ok if its beef stew..the beefiness covers the taste, and other veggies in them.

I tend to eat out 2 times a week or so on average, but was just showing what shopping for a week+ worth of food would cost at safeway. I wouldn't actually eat JUST that all week, but mixed in with things I bought the week before etc, it would make more then 7 days worth of food.
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LinkPizza posted...

Ill probably read it at some point... But, when I first clicked on the topic, like many others, I was expected a picture. Like how you had one. But it was a wall of text... I dont even know how many veggies I get a week. But I dont buy food by the week or anything. I recently just started buying food when I have the money and need food. Haha.

Lol, yeah, didn't mean to make it a wall of text sorry. Just trying to show people how to save money. So many buy at walmart/winco etc, and shun safeway because it's more expensive, but end up spending way more because of that. I have slowly convienced people in real life, but I've mentioned it on here for years.

Sadly it's not as good as it used to be since Safeway got bought out by Albertsons, you rarely see the 20% off your entire order specials etc anymore. I also only average about 50% off when I check out, I used to average about 65%....it's still better then the rest, but it's going in the wrong direction. I have had weeks that were so bad I would shop at winco instead a few times now.
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