Back on the savings wagon

[Reggie]

Starting today I'm going to try saving a bit more money. I've been very lax and I want to save some for the upcoming holidays. I have $200 goal for groceries this week. I have to feed myself and my 7 year old all week. I looked through the ads and came up with a menu plan.

I'm going to buy a lot of frozen veggies and not as much fruit. We eat too much fruit and we waste a lot of fresh produce when it isn't used quickly enough. Frozen veggies should help reduce a lot of waste. I'm even going to go to the dreaded Walmart for my fish. I found it very cheap a few weeks ago and I need to stock up. They were half the price per pound. I hope it wasn't just a fluke.

I'm going to make my protein shakes instead of buying the premade ones also.

Any ideas on mid-day snacks? I need something that I can throw in my lunch to replace protein bars. I've been consuming 5-6 of these every week and they are not cheap.

[cardtrick]

good luck! There's a fresh produce store a block away from my house, so I just walk over there right after work and pick up enough for 2-3 days. I like my produce really fresh.

How about a sandwich for a mid-day snack? I used to do multi-grain with mustard and turkey or chicken deli meat. And then every now and then I'd do a PB sandwich. Target has Hormel chicken and turkey slices with no preservatives but it's a bit more pricey.

Or you could make granola at home. I don't know how to cook and even I can make really good granola.

[kork13]

Any ideas on mid-day snacks? I need something that I can throw in my lunch to replace protein bars. I've been consuming 5-6 of these every week and they are not cheap.

Just some quick ideas for snacks... Nuts are a good option, I normally go for almonds or pistachios, sometimes peanuts. However, the cost for most nuts has skyrocketed over the last few years, so you need to find them on sale, & buy in bulk when you do. I also use yoghurt for snacks. Otherwise, alot of what I snack on is fresh fruit/veggies... Apples, oranges/tangerines, bananas, carrots, broccoli, and that sort. Granola, granola bars, & trail mix (I make my own w/ nuts, dried fruits, and such) are my weaknesses, so when I have those, I'll snack on them too.

[Reggie]

Nuts are an awesome idea. I do very low carb so no bread or granola. I'm also cutting down on fruit, it's too much sugar. I have an apple at 2pm to wake me up and give me a bit of energy. I'm limiting my fruit to two pieces per day. I could snack on cauliflower and broccoli for sure. That's a good idea.

I spent 150 at the grocery so far.

[disneysteve]

I was also going to recommend nuts for a snack. Other ideas are cheese sticks, hummus, yogurt, or peanut butter.

[stoney508]

I was going to recommend you take a look at mens health online. They have a lot of receipies for granola that you can make that have dry protien powders that you add to get a little more bang for your buck if your looking for a high protien snack. I am also sure they have reciepes and other ideas. That or womans health they have great ideas plus can give you ideas of portion size and a relative idea of the caloric intake for the snacks.

[kork13]

I was also going to recommend nuts for a snack. Other ideas are cheese sticks, hummus, yogurt, or peanut butter.

Oh... hummus... Hummus is excellent! Very healthy, easy to make (just throw everything in a blender & hit the "goo-ify" button), easy to customize, and tastes awesome. Use it as a dip for your favorite vegetables or in place of mayonnaise on sandwiches/wraps. It's made mostly from garbanzo beans, so it's got a lot of protein & fiber with few carbs. This is a great idea, and an awesome snack. Actually makes me want some right now.... haha

[Permanent Temp]

I got a protein bar recipe from competitor mag that was pretty good I'd have to find it but it made a lot of protein bars. I'd recommend trial mixes for mid day snacks though if you don't go the homemade protein bar route.

If there is a fridge you could have a hard boiled egg with fruit things like that.

[snafu]

Welcome back to savings. It truly helps to write out a menu plan to buy what you need and use what you have. Have a quick look at what's already in the fridge and pantry and jot what could be bkfst/take-away lunch & dinner. List what is needed to complete one week of meals. Fresh produce used the 1st week, frozen or dried items week #2. For example, you could bake chicken breasts/parts on Sunday and use slices for take-away lunch, Lo Mein [rice noodles] dinner Tues., Hot chicken sandwich layered over over baked sweet potato slices Wed. [There are tons of free menu planner sites on-line]

I've found it really helpful to use something like [free] mint.com to list expenditure on my phone; makes me think twice for those few bucks here and there impulse buys which add up over the month.

[fruitbowlk]

You can do hummus, yogurt, frozen fruit thawed out, tuna and crackers and mixed nuts.