Would you please share your grocery lists with me?
My fiance and I are trying to eat healthier AND cut down the cost of groceries, so I want to get an idea of what other people's lists look like and cost.
I'll come back just a little later today and post mine, although it is still evolving. But right now I have to go water my sister's garden - I promised I'd do it every *morning* and it's already 9:45!
Bananas
Strawberries
Grapes or Cantaloupe or some other fruit
Bagged Salad (usually spinach)
Low Fat Dressing (if I'm out)
Cherry tomatoes
Deli turkey/chicken (1 lb)
Corn on the Cob
Canned peas
Frozen peas
Frozen broccoli/other veggies
Oatmeal (instant - ones with higher fiber/protein, lower sugar)
Yogurt (fat free or low fat, low calorie)
Parmesan cheese (the kind you shake)
2 12-packs Coke/Pibb Zero
Healthy Choice/Smart One/Lean Cuisine frozen dinners
low calorie canned soups
one filet mignon or steak strip/rib eye
Crystal Light
Sweet treat (a pint of ice cream or a candy bar)
If I buy all/most of this, it's usually around $100 and the majority of it lasts for two weeks or more (I usually eat lunch at work). I buy more/less depending on what I still have left. I go to the grocery store every week to buy more fruit and salad. My grocery bill a month is never more than $200, but it's just me eating.
It's funny that you ask, cause my boyfriend and I just finished ours about ten minutes ago! We're vegetarians, I don't know if you eat meat or not but I hope this helps either way.
romaine lettuce*
whole carrots
tomatoes
avocados
mushrooms
broccolli
spinache*
celery*
bananas
strawberries
apples
grapes
refried beans (vegatarian)
garbanzo beans (for hummus)
whole wheat pita bread
mozzerella cheese (the 'Precious' brand makes a great low-fat version)
cheddar cheese
whole wheat bread
Caesar Italian dressing (it's super creamy and tangy but low cal, and not made with anchovies)
pickles*
peppercinis*
Morningstar Chik'n patties
Morningstar "Bacon" strips
Tofurkey pepperoni
Happy shopping!
*These foods are "negative calorie", meaning it takes more calories to chew and digest the food than you consume.
I just got back too! We bought: (Actually from the receipt!!)
Kiwi
Strawberries
Salad
chicken breast
pork chops (tried to find ones with little fat on them)
sarah lee lite bread
mini babybel cheese
laughing cow cheese lite
frozen peas
red, green, orange bell peppers
onions
brown rice
bananas
peaches
oranges
blackberries
blueberries
sprouts
rye crackers
kashi oatmeal
low-sodium foster farm deli turkey
mushrooms
low-sodium canned tomatoes
diet arizona green tea made with splenda
beets
I can't believe it's not butter
We buy our food at super target and have compared price with safeway and kings soopers and super target is the best. ALL of that costs us $65!! Now, granted we eat at home for 99% of our meals so we do spend more on shopping than we did - but believe me we save a ton of money NOT eating out. One meal can cost more than $40 and we got a weeks worth of food for 65! (Give or take a few items)
I made up a shopping list in a word processor. I print it every week, then go in the kitchen and either highlight (buy) or cross out (have). It has surprised me, but I don't seem to need to menu plan in detail before shopping. Mostly I have the same things each week (to make it easy to start these new habits), although now I'm starting to branch out more. But still, I mostly manage to use up the same things each week.
I mostly shop at Trader Joe's, but always have to stop off at a supermarket for a few things they don't have or only sell in quantities I can't use (like 2 bunches of celery in one bag). I don't buy everything on the list every week. Some things obviously lasts longer than 1 week (pantry stuff, frozen meats). Some stuff I rotate ( / usually means I choose something from that group). Some things I don't have but leave on the list to try some time when I find them. I probably spend $50-60 a week on average, and I make most of my meals.
Penzey's is AMAZING!! It makes me excited to cook at home (I am learning to not be an eat-out junkie) Their spice blends and dried herbs just bring blah food back to life...
I shop at the Walmart for my Lean Cuisine/Smart One's meals. They range in price from about 2.00 to 3.00 each. I also buy soups...they're like $1.70 a piece and they are really filling and don't have very many calories to them (I think I go for those Chunky soups?). I also buy the 100 calorie packs at Walmart bc they are way cheaper than i've found anyplace else ($1.66 for the Dorito's, Sunchips, and cheetos varity and those are my favs! and they have 5 bags in each box).
For fruits and veggies I usually go to the supermarket and get watermelon, which for like one wedge is only like I want to say...a little over 100 calories...but that's if you eat an entire 1/4 of a watermelon which I don't recommend. hehe. I also get the 1 cal/spray salad dressing, lettuce, cucumbers, celery and also carrots.
I also like to get crackers-I love to just eat them plain (Ritz=80 calories for 5, Saltines=60 for 5). I also am a fan of tuna...by itself or with bread. Yeah, I'm like one of the cheapest people ever, but my diet is actually really cost effective. Instead of spending $10 on one meal, I'm spending like $7 a DAY on my food! So yeah...that makes me happy. hehe.
I'll probably start eating soup again soon too...i love to make my own lentil but there are so many good ones i can't pass them up.
I usually buy:
laughing cow (when i don't buy the 3 packs at sam's)
skim milk
mushrooms
baby carrots
naturally fresh ranch lite if i need it
la tortilla factory tortilla
mozzarella part skim
apples/strawberries/bananas
diet dp or whatever's on the best sale
popcorn
pilgrim's pride seasoned chicken in savory and lemon pepper
...
i could go on, but i won't
I usually spend $60 every other week, and then get my produce every 10-14 days for about $20 a trip. I do have to buy some stuff for the boy that i won't eat, but its vice versa, so it evens out.
Lean Cuisine dinners
baby spinach
mixed greens
cherry tomatoes
cucumber
bell peppers
avocados
1% milk
Yoplait lite yogurt
whole wheat pita (for hummus I already have)
a bag of pre-chopped mixed veggies for snacking
string cheese
grapefruit
caffeine-free diet Dr. Pepper
Fiber One chocolate oat bars
chicken breast
This is a pretty typical weekly shopping list for me... I did a big shop last week and stocked up on things like beans, soup, cereal, bread, corn tortillas, condiments.
I don't usually make lists (I just sweep into the store and walk the aisles... not an efficient system by any means, I know), but:
strawberries
blackberries
raspberries
blueberries
bananas (for my fiance)
peaches (for fiance)
grapes
cherries
lettuce (*I* like mesclun, my fiance like romaine)
tomatoes
onions
potatos (for fiance)
Fage Greek Yogurt (full-fat)
Milk (full-fat)
Eggs
Italian bread (for fiance -- I try to stay away, though it's delicious)
Butter (regular butter, not margerine)
Plain yogurt (full-fat large tub, used by Albanian fiance to accompany ANY and all foods lol)
Rice (white rice for fiance, brown rice makes him gag and since I try to avoid rice altogether, we get white)
Morningstar Farms tofu breakfast patties/sausages/bacon
Morningstar Farms tofu meal starters - faux chicken, steak, chop meat, etc.
Barilla Pasta (for fiance)
Tomato sauces (for fiance's pasta)
Broccoli
Green beans
San Pellegrino
Chocolate milk (for fiance)
Cannalini beans (canned, Progresso only please)
Eggplant (sometimes, when my fiance makes this delicious Albanian eggplant stew)
Basil (omg so good)
Mozzarella (freshly made, not Polly-o)
Fontina cheese
Ricotta Salata cheese
Almonds (raw, unsalted)
Olive Oil (as green as possible)
Red Wine Vinegar
Peanut butter (my wonderful snack item that I love with all my heart)
Salmon (fresh, from fish store)
Steaks, chicken cutlets, etc. meats for fiance (I'm vegetarian)
And that is BASICALLY it... we do a lot of eating out of the house (I buy lunch at work). My fiance doesn't have a weight problem, but luckily he's not a big "snacker" so he doesn't want to buy candy, chocolate, cookies, etc. which makes things easier for me diet-wise.
I am an aisle walker too. I love spending time at the grocery store looking at all the different food products, reading the calorie contents, thinking of recipes, etc.
Yesterday I bought:
pineapple
watermelon
strawberries
bananas
skim milk
lean ground turkey
frozen veggie mix
bottle of sparkling water (random craving and purchase)
uncured chicken hot dogs (from Whole Foods)
For vegetables, I usually just buy an assortment of veggies on sale or frozen veggies that I think I can eat that week. My main spending seems to be on fruit, veggies, yogurt/milk, and variety of carbs depending on my mood (sometimes bread, rice, pasta, etc.) I add in chicken, turkey, or fish depending on what I have time to make. I have stuff on hand at home to cook with like olive oil, canola oil, seasonings, different types of cheese I buy when the mood strikes, bread crumbs, ketchup, hot sauce, etc.
I shop for myself so my list is boring. I tend to eat simple when cooking for one, so it takes me forever to get through stuff like a box or pasta or a jar of tomato sauce.
I don't have that much of a variety at the moment but for the past month it's been...
Flounder
Tuna
Chicken Breast
Smart Balance Mayo
Water
Weight Watchers Rye Bread
Frozen Blueberries
Apples
Bananas
Free Cool Whip
Reduced Fat Wheat Thins
Slim Fast
This is my basic list that I check for staples and then add to for the weekly plan. I usually start by looking online at the grocery flyer for my preferred grocery store to see what meats are on sale. I usually stock up on 2-3 of those for the freezer and then eat 2-3 other meats from the freezer. Certain staples I only buy at Sam's. Other items I buy at Sam's if I'm going there anyway that week, otherwise I buy at the grocery. If I can get to the produce stand, I'll shop for produce there first. So for example bell peppers are on the list, but I could buy them at the produce stand, Sam's or the grocery store.
Skim Milk
Brown eggs
2% cottage cheese
feta
low fat cheese (block, sliced, shredded, depending on the sales & menus)
No sugar added applesauce
100% juice cranberry
100% pomegranate juice
salsa
canned tuna
canned sauerkraut
canned mushrooms
canned black beans
canned baked beans
canned Hunt's pasta sauce
canned tomatoes
canned tomato sauce
low fat triscuits
wasa crackers
sweetener
salad dressing
ketchup
mustard
mayo
sweet relish
dill relish
olives (black and green)
olive oil
oatmeal (Old fashioned - want to try the steel cut)
coffee (whole bean)
tea bags - large variety of types, but especially constant comment and green tea
whole wheat bread (keep in the fridge as it takes us a few weeks to eat one loaf)
whole grain tortillas or flat outs
bagged or boxed salad (Sam's has a huge box of organic baby salad greens)
bagged spinach
bell peppers - green, yellow, red, orange
radishes
celery hearts
carrots
cucumber
cabbage
mushrooms
tomatoes (grape, cherry or the "compari" size)
broccoli cuts
snow peas/sugar snap peas
Corn on the cob in season
pears
apples
bananas
cantaloupe
cherries
black seedless grapes
green seedless grapes
blueberries
raspberries
onions
sweet potatoes
summer squash
sometimes sprouts
I was on a roll with eggplant but DH got tired of it
(I don't buy all this produce every week, but I will say that produce fills up a lot of my cart)
2-3 meats & seafoods usually multiple packages of 1-2 of them
I like to have on hand the following frozen veggies:
Broccoli
green beans
cauliflower
spinach
veggie combinations
peas
brussels sprouts
Almost forgot the cost info.
There are three of us. During the school year my daughter eats a school lunch. My husband and I pack a lunch daily. I eat lunch out average once a week. We eat out as a family 1-2 times a week - one dinner and one weekend meal.
It's hard to calculate grocery costs as we buy food ahead by shopping at Sam's and by freezing meats. Sometimes I shop at the grocery store weekly and sometimes weeks go by without going to the grocery store except for a few items. I guesstimate that we spend about $120 a week for groceries for the three of us.
Last edited by WebRover; 06-24-2008 at 10:22 PM.
Reason: Add cost info
This is shopping at the organic store Ukrop's...
1 Gallon Whole organic milk (I know people say to drink skim, but check the labels before you do. It's only 1.5g less fat, 40-60 less calories, and has 3g MORE sugar than whole milk. I think whole tastes best and it fills you up better. I have a 10 oz glass with every meal, so I shop for milk once a week.) - 3.99 w/ value card
Organic dried chickpeas, red beans, black beans, red lentils
5lb bag of unbleached, unprocessed Basmati rice
Anchovy paste (I use this instead of salt in my food, it's a Moroccan thing)
3 lbs lamb chops
2 med. containers ground lamb
2lbs fresh, sashimi grade tuna steaks (sliced 1/2 lb each)
1 whole side of red salmon
4 tilapia filets
1 lb shrimp
1 dozen organic brown eggs
1 loaf of light whole grain bread (30 cals per slice)
1 whole turkey breast
2 bottles of Ribena
(all the following fresh organic)
2lbs strawberries
6 bell peppers (2 orange, 2 red, 2 yellow)
1 head of lettuce
1 clove elephant garlic
4 white onions
4 heads broccoli
2lb bag baby carrots
1lb black cherries
1lb raspberries
1 lb blackberries
1 lb blueberries
I cook every single meal I eat, and snack on fresh veggies and fruit throughout the day, so this shopping list lasts about 2 weeks and because of the inflated prices recently is running me about $151.00. What's crazy is that for the same price in February it would have included all of the extra stuff I usually bought for my hubby like hot pockets, ice cream, cookies, cereal, fruit snacks, pop tarts, beef jerky, 10 lbs worth of steaks, pork chops, bacon, and microwave burritos. *Sigh*
Groceries?
