House sitting, need food ideas! Please help!

  • I'm house sitting for a family friend from Sunday evening until Friday night - and the home owners are taking me with them grocery shopping Sunday afternoon to buy food to tide me over with for the week I'm there, since I won't have transportation - so I'm trying to think of cheaper, healthy foods that I can eat all week without getting REALLY tired of it, or things that I can easily use in several recipes.

    I'm thinking oatmeal, frozen chicken breasts, broccoli and lettuce for salads.
    What else is good for bulk shopping, that's cheap, yet healthy and versatile?

    They aren't paying me to house sit/take care of their pets while they're gone - so they're going out of their way to make their home as comfy for me as possible - but I also don't want to take advantage of their money by asking for a lot of unnecessary food. I'm trying to only buy what I know I'll eat - but I don't know how to shop for a whole weeks worth of stuff It's new territory for me

    Any recommendations are welcome! Thanks in advance, Chicks!
  • Hey kiddo ~ The first thing I thought of was rice when I saw you had chicken on your list....we eat a lot of chicken and rice dishes here.

    How about some whole wheat pasta and red sauces.

    Have fun!
  • Yeah I second EZMONEY's suggestions. I then think you'll be all set with what you have already on your list. Just make sure you buy enough food so you're not out by the end of the week and hungry by the time they get back. :-) They will surely already have spices and seasonings which are basic pantry items I would hope and you can do a lot of recipes from spices and seasonings. If you have internet access it will be no problem finding recipes online. Good luck!
  • How about tuna? How about 2% cottage cheese, some eggs? What about some lean meats if any are on sale? Woman cannot live by chicken alone.

    Jay
  • Don't forget lots of red bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini and also a huge bag of spinach!
    Also, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries. Peaches are now in season and they are delicious.
    All of the above are my staples.
  • Ohhhhhh, smart thinking! I'm allergic to fruit and tomatoes, but I'm lovin' the rice, veggies and egg recommendations! That's a great point about the seasonings, too.

    Any more ideas are very welcome! Thanks for the input, my grocery list just doubled to 10 items!
  • Not veggies. Just fruit.

    Bananas, apples, berries, melons, tomatoes, grapes, avacados, peaches, if I eat a lot of cucumber, that too - can't have any of it. If they're cooked down I can eat them, though. Also allergic to jelly beans, twizzlers, laundry detergent, school glue and benedryl/sudafed/dramamine (irony anyone? plus I get very motion sick).

    Edited to add - Haven't seen a doctor about it. Asked my GPs a few times, but they just brush it off. The boyfriend wants to pay for some 500 dollar blood test that identifies what it is I react to - but it wouldn't make a difference in my life any to know. B vitamins seem to help the reaction for the foods. For everything else, I just avoid it.
  • Yes, Ditto to what Txsglchick just said! You really do need to find this out since you could wind up in the ER one of these days after unknowingly eating something at a restaurant for example.
  • It's just not that big of a deal to me. When it comes to the benadryl/sudafed/dremamine it makes me really dizzy and incoherant for several days after I take it. For the food allergies, my tongue/mouth blisters and bleeds. For the school glue, jelly beans, licorice and laundry detergent I get a really bad rash.

    But really, for the fruit it's never been bad enough to all together stop eating it. I just have to eat it in really small doses. Those allergies are all very new though - within the last five years, I'd say. The only time it really sucks is if there's an alcoholic drink I want to try!
  • Quote: I'm house sitting for a family friend from Sunday evening until Friday night - and the home owners are taking me with them grocery shopping Sunday afternoon to buy food to tide me over with for the week I'm there, since I won't have transportation - so I'm trying to think of cheaper, healthy foods that I can eat all week without getting REALLY tired of it, or things that I can easily use in several recipes.

    I'm thinking oatmeal, frozen chicken breasts, broccoli and lettuce for salads.
    What else is good for bulk shopping, that's cheap, yet healthy and versatile?

    They aren't paying me to house sit/take care of their pets while they're gone - so they're going out of their way to make their home as comfy for me as possible - but I also don't want to take advantage of their money by asking for a lot of unnecessary food. I'm trying to only buy what I know I'll eat - but I don't know how to shop for a whole weeks worth of stuff It's new territory for me

    Any recommendations are welcome! Thanks in advance, Chicks!
    Nice choice of foods you have on your list. but don't forget to add some fruits