Tomorrow, I can go shopping again for some of my groceries for my next month on the SNAP challenge, and I find myself getting almost giddy over the opportunity to have different food in the house. I've already been looking over the ads to find the right place for me to shop for this week. I want to find some of the best bargains I can to help me make healthy meals all month. Some of my meals by the end of this month were sadly lacking in the nutrition department and I leaned too heavily on starchy, filling foods to make it through.
I lost weight on the first week because I was eating healthy but was eating less. The last three weeks, I ate a lot of carbohydrates and actually started to gain weight. I can see why people can be on SNAP and be overweight. It isn't necessarily because we are feeding people too well--it is often a result of eating fillers to stretch the dollars. Rice is cheap and is easy to add to dishes to stretch them, but it doesn't have a lot of fiber and will stick on your butt and belly more than fruits and vegetables will.
I'm getting over my food snobbery. Now, I know that most things can be off brand or store brand and still be great. In fact, I'm discovering some store brands taste fantastic. The stores insist on a quality product because their name is on it. Aldi's has become a normal place for me to shop so I can stretch my food dollars to include the produce aisle.
I'm following the suggestion of Pamela from the UW Extension...I will be shopping every week and not buying the whole month's food all at once. That way, I will be able to take advantage of the weekly sales and will have more variety. I will plan at least three of my meals each week so I can make a list and stick with it. That will increase the chance that I have some healthy meals throughout the month.
I started a grocery list a couple of weeks ago, and it has two parts: one side is for essentials, and the other is a grocery wish list. If I have enough money, I'll get a couple of things from that side of the list to make some special meals. For instance, I might get a can of coconut milk to make a pork curry. The milk is a luxury, but it will make a big batch and I can load it up with carrots and spinach and onions and potatoes. I might not even notice that there isn't a green pepper in it.
I won't need any sugar or flour this time around, but rice and oatmeal have become staples in my diet. So has popcorn that is made on the stove top. Instead of spending lots of dollars on chips and unhealthy snacks, I've been eating popcorn instead. I love it, and the smell in the house seems to add to the TV watching experience.
Dried beans have really been my friend this month. I can't afford meat, so I've been adding beans to some of the dishes to get my protein. Also, I've discovered that homemade refried beans taste so much better than those in a can. Okay, so I discovered that because I forgot some pinto beans on the stove and cooked them too long, but some accidental lessons are delicious. Smush them up and add in some salsa and some fresh green onions from the garden...yum!
I've decided to get some whey protein as part of my second month. I need to get some dried milk for some of my bread recipes and I figure I'll just substitute the protein powder instead. That way, I have it around for making smoothies, too. Yeast is on the list, too. I've caved and will be making bread so the food goes farther. I'm actually looking forward to a green onion or radish sandwich on oatmeal bread.
My coffee this month will be a can of Folgers. I love the Archer Farms whole bean coffee at Target, but it just isn't in the budget. I can't seem to give up coffee, so I will just go for the cheaper alternative. For another beverage, I'm looking at getting a packet or two of kool-aid. I can probably make my own popcicles with some of it.
I'm not a milk drinker, so my husband suggested last month that instead of buying fresh milk for cooking I might want to just get evaporated milk. It was a great suggestion! That stuff keeps for years, so I don't have to worry about milk going sour in the fridge. That will be the way I buy milk from here out.
I anticipate that I will be shopping at three different stores and the farmers market this week to get everything I need. I have that luxury. A lot of people who are on SNAP don't even have a car, so they have to plan what they can carry on public transportation or shop at the nearest Quick Trip or bodega. I cannot imagine trying to handle groceries and a child or two on the bus. What a pain that must be!
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