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3 Moms ~ Wrapping Up and Looking Ahead

March 31, 2010 By Kate 1 Comment

So we’ve come to the end of the month. Honestly, I can’t believe it’s gone by so quickly. It seems like we just started. But it’s been fun, and I hope it’s been a fun peek into our kitchens for you!

Over the weekend we picked up a few more groceries to see us through until the end of the month. We’ll be doing our big grocery shopping for April on Saturday. While we still have plenty of meat and pantry staples on hand, we’re definitely running low on other things.

Here’s what we picked up over the weekend.

  • 1 lb. butter ($2.99)
  • Dozen eggs ($1.49)
  • Gallon milk ($1.99)
  • Dried fruit ($3.29)
  • 5 Pears ($1.89)
  • 2 lb. grapes ($1.98)
  • 8 oz. block cheddar cheese ($1.00)
  • Juice ($1.49)
  • Vanilla ice cream ($2.50)
  • 2 liter Root Beer ($0.79) ~ Those last two were for Root Beer Floats on family movie night

Total spent on the weekend: $19.41

Total spent this month: $408.50

Total left in monthly budget: $41.50

I think I might apply some of that overage to stock up on a few hams while they’re on sale. My husband is a huge fan of ham and I’m a huge fan of having a bunch of it in the freezer! We’ll see though. I can’t have ham overtaking all of my freezer space.

Also over the weekend, I made 12 sausage, cheese and biscuit sandwiches. The kids have been eating those for breakfast this week and they’ve been a big hit.

Our two older kids begin Spring Break on Friday, so next week will be a lot of fun. I think I’m more excited to have them home all week than they are. I’m envisioning mornings spent sleeping in, long and lazy breakfasts and lots of time playing outside. Yep, I’m a dreamer. We’ll see what reality brings.

I think that pretty much wraps things up…for now. Jen, Toni and will be doing monthly 3 Moms check-ins, so stay tuned for those.

Don’t forget to see how those two awesome women are wrapping up their months over at The Happy Housewife and Balancing Beauty and Bedlam. It’s been an honor for me to share this month with both of them.

Thanks so much for reading along and spending some time in the kitchen with me. All of the feedback, comments and discussions have been great. I’m looking forward to lots more of it in the future.

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A Basic Pantry

March 25, 2010 By Kate 8 Comments

Observant readers of this blog might notice that many of my recipes use the same ingredients over and over again. That has a lot to do with the way I grocery shop and stock my pantry. I buy the same things again and again each month. This method is a huge time and money saver for us.

You might think that sounds boring and that we eat the exact same thing all the time, but I promise you that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s all about being creative with the ingredients we love and mixing things up easily with different meats, spices, starches and veggies.

I have designed our grocery list so that it reflects these staples. That way, I just go through the list and tally about up how many of each item I need. Any additional, out-of-the-ordinary ingredients get written in by hand.

Here is a copy of the master grocery list we used last year. I’ve updated it a bit since then to reflect some changing tastes, our new snacking habits and price differences. But overall, it should give you a good idea. And please keep in mind, we do not buy each of the items listed on that list each month.

I work through our pantry basics each month as I plan our meals. If I want to try a recipe or have an idea for a new meal that includes an item not in our pantry, I’ll pick it up during one of our quick produce/dairy runs during the month. If I’m getting close to our budget limit for the month, I’ll just wait and add it to the list for the next month.

I use this same basic principle when I write customer menu plans for Stolen Moments Menu Planning. I figure it’s a proven system that has worked so well in our house, it’s easily adjustable for every family. Plus, I know first hand the time and money saving benefits of cooking this way. (And I’ve yet to receive a complaint that there is not enough variety in the plans.)

How do you stock your pantry? Do you have a list of staples you buy and cook with each month? I think my favorite pantry staples are all of the spices I buy. Different spices make different meals so easy. What’s your favorite pantry staple?

Don’t forget to check in with Jen and Toni to see what they’ve been up to in their kitchens this week at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam and The Happy Housewife.

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Ground Beef & Barley Soup

March 23, 2010 By Kate 3 Comments

We were teased by some Spring-like weather last week only to be shocked back into 40 degree days this week. And although I definitely prefer 40 degrees over 10 degrees, it still feels cold! I’m using that to my advantage though to squeeze in a few more soup nights around our house. With Michigan’s track record, we should have at least a few more soup nights in our very near future.

As much as I love soup, I just don’t make it all that much in warmer weather. Who wants a bowl of steamy soup on a steamy hot day? (Well, I probably would, but my family wouldn’t hear of it.)

Ground Beef & Barley Soup

  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 3 carrots, peeled and diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 c. pearl barley
  • 3 – 4 potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 6 c. beef stock or broth
  • 1 15 oz. can diced or crushed tomatoes
  • 1 c. frozen peas
  • 1/2 lb. ground beef, cooked and drained
  • 2 t. Italian seasoning
  • Additional salt and pepper, to taste

1. In a large sauce pan or stock pot, heat olive oil. Add onion, carrots and garlic. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 3-5 minutes, until onions are translucent. Stir in barley and potatoes.

2. Pour in the beef stock and canned tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until potatoes and barley are tender, about 30 minutes.

3. Add the peas and cooked ground beef to the pot. Season with Italian seasoning and additional salt and pepper, if desired. Simmer an additional 5-10 minutes and serve.

So what about you – do you serve soup all year round or just in the fall and winter?

Things have been pretty status-quo in the kitchen so far this week. We’ve been enjoying the bacon waffles and muffins for breakfasts. Lunches have been equally simple with leftovers or salads. Maybe Jen or Toni have more going on for you to read about.

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