October Challenge Insta Meals
We are 10 Days into our October Meal Challenge and we are going pretty strong. We have been eating at home more often, although we have been out a few times due to a friend in town and laziness but overall have been doing really well. We have had two coffees out but have been making ours at home which is a huge money saver. We have also been making our own treats as well such as banana ice cream. So far we are about 2/5 through our budget which is pretty good since what we have will last us until at least the 12th and we don’t have any big plans besides a date night for the remainder of the month.
Here are a few of the things we have been eating (sorry for the Insta photos but I can seem to find my camera in the mess of this new house):
Vegan Poblano Mac and Cheese with Sauteed Spinach
- Whole Raw Cashews 2.50
- 2 poblano peppers 1.00
- vegan shredded cheese 0.45
- organic black beans 1.19
- pasta 1.29
- onion 0.50
- nutritional yeast 0.50
- Olive oil 0.50
- lemon juice 0.25
- spices 0.25
- Sauteed Spinach Spinach 1.89
- Garlic 0.10
- Olive oil 0.25
Total $10.67; Portions 8; Price Per Portion $1.33 –> This was eaten for dinner, lunch and snacks
PB Banana Chip Ice Cream
- 3 frozen bananas $1.50
- 1 tablespoon PB $0.25
- 1 tablespoon chocolate chips $0.25
- Water $Free
Total $2; Portion one large portion for one hungry toddler and one hungry adult
Homemade Pour Over Coffee: honestly we could save even more coffee by buying less expensive coffee but what can I say Neil is a real coffee snob (okay so am I). A nice bag of single origin coffee from our favorite local coffee shop goes for $16-18. Basically that’s 8 pots of pour over coffee (total 20-24oz of coffee divided by 2). So a Mug of coffee in our house goes for about $1 per person which is still about $3 less per person than it would be if we bought a 12oz pour over out.
We do plan on saving a little bit more on coffee because Neil is (finally) getting back to roasting his own beans. Oh the joy of having a husband who likes to be self sustainable! That means we will be cutting our coffee spending in half and to be honest since we already have the green beans to roast it’s basically free this month since we won’t have to take out of this months budget! Our goal is to have Neil roast for the remainder of the month (although I see at least one more bag of roasted coffee in our future). – Side note would anyone be interested in learning how to roast their own coffee?
Creamy White Bean Hummus Pesto
Full disclaimer on this one I am now an ambassador for Eat Well Enjoy Life Hummus so I received the hummus for free. As you can see on my Instagram I have been gobbling it up with the help of my little mini-me.
- 2/3 cup white bean hummus – Free (thank you EWEJ!)
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth $0.50
- 6 portions of gluten free pasta $2.60
- Frozen Asparagus spears $2.10 (got on sale for 1/2 off!)
- 1/2 cup frozen corn $0.25
- salt and pepper to taste
Total: $5.45; Portions: 6; Cost Per Portion $0.90
As you can see we have been doing pretty well! We have been eating out of our pantry as much as we can and sticking to more of the basics such as rice, beans and greens. We have only had one night were things went a little awry with our budget due to Neil being sick and desiring some ginger ale, toast, ginger chews and coconut water.
How are you doing so far with your budget?
