*Feed Your Family $10 A Day Challenge*(AT HOME)

[Accentuate+]

dd 10 and I had tomatoes and cucumbers. dd 10 had a roll with mayo on it

My mother would want to have lunch at your house. A cucumber sandwich is her favorite food in the whole world with a tomato sandwich running a close second. When the garden is producing (their 'garden' is over a half acre) she barely touches meat.

 

[CEDmom]

well I do load it with mayo to drown out the tuna taste The girls hardly ever eat a whole sandwhich except for the oldest. I am also adding veggies for them to eat. I am not giving them a sandwhich and calling it lunch. I do not eat tuna ever. So my tuna lunch was for 3 children dd 10 dose not eat it it . We (dd 10) had lots of veggies as did the others...

I honestly never try to make it under 10$ . I tried to at first , but now I just use this thread as a written log. Now when dh comes home during the week we will have to see the numbers

Do you not eat it because you don't like it or for some other reason? I know you posted about not eating protein because you'll gain weight but that isn't true. You'll gain weight by taking in more calories than you burn - it's that simple. Most people probably eat more protein than they need and not enough whole grains. If your body doesn't get what it needs it can't function properly which means your muscles, cardio-vascular system and brain don't work as they should. It's just something to think about.

If you don't like tuna and are worried about fat/calories eat a few egg whites for protein.

I also don't get making something for lunch that I know 1/2 my family including myself won't eat but that's just me.

 

[jordansmomma]

It breaks my heart to see all these kids getting very little protein, very little dairy, very few fruits and veggies and lots of high fat/high sodium processed food. I really hope some of these posts are a joke, or the tiny serving sizes over-exaggerated to look good in the thread.

You can eat very well on very little with a little planning. Spaghetti with meatballs and home made sauce is very inexpensive and pretty healthy.

I'm all for random processed/starch dinners - heck, last night my meal cost me $1.50 max as I had a cup o soup, some junky left over frozen pizza and a peach. But some of these posts just break my heart.

Well I guess you would be really heartbroken to know that at least every other month my DS7 will eat only top ramen and string cheese for at least 1 or 2 weeks. He refuses to eat anything else, I for one am not going to not let him eat. Then he gets his fill of the sodium ladden noodles and is back to eating salad, veggies, meat and other stuff. But I am a single mom who works full time and I am full time student, my kids are both in school and sometimes convience foods work. We are all so busy that i dont have the time from September to June to be June Cleaver. That would be nice but just not going to happen.

 

[Toby'sFriend]

It would certainly bother me to hear it.

It takes no longer to boil a serving of fortified whole grain pasta than it does to heat up a container of Ramen noodles.

There is absolutely NO nutritional content in Ramen, your child would be just as well fed if you just fed him the cardboard container. Children have been hospitalized from parents who try to pass it off as a meal.

 

[punkin]

There is absolutely NO nutritional content in Ramen, your child would be just as well fed if you just fed him the cardboard container. Children have been hospitalized from parents who try to pass it off as a meal.

I agree that Ramen is not exactly a health food, but hospitalization? Common.

 

[WatchinCaptKangaroo]

I have nothing against ramen, mac and cheese and processed junk food. I lived off of ramen with an egg mixed in every few days for awhile when ends were tight. If your kid eats it for a week with sting cheese... and then gets over it - whatever.

I am really concerned about people splitting 1 can of tuna amongst 5 people. Or having nothing but processed food/junk food all the time. If you said your kid eats nothing but ramen and cheese day in and day out for the last 2 years then it'd be a different story.

My eating habits are horrible. They were horrible as a kid too. I stated last night I had cup o sodium and some leftover frozen pizza. I went on hunger and ramen strikes. They lasted a week or 2 every few months and I grew up to be normal.

I was not directing that at you. This thread just seems to promote eating as cheaply as possible, regardless of portion size or nutritional value. If money is really that tight then I hope the people take advantage of resources available to them (and cut out the Disney trips).

 

[dawn1967]

I agree that Ramen is not exactly a health food, but hospitalization? Common.

 

[dawn1967]

I have nothing against ramen, mac and cheese and processed junk food. I lived off of ramen with an egg mixed in every few days for awhile when ends were tight. If your kid eats it for a week with sting cheese... and then gets over it - whatever.

I am really concerned about people splitting 1 can of tuna amongst 5 people. Or having nothing but processed food/junk food all the time. If you said your kid eats nothing but ramen and cheese day in and day out for the last 2 years then it'd be a different story.

My eating habits are horrible. They were horrible as a kid too. I stated last night I had cup o sodium and some leftover frozen pizza. I went on hunger and ramen strikes. They lasted a week or 2 every few months and I grew up to be normal.

I was not directing that at you. This thread just seems to promote eating as cheaply as possible, regardless of portion size or nutritional value. If money is really that tight then I hope the people take advantage of resources available to them (and cut out the Disney trips).

No one is feeding a family of 5 a can of tuna though. only 3 out of the 5 are eating a can. I don't think that can be stated any more today then it has been.

 

[WatchinCaptKangaroo]

No one is feeding a family of 5 a can of tuna though. only 3 out of the 5 are eating a can. I don't think that can be stated any more today then it has been.

Sorry! I'm DISsing at work and must have missed that. The rest of my points are still valid though

 

[Nancyg56]

great idea regarding the red sauce. do I boil the squash or zucchani before or dose it just boil and become tender with the sauce?

I just toss the squash in and let it simmer in the sauce, I tend to saute my onions, carrots and peppers first though. I do this with all of the vegetables I use for soup as well. I think the flavor is better, but not for soft vegetables.

My Dad used to make an Italian green bean dish using a red sauce, green beans ans Parmesan cheese. We really liked it.

 

[mommiepoppins]

I just toss the squash in and let it simmer in the sauce, I tend to saute my onions, carrots and peppers first though. I do this with all of the vegetables I use for soup as well. I think the flavor is better, but not for soft vegetables.

My Dad used to make an Italian green bean dish using a red sauce, green beans ans Parmesan cheese. We really liked it.

ohhhh how do you make the green bean dish???? It sounds so good

 

[aka-mad4themouse]

I'm a 'merican but my DH is 100% Italian (family from Naples). I make my meatballs using a mixture of lean ground beef, ground pork and ground veal. I add one egg, ½ cup of dried bread crumbs, ¼ cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese, one clove of garlic (crushed) and a handful of fresh Italian parlsley (chopped) for each pound of meat. Salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, form into 2-inch balls and toss (raw) into simmering homemade "gravy" (only 'mericans call it sauce). Cover with a lid and continue simmering for 30-45 minutes. Check for doneness by removing a meatball from the gravy and cutting it open.

 

[dawn1967]

It's funny in the area I'm in we can not get Veal unless it's especially ordered or Ground Lamb. Up northPortland or Little down south in Sacramento or San Jose I can get them but my area they are not available unless i want to pay at least 5.99 lb and minimum 3lb order and that's at a major chain store not the local store that i usually shop at. My local one won't even order it, or process Veal. It will Do local leg of lamb and lamb chops but will not do ground Lamb. Remember my mom would do a Veal roast for the easter holidays it was so good.

 

[hydster]

I would really like to hear more about this 'once a month' cooking!

We used to do this twice a month but sometimes we were busy or more motivated so we did it weekly. Basically we would sit down and figure out all the meals we were going to eat for the time we were going to cook the food weekly/monthly whatever. We wrote down ALL the ingredients we needed for the dishes and then went to the store/costco to get it all.

Saturday or Sunday was spent preparing each dish we came up with and labeling it and then freezing it for later use. We kept a few things out that we were going to eat the next couple of days and put those in the fridge and then freeze the rest. Each night we'd grab out another meal from the freezer and put it in the fridge so we'd usually have 2 or 3 options at any given time in the fridge we could heat and eat.

We usually only eat home cooked meals Sun-Thur and then takeout but it works well for us as we avoid the age old WHAT IS FOR DINNER? question. Now that I don't work I don't do this as much but it was sure nice when I worked.

 

[momx2]

I was used to cooking and baking from scratch already to save money and to eat better. I did rely on a very few "convenience" foods, like canned cream of whatever soup (used at most twice a month during cold weather), which we can no longer purchase due to the stupid need of food companies to put soy into every gosh darned product. We have stopped eating meatballs as all commercial breadcrumbs contain sesame. I hope to find a good meatball recipe by this winter (I've tried 6 so far).

I just wanted to tell you that I use quick cooking oatmeal for any reciepe that calls for breadcrumbs as a filler. I make home-made meatballs and meatloaf with them. You can not tell the difference. It is cheaper and healthier! Try it once.

 

[SplshMtn99]

I used to do some once a month cooking, but alot of the recipes are pasta, hamburg or chicken. It got kind of boring after a while. The same ingredients over & over, just slightly varied. If I could find new recipes with different ingredients, I would like to try it again.

Same as hydster, I did it when I was working. Not working now by choice, but it would still be nice to have something to just take out of the freezer & heat up.

 

[Nancyg56]

ohhhh how do you make the green bean dish???? It sounds so good

I think he just used spaghetti sauce and added green beans. I think that you use canned beans ans that's what he used. My Mom only bought canned vegetables so that was it.

 

[Nancyg56]

We used to do this twice a month but sometimes we were busy or more motivated so we did it weekly. Basically we would sit down and figure out all the meals we were going to eat for the time we were going to cook the food weekly/monthly whatever. We wrote down ALL the ingredients we needed for the dishes and then went to the store/costco to get it all.

Saturday or Sunday was spent preparing each dish we came up with and labeling it and then freezing it for later use. We kept a few things out that we were going to eat the next couple of days and put those in the fridge and then freeze the rest. Each night we'd grab out another meal from the freezer and put it in the fridge so we'd usually have 2 or 3 options at any given time in the fridge we could heat and eat.

We usually only eat home cooked meals Sun-Thur and then takeout but it works well for us as we avoid the age old WHAT IS FOR DINNER? question. Now that I don't work I don't do this as much but it was sure nice when I worked.

I never did this but my manager used to cook for the week every Sunday. She told me that she started doing this when her kids were young and she was working. She would then post her menu on the refrigerator for the week and dinner was solved. She also kept more than one day's items to choose from and her kids would sometimes change her plan. She told me that she saved a lot of money this way because she used to shop the sales, plan for the week, and always knew what was for dinner.

 

[MOMTOMOOTOO]

I'm a 'merican but my DH is 100% Italian (family from Naples). I make my meatballs using a mixture of lean ground beef, ground pork and ground veal. I add one egg, ½ cup of dried bread crumbs, ¼ cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese, one clove of garlic (crushed) and a handful of fresh Italian parlsley (chopped) for each pound of meat. Salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, form into 2-inch balls and toss (raw) into simmering homemade "gravy" (only 'mericans call it sauce). Cover with a lid and continue simmering for 30-45 minutes. Check for doneness by removing a meatball from the gravy and cutting it open.

Lisa, Lisa, Lisa Toss the bread crumbs and use stale italian bread soaked in milk. polpette di carne deliziose

 

[hydster]

I never did this but my manager used to cook for the week every Sunday. She told me that she started doing this when her kids were young and she was working. She would then post her menu on the refrigerator for the week and dinner was solved. She also kept more than one day's items to choose from and her kids would sometimes change her plan. She told me that she saved a lot of money this way because she used to shop the sales, plan for the week, and always knew what was for dinner.

Yes that's why I started doing it too was to save money as I could buy many items in bulk, cook them up and freeze them for later use. It was great as we had enough varieties that we could change the menu up a little if something didn't sound as good as something else. It also got our kids involved with it, gave them a new love of cooking and figuring out meals with us and making it just easier during the week. My kids now know how to cook very well and they love it.

We did mac n cheese, lazagna, penne, ziti, chicken, pot pies, steak dishes, stir fry, quiche, burritos, enchiladas, seasoned pot roast I could throw into the slow cooker or cook ahead of time to use in other meals. It was great.

Now my only "make ahead of time meals" usually are the premade ziploc baggie omelets I make for my dh and my oldest son. DD, Myself and youngest DS don't do eggs but my dh and oldest son love them. I make up a batch for the week with veggies etc and they have a hot breakfast that is nutritious and easy to heat up before they leave the house.