Whole Foods Trip

Today I made my trip to Whole Foods for a few items with my $10 off $50 coupon (Clearwater location only).  I go to Whole Foods once per week and always use my $10 off $50 and try to spend just around $50 each week and with my coupon it  comes out to about $40 per week.  

I shop smart for the most part which means shopping the sale items that I use on a regular basis and any meat specials they have going on.    http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/service/clearwater-special-offer

Here is what I bought.....

Milk $3.99

Organic Kale $2.00-Great price on sale!

Salad mixed greens $2.99

Organic frozen peas $1.99-On sale!

Frozen chopped spinach $1.69-On sale!

SO Chocolate/Mint Coconut Milk $2.50-On sale!

Organic 365 Balsamic Ving Dressing $3.99

365 Organic Pasta Sauce $2.49 (Great for everything..pizza..pasta..etc)

Rostiss Chicken $8.99

Jamaican chicken thighs -already seasoned $6.62-On sale!

Chicken thighs $6.24

Beef stir fry meat $7.37

Total $51.49 - $10 off $50 = $41.49

Tonight's dinner....Rotiss Chicken, steamed veggies, and asparagus

Tonight we had the Rotiss chicken that I bought from Whole Foods....well one of them....the other chicken will be used for another dish later down the road :)  At 2 for $15 you can't beat it, esp for Whole Foods.  We had the chicken, steamed veggies, and some asparagus for dinner.

FYI--My dinner plates I used are HUGE!  This serving looks tiny but it was NOT!  My regular dinner plates were in the dishwasher....LOL...

After we got down chowing down, I placed the bones in a large pot and added water and some sea salt, then boiled on the stove top for about 1 hour.  Normally when I make chicken stock I add celery and carrots but since this batch was for my kids I skipped the extra veggies and went simple.

I strain the bones and get this wonderful broth which is great to freeze for future use!

This was the leftover rotiss chicken which was not much but enough to make my kids their favorite chicken noodle soup which will serve as dinner when we have something they refuse to eat during the week...like fish :)

I added the chicken to the pot, seasoned with salt and pepper and brought to a boil.

I then added egg noodles and cooked for about 10 minutes.

Meal Breakdown:

Chicken was $7.50

I got 3 chicken dinner meals and 3 chicken noodle soup meals out of this chicken.

This chicken @ $7.50 / 6 = $1.25

Egg noodles were $1.99 and I used only 1/5 of the package.

$1.99/5 = $.39 for 3 soup servings = .13 per serving

Soup cost $1.38 per serving

TIP* ALWAYS save your bones and make home made stock/broth*  Freeze it for future as well :)

Whole Foods Trip

Today I hit Whole Foods with my short list and $10 off $50 coupon!  Thank goodness for these wonderful coupons!    Here is what I picked up today.....

2 Rotiss Chickens 2 for $15 = $7.50 each (1 to eat tonight and 1 for Roasted Chicken Soup)

1 % gallon of millk $3.99 (cheaper than Walmart!!!!)

Organic baby carrots $1.69

Skim Ricotta Cheese $2.99 (for grain free lasagna)

MOJO Bars .49 ($.99 - .50 store cpn in Whole Deal magazine)

Mozzarella cheese $3.29 (for pizza and lasagna)

Organic butter nut squash $2.52 (For Roasted Chicken Soup)

Mahi Mahi Fillets 2 pack $7.99  ($9.99- $2 store cpn in Whole Deal magazine-1 dinner)

2 pk Organic whole wheat pizza crust $4.99 (2 pizza dinners)

What free & Grain Free Tortilla's $3.79 (for lasagna)

Cage free eggs $2.99 (Egg muffin b-fast cups)

Spinach $2.99 (for Egg Muffin cups and Roasted Chicken Soup)

Choc Mint Coconut milk $3.00 (for my COFFEE)

TOTAL $56.21 - $10 WF Cpn = $46.21

Paleo Honey Mustard Chicken Thighs with Sauteed Green Beans

Tonight's dinner!  Delish!  Will def make this again!!!

Here’s what to gather to serve 4 people:

• Juice of 2 lemons
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil (or melted fat of choice)
• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• Coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons raw organic honey, melted

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat your oven to 400°F with the rack in the middle.

Combine the lemon juice……olive oil, and garlic powder in a mixing bowl……and stir to combine

Add the chicken thighs……and coat the chicken in the marinade.Season the thighs with salt and pepper.

Place the chicken thighs skin side down on an elevated rack on a rimmed baking sheet

Place the chicken in the hot oven for 30 minutes

While the chicken is cooking, combine the garlic……thyme……mustard, and honey in a small bowl and mix well.

Take the chicken out of the oven and brush the honey mustard on both sides of the chicken

Flip the chicken skin-side up and return to the oven for 5-10 minutes or until the thighs are cooked through and the skin is nicely browned

Remove from the oven and brush on extra honey mustard if desired.

That’s it! Easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy.

These babies disappeared almost as soon as I set the platter down on the dining room table. Next time, I’m definitely doubling the recipe to make sure I’ll have enough leftovers to bring to work!

I also made sauteed Green Beans!

What you need:

Green Beans
Garlic Cloves
Coconut Oil
Almonds
1/2 lemon

Directions:

Add some coconut oil to pan.
Add minced garlic and saute for 5 min.
Add green beans and saute on low for 10-15 min
Add almonds and saute for 5 minutes
Squeeze some lemon, and sprinkle some sea salt and pepper.

Enjoy!

Whole Foods Grocery

Here is my Whole Foods grocery trip...not too much since I split it up between the Publix $5 off $40 and the Whole Foods $10 off 50 .

Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs $7.18 (Paleo Honey Mustard Chicken Thighs)

Cage Free Eggs $2.99 (Egg muffin cups)

Mild Italian Sausage $5.99 (For grain free lasagna)

Salmon $8.99 /lb special today only--I got 2 lbs!  2 dinners!

Lean ground beef 1.26 lbs = $8.81 (4 big burgers)

Organic Salsa $2.99

Organic Fusilli pasta $1.49

Seeds of Change Quinoa/rice $3.49 - $1.50 Manuf Cpn = $1.99

Total 51.27

$10 off $50.00

TOTAL $41.27

Mahi Mahi with Organic Quinoa and Brown Rice and Kale Salad

Here is tonight's dinner.  First off, I am a fan of Whole Foods frozen Mahi Mahi which is $9.99 for 2 pieces and with the $2.00 off Whole Foods coupon in the Whole Deal magazine which is good through 11/30 you can stock up and have fish now through November for an affordable price ($7.99 for 2 pieces).  I usually squeeze lemon in my fish, cut up a few lemon slices and place on top and season with a lemon pepper salt mixture.  Mahi Mahi = $3.99 serving.

I also tried this Quinoa and brown rice ($3.49) I got at Whole Foods last week.  I had a coupon from coupons.com for $1.50 off so this bag of rice cost me $2.49.  This bag  of rice made 4 meals,  .62 a serving and it was good.  

The warm Kale salad I made last night was so amazing I made it again tonight as a main side.  I had half a plate of Kale plus more!!  It is so good!!!!

KALE SALAD WITH WARM CRANBERRY ALMOND VINAIGRETTE

3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 shallot, peeled and thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 cup dried cranberries
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
juice and zest of half a lemon
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1 bunch kale, very thinly sliced
1/4 cup sliced almonds
(optional) 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese or goat cheese

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add shallot and saute for at least 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute. Then add cranberries, red wine vinegar and lemon juice and zest, and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

In a large bowl, toss the kale with olive oil and an extra pinch of salt, and massage kale with your fingers for 1 minute until tender. Add in the cranberry/shallot mixture and almonds, and toss to combine. Serve topped with crumbled cheese if desired.

This cost me $23.50 total and I will get 7-9 salads - $3.35 per serving!

Leftover Roast Chicken Soup with Roasted Veggie's and Kale Salad w/ warm Cranberry Almond Vinaigrette

Tonight's dinner was REALLY good!  I will def be making this again on a regular basis!  Here is the recipe!!  I used my Whole Foods Rotisserie  Chicken I bought a few days ago for this recipe. 

**I removed all of the chicken  and make my own chicken stock with the bones from this chicken.**

Ingredients:

• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 carrots, peeled and cubed
• 1 cup butternut squash peeled and cubed
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and cubed*
• ½ yellow onion, quartered
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cups chicken stock, store-bought or homemade
• 2-3 cups leftover shredded chicken or 1 pound uncooked chicken breasts
• ¾ teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ teaspoon cracked pepper
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups baby spinach

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Toss the vegetables in the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

3.  Meanwhile, bring the chicken stock to a simmer in a large stockpot. Add the chicken, herbs, and salt and pepper. Cover and cook while the vegetables are roasting, about 15 minutes. For raw chicken breasts, cook for about 45 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and tender enough to shred with a fork.

4.  Add half the vegetables to the soup, and place the other half in a blender. Make sure to put all of the onions quarters into the blender. Puree the vegetables with the 1 cup of water.

5.  Add the vegetable puree and baby spinach to the soup. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, until the spinach is wilted and the soup is hot.

6.  Adjust seasonings to your taste.

This meal cost me aprox $14.92 and I got 4 meals out of it = $3.73 each meal!

KALE SALAD WITH WARM CRANBERRY ALMOND VINAIGRETTE

This healthy kale salad is topped with a warm cranberry almond vinaigrette.

PREP: 2 MINS COOK: 8 MINS TOTAL: 10 MINS

INGREDIENTS:

3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 shallot, peeled and thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 cup dried cranberries
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
juice and zest of half a lemon
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1 bunch kale, very thinly sliced
1/4 cup sliced almonds
(optional) 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese or goat cheese

This cost me $23.50 total and I will get 7-9 salads - $3.35 per serving!

DIRECTIONS:

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add shallot and saute for at least 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute. Then add cranberries, red wine vinegar, honey and lemon juice and zest, and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

In a large bowl, toss the kale with olive oil and an extra pinch of salt, and massage kale with your fingers for 1 minute until tender. Add in the cranberry/shallot mixture and almonds, and toss to combine. Serve topped with crumbled cheese if desired.

                       

Thursday night dinner...

Tonight we had a Whole Foods Rotiss Chicken and salad.  It was a late dinner so this was perfect!

Whole Foods Chicken 2 for $15 = $7.50 each

Whole Foods Organic Romaine Lettuce $2.50

(I had all of the veggies on hand leftover for the salad)

Total $10

Chicken served 4 meals= $1.87 P/P

Salad $2.50 served 4 meals w/ 4 meals left over =$.31 P/P

Meal Per Person = $2.18

Whole Foods Deals

Today I hit Whole Foods for a few items I needed for tonight's dinner and next weeks dinners.  I usually try to shop once every 2 weeks but purposely split my trips up at Whole Foods because I had a $10 off $50 coupon (Clearwater only--good through 10/31)   so I use one per week--mostly for fish/chicken.  I used a $10 off $50 last week and one this week so essentially I got $100 worth of Non GMO/some Organic foods for $80.  Here is what I bought today....

Organic Romaine Lettuce $2.50

Alexia Organic Fries $3.49 BOGO - .75 off each bag = .99 bag 

Whole Frozen Strawberries $1.89

Hummus $2.99 BOGO = $1.50 each 

2-Mahi Mahi Filet 2 packs $9.99 - $2 WF cpn = $7.99 each pack

4 pack Yellow Fin Tuna Burgers $8.99 - $2 WF Cpn = $6.99

2-Clif Mojo Bars .99 - .50 WF Cpn = .49 each

2-Clif Kids Chocomint Bars= .69 each

Rotiss Chickens 2 for $15.....We ate 1 chicken tonight and saved one chicken for a dinner I am making in a few days...new recipe stay tuned!

Organic 365 Pasta Sauce $2.49

Total $43.24

I will admit that as I shop here I do find that certain items are the same price or cheaper and so much better quality than Walmart, WD, and Publix!  This head of Organic Romaine Lettuce was $2.50.  It is huge and very green!  I was paying $1.99 for reg romaine lettuce and it was half this size and not nearly as green and fresh!  

Wednesday Night Dinner--Make your own Pizza/Pasta Night

Tonight we made Pizza's and Kendra requested Pasta.  I was able to use some of the pasta sauce I made from Monday night's Lasagna for both her pasta and our pizza with enough left over to make her more pasta for next week.  This sauce is very good, from Whole Foods and was $2.49.  I will be able to make 4-5 meals with one jar!

 

For Kendra she actually made her own dinner!  We boiled the pasta ($1.49) and added the pasta sauce ($2.49).  She loved it!   We still have over half this package of pasta left over for her pasta next week and our pasta side dish next week...stay tuned for that recipe!

Here are our pizza's!  Organic 2 pack/crust $4.99

Justin and I shared one pizza crust which was plenty (we ate 3 pieces of pizza each= stuffed) and Trent had a half.  Trent still has a 1/2 crust for pizza next week while Kendra has her pasta next week.  Getting the most out of our $$$$.

We brushed olive oil on our crust, threw on the pasta sauce, sprinkled some crushed red pepper, garlic powder, and oregano.  Sprinkled on some mozzarella, parmesan cheese.  Then topped with bacon, feta cheese, grape tomatoes, mushrooms, onion, bell pepper, and spinach. 

Here is our pizza!  His half is the bacon side and I opted for cheese and veggies!!!

Right out of the oven!

Delish!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tuesday Night Dinner! Mahi Mahi, Sweet Potato, and Steamed Broccoli

Here is what we ate for dinner Tuesday night.  I like to blog my meals mainly so I can reference meals, find recipes, get idea's, etc.

This meal was pretty inexpensive!  Here is the breakdown.............

Sweet Pot 4 pack $.99 (ALDI)

Steamed Broccoli in a bag $.99 (ALDI)

Frozen Mahi Mahi 2 pack $9.99 - $2 Whole Foods Cpn good till 11-30 = $7.99

(I added salt, pepper, and lemon)

2 Meals @ $9.97 = $4.98 each meal

LASAGNA WITH HOMEMADE GRAIN-FREE NOODLES

This recipe I got from http://againstallgrain.com/2012/06/29/grain-free-lasagna-with-noodles/
This was amazing and turned out so good!  I will def be making this for family and friends!

LASAGNA WITH HOMEMADE GRAIN-FREE NOODLES

Ingredients:

• 10 Grain-free Tortillas/Crepes, cut into 2-inch strips like lasagna noodles
• 1½ cups Marinara Sauce
• ½ pound Italian Beef Sausage, casings removed
• 2 cups baby spinach, sautéed in ½ tablespoon olive oil until wilted
• 1 cup grated provolone cheese
• 2 cups Dry Curd Cottage Cheese (I use Friendship Farmer’s Cheese)*(See below I skipped this)
• 3 tablespoons plain yogurt or almond milk*(See below-I skipped this)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ⅛ teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

*You can use 2 cups ricotta in place of the dry curd cottage cheese and plain yogurt

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
2. Crumble the sausage into a skillet and brown over medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes until is cooked through. Pour in all but ⅛ cup of the marina sauce and simmer on low until you’re ready to assemble your lasagna.
3. Mix the Farmer’s cheese, yogurt, salt, pepper, parsley, and basil in a bowl.                                                                                                          
   
4. Lightly grease the sides of an 8×11 baking dish. Pour the reserved ⅛ cup of marina sauce into the bottom of the dish.
5. Start by layering the strips of tortillas on the bottom, overlapping them ever so slightly so the fillings don’t seep through the cracks. If they don’t quite reach the edges of the dish, you can fill in the open spots with the scraps leftover from cutting them into strips.                                                                                                                             
   
6. Next, spoon in ⅓ of the “ricotta” cheese mixture and gently spread to cover the surface. Then put half of the spinach on top, then top that with a sprinkle of provolone, and lastly with ⅓ of the meat sauce.              
   
                                                           
7. Repeat until you’ve run out of ingredients going in this order: Noodles, ricotta, spinach, provolone, meat sauce. Finish with the remaining provolone and 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese.                                                              
   
8. Bake uncovered for 20-30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and slightly browned on top and the corners are bubbling.                                                                                                                                                                                   
   
9. Let sit for 10-15 minutes before serving.
10. Enjoy!!!

                                                             

*This was still just as tasty as leftovers 3 days later and wasn’t the least bit soggy!