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Happy Ad Wednesday!

It’s $2 cheese time! I love $2 cheese time!

Sprouts had cheese for this price for several weeks back in the spring. How do I know it was spring? Because I just looked at the block of pepper jack I thawed out to see what the label said!  I stocked up, because if it’s one thing that will convince my kids to eat something it’s to pile some cheese on top of it.  

In the spring, there was one type on sale each week, alternating among colby-jack, pepper-jack, ordinary-jack and cheddar. For storage, frozen cheese will keep just fine, but it’s crumbly after thawing so not great for slicing.  

I’m hopeful this is the start of a few weeks of this special!

one for you, one for me, one for you, two for me...

one for you, one for me, one for you, two for me…

And now, off to the races…

Fiesta

frozen Jenni-O turkey, 10-12lbs                                    57c/lb (Fiesta limit)

pork sirloin chops, bone-in, family pack                     97c/lb (Fiesta limit)

white potatoes                                                                    59c/lb

Roma tomatoes                                                                   44c/lb

Texas juice oranges, 5lbs                                                     $2.50/ea

green cabbage                                                                     25c/lb

Gala apples, 3lbs                                                                  $2.49/ea

large avocados                                                                    $1/ea

celery                                                                                        88c/ea

Randalls

frozen Honeysuckle turkey, 8-24 lbs.                                  59c/lb (limit1 w/$20. while supplies last)

Safeway frozen meatballs, 22-26oz.                                $4/ea

Del Monte canned vegetables, 11-15oz, selected          47c/ea (buy 6)

Land o Lakes butter                                                                  $2.50/ea

Chex or Kelloggs cereal, selected                                             3/$5 (buy 3)

Sprouts

blackberries, 5.6oz                                                               88c/ea

Hass avocados                                                                     50c/ea

squash: acorn, butternut, spaghetti                                  88c/lb

boneless skinless chicken thighs                                      $1.49/lb

bulk oats: quick, steel or rolled                                         50c/lb 

colby jack cheese                                                                 $1.99/lb

HEB

Smithfield shank portion ham                                                                $1.27/lb

HCF chicken drums or thighs, value pack                                        $1/lb

seasoned boneless chix thighs for fajitas                                          $1.97/lb

Pink Lady apples                                                                                     97c/lb

kiwi                                                                                                               25c/ea

grapefruit                                                                                                   25c/eaScreen shot 2015-11-11 at 12.09.00 PM

Halo mandarins, 5lbs                                                                                     $4.77/ea

Whole Foods

organic Yukon Gold, Russet or Red potatoes        98c/lb

organic cucumbers                                                           98c/ea

Gulf shrimp, 31/40                                                             $7.99/lb ($3 off)

Wheatsville

organic Fuji apples, 3lb bag                                             $4.99/lb

As a last note, I’d like to let Wheatsville know that this ad really bugs me. Who buys celery by the pound? It’s an ‘each’ item. Screen shot 2015-11-11 at 12.48.45 PMUnless you’re okay with me tearing up celery bunches to get the weight I want you should price it as an each.

Weekly Flyer Links

Cheep Cheep!

Happy Ad Wednesday!

Happy November Cheepsters! We’re here, we’re cooking, we’re ready to turkey!

Cranberries_with_leaves

Cranberries look like this before Ocean Spray                        jams them in a can!

I just want to make it clear I’m kind of a fan of all things turkey and Thanksgiving. I will find the turkey deals. I will tell you about them. I will obsess about cranberries and the yam/sweet potato wars.

In the meantime, Sprouts is all over the applewars with a 88c/lb for 14 varieties sale. 14! Surely you like one of those, so get over and stock up.  

Other deals I like this week are avocados, vegetable oil and ice cream. Let me know what you like, too!

HEB

Hass avocados                                                            50c/ea (no size indicated)

Honeycrisp apples                                                      $1.47/lb

green cabbage                                                             33c/lb (grackle only)

organic Fuji apples                                                      $1.97/lb

Country Pride chicken leg quarters, 10lb bag     29c/lb (limit 2)

Fiesta

Roma tomatoes                                                                       44c/lb

bscb                                                                                         $1.49/lb (Fiesta limit)

Texas juice oranges, 5lbs                                                          $2.49/ea

Thurs & Fri ONLY:

pork shoulder, whole cry-o-vac pack                                      87c/lb (Fiesta limit)

Fiesta vegetable oil, gallon                                                         $3.99/ea

pineapples                                                                                         99c/ea

russet potatoes, 5lb                                                                                 99c/ea

onions, 3lb                                                                                               88c/ea

Gold Medal AP flour, 5lb                                                                       $1.33/ea

Tortimasa masa mix, 4.4lb                                                                    88c/ea (limit 2)

Randalls

Honeysuckle turkey, 8-24lbs, frozen                              59c/lb

bscb                                                                                     $1.69/lb

russet potatoes, 5lb. bag                                                 $1.49/lb

Oak Farms ice cream, half gallon                                   $2.99/ea

Cereal/Fruit Snacks/Granola bars, buy 4                        $1.69/ea  (check ad for brand info)

Sprouts

apples, 14 varieties                                                                88c/lb

eggplant                                                                                 99c/ea

Halos mandarins, 2lb                                                         $2.48/ea

HassAvocados                                                                     48c/ea

chicken breast tenders                                                         $1.77/lb

assorted pork chops, bone-in                                                $1.77/lb

organic carrots, 5lb bag                                                      $2.98/ea

organic Russet potatoes, 5lb bag                                       $2.98/ea

Weekly Flyer Links

Once a Month Cooking

There are a lot of sites out there for bulk cooking. Once a Month. Paleo Once a Month. 30 Meals in a Weekend!   But when I started looking, a lot of them weren’t…complete. There would be a list of meals, and a vague plan.  Or a detailed list of meals and recipes, but no shopping list.  And then there were the sites that wanted $12 for a OAMC meal plan (Once A Month Cooking)(It’s kind of a cult)(Not really, but with a bit more oomph it could take off)(Maybe I could be their Leader!).

So I researched, and thought, and planned.  

I’m the only person in my family that will eat casseroles. These meal plans are separated into the ‘crock-pot’ and ‘casserole’ versions, so with the rest of my pack in slow.cooker.03mind, I focused on the crock-pot versions.  These mostly involve a lot of raw meat going into ziplocks, followed by various things that cause the meat to be either ‘Buffalo Chicken’ or ‘Teriyaki Chicken’.  

After scanning several different plans, I came up with mine.  I had a list of 14 meals, and there was a shopping list to make. Then I’d need a chunk of time to assemble everything.

Here’s the list I came up with after taking everything into consideration. There are 7 chicken meals, 3 pork, and 4 beef.  All involve just getting the ingredients into the bag to be labeled and frozen. No browning, no pre-cooking. All have a halfway decent shot at being liked by 3/5ths of the pack here at Rancho del Cheepie.

I found these at Who Needs A Cape? which has a much more elaborate 40 meal plan (which does have the list, recipes, and instructions!). I wasn’t quite ready to jump in that far! Their recipes were simple, and avoided most of the ‘add three cans of cream of this to two cans of chopped that and you’re good’. 

Green Chili Pork

BBQ Apple Pork

Maple Dijon Pork

Beef Fajitas

Beef tips & Gravy

Beef Stew

Mongolian Beef

Buffalo Chicken

Teriaki Chicken

Cilantro Lime Chicken

Chicken Tacos

Island Chicken

Chicken Cacciatore

Orange Chicken

I can’t tell you how excited I am for Island Chicken! It’s either going to be a hit or a PB&J night, for certain. Stay tuned later this week for the assembly post, shopping list, and costs.

Happy Ad Wednesday!

I’m close to putting a zero-purchase rule in place for straight-up carbs. My pantry is jammed full of pasta, the breadbox is full, and I’ve got to stop ‘stocking up’ and start ‘eating this stuff I’ve already bought’.

Rice and potatoes are super cheap at Fiesta this week, though, so, you know, we’ll see how that works out.  Maybe I switch Taco Tuesday (already adapted to include sandwiches, the Yankee Taco) to Baked Potato Tuesday?  Maybe.

Cheap fruits this week are grapes, raspberries and limes.  Onions, canned tomatoes, and kale are good veggie deals.  I mean, it’s still kale, even if it’s on sale, but maybe you’re on the Kale Train.  I tried, but my Ninja blender doesn’t turn kale into a lovely blended drink, but instead yields a weird green froth-slime that seems like more of a punishment than a healthy morning beverage strictly needs to be.

I’ve listed salmon here, which isn’t at my usual meat price point, but for wild caught salmon it’s a good deal. Split chicken breasts, pork chops and cheese round out the good protein options this week.

Someday I'll start

Someday I’ll start getting my ads on Tuesday again. That’s the dream…

Sprouts

red seedless grapes                                                               88c/lb

boneless skinless chicken thighs                                       $1.59/lb

Gala or Granny Smith apples                                               98c/lb

wild Pacific salmon filets                                                      $4.99/lb

HEB

raspberries, 6oz.                                                                          88c/ea

limes                                                                                              10c/ea

kale, red/green/romaine lettuce                                                 88c/ea

organic kale                                                                                    98c/ea

organic Gala or Red Delicious apples or pears, 2lb              $2.77/ea

boneless center cut pork loin chops, value pack                  $1.97/lb (limit 2)

Fiesta

Russet potatoes, 5lb bag                                  $1.29/ea

yellow onions                                                        33c/lb

plum tomatoes                                                     44c/lb

Gala apples, 3lb bag                                          $2/ea

Jack o’ lantern pumpkins                                  $2.99/ea

chicken leg quarters, jumbo bag                     37c/lb (Fiesta limit)

pork shoulder cubes, large                                $1.29/lb (10lb limit)

Fiesta vegetable oil, 24oz.                                    99c/ea

Fiesta diced tomatoes, 14.5 oz can                   50c/ea

Fiesta mac & cheese                                              33c/ea

Sarita long grain rice, 3lb bag                              $1/ea

Fiesta peanut butter, 16.3oz                                  $1/ea

Randalls

extra meaty pork back ribs or spare ribs                                     $2.49/lb

Sanderson Farms split chicken breast, value pack                    99c/lb

Safeway Kitchens bread                                                                   99c/ea

Honeycrisp apples                                                                             $1.59/lb

Lucerne cheese, 2lb brick or shredded                                          $5.99/ea

Blue Bell half gallons, selected                                                          $4.99/ea

Wheatsville

Muir Glen organic tomatoes, 28oz.                                               $2/ea

Knudsen organic juice, selected                                                    $3/ea

Weekly Flyer Links

Last, did you see my congee post? It’s great. Includes a photo not by me, so it looks super professional. The post is the first in my new plan to post a flexible, budget-friendly meal that uses up some of the never-ending parade of leftovers our refrigerators see come and go (and go all to often into the trash bin) once a week.  

If you’ve got suggestions for the weekly recipe, let me know! I’m hoping the list will become a useful resource.

Happy shopping, Cheepsters!

Congee: Stretching the Cheap into Super-Cheap!

Rice is cheap. Cheap is what we’re about here. It’s also going to cool off in a few (several?) weeks, which is when I start cooking in earnest. Breads, soups, curries, casseroles; I’m an equal opportunity carbohydrate-pusher.

Congee is something I came across several years ago, during a stretch of what we’ll call a dual-sabbatical time, and it’s a perfect lunch. It’s cheap as all get-out, and uses up leftovers that might otherwise go unappreciated.  I’d forgotten about it until I saw this post by a fellow Austin food blogger:

congee

photo from Smoked Salt & Pepper

http://smokedsaltandpepper.blogspot.com/2015/03/rice-porridge-congee-with-ajitama-egg.html#comment-form

Look how beautiful this dish is! And how nicely she photographs her lovely meal! I need a class or something.  Or maybe new counters? It’s probably the counters throwing me off.

Congee is a rice porridge. “Porridge? Isn’t that for children in Dickens’ novels and nursery rhymes?”–I can hear your skepticism even through the internet, Cheepsters.  It is those things, but it’s also an excellent idea for you.  It’s as simple as it gets, it’s cheap, and you’ll never have to run out to the store to get something to make it, because it’s all in your house already.

Basically you cook rice with way more water than usual until the grains blur into each other. Yes, blur is the technical term we’ll be using here. You can use stock if you have some. You can start with cooked rice, and it’ll take a while.  If you don’t have any cooked rice, start with uncooked rice, and it’ll take longer. Happily, it doesn’t need attention at this point as a polenta might–bring it to a boil, set it to low and let it simmer.  I stir mine now and then and add more liquid if it needs some.  When it’s pasty it’s done.

That’s it. You made congee. Good for you!

It’s a bit dull at this point, though, so now is where you open the fridge and find the leftover roast pork, some soy sauce, and a few cilantro leaves. Then it looks like this:

IMG_3967

If you’re like my friend up there, you top it with marinated soft-boiled eggs (yum!) and fried tofu.  Today, mine will get leftover chicken and vegetables.  Tiny, who thinks everything should have ‘shaky cheese’ , puts parmesan on hers.

Congee is agreeable to whatever you want and have in the fridge. Pickled onions and pulled pork? Sure. Leftover stir-fy? Why not. The weird end of pot roast that nobody wants?  Dice that up with a few garlic chives and call it lunch.

Happy Ad Wednesday!

All the stores have gone Full Pumpkin this week, with all the ads having at least an entire column if not an entire page devoted to making sure you’ve got pumpkin options in every aisle.

This is what I picture TJ's board meetings look like.

    This is what I imagine TJ’s board meetings look like.

If you can keep it together and get past the pumpkin mayhem, there are some great buys this week.

Pork loin is a staple at Chez Cheepie. I buy these when they get under $2/lb and portion each into three roasts. They’re really versatile: you can go savory or sweet, portion into chops, or cube for a curry. Other meats I’ll stock up on this week are ground pork and whole chickens.

Apples of all kinds are on sale, I’ve listed a few varieties that are on sale in case you’ve got a favorite.  Sprouts has avocados, carrots and tomatoes all at super-cheap prices. Head over there before the avocados all have thumbprint dents in them!

Last, if you’ve got someone to cheer up, bribe, or woo, Sprouts has got roses on sale for just $5.99 per dozen!

Randalls

whole boneless pork loin                        $1.79/lb

country style pork ribs                             $1.49/lb (Fri-Sun only)

TreeTop apple juice, 64oz.                         2/$3 (must buy 2)

Sprouts

Hass avocados                                     48c/ea

raspberries, 6oz                                    $1.50/ea

organic red grapes                                    $1.98/lb

celery                                                      98c/ea

Sunset Campari tomatoes, 1lb                   98c/ea

organic carrots, 5lb sack                           $2.98/lb

organic Lady in Red apples                        $1.50/lb

bscb                                                       $1.88/lb

Lärabar                                                      88c/ea

dozen rose bunch                                    $5.99/ea

HEB

red seedless grapes                                              87c/lb

sweet potatoes                                                      50c/lb

organic Fuji or Red Delicious apples                   $1.77/lb

Texas Grapefruit, 5lb                                           $1.77/ea

HCF whole chicken                                              77c/lb (limit 2)

Butterball turkey bacon                                          B1G1

ground pork                                                    $1.97/lb (grackle only)

Fiesta

Roma tomatoes                                           44c/lb

lemons                                                          20c/ea

large pomegranates                                     $1.69/ea

pork shoulder roast                                     $1.17/lb (Fiesta limit)

seasoned chicken leg quarters                      79c/lb (limit 10lbs)

bone in chicken breast, family pack        $1.29/lb (Fiesta limit)

Progresso soup                                                       99c/ea

bulk pinto beans                                                       25c/lb

Fiesta long grain rice, 4lb sack                           $1.50/ea

Fiesta box mac and cheese                                     33c/ea

Wheatsville

organic Ambrosia apples                                   $1.99/lb

Muir Glen organic tomatoes, 28oz.                   $2/ea

Knudsen organic juice, selected                       $3/ea

Weekly Flyer Links

Happy shopping, Cheepsters!

Pizza Night, Done Cheep!

Is Friday night Pizza Night at your house? Oftentimes it is for us, but if I didn’t get the dough started in time it would turn into Refrigerator Buffet Night.

The team is not such a fan of Refrigerator Buffet.

Screen shot 2015-10-20 at 3.43.31 PM

           Yay Superheroes!

Last week, while I was whining/moaning about not having gotten pizza dough started, some helpful friends pointed out that they use a recipe that mixes up in a few minutes, and is ready to roll out by the time they’ve gotten the other ingredients together and the oven preheated.

It worked like a charm, saved me $30 on takeout, and we all really liked it. And I got to watch Avengers: Age of Ultron!

Here’s the recipe, give it a try!

http://allrecipes.com/rec…/20171/quick-and-easy-pizza-crust/

Happy Ad Wednesday!

Welcome to Wednesday! I wasn’t quite ready for it, so today’s post is more of a PM post than an AM post.  If you found yourself frantically refreshing, wondering if I’d abandoned you, I’m sorry.  See someone about that, though, because you might have a problem.  Moving on!

Central Market has moved from Italy on to some kind of cheddar mayhem. So if you’ve got $20 and want a pound of cheese, you know where to go.

We have all kinds of apples on sale for less than $1/lb, and organics for under $2/lb, so if you were thinking of perfecting your apple pie recipe now’s the time. Also, invite me over.  Double also, what are you thinking? It’s 95 degrees out. Don’t turn the oven on! Bake in November when it’s only 85.

This week three places have organic potatoes on sale, which normally I don’t even see in one flyer, so if you’re an organic potato shopper this is your week! Russets, Red and Yukon Golds are all on sale.

Pork chops, grapes, cantaloupes and cheese are all on loss-leader prices this week, so stock up!

Fiesta

chicken drums & thighs combo, family pack       69c/lb (Fiesta limit)

mixed pork chops, family pack                                $1.49/lb (Fiesta limit)

snack size gala apples                                              29c/ea (DD)

large pomegranates                                                   $1.69/ea

Russet potatoes, 5lb bag                                           $1.50/ea (DD)

Roma tomatoes                                                             44c/lb

Fiesta brand vegetable oil, gallon                        $4.99/ea

Fiesta saltines                                                             99c/ea

Randalls

bscb                                                                   $1.99/lb

Honeycrisp apples                                           $1.59/lb (DD)

Pantry Essentials brand milk, gallon            $2.50/ea

Oak Farms ice cream, half gallon                 $2.50/ea

Lucerne cheese, 2lb brick or shredded        $5/ea (FRI only)

HEB

blackberries, 6oz                                             97c/ea 

Fuji apples, 3lbs                                            $1.77/ea (DD)

Gala apples                                                       97c/lb (DD)

kale, spinach, lettuce                                       98c/lb (DD)

Hass avocados                                                    39c/ea (grackle only)(C15)

organic Russet potatoes, 3lbs                         $3.47/ea (DD)

baby back ribs, whole in bag                           $2.97/lb (limit 2)

        

Sprouts

black seedless grapes                                         88c/lb (DD)

cantaloupes                                                             88c/ea (C15)

organic Honeycrisp apples                                 $1.98/ea (DD)

Gala, Jonagold or Cameo apples                        98c/lb (DD)

pork sirloin chops, boneless                                $1.79/lb

bulk rolled oats                                                           50c/lb

Whole Foods

organic red or yellow bell peppers                                  98c/ea (DD)

Screen shot 2015-10-14 at 3.18.15 PM

possibly organic potatoes in sacks, but since all I’ve got is this to go on it’s hard to know, since ‘sack’ isn’t a standard unit.  It certainly looks like a deal, with the saving of $4.01 and all, but you’ll have to let me know if you visit WF.

Wheatsville

organic green bell peppers                                    99c/lb (DD)

Smart Chicken thighs or drums                          $1.99/lb

organic potatoes: Red, Russet, Yukon Gold       99c/lb (DD)

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That’s it for this week. Signing off. Cheep Cheep!

Dishes, Wishes. Wishes, Dishes. 

I might have a small dish disorder. This weekend I saw a 12 place china setting that would be perfect for December because of the lovely green-vined red-berried pattern on the rim, and nearly bought it despite already owning more dishes than your average bear. 

It was just so tantalizing! Curvy rims that were also pointy. All the fun stuff was there too-not just a creamer and sugar bowl, but even a pitcher! 

I was very good though, and did not blow an entire month’s spending money on dishes. Instead I found a couple small things to add to this collection:   

 
Look how cute! And at$2-3 each it’s the kind of collection my budget can stand. 

If you’ve got a collection you love post a pic–I’d love to see!

Happy Ad Wednesday!

It’s a sort of slow week. Apples, grapes, boneless skinless chicken breasts (bscb), all for cheap. Asparagus is a surprise, normally only up for cheap in the spring.  Fiesta is having a great weekend sale, so check it out if you’re anywhere on I35 this weekend.

Also, today is the last day for the 98c raspberries at Sprouts. Cheap berries are about to be gone until spring, so this is the last gasp. They freeze well, so buy what you think you’ll use!

Screen shot 2015-10-07 at 12.48.52 AM

Sprouts

(last week’s prices still in effect on 10/7! 98c/raspberries!)

various hard squash                                      48c/lb

asparagus                                                         $1.48/lb (D15)

 Honeycrisp apples                                         $1.48/lb (DD)

Sprouts broth, 32oz                                         $1.50/ea

bscb                                                                    $1.88/lb

Fiesta

Fiesta brand canned corn or green beans, 14-15oz       25c/ea (limit 12)

Red Gold tomato sauce, 8oz can                                         20c/ea

Fiesta chicken noodle soup, 10.5oz                                      33c/ea

limes                                                                                          15/$1

large avocados                                                                           69c/ea (C15)

Grimmway carrots, 1lb bag                                                    59c/ea

bscb                                                                                          $1.49/lb (Fiesta limit)

SAT & SUN only:

               pork picnic                                                                     79c/lb (Fiesta limit)

               pork sirloin chops, bone in,family pack               87c/lb (Fiesta limit)

               Ole Carolina bacon, 16oz                                            99c/ea (Fiesta limit)

               Fiesta smoked sausage, 42oz.                                   $4.49/ea

               Yoplait yogurt 8 pack                                                    $1.99/ea (limit 2)

              Gala apples, 3lb bag                                                     $1.99/ea (limit 2)(DD)

              Key limes, 2lb bag                                                          99c/ea (limit 2)

Randalls

Sanderson Farms whole chickens                                    67c/lb

Sanderson Farms drums, thighs, leg quarters            99c/lb

boneless half pork loin, sold whole                                  $1.99/lb

Safeway apple juice, 64oz.                                                99c/ea (limit 4)

HEB

red seedless grapes                                                             87c/lb (DD)

Red Delicious or Granny Smith apples                           77c/lb (DD)

large Hass avocados                                                             98c/ea (C15)

organic Fuji apples                                                              $1.77/lb(DD)

pork ribeye roast or steaks, boneless                               $1.97

HCF chicken drums or thighs, value pack                         $1/lb

Wheatsville

Smart Chicken drums and thighs                              $1.99/lb

organic red seedless grapes                                      $2.49/lb (DD)

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