How a Kentucky Couple Came in $74 Under Budget on a Week's Worth of Groceries

Name: Amy 
Location: Louisville, KY 
Age: 52
Number of people in household: 2 to 4; myself (52); my husband, Tom (56); and two children attending a nearby college (one commutes and eats most meals on campus during the week; the other lives on-campus and comes home most weekends)
Occupation: I’m a high-school Spanish teacher and my husband is a construction project manager; I also write a blog for fun where I share a lot of my meals
Household income: ~$180,000
Where you shopped: Kroger 
Weekly food budget: $200
Amount spent: $126.29

Where did you shop?

I live very close to a Kroger, and using curbside grocery pickup just makes it so easy for me. I actually started doing this prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. I select my pickup time on the app, pull up, and the grocery clerks bring my groceries out to the car and load me up — the whole process only takes about five minutes.

It’s free with a $35 order and we always exceed that amount. I do wish an employee would ride home with me, carry in my bags, and unload and put them away. They could even cook the meal if they want! We also buy fuel at Kroger, and accumulate points and earn rewards through the retailer’s credit card. (Here are 10 things to know before your next Kroger run.)

Occasionally, I shop at Aldi (I really love some of the products there, but I can’t shop there exclusively). I also visit Costco and Trader Joe’s once a month, generally.

What’s your grocery strategy?

My strategy is to just buy what’s essential for the coming week. I plan out my meals and then make a list based on what I need, after taking the time to see what I already have. I know this is an area where I can save more money, but I also want to cook and eat what I want. I’m not always after the cheapest option.

I shop once or twice, mostly during the week to make sure the house is stocked ahead of the weekend and free up our leisure time. We had to get a new refrigerator recently so we have kept it pretty well-organized and not too full. It was nice to start fresh!

How do you meal plan?

I am a high-school teacher with only a 20-minute lunch, and eat both my breakfast and my lunch at school during the week. I have no problem eating the same thing multiple times a week (neither does my husband). Frequently I’ll have a piece of a low-carb egg casserole and some chicken sausages. He takes frozen fruit and high-protein granola and yogurt to work each day for breakfast, as well as a banana for a snack. I count the number of bananas and yogurts we need each week.

Three years ago, a colleague and I started splitting lunch prep. We take turns bringing lunch for the both of us (one week she makes three lunches and I’ll make two, then we swap). It’s been a wonderful thing. We both agree that we have never eaten better.

I also cook about five nights a week. I try to make high-protein, low-carb meals during the week; two to three of my dinners each week also become lunches. On the weekends I relax a bit more and cook college-kid favorites, too.

What did you buy?

Kroger

• Texas toast, $2.29

• Supreme frozen pizza, $2.00

• Frozen green beans, $1.69

• Frozen peas and carrots, $1.25

• Frozen corn, $1.25

• Milk, $1.99

• Light orange juice, $3.79

• Eggs, $1.49

• Mushrooms, $2.19

• Shredded lettuce, $1.99

• Coleslaw, $2.29

• Tri-color coleslaw, $2.29

• Potato medley, $3.99

• Panko breadcrumbs, $2.49

• Dill pickle chips, $2.59

• Baked beans, $2.39

• Angel hair pasta, $1.25

• Whole-wheat penne, $1.50

• Chicken broth, $1.19

• Pork chops, $5.00

• Ground turkey, $3.99

• Ground beef, $6.29

• Chicken, $7.00

• Bacon, $3.99

• Cracked pepper turkey, $11.21

• Havarti cheese, $1.79

• Zucchini, $2.25

• Broccoli, $1.68

• Tomato sauce, $2.79

• Honey, $4.49

• Sliced ham, $5.49

• Corn chips, $6.99

• Ginger ale, $4.99

• Greek yogurt, $9.95

• High-protein granola, $4.99

• Half a loaf of bread, $1.99

• Lime Jell-O, $1.50

Grand total: $126.29

Sunday: Cereal, Eggs, Toast, Potatoes, Sandwiches, Gelato, Frozen Margarita, Chips and Salsa, and Two Takeout Chicken Dinners

Sunday is the first day we wake up without our sweet chocolate lab, Ernie. Tom has a bowl of Raisin Bran and I have rye toast, eggs, and potatoes. Are there more perfect foods than these three: bread, potatoes, and eggs?

We go for a walk at a nature preserve in the morning, and have sandwiches for lunch. I buy some rye bread and have the cracked pepper turkey and thin sliced cheddar with a bit of mayo and mustard. Tom has Velveeta, ham, and Miracle Whip (he is very specific about his brands here!).

Later in the afternoon, we walk around a neighborhood and Tom has a gelato and I have a frozen swirl margarita (with sangria in it!). We sit outside and also have chips and salsa.

For dinner, we get takeout: a salad with rotisserie chicken for me and a Southern fried chicken dinner for Tom with beans and collard greens. It’s Tom’s favorite takeout meal right now.

Monday: Breakfast Sausages, Egg Casserole, Yogurt, Frozen Berries, Granola, Bananas, Meat Stick, Sub Sandwiches, Chips, Pasta, and Texas Toast

Monday is our first day back to work after losing our sweet dog. We both need the normalcy and the routine. I pack my breakfast (low-carb egg casserole and three Amylu chicken breakfast sausages), my banana and Chomps stick for a snack, and my meal-prep lunch for my colleague (a sub in a tub, which is like a sub sandwich without the bread).

My husband packs a banana and I assemble a high-protein yogurt with some frozen berries and high-protein granola. He eats lunch out every day and today he has a sub sandwich and chips — much to my and our bank account’s chagrin.

This is an easy meal for a Monday night dinner! I like to doctor up my husband’s favorite sauce, Prego Chunky Garden, with more onions and lean ground beef. We have this over angel hair and with frozen Texas toast.

Tuesday: Breakfast Sausages, Egg Casserole, Yogurt, Frozen Berries, Granola, Bananas, Meat Stick, Pizza, Egg Roll in a Bowl, and Fried Rice

Tom takes another high-protein Oikos yogurt with frozen fruit and Nature Valley high-protein granola to work today and I continue taking my low-carb egg casserole and Amylu sausages.

We both take bananas for a snack again and I also pack a Chomps stick.

For lunch, Tom goes out again. This time he orders his favorite little personal thin supreme pizza at a place nearby his work. I decide not to fight this because he needs to get out of the office.

I make egg roll in a bowl with ground turkey for dinner and for my lunch the following day with my meal prep partner. When things are for four servings, it works out perfectly! I also make some fried rice to go with it.

Wednesday: Breakfast Sausages, Egg Casserole, Yogurt, Frozen Berries, Granola, Bananas, Meat Stick, Burrito Platter, Grain Bowl, and Hasselback Chicken with Potatoes and Broccoli

You know the drill! I take my low-carb egg casserole, sausages, Chomps stick, and banana and Tom takes his yogurt mixture and his banana.

For lunch today, he eats out at a Mexican place and gets a combo platter of burrito, rice, and beans. My colleague brings couscous grain bowls with chicken for our meal-prep lunch.

For dinner I try an idea I got from making Hasselback potatoes. (I have a friend from Sweden and she reminds me that they are a Swedish dish!) The Hasselback chicken recipe combines a few online recipes into one. I make a paste from Laughing Cow cheese and fresh spinach and put that in each slit of the chicken along with a piece of bacon. My chicken breasts are kind of thin so I put more of the filing on top. I will definitely make this again and experiment with different flavors.

For my sides, I season tri-colored small potatoes and broccoli and roast them on the same sheet pan. We put Tony Chachere’s on everything at my house. Yum!

Thursday: Breakfast Sausages, Egg Casserole, Yogurt, Frozen Berries, Granola, Bananas, Meat Stick, Clementines, Muffin-Tin Lasagnas, Salad with Chicken, and Chick-Fil-A

For breakfast I bring the egg casserole, sausages, banana, and Chomps stick again. (This is like the movie Groundhog Day!) Tom takes his yogurt mixture, his banana, and three small clementines. I need to start that, too.

For lunch, my meal prep partner makes one of my favorites: lasagnas made in muffin tins using wonton wrappers as the noodles. Tom goes to a Cuban restaurant where he gets his favorite salad topped with chicken. Sometimes I’m jealous of his lunches, but I am eating well, thanks to my meal-prep lunch swap.

My school is handing out leftover Chick-Fil-A boxed lunches, and I am really lucky to get two! Dinner is done! We each have the original sandwich with waffle chips for dinner.

Friday: Breakfast Sausages, Egg Casserole, Banana, Meat Stick, McDonald’s Breakfast Burrito, Sandwiches, Chips, and Pizza Bowls

I am eating the last serving of my low-carb egg casserole and sausages. My snack is a Chomps meat stick and a banana. Tom mixes things up this morning and gets a McDonald’s breakfast burrito on the way to work.

Tom’s office is having training today, and buys the team boxed lunches from a local place; he has a sandwich and chips. My lunch is also a treat that we order sometimes: a Jimmy John’s turkey sandwich. (The store can deliver to my school really fast.)

We have low-carb pizza bowls for dinner, with quinoa, pizza sauce, turkey pepperoni, zucchini and mushrooms, mozzarella, and banana peppers. (I have also made this with cauliflower rice.) I pack the leftovers for Monday lunch for my meal-prep partner and I.

Saturday: Eggs, Potatoes, Cereal, Snack Plate, Bread, Cheese, Chips, and Beef Bowls

I have some eggs and potatoes for my breakfast and Tom has Raisin Bran. I make tortilla Españolas (or Spanish omelettes) quite a bit — I am a Spanish teacher and it was my favorite food from Spain during my study abroad program.

I also prep some low-carb breakfast burritos and tacos with the leftover tortillas for the upcoming week. Breakfast prep has been a game-changer. Having eight burritos in the freezer makes me feel prepared!

For lunch I make Tom a snack plate with a mix of cheese, crackers, and sliced celery. I spread peanut butter on some of the crackers and celery slices and Laughing Cow soft cheese and everything bagel seasoning on the remaining celery. (If I could only have two seasonings in my kitchen it would be Tony Chachere’s creole seasoning and Trader Joe’s Everything But the Bagel seasoning.) I have some homemade bread, cheese, and chips because I’m not that hungry.

Our dinner is from one of my favorite websites, Slender Kitchen. I make Kofta ground beef bowls, which are so good!

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