Another Successful Meat Less Chili

Budget tip for the day: Use up all leftovers. Just add chili powder and cumin to make a delicious chili!
Well, I haven't been posting a lot lately. Mostly because life got really busy again, and we haven't been sticking to a budget. My husband got "The Four Hour Chef" for his birthday and has been following all of Tim Ferriss's directions to a "T." I have been really enjoying his amazing creations!!! I am actually going to write Mr. Ferriss a letter thanking him for writing such a wonderful book. The book is perfect for people who have never cooked before - it gives pictures with directions in paragraph form and the food recipes are absolutely delicious. The only problem is, Mr. Ferriss doesn't really teach what to do with leftovers. I have to admit we have wasted a lot of food lately, mostly because I didn't have time to deal with the leftovers. Now that I've been off school a couple of days due to the beautiful snowy weather (welcome to Virginia!) I've been able to work on how to avoid waste in cooking. Last night, we used leftover beef from his roast that he made to create yet another delicious chili. So easy to make, and so great to use up leftovers!



Here's what I did:
2 cans chili ready diced tomatoes
1 onion (I used 1 cup frozen chopped onions)
1 tbs garlic
2 tb chili powder
1 tb cumin
1 lb beef (we used leftover roast, cut up)
1/2 cup beef broth (came with the leftover roast)
1/2 cup mushrooms (came with the leftover roast)
I actually staggered the recipe so the beef wouldn't be over cooked. So I put the tomatoes, onions, and spices in the crock pot for about 2 hours on high. Then I added the rest of the ingredients and cooked on low for about 3 hours. The nice thing is, this meal is even more delicious the next day after you put it in the fridge over night! Hope you enjoy, and let me know how it works out for you in the comments!

Day 17 - Paleo Lunch for $3 or less

Budget tip of the day: make a big batch of something (chili, soup, casserole, etc.) on the weekend and then stretch it for lunch.



So today I decided to take a picture of my new favorite lunch, the paleo lunch. This is so much more filling and satisfying than cafeteria food. Here you will find:

1. Leftover chili - made with chicken instead of beef, and meat was bought at discount - $1.10
2. Leftover turkey cutlet - $1.00
3. 1 whole cucumber - $.48
4. Paleo granola - $.30
5. Date - $.20
6. Frozen Peaches - $.41 (would be $.62 for organic)
7. Banana - $.20
Total: $3.68

Of this, the granola, date, peaches, and banana would be the snack, so this is really a lunch plus a snack for around $3 or $4. I might add some paleo pumpkin "custard" to satisfy the 2:00 p.m. sweet tooth as well, still keeping things under $4. Delicious!

Day 14 - Budget Granola

Budget tip of the day: Get your granola going with nuts bought at the lowest price. You can stock up this time of the year, and then freeze. Just remember that freezing breaks down the cells, so it's best to freeze and then use in some sort of recipe. Buy slivered almonds instead of whole (unless you really want to eat whole, in which case, ignore.) You could buy a pound of nuts for about $7 at a grocery store, or get two pounds for $8 or so at a large warehouse like Costco, BJ's, or Sam's Club. I'm making this as a gift for all my family this year, and BJ's will definitely have my business!

Budget tip #2: Dates are in season. I found 3 lbs for $7 at the local warehouse store!

Budget tip #3: Use bakers chocolate instead of commercially prepared dark chocolate. The only ingredient is chocolate, and it will last longer.

This recipe is an adaptation of the Paleo Diet Lifestyle's blog. The original recipe is here: http://paleodietlifestyle.com/chocolate-nut-granola/. 


Paleo Budget Granola
1 c walnuts
2 c slivered almonds
pinch of salt
1/4 cup honey
3 tb butter (?)
3 tb cocoa powder
1/2 c coconut
1 oz bakers unsweetened chocolate square
3 pitted dates

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
2. Melt butter and chocolate at half power in the microwave in a glass bowl covered with a plate.
3. Chop dates in the food processor.
4. Add walnuts and almonds and chop with dates in the food processor.
5. Add cocoa, vanilla, and salt to the butter/chocolate and wisk together.
6. Pour chocolate mix into the nuts in the food processor. Pulse briefly.
7. Add coconut. Pulse 1 time.
8. You may need to take it out of the food processor and stir to mix - my food processor is not big enough for everything.
9. Spread over baking sheet.
10. Bake for 4 hours at 200 degrees. Break into chunks.

Day 13 - Grocery Bill Tips

Budget tip of the day: buy frozen veggies. Stock up on cucumbers this time of year (skin them before you eat, though, unless you buy organic.)

Our grocery bill (food) - $82
Paleo stuff  - $42

This included:
Rice dream milk - 3.86
Turkey breast Cutlets - $3.99
Frozen spinach - $1.50
Frozen peaches - $2.48
100% cranberry juice - $2.78
Peppermint tea - $2.38 ($1 coupon)
Vitamins - $2.94
Bacon - $3.98
Limes - $.44
Grapefruit - $.68
Coconut - $1.72
Eggs - $2.88
Eggs - $2.88
Organic apples - $4.97
Kiwi - $.30
Cucumbers (3) - $1.44
Bananas - $1.37
? - $1.83

Total: $42.42

I didn't need to buy a lot of veggies because I already have everything frozen. Meat this week will be turkey and bacon. I have to get rice milk because almond milk upsets my stomach. We got the cage free eggs - but not necessarily Omega 3, sorry. I didn't need nuts because I already made the granola this week. Also, I had some chicken chili in the crockpot ready to go for tonight and the next couple of days. My husband got his regular fare of frozen waffles, french toast, burritoes, and chimichangas, as well as the slow carb beans and chicken italian sausage.

So, the paleo diet isn't that expensive, after all. What do you do to save money?