THE THRIFTY COUPLE WEEKLY MENU – WEEK OF 2/15!

Well, we made it to week #2 of sharing our menu with you! First, we had a great Valentine’s weekend and good eats! Thrifty Al and I went to Texas Roadhouse for our Valentine’s date!!! We had not been there in 5 years! Grandma and grandpa let the grandkids have a sleepover – so we had the night to ourselves! We used a FREE appetizer coupon for Texas Roadhouse by joining their Texas Roadie VIP.  As Thrifty Al recommended, sign-up for the restaurant freebies at least a day before as they usually wait until the next day to give you a coupon, which is exactly what happened with our FREE appetizer coupon!

So why is our dinner date important to our menu this week! Well, creativity! We had sooo much food on our dinner date! My absolute favorite meal is Prime Rib (I know, my favorites are sooo thrifty!). But after the huge FREE appetizer, the complimentary rolls and green salad that I could not finish, I was stuffed before my plate even came! I had a few bites of Prime rib, and although it was good, I had no room.  Now, I must say, Thrifty Al did a find job of clearing his plate from rib eye! (I know what you are thinking, but the meal was within our eating out budget as we skipped eating out earlier to splurge ;)) Needless to say, I had to take the rest of the prime rib home!

So, my prime rib became our part of our family’s dinner this week!

Dinner Menu:

• Monday: Prime rib stir-fry over rice with egg rolls.
• Tuesday: Turkey Chili Quesadillas with Corn Casserole (recipe coming this week!), and salad
• Wednesday: Chicken Tetrazzini, steamed veggies, and french bread
• Thursday: Homemade Mac and Cheese (recipe coming this week) with fruit and green salad
• Friday: Hawaiin Haystacks (a family favorite!)
• Saturday: Family Dinner Out
• Sunday: If planned guests, then roast with potatoes, carrots, celery and onions, rolls, and green salad with lemon bars for dessert. If no dinner guests, then low key sandwich, soups or leftovers!

Cost breakdown of each meal!

Monday: Prime rib stir-fry over rice with egg rolls.

• Leftover prime rib sliced free
• 1 Frozen Asian Medley Veggies .68
• 3 cups Rice about .30 worth
• Sauces and chow mein noodles est. around .50
• 2 Maruchan noodles .24
• 1/2 box of Asian Sensations Egg rolls .50

Total Cost: $1.98 for the whole meal for 6 = about .33 per serving!

Tuesday: Turkey Chili Quesadillas with Baked Corn Casserole (recipe coming this week!), and salad

• 1 package of tortillas .74
• 2 Cans Hormel Turkey Chili $1.02
• 1 Package shredded Mexican Cheese Blend .90
• 1 cup of sour cream .50
• 2 Cans Corn .50
• Spices, dressings and sauces est. around .60
• Salad .75

Total Cost: $5.01 for the whole meal for 6 = about .84 per serving!

Wednesday: Chicken Tetrazzini, steamed veggies, and french bread

• 2 Chicken breast pieces $1.56
• 1 box Spaghetti .53
• 1 Green Pepper .50
• Green Onions .50
• Sauce and spices for casserole est. $1.10
• 1 cup cheese .45
• 1 bag Steamed veggies .68
• 1 loaf French Bread $1.00

Total Cost: $6.32 for the whole meal for 6 = $1.05 per serving!

Thursday: Homemade Mac and Cheese (recipe coming this week) with fruit and green salad

• 1 box Elbow pasta .53
• Butter, flour, milk and Ritz crackers for sauce .45
• 1/2 lb. Velveeta Cheese .49
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese .23
• Fresh Fruit about $1.00 worth
• Green Salad with dressing $1.25

Total Cost: $3.95 for the whole meal for 6 = .66 per serving!

Friday: Hawaiian Haystacks (a family favorite!), cheesecake slices

• 8 Cups cooked rice about .40
• 2 cans chicken $1.36
• 1 can cream of chicken soup .23
• 1 Tomato .33
• 1 green pepper .50
• green onions .50
• 2 stalks celery .30
• 1 can chunk pineapple .50
• Toppings such as: coconut & chow mein noodles est. .50

Total Cost: $4.12 for the whole meal for 6 = .69 per serving!

Sunday: If we plan to have guests (see our previous post for Sunday meal explanation), then roast with potatoes, carrots, celery and onions, rolls, and green salad with lemon bars for dessert. If no dinner guests, then low key sandwich, soups or leftovers!

Plan with dinner guests:

• 3 – lb roast at $2.25 lb = $6.75
• Potatoes .99
• Carrots .99
• Celery $1.00
• Onions .34
• 3 Grands Biscuits  $1.50
• Green Salad with dressings $2.50
• Lemon Bars kit $1.00

Total Cost: $15.07 for the whole meal for 2-3 families = $1.00  – .75 per serving. If there is only 1 other family besides us, we will probably have leftovers for Monday’s main dish! These Sunday meals are usually planned the day before or the day of. 😉 If no dinner guests end up coming, we will keep it low key with leftovers, soups or sandwiches.

SUMMARY FOR THE WEEK: WITHOUT Sunday dinner guests, 5 dinner meals for 6 cost a total of $21.38. WITH Sunday dinner guests up to 20 people, 6 dinner meals cost a total of $36.45.