We decided on the way to Memphis Tennessee we were going to give our bodies a break and do a vegetarian week. Although we eat primarily vegetarian meals most of the time, the past two weeks or so, we consumed a lot more meat products, causing bloating and weight gain for our whole family. Lucky for us, these are our favorite meals anyway!
Our total cost for 6 days was $130.43. We'll be making a total of 68 meals bringing our meals to $1.92 per person. Here's what we'll be eating:
Breakfasts
Cereal
Bantam bagels (We haven't tried these yet!)
Cinnamon rolls
Lunches
Ramen and veggies
Mac and cheese
Leftover veggie enchiladas
Sheppard's pie
Baked sweet potatoes
Leftover veggie lasagna
Dinners
Wild rice and glazed asparagus
Spaghetti squash alfredo
Mango tacos
Veggie fried rice
Veggie enchiladas
Veggie lasagna
Desserts
Chocolate chip cookies
Chocolate bars
Other
Greg's favorite pad thai from Amy's
We spent a little more than usual. That's what we get for shopping when we were hungry and tired! Even so, with an average cost of $15 per person when we eat out, we have an estimated savings of $889.
These grocery hauls are still shocking to me. When we are home, we spend around $100 every two weeks on food for our family of four. Our travel food budget is more than twice that! I've really put a lot of thought into why our costs are so much higher while we are preparing normal meals, shopping conservatively, and trying to find the least expensive stores in each town we visit. I think it comes down to the fact we can't buy in bulk. We saved a lot of money at home by avoiding packaged goods, but it has proven nearly impossible to find stores with bulk bins the further we drive into the middle of America. And one of the biggest benefits of bulk bins is that you get to choose the quantity of what you need. It almost feels like you are being punished (financially) when you have to buy smaller quantities of packaged items. The cost per meal is so much higher. Also- seasonings are sooooo expensive! At home, you might only buy a jar of seasoning every few years. But when you're traveling, you have to make those expensive purchases every time you plan a new meal.
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