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Answering Questions

Q: I love reading your menu's and pricing. It's inspiring. Do you guys snack? Or ever have times where the kids are just hungrier than normal (or have friends over that you weren't expecting) and the budget goes out the window?

Amy's Answer: Oh, my yes to all of it! If you notice- my budget for this week is about double what it normally is. I knew it would be because of our trip to the fair- which actually doesn't come out of my grocery money but from our dining-out money. Thankfully I knew a few weeks ago we would be inviting these friends over and have been planning accordingly. As to unexpected guests just dropping in- We always have enough leftovers. My Mama cooked big and so do I. [She learned to cook from my Grandfather who did his share of cooking in the Navy and could never cook a small meal thereafter!] My kids are still small eaters even when they are hungrier than normal- my girls are known to have 2nds and even 3rds of their fave meals. The other thing I learned from my Mom and Grandad was how to stretch a meal for 5 to feed 10. I always have extras in my pantry and soup is an excellent stretcher meal and my mainstay when we have surprise guests. When I cook for our little family I usually have only 1 to 2 side dishes; if unexpected company came and I'd already started dinner I would make a couple more side dishes. One dish I like to crank out at these times is cheesy chicken rice and broccoli. I always have one of those cheesy broccoli rice packages in the pantry and I try to have a couple of cooked and chunked up chicken breasts in the freezer. I just make the rice according to the directions and add in the thawed & reheated chicken- I toss some extra shredded cheese on top for added voila! As for snacks- we do fresh fruit in season, veggies and dip, cheese crackers, fruit snacks (those store bought gummy things- for the kids, not me!) and cheese chunks. Our ultimate favorite snack around here is salsa and chips. At this time of year I enjoy apple slices dipped in peanut butter.

Q: Sometime, when you have time, would you tell me about your grocery budget? From time to time I see your menu list, and it seems like you spend less than $40 per week on groceries. I live in MD, I guess within the DC greater metro area, and groceries are high here, so I am looking into what I can do to improve my budget. My kids eat 3 meals and usually 2 snacks a day (ages 11/13). They also have drinks outside of meals, usually milk or decaf iced tea that I make, sometimes juice or apple cider.
Thank you.

Amy's Answer: The snack info is in the first answer and I probably spend about on average $5 a week on snacks. Yes, we have drinks between meals- usually water or apple juice and sometimes chocolate milk (with cookies of course!) My children don't drink soda pop and hubby and I only do it occassionally (when I'm craving that cherry Pepsi- my fave! or Rootbeer for floats!)
I'm not exactly sure how to tell you about my budget. I have a complete list of all the meals we enjoy (by complete list I mean: I write down the name of the dish and a list of ingredients and suggestions for side dishes etc.) and another list of new recipes I'd like to try. I consult these 2 lists when I am making out my menu plan. I also menu plan according to the seasons, picking fruit and veggies that are in season (cheaper that way) and I find I plan lighter quicker meals in summer and heavier, heartier meals in cool weather. When I have a list of meals I'd like for the next couple of weeks I then go thru my pantry and freezer writing down what I don't have on hand for those meals. Then I look at that grocery list and give an approximate price of the items to the nearest dollar. Okay- now I compare this "grocery list" to the money I have budgeted this week for groceries (some weeks are slimmer than others) as well as other items we need to restock like ketchup and pickles and cheese crackers (because that comes out of the grocery money too!). At this time, I may have to tweak the list a bit and plan meals that I have the fixings for already. When I'm set and certain of my meals for the next two weeks- I write each day's menu right on our big family calendar. This way everyone can look ahead and help with prep etc. I think I should also mention that I plan my menus around our family calendar. For instance, if I have a meeting and will be gone at supper time- I make sure it's a very simple meal that my DD9 can prepare with her Daddy. If it's family movie nite- well, then I plan on h'made pizza! If we have to be somewhere and must eat early I try to plan a very filling yet fast to fix meal. 
I also have a small stash; which means I have an amount of money set by for when I want to make future purchases. For instance, say a 4 lb. bag of boneless skinless chicken breasts are buy one get one free. I have one bag in the freezer but I know it will only last me 2-3 meals. I don't need the chicken this week- it's not on my grocery list- so it's a future purchase. I dip into the stash for these things. How do I replenish the stash? I set aside $5 every week to go into this stash and being frugal it seems to be enough.
Perhaps where I shop also makes a difference. I go to the evil Wal-mart and Meijer for sales. Sams Club for bulk purchases (big bags of salad, ranch dressing, diapers, chocolate chips etc.) and Save-A-Lot, Aldi's and a couple of local Mom and Pop thrifty stores (that carry the Flavorite brand) for the rest. I don't go to Meijer and Wal-mart every week and it's one or the other- as each store will match the other store's sale prices.
Hope this answers your questions?! Next week I will be pantry shopping here at home and perhaps I'll share how we do that!

Q: Do you make your own pumpkin squares and if so, are you sharing the recipe??

Amy's Answer: Yes, as a matter of fact I do! And since you asked so nicely- I would be more than willing to share the recipe!
Pumpkin Squares
1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup veg. oil
1 cup all-purp. flour
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Frosting:
1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan. Combine pumpkin, sugar, egg and oil, mixing well. Stir in flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Pour in greased pan and bake for 30 minutes or until baked thru. Cool slightly before frosting. For frosting: whisk cream cheese, sugar and eggs until well blended. When I make these squares close to Halloween or for an extra special treat- I'll melt semi-sweet chocolate chips and drizzle it over the cream cheese frosting. [Good Halloween colors!]

I have had a lot of fun with this Q and A. Go ahead ask me something else! I want to do it again!