Living on a Food Stamp budget day 3

Now that some of the shopping for month long staples and cost per serving has been calculated my task seemed somewhat easier.

Then a lovely change of plans knocked on my door. My upstairs neighbor was going to be out all day and had purchased some shrimp that would spoil if not eaten. So before breakfast 5 ounces of shrimp was gifted to me.

I know that she tends to keep food long after I would throw it out so I quickly rinsed them and smelled and tasted. Not spoiled. They were the very tiny pre-cooked ones but a very large amount. 5 ounces.

Pasta for breakfast became the plan. This is not an unusual menu item for my breakfast. I had planned a version of a Carbonara as my Sunday brunch so instead I grabbed a portion of last night's Puttanesca and warmed it with the shrimp. 2 ounces of pasta and I was set.

2 figs .48
Pasta (2 ounces) .16
5 ounces of shrimp 0.0
Sauce .65
Iced Tea .03

Breakfast total 1.32; Clearly I am taking advantage of yesterday's savings. Even with that I could not do coffee with this breakfast. Tea sufficed yet I missed my coffee.

I have a nice protein bump and a lot of Vitamin D in my system. I feel pretty good and quite full.

I went to the beach, yes it was actually that warm in San Francisco. When I got back I had a late lunch of two cups of split pea soup.  .46
One iced tea. .03
And one Fig .24

Total .73

Earlier today I began slow cooking one pound of the beef along with onion, garlic, celery, a few tomatoes from the garden and a bottle of two buck chuck. (It works in a stew.)

I pureed the spent vegetables to thicken the gravy and added swiss chard and arugula also from the garden.

It made 6 generous portions (some of which I will likely freeze for later in the month)

1 serving beef stew  1.08
Rice .10
Fig .24

Total 1.42 an expensive dinner.

My day total 3.47

My calorie total 1,439.00

I got twice the protein I needed and scored fairly well across the chart for my nutrition needs and I feel satisfied. Plus I have .50 to carry into tomorrow.

I am being super cautious about costs right now as I have been warned that the end of the month is the hardest. Since I get bored eating the same thing I plan on freezing some items (like some of tonight's stew) to have at the end of the month.

Living on a Food Stamp budget a different way of shopping

With little left in the house I did my first shopping with my budget in mind. I ran out before breakfast.

I learned something about bacon, it is not standard. Packages that appear to be the same size vary from 12 to 16 ounces, and that can make a big difference. I bought a pound and counted 16 nice slices in that pound making it affordable.

I refused to compromise on eggs. Because chickens do eat their own waste when they are in crowded conditions I wanted free range, organic from a farm I know gives them space. Fortunately I found them on sale for 2.39 a dozen so I bought two dozen.

Today's breakfast
1/4 pomegranate .50
Small pot of coffee .25
2 eggs .20
1 slice of bacon .19
1 slice dry rye toast .10

Total 1.24

I got an e mail from a reader informing me that food stamps are meant to be a supplement NOT the only source of food.

Agreed; that is what they are meant to be. Unfortunately for many they ARE the only source of food other than the food bank as their income does not allow additional purchases.

And while I have only consumed 420 calories I have had almost half the protein I need for the day and more than half of the B12.

I did a second shopping at Costco and bought much less than I had anticipated. I did not want to blow much of my months budget on large quantities and found myself standing in the aisle calculating amounts/servings/additional ingredients needed and bypassing much of what I had thought I would purchase.

My first find was a big jar of olives at a great price. The second was tea bags that would bring my iced tea cost to .03 for a big glass. 

I rejoiced when I found some grass fed Halal stew meat at a great price. The quantity was reasonable and I can easily use it all. I had someone ask me what Halal meant and she seemed offended at the explanation and called me a Muslim lover as she wheeled away.

Yes ma'am I am absolutely a Muslim lover. I've even been known to love a few Christians and Jews.

For lunch I am enjoying a split pea soup that I made using, onion, carrot, half a pound of split peas and water. I finished it with some seasoning and 2 smoked Keilbasa. 8 cups at .23 a serving.

I had two cups of this at lunch along with the other half of the can of tuna without all the extras like bread and tomatoes and it came to .65.

2 cups soup .46
Tuna Salad .65

Lunch total 1.11

Right now I am just over 800 calories and my B6 and B12 are covered as well as my protein.

I spent much of the day planning and shopping and as often happens when I focus too much on food. I lose my appetite. At dinner time I did not want anything I had planned so I ate 1/4 of a fennel bulb.

I suffer from low blood sugar and sodium so skipping meals is not an option so I finally went into the kitchen and make a quick pasta. It had similar flavor to a puttanesca but lacked the capers, to make up for it I doubled up on the garlic.

With one can of tomatoes and a can of anchovies some olives and garlic I made enough sauce for 4 servings bringing the sauce to .65.
Pasta (two ounces) .16
Fennel .25
Iced Tea .03

Total 114.

Day total 3.49 leaving me .40 to carry over into today.

I did not do a great job of covering my vitamins such as C and the day was 1,485 calories, about half what I need.

I am a chef with a nutrition background. Can you just imagine how difficult this is for a busy Mother to deal with?

Living on a Food Stamp budget Day 1

I began with breakfast.

I admit to eating first and calculating costs after.

1 very small pot of coffee .25
1/2 Pomegranate .99
2 slices rye bread .20
1 oz cheddar cheese .39

As you can see even this meager breakfast came to 1.83 and put me over budget. Since I am going out tonight I will have an extra 1.33 to play with so I can make my daily budget but already I have an idea of how hard this will be.

I must admit that this toasted cheese sandwich typically would include bacon, tomato and a poached egg to dip it into. This is not an option on a food stamp budget.


When lunchtime rolled around I was hungry. I learned just how expensive a tuna fish sandwich is.

I used tuna, onion, a few olives, lettuce and tomato from the garden, rye bread and 1/2 roast pepper.

The total cost of one sandwich...1.60 (Since even garden goods are not free I assigned a value of .10 for the lettuce and tomato).

It is a good thing I am not cooking at home tonight as I would have .23 cents to carry over into dinner.

Since I am eating with Lynda and her family I can carry over those funds into tomorrow giving myself 3.89.

What I have had prior to my free dinner contains less than 700 calories and except for vitamin C which is at 94%; it is not nutritionally complete.

Keeping in mind that I typically eat 2,200 calories per day, I am going to have to do some careful thinking and planning as I go on.

I have been using food stock that was in the house and calculating costs today. In a couple of days I will (except for oil and seasonings) be shopping for new food and keeping to this budget.

At Lynda and Tom's I cooked with the kids and we had an abundant dinner. Salad with radish and avocado, two portions of pasta with pistachio pesto, that was made with garlic, oil, parsley, arugula, basil and pistachios and ice cream with raspberries. This along with two glasses of excellent Cab. (Even just a passable glass of wine will end up being one dollar's worth of food so it will be a while until I see wine again)

I am stuffed.

2,026 calories for the day (most of them off budget)with a much better nutritional balance.

I wonder how many food stamp families are so fortunate as to be invited out for an abundant meal packed with nutrition?

Tomorrow I will be balancing calories, nutrition and costs, in essence the real challenge begins.