ALDI Stock up trip $133.92
For a really long time I’ve wanted to make the switch from doing our grocery shopping once a week, or every two weeks, to just buying our groceries once a month. And at this stage in our lives {when I’m not running all over town taking kids to school, sports, clubs etc.} I think I’m really to give it a go. Plus, with gardening season in full swing and fresh fruits and veggies growing in the backyard, I believe I can accomplish this mini goal of mine.
Time is such a funny thing, and when you are able to really slow down and prioritize and get rid of the things that are big time sucks in your life, there’s a sort of calming effect that comes over you. And these days I’m embracing it.
You want to know what else I’m embracing? The cheese section at ALDI. So far my 2 favorite cheeses has been their ale house cheddar and apple wood smoked gouda. This month we’ll be testing out their spreadable sharp cheddar. The packaging looks very much like the Kaukauna brand you see in regular stores and I’m hoping it tastes just like it.
Hannaford $10.04
First of all, Cape Cod chips are the bomb diggety. Second, why is it that the only flavor of Jell-O offered in a big 6 ounce box was strawberry? Seriously, with over 15 {?} varieties to choose from, only strawberry came in the big box. I thought that was strange.
Also, I thought since this was my big shopping day of the month, I’d buy myself a treat and tossed a box of {very expensive} Mighty Leaf tea in the cart. The box of tea was $7.59 which was a true splurge, but I had really enjoyed Mighty Leaf tea in the past with their overfilled tea bags and strong flavor so I decided it would be worth it to me to buy a box.
Well I was sure disappointed that’s for sure. Not only was the amount of actual tea leaves in the bag about 1/3 of what they used to be, the leaves were also much, much finer than what I had enjoyed in the past. I was so displeased I looked for a satisfaction guarantee on the box but there wasn’t one. Grrrrr.
Big salads though, they make everything better. And fill you up for the rest of the day when eaten at lunch time. This weeks topping included salami, dried cranberries, hard boiled egg, peas, cheese, tomatoes, pickled beets and cucumbers.
Pickety dinner for 2.
Mississippi pot roast, a few mushrooms, cherry cola Jell-O salad and mashed potatoes made to perfection.
I pity the people who only add milk to their mashed potatoes. If they are not using butter, cream cheese and sour cream, they don’t know what they’re missing. Also, every time I hear the word pity…. I immediately think of Mr. T.
Breakfast in bed. His… not mine {bahahahaaaaa!} The man just yesterday asked me where the garbage can was. I KID YOU NOT. So really, me getting served breakfast in bed, is a total pipe dream.
And last but not least…. LOBSTAH!!! We tried a new place, one that several of you recommend and I’ll tell you all about later this week. 😉
How about YOU? Did you buy anything exciting this week? Do you think you could get away with shopping once a month and maybe just picking up milk at the corner store? Curious minds want to know.
~Mavis
Total Spent this week: $152.96
- Total Spent in June $152.96 <- Attempting once a month grocery shopping
- Total Spent in May on Groceries $216.50 <- Included a stock up trip to King Arthur Flour
- Total Spent in April on Groceries $169.98
- Total Spent in March on Groceries $306.75 <– Apartment life, moving across the country and settling into a new house
- Total Spent in February on Groceries $259.81 <- Living in an apartment and buying a lot of ready-made meals
- Total Spent in January on Groceries $240.15 <– Packing mode and not cooking from scratch as much
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Marcia says
1. Yes on butter, cream cheese, and sour cream in mashed potatoes.
2. Salad for lunch every day!!
3. I could never ship once a month, but I don’t have a garden
4. Aldi. I’ve never been. There’s one in my home town. Whenever I visit, I bypass it and go to Wal-Mart. Not this time. Next week. PA, me, aldi. I’m coming for you.
Hubby traveling this week, end of school year stuff. Not much food prep or shopping at all. Getting ready for vacation.
Wendy P. says
I’m fairly certain that even if Mighty Leaf doesn’t have a satisfaction guarantee, ALDI does. And a very good one, you might look into it.
Lacy says
Yep, Aldi has an excellent one! If you are unsatisfied you get double your money back
Ellie says
I think she bought the tea with her Hannaford purchase.
I’d still try and return it, tho.
Knico says
Hanniford has a wonderful satisfaction guarantee on their products, just hang on to your receipt.
Mavis Butterfield says
I would feel awful returning the tea because Hanniford didn’t make the tea… they are just selling it.
Denise Beard says
Email the company dear lady. Let them know that you have voiced your dissatisfaction and hope to be able to report to the ever growing online shopping community that they are invested in customer satisfaction.
nancy from mass says
I would DEFINITELY email the company! let them know your dissatisfaction and they will probably refund your money or send you something in return. I always email a company for something like that.
Julia Park Tracey says
This, or the store itself. Satisfaction should be guaranteed.
Lissa says
It might be good for the store to know that it’s not a very good product though.
Jennifer says
We don’t eat mashed potatoes anymore, but we eat mashed cauliflower ALL THE TIME and I only use butter, salt and pepper in them as that is all they need. However, butter, milk, sour cream, salt and pepper were necessities for mashed potatoes. Can I also add that while I learned to cook at 24 – 25, I didn’t even attempt mashed potatoes until I was mid-thirties? We didn’t eat them growing up, so I didn’t know how to make them and for some reason, they intimidated me. I made up for it though!
I have always been a constant shopper. For me, it’s my happy place. Now, I don’t spend more than most, I am a huge sales/coupon shopper. If nothing else, I hunt for things to get rain checks for, then use them when they are on a deep sale. It’s a game and a hobby for me. Gardening, nope. Shopping for deals, yes.
Cheryl says
I couldn’t shop only once a month. One, I don’t have the storage space and Two, I don’t have the funds. The other issue is that fresh stuff goes bad if I buy too much as a single person household can only eat fresh stuff so fast…
lynne says
We live 30 miles from any grocery store (just 2 of us). i’m currently trying every 2 weeks, instead of weekly. We’ve run out of fresh fruits/veggies, and if I bought enuf for 2 weeks, some would go bad before getting it eaten. THAT is my struggle, so going a month just won’t happen. The nearest Aldi’s is 50 miles – only get there every couple months. LynneinWI
Heather says
I go every two weeks. I buy fresh for week one and canned/pantry for week two. Sturdy veggies and fruits might make it through. I’ve noticed with Aldi’s produce that the shelf life is a little limited. If things get low, my hubby will happily eat ham sandwiches for several days til I make the 40 mile trip. I think he sneaks in his own snack shopping too.
Jennifer Meyer says
A lot of stuff like fresh broccoli, cauliflower, carrots you can blanch and then freeze to eat the rest of the month. I always stock up on fresh produce, whatever is the weekly sale at aldi’s and then blanch and freeze for later with good results. Extra strawberries and bananas get sliced and frozen and then put in freezer baggies for oatmeal and smoothues. Where there’s a will there’s a way. Just takes some extra time to cook and freeze everything.
Ellie says
None of my Aldis have had pickled beets. Not a one! My salads aren’t the same. So sad. I inquired and was told they’re discontinued.
Mavis, I need a tried and true recipe. Have one to share? Thank you!!
Rebecca in MD says
Hi Ellie,
I buy beets by the 1/2 bushel from our local Amish market, and I use Alton Brown’s recipe to pickle them. Note that since I don’t have tarragon vinegar I use apple cider vinegar and they turn out fantastic.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/pickled-beets-recipe-1913751
Ellie says
Oh thanks! I’ll check it out. Fresh beets are so cheap at the farmers market. It makes ‘cents’ to can my own. The Michigan blueberry crops are doing very well this year, I need to make jam, too.
Thanks
Deborah says
I buy canned beets and use sugar and vinegar to “pickle” them like my grandmother used to do. We usually buy on sale. We love pickled beets. You know, that’s the only way I’ve ever eaten beets. Yum.
Jennifer says
I would still email the tea company. Whether they have a satisfaction guarantee or not, they need to hear the feedback and they might send you a coupon or something.
Mel says
Our garden isn’t large enough or varied enough to shop monthly, and we couldn’t store enough milk that long. But, I do love when our garden gets going and I can buy a bit less each week. In a month or so, we should be set on green beans, cucumbers, and tomatoes each week, assuming the plants do okay.
I also invested in some special storage containers for the fridge to see if they will help extend the life of produce we buy so we don’t have to buy it as often. And I bought a small tray with little containers so I can keep salad toppings ready to go for quick meals and sides–really saved a lot of time with lunches lately.
Nancy D says
Living in the PNW, it was interesting to see your potato bag say “Maine Russets” instead of our “Idaho Russets”! As usual, your meals are an inspiration for me….and your photos are little works of art (especially the ones with Miss Trim Lucy!) Happy Gardening!
Jessica says
Your salad looks AMAZING! What’s your fave salad dressing – if you use one – on that salad.
Mavis Butterfield says
Ranch if we have it or this one –> https://stage.onehundreddollarsamonth.com/delicious-and-quick-honey-mustard-dressing/
Lissa says
Your meals look wonderful. Is that picky dinner for 2 people? My husband would be looking around for the food we were supposed to share that. But he loves when we have cheese plate dinners/picky dinners.
I’ve seen selling all sorts of junk I’m finding around the house–others consider them new treasurers. And it’s time to start paying extra principal payments on the house. Told my husband to hand on to his stuff because I’m coming for the stuff 🙂
Rebecca in MD says
Lucy looks sooooo happy in her new yard.
Love reading the grocery posts, as that is an area I am trying to better manage. I WISH I could just shop once a month, but meal planning that far in advance is tough with a picky eater husband who is always changing what he likes and doesn’t like………except pizza, he loves my homemade pizza (LOL).
I love Aldi also, and since we had one open near us about nine months ago I have really managed to reduce our monthly grocery expenditure. I notice that your weekly (I guess soon to be monthly) shopping posts do not include meat and things like paper products (tp, Kleenex, etc.), personal hygiene (soap, deodorant, etc.), or cleaning products. Do you have a separate budget for those items that you could share with us?
Teresa says
Just a random question, when you cook do you plan for leftovers? I know some people are not leftover eaters. When I cook I always cook for leftovers so I don’t have to do it everyday if I don’t want to. Fortunately my family is all for it. Once in awhile I get a surprise when I look in the fridge, my leftovers went to work or school!
Mavis Butterfield says
Yes, we are big into leftovers! My brother in law refuses to eat them. I think it’s weird.
Deborah says
We call them Encore meals instead of leftovers. LOL love encore meals. My son doesn’t eat leftovers either. Weird? I don’t know. He’s a good guy.
Oh, and Mavis, we paid our house off two months ago. Yippie! It’s such a relief.
Mavis Butterfield says
Way to go Deborah!!!
janis heinrich says
I love Aldis. I just discovered their everything Bagels,beautiful bags of sea salt cashews,1/2 priced 1# bags of lunchmeat,cheap bags of snack crunchies and so many other things. Still feel they need to improve their bananas,skim milk and IDC for the Happy Farms cheese products. Kroger brand cheese is SO much better.
nancy grimsley says
OMG….My sister in law refuses to eat left overs as well. She threw away an entire turkey after Thanksgiving dinner one year. I just think of all the people in this world who live with hunger on a daily basis and what a really awful thing to not use what you have been given.
Tracy says
For about six months a year, I grow almost all of my own produce, so I go to the grocery store only about once a month. I buy citrus fruit at the store, which lasts quite a long time, and if I run out, I run out. Once I started buying only organic milk, half and half and butter, I only buy those once a month as well, because organic milk has a very long shelf life. The once a month thing is totally doable.
Cheryl says
Yeah I noticed that too, I also buy organic milk and usually the expiration date is a good month away. Now if the store would just stock it in more than a half gallon!
Gee says
I’ve been going on the “big” grocery trip once a month for many years. I made a computer chart of food that corresponds to the layout of the local Hannaford where we shop (aisle by aisle sections.) It hangs on the fridge, and we just write on it in the appropriate section as things run out. That covers all the pantry stuff, and meat and some veggies go in the freezer. The list also makes the shopping faster, because you never have to double back. (I hate grocery shopping.) If they have a good sale on meat, we’ll make a quick trip in if we’re low on it. This does reduce the amount of fresh produce we eat, but that’s what canning is for! And this time of year I’ll hit the farmers market once a week. Also, DH picks up raw milk and organic eggs for us at the local farm store once a week.
And as a tea sipper my whole life, I recommend Irish Breakfast tea from the Republic of Tea. Don’t get the tea bags, get the loose tea and a tea ball from Amazon that looks like a rubber ducky. It’ll make you smile floating in your cup. It ain’t cheap, but it’s real tea. Wouldn’t start my day without it.
Cheryl says
Yeah that works until the evil store rearranges their aisles, I am still looking for stuff a month later!
Gee says
True enough, Cheryl! But that’s only happened once in eight or nine years, so I can live with it, especially when I consider going without it!
Torry says
I’ll bet I’m the only person here who was raised in a family where the father did all of the grocery shopping and who is married to a man who does all of the grocery shopping! Every time I go into the grocery store, I have sticker shock!
Mable says
Nope, you are not the only one. AND my husband sews—he has two sewing machines. I couldn’t figure out how to turn one on if my life depended on it. His mother made the boys learn to cook, shop, iron and sew. Even if she were not a gem, I would love her for that.
Jude DeWitt says
My mother in law did the same for all seven of her children! I love her for it too!
My pastor thanked me on how well the Communion Linens were ironed. I told her that
was due to my husband, not me — she did a double take and now thanks him every month!
Suzanne Griffin says
My husband and I work for the same employer (State gov’t) and until about 18-20 years ago we got paid once a month. So yes, I did shop once a month! Not a hardship though as I grew up in a small town with no grocery store and the nearest store was 35 miles away. So I never shopped much anyway! Now there is a WalMart and a grocery store on my way to work so I shop more often. The Aldi store is a few more miles away but it is my most favorite! I love looking at your pictures – Miss Lucy looks so happy and content! Thanks for sharing!
Leslie says
I always make mashed potatoes with butter only- no milk. I just keep adding it until it is moist enough. And I always use gold potatoes.
And I have tried and tried to do the big once a month grocery trip. I’m more of a twice a week-er. Sigh.
Marybeth says
I love Aldi’s cheese section. Their English cheddar is wonderful. Have your tried their cranberry cinnamon goat cheese yet? We LOVE it! At Thanksgiving and Christmas they get in all different kinds. I really stock up then. We love Aldi.
Your mashed potatoes sound great but hubby is allergic to dairy. I use chicken stock with his fake butter and roasted garlic. So GOOD!
We had lobsters last week thanks to my sister. She offered to take me out to eat for my birthday but I opted to eat at home. So she surprised me with lobsters. They were wonderful. Home cooked for 1/3 the cost.
Mavis Butterfield says
Everybody keeps talking about the cheese ALDI carries arround the holidays…. I am super excited about that!!
Candy C. says
I spend 200. or less per month of groceries (less when produce comes in from garden) but could never go shopping once a month. We are down to just the two of us but two dozen eggs wouldn’t cut it..I buy 7 dozen eggs every other week ($3.50-5.00 depending on the season..yes for all 7 dozen). We use a lot of eggs..maybe because I bake quite a bit still especially on rainy days to pop in freezer). I shop every Sunday after church and last week the total was 37.48. So it varies. We eat well. Have a stocked pantry and full freezer. I can, freeze, dehydrate but if I went shopping only once a month I would miss the marked down big heads of cauliflower to !.00 because it had a minor brown spot. People snub their noses (and it’s organic!) when all they have to do it trim it off.