Budget Bites: Funemployed but Eating Well

Scott and I are so many things right now. 

Jobless. Unemployed. "Between Jobs," which is one of my least favorite terms, as I imagine us physically bookended by work. 

We prefer the term our financial advisor shared with us - the "Intentional Sabbatical" - when we told her we'd both gone and resigned from our jobs in Oregon and planned to move back to North Carolina. We thought she'd "Tsk" us into shame, but she was actually supportive of our need to stop the needle on the record of life and make some drastic changes. 

While we're not in a terrible situation financially, we're trying to watch the spending, and though I avoid a spreadsheet like most steer clear of the plague, I know one of our biggest spending categories is food. Like, duh. Have you seen Scott eat? Do you know the damage I can do in a cheese shop? 

I won't pretend that I fully know what I'm doing, but I have made some adjustments to our meal expenses since we've entered the Sabbatical phase of life here in Asheville, NC. Read on to learn them!

Recipes with extended lives

I was the kid who feared leftovers in my childhood fridge. Just what horror would one find when opening the multiple I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! (I can. Really, I can.) containers shoved in the back shelves? Mold-covered grits? Fuzzy green beans? It was traumatic.

Yet now I'm on the lookout for large batch recipes that offer more than one dish, like this Eating Well braised pork recipe. It's for a pasta entree, but it makes bonus pork! Thus it ushered in three meals for us - pasta, a pork & grains bowl, and a pizza.

Shredded pork on a pizza? It works!

Waste not, want not 

Also, I watch for food waste. Our veggie scraps - the ends of carrots, the funky stalks of celery, etc. - go not into the compost bin, but into a Ziploc bag stored in our freezer. Once the bag is full, the contents go into our slow cooker with a bay leaf and some seasonings, and hey - scrap stock that's flavorful and homemade!

Spatchcock chicken bones become... 

Chicken broth in the mix

Same for bones. The backbone and thigh bones from Amanda Hesser's Spatchcock Chicken recipe - a go-to dish since I took Cathy Barrow's cooking classes in DC nearly a decade ago - went in the Ziploc as well, and tonight I'm using the stock for a Garden Soup with dumplings from Vegetarian Times. 

Peruse your pantry & plan, plan, plan

Speaking of waste, pay attention to what you have on hand before you spend money. From kitchen cabinets to your produce drawer, figure out what needs to get used ASAP, and build your menus from there.

And yes, make a menu and a grocery list. Decide what you're cooking for the next 5-6 days, and do your best to adhere to it. Cook all your meals and if you get an invite to go out, join in for a drink, but eat at home first or later. It stinks not to join in the fun, but you'll save in the long run and you'll probably eat healthier, too.

Find your store for more 

Since moving to Asheville, we've made Aldi our primary grocery store. I finally got over my "quarter for the cart" anxiety awkwardness, and I now know which items are go-tos and which are not worth the deal. Staples like oatmeal, nuts, milk, eggs, and bread are big wins there, while their produce is often well-priced but sometimes in dicey condition.

I don't love that Aldi's produce is shrouded in extra needless plastic packaging, but their self-bagging policy hopefully leads to fewer bags littering the streets and waterways. 

Know your shopping weaknesses

Basically, don't shop on an empty stomach. And shop alone without distractions if you can. Scott will add extra items to our cart and will second-guess what's already at home to eat, so I try to be the Shopping Lead at our house to keep it thrifty.

These are just a few of my tactics. I'd be curious to know yours!