Start of the $27 Grocery Challenge! Resources | Recipes | Shopping List

Today is the start of the $27 Grocery Budget Challenge!

Many of you wanted a healthier version of the $27 Challenge, so I worked hard on trying to make that happen this year. I incorporated your suggestions to create a newer, improved version for this year’s challenge. Before I get into the meat of this post, I want to list a couple of resources I’ve created for this series.

I’ve created a printable shopping list {Download Here} in order to make it easier for those of you that decide you’d like to do something similar to my meal plan this week.

I also have a Recipes and Adaptations Page that you can refer to each day for recipes that I’ve used within the challenge, and adaptations I’ve made to make recipes from other bloggers challenge-friendly.

I’ve also created two recipes specifically for this series and links to those recipes can be found on that page as well. But I’ll list them here as well in case you want to take a peek now.

Recipes and Adaptations Page
Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe
20 Minute Black Beans Recipe

What the $27 Grocery Budget Challenge Is

– A meal plan that feeds two adults.

– I’m tempted to call this an emergency meal plan, but I’m not sure that’s quite accurate. This is an option to feed yourself if you find yourself in a financial hardship and you have very few options left for a short period of time. Think: car broke down and I have less than $30 left for food for the week.

– This is as much an experiment in frugality as it is a challenge. It’s not a challenge in the sense of “I’m challenging you to take this challenge!” but more of a challenge in feeding ourselves creatively with a very limited budget. Because this is me pushing myself in terms of creativity, meal planning and in trying new things (I had carrot fries, guys, to me fries come in the form of potatoes!), I’ll be honest with you if I make a mistake or if I’m still hungry. If you do decide to do this challenge out of necessity, I don’t want you to find yourself hungry after you’ve spent your last $30 because I painted a dreamy picture of what my week was like.

What it Isn’t

– It will not feed more than two people. So please do not attempt this with a family using the exact meal plan I used without raising the budget. I designed this meal plan to only feed my husband and myself.

– An all inclusive meal plan. I tried my very best to provide you with everything needed if you do decide to follow the challenge like I did. I tried to make it more organized than last year’s challenge because I realized it wasn’t very user-friendly. But there are still some gaps you may have to fill in yourself.

– This is more of a disclaimer, but this doesn’t have the seal of approval of any kind of professional in terms of nutrition. Actually, my readers have been the biggest push in me learning about how to eat healthily, so I’m still learning those ropes myself. It’s just me, a frugal girl, trying to see what I can do with a limited budget. It’s not the best way, or the only way, it’s just my way.

Self-Imposed Rules for the Challenge

I set these rules for myself to even out the playing field in order to make this as close to the original budget as possible for everyone. I realize there will be some price differences between what you buy and what I buy, so limiting myself to these rules should create a more accurate picture of the cost.

– No coupons. I know that not allowing myself to use coupons in last year’s challenge ruffled a few feathers. In fact, I was all for using coupons this year, but ultimately decided against it. This is simply for the sake of accuracy with pricing. Coupons are time-sensitive, so odds are you wouldn’t be able to get the same deal I did if you’re reading this series two months from now.

– Limited use of items in my kitchen. I tried to limit the use of ingredients that weren’t in the original shopping list for this challenge, again, for the sake of accuracy. Things like spices and common ingredients like garlic are something I’ve allowed myself to use freely. If I do deviate from my meal plan using other items in my kitchen, I’ll tell you.

– Stick to the budget. Once the original budget is spent, I won’t allow myself additional trips to the grocery store.

Okay, that sort of felt like I was reading you a very long and quickly spoken list of warnings at the end of a pharmaceutical commercial on TV! Now that we have all of that out of the way… let’s get onto what you’re really here to see.

Shopping List:

I split up my shopping between three different stores. I did most of my shopping at Aldi’s with additional stops at Target and Publix to snag a few deals.

Publix:

• 1 lb. Green Beans: $1.29
• 1 lb. Yellow Squash: $1.33

Aldi:

• Fresh, 6.5 lb Whole Chicken: $6.22
• Whole Grain Thin Spaghetti: $0.89
• 2 lb. Bag Brown Rice: $1.19
• 3 lbs. Bananas: $1.29
• 2 lbs. Sweet Onions: $1.59
• Cucumber: $0.59
• Lemon: $0.35
• Dozen Eggs: $1.29
• 2 lbs. Carrots: $1.29
• 1 lb. Frozen Peas: $0.89

Target:

• Canned Green Chilles: $0.72
• Sesame Seeds: $0.79
• 1 lb. Dried Black Beans: $1.52
• Lettuce: $1.79
• Oats: $1.94
• Lime: $0.39
• Cream: $2.24

Total Cost: $27.60

So it’s a few cents over $27. But it’s still pretty close!

I’m excited to share the meals we’ll have on each day of the challenge, as well as sharing any struggles we’re having or mistakes I’ve made (day one has a bumpy start!)

You’ll be able to find all posts in the 2014 $27 Grocery Budget Challenge on the first tab in the navigation menu.

Day one is already up on the blog, so be sure to check it out! {Click here for Day One}

Be sure to follow me on instagram for updates on this series.

And if you use a recipe from the challenge or are doing the challenge as well, use the hashtag #27DollarChallenge so I can find your photos!