Get the $60 a Week Shopping List

March 11, 2008 — -- On "Good Morning America" today Jodi Balis divulged her secrets for eating on $60 a week.

Now you can get her shopping list to see just how Balis does it.

Below you'll find all the fresh foods she uses to feed herself and her husband. It includes three meals per day and snacks for the entire week.

Also, you'll find Balis' kitchen staples -- the items she already had in her pantry to complete her week's menu.

But first check out some additional notes from Balis.

Balis' Notes

I shop between Friday and Sunday. During the farmer's market season, I coordinate shopping with my farmer's market days -- Thursday, Saturday or Sunday, depending on which market I decide to go to.

All recipes and ingredients are tied together. For example, I have whole wheat tortillas in a dinner meal, so I use the remaining tortillas as a breakfast item.

I have included a list of each ingredient and how each ingredient was used multiple times.

The whole menu is based on dinner. It is the ingredients and recipes from dinner that determines what we will be eating for our other meals. I link ingredients used for dinner with lunch and breakfast ingredients.

Dinner

Saturday

Chicken with citrus pan sauce (from Epicurious.com) over

Creamy polenta and garlicky greens

Homemade sourdough bread

Sunday

Vegetable frittata

Split pea soup

Homemade sourdough bread

Monday

Quinoa quesadillas stuffed with chipotle corn and greens

Butternut squash soup

Tuesday

Thai chicken satay

Asian peanut noodles

Edamame carrot salad with rice wine dressing

Wednesday

Garbanzo burgers on homemade sourdough with creamy BBQ dressing

Sweet potato fries

Thursday

Curried cabbage chickpea roll-ups (from Low Fat Moosewood Cookbook)

Quinoa with roasted corn

Friday

Pizza Night! We use leftover veggies and put in on homemade pizza dough. Some weeks I make our own fresh mozzarella.

Lunch

We keep lunch simple. Leftovers carry us for three to four days out of the week.

Nonleftover Lunches:

1) Cold Cuts (we use "soy meat") with tortilla and fruit

2) bean and grain salad (the beans and grains I made for the week; shredded carrots thrown in) with fruit

3) We like good fashioned PBJ with our homemade bread w/ fruit.

Breakfast

I like to have options for three different breakfast items during the work week.

On the weekends, we will either make pancakes, crepes, waffles or corn bread, for example.

Breakfast options during the week:

1) Whole wheat tortilla or homemade wheat bread with peanut butter, honey and sliced banana

2) Hot cereal with soy milk and raisins (if I have leftover winter squash, I will stir a about 1/4 cup into my cereal. It tastes great, is a way to get a vegetable into my meal and it stretches the recipe)

3) Boxed cereal (my husband likes to eat dry cereal!)

4) Carrot raisin squash muffins

Multiple-Use Ingredients:

Carrots: Muffins, edamame salad, split pea soup

Chickpeas: curried cabbage roll ups, garbanzo burgers

Onions: curried cabbage roll ups, pizza, split pea soup

Frozen spinach: quesadillas, pizza,

Frozen corn: quesadillas, garbanzo burgers, roasted corn and quinoa

Butternut squash: muffins, butternut squash soup

Chicken: chicken with citrus pan sauce, Thai chicken satay

Quinoa: quinoa quesadillas, curried lentils soup, roasted corn and quinoa

Vegetables and Fruits:

Cabbage - 1 head

Fresh spinach - 1 bunch

Fresh carrots - 1 pound bag

Fresh cilantro - 1 bunch

Potatoes - 1.5 pounds

Sweet potatoes - 1.85 pounds

Butternut squash - 1

Oranges - 5

Limes - 2

Bananas - 2 pounds

Frozen shelled soy beans

Frozen cut corn

Protein and Dairy

Shredded mozzarella - 1 package

Cheddar cheese - 1 block

Tofu - 1 package

Eggs - 1 dozen

Chicken thighs - family pack

Grains:

Whole wheat tortillas - 2 packages

Tortilla chips

GRAND TOTAL: $51.47

Food Balis Had on Hand

She says you can save a lot of money if you keep your pantry stocked with staples and cook from scratch as much as possible.

Grains:

Flour (white and whole wheat)

Yeast

Couscous

Quinoa

Popcorn

7 Grain Cereal

Coarse corn meal

Spices/Baking/Tea/Oils:

Salt

Baking powder

Baking soda

Brown sugar

White sugar

Honey

Molasses

Cinnamon stick

Whole cardamom

Cayenne pepper

Rosemary

Whole cloves

Curry powder

Vanilla

Olive Oil

Canola Oil

Black tea

Green tea

Fruits:

Raisins

Protein and Dairy

Soy milk

Balis' Additional Tips

On weeks that you buy less expensive proteins, or have protein left over from the week before, stock up on staples. Balis spends $10-$15 a week on pantry staples. Try making breakfast out of leftover grains or make muffins from scratch rather than buying boxed cereal, which is expensive. Buy dried instead of canned grains and beans because they're generally cheaper. With cans, you're paying for water. Eat seasonally. It's healthy, supports local growers and vegetables and fruits in season are far less expensive. Supplement your fresh produce with inexpensive frozen vegetables. Other cheap proteins: edamame soy beans, canned fish, peanut butter. Buy generic store brands whenever they're cheaper but just as tasty. Check unit prices. Giant packages are not necessarily cheaper than many smaller ones. Use every bit of the item. Examples: Make chicken stock out of chicken bones. Saute the greens from turnips. Clip and use paper and online coupons. Find stores that offer double coupon credit. If you are a tea drinker, try buying just bulk black and green teas, then adding your own spices to them for variety.