I'm still trying to cook using pantry items first, and following a reduced-carb Mediterranean template. However, holiday meals tend to break the budget.
As I was tweaking October's meal plan of protein choices into an actual grocery list, I ended up with a lot of new items I don't normally stock. My grocery spending for the year has been better than average. I can get away with it despite rising prices. A big part of that was discovering the Ralphs (Kroger) discount system. I stopped shopping there when Pavilions had a much better points redemption strategy. Ralphs doesn't get me free products, but their prices are usually lower and they generously discount items days before their Sell By dates.
It was time to start a new section, to reflect that I'm not only cooking budget meals right now. Granted, the day after I made this choice, Ralphs had excellent meat sales and I spent just shy of $27 refilling the freezer. I had just pulled my last pack of chicken thighs and was down to a turkey carcass and a brisket that I might cook up for one of the work pot lucks. With today's prices, I'm pretty impressed that I got a whole chicken, 10 thighs, 2 lbs of chuck roast, and a one-pound tuna steak for less than $30. I may not have to buy meat for the rest of the year, even for holiday parties. And maybe January.
A lot of the recipes I have planned can be multiplied for parties, served as appetizers, taken to pot lucks, put into dessert gift baskets, or generally enjoyed as a special meal. Not everything will be expensive or difficult to make. Some of it is dump-and-go slow cooker. A lot of making a meal special is presentation and the spirit in which it is served.
