Monthly Grocery Budget Goal...

In looking at ways to save some green (especially during my job hiatus), I have made a goal to spend no more than $150 on our family groceries this month. That's right, that number leads off with a ONE! So, my goal is $50 a week basically. This may be a bit easier for me because I already have a nice 'mini' stockpile with meats, cereal and bread (my family's staples). Plus we are getting our weekly veggie supply from our CSA (Crop Sharing Association @ http://www.minimiraclesfarmsc.com/). So, $50 SHOULD be a piece of cake. Every Wednesday/Thursdayish, I will try to let you in on how I'm doing. This week, I spent $40 (saved $39).

On another fun note, we are getting lots of veggies that tend to be more than we typically eat in a week. Plus they  have free tomatoes sitting for us to grab with our shares. So, I decided to make a homemade marinara with all of the extra maters! Here is the recipe...so simple!...as well as a few photos.

(Grabbed from this month's Women's Day magazine)
Basic Marinara
1/4 c. olive oil
2 large onions, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, grated (I substituted green and red peppers)
8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/4 c. fresh oregano (I just used what I had in my spice rack)
4 - 28 oz cans whole plum tomatoes (I used one can of diced tomatoes with the juice and about 10 tomatoes chopped)

1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots (or peppers), 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender and beginning to brown, 15-20 minutes.
2. Add the garlic and oregano and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes and their juices, squashing the tomatoes with your hands as you add them (great for kids for those daring parents out there!) to the pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 45-55 minutes.

 Nice and Pretty in my Ball Jars: