Late...and Eating Snobby

Last Monday as I was almost about to savor the last bite of my cake batter flavored frozen yogurt from "Chill," my spoon stopped short and I realized...Oh no! this was the week I had decided to participate in the FO challenge! And there I was so proud of myself that my frozen yogurt treat weighed in at just under $4, when in reality, if I was living off of food stamps, this $4 ice cream treat would have had to last me all day. I decided to start next Monday the 20th.

From participating in this event last year, I knew how much planning it would take to eat "well" feel "full" on $28/week. So, for 1 1/2 hours I slaved over an excel spread sheet calculating what I could and could not afford. At one point, not knowing what I was working on, my husband passed by my computer and commented that I seemed to be tackling, "quite the project."

After using Schnuck's on-line grocery store for price checks, and searching for new recipes, I had finally calculated out all meals and snacks for seven days. I headed off to the store with my detailed list and small budget.

In my original FO blog, I mentioned I had grown tired of lentils from the first challenge. Well, they are back, but they've had a makeover. They have lost that drab brown color and have re-appeared in red. This inspiration came from a cooking demo that my student's performed last year. In this demo, they demonstrated how to make a vegetarian version of sloppy joe's called "Snobby Joes." It was fantastic, and I knew it would be affordable. Protein tends to be one of the most expensive items on one's grocery list, and legumes such as lentils are a satiating and healthy way to fill up on cents.

Snobby Joe Ingredients:

And here is a picture of the finished product, along with my other two items I could afford.

It's day 2 of eating this meal, and I am hoping it not only lasts 5 days more, but that I don't get tired of my new and improved legumes. I look forward to the awareness of hunger this week might bring.