Meatless Mondays and Budget Shopping....

So much for the 5 day stretch of nice warm weather, because we woke up this morning to a blanket of snow covering the ground. However, the great part about when it snows here in Kansas, your day goes on as planned after the roads are plowed, of course. Clay went out to the field as planned to "play Army", Chris went to school and Ayden & I did our normal Monday ritual of grocery shopping for the week. We've started our weekly budget for groceries ($75), since we finally have our staple items (flour, sugar, spices, etc.) stocked in our cabinets and pantry. After shoveling the drive way, I started off with Ayden in tow towards the Commissary on post. Normally, I buy all of our meat, cheese, and canned items here. I haven't enjoyed their selection of produce this winter, but surprisingly it looked good today with the exception of tomatoes & bananas (which I needed.) So, I managed to get all of our items for this week's meals for a total of....wait for it....$44.80. You must think we're eating gruel, but we're not. We're eating pretty good this week. By eliminating 75% of processed foods out of our diets and shopping the perimeter of the store (produce, dairy & fresh meats) for the majority of our food, we're coming out on top budget wise. Granted, if I were still in NC and shopping at the Food Lion in downtown Tyro, I would have spent close to double and paid tax. On this week's menu we have lots of new recipes (marked with an *) to try out & I'm also implementing "Meatless Mondays", having fish 2 nights a week, cutting our portion sizes back to a reasonable serving size, less carbohydrates and more fruits & veggies.

Rummage Family Menu for the Week:

Sunday-Buffalo Mac 'n' Cheese & salad
(There is a ton of cheese in this, I end up splitting this recipe in 2 dishes and freezing the extra dish for another meal down the road.)
*Meatless Monday- Broccoli & Goat Cheese Souffle & salad
*Tuesday- Slow-Simmered Meat Sauce & noodles, salad and garlic bread
*Wednesday-Salmon Rosti & roasted green beans
Thursday-Black Bean Burgers (below) with Beautiful burger buns, chips & pickles
Friday- Grilled Chicken Salad
*Saturday- Broiled Whole Salmon Fillet & Crispy Topped Brussels Sprouts & Cauliflower Gratin

Homemade Quick Black Bean Burgers
Serve on a bun with a combination of hot sauce-spiked ketchup, spinach leaves, tomato slice, a slice of Monterey Jack cheese, avocado slices, Chipotle mayo or onion. Yield: 4 patties (serving size: 1 patty)
1 (2-ounce) hamburger bun, torn into pieces or 1 cup breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 (15.25-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon grated lime rind
3/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 large egg white, lightly beaten

1. Place bun in a food processor; process 4 times or until crumbs measure about 1 cup. Transfer to a bowl.

2. Combine 1 tablespoon oil, garlic, and beans in processor; pulse 8 times or until beans make a thick paste. Scrape bean mixture into bowl with breadcrumbs. Stir in rind and remaining ingredients. With moistened hands, divide bean mixture into 4 equal portions (about 1/3 cup mixture per portion), shaping each into a 3-inch patty.

3. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties to pan; reduce heat to medium, and cook 4 minutes or until bottom edges are browned. Carefully turn patties over; cook 3 minutes or until bottom edges are done.