A Fool’s Dream

Breakfast: A little bit of Mexican food, shared with my boyfriend $0

Lunch: Capellini with Fried Tofu, made by my boyfriend $0

Dinner:  9 Chicken Dumplings $0

Frozen dumplings are great and easy.  I got these in an Asian store for maybe 8 or 9 dollars, about 50 of them in a bag.  Just boil water in a large pot, throw them in when the water’s fully boiled, and let it cook for 10 – 12 minutes or so depending on how many of them in the pot.  Scoop up the dumplings with some soup, then make a soy sauce + minced garlic + sesame oil dipping sauce to go with them.  Yum.  Alternatively, they can be pan-fried with a little oil, and that also taste wonderful.

Breakfast: None $0

Lunch: Eggplant and tofu from last night $0

Dinner: Mushrooms with Capellini $1.50

The weather here was pretty bad – snow was almost gone but then suddenly we got a heavy snowstorm. When I got off work, I went to the grocery store because I was on my way to my boyfriend’s house and would like to make dinner before he got back. I could not find items that can fit under $1 budget for two people, and finally decided that a box of sliced Portabella mushrooms on sale for $1.50 was my best choice as far as price and health factor goes. I sauteed the mushrooms in butter, added some herbal salt, then add the cooked capellini and more butter. It was fairly good!

Breakfast: Nothing $0

Lunch: Lobster Ravioli from Day 9 $0

Dinner: Eggplant and seasoned tofu (bought a while ago) with rice. $0.75

I cut up the eggplant into cubes, pan fried it in oil, then add cubed tofu.  Very quick and easy!  I also had another half for tomorrow’s lunch.

Breakfast: A cup of tea $0

Lunch:  Indian Buffet with coworkers for a co-worker who is leaving our office to work in another office $0

Dinner:  Garlic bread from last night and the rest of the soup from 2 nights ago. $0

Woohoo!  It’s my tenth day and I have been doing fairly well, I’d say.  I still have not touched the groceries that I bought on Sunday due to the free food that I have been getting, so that’s good.

Breakfast: A cup of tea. $0

Lunch: Salmon with Tequila sauce from my boyfriend (thanks honey!) $0

Dinner: Fried Eggplant, Sauteed Calamari, Salad, Lobster Ravioli, Tiramisu $0

Wait…you said. How do I get to eat my dinner for $0?? Well, I am part of the local magazine’s food review panel, and everyone gets a few times to eat for free in exchange for a short review. I have done 3 or 4 times in the past, but haven’t done any lately. Someone could not make it so I volunteered. This definitely was a good surprise, especially when I’m on this dollar plan! The food was greasy though, I have to say…but have enough for tomorrow, and tons of garlic bread to go along.

I have to say I have been doing fairly well in the first week, with help from my boyfriend and some leftovers to start. There are still quite a bit of food in my fridge/freezer/cabinet, but some stuff are start to run low, such as white rice. It also looks like that my body soap is getting very small, but I should have some small ones that I took from the hotels etc.

The tempting moments of spending is constantly there, for sure, but it also feels good that I am able to let it come and let it go. Yesterday I went to Whole Foods, where I always end up buying at least $50 of stuff. I had to get 2 packs of “Whole Body Cleanse” for my trip for my mom which can let me use a $5 free grocery coupon with $30 purchase or more. It was interesting because I was shopping very consciously, weighing the produce oz by oz and cheer the beauty of “$0.99/lb”, and picked just the things that worth for what they are. I finally picked these for my second week:

1 organic green cabbage @ $0.99/lb = $1.08

1 mini eggplant (as big as one’s palm) @ $4.99/lb = $1.50

a few red potatoes @ $0.99/lb = $1.40

a small bulb of organic garlic $0.3

a yellow onion $1 .11

a dozen Phil’s Cage Free eggs $1.99

a small batch of organic dried rosemary leaves from bulk counter $0.52

a bag of 5 lb all purpose flour $1.99

Total $9.89-$5.oo = $4.89

I also picked up the free booklet “bulk basics” and decided to read about it. I have always liked to buy bulk for a few things, but could explore more to my advantage. The rosemary leaves I bought from a bulk counter cost just 1/2 of what’s in a plastic resealable bag, and it’s only 1/4 of the same thing in a small glass jar. I bought a bag of flour not knowing what to do with it yet, but I figure I could start learning how to make bread etc from scratch and eat healthier. On top of these new ideas, my green onions are doing pretty well simply by planting the white part into a flowering pot and water it.

I’m liking my new plan.

Breakfast:  Just a cup of tea. $0

Lunch:  A salad that was given to me by my boyfriend, then a granola bar from Trader Joe’s that I bought x months ago.  Oh, and a Mango Lassi that have been in the fridge for 2 weeks.  $0

Dinner:  My boyfriend gave me a Tequila Chicken entree to support my “A Dollar A Day” plan when he went out with his mom on Saturday.  I was going to eat that tonight, but the ground beef I bought last Sunday still haven’t been touched, so I had to make it first.  I stir fried the beef with a special fried shallot grease (a Taiwanese signature ingredient), a little Japanese soysauce, then 1/4 of a onion.  I also made a soup from the 2 chicken bones that I had, then some old celery and 1/4 onion.  $1

Breakfast: Skipped. $0

Lunch:  Skipped again.  Not intentionally, but just too busy, then I had to go out.  $0

Dinner:  I used the other fried chicken leg I have, added a little water and cover to make a little broth out of it.  Then I made some noodles with soup and soup base, and called it a meal.  $1

Breakfast: A thin slice of Sunflower Bread $0.15

Lunch: Tomato Soup supplied by my boyfriend, and a thick toasty slice of Sunflower bread. $0.3

Dinner: 1 Fried Chicken Leg with rice. $1.35

Total: $1.80

OK, so today I think I exceeded the $1 budget, because of I ate one of the 2 chicken legs that I bought from Trader Joe’s that costs $2.69. But I’m saving the bone, and when I finish the other one tomorrow, I will make some creative soup out of them. I still have a little more of the bread, but man, it is SOOOOOO good. Well spent $ on the loaf.

Breakfast: A bowl of oatmeal $0

Lunch: One thick slice of Sunflower bread $.30

Dinner: My boyfriend went by the Japanese grocery store that we loved but only have been once as it is 1.5 hrs away. He got a bunch of sashimi, sliced them and enjoyed with me. I’d like to post a photo, but figured that really doesn’t go with my frugal eating theme here so I’m holding off. Delicious! $0