$225/MONTH MENU PLAN FOR OUR FAMILY OF 6 (POST #44)

Trying to save money but also eat well? Me too!  Here’s the latest meal plan showing what I’m feeding my family of 6 on a budget!

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I often get asked how I feed my family of 6 on a budget as small as ours.  And it’s that question that first inspired me to start these menu plans several years ago.  It’s also why I did a series a while back that was all about how I shop with our $225/mo. grocery budget.

One of the very easy things that I have done though to help lower our grocery budget has been to use various money-saving apps! These apps aren’t typically going to save you loads of money each week, but they are a simple way to save a little extra. 

Here are the two money-saving apps that I use and love if you want to check them out and give them a try too:

• Ibotta 
• Fetch Rewards
  – This one is the absolute easiest to use. You earn simply by scanning your receipt. Plus, if you purchase qualifying items, you’ll earn an additional amount too.
  

If you looking for some frugal family meals to add to your weekly meal plan ideas but are new to my menu plan posts, it’s probably helpful to know a couple of things first:

• The size and ages of our family. Our family of six consists of two adults with fairly big appetites, a 9 ½ year-old boy, a 6 year-old girl, a 4 year-old girl and a 1 ½ year-old boy.  
• I have a stockpile.  My cupboards are full from previous shopping and here’s why. When I can get pasta for free with coupons, I buy as much as I have coupons for.  If I’m able to get flour for $0.50/bag like I did last fall, I’ll buy half a dozen and put them in the freezer to use as needed.  I do this as much as my budget allows, on as many items as I can and as a result save lots of money. Then when I go to plan menus, I simply plan our meals around what I already have in my cupboards and freezer, as much as possible.  Obviously, I still might have to buy a few things at regular price here and there, but by stocking up when the price is at rock bottom I save a lot.
• I cook almost totally from scratch.  That means when I make a cake, I almost always make them from scratch.  I make my own bread totally from scratch.  I rarely use pre-packaged sauces.  I make my own cream soups and pie crusts.  Making your own food is typically less expensive and healthier too.
• We rarely snack.  By eating “heavy” food like granola at breakfast we don’t get hungry until lunchtime.  And the same goes for the afternoon.  Our lunches are big enough that we usually are fine until dinner time.  When we do need a snack, I try to keep it mostly healthy by offering fruit, nuts or maybe No Bake Energy Bites.  We don’t always do it perfectly though, and sometimes end up having chips or cookies instead.
• Our breakfasts consist of Homemade Granola, Chocolate Granola or Baked Oatmeal, the occasional bought cereal that I was able to get for $0.50/box and sometimes some fruit too.  I know that might seem awfully boring to some of you, but we actually all really enjoy it and prefer it over other breakfast food.  I also have a homemade iced latte, homemade frappe or some other fun beverage every morning.  It’s just one of the little things that I do to help me have a productive day!

Get my FREE $50 Aldi Meal Plan here! It has 7 easy dinners for a family of 5.

Feeding a Family of 6 on a Budget

WEEK 1
Sunday

• Easy Bisquick Chicken Pot Pie; Homemade Chocolate Brownies
  – We had a carry-in at church and this is what I took.
• Homemade Grilled Chicken Salad Sandwiches; Easy Fruit Smoothie

Monday

• Meat & Cheese Sandwiches; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Oranges; Bananas
• Hearty Hamburger Soup (my recipe is similar to this one); Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Crazy Good Carrot Cake

Tuesday

• Leftovers; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Oranges
• Kid Fresh Chicken Nuggets; Herb Roasted Potatoes; Roasted Spiced Sweet Potatoes; Green Beans; Homemade Chocolate Brownies
  – We love these “healthy” chicken nuggets and since I get them free or super cheap with my couponing, I love using them for a quick and easy dinner on busy days.

Wednesday

• Meat & Cheese Sandwiches; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Oranges; Bananas
• Breakfast Burritos (sausage/eggs/cheese and toppings); Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies (from the freezer)

Thursday

• Refried Bean and Cheese Quesadilla (used my homemade refried beans); Easy Homemade Yogurt; Oranges; Bananas
• Homemade BBQ Chicken Sandwiches; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Homemade Applesauce; Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies (from the freezer)

Friday

• Leftover Hearty Hamburger Soup; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Bananas
• The Best Chili on Earth; Quick and Easy Breadsticks; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Homemade Chocolate Brownies
  – We babysat for a couple of friends and as a result, had 6 kids join us for dinner.

Saturday

• Various Leftovers; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches
• Homemade Pulled Pork Sandwiches; Lettuce Salad; Leftover Chocolate Brownies

WEEK 2
Sunday

• Herb Roasted Chicken and Potatoes; Green Beans; Turkey Hill All Natural Ice Cream
• Homemade White Bean Dip (I make mine similar to this recipe) with tortilla chips; Deer Bologna
  – We’re going through a video series at church right now once a month and then afterward we all eat a light finger food meal together.  Oh and the deer bologna was given to us- my husband is very much not a hunter!  🙂 

Monday

• Meat & Cheese Sandwiches; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Bananas; Oranges
• Various Leftovers; Peas; Candy Bars
  – Occasionally I get candy for free with my couponing and this night we split a couple of bars and had them as our dessert.

Tuesday

• Leftover Chili Soup; Pizza Hut Book-It Pizza (our two oldest kid’s got these); Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Frozen Blueberries
• All Beef Hot Dogs; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Cheese

Wednesday

• Meat & Cheese Sandwiches; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Oranges
• Crockpot Tuscan Bean Soup; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies (from the freezer)

Thursday

• Various Leftovers; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches
• Chicken “Burgers”; Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Homemade Applesauce

Friday

• Meat & Cheese Sandwiches; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Frozen Blueberries
• Salsa Chicken Soup; Lettuce Salad; Homemade Mocha Cheesecake

Saturday

• Various Leftovers; Easy Homemade Yogurt; Home Canned Peaches; Frozen Blueberries
• Homemade Chicken Alfredo Pizza (used homemade Healthier Alfredo Sauce and homemade pizza crust and topped with chicken, caramelized onions and of course cheese); Lettuce Salad with Mexican Dressing; Homemade Applesauce; Leftover Mocha Cheesecake
  – This homemade pizza crust recipe is awesome!  Not only does it need no time to rise, but you can also have it ready to go in the oven in 30 minutes!  And it’s really tasty too.  The only thing I do differently is pre-bake the crust a bit before putting on the toppings.

Other frugal living content you might enjoy:

• 40 Foods to Freeze to Save Time and Money
• 36 Quick and Easy Chicken Recipes
• A Frugal Mom’s 25 Favorite Easy Ways to Save Money
• 9 Things We Gave up to Get Out of Debt Fast