Can you believe 2017 is already over?  I feel like I was just getting home from Florida, with my beautiful tan!   This month’s menu is really great, and includes a lot of healthy, budget friendly meals to start off the New Year. Grand total of January’s menu – $254!

I’ve done the planning; all you need to do is the shopping!  January’s menu has a grand total of $254, and I did that by; shopping at multiple grocery stores, utilizing the savings on store rewards cards, using coupons, and by using my favorite app lately, iBotta.  If you haven’t heard of iBotta before, check it out.  It is an app that gives you cash back for your purchases.  In a nutshell, go shopping, and once you get home, open the app, and scroll through the stores you shopped at to see if there are any rebates.  There is at least always one for $0.25 for any item.  It may not seem like much, but all of those little savings add up, and once you hit $20, you can cash out through PayPal, or in gift cards.  Use code hqsrpvf and get $10 as soon as you redeem your first receipt! 

Scroll down to get your free copy of January’s menu.

If you’ve been following my menus for a while, you’ll know that I like to shop at different stores to optimize my savings.  These are some of my favorites:

Costco
Costco is one of the best ways to budget meal plan.  I like to buy things that I can freeze, items that are shelf stable, and produce that I know will last throughout the month.  Below is my Costco list for January:

Walmart
Walmart is my favorite place to buy all of my grocery items.  On average, items are $0.20 – $1 cheaper each.  All those little savings add up, and if you shop online and have your groceries delivered using Walmart Grocery, you can see just how much you are spending as you shop. 

Grocery Store
Our local grocery stores are King Soopers (Kroger) and Safeway.  I like to shop at these stores for all the odds and ends, as well as my dairy.  I’ll shop the sales each week to see what store I need to go to for each item.  By using my King Soopers or Safeway cards, I always get their best deals on items, especially items that I buy frequently.  King Soopers gives me one or two free items each month – usually something that I purchase often as well as coupons for different departments in the store like $3 off $10 in produce, and Safeway offers personalized prices on items and promotions like $5 off of $25.  I also like to get my deli meats and cheeses at my local grocery store unless I am buying deli meats for lunch, then I will get that at Costco. 

Produce
For the most part; this is something that I like to do each week.  This keeps everything fresh and doesn’t over crowd your fridge each week.  I shop at Sprouts for produce, but will also purchase it at my local grocery store if I see that the price is better, or if I have a coupon.  Sprouts always has the best deals, and the widest variety of produce.  If you don’t have a Sprouts around you, check out Whole Foods.  Now that they are owned by Amazon, you can get some pretty great deals on produce. 

Maximize Your Savings
I’ve done all the planning, so that all you have to do is shop.  When you get your weekly sales flyers in the mail, sit down with your weekly menu, and highlight the items you want from each store with a different color.  I sometimes even go a step further, if I know it’s going to be a big grocery haul, and print some blank grocery lists, and write one for each store that I am going to, so that I see exactly what I need from each aisle, and do not have to wander around the store, tempting me to spend more money. 

If you can swing it, purchase all of your bulk items from Costco at the beginning of the month.  It will be a steeper grocery bill than you are probably used to, but it will save you greatly throughout the month.  For the big Costco trip, print the monthly grocery list, and highlight everything you need. 

Shop Your Pantry
This is your first step in saving!  Check your pantry, fridge and freezer for the items on your grocery list, and cross them off if you already have it in stock.  Also be sure to check your staples like; spices, salt, pepper, flour, sugars, olive oil, vinegars, soy sauce, condiments, etc.  If you are out, add them to your list.  I keep an inventory list of my pantry so that I always know what I have on hand and what I need to replace.  Visit momsbistro.net for free printable inventory lists.

Set Aside $30
By setting aside an extra $30 each month, you can stock up when you see a great sale!  For example, last month, the lemonade we like was on sale for $0.99 (usually $3.99), so I bought 10.  The extra money set aside each month will also help keep your fridge and pantry stocked with your staples.

For a weekly breakdown of January’s Menu with weekly grocery lists, all 33 recipes including 12 new recipes and a breakfast and lunch planning guide visit my Etsy store and get your copy for only $4!

January 2018 Menu

All recipes with a * are exclusive to the full version of January’s menu.

January 1 – Sesame Chicken with Rice*

January 2 – Winter Salad*

January 3 – Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup

January 4 – Spaghetti and Meatballs

January 5 – Leftovers

January 6 – Mini BBQ Meatloaf*

January 7 – Creamy Swiss Chicken and Rice Casserole*

January 8 – Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese

January 9 – Chipotle Roasted Chicken* with Cilantro Lime Rice

January 10 – Leftovers

January 11 – Breakfast

January 12 – Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken*  and Spaghetti with Garlic and Oil

January 13 – Chicken Cutlets and Parmesan Polenta

January 14 – Slow Cooker Pot Roasr

January 15 – Pasta

January 16 – Sheet Tray Chicken Fajitas*

January 17 – Leftovers

January 18 – BLAT Wraps*

January 19 – Sloppy Joe’s with Oven Baked French Fries

January 20 – Chicken Nuggets with Hidden Vegetables

January 21 – Cabbage Rolls*

January 22 – Denver Omelet Frittata*

January 23 – Turkey Tacos

January 24 – Leftovers

January 25 – Slow Cooker Broccoli Cheddar Soup

January 26 – Chicken Parmesan

January 27 – Sheet Tray Teriyaki Salmon*

January 28 – Roasted Chicken with Sweet Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts

January 29 – White Cheddar Mac and Cheese with Bacon*

January 30 – Chicken Enchiladas with Mexican Street Corn

January 31 – Leftovers

Get your free version of January’s menu by clicking the link below.

Monthly Menu & Grocery List