Free Donut On Friday

Grab a free treat for yourself tomorrow, Friday June 01, at Dunkin Donuts!  They are giving away a free donut with every drink purchase.  Mmmm!

Free Donut At Price Chopper Tomorrow

Tomorrow is free donut day and Price Chopper is joining in the fun.  Print this coupon from their Facebook page and treat yourself to a free donut while shopping tomorrow.

Also print the below coupon for $10/$100.  That's 10% right off the top!!  Woo hoo!

Four Free Samples Of Mrs. Dash

I've never tried Mrs. Dash (and am not certain it is even GF) but it's been around forever.  So I am going to assume it's tasty.  It's grilling season and I'm guessing this will make for some mighty tasty chicken this summer.

You can assume as much too and request four free sample packs of Mrs. Dash on Facebook today, while supplies last.

Free Formula Sample

I LOVE these. I donate them but they are also great to have on hand for new babies.  Just in case!

Request your FREE sample of Parent's Choice formula!

Lovely, Light Summer Salad Dressing

This is such a skimpy post but I randomly threw together this "recipe" (in quotes because I use the word recipe lightly) the other night and it was so delish!  Nice and light on a screaming hot summer's night.  I used up the ice berg lettuce and some of the berries I picked up on sale this week at Price Chopper.

Citrus Summer Salad Dressing

Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
* 1/2 cup orange juice
* pinch of salt

Directions:
* Put yogurt (any flavor- I used coconut but plain or a fruit flavor or vanilla would all be delish), orange juice and salt in a mason jar.  Twist on lid.  Shake shake shake.
* Pour over salad and enjoy!
* You can adjust the thickness of the dressing by playing with the amount of juice you add.  If you use fat free yogurt...well duh...the dressing will be fat free too. 

Free Magazine Subscription: Everyday Food

Gah!  This is probably my favorite magazine to read right now.  Love love this Everyday Food.  So hurry to snag yours for free.  They go crazy quickly.

Free Magazine Subscription: Whole Living

Oooh I have been trying to snag this one for free for more than a year now.  I knew I would find it eventually!  Hurry hurry on over to get your FREE subscription!!

FREE Sebamed Sample Plus A Coupon

Just "like" Sebamed USA on Facebook and request a free sample of their Face & Body Wash, plus a high value coupon!

Making Money At Price Chopper

Photo actually taken in the middle of Lowes.

There is a great deal this week at Price Chopper.  If you purchase $150 worth of Lowes gift cards (in a single transaction), you will earn a $10 OYNO Price Chopper catalina.

I needed to make a purchase today at Lowes so this was perfect!  I simply popped into Price Chopper first to buy my gift cards.  Then cruised down the road to Lowes.  And paid with my gift cards.  When I grocery shop later in the week, I have a mighty nice $10 catalina to use!

Yay!

My Price Chopper Shopping Trip

I did really well today. 

The asparagus were pretty pricy but I plan to use them in a hopefully yummy salad that I found on Pinterest.  It's my goal to not turn on the oven at all when it is this hot outside.  The Yoplait yogurts all had a $0.25 Price Chopper mark down on them- yay!  With my $0.30/1 coupon, they were FREE!  The chocolate here and from last week all has a plan.  Remember when I showed you the s'mores sticks that I picked up for Christmas gifts?  These chocolate bars are part of that grand plan too.  I seriously shop all year long for Christmas gifts.  The razors are a donation item.  They were free after coupons (though they rang up a full price so be sure to pay attention when ringing up), so for the price of tax I don't mind picking up a few packs.  The brownies are not for me but I like to keep things like this on hand.  You just never know when you might need to bring a treat to a meeting or sick relative.

I also used several competitor coupons such as the Dollar General $5/$25 and catalina coupons.

The details...

* (2) Asparagus  reg. $3.99/lb  ($9.18) (I rang each bunch up separately)
- (2) $1/1lb Hannaford coupon
= OOP $2.99/lb  ($7.18)

* Bananas  reg. $0.49/lb

* (1) Blueberries  reg. $1.99, sale with in ad coupon $1.49
- (1) in ad coupon
= OOP $1.49

* (1) Strawberries  reg. $2.99
- (1) $1/1 PC coupon
= OOP $1.99

* (2) Bic razors  reg. $6.99, sale $2.99
- (2) $3/1 Bic razors SS 5/6
= OOP Free!

* (1) Kleenex hand towels  reg. $3.49, sale $2.99
- (1) $0.75/1 Kleenex hand towels SS 5/6
= OOP $1.49

* (1) Hellman's Mayo  reg. $4.59. sale $2.99
- (1) in ad coupon $2/ea
- (1) $1/1 Hellman's Mayo
= OOP $1/ea

* (1) Betty Crocker brownie mix  reg. $1.99
- (1) PC coupon $0.49/ea
= OOP $0.49

* (5) Oscar Mayer lunch meat  reg. $1.19/ea
= OOP $5.95
+ earn $4 OYNO Catalina wyb (5)

* (1) Skim Milk  reg. $2.69

* (4) Yoplait Lactose Free yogurt  reg. $0.79
- (4) $0.25/1 PC peelie
- (4) $0.30/1 Yoplait Lactose Free coupon
= FREE

* (6) Dove chocolate bar  reg. $0.99, sale $0.79
- (3) $0.50/2 Dove chocolate bars
= OOP $0.29/ea

Total value purchased ... $48.77

Paid out of pocket ... $17.10

Percentage saved ... 65%

Earned ... (1) $4 OYNO catalina

$1/1 lb or more Asparagus coupon from Hannaford. 

At Price Chopper...
1 lb Asparagus  $3.99/lb
- $1/1 lb competitor coupon from Hannaford
= OOP $2.99/lb

More Great Price Chopper Grocery Coupons

Chips and soda and sports drinks, oh my!  The Pchop has some really good summer food and drink coupons available on their website this week.  If you still have your $0.99/1 Coke coupons (I do...yay!), you can get coke (my drug of choice) for FREE this week.  Time to stock up for summer.  Woo hoo!!

Price Chopper Facebook Coupons

Lots of great coupons for Price Chopper on Facebook this week!  Loving all the berry coupons.  Fruit salad anyone?!

Also, $0.50 for a 2L of soda is an excellent price.  Think about how much you pay for just a can or small bottle of soda.  Often nearly $2.  This is a stockpile price for things like graduation parties and pool parties and momma needs a soda on the porch parties.

Stock Up On Eggs This Week

You can stock up on eggs at Price Chopper this week...

Land O Lakes brown eggs $1.99
- $0.75/1 coupon
= OOP $0.49

Free Sample Dog Food

Request a free sample of Nature's Select dog food.

Free Premium Vanilla Bean

This is an incredible offer from Cook's!  I started using vanilla beans nearly a year ago and I just can't go back now.  The difference is incredible.  Plus I love the aesthetic addition of the little vanilla beans in things like custards and whipped cream. 

Just like Cook's on Facebook and FB message them with your mailing address.  You can use vanilla in a myriad of ways but my personal favorite it to make homemade pure vanilla extract.  Delish!

My Awesome Price Chopper Week In Review

This has been a BIG shopping week for many of us.  Price Chopper did not disappoint!  Summer sales are on and I'm loving it.  I picked up ice cream, cleaning products, meats, veggies and more.  And there is still time.  I started my week with a goal to not only shop wisely for items I needed but to also elaborate practical ways to use the best Price Chopper deals in your every day life.  So let's talk first about my favorite items on sale this week.

Details Listed Here

* (1) Seedless Watermelon  reg. $4.99, sale $2.99
- (1) $2/1 Watermelon Hannaford coupon
= OOP $0.99
~ Saved 80%

* (1) Strawberries  reg. $2.99
- (1) $1/1 lb Hannaford coupon (thru 5/24)
 = OOP $1.99

* Iceberg or Romain Lettuce  sale $1

* Bananas  sale $0.49/lb

* (1) Vidallia Onions 5lb.  sale $4.99
- (1) $0.50/1 Vidallia Onions print coupon
= OOP $3.99

* (1) Wholly Salsa  sale $2
- (1) $1.50/1 Wholly Salsa
= OOP $0.50

* (2) Boneless Center Cut Pork Chops  B1G1 Free
~ Saved 50%

* (2) Boneless Pork Country Style Ribs B1G1 Free
~ Saved 50%

* Boneless, skinless chicken breast  sale $1.99/lb
- (1) $2/$10 any fresh meat purchase

* Crab Classic Flake Style Crab meat  sale $2.50
- $0.50/1 Crab Classic
= OOP $1.50

* (5) Oscar Mayer Deli Meat 2oz pack  sale $1
= OOP $5
+ Earn $4 OYNO Catalina

* (1) Swiss Premium Iced Tea or Lemonade  sale $1.50
- (1) $0.55/1 Swiss Premium SS 5/20 (R)
= OOP $0.40

* (1) Slimfast Shakes 4-pack  reg. $6.49, sale $5
- (1) $1.50/1 Slimfast Shakes RP 5/20
- (1) $0.75/1 Slimfast Target coupon (should not double, mine did)
= OOP $2.75 without double, $2 with double
~ Saved 58% without double, 69% with double

* (4) Suave Lotion  sale $2.50/ea
- (2) BOGO Free RP 5/20
- (1) $2/$5.99 iSave machine coupon
= OOP $3/4 bottles of lotion or just $0.75/ea

* (1) Suave Body Wash  sale $1.88
- (1) $0.50/1 Suave Body Wash
= OOP $0.88/ea

* (1) Clorox Wipes  reg. $2.99, sale $2
- (1) $0.50/1 Clorox Wipes Dollar General Coupon (should not double, mine did)
= OOP $1.50 without double, $1 with double
~ Saved 50% without double, 67% with double

* (1) Glad Force Flex Trash Bags 25-80 ct.  sale $7.49
- (1) $1.85 Glad Force Flex
= OOP $5.64 ($0.07/bag if you purchase 80 ct.)

* (2) Ocean Spray Juice Drinks  reg. $3.29, sale $2.50
- (1) Buy any Ocean Spray Cranberry juice, get Ocean Spray Cherry juice FREE
- (1) $1/$4 or more juice purchase Catalina
= OOP $1.50/2 or just $0.75/ea (without Cat it is still an awesome deal)
~ Saved 77% with Cat, 62% without Cat

* (4) Coke 2L  sale 4/$4 with in ad coupon
- (4) $0.99/1 Coke coupon
= OOP Free!

* (5) Polar Seltzer 12-pack  sale 5/$12 with in ad coupon
- (1) in ad coupon
- (2) $1/2 Polar Seltzer 12-packs RP 5/20
= OOP $10/5 packs or just $2/each

* (3) Lays Potato Chips  reg. $4.29, sale $3.29
- (1) in ad coupon 3/$6
= OOP $6/3 bags or just $2/ea
~ Saved 53%

* (1) Hellman's Real Mayo 22-30 oz  reg. $2.99, sale $2
- (1) in ad coupon (must spend min $15 and limit 1)
- (1) $1/1 Hellman's RP 5/20
= Out Of Pocket $1
~ Saved 66%

* (2) Kikoman marinade  reg. $3.48, sale $2.61
- (2) $2/1 Kikoman marinade
= OOP $0.61/ea
~ Saved 82%
+ Earned $1 OYNO Catalina from purchase of two

* (1) Jello Temptations or Mousse  sale $2.50
- (1) $0.90/1 print coupon (nla)
= OOP $0.70

* (1) Luigi's Italian Ice  sale $2
- (1) $0.75/1 Luigi's Italian Ice RP 5/13
= OOP $0.50

* (2) Breyer's Ice Cream  reg.$4.29, sale $2 (limit 2)
- (2) $0.75/1 Breyer's Blasts
= OOP $0.50/each
~ Saved 88%

* (2) Milky Way candy bars  reg. $0.99, sale $0.79
- (1) $0.75/2 Milky Way candy bars
= OOP $0.08/2 or just $0.04/ea

* (2) Dove Chocolate Singles Bar  reg. $0.99, sale $0.79
- (1) $0.50/2 Dove Chocolate Singles
= OOP $0.58/2 or just $0.29/ea
~ Saved 71%

With these awesome sales, plus a few from last week and some staples from the pantry, I was able to make SIX yummy dinners in five nights this week, too.  Several are even freezer meals- to enjoy later when you are too busy to cook.

On Monday, I cooked up a big package of chicken breasts to make a very yummy dinner of Chicken Mojo as dinner #1.  A BIG crowd pleaser!!  This was step one in a week of dinners, as I pre-cooked a week's worth of chicken at one time.  Better yet, I used the crockpot as to not add any extra heat into the house!

On Tuesday, I use some of the leftover Chicken Mojo and great produce sales such as $1 lettuce from Price Chopper to make my version of PF Chang's Lettuce Wraps as dinner #2.  Ooooh they are so tasty.

On Wednesday I used the two packs of BOGO free boneless pork ribs (one of my very favorite meat sales that PChop does from time to time) to make BBQ Pork Ribs for dinner #3.  A classic any time of year.  A simple potato "baked" in the microwave and a yummy salad make this a "stick to your ribs" meal.  Very satisfying!   

On Thursday I made my first of three freezer meals for the week, Sweet and Sour Chicken as dinner #4.  Once again using some of the Chicken Mojo cooked on Monday.  The gift (or bird) that keeps on giving.  This is the perfect meal for a busy night when you want to eat something tasty, healthy and easy peasy lemon squeezy.  The prep for this meal took less than five minutes! 

And on Friday, I made my third and fourth freezer meals of the week, Cheesy Chicken and Rice as dinners #5 and #6 for the week.  They were the same meal but I made one to eat that night and one to freeze.  Or two to freeze.  This used up the very last of the Chicken Mojo from Monday night.  Not one skinny bit went to waste, but every nibble was incredibly tasty.

And today, Saturday, I am going to offer you one more meal prep tip for the week.  You know those yummy freezer meals that I made this week?  Those make awesome gifts!  Great to give to a sick relative or friend or someone who just had a baby.  Great to give to a friend who is under a lot of life stress, too. It is so easy for you to make them ahead of time and gift as needed.  Because while a scented candle is lovely, nothing says I love you like a home cooked meal!

How much fun to prepare once (chicken, onions, rice) and use many times over the week!  The key is to have a PLAN.

I pay close attention to Price Chopper sales ads, manufacturer coupons, Price Chopper coupons, Catalina deals (this is my weak spot but I am learning to be better at them) and what I already have in my pantry to make the most of my grocery budget each week.  Planning ahead to stockpile the best deals is another budget saver.  For example, this week I will pick up a few of the chicken packs, Polar Springs 12-packs, Clorox wipes, Suave lotion, Breyer's ice cream, pork ribs, mayo and Kikoman marinades for my stockpile.  I clearly do not need everything this very week, but these are all items I love to use throughout the summer months. 

I also took the time on Sunday to plan out my dinners for the week, based on the protein and veggie sales.  Not only does this save your budget, but it also saves you time and most important with summer approaching...calories.  Look again at all of the meals I just made this week.  Click on the links to see each ingredient.  Those are really healthy meals, y'all!  Not just a bunch of junk to fill you up.  I made six healthy, gluten free meals, to feed 4-6 people, using one package of chicken and two packages of pork ribs.

It is so worth the extra time it takes to plan on Sunday knowing it will save me time, money, energy and calories throughout the remainder of the week.

So tell me, what was your favorite purchase from Price Chopper this week?

Mayo And More From Price Chopper

I am running out the door so I will post a very detailed list of deals first thing tomorrow morning, as well as a review of how I put those deals to use this week.

But quickly...the sales at Price Chopper are AMAZING this weekend.  Watermelon for just $0.99, Breyers ice cream for just $0.50 and mayo for just $1! 

Again, the details of the great sales will come first thing tomorrow morning.  But for what you see above (I clearly forgot to include the candy in the first photo and by the time I realized it, the ice cream was put away to prevent it turning into soup), here are my totals.  You should note that I used a bunch of competitor coupons (ie: $5/$25 from Dollar General) and Catalinas (Because I do NOT consider those into totals until I use them.  I honestly think it makes zero sense to do otherwise.).

This was possibly my VERY BEST grocery shopping trip ever.

Total value purchased ... $76.99

Paid out of pocket ... $1.55

Percentage saved ... 98%

Earned ... (1) $1 Catalina from two Kikoman purchased

Dinner #5 and #6: Cheesy Chicken And Rice Freezer Meal...Times Two

Yes...I said times two.  I made two meals at the same time.  One to eat tonight actually and one to freeze for later use.  I used the rest of the mojo chicken from Monday's dinner.  And the rest of the sliced onions too.  Yup...it's still creating yummy dinners.  Can you believe it?  I told you it is super awesome to cook once and use it for many different meals.  Just makes sense, no?!

If you don't have leftover chicken, you can absolutely cut up one chicken breast per meal.  That's all you need if you are using the big chicken breasts that Price Chopper has on sale this week.

So first, let me again note that I cook rice a bag or two at a time.  I don't see any point in cooking rice in small batches.  It takes but a few minutes more to just cook an entire bag and it's not like it requires any extra work.  Once you get the water simmering, you just cover and walk away.  So I cook big batches of rice.  Use what I need that night and once cooled, I portion out the rest of the pot into small zip top baggies.  Press flat and freeze.  These are SO HANDY to have ready to use.  Simply defrost in the fridge or even straight into the microwave.  As you can see, they take up very little space when pressed flat in the baggies.  The first time you use a convenient, ready-cooked bag you will realize you can never go back.  This is my #1 quick dinner tip!

The following recipe makes TWO meals.  If you just want to make one meal, cut everything in half.  Each meal serves 4 people.

Cheesy Chicken and Rice Freezer Meal (makes two meals)

Ingredients:
* 2-3 cups cooked chicken (or 2 raw breasts cut small)
* 4 cups cooked rice
* 2 onions, sliced
* 1 tbls butter
* EVOO
* 2 bags frozen veggies (I used mixed but plain broccoli is great too)
* 2 cups shredded cheese
* 1/4 cup milk
* 3 tbls cornstarch
* 2 tsp salt

Directions:
* In a pan, saute onion in butter and EVOO until translucent.
* In another small pan, whisk together milk and cornstarch as temperature comes up to medium.  Add cheese and whisk together until smooth.  Remove from heat.  As it cools it will get very thick.
* On the outside of two zip top freezer bags, label the name of the meal and cooking instructions.  Very important to do this before you fill up the bag.
* Open bags and flip down top to keep clean.  Place bags in bowls to keep upright.
* In each bag, place half of each ingredient.  So each bag gets 1-1.5 cups cooked chicken (or one breast cubed), 2 cups cooked rice, 1 sauteed onion, 1 bag frozen veggies of choice, 1/2 of the cheese mixture and 1 tsp salt.
* Remove as much air as possible when zipping bag closed.  Press flat.  Freeze for later use.
* When ready to use, defrost in fridge over night.  Dump bag into baking dish and mix up a bit more with a spoon.
* Bake at 350 for 30-45 mins (on the shorter end if using pre-cooked chicken- longer if using raw chicken).
* Serve with a salad and enjoy!


So there you have it!  We just completed a series of SIX meals over the course of five days.  Did anyone try these recipes?  Do you also prepare once and use multiple times like we did with the chicken and onions this week?

Dinner #4: Sweet And Sour Chicken Freezer Meal

Freezer meals are the hottest blog topic these days.  And I am all about it!  They are just so smart.  Make meals when you have time.  And they are ready to go when you need them.

Today we are making sweet and sour chicken.  I used more of the shredded chicken that I made on Monday but you can certainly just cut up raw chicken.  You will just need to cook it longer.  I also used more of the onions from Tuesday.  So this meal came together in just a few minutes. If you are making it to eat the same night, there is no need to place it in a zip top baggie of course. 

Be sure to write on the bag what you have inside and any instructions BEFORE you fill up the bag.  I plan to serve this over rice but it would also be yummy over egg or rice noodles.  By now y'all know that I keep portions of cooked brown rice in my freezer at all times.

Sweet and Sour Chicken Freezer Meal

Ingredients:
* 2 cups shredded cooked chicken or chopped raw chicken
* 1 large green pepper, chopped
* 1 small onion, chopped
* 1 cup salsa
* 1 can chunk pineapple with juice
* pinch of salt

Directions:
* Chop veggies and if necessary, chicken.
* Dump all ingredients into a zip top freezer bag.  Freeze flat.
* Thaw the night before using.
* Dump thawed bag into crockpot.  If using cooked chicken, cook in crockpot for 2-4 hours on low.  If using raw chicken, cook in crockpot 4 hour on high or 8 hours on low.
* Serve over rice or noodles.

$5 Science Diet Coupon

Click to register, if you have not already, to snag a $5 off ANY Science Diet pet food coupon. 

Dinner #3: Crockpot BBQ Pork Ribs

This is yet another easy peasy meal.  Sooo filling and yummy and just a great summer staple.  Be sure to pick up the BOGO boneless pork ribs at Price Chopper this week so can you make this too.  I actually plan to pick up two more packs to keep in the freezer for later use.  This is the season for BBQ sauces to go on sale so be sure to stock up when they hit rock bottom prices.  Notice we are again using the onions we chopped the other day.  I love love love to use my time efficiently like that!    This meal easily feeds 4-6 people. 

Crockpot BBQ Pork Ribs

Ingredients:
* 2 packs of pork ribs (I used boneless)
* 1 small onion, sliced
* 1/2 bottle BBQ sauce (purchased on sale a while ago)
* 1 tbls grainy mustard (optional)
* 1/2 tsp salt

Directions:
* Dump everything into the crockpot.  Cook high for four hours or low for 6-8 hours.
* Serve with baked potato (clean, prick with fork and microwave covered for 5-8 mins depending on size) and salad (I love the Dole salad kits).

Seriously...it cannot get any easier than this.  And the best part is that when you use a crockpot in the summer, it doesn't heat up your whole house like an oven.  Use any leftovers to make pulled pork sandwiches (pull apart the meat and add the rest of the BBQ sauce in the bottle- serve hot or cold).

Bounty Coupons

Are y'all registered on Vocalpoint?  If not, go register.  It's fast and easy.  If so, hop on to snag Bounty paper towel coupons!  I find that these are better coupons typically than those found elsewhere.  And the best part is that they mail them to you.  No need to waste ink and paper. 

FREE Sample of Flavored Agave

Request a free sample of Wholesome Sweeteners flavored agave.

BOGO Chiquita Bites Coupon

Chiquita is offering a BOGO coupon for Chiquita Bits on their Facebook page.  I've never tried these but they look like a yummy summer treat.

Shopping At Price Chopper Round 1

This week will be a two shop week for me at Price Chopper.  This trip at the start of the week and another one to take advantage of the special sales on the 25th.  This wasn't an inexpensive shopping trip but I got a lot of protein and produce.  I am working on stocking up on ready to go freezer meals.  Some I will show you this week and a few more next week.  I'm excited to share ideas to save everyone time, energy and money but still put yummy and healthy meals on your family table.

Purchased...

* 2 Boneless pork ribs  sale BOGO Free- so 2 for $6.59
~ saved 50%

* Boneless, skinless chicken breasts @1.99 lb

* Strawberries  reg. $2.99
- $1/1 strawberries Hannaford coupon
= OOP $1.99
~ saved 33%

* Iceberg Lettuce  sale $1

* 3 Russet potatoes  @$1.49 lb

* 1 Green bell pepper  @$2.49 lb

* Dole Asian salad mix  reg. $3.99, sale $2.99

* Clorox Wipes***  reg. $2.99, sale $2
- $0.50/1 coupon
= OOP $1
~ saved 67%

* Clorox bleach  reg. $2.49
- Free with PC machine coupon
= OOP Free
~ saved 100%

* Price Chopper soy sauce  reg. $1.50

* Price Chopper peach/pineapple salsa  reg. $2.29. sale $2

* Ocean Spray Cran Raspberry Juice and Ocean Spray Cherry Juice  reg. 3.29/ea, sale $2.50/ea
- Free OS Cherry when you buy OS any cranberry juice
= OOP $2.50/2 or $1.25/ea
~ saved 62%

* Price Chopper paper towel  reg. $1.50
- Free catalina found two weeks ago
= OOP Free!
~ saved 100% just by looking down

* Price Chopper chunk pineapple  reg. $1.39

* Sun Lock Bamboo shoots  reg. $1.69

* Glad Zip Freezer Bag  reg. $3.89, sale $2.50
~ saved 36% without coupons

* (4) Milky Way candy bar  reg. $0.99, sale $0.79
- (2) $0.75/2 Milky Way coupon
= OOP $0.16/4 or just $0.04/ea!
~ saved 96%

* (3) Lays Chips  reg. $4.29, sale $3.29
- (1) 3/$6 in ad coupon
= OOP $6/3 or $2/ea
~ saved 54% and stocked up

Total value purchased ... $77.41

Paid out of pocket ... $41.74

Percentage saved ... 46%

In reality, I might not normally buy all of these things this week.  However, my goal is to purchase the majority of the items needed to make my five big dinner recipes this week.  So I purchased items like the pineapple at full price even though I have a can in the pantry. 


*** OK you can't do what I did because I did this wrong.  I think.  I could not figure out the PC machine coupon.  I said something about a 20 pack of Clorox.  I asked an employee, after I went up and down that aisle three full times, if they meant these wipes and they said sure, but I could tell he didn't really know either.  I asked the cashier and since no beeps happened, we both assumed yes.  But after doing some online searching, I think the coupon intended for the bleach to be free after the purchase of a 20 pack of Clorox laundry tabs.  So this was an honest mistake but a mistake nonetheless.  I think.

Dinner #2: Lettuce Wraps

As we continue on the road to happy tummies, our next stop is lettuce wraps.  Ala PF Chang's.  This was another quick, easy and yummy meal.  And so flexible because you can add in a variety of ingredients based on what you have around the house.  For example, next time I will add rice.  But I completely forgot this time- ha.  You could also add extra veggies.  I added a few extra tablespoons of broccoli and black beans (jumping an ocean, I know!) from last night because I needed to use them up.  You can add peanuts or   So flexible!  This is another gluten and dairy free dish than can easily be vegan too.

Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients:
* 1 1/2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
* 1 cup cooked rice
* 1 small onion + 3 small onions (4 total)
* 1 can bamboo shoots, drained
* 2 tbls soy sauce, plus more for dipping
* 1 tsp ground ginger
* 1 garlic clove, minced
* leftover veggies if you have them, chopped
* EVOO
* a few tbls water
* 1 head Ice Berg lettuce

Directions: 
* Finely chop 1 onion.  Slice other three onions and store in tight closing container (to make sure your fridge doesn't stink) for use later this week.  Tip number two in the game of do something once and benefit many times over game.
* Saute the finely chopped onion in a little EVOO until translucent.  
* Once onion is cooked, add bamboo shoots, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, any extra veggies, and chicken from last night.
* Add rice and if needed, a few tbls water (or more soy- to taste).
* Peel outer layer or two of ice berg lettuce (note this was my very first time ever to buy ice berg- not a personal favorite outside of lettuce wraps).  Cut out core and slice in half.  Give each person several large lettuce pieces to use as wraps.
* Serve with a little soy sauce (add hot sauce or ginger if so desired) and enjoy!