Reader Food Diary: Brittany’s Food & Spend

This guest post is part of our Reader Diaries series.

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Hi! My friends call me Britt. I live in Pennsylvania and my family and I have been on a journey to eating mostly all whole foods for the past few years due to health concerns. Eating organic when we can, using whole-wheat flour in recipes, eliminating added sugar and processed foods from our diet has been a game changer for us. Now that we have just about mastered those items, we are currently incorporating full-fat and/or raw grass-fed dairy to the menu. Taking baby steps and finding great resources like “100 Days of Real Food” are some ways we were/are able to make the transition into eating more healthful real foods.

My Reader Diary submission was selected to be featured so here is a list of everything I ate and spent on food for an entire week!

Day 1

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, whole-wheat toast, 1 cup of coffee, water
Lunch: Chicken noodle & peas casserole, water
Snack: 1 cup of mixed fresh blueberries & strawberries, water

Dinner: Turkey & noodles, water

Groceries (Target): $11.78 

Day 2

Breakfast: Oatmeal with cinnamon, honey & raisins, water, 1 cup coffee

Lunch: Leftover turkey & noodles, water
Snack: Veggie tortilla chips (Lisa says these are a “treat” since they are deep fried!), water
Dinner: Grilled chicken & cheese sandwich with sweet potatoes, water

Groceries: $17.95

Day 3

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, banana, whole wheat toast, water
Lunch: Chicken fajita nachos (veggie tortilla chips – see above), water

Snack: Banana with homemade whipped cream
Dinner: Baked haddock with steamed cauliflower, water

Groceries: $53.43

Day 4

Breakfast: Egg & avocado sandwich from Panera, 2 cups of coffee, water 
Lunch: Banana, Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffin from 100 Days of Real Food, white cheddar cheese, veggie tortilla chips (see above), water
Snack: Blueberry smoothie (grass-fed whole milk yogurt)

Dinner: Pork roast & baked sweet potatoes

Breakfast Cost: $12.09

Day 5

Breakfast: Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffin from 100 Days of Real Food, 1 cup coffee
Lunch: Scrambled eggs, white cheddar cheese, veggie chips, water
Snack: Banana, water
Dinner: Baked chicken & peas with pureed sweet potatoes, water

Groceries: $8.05

Day 6

Breakfast: Whole-wheat pancakes with pure maple syrup on top, 1 cup coffee
Lunch: Chicken, peas & noodle casserole, water

Snack: Blueberry smoothie, water
Dinner: Scrambled eggs & sweet potatoes, water

Groceries: $47.65

Day 7

Breakfast: Wheat Chex cereal with diced bananas & milk, 1 cup coffee
Lunch: Chicken Goddess Salad from Panera Bread (without dressing), a slice of baguette, water
Snack: Sliced avocado, white cheddar cheese, whole-wheat crackers, water
Dinner: Chicken & carrot soup with homemade whole-wheat bread with butter on top, water

Lunch Cost: $10.59

Reader Diary: Final Thoughts

For the week, I spent $161.54 which included groceries for my family of four as well as a few meals out for myself.

Normally, we buy groceries during the weekend. However, this particular week was a little off due to our normal grocery store being out of certain food items and having to find those items elsewhere. Keeping track of what I ate was more challenging than I thought. I noticed that since I was logging what food(s) I was eating, I would choose the healthier food. Overall, I am glad I did it.