Refrigerator and Pantry

There is just me and my husband, and I am on a frugal budget, I try to spend between $350-$400 (ETA per MONTH), I eat basically seasonal, local if possible, organic if possible, hardly any processed foods. My total includes all food: groceries, dining out, vitamins/supplements, gardening and entertaining.

I joined a group called Project Food Budget, and we blog every week. If you'd like to join, google it and you'll find Emily's blog.

500 DOLLARS A MONTH FOR TWO!?

** faints**

500 DOLLARS A MONTH FOR TWO!?

That doesn't seem so outrageous to me. Buying fresh/organic is generally more expensive. But now I'm curious as to what you

Actually, if you buy in season, it's not that expensive to buy organic natural healthy food. If you are buying tomatoes from Florida or Mexico in the cooler months, then you are going to be paying more.

Same with apples, peaches, grapes, etc.

It doesn't have to cost a fortune to eat healthy

Last time I went (I do one massive trip every 4-6 weeks) I spent $360 all at once, ouch. But it will last me for 5-6 weeks if not longer with protein in the freezer leftover and some staples that just dont go bad for a very long time, TP, paper towels that kind of stuff ..and an old grumpy cat that only eats canned food. Throw in another 40 (more or less) for fresh bananas, milk, possibly eggs, and a few random veggies that dont last longer than 3 weeks or so in fridge thats not so bad.

Comes to $66 a week if I make it the whole 6 weeks before doing another trip ...to feed me and the cat - and this past time I did stock up a lot on 'extras' that will make the next trip much cheaper, probably just more cat food lol, protein, cheese, and fresh veggies/fruit(and cumin I am so sad I ran out of cumin!!). I'm anticipating next trip will be only around $200 or less to restock the pantry/fridge/freezer.

I probably spend roughly $300 on groceries per month. I do my shopping mainly at Giant, but I sometimes drive a little further to Wegman's.

Main staples...

Boneless skinless chicken breast (Sigh. I even spend extra on the individually wrapped ones since it's just me.)
Baby carrots
Roasted red pepper hummus
Plain Greek yogurt
Grape tomatoes
Sweet potatoes (Always have them on hand, only make them if cooking dinner for others.)
Baby spinach
Usually at least two of the following kinds of berries...blue, black, straw, or rasp. Haha.
Bananas
Natural peanut butter
Sugar free popsicles
Cream-cheese
Bagel thins or some type of fiber bread
String cheese
Both regular eggs and a small carton of liquid egg whites
Almond/Coconut milk
And about a million different seasonings.

If I splurge, it's on diet ice cream or fresh corn on the cob. Or fresh fish, my favorite is salmon.

Oh yeah. And I have a lot of frozen broccoli. And frozen corn...that was for Thanksgiving...I obviously eat corn a lot.

At any given time, our refrigerator and pantry look something like this (for the two of us):

Eggs and Dairy:
Dozen or fewer eggs, usually about half of which are hard boiled
Pint or a quart of 2% milk (mostly for cooking)
0-2 cartons of almond or light Silk or light Publix soy milk (usually in vanilla or chocolate or both flavors) (I used to drink more regular milk, but find my system is happier when I drink the "fake" nut milks and I get burned out on it, so I buy it in spurts)
1-4 blocks of Publix cheese (mozzarella, extra sharp cheddar, etc. We buy these on sale and then I shred them in the food processor as they are needed over time)
Breyer's ice cream
Laughing Cow Light cheese wedges

Produce:
Produce for us varies widely, based on trips to the local farmer's markets and what's in season at the grocery store. (local tomatoes, mushrooms, potatoes, spinach, berries, apples, Asian pears, peaches--Did you know that SC produces more peaches than Ga?-- and plums, etc. Asparagus, green beans, cucumbers, squash, and zucchini show up often as well. We buy local when possible and when $$ is reasonable (even if it is a few cents more). We only buy organic when the price is comparable or cheaper and when the quality is noticeably better. Most of the time, we do not intentionally seek out organic produce.
We almost always have a couple sweet onions on hand though, so those are one of the few constants.
We also buy frozen veggies when they go on sale at the grocery store. I like the green giant healthy weight medley (beans, sugar snap peas, carrots, edamame, etc) for example. Sometimes they go with dinner, sometimes they go with me to work for lunch.
And we almost always have a big bag of frozen Asian stir fry veggies from Sam's club on hand as well.
Lemon juice
Lime Juice

Meat, Poultry, and Fish:
We always have a big bag of frozen chicken breasts in the freezer (which we defrost 2 at a time unless we plan on having company over, From Sam's club)
Individually wrapped frozen tilapia or mahi mahi (from Sam's club)
Up to 2 long links of turkey sausage (brand and flavoring may vary)
We pick up red meat and scrimp from grocery about once a week based on sales. (The local farmer's markets carry local meats, including grass feed beef and local caught shrimp, but we don't feel that their prices are very affordable.)
Other meats vary (and may include turkey tenderloins or even lamb).
Pig only makes an appearance in the form of BBQ pulled pork left overs from a local restaurant.

Wheats and Grains:
Batsamati rice (big bag from Sam's club, that we use to refill the glass jar on the countertop. This is probably our longest lasting pantry staple.)
Angel hair pasta
Bowtie pasta
Bread varies, and is more common when the farmer's markets are open (although we sometimes buy wheat bread from the grocery store too). A local bakery makes a really great (no preservative "marathon" bread (among others) that is awesome for toast. Unfortunately, it's also a bit pricey ($6-7 a loaf, as compared the the $1-2 wheat bread from the grocery store) so we don't get it every week. We also have a good New York style bagel joint in town as well, so if we have company over, a bag of assorted bagels can appear like magic.
Totillas are around about 50% of the time, and are usually present when bread is absent.
Locally stone ground grits, and local heirloom Carolina Gold rice are on hand at the present; both staples are from the local farmer's markets, but are not always on hand due to price (about $7 for a pound of rice). The much more cost conscious bulk batsamati is our usual go-to rice.
In the summer and fall, a different, fresh made then frozen, pasta (gnochi, raviolis, veggie lasagna, and noodles) tends to come home with us from the farmer's market each week. Rarely a sauce or flavored butter tag along. This is usually our "... I don't want to cook tonight, but we promised we weren't eating out until Xday" back up plan.

Chips, crackers, pretzels and cereal used to be more common, but have been greatly reduced. At present, we don't have any and haven't for a number of weeks.

Canned and Jarred Goods:
Chunk tuna cans (in bulk from Sam's club)
Up to 4 Jars of Pasta Sauce (based on grocery store sales)
Up to 4 cans of diced tomatoes
Up to 4 cans black and or Kidney beans
Up to 4 cans of white corn
Up to 2 jars of peanut butter
At least 1 local jam, jelly, butter, chow-chow or chutney from the market. In the summer, this can balloon up to 3 or 4.
Pickles (sizes and flavors vary and may include sweet, garlic, spicy and dill, ranging from small snack packs to large gallon jars), pickled okra is also common
A least 1 jar of local, hot pickled garlic cloves

Sauces and Condiments:
Publix Hummus
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (large gallon from Sam's Club, which is used to refill a small condiment bottle)
Soy Sauce (large gallon from Sam's Club, which is used to refill a small condiment bottle)
Minced garlic
Various spices and herbs, and seasoning packages (including Old Bay, and lemon pepper)
Worshershire sauce
Spicy brown mustard
Hot sauce(s)
Marinades

Beverages:
Tap, filtered water
Various loose and bagged tea

We try to keep soda and juice out of the line up, but sometimes they sneak in. V8 is the most common juice, while Cheerwine and green tea ginger ala are the most common sodas to infiltrate our defenses.
No coffee.
Alcohol is rare, and typically only purchased when company is expected.
Sweet tea appears more when we have company, and is mostly homemade.

Total average grocery bill--- This is something we need to track better. Check out totals at the grocery store range from about $20 to $150 and we go 1-2 times a week. The higher bills tend to be when lots of frozen or pantry goods are on sale and we are running low.
Sam's Club bill bounces around in the neighborhood of $60-$140, and always include frozen meats, but can also include shampoos, body washes, deodorant, feminine hygiene items, razors, blue jeans, dish washer packets, and generic pain killer. Trips vary from 2 weeks to about 6 weeks apart, based on needs.
Farmer's market bills range from $15-$60 per week, largely based on what is in season. If we are getting bread, jar/canned goods, more than 1 pasta (which we do if we know we'll miss a week or two of markets due to traveling), or are purchasing extra for a gift, then we'll hit the higher end of that range. When it's just us and nothing special, we tend to be closer to the $20-30 mark. Our market also includes arts and craft vendors, and sometimes we grab an early lunch from a hot food vendor, both of which can put us towards the top of that weekly range as well.

When the markets are in swing, we tend to shop as follows:
Saturday morning farmers market with the goal of fresh, seasonal, local produce, and a few "treats" (like preserves, pasta, bread etc)
Sunday morning/afternoon Sam's club if frozen meat staples or personal products are running low
Sunday afternoon/evening to grocery store with rough meal plan based on current sale flyer and farmer's market goods
Tuesday/ Wednesday option second grocery store trip based on new sales flyer