The Real Shopping Cart 2025-01-23

Image description: blue stoneware bowl full of stew, with a fork stuck in. Ingredients below.

HIGHLIGHTED MEAL OF THE WEEK

Tex Mex Beef Stew

INGREDIENTS

bacon

beef broth

homemade chipotle sauce (chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce, mayonnaise, cilantro, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, cumin)

frozen corn kernels

feta cheese

homemade gravy spice blend (flour, garlic powder, onion powder)

green bell peppers

lean ground beef

lime

lactose free sour cream

homemade Tex Mex paste (tomato paste, homemade Mexican spice blend (chili powder, cumin, Kosher salt, black pepper, fake smoked paprika blend (garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, chili powder), red pepper flakes, ground oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper), lime juice)

tomato paste

yellow onion

COST

$8.87 for two; $4.44 for one.

BLOOD SUGAR LEVEL

I test my blood sugar levels only for new meals in my 3-month A1C testing period. This recipe is one we’ve had many times before and is typically around 6.0 or less, so I didn’t need to test it this time around.

DISCUSSION

Nothing like a good bowl of flavourful stew on a cold winter’s night to satisfy the tummy. This one is really tasty. You will notice that it includes a lot of homemade spice blends and sauces. The addition of spices and sauces is something we learned from meal kit services. It turns a meal from bland to full of flavour. We make the sauces and spice blends ahead of time. We portion sauces into individual servings and freeze them for use as needed. A little lime juice and zest also really adds delight to this dish. Because I wasn’t testing this time around, we had tequila too! I don’t drink if I want to measure my blood sugar levels, because alcohol lowers the blood sugar level.

This Week’s Cart

Stores considered this week were Metro.ca, Massine’s, Isabella Loblaws, Kowloon and Farm Boy, which are within walking distance, and Walmart, Real Canadian Superstore, Metro Rideau. Rideau Loblaws and Food Basics, which are accessible to us by public transit.

If we could get the cheapest price at all the stores, the total amount would be $126.18.

By combining delivery from Walmart, and the Real Canadian Superstore, plus a few strolls to local stores, Charles has obtained a price of $128.72 for this week’s shopping list, only a fraction of a percent higher than the cheapest price if we could shop all the stores.

In this week’s chart each store on its own will cost a shopper anywhere from eight to twenty-eight percent more or an extra $38.47. Any store that provided less than twenty-eight of the thirty-two items we were looking for was disqualified.

I wish you nutritious, delicious and affordable meals, lingering conversations with loved ones, joy and whimsy.

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