Hi All,

The other thread was getting a bit long, so it's time to start a new thread, don't you all agree? Please say yes. The Queen tend to be a bit touchy about people disagreeing with her!

I did my belated quarterly stock up, at Costco, yesterday. Stocked up on mostly household items (paper towels, T.P., laundry detergent, etc.), but also bought coffee, butter, a big bottle of "Green Machine" drink that DD requested and some bottled, flavored water for her, 2 tins of the special chocolate covered cookies that DD has been longing for since last Christmas, Worchestershire sauce, and a couple of party supply items. Oh, and I renewed my Costco membership, which was due for renewal this month (made sure to renew it before the fee increase on Nov. 1!)

Spent just under $200 ($50 of which was membership renewal). Haven't had time to separate out the groceries from the household items and the party supplies (different budgets).

Chicken sandwiches (from the roast chicken) for lunch, yesterday; Polish sausage fried rice for dinner.

Leftover fried rice for lunch, today.

I will probably warm up some of the roast chicken for dinner, with a medley of sauted vegetables - a mixture of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and the last potato. Hopefully, there will be enough leftover for lunches, tomorrow (perhaps mixed with some pasta).

Please post and share how you organize your meal planning and grocery shopping. Looking forward to seeing what everyone is planning for meals this week.

The Queen is on her way to the parlour, to eat her bread and honey.

Bless, is that the mint chocolate covered cookies????

Chef, no, it's an assortment of chocolate covered cookies, called European Cookies with Belgian Chocolate (Kirkland brand). She had some at a friend's house, last year and has decided that they are her favorite type of cookies. I think Costco carries them only around this time of year, so, I bought 2 boxes. I've been told that I am NOT to offer any to any guests/visitors!

Any ideas what to do with butternut squash? I love it just not sure how to prepare it? I bought some at Costco today.

I should send an update after all my shopping in the last few days.

Tina, Cut it in half. Be careful, use a big sharp knife. Scoop out the seeds. Put in a roasting pan with some water in the bottom (maybe 1-2"), season with salt & pepper and roast about 400 degrees for at least 30 min, maybe more. You're looking for it to be tender to a fork. The last 15 min, add some brown sugar to the top of it.

I do it one of two ways besides what Kimberly does.

Clean out the seeds, prick the inside with a fork and fill the hollow with water then microwave time wise like a baked potato.

Either that or parboil then finish in the oven....and definitely brown suger and butter.....or butter, parmesan and salt and pepper.

Did the weekly grocery shopping this weekend and bought:
- bread,
- milk,
- chicken (whole chicken on sale again for $.69/lb; bought 3),
- pork chops (not necessarily on sale at $2.99/lb, but I felt like a change from the chicken),
- fruits (bananas, strawberries, peaches, persimmons, 2 kinds of grapes)
- vegetables (green beans, cabbage, cucumber)
- snacks,
- frozen gyozas (pot stickers; 1 box chicken, 1 box pork)
- a packet of assorted chicken/turkey cold cuts (for lunch sandwiches)
- and a packet (24 oz) of bacon trimmings. At $2.99/24 oz., it was the only way I could still get bacon for under $2/lb; the next cheapest bacon I could find was the store brand for $2.99/12 oz! This is the first time I am buying the trimmings and I'll have to see how they are, but I think they'll be fine.

Have to sit down with my receipts and figure it all out (bought cat food and some non-food items as well).

Loving the sales lately......chicken-boneless/skinless for 98 cents a pound. Milk $1.99 a gallon. Watching sales and keeping costs as low as possible. Also picked up turkey and ham lunchmeats....1.5 pounds each for $3 a package....got 2 of each and put one in the freezer. SO and I are taking lunches to work most days, he takes as long as I make them....needless to say I am to keep costs down, otherwise he would do a $10 lunch a day versus an average cost of $1 when I put it together.

Did treat SO and I to a night out to the shrimp feast at Red Lobster. Nice part was I had a gift card that covered the meal and all but $3 of the tip.....talk about economical! And we both really enjoyed the meal too.

BL: Those are great sale prices!

Meals this week have been of the "throw something together" variety and not really planned!

Mon - I mixed leftover rice with the last of the roast chicken meat (froze the carcass to make soup, later) and a can of cream of celery soup; baked it for a bit and made a rice/chicken casserole for dinner; leftovers got packed for Tues. lunch

Tues - Scrambled eggs on multi-grain bread; persimmons for dessert

Wed - Lunch: last of the pork chops, sliced, with steamed cauliflower; grapes, apple
Dinner: Frozen Asian style pot stickers (gyoza); persimmons

Thurs - Gave DD the leftover gyoza for her lunch; I brought leftover spicy sauted garbanzo beans and croissants; grapes, apple
Dinner: Should cook something! I've some green beans and cucumber that must be used up before they spoil and a new bled of curry powder that a friend gave a sample for me to try - maybe make rice and vegetable curries. With leftovers for tomorrow's dinner.

Yummy, thanks for the suggestions ladies about the squash- I ended up freezing some of it so it wouldn't go bad.