May: Meal Plan on a Budget
According to Canada’s Food Price Report for 2026, a family of 4 will spend $17,571.79 on groceries this year — that’s up $994.63 from 2025!
That’s $1464.32 a month.
That’s roughly $366 a week.
NEW CHALLENGE!!!
Let’s feed me, my husband, our 17 year old and our 13 year old for about HALF that and make a week long menu plan for under $183!
Ninja and I keep a running tab of all our grocery expenditures. This is our spending for April!
We spent $712.97 and used $40.00 in points, leaving our monthly spending at $672.97, clearly keeping to our budget and actually came in $59.03 under for the month, and we were under budget by $180.10 for the year!
Here is the May weekly meal plan staying close to my budget of $183! I want you to have all the tools to be able to feed your family 7 healthy(ish) meals, while not putting yourself into the poorhouse! I hope you enjoy and please let me know if you follow this weekly plan and if you were able to stick to the budget! Click on the recipe listed in the MENU below and it will take you directly to the recipe!!
MENU
Sunday: Chicken Fajita Mac and Cheese
Monday: Breakfast Enchiladas
Tuesday: Mexican Hot Dogs
Wednesday: Pappardelle Pork Dan Dan Noodles
Thursday: Sheet Pan Quesadillas
Friday: Dill Pickle Pizza
Saturday: Taco Rice Bowl
Staple Items
These items are ALWAYS in my pantry or fridge. This tip bares repeating… As soon as I see an item running out it goes on the my shopping list. If they come up on my PC Points list or go on sale, I buy them. We have a second fridge in the garage, so I always have eggs, mayo, soy sauce, etc. on hand. It may take you a while and some money to get this system going but once you do… your wallet will thank you. Things I need for this week’s menu that I already have in my kitchen (my staple items) are listed below on the left. The items that I need to buy are listed on the right.
SHOPPING LIST:
STAPLE ITEMS:
12 oz pasta
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
pinch of cayenne
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 packet taco seasoning
salt and pepper, to taste
1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons sesame oil
1–2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 cans black beans
1 can Rotel
2 cans corn
1 can diced green chiles
½ onion
1 shallot
3 dill pickles
10 cloves garlic
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoon sour cream
7 tablespoons butter
3 cups cheddar cheese
2 cups mozzarella
1/3 cup Parmesan
1 lb sausage
6 eggs
4 slices of bacon
4 jumbo hot dogs
1 lb ground beef
½ cup salsa
2 cups basmati rice, cooked
NEED TO BUY ITEMS:
1 rotisserie chicken
1 red onion
4 bell peppers (various colours)
8 flour tortillas
2 cups half-and-half
3 oz package Real Bacon Bits
1-3 jalapeño peppers
4 hot dog buns
8 ounces pappardelle noodles
2 cups baby spinach
1/2 lb ground pork
2 cups mixed mushrooms
4 green onions
1/4 cup cilantro
8 large flour tortillas, burrito-size
1 cup heavy cream
1 lb pizza dough
1 cup tomatoes
1 cup lettuce
5 1/2 cups Mexican cheese
Garnish: cilantro, dill chopped, pico de gallo, shredded cheese, hot sauce, sour cream
SUNDAY: Chicken Fajita Mac and Cheese
This month we had lots of Mexican/Canadian foods. These are foods that use Mexican flavours and ingredients but cannot in any way be considered traditional Mexican dishes lol. Mexican food uses bright, fresh, colourful ingredients and with Cinco de Mayo, and spring vibes, May is just my favourite month for Mexican inspired dinners. This was an easy and yummy dish that is perfect for a weeknight dinner.
Chicken Fajita Mac and Cheese
4-6
servings5
minutes30
minutesIngredients
12 oz pasta
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon pepper
pinch of cayenne
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
3 bell peppers (various colours), thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can diced green chiles, drained
3/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups Mexican cheese, shredded
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and grease a baking dish.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the directions on the box, until just al dente. Drain and set aside.
Combine the cumin, chile powder, salt, paprika, black pepper, and cayenne in a small bowl. Toss the shredded chicken in the mixture. Set aside.
Melt butter over medium heat in a skillet, add, onions and pepper, and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and green chiles and cook an additional minute.
In a large bowl, mix together the pasta, chicken, sautéed vegetables, sour cream, and all but 1/2 cup of the cheese. Mix well, season with salt and pepper, and spread into the prepared baking dish.
Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese over the top, place in preheated oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly.
MONDAY: Breakfast Enchiladas
This was another NON traditional Mexican breakfast/dinner that I added to the weekly menu, that we loved! Because Ninja does the majority, if not all, the cooking now, I need to make a menu that works for him. He works HARD all day and then comes home and makes dinner, while filming it all for the reels that I make. The big problem is, he nor I, nor the Kids LIKE easy weeknight dinners using processed ingredients. On that note, I thought the bacon bits would be easier than cooking the bacon. It was but we would have preferred cooked bacon. Also, I had bacon in another recipe this week, so I had to freeze the rest anyways. This was a yummy dish that was fast to prepare, you could even prepare the dish the night before and cover and put into the fridge and then slip into the oven after work/school and then just bake for an hour while you get other stuff done.
Breakfast Enchiladas
4
servings15
minutes60
minutesIngredients
1 lb sausage
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
8 small flour tortillas
6 eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 oz package Real Bacon Bits
Directions
In a skillet, brown the ground sausage. Set aside.
Grease a 13×9 baking dish.
In a large bowl stir together browned sausage, 1 cup cheese and 1/2 of the package of bacon bits.
Place a 1/8 of the mixture down the centre of a tortilla. Roll up and place seem side down in baking dish. Repeat until all tortillas are filled.
In another large bowl beat eggs, half and half, flour and salt. Pour over the tortillas in the pan. You can cover the dish and place in the fridge overnight or bake immediately.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Uncover dish and sprinkle remaining 1 cup of cheese over tortillas. Sprinkle the rest of the bacon bits over cheese. Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover dish and bake 10-15 minutes longer or until set and cheese is melted.
TUESDAY: Mexican Hot Dogs
What exactly makes these Mexican you ask? Pico de Gallo of course lol. We love hotdogs. I am always trying to find new ways to make hotdogs, even though our favourite still is a BBQ hotdog with ketchup and mustard, a little relish and chopped onions. BUT, these were really good too, I mean can you go wrong with bacon wrapped hotdogs? Nope!
Mexican Hot Dogs
4
servings5
minutes25
minutesIngredients
4 slices of bacon
4 jumbo hot dogs
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ onion, sliced
½ red bell pepper, sliced
1-2 jalapeño peppers, sliced
4 hot dog buns
Garnish: pico de gallo, Mexican cheese, shredded, hot sauce, sour cream
Directions
Wrap each hot dog with a slice of bacon.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the hot dogs. Cook for 5-6 minutes, turning until the bacon is crispy and browned. Transfer the hot dogs to a plate.
If needed, add olive oil to the skillet. Sauté the onions and peppers in the remaining bacon grease with a sprinkle of salt until softened and browned.
Return the hot dogs to the skillet with the sautéed vegetables, cooking for a couple of minutes until heated through.
Place the hot dogs into buns and top with the sautéed peppers and onions.
Garnish with pico de gallo, a drizzle of hot sauce, sour cream, and a sprinkle of cheese.
WEDNESDAY: Pappardelle Pork Dan Dan Noodles
A local restaurant, Kin & Folk make a dish, a pappardelle dish with ground pork. Dan Dan Noodles. We LOVE it. When we go there for dinner, we bring an extra order of it home for the Kids, for lunch the next day or sometimes for a late night snack. I thought, I wonder if we could make that? Spoiler alert… we can and we did! This is almost EXACTLY like our favourite take out dish! We even sent a bowl down to my Dad and he was blown away by how good this was and how similar it is to their Dan Dan Noodles! It was super easy and SO good. Now we will have to find a new favourite dish, I’m sure it won’t be hard.
Pappardelle Pork Dan Dan Noodles
4
servings10
minutes30
minutesIngredients
1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons sesame oil
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1–2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons peanut butter
1 package papperdelle noodles
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 cups spinach
1/2 lb ground pork
2 cups cremini mushrooms, chopped
salt & pepper, to taste
1 shallot, chopped
4 green onions, chopped
Directions
In a large pan, heat 1/3 cup of sesame oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, sauté until fragrant.
Add the ground pork to the pan, cooking until browned. Season with pepper.
Stir in the shallot and mushrooms, cooking until mushrooms are softened.
In a bowl, mix together soy sauce, hoisin sauce, honey, rice vinegar, and peanut butter until smooth. Pour this mixture into the pan.
Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Stir in the noodles and cook according to package instructions until al dente.
Finally, add the chopped spinach and green onions, stirring until spinach is wilted. Adjust seasoning as needed.
THURSDAY: Sheet Pan Quesadillas
Another local restaurant staple for me are the quesadillas from The Black Antler, they are crispy and stuffed! I had no idea these would taste exactly like them, but they did! These were so easy and that’s a major plus because we hate flipping tortillas!!! The stuff falls out and you can’t STUFF them. With these, you can and dannnnng are they good!
Sheet Pan Quesadillas
4-6
servings20
minutes45
minutesIngredients
2 cups rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can Rotel
1 can corn, drained
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons butter, melted
8 flour tortillas, burrito-size
3-4 cups Mexican blend cheese, shredded
Directions
Set your oven to 375°F.
In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken, black beans, corn, Rotel, cilantro, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.
Brush a large baking sheet generously with melted butter. Arrange the tortillas around the edges of the pan so that half of each tortilla hangs over the sides. Place one tortilla in the centre to cover any gaps.
Sprinkle half of the cheese evenly over the tortillas. Spread the chicken mixture on top, then layer with the remaining cheese.
Place one tortilla in the middle over the filling and brush it lightly with melted butter. Fold the overhanging tortillas inward over the filling, overlapping them to completely cover. Brush the folded tortillas with more melted butter to help them brown.
Place another sheet pan directly on top of the quesadillas to press them down and bake for 35-55 minutes, or until golden brown and the cheese is fully melted.
Remove the quesadillas from the oven, slice into squares and garnish with salsa, sour cream, and chopped cilantro.
FRIDAY: Dill Pickle Pizza
Last month we had a sweet chili chicken pizza on the menu for me so this month I picked something for the Kids. I thought Ninja would like it because, pickles, but unfortunately he doesn’t like a white base pizza like the rest of us. Funny, I loved the sauce but not the pickles lol. We made a second cheese pizza and this was a fun Friday night dinner.
Dill Pickle Pizza
4
servings15
minutes15
minutesIngredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
salt & pepper, to taste
1 lb pizza dough
3 dill pickles, thinly sliced
2 cups mozzarella, grated
1/3 cup Parmesan, finely grated
Garnish: Fresh dill chopped, Red pepper flakes and/or hot sauce
Directions
Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the garlic and cook for one minute.
Add in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes. Slowly pour in the heavy cream. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened.
Remove from the heat and stir in the sour cream and onion powder. Season to taste with salt & pepper. Set aside to cool slightly.
Heat the oven to 450 degrees. If using a pizza stone, place it in the oven.
Roll out the the pizza dough to form whatever shape and thickness you desire.
Spread the sauce evenly over the dough. Top with some of the pickle slices. Evenly top with the mozzarella and the Parmesan cheese. Add another layer of pickles.
Bake the pizza for 10-15 minutes.
SATURDAY: Taco Rice Bowl
This was another dish using Mexican ingredients. This is exactly how I order my taco bowl at the local Mexican take out place. You can customize it how you like your bowl by adding your favourite Mexican ingredients. This was fresh, easy and delicious. Also, by sticking to Mexican foods this week, I used similar ingredients, different ways a GREAT way to save money at the grocery store.
Taco Rice Bowl
4
servings15
minutes15
minutesIngredients
2 tablespoons oil
1 lb ground beef
1/4 cup water
1 packet taco seasoning
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained and rinsed
1 cup tomatoes, diced
1 cup lettuce, shredded
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
½ cup salsa, separated
salt and pepper, to taste
2 cups basmati rice, cooked
Garnish: cilantro
Directions
Add oil to a skillet and heat. Add beef, black beans, corn, water and taco seasoning to skillet and cook until beef is cooked through.
Spoon a base of cooked rice into each bowl. Add beef/bean/corn mixture on the side. Pile on lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, and cheese. Finish with a squeeze of lime and a sprinkle of cilantro.
Thank you to Miz Helen’s Country Cottage for featuring my April Reads & Cauliflower Salads post at their Full Plate Thursday Link Party last week.
It is the week before my infusion and It was a BUSY week. SBean performed with her concert band (alto sax, flute and trombone) at the Cleland for Movie Score Night, HBear drove to the Kamloops Residential School with her class on Red Dress Day, SBean waited for 2 hours for a dirty soda on Peach City Dirty Soda’s opening day, and I went for a walk in nature and saw my first yellow butterfly of the season (hi Mom 💛).
HBear performed with her jazz band at the Frog City Café, we planted our balcony garden, and SBean performed at the Kiwanis highlights Gala with her YPAG and got the pictures back from their wind up dinner last Sunday. This weekend SBean had a gymnastics competition where she had a lot of fun but didn’t do as well as usual after having the last three weeks off with a sprained finger. We ended the weekend with brunch at Elmas celebrating Mother’s Day and my FIL’s 81st birthday, which was on Tuesday. Last, but not least, a visit with Mom.
