Ready to makeover your grocery budget in the new year? Take the 2021 Grocery Savings Challenges and start saving more.
With the new year inevitably comes new resolve. Lose weight, read more, hydrate, save money, live better. The change of the year brings with it a desire to do better, to take charge, to leave the past behind. Even for a little while.
After the dumpster fire of 2020, it’s hard to imagine that we will ever have control of our lives again, but that’s a lie.
While you can’t control everything, there are some things you can control, specifically, what you spend on food.
I realize that is a loaded statement. We don’t control what the grocery charges nor do we have any influence on what the store actually keeps in stock. The Great TP Shortage of 2020 taught us that.
But, there are things we can do to work the Good Cheap Eats System and save money on food so we can do bigger, better things with our money.
Want to save more on food costs in the new year?
If you’re looking for some key strategies to help you trim down in the new year, then this post is for you. I’m ready to enter 2021 with the Good Cheap Eats Grocery Savings Challenges!
Admittedly, last year’s challenges had a few fits and starts. No one expected a massive worldwide lockdown during Freezer Cooking month, but that’s okay. Life happens.
Members of the Good Cheap Eats Club and I have discussed topics and strategies to explore in the coming months, and we’re pretty excited to dig into this year’s line-up.
The 2021 Grocery Savings Challenges
Savvy readers will notice there’s a method to my madness. We’ll spend the first half of the year doing a deep dive into the Good Cheap Eats System. Then once summer is in full swing we’ll dig into some supporting money-saving strategies, like using the instant pot and the slow cooker, packing lunches, and souping things up.
- January – Shop the Kitchen Pantry Challenge
- February – Grocery Budget Makeover
- March – Meal Planning to Save Money
- April – Avoiding Food Waste
- May – Grocery Store Showdown
- June – Meal Prep Mastery
- July – Fill the Freezer
- August – Instant PotPalooza
- September – Brown Bagging It
- October – Crocktoberfest
- November – Spectacular Celebrations
- December – Soup’s On
I’d love for you to join us in this year’s challenges! It’s completely free, though I will share resources from time to time that I think will make your progress faster, easier, or better.
Here on the blog each month, I’ll be sharing recipes and tips that will help you get better at the step in the system that we’re currently working on.
Starting in January: Learn to shop the kitchen during our month long pantry challenge!
Sign up for my mailing list so you don’t miss a post or any bonus resources. When you sign up you’ll get immediate access to the Good Cheap Eats Resource Library, including printables and worksheets to help you with each of the challenges.
You’ll also be subscribed to an email sequence that will teach you all the steps in the system, so you’ll be raring to go and ready to save more money on groceries as each month passes.
Erin says
Count me in!! I’m not exactly sure what my plan is going to be, but I know part of it will be to use up what I have in the deep freeze since we’ll be getting a side of beef the beginning of March. I’m slowly starting to see some white space in my freezer now since I did a freezer inventory the beginning of Dec and tried to plan means around that. I need to go thru the pantry and do an inventory, it’s overflowing right now!!
Jessica Fisher says
Mine is, too. I’m a little scared to share, but the picture will be coming…
Cate says
Yay! I can’t believe it’s been a year now since I’ve been following your blog. Excited to get started again since it all kind of went off track this crazy year, but I definitely used a lot of skills I learned from you for groceries and budgeting and that yummy sour dough pizza dough!
Jessica Fisher says
Aww, happy friendiversary, Cate! Glad you’re joining us for the ride this year. Time to get back on track!
Janet says
I will be doing a modified pantry challenge this year. I am going to continue to shop since we never know when we will get locked down again. However, I took an inventory this week and we have lots of food that needs to be used up. The pantry challenge always points up items I am over purchasing. I also have some items that the store substituted that need to be used up including four huge cans of re-fried beans and four huge jars of grape jelly.
Julie says
Jessica has a good recipe for bean and cheese nacho bake that could help you use some of the refried beans.
Jessica Fisher says
The six layer nachos here on the site or the casserole in the freezer cookbook?
Julie says
I was thinking of the one in your cookbook but your layered nachos are another one of my favorite ways to use them. Also you can stir them into chili.
Jessica Fisher says
Yes! And soup, too.
Jessica Fisher says
Grape jelly could be an interesting thing to use up. Have you googled?
Janet says
Not yet, we usually use jelly for the occasional PB&J and cocktail wieners for the holidays. I should have mentioned these are 32 oz jars!
Jessica Fisher says
You said they were huge. LOL! I’d honestly be tempted to donate a couple just to relieve some pressure, if it weren’t a favorite flavor.
Pam Lay says
Grape jelly & chili sauce on meatballs is actually pretty good…kind of a sweet BBQ taste. Heat in crock or oven several hours to thicken the glaze
Tasty says
Don’t know where you live but Baltimore orioles love grape jelly.
Tasty says
Or a spoonful of jelly in the middle of homemade muffins is a nice surprise.
Jessica Fisher says
Janet, if you haven’t hopped back on the site, Julie has some good ideas for those beans, including stirring into chili or soup, or the nacho bakes she references. 🙂 Not sure about the jelly, though. LOL
Alice E says
Janet,
May an older grandma make a few suggestions for your bean and jelly overstock?
I agree with the suggestion to add some of those refried beans to chili the help thicken it up nicely and make it taste long simmered, I think. I think it would do the same for a vegetable soup or stew. You could also season it up and use it for a dip by adding some salsa and maybe eve cheese. I also have fixed a recipe for something called ‘Tostada Grande’ that was just a crust (I think made with canned biscuits or crescent rolls) with a layer of the beans, followed by a layer of seasoned ground meat with diced peppers and tomato sauce added and then a layer of cheese on top either before or after you bake it. You might also make up a batch of burritos for the freezer so that you didn’t have to use the whole can at once. You also might freeze portions of the can for later if it is too big for a single meal.
Now the grape jelly suggestions, some of these would depend on what else your family likes and you want to make. If you are mixing it with chili sauce or ketchup for the cocktail wieners, you might also try it on meatballs, for an appetizer or to go with something like baked beans. I don’t recommend them for pasta, but my sons family loves them and I think they would be good with roasted potato wedges. I also know I have seen Jacques Pepin melt jelly to glaze fruit tarts on his tv shows. Jelly can also be stirred into hot cereal for flavored oatmeal or cream of wheat type cereals. I also think it could be melted with some water to make a syrup for pancakes or waffles. I’m not sure how much water, but would start with a little and heat it slow.
Well I have run on enough, but good luck with the challenge and using up your surplus.
Lei Leni says
Looking forward to this year’s pantry challenge. I have more in my freezer now than I have in the last three years. I will look forward to some of the other challenges. Thanks again!
Jessica Fisher says
Glad you’re going to join us!
Laurie says
With all that’s happened in 2020, I’ve fallen off the track where budget tracking and menu planing is concerned. I need a complete refresher course and am looking forward to participating!
Jessica Fisher says
We will do it!
Angelica says
I’m excited for the challenges and to see where we stand as far as grocery spending goes. Everything went out the window as far as spending when it came to food. This month’s challenge will serve as a reboot for us.
Jessica Fisher says
So many of us need to do that reboot!
Laura says
I went to Ralph’s today to get the eggs that they had on sale. Of course they were out but I picked up some mark downs. I spent $11.60 and got a loaf of bread, a big bag of red potatoes, a free jar of peanut butter, 2 Dole salad mixes, a little over a pound of Roma tomatoes, a small piece of ginger and the best deal a full spiral sliced ham for under $5.00. That should hold me for this next week.
MamaLC says
I’m excited to get back in on these challenges! I’m sure I have enough to get us through a Pantry Challenge, excepting the fresh fruit, veg, and dairy. Thanks for these!