Last week was one of the most chaotic/stressful/exciting/exhausting weeks of my life and it was also the final week of my SNAP challenge. Going into the week I really wasn’t sure I’d be able to manage grocery shopping and cooking while trying to execute my move into the new house. I wanted so badly to say, “Screw it!” and eat take out all week so that I didn’t have to deal with shopping, cooking, and dirty dishes.
Well, I got my butt to the store and bought groceries, cooked three recipes, and forged ahead. Even after all that effort, I still made several mistakes and missteps throughout the week. I’m bummed that I broke down and ate food outside of my SNAP budget, but even these failures were insightful. They pointed my brain towards more “what if” scenarios that I wouldn’t have thought of otherwise. So, even though I didn’t totally stick to plan in this final week, hopefully you’ll still get something out of the experience like I did.
What Did I Buy?
I based this week’s meal plan off of a single rotisserie chicken, which I later found out isn’t exactly allowed on SNAP benefits (mistake #1). In most cases, hot rotisserie chickens are considered a “prepared food” item and therefore not eligible for purchase using SNAP benefits. In some stores, unsold rotisserie chickens are chilled and sold cold at a discounted price the next day. At that point they’re considered a regular grocery item and then are allowed on SNAP. Confusing, right?
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Anyway, I bought some items to make enchiladas with the chicken (tortillas, diced tomatoes, cream cheese, beans), and I was lucky enough to get a BOGO deal on the tortillas (two for the price of one). Extra tortillas were used to make quick cheese quesadillas for snacks or light meals (sometimes with egg). I also picked up some cilantro and a lime to make cilantro lime rice to serve with the enchiladas. I used the other half of the chicken to make chicken noodle soup, so I picked up onion, celery, parsley, and noodles. The soup also allowed me to use up leftover carrots from last week. I bought a single onion rather than the 3lb. bag I usually get because I thought it would be easier with moving, but it made the onion twice as expensive. Ouch.
(Despite having a list with me, I still forgot the celery and lime, so I had to go back to the store a second time. Grrr.)
Although I wasn’t that crazy about the apples as my fruit choice last week, I walked into the store this week there were some amazing fresh fall apples. You know, the kind that have that incredible autumn aroma and are all juicy and crisp? So, I had to get some of those. They were WAY better than last week and only $1.69/lb., so that was good. Shredded cheese was still on sale, so I picked up a bag of that, too, because having a little cheese in my life goes a long way towards happiness (sad, but true).
What did I Make?
I made these amazing Creamy Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas as my main meal. They enchiladas ended up being pretty large, so I was happily filled up with one enchilada plus a side of rice. Each enchilada came to about $1.08.
I made a quick cilantro lime rice to go with the enchiladas. To make this rice I just cooked two cups of white rice with two cloves minced garlic, 3/4 tsp salt, and 3.5 cups water. Then in a small blender I puréed a half bunch of cilantro with 2 Tbsp vegetable oil, fresh lime juice, and some of the lime zest (I didn’t really measure, just winged it). Once the rice was cooked and fluffed, I folded in the cilantro lime purée. It made about 7 cups (fluffed, not packed) and came to about $0.27 per cup.
Lastly, I used the second half of the rotisserie chicken to make a batch of homemade chicken noodle soup. I made my own slow cooker chicken broth, then used my basic Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup recipe (minus the garlic) to make the final soup. The total cost of the soup this time around (including items used to make the broth) was $6.90 and it made about 12 cups, coming to $0.58 per cup. I usually ate about 1.5 cups per sitting.
What Did I Eat?
With such a hectic week, my diet was kind of all over the place. Eating was sporadic and when I did eat, I wanted junk. I can’t say it enough—stress and willpower are not friends.
Day 22
- 1/2 pita $0.17
- 2 large eggs $0.40
- dash of Cajun seasoning $0.02
- 1/4 cup shredded cheese $0.25
- 1 Chicken Enchilada $1.08
- 1 cup Cilantro Lime Rice $0.27
Daily Total: $2.19
Reflection: I barely ate anything today because I was filled with stress and anxiety. I nibbled on a little enchilada filling while cooking the enchiladas, so that probably helped fill me up, too, but I have no idea how to calculate the cost of those miscellaneous spoonfuls or the few pieces of crispy skin that I sneaked off the chicken while pulling the meat.
Day 23
- 2 large eggs $0.40
- 1 tortilla $0.14
- 1/4 cup shredded cheese $0.25
- 1 Chicken Enchilada $1.08
- 1 cup Cilantro Lime Rice $0.27
- Small coffee from the cafe $1.80
- 1/5 cups chicken noodle soup $0.87
Daily Total: $4.81
Reflection: I only had about two hours of sleep the night before (thx, no thx, stress!), so I broke down and bought a coffee at work. I was really bummed to find that it was about 50 cents more than the last time and broke down and bought coffee, but apparently it was a “weekend special” price before. I was surprised at how upset I was over 50 cents, but that’s a lot when you have so little. I managed to make my chicken noodle soup after work, despite the fact that I had to finish packing my apartment before morning. I was SO tired.
Day 24
- 1 tortilla $0.14
- 1/3 cup shredded cheese $0.33
- 1/2 apple $0.40
- 1.5 cups chicken noodle soup $0.87
- 1 Chicken Enchilada $1.08
- 1 cup Cilantro Lime Rice $0.27
- 32 oz. Powerade and small bag of chips $1.95
Daily Total: 5.04
Reflection: MOVING DAY! In my sleepy stupor last night I forgot to leave a dish and a fork/spoon unpacked to eat my breakfast with. I really wanted to go pick up breakfast somewhere, but I just melted some cheese in a tortilla and ate half an apple instead (no dishes or utensils required!). Crisis averted. Later in the day, when I was making one of my 200 trips between my apartment and house, I realized I was deathly dehydrated and needed a beverage, like NOW. I broke down, stopped at the store, and picked up a Powerade (interesting: the 32 oz. was half the price of the 20 oz. bottle). At the register, I caved AGAIN and grabbed a bag of chips. *sigh* Can you buy chips and a drink on SNAP? Probably not. What would I have done if I didn’t have $1.95 to splurge on that? Drive all the way back to get some water so I didn’t faint?
Day 25
- 1 tortilla $0.14
- 1/3 cup shredded cheese $0.33
- 1/2 cup yogurt $0.41
- 1/2 Tbsp honey $0.06
- Coffee & Donut from hospital cafeteria $1.88
- 1 Chicken Enchilada $1.08
- 1 cup Cilantro Lime Rice $0.27
- 1.5 cups Chicken Noodle Soup $0.87
- 1/3 cup shredded cheese $0.33
- 1/2 apple $0.40
Daily Total: $5.91
Reflection: Pain. My whole body was in pain from moving and having next to no sleep. I broke out of the challenge again today with a coffee and donut from the cafeteria at work. Obviously I wouldn’t have been able to buy this with SNAP benefits, but I swear I felt like I wasn’t going to make it through the day without it. That one little coffee and jelly donut totally changed everything. It made me realize just how much food impacts our mood and ability to function. I can only imagine that working 2 (or more?) jobs and consistently not getting enough food would probably lead to a very poor disposition very quickly. Yet there are still some people that manage to stay positive and optimistic. I don’t know how they do it.
Day 26
- 1/3 cup oat bran $0.25
- 1/2 Tbsp butter $0.08
- 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar $0.02
- breakfast from the hospital cafeteria (eggs, sausage, biscuit, coffee) $3.34
- 1 Chicken Enchilada $1.08
- 1 cup Cilantro Lime Rice $0.27
- 1/2 apple $0.40
Daily Total: 5.44
Reflection: I woke up optimistic. The first few days of this week were rough, but I wanted to get back on track. I ate a good breakfast, packed my lunch, then accidentally LEFT MY LUNCH AT HOME. ARG! A little panic set in when I realized I left it sitting on the kitchen counter, so I had to improvise. Honestly, if I only had SNAP benefits, I probably would have just gone hungry until I got home from work. I didn’t have the strength to do that, so I paid “out of pocket” for a meal at work. Lunch from the cafeteria is easily $5-$7, so I decided to minimize the damage by getting breakfast instead. Eggs, sausage, biscuit, AND coffee only cost me $3.34 and that kept me full till I got home later in the afternoon. But, where would that money actually come from if this was real? Would that be half of my laundry money for the week? Would that mean putting off filling up my gas tank for a day or two and having to ask a friend for a ride to work? It would, without a doubt, mean sacrificing somewhere else, so maybe I would rather just go hungry until I got home. Even small missteps can have big consequences when you don’t have a lot to work with.
Also, I was sad that I had to throw away a whole serving of enchilada and rice because it sat on my kitchen counter all day. (Oh, and funny story… I accidentally sprinkled sugar all over my eggs instead of salt. You bet I ate them anyway!)
Day 27
- 1 tortilla $0.14
- 1 large egg $0.20
- 1/2 cup shredded cheese $0.33
- 1.5 cups Chicken Noodle Soup $0.87
- 1 Chicken Enchilada $1.08
- 1 cup Cilantro Lime Rice $0.27
- 1/2 apple $0.40
Daily Total: 3.29
Reflection: The week is almost over and the stress is finally starting to float away. Now that my mind is clearing, the hunger is coming back. I’m dying to go out to eat and really indulge. I want vegetables. Tons of fresh vegetables. I don’t think this week’s plan had enough vegetables. Looking forward to the end of the challenge makes me realize that this might be a LOT easier just because I know it’s not forever. If there was no end in sight, I’m sure my outlook would be much more grim.
Day 28
- 1 tortilla $0.14
- 1 oz. cream cheese $0.19
- 1 large egg $0.20
- 1 apple $0.80
- 1 Chicken Enchilada $1.08
- 1 cup Cilantro Lime Rice $0.27
- 1.5 cups Chicken Noodle Soup $0.87
Daily Total: 3.55
Reflection: Day seven of the week is always hardest because the monotony of the meals is at its peak. In the end, though, if you’re hungry, you’re just happy to have food. So, I ate my last enchilada and rice happily.
Final Reflection
Total Consumed: $30.23
Grocery Total: $28.50
Total Cost of Non-Grocery Foods: $7.17
My big take away lesson this week was how much those little impulse food buys can change your mood or the course of a day. On the days that I went outside of the rules of the challenge, those little perks completely changed my mood and energy level. I think we take those things for granted. Even if you don’t try the whole SNAP Challenge, I think it’s an interesting experience to not allow yourself any type of snack or impulse food buy for a day or week (three straight meals and nothing between). You really get a sense of how food impacts your daily life on subconscious levels.
Read through my experience from beginning to end:
SNAP was originally conceived as a supplemental program, not the only source of money for food.
I’m researching ways to feed my family of two adults and two constantly ravenous teenagers on a much lower food budget than we’ve allowed ourselves in the past.
Coincidentally, my 17 year-old son is trying to learn about living more frugally as he gets ready to go off to college after graduation. He asks at every evening meal if this is a “budget meal” so I break down the ingredients and we talk about expensive versus cheap protein, the need for fruits and vegetables, etc.
Your blog is just what we need! It’s great to have the prices per meal and per serving. We live in Canada where food prices are much higher but it’s good to be able to compare one dish to another.
Thank you for your thoughtful comments. I’ve worked with people receiving social assistance in the past and your observations should be required reading for anyone new to the field.
As a sidenote, we have a number of income support programs here but only a very few that are restricted to food purchases. (In Ontario additional funds are given for those requiring special diets or are pregnant or nursing.) I don’t know how much Canadians would get if we had an equivalent to SNAP. In my area the Public Health Office has determined that a Nutritional Food Basket for a single adult woman would cost $46.59 per week. On social assistance that same woman would receive $709 per month (or $163 per week). Spending almost 30% of your income on food alone is pretty tough.
Thanks again for shedding some light on the challenge and for sharing the tools (recipes) to meet it!
I love that you include your son in the discussion about food costs! That’s an amazing learning experience! :D
Just an FYI – You can buy drinks and such on SNAP. Any food item is fine so long as it’s not classified as “hot prepared” foods. You can buy the Marketside sandwiches and salads from Wal-mart and any drink, even the Starbucks brand mocha drink things and energy drinks. I’m on Food Stamps, and I’ve had to make emergency pit stops with my son occasionally when we were out longer than planned and little man needed lunch. I also don’t get how you’re so stressed over these things… My life is a SNAP Challenge, and I’ve never really been stressed unless I didn’t plan for something, but I’ve almost always had overage at the end of the month. It’s not difficult to do..
I am on SNAP but feel your comment is arrogant, deciding because you aren’t stressed by something, that someone else shouldn’t be. My life is a SNAP challenge as well but I understand the stressful experiences she was having, despite she is not on SNAP. Food is an extremely stressful thing for ME (given I don’t drive [my experience isn’t everyone’s but other people who don’t drive might relate] and get rides 1-2x a month, so fresh produce either has to be frozen, not purchased at all or eaten within the 1st week). I’ve just come around to frozen fruit and veggies, reading articles on how it’s not as unhealthy as people think it is. Geez though, she’s trying to do something good and bring awareness to something not everyone is aware of. “It’s not difficult to do” says you from your perspective… Yet, that’s all depending on your life circumstances, what stores you have available that you can get to, and just SO much more. If I had no one to drive me, thank goodness I have a store in walking distance but I’d struggle even more because the prices aren’t friendly to someone who is low income.
I really loved reading about your SNAP experience. I am considering doing this challenge and the scary part is getting my husband and son to go along with it. I may have to go it alone. You allotted yourself $30 a week for one person. If we do this challenge as a family, how much would the weekly budget be? $90? Thank you so much for your help and I absolutely LOVE your blog!!
Actual SNAP benefits depend on a number of factors, so I’m not sure how much you’d be allotted realistically. But, for the challenge people usually do $30/person/week.
I found this site because you were featured on an article someone I know posted, I believe it was in the Huff. I was intrigued and found this SNAP challenge, and I want to thank you so much. Unfortunately (or fortunately kinda) we are not eligible for help (we are in a slightly unique situation which of course I will not get in to, I do not even know you!) BUT, I have had to stay on a budget that was similar, if not even less sometimes. We are still struggling, and because of my disability and my husband working such long hours, it is very difficult to go “the long way around” when cooking. Do not get me wrong, I do go the long way around, but sometimes, when I have an episode that lasts a while (from days to weeks), food tends to go to waste. It is a balancing act between cheap/healthy and just getting people fed.
I appreciate that you added how difficult eating on this type of budget can be on the psyche. People forget that. I also noticed some comments about how you could have done things “cheaper”, but those things take time and energy which are in short supply (as you learned) when under stress, and being poor is freaking stressful even without all the other stuff one must do in order to just stay at that level of poverty. It is crazy. When the adults have to work long hours, like my husband (who is also stressed by my condition of course), it can feel impossible to take the time to cook things the long way. You captured that with your posts, but I think that fact was overlooked a bit amongst readers, which is unfortunate. Compassion is what will go a long way to fixing the problems associated with poverty.
This may be rambly, I apologize as I have been fighting rapidly firing ” ‘sodes ” (my word for flare ups) so sometimes I write and think it reads well and then I go back and think “what the heck are you trying to say?”.
I just really wanted to thank you and I hope that your blog will become a regular resource for me.
I appreciated your comment very much! :)
You did a good job. You did have money left on your debit card – so depending on the time of year and if your grocery store sells garden seeds you could purchase lettuce, green onion, radish on snap & purchase a tomato plant or two with your own cash, This items can easily be grown in container on a patio..this would help with nutrition and help a person to have that veggie money in your meal plan to be used for protein items, like a canned chicken a large can of the white with dark meat is about $1.79 for large can. It is great for sandwich spread or for a chicken soup. I noticed you purchased canned beans – did you think about buying those dry in the bulk area? Or some dried milk pwd in bulk for soups or your breakfast oat bran? A person might buy a package of box pudding to have a treat that would provide calcium & satisfy the sugar craving. A person might consider a small box of raisins to get some iron and variety into the diet.
In case you didn’t already know (which I’m sure you already do), a rotisserie chicken in the crockpot is stupid easy and purchasing a raw, whole chicken is even cheaper than buying one that’s cooked.
Take your whole chicken, rub it down with some olive oil, then rub it down with spices/herbs of choice, then ball up a few balls of foil to put in the bottom of the crockpot so the chicken doesn’t get soggy, set your rubbed down chicken on top of the foil balls, set it on low for 8-10 hours or high for 3-4. Boom. Rotisserie chicken. And SNAP compliant.
Wow, that’s a great idea! ย Thank you!
While your 4th week didn’t.follow.the SNAP Challenge guidelines 100%, I think it’s a more accurate representation of how SNAP benefits are used. For those I know receiving SNAP benefits, it represents one-half to one-third of their total food budget (most receive about $80/month) and spend, in total, about $50/week.
Hi Beth! I’m an avid follower of your blog. I loved reading about the SNAP challenge. You did a great job staying on budget and making the most of the food you could afford. I’m not a SNAP participant. However, I’m on a strict budget trying to pay off some cc debt. Debt mostly caused by eating dinner out too much. Your simple recipes and tips help me stay on track. I don’t get bored with what I’m eating either. Keep up the great work..you’re really helping people.
Food impacts our mood because our bodies AND brains need it. Our brains use proportionally more energy than the rest of our body, and that means anything involving brain power gets impacted by adequate intake.
I noticed a few times during this challenge, you seemed to choose lower-calorie options on certain foods, which I would have expected the opposite as the quantity of intake was often low. It seemed like “healthy” choices were made, but when those choices lead to undereating they’re not healthy after all. You craved “junk” food because that’s what your body was lacking in and needed, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Often, that “junk” food is the most calorie dense, and that’s exactly what an undernourished body needs; out bodies are damn smart!
Please take notice in your cravings for the next few months and honor them, no matter what the food is. When you undereat for a while (and a month is a while), your body creates an energy deficit. To bring yourself back to an energy balanced state, you often need to “overeat” to compensate for undereating, and food types matter. As you say you want to eat lots of vegetables, probably more than your personal “normal” to balance out the lack in the challenge, your body will send you messages as to which foods it needs most to bring back balance into your body.
Thank you so much for doing this challenge! It was really amazing to see how you dealt with the day to day on such a low daily food budget, and quite honestly how it affected you.
One thing I noticed you didn’t mention was the overall food expense, vs just day-to-day. I realize the challenge is a strict $4.50/day budget; but, if you go by the SNAP theory meaning you were alloted $126 for the 28 days, and you only consumed $105.36, you still had $20.64 that was still consumable, even with the overexpenditure at the end. I wonder had you known along how that might have changed things. And, in the case of others who don’t have the time to track, if they may be missing out also.
On a side note,๎ผI’m a breastfeeding mom with an already high metabolism which means I’m literally almost always hungry; and, I recently had to go onto the SNAP program. I’m not very good at coming up with recipes and I have certain food restrictions right now too; the recipes and insights you provide, and especially through this challenge, have certainly been a Godsend. I’m able to set up several meals and actually feel “full,” nourished, and energized while staying within budget. I can completely relate to the mood changes when I feel I have not had enough good food. So, thank you for what you do and for the many amazing recipes!
I happened across your blog just as you were starting the SNAP challenge. We have 3 adults in our household and have a pretty strict budget. I don’t break my food/personal items into separate categories. So this got me thinking about just how much we live on a daily basis. I do purchase foods while they are on sale/with coupons so I get better deals and have a freezer. On average we consume about $5 worth of food a day per person. Not sure I could handle eating the same thing every day like you did though.
This is just a guess, but I think I may have the answer as to the hot vs. cold issue. In most states with sales tax groceries or “to-go” foods aren’t taxed, unless they are hot. I worked at a cafe in CA where iced coffee to go was tax-free, but hot coffee to go was taxed. I’m not sure why this is.
But the SNAP benefits may make this distinction so that states don’t lose sales tax revenue when people use their benefits. So they only let you buy food that wouldn’t be taxed anyway. Again, just a guess.
This has been so interesting watching your journey. As a family of 5 we have a comfortable grocery budget, but we also choose to eat mostly vegetarian to save money not buying lots of meat (and your blog is awesome for veggie recipes!).
One recurring thought I had was how little dietary fiber you were getting overall (mainly from fresh fruits and veggies). Reading through your posts I can understand how lower-income persons are at higher risk of obesity and similar health issues. The quality/freshness of food is not the foremost thought when planning meals/grocery shopping.
Thank you for shedding light and growing awareness and understanding around this issue. Hope you are settling into your new home!
Kudos to you for taking on this challenge and increasing my own awareness of how much we spend (and sometimes waste) on groceries per week. I was wondering if you could estimate how much less (percentage-wise) you spent per week while on the SNAP challenge. Thanks….love your blog and your cookbook too!!!
I wish I knew! Before the challenge I was buying a lot of groceries for freelance projects and not keeping them separate from my regular groceries, so I’m not sure what my baseline would be.