I ATE FOR A WEEK ON $10 - DOLLAR TREE GROCERY BUDGET CHALLENGE

Hi I'm Ardent Michelle and I'm a frugal foodie on a budget. In this dollar tree grocery budget challenge video I'll eat for a week for $10 on food purchased only at the Dollar Tree. Join me in this extreme budget grocery haul to see what I come up with.

#eatfor10aweek #frugalliving #frugalfoodie #eatingonabudget #grocerybudgetchallenge #extremegrocerybudget #groceryhaul #eatingfor10dollarsaweek #howtoeatfor10aweek
#dollartreechallenge #dollartreedinners #dollartreebudgetchallenge #eatfor10dollarsdollartree #ardentmichelle #frugalfoodie

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MEAL PLAN

$10 Dollar Tree

# Servings

Breakfast

1 oatmeal pancake with syrup with 1 scrambled egg
1 bowl oatmeal with brown sugar and 2 pieces toast
2 oatmeal pancakes w/brown butter syrup
2 oatmeal pancakes w/brown butter syrup
1 oatmeal pancake with syrup with 1 scrambled egg

Lunch

1 tuna sandwich
1 Stir fry vegetables with rice
2 egg salad sandwiches total 3 eggs
2 chili
beans with rice and hot sauce

Dinner

2 gumbo with rice
1 stir fry vegetables with rice
3 chili
1 tuna sandwich

Snacks

toast sprinkled with cinnamon sugar

Oatmeal Pancakes

2 cups oatmeal
2 eggs
1 cup water
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons melted butter or margarine (if you have it)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

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[anna-lisagirling]

Michelle, I'm really enjoying your videos. They take me back to my first years out on my own and the first 3-4 years after my partner and I bought our first house in a cruel real estate market. I used to forage tree fruits from empty lots and we did a lot of wild berry hunting in season. But my real budget saver was learning about cooking Indian food. Their traditional cuisine utilizes a lot of legumes and a small back of lentils can be a real foundation. In fact, depending where you live, if there are Indian grocery stores near you often the rice and legumes plus spices are a true bargain. Another revelation for me was always buying whole chickens and then breaking one down to breasts, things and drums and then chucking the rest, carcass and all into a pot to make stock. Then, pick all the meat off the bones (Yes, time consuming for sure) and using those bits to make a sandwich filling. I used to use black pepper, parsley and either dried celery or chopped celery plus mayo or salad dressing more or less to your preference. With the breasts, I usually cubed one side up for casseroles or soup bits and the other side, I'd make a nice fat cordon bleu that was usually large enough to split and eat with rice and a vegetable. If I bought more than one chicken, I'd create packs of 2 thighs or 4 drumsticks for the freezer. Anyway, just some old wisdom from a 71 year old woman ; )

[CL-rvti]

Yes. Sesame oil is a must have at my home. I eat a lot of Asian food and you don't need a lot of the sesame oil in cooking. Can you do a budget challenge using only Asian food? I think Asian food is pretty budget friendly.

[patpeters]

Michelle, if that Dollar Tree has chopped or whole garlic in a bottle it's well worth the purchase. Though not as pungent as fresh garlic, it lasts for months in the fridge & the garlic water when it's empty is delicious in sauces or soup.

[LenoraForest]

We've tried the vegan meatballs. The taste is great - a bit spicy. However, they fall apart when cooked. We just add them in with rice and don't care that they don't hold together. I loved this video.

[robinswan]

I'm so impressed with how well that DT is stocked! Ours are just empty shelves everywhere!

[yvonnepalmquist]

The beauty of the chili is how far it will go with all of that rice you purchased. I even love chili as a breakfast (I used to live near a great little café that made chili omelets) - a little rice, topped with chili, topped with an egg will keep you full for hours at a very low cost.

[daniellebraga]

If you spread the whole bag of beans out on a baking sheet, you can sort through them a lot more quickly.

[wendoxia]

One thing I would add to you is I usually use a very finely chopped hard-boiled egg in my tuna salad to make it go further you can get two sandwiches out of a can that way

[Goonky]

I really enjoyed your first $10 challenge, so I'm happy you did another one. I'm impressed your meals are so healthy at this price. These videos have made me realize I can definitely spend less on groceries. The oatmeal pancakes look great - I can't believe I never thought of that. :)

[CybHoney]

Ahhh I miss when dollar tree was just 1.00… memories. Just came back for the nostalgia

[midlifeandnailingit]

I am amazed that you took such simple ingredients and made a lovely gumbo.

[mollygardens]

I have volunteer arugula in my yard, fall through spring. I love it on egg salad sandwiches. Radishes are super easy to grow, seeds at Dollar Tree. They are also an awesome addition to egg salad!

[yvonnepalmquist]

l love a combination of egg and tuna salad as a sandwich option. They go great together.

[littleoldlady]

Thank you for a Great video.

Spices matter when you have a low budget. I keep 10 spices at my stove based on my current cooking tastes. I also have a bin of replacements.

[cathyblock]

I didn’t realize that there are so many grocery products at DT. I’m going to have to check it out. Your dishes are always looking so yummy & your presentation is so attractive. Thanks for all the tips.

[patpeters]

Those oatmeal pancakes look delicious. Love pancakes & oatmeal, why have I never thought to combine the two? And the homemade syrup! I am so impressed.
Thanks Michelle I am making them this week. 😋

[rachelhero]

I love your videos. And yes I keep sesame oil at home. When I was single and super broke, I started cutting the sesame oil with a little vegetable oil. I found that it doesn’t really dilute the flavor and makes it go further.

[lenziany]

I kinda surprise you use quite a lot of spices, not only salt & pepper like others vloggers.. So i sure your cooks will be so delish! 🤍
Yes i do a lot of sesame oil it takes food to another level..
Thanks for sharing these fab recipes 💕

[chrisl]

Hi, remember to check the discount shelf at the back of your favorite regular grocery store...I realize this was about dollar tree, but if you can stop by just to check the discounted items. I can usually find a can or two of tomatoes, fire roasted tomatoes, some super low priced ripe bananas (great to add Into pancakes or make muffins/banana bread), or other items half priced. Great video! So careful to make your $10 budget work. I'm inspired to try some similar ideas. Thank you.

[theariesnme]

Your channel came up on my feed and I'm glad it did. Wow..I'm impressed. I'm not a foodie and I'm a single person but find it hard to grocery shop. For me not to be a foodie, I spend alot at the grocery store for the week $40 plus. I was doing something extremely wrong as well as being wasteful when I dont eat the food. You said something that made alot of since..buy a meat/ingredients ( I recently stopped eating meat) and use it different ways within the week. I was buying 3 different meats per week making different meals or feeling like I had to be elaborate with meals when it's just me. So even if i had an egg sandwich or peanutbutter sandwich it's ok because its just me. So..for now on If I buy vegetarian faux meat (if I want) make different meals from that (a wrap, a salad, cut it up and make spaghetti etc.They will be different but with same meat. And maybe think of meals from dollar tree because of the small serving sizes and I wont be so wasteful. If you haven't already made video yet..can you vegetarian meals from dollar tree for the week? Thanks much