Tracking household grocery expenses - what do you spend?

I have indeed made that dish. Rotolo from Marcella Hazan. (https://classicpasta.wordpress.com/2024/03/10/sliced-pasta-roll-with-spinach-and-ham/) She has you mix ricotta with chopped spinach, mortadella, egg, parmesan, kiss of nutmeg, then fill a sheet of pasta and roll like a jelly roll. Wrap in cheese cloth, tying ends like a sausage, then poach. I find a fish poacher convenient. Cool, unwrap, slice and dress judiciously with marinara followed by bechamel, then paramesan. Bake. A show stopper.

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I love lasagna roll ups! I have made them for over 30 years with different sauces: basil pesto, alfredo and marinara, with both spinach and ‘regular’ lasagna noodles, and different fillings. A tray of them freezes well. Yum! I have not made them in quite awhile, now on the list!

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Does that apply to outdoor bbq/grill use?

Not really… If you are cooking outside on a no burn day, the authorities expect you to cook immediately and put out the fire immediately.

And with that “Karen” woman up the street, I’d probably take pictures to prove I was actually cooking & what it was. To avoid having to deal with the authorities, I just don’t cook outside on no burn days.

Every neighborhood has at least one “Karen”… I thought about getting nasty with her when she approached, but decided that offering her a burger would piss her off more. I was right.

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I think, no, I’m sure we have 3 ‘Karens’ in our neighborhood. They all appear to live in glass houses and are on the HOA board.
Do you have outdoor marshmallow or weenie roasts without trouble?

Yes, we had one “Karen” (different individual) on the HOA – thankfully she recently left.

I think my local “Karen’s” problem is that I use wood for cooking and in my fireplace (with a heat exchanger). I save Mesquite wood from my tree and use that for cooking/heating. She has referred to it as “trash wood that smells”. I told her that authorities do not govern which species of wood you can cook with/burn and that I happen to like Mesquite.

If she comes on my property again, I won’t be as kind.

I don’t usually roast marshmallows, but will cook hot dogs, hamburgers & steaks outdoors. I’ll also “shallow fry” breaded chicken livers outside in my cast iron skillet. The mess stays outside and cleanup is much easier.

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:+1: Good job! Maybe she’s asmatic, but still heeds to mhob!

Arizona has some remote houses and for fairly cheap. She doesn’t have to live in a town if she has a medical condition, buy a house out in the middle of the desert. There are plenty to choose from. And I’m not the only one in this neighborhood with a fireplace and cooks outside from time to time.

Personally, I refurbished a house that was 2 miles back a dirt road (Arizona). Pretty much by itself in the desert. The couple that bought it (after I had finished it) – the wife had a pulmonary condition with an extreme allergy to any type of car/truck exhaust. She seemed to develop this condition later in life and rather quickly. This house fit their needs.

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Aha
I coincidentally started a related thread

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Only thing on sale this week (that I could use) was cheese. I picked up an extra bag of potatoes last week (just in case). I’ll make a potato soup at some point.

I still have a good supply of chicken in the freezer, so I’ll be leaning on that this week. I’ll also make some homemade spinach pasta. I’ve got a can of spinach in stock.

There was some boneless pork on clearance (this morning), but even at the clearance price it wasn’t a good deal, so I left it there. Moreover, Sunshine likes bone-in pork vs. boneless.

I do have some lentils in stock, maybe I’ll cook some of those and add them to the potato soup??

No one has a reliable crystal ball when it comes to food price predictions. With summer produce / farmers markets just a few months away, I’m waiting for those to purchase/freeze extras. But it could be interesting to note current unit price and recent “on sale” / promotion prices and compare in about 6 months (or year for highly-seasonal items like strawberries and maple syrup).

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