Yes, Dollar Tree, where I went in for aluminum pans and came out with "edibles."
If you're anything like me, your blood pressure spikes when you shop for groceries. We've all been confronted with the following through-the-roof prices: Six bucks for a loaf of whole-grain bread, if you don't want to eat nutritionally-bankrupt, mushy white bread. Seven dollars and up for a bag of coffee.Six dollars for a bottle of flavored creamer for that coffee (my stomach cannot tolerate black java). Five dollars for a roll of aluminum foil that even though it says "heavy-duty," is as skimpy and "un-clingy" as tissue paper. Five dollars for regular eggs, not those with the extra Omegas.
And these are just staples, folks. I can't recall how many times I've left the store after dropping seventy bucks or so and coming home to discover that I bought nothing to create an actual meal.
Normally, I shop at Jewel-Osco as it's just minutes from our home. But increasingly, I've been turning to Aldi, which, thankfully, is also close by, in order to save a couple of dollars here and there, even though their prices, too, have gone up.
Now, because I'm determined to stop or at least minimize the crazy spending, I'm spending more time in the food aisles at Dollar Tree. Yep Dollar Tree. Which is actually a dollar and a quarter tree now, but who's counting?
Normally, I go to the popular dollar store for otherwise outrageously-priced items like aluminum roasting pans. That said, I always leave with items I had no intention of buying as I didn't know the chain carried them. That's the thing with Dollar Tree: You never know what you'll find as their stock changes weekly.
Previously I was under the impression that Dollar Tree's food was mainly snack stuff. Chips, peanuts, pretzels, candy, and the like, as well as sugar-laden sodas.
I was either wrong or the store has widely expanded its offerings of edibles. There are a ton of items that will help you make a nutritious meal for your family on the cheap. Here are a few of my faves and always remember to check the expiration dates. Personally, I've never found anything to be expired:
- Microwaveable packages of brown rice
- Bread and English Muffins
- Bags and boxes of all kinds of pasta and noodles
- Bottled water with electrolytes
- Canned tomatoes and tomato sauce
- Bumblebee and StarKist tuna and salmon pouches (in flavors, yet!)
- Canned tuna and sardines
- Canned soups (including name brands)
- Cake mixes (again, name brands)
- Frozen veggies of all kinds, even riced cauliflower
- Small blocks of cheese
- Frozen veggie burgers and meatballs
- Condiments like mustard, mayo, and salad dressing
- Spices
- Relatively "healthy" snacks like pretzels and popcorn (BoomChickaPop, for example)
- All kinds of candy (hey, we all need a treat on occasion)
I'm sure my list is incomplete. Please feel free to chime in and tell me what great deals you've found in the food aisles of your Dollar Tree store. From what I've read, their stock changes from store to store, so your experience might be totally different from mine. Regardless, if we can help each other save a few bucks in these tough times, let's do it.
And, thanks for reading.
© Sherry McGuinn, 2023. All Rights Reserved.
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