This is going to be harder than I thought ...

Discussing the SNAP challenge with people has elicited interesting responses.  One person asked if I thought what I was dong was arrogant, so I want to clarify something:  I'm participating in this challenge because I think it will help me better understand how difficult it is to eat a healthy diet on a next-to-nothing budget.  SNAP is officially the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.  The government recognizes that most people who receive benefits (in Washington they're known as "Basic Food Benefits", not SNAP) are using the funds they receive to supplement other food sources--not to provide all the nutrition in their diet; however, I want to see if living on a budget of $145 (I used this benefits calculator to determine what my budget would be) is do-able in Seattle.   

Wednesday was the only day I could go grocery shopping before starting the SNAP challenge, so I went ahead and shopped a couple of days early.  After 3 hours of shopping at 3 different stores, what did I buy?

Food from my first SNAP challenge shopping trip!

• 1 Whole, antibiotic-free, range-free chicken.  It cost $.40 more per pound at the Ballard Market than a whole chicken at Grocery Outlet, but I'm really happy with the purchase.  For $7.44 I plan to get enough chicken to at least make enchiladas and soup.  I'll think of other things, too.  (Note:  The last time I cut up a chicken I think I was in about 5th grade.  I was so grossed-out by the experience that I haven't really cooked with a whole chicken since.  We'll see how this really goes ...)
• Stuff for enchiladas:  
• Enchilada sauce (I bought it at Trader Joe's, but I think I could've found it cheaper elsewhere)
• Jack cheese (Same thing here--I think it would've been cheaper at Grocery Outlet, but I'd already left there)
• Diced tomatoes
• Black beans (I may throw these on the side, but will likely put them in the enchiladas or just eat them with other meals)
• Cream of chicken soup (They didn't have low-sodium at Grocery Outlet, but it was cheap!)
• Pasilla peppers--I'll probably use these to make stuffed peppers, but may change my mind.
• Bread
• Frozen veggies
• Spinach
• Kale
• Broccoli
• Butternut squash
• 10 fuji apples
• Buttermilk
• Bananas

How much did it cost?

So far, the SNAP challenge has cost me $33.15, although as of now I'm planning to use an additional $24.78 of food I already have at the house (eggs, flour, sugar, oats, creamer, butter, peanut butter, spaghetti squash, etc.), so I'm taking the cost of those groceries out of my total budget of $145.00 for the month.  That means I have about $87 left for the month of February and the month hasn't even started yet!

A couple of notes about this challenge:

1. I'm hosting a baby shower next Saturday and am not counting the cost of that food toward this challenge since the shower was planned months ago.  I still haven't figured out whether I'm going to eat anything at the shower or bring leftovers home.  I think that' cheating, but we'll see how things go.
2. I'm attending a potluck at my cousin's house just after the baby shower and plan to bring a food item that fits within my budget.