Sausage & Peppers Pasta

This week’s grocery shopping trip was a little bit more eventful than the usual. It was the first week of the month (we all know what that means), it was the week of July 4th, my cousin was here, and I was at my parents’ house rather than my apartment.

Unfortunately, this all means that I don’t have any pictures this week I had to shop near my parents’ house, bring the food to their fridge, then transport it back to my house the next day (because the stores aren’t open on July 4th). So in my haste to not let the food go bad, I didn’t get to take any pictures. But here’s the list!

{Stop&Shop}

• Hamburger Buns – $0.99
• Whole Wheat Bagel Thins – $2.50
• FiberOne Whole Wheat Bread (2 loaves) – $2.50/each
• Eggland’s Best Eggs (2 dozen) – $1.99/each (I used a $1/2 MC*)
• Shredded Parmesan Cheese – $2.50
• Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese – $2.50
• Breyer’s Ice Cream – $2.50
• Frozen Butternut Squash – $1.67
• SmartOnes Mac & Cheese (2) – $2.00/each
• Kosher Salt – $0.99
• Gatorade (1) – $0.88
• Trix Cereal (2) – $1.99/each (I used two $0.60/1 MCs, which doubled to $1.20/each, making each box $0.79)
• 3 liter Diet Cola – $1.00
• Ocean Spray Fruit Snacks (2) – $2.00/each (I used two $0.60/1 MCs, which doubled to $1.20/each, making each box $0.80)
• Rotel Mild Diced Tomatoes – $1
• Evaporated Fat-Free Milk – $1.09
• Reduced-Fat Cheez-Its (2) – 2/$4
• Bandaids – $1
• Al Fresco Garlic Chicken Sausage – $3.50 (I used a $1/1 MC, making it $2.50)
• 1lb Ground Beef 95% lean – $7.49
• Bananas (2) – $0.75
• Avocado – $1.66
• Cantaloupe – $2.99
• Green Leaf Lettuce (they were out of Romaine!) – $1.99
• Orange Bell Pepper – $1.84
• Plum Tomatoes (3) – $1.99
• Sweet Corn on the Cob (5 ears) – $1
• Yellow Bell Pepper – $1.88

Stop&Shop Total = $61.16 (weird, right?!)

 

{Shaw’s}

•  Coke Brand 12 packs (5) – 5/$11 (I got Diet Coke, Diet Coke Caffeine Free, Diet Orange Soda, Sprite Zero, and Diet Rootbeer)
• Kleenex (2) – $1/each
• Deli Turkey (2 lbs) – $10.18
• Deli Provolone (1 lb) – $5.87

Shaw’s Total = $31.96

 

{CVS}

• Fat-Free Milk – $3.49 + $1ECB
• Dove Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares (2 bags)- 2/$6

CVS Total = $9.29 + $1ECB 

Shopping Trip Total = 102.41

(My mom helped me out with $30 to pay for my cousin’s food, so it really only cost me $72.41 which is under budget!!)

My cousin Danny was completely enthralled by American supermarkets. It’s not like he’s never been to the states before, but it was probably his first time spending a long amount of time in a place like Stop&Shop. He was amazing at the amount of products stores like that carry and how a lot of our produce isn’t from the US. I bought him a bottle of Gatorade because he loves it but apparently they don’t make it in Sweden!

Last night, I made the three of us a big meal of Sausage & Peppers Pasta. It was delicious! Totally hit the spot.

Look at these beautiful peppers!

I always get so mad that bell peppers are the most expensive vegetable for some reason. Why are they not cheaper??? Seriously, go look up at my list and see how (even in the summer) ONE bell pepper cost me almost $2. You’ve got to be kidding me.

So I save them for special occasions… Like when my long-lost relatives are in town!

I think we were all a little skeptical about how chicken sausage was going to taste… but it was awesome! I really couldn’t tell too much of a difference between that and regular sausage – if there was one, it was a tasty one.

 And, hey, I had a coupon so that’s what we got. Everybody knows the rules!

Sausage & Peppers Pasta

(original recipe)

Ingredients (serves four):

1 box Whole Wheat Penne Pasta

1 (1lb) package Chicken Sausage

Canola Oil

3 bell peppers (I used red, orange, and yellow); sliced thin

1 Garlic Clove, minced

1 cup Pasta Sauce (I use Hunt’s Garlic & Herb)

Parmesan Cheese for garnish

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, sauté garlic in oil over medium-high heat in a sauté pan.

Chop sausage into bite-size slices and add to pan.

Cook sausage until golden-brown on the outside; drain and set aside.

Using the same pan, sauté peppers until tender (no need to add more oil).

Using the pasta pan, add in peppers, sausage, marinara sauce, and pasta.

Stir together until fully combined and serve with parmesan cheese on top.

Enjoy!

(Calories in 1 serving = 500)

*ECB = Extra Care Bucks (see here for more details). WYB = “when you buy”. MC = Manufacturer coupon (found in your local Sunday paper and weekly Redplum flyers). CVS coupon = They print out on your receipt after you buy something, or you can print different ones from the Instant Coupon Printer located in all stores. Printed MCs = You can print coupons from sites like Coupons.comand CouponNetwork.com from your home.