Wren's bargain guide, week beginning April 30th:

Fooducate offers a potentially useful tool for calculating sodium intake from packaged foods:  the sodium-to-calorie ratio.  Aim for a rough ratio of one milligram of sodium per calorie.  Darya at Summer Tomato has a list of ten reasons that might explain “why you're still not losing weight when you think you're doing everything right”.  (Having trouble with portion sizes?  Are you exercising enough – or too much, so much it actually makes you hungry?  Getting enough sleep?)

Grist explores what's the best way to get your locally-grown produce?  There are several options, each with its own advantages.  Including a newish site, RipeNearMe.  Also demitarianism – you needn't give up eating meat, just eat half the amount you normally would.  (This will probably not be a deprivation.  The USDA recommends eating about six ounces of meat a day;  the average American manages to cram in twice that.)  And Yoni Freedhoff picks up his set of diet-myths videos with the preposterous notion that there's One Best Diet that is ideal for everybody (“Just ask yourself the question, 'Could I happily live like this forever?' and if the answer's 'no,' you're on the wrong diet”), and the easy assurance that you're not losing weight because you're gaining muscle! 

Recipes!  Chow.com has forty-five recipes for Cinco de Mayo food and drink, at least some should be PointsPlus-friendly, and top it off with a tangerine margarita.  Simply Recipes offers an artichoke-leek frittata – five eggs, but it's four servings each with a full helping of veg! – and a burrito-in-a-bowl.  And Snack Girl has whole roasted cauliflower, homemade salad dressing, and the new breakfast horror from Taco Bell:  the 23-grams-of-fat, half-a-gram-of-sodium, 10-PointsPlus Waffle Taco.

It's May!  National Asparagus Month, National Egg Month, National Hamburger Month, National Gazpacho Aficionado Month, National Strawberry Month, National Mediterranean Diet Month, National Salsa Month, National Salad Month, and National Asparagus Month.  Yes, I love asparagus so much it got mentioned twice.  This first week is National Hamburger Week and National Raisin Week – it takes more than I've got to work out a way of fitting those into a single dish.  Next Tuesday, the 6th, is International No Diet Day – but we're not on a “diet,” are we? 

May 1st:  National Chocolate Parfait Day;  Beltane, International Workers' Day
May 2nd:  National Truffles Day
May 3rd:  National Raspberry Tart Day
May 4th:  National Orange Juice Day, National Homebrew Day, National Candied Orange Peel Day
May 5th:  Cinco de Mayo, National Hoagie Day, National Chocolate Custard Day
May 6th:  National Crêpes Suzette Day, International No Diet Day
May 7th:  National Roast Leg of Lamb Day

Sorry about not making it to this week's meeting, but I'll try for next!



Albertson's:

    Beef ribeye/t-bone/New York steaks, bone in, buy 1 get 1 free
    Beef roasts: chuck, crossrib, eye/bottom round, sirloin tip, $4.99/lb
    Beef top sirloin steak OR tri tip roast, family pack, $5.99/lb
    80/20 ground beef, $2.99/lb (3 lbs or more)
    93/7 ground beef, $4.49/lb
    Pork shoulder butt roast, whole in bag, $1.99/lb
    Pork country style ribs, bone in, $2.49/lb
    Pork picnic roast, whole in bag, $1.99/lb
    Pork sirloin chops, boneless, $5.99/lb, buy 1 get 1 free
    Center cut pork chops, boneless, $7.99/lb, buy 1 get 1 free
    Boneless skinless chicken breast, $1.89/lb
    Tilapia OR swai fillets, farm raised, $2.99/lb
    Herdez salsa, 24 oz jars, $2.99
    Snyder's “Pounder” pretzels, 2/$5
    Deli:    Signature Virginia smoked ham, $4.99/lb
        Healthy Ones oven-roasted or honey turkey, chicken breast, honey ham, $6.99/lb
        Margherita hard or Genoa salami OR pepperoni, $5.99/lb
        Signature Provolone cheese, $4.99/lb
    Strawberries, 1 lb box, 2/$5
    Mangos, 3/$1
    Maridol papayas, 79¢/lb
    Whole cantaloupes, 2/$5
    Roma tomatoes, 99¢/lb
    Campari tomatoes, 14 oz pkg, 2/$5
    Sweet corn, 4 pkg, $2.99


Bashas':

    Beef ribeye steaks, bone in, value pack, $5.87/lb (regular pack $1/lb higher)
    Beef chuck/crossrib/bottom round roasts, $4.99/lb
    Beef top sirloin steak, value pack, $6.99/lb
    Ground beef chuck, fat content not listed, value pack, $2.99/lb
    Pork loin end country style, value pack, $1.99/lb
    Pork loin end chops, $2.49
    Boneless skinless chicken breast, $1.87/lb
    Tilapia fillets, farm raised, $5.99/lb
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $6.99/lb
    Cod fillets, wild caught, 3 oz portions, 99¢ ea
    Bashas' milk, gallons, 2/$5
    Bashas' cottage cheese, 24 oz tubs, $2.39
    Tillamook cheeses, 1 lb chunk OR 12 oz slices, $3.99
    Chicken of the Sea chunk white tuna, 5 oz cans, 99¢
    Bumble Bee chunk light tuna, 5 oz cans, 88¢
    Bumble Bee chunk white tuna, 5 oz cans, 2/$3
    Hunt's tomatoes, 14-15 oz cans, 99¢
    Chiquita bananas, 39¢/lb
    Whole cantaloupes or honeydew melons, regular or organic, 59¢/lb
    Whole seedless watermelons, 29¢/lb
    Whole pineapples, 2/$5
    Strawberries, 1 lb box, 2/$5
    Blackberries, 6 oz box, 2/$5
    Organic yellow peaches, 2 lbs/$3 (a bit early in the season, I'd wait)
    Vine tomatoes, 75¢/lb
    Sweet corn, 2/$1
    Green bell peppers, 2/$1
    Red or gold bell peppers, $1 ea
    Radishes OR cilantro OR green onions, 2 bunches/$1


Fry's:

    Beef strip steak, bone in, $8.99/lb
    85/15 ground beef, $4.99/lb (1-2 lb chubs)
    Foster Farms chicken breast, bone in, 97¢/lb
    Unbranded (store) chicken leg quarters, 99¢/lb
    Kroger 99/1 ground turkey breast, 1 lb pkg, $4.99
    Atlantic salmon, farm raised, 6 oz portions, $4.99
    Sockeye salmon fillets, wild caught, $12.99/lb
    Fry's milk, gallons, $1.99
    Kroger cottage cheese OR sour cream, 24 oz tubs, $2.39
    Lean Cuisine frozen entrees, $1.67
    Whole seedless watermelons, $1.88 ea
    Mangos, 2/99¢
    D'anjou pears, 99¢/lb
    Navel oranges, 99¢/lb
    Apples:  Gala, Granny Smith, Red/Golden Delicious, 99¢/lb
    Strawberries, 1 lb box, 2/$5
    Blackberries, 6 oz box, 2/$5
    Sweet corn, 2/99¢
    Hass avocados, 4/$5
    Simple Truth organic mini carrots, 1 lb bag, 2/$3


Safeway:

    Beef chuck or crossrib roast, boneless, $3.49/lb
    Beef top sirloin steaks, boneless, $4.99/lb
    Beef ribeye steaks, bone in, $10.99
    Open Nature beef London broil, $5.99/lb
    90/10 ground beef, value pack, $4.49/lb
    Pork shoulder, bone in, whole thing in a bag, $1.99
    Pork tenderloin, whole in bag, $5.99/lb
    Eating Right boneless skinless chicken breast, $2.99/lb
    Sockeye salmon fillets, wild caught, $9.99/lb
    True cod fillets, wild caught, $8.99/lb
    Alaskan pollock fillets, wild caught, $3.99/lb
    Pantry Essentials milk, gallons, $1.99
    Lucerne cheeses, 5-8 oz chunk or shreds, $2.99
    Bush's baked beans, 28 oz cans, 2/$4
    Bumble Bee solid white tuna, $1.89
    Libby's veg, 14-15 oz cans, 79¢
    Herdez salsa, 24 oz jars, 2/$5
    Safeway Kitchens variety breads, 24 oz wide-pan loaves, $1.99
    Whole cantaloupes, 2/$5
    Whole seedless watermelons, $1.99 ea
    Organic Gala apples, $2.49/lb
    Mangos, 2/$1
    Strawberries, 1 lb box, $2.99/lb
    Vine tomatoes, $2.99/lb
    Roma tomatoes, 99¢/lb
    Sweet corn, 2/$1
    Organic kale, $1.99/bunch


Sprouts:

    Beef skirt, flank, tri-tip, sirloin flap, boneless, $5.99/lb
    Beef rump roast OR stew meat OR carne asada, $4.99/lb
    85/15 ground beef, value pack, $4.69/lb
    Pork sirloin chops or roast, boneless, $1.99
    Chicken drums or whole legs, value pack, 99¢/lb
    Boneless skinless chicken breast/thighs/tenders, $2.99/lb
    Halibut portions, wild caught, $8.99/lb
    Atlantic salmon fillets, farm raised, $9.99/lb
    Mahi mahi fillets, wild caught, $5.99/lbfs
    Large sea scallops, 30-40 ct, $6.99/lb
    Whole seedless watermelons, 98¢ ea
    Texas Red grapefruits, 2/$1
    Yellow mangos, 2/$1
    Honeydew melons OR Maradol papapas, 2/$1
    Navel oranges, 88¢/lb
    Fuji OR Granny Smith apples, 98¢/lb
    Organic Packham or D'Anjou pears, $1.48/lb
    Red seedless grapes, 2 lbs/$5
    Vine tomatoes, 98¢/lb
    Roma tomatoes, 88¢/lb
    Sweet corn, 10/$2
    Hass avocados, 88¢ ea
    Green bell peppers, 2/$1
    Red/yellow/orange bell peppers, 4/$5
    Organic Italian squash, $1.48/lb
    Organic vine tomatoes, $1.98/lb