Grocery Haul for Two and Instant Pot Split Pea Soup

Good morning and happy Friday! I was not able to get last weeks grocery haul posted due to recovering from my eye surgery. I'm going to give totals for last week after posting this weeks.

This week the first stop was at Winco. 

 

Fruit and veggies were a big portion of the haul. Oranges, apples, bananas along with romaine hearts, cabbage, broccoli, sweet potatoes and garlic cloves. And a couple bags of tortilla chips that were on sale. 

Ketchup was on sale so I picked up a couple extra bottles for the pantry and grape jelly was also on sale and I did the same. I bought a bottle of Italian sweet creamer, half & half, milk, a couple yogurts, a can of biscuits, 2 bags of frozen steak fries and an 18 count carton of eggs.

Total for Winco was $43.00

Next stop was Costco..

They had fish sticks on sale and Costco's fish sticks are the only ones I like so I picked up a bag of them. I also restocked us with potato chips, Ritz crackers, a 2 loaf package of Dave's Killer Bread, ranch dressing and a container of pepper as I am almost out. 

 

I also bought some chicken breast fillets. If you bought one package you got an extra $2.50 off the total. Price per pound was $2.99 and the total was $26.46. This brought down the price to $2.70 per pound, and in my part of the country that is a pretty good price for breast fillets. 

 

It's getting closer to Halloween and the candy goes on sale. My hubby does like his snacks and his mini candy bars. He saw them and had to get some. And I got him another container of his other favorite snack, Pub Mix.

My Costco total for the week was: $91.00

Total for this weeks groceries was: 

$134

Last week $32 was spent at Winco and $83 spent at Costco for a total of $110

At the end of September I will be doing a weekly average. 

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Instant Pot Split Pea Soup

Our weather has been cooling down and hints of fall are in the air. Soup was sounding so go to me. It's been a while since we had a nice hot bowl of split pea soup. This was my first time making it in the IP and it was easy, quick and hit the spot on the cool evening I served it.

The ingredients were simple. Dried split peas, a couple of sliced carrots, half of an onion, diced and some salt. 

 

Split pea soup is pretty versatile. You can add whatever type of meat you want or have on had. My usual picks are ham, sausage, bacon or link sausage. For this batch of soup I had 2 Louisiana Hot Link sausages that I cut up to add. 

 

You can also have this meatless and it's just as good in my opinion.

After the veggies and sausage links were cut up I added it all to the IP and then added water and salt. I put the lid on, turned the knob to “Seal” and set the timer for 20 minutes. I let the IP cool down for about 15 minutes. You could do a quick release of the pressure but when you make soups in the IP you run the risk of having it sputter and spit out soup all over your kitchen so it's better to let it cool down on its own for a bit. 

 

And that is it. I served my soup with biscuits. I used canned biscuits (homemade are far better, but these work when you need something quick). I also made a salad to serve on the side. It was perfect for a pre-fall dinner. 

 

Instant Pot Split Pea Soup

2 cups dried split peas

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

½ of a medium onion, diced

2 t salt

8 cups water *see note

Meat of your choice (optional), about a ½ pound or less (it's really up to you, you can add as little or as much as you like or have on hand)

Combine all ingredients into the IP. Put lid on, turn sealing knob to “Seal”. Push “manual” and set the timer for 20 minutes. All pressure to naturally release for about 15 minutes. If needed, turn the knob to “Vent” and allow the rest of the pressure to release. Serve and enjoy!

*Note on water: When the soup is done it may seem thin. Split pea soup thickens up a lot as it cools. You can add 6 or 7 cups instead of 8 called for in the recipe for a thicker soup. But you will most likely have to add more water after it cools down or it will be very thick.

That's all for this week's Grocery Haul!