Come 'n' get it!

Anyone want to take a guess as to how much these groceries cost me? Some of the items are recognizable; among those less distinguishable are a box of Ritz-type snack crackers, a bag of oatmeal, a container of frozen juice and, unknown to me at the time I purchased them, a dozen organic, free-range eggs. $30? $50? $75?

If you guessed $75, you'd be close. It was actually about $73.44. Yeah, groceries are expensive here. Here's the breakdown:

Item	Size	shekels	dollars
eggs	1 doz	26.99	$6.75
Lime juice	32 oz	13.9	3.48
Lemon juice	1 liter	10.9	2.73
Snack crackers	12 oz	13.9	3.48
Tortilla chips	1 lb	18.9	4.73
Quinoa	500 gr	10.9	2.73
Brown rice	1 kg	12.9	3.23
Rolled oats	500 gr	10.9	2.73
Anti-perspirant stick	1.5 oz	18.9	4.73
Crushed tomatoes	large can	7.9	1.98
Mayonnaise	32 oz	15.9	3.98
Coconut milk	13.5 oz	7.9	1.98
Colgate toothpaste	132 gr	14.9	3.73
Cottage cheese	about 2 C	6.05	1.51
Chick peas	medium can	6.9	1.73
Peach halves	large can	6.9	1.73
Chicken boullion	400 gr	14.9	3.73
Natural peanut butter	18 oz	18.9	4.73
Green peas, dried	500 gr	4.5	1.13
Mango slices	medium can	4.9	1.23
Corn	medium can	4.9	1.23
Creamed corn	medium can	7.9	1.98
Green beans, frozen	800 gr	12	3.00
Hot dogs	400 gr	11.5	2.88
Mango juice, frozen	280 ml	9.6	2.40
TOTAL		293.74	$73.44

Here are a couple other items, just because they still had their tags on:

Hair conditioner, 700 mL 15.9 $3.98
Shampoo, 750 mL 22.0 5.50

Here are some estimates of other "essentials":
Beef 35 shekels/kilo, or about $4/lb.
Chicken 18 shekels/kilo, or about $2.05/lb. for whole chickens
Whole-wheat pita bread 10 for 6 shekels, or about $1.50

For one of the two Thanksgiving gatherings I attended, I made my mom's "Cranberry Delight." I forgot to buy the ingredients the Sunday before, so I had to make a special trip on Wednesday. Nearly $25 later, I had all I needed for the scrumptious dessert. You probably won't have to pay nearly as much as I did. Many of the ingredients I bought were imported from the U.S., thus were super-spendy here.

For instance, the graham crackers were 18.9 shekels, or about $4.73/box. One can of cranberries (fresh/frozen not available) was 11.9 shekels, or about $2.98. I don't know how much the cream cheese was, but I'm sure it was a lot because I'm a long way from Philadelphia! And pecans are expensive anywhere. These were $6.68 for, I'd guess, about 9 oz. And because your mouths are probably watering, here's that recipe:


Cranberry Delight
Yields: 8 servings
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup chopped pecans
3 tablespoons orange marmalade
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
Combine crumbs and butter; press into an ungreased 8-in. square baking dish. Chill. In a saucepan, combine cranberries, sugar and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in pecans and marmalade; refrigerate until completely cool. Meanwhile, combine cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla in a mixing bowl; beat until smooth. Fold in whipped cream. Spread over crust. Top with cranberry mixture. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

As you can see, I've had to adjust my grocery budget here. I also eat less meat, although I tended not to eat a lot at home either. So if you have any good vegetarian recipes, send 'em my way!