Avery’s $100 Trader Joe’s Shopping & Meal Prep Challenge: Executive Functioning in Real Life

One of the life skills Avery works on each week is planning meals, budgeting, and following through, and this week we turned it into a real-world challenge.

Avery had $100 at Trader Joe’s and needed to plan all of our meals for the week, with a few exceptions (she’ll have some meals at her social rec program and one birthday party). The goal wasn’t perfection…it was decision-making, organization, flexibility, and independence.

She planned 10 core meals, accounted for leftovers, and even built in extra snacks. This is also MOSTLY to feed 2 people, although she eats ALOT and frequently has “seconds”. Total spend?

$96.26 (yes, in California 😅).

That comes out to about $9.62 per meal (for two people, so about $4.81 each), with leftovers stretching us to 10 meals total (with “seconds”) + room for extra leftovers and snacks we can make. 

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The Trader Joe’s Grocery List

Here’s everything Avery chose:

• 2 bags Fusilli Pasta

• Pizza crust (2 per package)

• Organic Marinara Sauce

• Pesto Basil Sauce

• Frozen Spinach Artichoke Dip

• Grass-fed Beef Sirloin (most expensive item)

• Grated Parmesan Romano

• Caesar Salad Dip Sauce

• Mini Sonora Tortillas

• Frozen Breaded Chicken Tenderloin

• Oversized Flour Tortillas (extras frozen for later)

• Frozen Organic Broccoli

• Garlic Chicken Sausage

• Pre-sliced Mozzarella

• Frozen Mashed Potatoes

• All-Natural Ground Chicken

• Uncured Pepperoni (no nitrates)

• Shredded Toscano Pizza Cheese

• Garlic Spread

• Caesar Salad Kit

• Little Gem Lettuce

We also already had strawberries and apples from the previous week for snacks.

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The Weekly Meal Plan

Monday

Lunch: Chicken Caesar Salad Wraps

• Air fry the breaded chicken

• Warm an oversized tortilla

• Toss the Caesar salad kit

• Add chicken + salad + extra Caesar dip

• Optional: garlic spread inside the wrap

Dinner: Garlic Chicken Sausage Spinach Pasta

• Brown chopped chicken sausage

• Boil fusilli pasta (save some pasta water)

• Heat spinach artichoke dip in pan

• Add pasta, sausage, splash of pasta water

• Top with grated Parmesan Romano

• Leftover Caesar salad if available

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Tuesday

Lunch: Leftover sausage pasta

Dinner: Beef Sirloin + Mashed Potatoes + Broccoli

• Sauté or pan-heat sirloin with seasoning

• Heat frozen mashed potatoes

• Steam or microwave broccoli

• Optional garlic spread for steak

• Optional Parmesan on potatoes

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Wednesday

Lunch: Steak Tacos

• Slice leftover beef

• Warm mini tortillas

• Add Toscano shredded pizza cheese

• Optional Caesar dip and chopped Little Gem lettuce

Dinner: Viral Trader Joe’s Pizza Night

• Garlic spread on pizza crust

• Pesto sauce → marinara sauce

• Mozzarella + pepperoni + Parmesan

• Bake at 375°F for ~25 minutes

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Thursday

Lunch: Chicken Caesar Tacos

• Smash ground chicken onto mini tortillas

• Cook meat-side down until done

• Add Little Gem lettuce + Caesar dip

• Parmesan if desired
  (Ranch works as a substitute if Caesar isn’t your thing)

Dinner: Buttered Parmesan Pasta + Broccoli

• Cook second bag of fusilli

• Toss with butter and Parmesan

• Heat remaining broccoli

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Friday

Lunch: Leftover pasta

Dinner: Pizza Night (Round Two)

• Use remaining crust

• Repeat toppings or remix with what’s left

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Breakfasts & Snacks

• Breakfast: Daily smoothie
  (Check our links for our smoothie recipes—including supplements and vitamins Avery uses.)

• Snacks: Apples, strawberries, and remaining ingredients from the week for quesadillas, chicken salad and yummy leftovers.

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Why This Matters (More Than Just Food)

This wasn’t just meal prep, it was executive functioning in action.

Avery practiced:

• Budgeting with real constraints

• Planning meals across multiple days

• Sequencing tasks and recipes

• Using leftovers intentionally

• Making flexible decisions when plans changed

These are the same skills she uses for school, reading, writing, and time management. Food is a powerful, motivating way to practice them.

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Final Breakdown

• Total spend: $96.26

• Meals covered: ~10 (for two people)

• Cost per meal: ~$9.62 (for two people), approx. $4.81 per meal per person

*These are not the most organic, not the healthiest options and not the cheapest way we can do this… This is just one example, from one week, when we had a budget of $100 to get all of our meals done!