A quick source of protein to slather on toast in the morning or pair with jelly for lunch, the all-American spread is essential for a week's worth of groceries. But picking the correct size and the right brand is tricky: store organic versus Adams, 18 ounces or 64? Too much peanut butter can eat up wiggle room for luxuries like chips and salsa or banana Popsicles.

Mary Kaye and Jon Huntsman Jr., who shopped on a food-stamp budget last week, agonized in the bread aisle at the Smith's store in Salt Lake City's Avenues neighborhood. Normally, they'd buy a big tub of Adams. But with $208 to feed the eight Huntsmans currently in residence at the Governor's Mansion for the next week, every dollar was precious.

The governor picked up an industrial-sized jar of Kroger Creamy.

"We don't need that much," the first lady said. "We'll have peanut butter left over."

"Have you seen how much the boys are eating?" he asked.

"I don't want to spend $6 on peanut butter," she said. "If we're over [budget], we're coming back."

It's the kind of anxiety the Food Stamp Challenge induces, the kind of worry poor Utahns live with every day.

This week, the Utah Housing Coalition, Crossroads Urban Center and Utahns Against Hunger are asking state leaders to try to live on what the average food stamp recipient receives in benefits - $1.05 per meal for three meals a day. For an individual, that averages out to $22.05 a week.

An average family of three, like mine, gets $69 a week. The Huntsmans, who gamely have agreed to try this experiment with me for seven days, started out with just over $200 - the maximum amount available to a low-income family of their size. Food stamp recipients can supplement their allotment with other income, but for the purposes of this challenge, we won't.

Last week, we went shopping together.

Starting out in produce, we headed straight for the bananas. At 55 cents a pound, they're about the only fresh fruit that fits in a food stamp budget. Strawberries were on sale - four one-pound containers for $5. We each grabbed a few of those. And the governor filled a plastic sack with bright orange kumquats.

"I live on these," he said.

But Gracie Mae's watermelon was too much for the budget - $5.

"I'm sorry, honey. We have to put that back," her mom said, bagging two cantaloupes instead. Around the next corner, she whisked 8-year-old Gracie away from the $10 movie rack. "That will take up the whole budget."

We each planned our week around dinners - and starch. The Huntsmans will eat family-sized boxes of Kraft macaroni and cheese, spaghetti and a large number of tacos - both homemade and taco stand. And I'll try to make tuna casserole - a dinner I've made only once before to less-than-stellar reviews.

Crossroads Urban Center's Anti-Hunger Action Committee Director Bill Tibbetts says many Utahns go hungry or buy simple carbohydrates to make ends meet. "You skip meals or you buy crappy food," Tibbetts said. "Fresh fruits and vegetables are more expensive than cheap calories with little nutrition value."

My budget allowed one bunch of fresh broccoli. I made up the rest of the week's menu with canned green beans. I also managed one bag of Cheetos - my son's "treat" for the week. The Huntsmans bought a single brownie mix.

"We can have dessert one night," Mary Kaye said.

We bought off-off brands - what Smith's calls "For Maximum Value" - tucked away on the top and bottom shelves. "You don't realize that whole wheat is that much more expensive," the governor said, adding up his purchases on a tiny square of paper. "Thank goodness for Kroger, right?"

Truth be told, we'll cheat a bit.

Food stamps can't be used to buy diapers, toilet paper and toothpaste, so 1-year-old Asha Huntsman's diapers will come from another source.

And I'm using tissue and paper towels I bought in bulk from Costco weeks ago.

The Huntsman kids are dreading this week. So is my husband. I had to promise he wouldn't go hungry. I bribed him with the promise of hot breakfasts - pancake mix and eggs are cheap. And we'll drink coffee and beer we already have.

I had to put back bratwursts and a package of strawberries at the check stand. My bill: $68.36.

The governor was smarter. He kept a running tally and ended up with about $40 of his precious food money to spend.

"That means we can come back," he said.

"When we say he's a tightwad, he's a tightwad," Mary Kaye stage-whispered in my ear.

Unlike food stamp recipients, my family and the Huntsmans will get a pass today, Mother's Day, to allow family parties. It's an indulgence struggling Utahns can't afford.

walsh@sltrib.com

Food stamps by the numbers

* 52,789: Number of Utah families on food stamps in March (130,566 people).

* $209: Average monthly allotment.

* 2.4: Average household size.

* 2.5: Percent of Utah food stamp families with five or more children.

* 23: Percent of households with a disabled member.

* 54: Percent of those who benefit from food stamps who are under 17 years old.

* 37: Percent of households with at least one working adult.

* 15: Percent of food stamp recipients who have no other income.

* 70: Percent increase in Salt Lake County food stamp caseload since 2000.