On Winter spending her own money on food

Winter gets a regular allowance while she lives here. As a rule, I pay for anything she needs (her material needs are few, if I'm being honest), and her allowance is hers to spend or not spend as she likes. She is very independent, and goes many places by herself since we do not own a car. She walks most places, and takes the bus to some. I don't want her to have to always ask me for money for a snack, or for this or that, because she is usually not with me when she is buying something she wants. She is usually alone or with friends.

Initially she used her allowance on snacks on occasion, like a soda or an energy bar, or something along those lines. Recently she has been using some of her money on food though. Like, food for regular meals that she brings home and prepares herself. At first my compulsion was to tell her to hang onto her money, and let me buy all her food. But I held back. Sometimes it was a matter of it being near the end of the month, and I had to watch the budget too closely to buy anything unplanned for, so I told her "if you want X, you may buy it yourself, because we don't have much left in the budget right now." Sometimes she did, and other times she decided it wasn't worth it.

Now I have realized, in watching what she decides to buy and not buy, that this is an important step for her in becoming an independent functioning adult. She told me once that she likes to buy groceries for herself sometimes because it makes her feel grown up. She gets to sometimes eat exactly what she wants instead of being limited just to what I buy and make. I see her carefully weighing her options before purchasing something. Looking for the best price. Learning how to make mashed potatoes from scratch because it costs less than buying them premade. She asks me for my opinions and advice. She is learning things about how much food costs, and how that varies depending on what you buy and where you buy it. She has a more experiential appreciation for the choices I make when buying food.

One thing I am proud of her for is that even though she is spending her own money, she is still generous. She shares the food she buys with friends, and almost always offers me some if I am around.

I have struggled a bit over whether or not I should include the food she buys in our monthly budget. In the past, I have sometimes. Going forward I don't think I will. My reasoning is that the money she gets for her allowance is budgeted desperately and accounted for, and also because it is always 100% her choice to buy food or not. There is always enough food here for her to get plenty to eat without it. The food she buys is more for her spirit than for her body.