Family of 5 'shop from home'food storage challenge...

Thanks for the welcome back, move went pretty well, kids have settled, DS2 at a new school which he seems to prefer, they're trying to chase up his ASD assessment, oh fun all that to go through again...As for flour, quite a lot but several types, plan on trying to use it up over the next couple of weeks. Biscuit maker was on offer in Proffesional Cookworks I think the shop was called, went in for a potato ricer and came out £100 lightler :rotfl: kind of typical when I walk into a shop that does kitchen gadgets...:o

Dinner tonight for us is ....erm, I haven't planned anything, I haven't done a meal plan for this week at all, well actually since we moved in and have flopped off the OS wagon a bit.....off for a rummage.

Just back from hols and have caught up on all your news.

Glad to see all the wee ones are well again and you are still going strong. I know it has been said before but just wanted to add my thanks for jotting down all your lovely recipes. This has been a really encouraging thread, you are a smart wee cookie!!!!:T

Lists are what I do best. I have lists of lists I need to make. I like lists. I did a 'must have' and 'would like' list. Then got them mixed up, bought the 'would likes' and then had to buy the 'must have' stuff aswell. ok bad excuse.

Right well last nights dinner was toad in the hole, had to go to take DP somewhere so decided to try the butchers there for some things, had an offer on of 5kg of frozen lean steak mince for £6 so I got one of those and some other things, inc the sausages I did for dinner. If I manage to run down the bread in the freezer I will get some more of that mince as it's a good price and we use a lot, well 3 of us do. It means defrosting it then cooking it off & making into portions, but at that price I don't mind at all, stock from a catering order he said was cancelled. Got a few other things I needed like sugar. Will need milk later in the week and more fruit, think that should be about all really apart from pet foods which I include in my GC target.

Cooked off some extra spuds and carrots which were starting to 'bend' and have frozen those for another day, my OS ways must be gradually creeping back as I also filled the part full oven with baking spuds to cook, cool and freeze instead of wasting oven space.

Great news with getting your DS to have the shepherds pie, my oldest wouldn't even touch it, refuses mince in any sauce/gravy and mashed potato he screams at.

Tonight was pizzas and garlic bread, I'm pondering over what I should cook tomorrow, I've booked myself in at the hairdressers straight after dropping DS2 at school (something which has been neglected is my hair and I am starting to look like cousin it!) so might throw something in the SC before I go, maybe a steak stew....I must try to do some sort of meal plan now I have most of the meat in....should do it now really.

Oh another thing I have really worked on is portion sizes, I bought smaller plates when we moved which helps, I've been thinking about how much I cook more. Waste has reduced loads (which the dogs are a bit upset about!) and we don't feel 'overfull' anymore. As an example I had a tub in freezer labelled 'Lasange 1' which mean't before one portion. Well with a few potato wedges and some veg it served 2 no problem. Might help with the weight loss aswell as the spending!