July 2008 Grocery Challenge

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  • brummiebabe
    brummiebabe Posts: 1,894 Forumite
    fertyskids wrote: »
    Hi Nikki,


    i know that this too will pass.. as they say. its just as frustrating for us as it is for him. i know i will probably just have to persevere. its just exhausting.

    karen

    Just to say, I sympathise totally!! My DD flatly refused to eat at all!! It wasn't until she was around 8-9 months old that she really began to eat anything!! She wouldn't touch a jar though...so I never had that problem with her!! I know it doesn't really help, but I think once I chilled about the whole eating thing, she just seemed to do it on her own!!

    Have you tried mixing jars with something like mashed potato (which is not lumpy, but not smooth either) - it might be a familiar taste with a new texture? Could then gradually try other small bits of lumpy 'adult' food with jarred stuff, gradually reducing the amount of the jar food. Hth x
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  • FrankieM
    FrankieM Posts: 2,454
    Name Dropper First Anniversary Combo Breaker First Post
    Forumite
    Hi,
    I'm going to join in this month, if thats ok...I need to get a handle on what I'm spending. I would ideally like to get to £300 a month ( 2 adults, 4 children) without having to cut back on everything nice, otherwise we buy takeaways....I've got my first Tesco delivery of the month coming tomorrow so I will add/ take that off my total when I know how much it is exactly.
  • jjef
    jjef Posts: 1,750 Forumite
    HI

    I would like to join this thread I did briefly at the end of last year and its all gone down hill since. I have now moved house and seriously need to cut down on the food budget but at the mo i have let things slip and dont have an accurate sum of what we spend.

    can i go with £450 for this month but keep an accurate track of what we spend and alter if need be

    Would ask more experienced GC how they cope with a pay day during the month (hubby is paid on the 18th) do you look monthly or weekly re budgeting for this thread?
    j
  • candyblue
    candyblue Posts: 640 Forumite
    Hi

    I would like to join this month if I can?

    I always read the thread and think next month! Well this month is next month so can you please put me down for £250 for the first time.

    I should be able to stick to this as we already have all washing powder etc in the cupbd.

    Thanks
    Candy
    £23366/ £39206.92 DFD Nov 2016
  • annelouise_2
    annelouise_2 Posts: 360 Forumite
    Hi All,

    Had a busy morning baking MRSM's Marmite and cheese twists : did half marmite and half pizza flavoured - nice.
    Decanted some houmous and potato salad from yesterday to take to BBQ with the twists - OMG the food was stunning -:j

    We had -

    *Tuna Salad
    *Rack of ribs - massive took 2 hours to cook!!!!!
    *Chicken with pesto,chicken with mozzarella
    *Chickpea and red onion salad
    *Marinaded sardines
    *French baguette
    *Proper butchers sausages
    *Green salad
    *Potato salad
    *Tricolour salad

    IT WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!

    So my spag bol has been relegated to tomorrow's tea and I have taken some cooked beef out for Tuesday tea with gravy,roasties and veggies.

    Have bread,pate,cheeses,fruit,juices,salad stuff and a cupboard full of staples so I am aiming for 2-3 NSD as I know I'll need bread,crackers for packed lunches mid week.

    Really enjoyed HM garlic bread for supper last night OH v impressed so kids have requested HM Pizza for the weekend - I can do that.:T

    Borrowed a couple of cook books from a neighbour so will look at them over the next couple of days for holiday guest cooking ideas on a budget for a family who love to nosh.

    This is my 3rd challenge and I am learning things all the time and I'm prepared
    to put the effort in to save money.Using this site is a massive benefit to me and my family even though I live in Spain and cannot take up the offers but I can forward to my UK mates who appreciate a bit of money saving from across the pond.

    Toms are growing well ,courgettes and lettuces are also looking great so fingers crossed I'll get a good crop in a few weeks.

    The kids are watching Spain
    so I've made 3 trays of Twinks - frozen half ,popped rest into containers after testing so all in all a productive day.

    Planning for a cheap first 3 weeks as my first guests arrive 24th July onwards with OH landing same afternoon.Menu fit for Gordon Ramsays plate (Nigella's chicken with lemon and garlic,Summer Gammon with pineapple salsa,Chicken wrapped in parma ham stuffed with pesto and mozzarella the list goes on and on.

    Spain have just scored !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ooooooohhhhhhhoooohhhhh

    annelouise :rotfl:
    Be who you are and say what you think because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind....Dr Seuss
  • mumzyof2
    mumzyof2 Posts: 3,343 Forumite
    I made lemon drizzle cake today for first time.. i dont think it looks good tho and not tasted it yet... im not a pro on baking tbh.

    FFM i also orignally posted the iced bun recipe months ago..if it was months back then it was me who posted it

    cake.jpg
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  • I've arrived in the July thread. Please can I set £200 for this months budget. We need to do a massive shop as we have very little left, but we'll try really hard to stick to the budget. I reckon we have saved over £1200 since we started this challenge in January. I'm glad we have, as we've just filled our oil tank up and it cost £620!!!:mad:
  • mumzyof2, I couldn't remember who had posted the recipe, I cut it and put it in my ever-growing word document. My little monkeys love the iced buns - DS has recently wandered into the kitchen and expressed surprise that they had all gone - not sure who he thought had eaten them :confused: I really did only eat 1.

    So, a big thanks for the recipe - it's a firm favourite.

    FFM :)
    AMAZON SELLERS CLUB member 0077 come and join us :hello: make some space and get hold of some cash, we're on the ebay and other auctions, car boot and jumble sales board.
  • Golden Syrup Tart

    Serves 4-6 (best make it at least 6 servings 'cos it's v.high in cals)

    For the pastry
    75g (3oz) plain flour
    75g (3oz) wholemeal self-raising flour
    pinch of salt
    40g (1 ½ oz) butter or block margarine
    40g (1 ½ oz) lard
    1-2 tbs cold water
    1tbs milk

    Although I used this for the pastry this week
    225g (8oz) value plain flour
    pinch of salt
    100g (4oz stork margarine)
    3 tbs cold water
    1tbs milk

    For the filling
    8tbls golden syrup, warmed
    100g (4oz) coarse breadcrumbs (great for using up those breadcrumbs I have been freezing for weeks and didn’t know what to do with)
    Grated rind and juice of 1 lemon (although I substituted with a teaspoon of bottled lemon juice that I have in the fridge)
    50g (2oz) ginger nut cookies, coarsely crushed (Tesco value work well)

    Make the pastry
    Sift together the flour and salt into a bowl. Rub the fats into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Mix to a stiff dough with cold water. Roll out on a lightly flour surface, and use to line a 20cm (8 inch) pie/flan dish.

    I use a Mermaid pie dish that I recently bought from Lakeland – before that my pastry had always been soggy – not sure if that is the secret of my new found pastry success or not.

    Reserve the trimmings. Place pie dish in fridge to rest for 30 minutes.

    Make the filling
    Mix the warmed golden syrup, breadcrumbs, lemon rind and juice together. Spoon the mixture into the flan case then sprinkle the crushed cookies on top.

    Roll the reserved trimmings, cut into 6mm (1/4 inch) wide strips and make a lattice pattern on top. Brush with milk. I have a Lakeland lattice roller that I bought many years ago and never used – makes the finished tart look quite professional.

    Heat the oven to 180 deg celcius, 350 deg farenheit, gas mark 4. Bake for 30 minutes.

    Variations: Use double the quantity of breadcrumbs instead of adding the cookies or add toasted wheatflakes – although I think the cooked ginger cookies really make the tart stand out for flavour – the cookies go quite gooey and chewy – yum.

    FFM :)
    AMAZON SELLERS CLUB member 0077 come and join us :hello: make some space and get hold of some cash, we're on the ebay and other auctions, car boot and jumble sales board.
  • busy_mum_4
    busy_mum_4 Posts: 110 Forumite
    :smiley: Can I join the grocery challenge please?

    I really need to try and spend only £50 a week. family of 2 adults and 2 children.

    Never done this before can some one plse explain what I need to do to register.
    Thanks
    :hello: JULY G/C £50 WEEK

    WEEK 1 = £69.50 :eek:

    WEEK 2 = £60.83:eek:
    Week 3 :mad: £72.05 :mad:
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