January 2009 Grocery Challenge

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  • Sylvan
    Sylvan Posts: 347
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    Flat_Eric wrote: »
    I always get confused as to which is the best buy when supermarkets quote the price for one brand of (say cheese) per kg but then another brand is quoted per 100g.

    my little brain just cant handle the maths :confused:





    If I'm actually in the supermarket I weigh the pack for which they've quoted the per fruit price and then work out how much the per weight priced pack would cost for that amount.
    Time flies like an arrow.
    Fruit flies like a banana.
    Money talks, but chocolate SINGS

    "I used to be snow white but I drifted" (A seasonal quote from the incomparable Miss West)
  • Kiwisaver_2
    Kiwisaver_2 Posts: 1,169 Forumite
    Tried my bestest to stay away from shops this week, been five days with no spends, but I had to get catfood today. So another $20.28 less food for us for the remainder of the month. Two more weeks to go and I'm wishing it were February already. :rolleyes:
    Mortgage
    Start January 2017: $268,012
    Latest balance $266,734
    Reduction: $1,278.45
  • kunekune
    kunekune Posts: 1,909 Forumite
    I'm amazed you're managing at all on that tight budget - we used to sometimes spend that much in a week (though that was in the days when we lived beyond our means)!It's much harder when you don't have the choice of shops there is here in the UK and some things are more expensive in NZ.

    Whereabouts are you? I had an email from a friend in Wellington today and he said it had been a lovely day there.

    Spent £5 yesterday getting: 4 litres skimmed milk, 1 litre proper milk for cooking, 2 small brown sliced loaves and 1 white loaf. It seems a lot; apart from Spar we only have a tiny wee co-op in Bingley, so there's no choice when I need to get food on the way home from work. I have milk in the freezer but the last one I took out had split!

    We had a kedgeree for tea last night using rice, 4 eggs and 2 pieces smoked cod. The children really liked it, it was the first time they'd ever had something with those spices, and they'd never had smoked fish before either, so that was a good find. Grownups had a tomato and cucumber salad laced with chilli to spice it up. Tonight is a vege night, and I'm planning to make some sort of lentil and nut roast to have with an optional spicy tomato sauce, mash and roast cauliflower/carrots. Don't know if the kids will eat it, but it's worth a try.
    Mortgage started on 22.5.09 : £129,600
    Overpayments to date: £3000
    June grocery challenge: 400/600
  • JayJay14
    JayJay14 Posts: 1,918 Forumite
    I only spent £1.20 in the seven days up to yesterday, and managed to rack up just £5.94 at Wilkinsons and Heron yesterday. Off to town today to meeets the 2 DD's for lunch and a wander round the shops. Will be leaving my car at DD2's and walking into town from there - will save a bomb on car park fees, and I have promiced to treat them to a frugal lunch (we do this very rarely).

    Will be heading to Farmfoods before we get the bus back to the car as they have milk still at £1 for 2l and it is worth the detour.

    I seem to be spending very little this month, though I still have tons of frozen stuff from Xmas and before which really needs to be used up. I've also gone back to meal planning which at least saves the constant rummaging through the freezer wondering what to have. Am also trying to cut back as my weight is really beginning to get me down and I am sure it is beginning to slow me down as well.

    Anyway sorry for the long post - have to ge on with something, am at the dentist at 11.30 so need to take my mind off that:D
  • elizabunny
    elizabunny Posts: 1,030 Forumite
    Morning everyone. Well, I managed a NSD yesterday -that's just 2 this monthicon9.gif So I'm hoping for another today. I absolutely dare NOT transfer to the annual budget because I'm sure I would spend everything in the first few months -trying not to spend my whole monthly budget in the first 2 weeks has been hard enough. This Grocery Challenge is amazing it really makes you think about what you're spending your money on and how you're using the food in your cupboards. I'm hoping to struggle to the end of the month without going too much over budget -although I still have another £30 or so to spend -I just can't see me doing it, but I won't give up!

    Today I'm going to make a sausage casserole. I shall put in Sausages (obviously) bacon, onion, other veggies, a can of red kidney beans and a can of tomatoes plus herbs and seasoning. I'll brown the Sausages, bacon and onions first. I was thinking about adding a small bottle of cider that we have left over from xmas, but I don't think it will need this -so I 'll save it for something else -don't want to waste anything. Hopefully I'll make enough to freeze some for another time.

    Have a good day all and by the way I think everone is doing so well on their challenge -keep going!:A
    Sealed Pot Challenge 7 Member 022 :staradmin:staradmin:staradmin
    5:2 Diet started 28/1/2013 only 13lbs lost due to Xmas 2013 blip.
  • MRSMCAWBER
    MRSMCAWBER Posts: 5,442 Forumite
    Morning all

    Elizabunny.......could you save the bacon for another meal ;) We love potatoes and onions layered with a lamb stock cube dissolved in a little water -cover with foil and bake -when soft take off the foil -put bacon on top and put back in the oven and crisp up the top layer :D ....

    god Im turning into my grandad :p ...I remember as a kid grandad grumbling at mamma when she did cooked breakfasts -because *quote* - "there was 3 seperate meals at least there" as far as he was concerned sausage, bacon, eggs should all be the main part of another meal ....it wasn't as if they were short of money -but he still liked "frugal" --now I get it :T

    FallenAngelShelly -
    the lemon potatoes are simple.... just peel potatoes and put in a large roasting tin... then I do 2 cups water and 1/4 cup olive oil and juice of 1-2 lemons and seasoning -pour over potatoes -cover with foil and cook until soft then remove the foil to crisp up -they are addictive... even cold :o

    Well the snow has just about gone -but Im still not going out there :D so thats 5 NSDs in a row and 10 NSDs this month :j

    Dinner tonight is jacket potatoes with cottage cheese and salad nomnomnom

    hope everyone is doing ok:D
    -6 -8 -3 -1.5 -2.5 -3 -1.5-3.5
  • OrkneyStar
    OrkneyStar Posts: 7,025
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    Just a quick post to say well done to everyone so far.
    We are doing ok so far. We have done 3 weeks of Jan and have spent between 2 and 3 weeks money (basing on annual budget divided by 52!) For those of you sailing close to your budget total, remember we all make mistakes and also, although some people may be well under their budgets, their budgets may be much more generous than yours. We all have our own comfort zones but remember being 'on' budget of £200 is no better or worse than 'under' budget of £400! (not that it is a competition).
    Anyway I will likely not post much until end of month update (believe it or not when other people seem to blow their budgets or spend much more than us it makes me want to, too!!). I will read and thank though :).
    Good luck in the meantime.
    Ermutigung wirkt immer besser als Verurteilung.
    Encouragement always works better than judgement.

  • Good morning all:hello:. Just a quick update, then off to catch up with the posts. Another NSD for me today:j, have made fishpie for tonights dinner from fish I had in freezer and made another batch of rolls for packed lunches tomorrow. Thanks to SharroneJ for the comment about my multi tasking:D, it did make me chuckle:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: . Catch u all later.
    Grocery Challenge 2013: July week 1 £90/£87.41 :D
    week 2 £90.00/£118.38:eek: week 3 £90/£60.54:jweek4 £90/£79.90 week5 £45/£00
    End of mortgage april 2030
    Mortgage overpayment from june 2013 aiming for £400 a month: £451
    Emergency fund 2013 from june £70
  • elizabunny
    elizabunny Posts: 1,030 Forumite
    MRSMCAWBER wrote: »
    Morning all

    Elizabunny.......could you save the bacon for another meal ;) We love potatoes and onions layered with a lamb stock cube dissolved in a little water -cover with foil and bake -when soft take off the foil -put bacon on top and put back in the oven and crisp up the top layer :D ....

    god Im turning into my grandad :p ...I remember as a kid grandad grumbling at mamma when she did cooked breakfasts -because *quote* - "there was 3 seperate meals at least there" as far as he was concerned sausage, bacon, eggs should all be the main part of another meal ....it wasn't as if they were short of money -but he still liked "frugal" --now I get it :T
    hope everyone is doing ok:D

    Good morning MRSMCAWBER and thank you for your advice. I know exactly what you mean, it does seem rather extravagant to put two different kinds of meat into one meal, that's what happens when you read posh cookery books:o. Unfortunately, I read your post just a bit too late and after I finished making the casserole BUT, and I hope this redeems me slightly -what I have done is only put in half the bacon I had, the other half is going into 2 Quiches which I am hoping to make tomorrow. Also, I love the look of your recipe for Potatoes and Onions and must try that soon. I've already made your Cobbler Topping Recipe which DH absolutely can't get enough of.

    Another confession is that, although I didn't put the cider in my casserole, I put in a tin of DH beer!!!! :eek: It smells lovely -hope he thinks so too.

    I'm learning about being frugal quite quickly though, I never could quite understand why so many people made such a thing about keeping stock from veggies and meat etc. and admit I used to throw it away:eek: , but since I started the challenge, I've saved it all and made so many lovely soups -I can't think what on earth I was doing before. The same goes for turning the end of stale loaves into breadcrumbs which I now freeze -sorry birdies!

    Now I need to knock up some pudding or other to go with with some of the brandy sauce (reduced price) that I bought earlier in the week:rotfl: :rotfl: a woman's work is never done.
    Sealed Pot Challenge 7 Member 022 :staradmin:staradmin:staradmin
    5:2 Diet started 28/1/2013 only 13lbs lost due to Xmas 2013 blip.
  • Someone mentioned that they get confused when some prices are per 100g and some are per kg as they can't compare them.

    Just letting you know that if the price is per 100g just move the decimal point one space to the right and you have the price per kg, eg. 42p per 100g would be £4.20 per kg. It also works the other way (ie move it one space to the left to take it to price per 100g), eg. £1.50 per kg would be 15p per 100g.

    Hope this helps! ;)
    Lightbulb moment: -£9,954.31 Current Debt: £0

    It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
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