January 2009 Grocery Challenge

orchid-96 · 20 January 2009 at 6:56PM

mommyof4 wrote: »

Hi
Just nipped in to say, my DH has had to shop/cook/feed kids since Monday, hence I don't know how much grocery money he has spent. I have been struck down with norovirus and feel really ill. Probably over budget!!! Got pages on here to catch up with but it'll have to wait.

bye for now

Sorry to hear you are unwell mommyof4, don't worry about the gc too much, just get yourself better - I am sure your dh has picked up lots of tips

angelatgraceland · 20 January 2009 at 7:12PM

NewlyFrugalMumof3 wrote: »

Thanks Steel. I will have to be more "undercover" like with my swops and cheats. It's true about my OH too. He wouldn't touch swede if I dished it up separately with his meal, but boy does he wolf down my/my mum's homemade pasties (swede included)!! Hmmm. Am wondering what other items I can 'decant'. Thanks for your tips.

Well I also decant coffee-and teabags(into the Tetley tin) but the favourite is tomato sauce! Ive got a plastic Daddies bottle which is offten washed out and refilled with Asdas own value or Lidls. Thats what they got for wanting branded stuff. Cornflakes are another one-Tescos own(not the value they are yuck)they are as good as Kellogs and go into my plastic cereal box as do any brand of wheat cereals which look like Weetabix. No complaints whatsoever! Ive admitted to the cereals but not the sauce and coffee/tea.
Sometimes its the only way as they judge by name not by taste otherwise. Suck it and see is what I say!:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

nickynoo08 · 20 January 2009 at 8:04PM

Thanks queen of string. I had a quick look on tesco online to see what i could get for £40 and was quite supprised. I reckon i'll be able to get all my household cleaning stuff, ladies stuff, shower gels (already got some in) etc to last us the year plus a few large bags of pasta, rice and tinned stuff too.

Butterflybecks · 20 January 2009 at 9:26PM

Hello,
Just wanted to come and update my signature. Went and did weekly shop last night at Mr T's and only spent £32.86 (£6 of that on cat food and litter). So that bring me to £138.01 total so far for the month and with only one more shop to go I will be under budget by about £30 :j . Very pleased with my self as this is my first month.

Plus I have managed to teach the cats about money saving and they are back on tinned food!!! saving me lots.

Hope every one else is having a good month

Becki x

mummy2mygirls · 20 January 2009 at 9:51PM

angelatgraceland wrote: »

Well I also decant coffee-and teabags(into the Tetley tin) but the favourite is tomato sauce! Ive got a plastic Daddies bottle which is offten washed out and refilled with Asdas own value or Lidls. Thats what they got for wanting branded stuff. Cornflakes are another one-Tescos own(not the value they are yuck)they are as good as Kellogs and go into my plastic cereal box as do any brand of wheat cereals which look like Weetabix. No complaints whatsoever! Ive admitted to the cereals but not the sauce and coffee/tea.
Sometimes its the only way as they judge by name not by taste otherwise. Suck it and see is what I say!:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Oh interesting about the sauce and washing out the bottle.....my dh is so fussy and will only have hp sauce, ketchup and salad cream (cant think of the name but the expensive brand) Bet he wouldnt notice if i done this....might have to give it a go...

PennyGrabber · 20 January 2009 at 10:03PM

You'll have to let us know if the tuna fishcakes you made were any good - it's something that my children would probably love to make - could we hide some veggies in them too?! How did you make them?
Although I'm not starting the GC until Feb (well, 23rd Jan due to payday!), I've been following the thread avidly, and it's amazing how quickly you can change your habits. That's all I think it is. For example, my children go to their dad's on a weds night, and as I'm by myself, I go wandering around the supermarkets for something to do, and end up spending a small fortune, and money I don't have! That will certainly change, and I won't be going tomorrow!
I had a NSD today, and yesterday, and i only bought stamps on Sunday, so that was a grocery NSD as far as I'm concerned! Three in a row - woo!
I don't know about anyone else, but I feel really good about myself, knowing I'm trying to do something about my money situation, and that gives me the momentum to keep going.
My new mantra for shopping - do I really need this?
And my tip for today - when you're shopping, just because it's gone into your trolley, doesn't mean you have to buy it! I've started looking at everything as I put it on the checkout, and if i'm in two minds about it, it goes back - they normally have an area by the belt where you can put stuff. This saved me over £10 last week!
Well done everyone for inspiring me, and I look forward to joining you for the Feb GC!

glitterball · 20 January 2009 at 10:17PM

Just updating my signature and it looks like I'm going to be within target. Its my first month and I wonder if I've given myself too much. What do you think is reasonable for one person I have put down £100 whats the experience of other singletons???????.
I usually buy my meat once a year at Costco hence the slush fund that I would put any balance left into.

elizabunny · 20 January 2009 at 10:27PM

PennyGrabber wrote: »

You'll have to let us know if the tuna fishcakes you made were any good - it's something that my children would probably love to make - could we hide some veggies in them too?! How did you make them?

Hi PennyGrabber -My DH loved the Tuna Fishcakes and he is my guide -if he doesn't like it, I don't make it again. I thought they were really yum too. This was my recipe:-

1 tin of tuna (drained really well)
Mashed Potato (I used leftovers from a previous dinner -it needs to be quite firm)
1 finely chopped Onion
2 tsp of Dill and Mustard Sauce (I just put this in because there was some in the cupboard, but I'm sure you could use a substitute like tomato sauce)
HM Breadcrumbs
Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients together apart from the breadcrumbs. If your mixture is a bit wet you could add some breadcrumbs to it, to firm it up. Divide into equal portions (I made 4 big fishcakes but you could make 8 smaller ones). Pat into rounds and then coat in breadcrumbs. I fried mine for a few minutes in a little olive oil then baked them off in the oven to get them really hot & crispy (I don't have a deep fat fryer).

I'm sure you could hide some mashed up peas or sweetcorn in them too. I will definately be making them again.

tessiebear -how did the marmalade turn out?

orchid-96 · 20 January 2009 at 10:35PM

Thanks for the tuna fishcakes recipe, I am going to give them a try for my littluns...I was just wondering though, could I use shop bought breadcrumbs? I have a tub of them in th cupboard (a little out of date) but havn't been opened, do you think I could use them?

DH made a lovely soup tonight that we had with leftover baguettes, it was 'moroccan chick pea and broad bean' and it was delicious, he made enough for another meal for the 2 of us, but have told him in future to double up so we can get more out of it, tried to get the littluns to taste it but they turned their noses up (typical)....nearly managed a nsd but as I was a bit early for my opticians appt I nipped into the quality save shop nearby (a lot like home bargains) and picked up a few bits that were really cheap as I was low on snacky stuff, they had whitworths stuffing mix fo 10p a box and those amoy straight to wok noodles for 19p a pack (with enough for 2meals in) I also picked up some unusual dipping type sauces that dh loves and at only around 29p each I don't mind...so another £3.54 to add so still looking ok for this month....only hope I can keep it up!

PennyGrabber · 20 January 2009 at 10:41PM

Thanks eliza! Sounds good, and I'll try that with DD (3) and DS (2) at the weekend!
orchid - if you've got the breadcrumbs, use them and see, otherwise they may end up going in the bin - rather use them now while they're only a bit out of date!

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January 2009 Grocery Challenge

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