Store cupboard challenge

NualaBuala

mollythewestie wrote: »

Can I join in too please?

I read this thread yesterday with great interest and after mentioning it to DH, we are going to try it too as we have overflowing cupboards and freezer.
We are allowing ourselves £10 per week of groceries (Excluding baby formula and dog food).

We are guilty of overbuying BOGOFS or Reduced items in the supermarket. But recently we have started shopping locally, in butchers, greengrocers etc, we have found that we save so much money and buy just what we need i.e 4 rashers of bacon rather than a huge pack or 1 Red pepper instead of a pack of 3.

I have started an inventory of the cupboards (currently 2 pages long!:eek:). and will start on the freezer tonight, I can then write some meal plans to see how long we can do this for, we are hoping for at least 4 weeks, but will try to last until Christmas.

HI Molly - is that your little one in the pic? - what a cutie! That's great to have your OH on board - it will make it easier for you. I like your idea of shopping locally - that's what I'd like to do ideally.

Good luck with your inventory - sounds like a bit like mine.:D All my jars of pasta sauce were BOGOFs! £10 a week sounds terrific, let us know how you get on!

patchwork_cat

I'm doing this as I need to defrost the freezer, but not sure that £5 a week would get us all the fresh we need!

Aim to reduce spends by £250 per month until Xmas - giving an additional £500 required in christmas spends.

We usually put away £85 per month to Birthdays, Christmas, celebration fund, but have struggled this year until this last month as DH got promoted and our fixed mortgage ended.

We could use up the contents in about 7 weeks, but it would be rather boring, so I am spreading it out a bit and adding in soem variety, so I don't fall off the diet wagon bored out of my brain!

Have done my inventory and I am going to have to make some more tomato sauce next week, but I have lots of tinned toms from a special at Asda and lots of diced onion (an idea that life is too short to chop onions!) , so a butternut squash, a few carrots and some tins of puree should see that sorted for 7 weeks!

NualaBuala

patchwork_cat wrote: »

I'm doing this as I need to defrost the freezer, but not sure that £5 a week would get us all the fresh we need!

Aim to reduce spends by £250 per month until Xmas - giving an additional £500 required in christmas spends.

We usually put away £85 per month to Birthdays, Christmas, celebration fund, but have struggled this year until this last month as DH got promoted and our fixed mortgage ended.

We could use up the contents in about 7 weeks, but it would be rather boring, so I am spreading it out a bit and adding in soem variety, so I don't fall off the diet wagon bored out of my brain!

Have done my inventory and I am going to have to make some more tomato sauce next week, but I have lots of tinned toms from a special at Asda and lots of diced onion (an idea that life is too short to chop onions!) , so a butternut squash, a few carrots and some tins of puree should see that sorted for 7 weeks!

Hi patchwork cat, that sounds sensible - easier to stick to it when you're not bored with what you're eating. I'm wondering if I'll be ever able to face tinned tuna with tomato sauce and pasta ever again when this is over!:rotfl:

Great news about your OH's promotion!:T But the extra £500 will come in very handy I bet. I don't have to spend much this Christmas (I hope) but I'm paying extra off my loan in dribs and drabs - hooray for online banking. It's nice to see the balance slowly coming down.

catznine

Just lost a long post!:o:mad: but basically please can I join in? This is such a great idea to get ready for Christmas! I would need to spend about £15 a week (organic box deliveries fortnightly and eggs/organic milk/cheese to buy) Just need to clear the freezers and larder before I spend too much more!

I have slow cooker going with leftover veg soup for tomorrow and I'm going to add some country soup mix to thicken it up. Tonight we will be eating burgers (left over from summer barbecue) cauliflower cheese (using up jar of cheese sauce from approved foods) and potatoes followed by apple crumble (using up last of the home grown apples)

Had enough crumble mixture left over so made another smaller crumble, for tonight, using some tinned pineapple that needed using - surprisingly good, so have the apple crumble for another two meals. Have a white loaf in the bread maker for tomorrows toast and butties. Just need to plan tomorrows meals now!

LizzieB

This could become the next 'super thread!' It's amazing how many people are out there with the same 'problems' (though you cannot call having extra food a problem when sadly there are so many without enough to go around...). I don't know about the rest of you good folk, but I sometimes feel a mite guilty about having so much stuff (am almost embarrassed of it) so it is good to know there are others out there.

Can I be the first to get a bad confession in here please? I've just come back from Morrisons having spent £13.66. Am so angry:mad:!!!

Hubby had a brilliant day's teaching today and his boss is talking about giving him more hours. This led to him wanting to 'celebrate' which of course led us to agreeing we would share a bottle of wine. No such luck. Too many offers. I therefore hang my head in shame and wait to be kicked out by you all....

Nuala, if you do let me stay, a question about the soya mince; Are you a veggie? (silly question I know, it's just that we're not (OH is the original caveman carnivore but he is trying), but I love soya mince but my veggie chilli normally has beef stock cubes and Worcester sauce).

SanFran, do you make pates/dips with your pulses? They are lovely on a multitude of things (including jacket spuds). The famous Weezl has done many of these, and I've got a few that I do occasionally if you would like any ideas. Bean felafel type things can be good too.

Am going to post my freezer contents for you all to [STRIKE]laugh at[/STRIKE] suggest recipes. Quite a bizzare combination but must use it all as third drawer down seems decidedly less frozen than the rest! Oh dear!!!!!!

Penelope_Penguin

What a lot of posters with storecupboards to clear me included I'm making good inroads on my freezer :T

I'll add this to the exisitng storecupbaord challenge thread to keep ideas together

Penny. x

LizzieB

misscousinitt, good luck with the business venture - what are you planning to prepare? (if you don't mind me noseying any MSE party tips are always grateful!)

Please don't laugh but this is my freezer inventory. There are MSE reasons for much of it so I will try to justify....

2 1/2 bags carrot and swede mix (Mr T's was having a mad day - 18p 800g)
1 bag cauliflower florets
1/2 bag mixed veg
8 broccoli heads (7p each at Mr T)
2 portions cabbage
Nearly empty bags peas, sweetcorn, mushroom, green beans
3 red pepper halves (Lidl did them for 20p each - bliss!!!)
2 homemade portions vegetable lasagne
pack cheese slices
@10 1oz Gouda chunks (silly money from Mr T)
1 tub cheese sauce (19p Mr M)
2 Cumberland sausage whirls (Mr S down to £1 a kilo so 10p ish each)
3 pork sausages
500g pack mince
1 portion leftover mince chilli
3 Quorn fillets (1/2 price offer Mr S)
6 fish fingers (David Beckham 'Go' at 25p a pack from Mr S)
4 cod fillets (£1 for 4 from Mr S)
2 BBQ burgers (Mr M - 39p for 2)
2 chicken skewers (1/2 price Mr T BBQ sale - OH's contribution)
2 kofta type skewers (as above)
2 large turkey steaks (Mr A was doing 4 for £1 a bit back)
Around 20 muffin sized portions of stewed blackberry/apple and blackberry (free from our lovely Sunday morning canal walks)

I also have store cupboards full of tins/packets/pasta if anyone feels like a challenge (I do love cooking, but sometimes you can't see the wood from the trees (or the couscous from the quinoa!!!)

Hope all who are under the weather feel better soon.

shazzle

What a super thread. Thank you...lurker x x

jinky67

OOOOOOH I have just last week managed to empty one of my 2 freezers
I am trying not to buy unless ABSOLUTELY necessary
I think I may join you all

CCP

I think this thread may prove to be the kick up the rear end I've been needing: I've been saying for weeks that I must do a proper inventory of what's in my freezer and cupboards, and of course I still haven't got round to it. :rolleyes:

Right - I WILL do it this weekend - someone please give me a virtual kick (an e-kick?) if I don't!

LizzieB - it looks to me like you've got the makings of a couple of good batches of veggie soup there. I don't know what it's like where you are, but it's real soup weather in Portsmouth tonight!