hello

mum2many

i am new to this site and have joined the wannnabe debt free forum and have been told to check you out for some more advice:)

i am a mum of 4, aged 3, 7, 9 and 13 and a hubby:), we all have large appetites especially the 9 yr old who is always hungry(his words)

i currently spend around £400 a month and really need to bring it down, I have found a site that gives budget meal recipes(main and desert) for 8 weeks which looks very promising.
i like the sound of square foot gardening which the budget meals suggest.
my problem now is snacks, breakfasts and lunches.

willing to give most things a try, old style cleaning etc

em x

garret1

I had big prolems cutting down food budget because of snacks. Have now started giving kids homemade popcorn, cheap fruit from Lidl, tesco value biscuits and am now making all my own sandwich fillings ( egg mayo, tuna mayo etc)
In the last couple of weeks I have spent £50 per week insted of >£100.
Menu planning is definitely the key and the store cupboard challenge works too. it's amazing what meals you can create from packets of things you forgot you had!
I also now pad out things like spag bol and shepherd's pie with lentils (really cheap) Also cook double when you can and freeze.
You will get lots more more knowledable advice here than this. i'm still fairly new to it all but have seen great results really quickly.
Oh and buy Stardrops cleaner from Semi Chem and like me you will not need to buy any other cleaning products.

Good luck

mum2many

garret1 wrote:

I had big prolems cutting down food budget because of snacks. Have now started giving kids homemade popcorn, cheap fruit from Lidl, tesco value biscuits and am now making all my own sandwich fillings ( egg mayo, tuna mayo etc)
In the last couple of weeks I have spent £50 per week insted of >£100.
Menu planning is definitely the key and the store cupboard challenge works too. it's amazing what meals you can create from packets of things you forgot you had!
I also now pad out things like spag bol and shepherd's pie with lentils (really cheap) Also cook double when you can and freeze.
You will get lots more more knowledable advice here than this. i'm still fairly new to it all but have seen great results really quickly.
Oh and buy Stardrops cleaner from Semi Chem and like me you will not need to buy any other cleaning products.

Good luck

thanks

is Stardrops in a yellow bottle?can it clean everything?wow.

i buy cheap biscuits and hoping to start making my own.
we only buy cheap yoghurt so not sure if making my own would be cheaper

em x

garret1

mum2many wrote:

thanks

is Stardrops in a yellow bottle?can it clean everything?wow.

i buy cheap biscuits and hoping to start making my own.
we only buy cheap yoghurt so not sure if making my own would be cheaper

em x

It's in a clear bottle with yellow liquid and yes it is amazing, see;

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=172073

value yoghurts are really cheap so don't know how much you'd save. Mine was a prezzie so I had no initial outlay.

Linda32

Hi, Welcome to the board.

Stardrops and microfibre clothes do clean just about anything, stardrops is about 58p a bottle from supermarkets / wilkinsons.
These a thread on here, pages and pages long, praising its powers. :T :rotfl:

What I do regarding different foods, is when I go to the supermarket. Look at all the aisles and different products to what you normally buy. Its surprising what you miss.

For example we used to buy pre-packed mixed nuts and raisens. Now I buy red-skin nuts from scoop shops / morrisons and value range mixed fruit and make our own.
Value mixed fruit is about 45p a packet.

Best of luck, any questions, ask away

Gingham_Ribbon

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=56978,

Welcome, mum2many. If you click on the link I've given above, it will take you to the indexed collections. Or you can click on the link in the yellow text near the top of the page. Have a look through that for some ideas.

You could also try using the 'search this forum' facility near the top of the page and type in key words like a particular type of food you want to cook cheap meals with.

There is a lot of help to be found on here. Don't be shy about asking. There are lots of people around who are happy to help.

Rikki

Gingham_Ribbon wrote:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=56978,

Welcome, mum2many. If you click on the link I've given above, it will take you to the indexed collections. Or you can click on the link in the yellow text near the top of the page. Have a look through that for some ideas.

You could also try using the 'search this forum' facility near the top of the page and type in key words like a particular type of food you want to cook cheap meals with.

There is a lot of help to be found on here. Don't be shy about asking. There are lots of people around who are happy to help.

You sounded just like squeeky then G_R.:)

Sallys_Savings

Hiya Mumofmany......

I'm mum of four too eventhough mine are a little older and eat more
(they're twins of 19, 15 and 14)
Welcome to the boards...I've found so many people on here are really friendly and helpful..and I'm sure you will too.:D

I suggest the same as Linda...have a look at the variety of items that you wouldnt normally buy. There are lots of recipes too that will help.
I never used lentils before in my cooking and now use them all the time to bulk out meals.

I found that I was making lots of different meals as we were all home at different times (coming home from different clubs/me being a taxi driver to the youngest two/work times all differing etc.) and this cost me more money. I've put a stop to this now so the evenings that we're all in and out I put meals in the slow cooker so everyone can just help themselves. I wouldnt be without my slow cooker now (I have the largest 6.5 Morphy Richards which sells at Tesco for £25 including free delivery online......I have jam cooking in it now) This size does us great.

Many people on here have a bread maker (I don't as yet)..perhaps you could look at that thread. The problem being with me as that I'm trying to lose weight and bread is one of my downfalls and I know that I couldnt resist fresh bread. I'm not sure of the costings however.

Snack food is a problem still though in house
Lidls cherry tomotoes
Fruit from the market (I'm lucky to have fruit and veg auction nearby too)
Tesco value biscuits
Tesco value swiss rolls
Value yogurts
value scones/croissants
I make cakes in a tray bake too

mum2many

Sallys_Savings wrote:

I make cakes in a tray bake too

could i have a recipe please
em x

Queenie

:hello: Welcome to OS mum2many

Initially, you may wish to read the thread: Welcome to Old Style and that will lead you to the relevant threads on menu planning, cheaper cleaning products, the recipe index and other little gems, among them, the Grocery Challenge.

I suggest that you sit down with a cuppa and expect to spend your lunchhour reading through and note taking.

But, the main thing is, to take baby steps and *not* become overwhelmed by all the information that is available!! For example, you may wish to begin by going through all of your cupboards, fridge, freezer and cleaning cupboard and do a basic inventory of what you already have - shop at home first! From that, try drawing up a menu plan, including breakfasts, lunches and snacks.

Consider your shopping strategy too. Do you shop weekly? Monthly? Which shops do you buy which items from, or are you restricting your choices through shop loyalty?

You need to consider any dietry requirements for your individual family members, but, ask yourself, do you give in to fads/whims? Do you buy 'ready-meals'? Do you suffer (as I know we all do!) what-to-have-tonight-blowpobs-we'll-have-takeaway syndrome? In which case, consider the principle of cook once, eat twice. E.g. Make a bolognaise sauce but bulk it out with vegetables, or soya mince or both (!) so you end up with double the quantity; serve one half and then freeze the other half for one of your don't know what to have days.

We get through a lot of yogurt and yes, even buying value yogurt, it works out cheaper to make it at home. Plus, we prefer it and it's versatility - not to mention convenience :laugh:

Wishing you all the very best in your endeavours

Queenie

mum2many wrote:

could i have a recipe please
em x

Traybakes from the index collection (under Snacks & Cakes & Biscuits )