6000 meals under 50p in 2010; feeding your family on a low budget

Alison_Funnell

HappyMJ wrote: »

As chocolate is mostly milk and sugar I'd have to say a 250g block should do it.

But sugar comes from cane - a plant! Does that not mean it is also one of the 5 a day?

Let's be honest everything has a slightly detrimental effect on the body. Isn't that why we age?


**Edited to add I am far from faultless so I am mightily impressed by anyone that does they best they can. Keep up the good work.

rachbc

This is really not healthy at all. Value baked beans (in fact, all baked beans) are likely to have preservatives and other nasties within - the nutritional value is close to nothing, particularly with the tomato sauce as well. Likewise with the bread - British bread is pumped full of preservatives and isn't really a wise choice to eat on a daily basis. Adding cheese is just asking for trouble.
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Check you facts - baked beans contain NO preservatives, a half can provides a quarter of rec amount of fibre for the day and 6g of protein and the tom sauce is a source of lycopene. Cheese is a source of calcium and protein and as whilst high in fats I will mention again that fats are essential to a childrens diet.

I notice you claim to have qualifications for the 'advice' you are dispensing - are you a state registered dietitian? Because if you aren't then really you don't!

Norman_Bean

Gigervamp wrote: »

And I'm sure I read somewhere, that in France, it's 7 a day.

Nope it's 'No less than 5' a day here too ... but I guess if you include processed grapes it could be more :beer: :rotfl:

LegalBlonde

Mark I am still reading with interest and trying to get some tips from you and follow your progress while wading through lots of irrelevance. Why some people still insist on coming on and commenting on what is and what is not healthy on page 9 is beyond me.

If I was you, on Monday I would start a shiny new thread for your new week of meals for us to follow. Anyone who wants to talk about something else can come here - if it is not closed before then!

edaniels1983

i say a bit of what u fancy does u good!!!

i am a mother with 1 son who is 4. me and my hubby are on benefits with him being made redundant after 25 years in same job!! no correction, the boss started sacking people to avoid paying out redundancies.(before anyone has their 2pence worth, we am on the union route but its a long slog and may see no return)

we eat a varied diet.

diet for this week is

mon, chicken chasseur

tues, chilli con carne

wed, egg chips and beans

thurs, pork roast dinner

fri, beef stew

sat, belly draft dinner

sun, chicken roast

all ingredients cost 30.00 in [EMAIL="as@a"]as@a[/EMAIL] on sunday and will make all meals

snacks are crisps, choccys from christmas or the odd apple

breckie varies and we rarely have supper and lunch is sarnie of leftover meat or bread butter and crisps, or beans on toast.

i would buy lots of fresh veg and fruit but when my son turned 4 the healthy start vouchers stopped and we just buy what we fancy, when we fancy it.

i say good on you. years ago people had to eat what they would afford and veg and fruit was soooo much cheaper. even farm shops are expensive.

but we do usually have peas and carrots with every meal,. of the value tinned variety unless its in the stews/ casseroles when i buy fresh. as are onions.

PolishBigSpender

mark88man wrote: »

So reporting back for Monday 4th January

Again, not particularly healthy. Cheese every single day isn't healthy, and not one person in your family appears to be getting their 5 portions of fruit and vegetables per day.

Keep going though - I'm curious to see if you can make the diet healthier as time goes on! Perhaps it would be a good idea to post all the meals in the same post at the end of the week, so we can look at what you've eaten over a longer period of time?

rachbc wrote:

Check you facts - baked beans contain NO preservatives,

What is salt then? Baked beans are notoriously high in salt content.

edaniels1983 wrote:

i am a mother with 1 son who is 4

I'm sorry, but you're just not providing your child with enough fruit and vegetables. I've looked at your list and it astounds me - meat for virtually every meal, and you're providing chocolate and crisps as snacks instead of healthier fruit alternatives. I know it might be tough, but you should be looking at cutting back other things if you can't afford to provide a plentiful supply of fruit and vegetables.

It is so, so, so important to provide for a child properly when it comes to their health - the damage done early may always stay with them.

chalkswindon

mark88man wrote: »

So reporting back for Monday 4th January

Today's Summary - 17/18 meals 50p or under:
Summary Total - 88/92 = 95.7% = 5912 50p meals to go

Breakfast: 6 lots of cereals + milk + glass fruit juice (Lidl OJ 100% fruit @ 60p/litre) or Lidl Clear Apple Juice (80p per litre). All under 50p (6/6)
Lunch: 50p or under (5/6)
OP - Fruit &Salad - Handful iceburg lettuce (1/8th) Lidl 80p = 10p, Banana 70p bunch of 6 = 12p, 2 slices white bread 10p, apple Lidl 10p = 42p
OH - Egg Mayo Sandwich - 2eggs 32p (Lidl 6 medium free range for 99p) 2 slices bread 10p dash mayo 2p Total 44p
DD1 - Cheese Salad - Handful iceburg lettuce (1/8th) = 10p, Handful Cherry tomotoes (Lidl £1 for 20 or so) = 25p - : cube of cheese 50g - 25p. total 60p
DS1 : Cheese Salad - Handful iceburg lettuce (1/8th) = 10p, cube of cheese 50g - 25p Apple 10p . total 45p
DD2 : Fruit - Banana 12p, Apple 10p, Clementine (Waitrose 13 for £1.40) = 11p Pack of Wotsits (Lidl 10 for 99p) 10p = 43p
DS2 : Noodles - Value Noodles with half tin sweetcorn = 28p
Supper: 50p or under (6/6)
Macaroni Cheese - 500g Pasta 50p, 200g grated cheese £1, 6 Apples - 60p = Total £2.10 - average 35p

Mark This is an oustanding idea and thread.

However I worrry that with so much irrelvant posts this will lose its appeal for people to follow if they have to sift through all the nonesense.

Perhaps the way forward would be to do a website on this ?

With just your daily post and progress and allow it to be discussed here ?

zcrat41

Hello there Mark, enjoyed reading your thread so far. Good luck with your challenge.

Someone a couple of pages ago asked for a spicy lentil soup recipe, I've just had the following for my tea;

250g lentils
1 onion
1 clove garlic
1.75 pints veg stock
1inch grated root ginger
2 teaspoons cumin
dash of paprika.

Its my favourite "I need a winter warming dish because I've been out in the cold all day and I need cheering up". Its not spicy as such but very warming and leaves a definite tingle in the mouth.

catznine

Hi Mark!

I am enjoying following your thread and now I have put a certain person on ignore it's much better!;)

zcrat41 - Thanks for the spicy lentil soup recipe, I am going to try that out tomorrow!

Our favourite soup is hm cream of vegetable soup. 1 - 1+ 1/2 lbs of veg mainly root (parsnips, carrots, sweet potato, and onions) but often we throw in runner beans/leeks etc., if we have any leftover. Just chop and cook in a good veg stock until soft, then process until smooth. I then add some skim or soya milk and season, (we like to sprinkle on some paprika just before serving with some lovely hm granary bread. All the goodness of the vegetables is kept in the soup rather than washed away down the sink (unless you save it) when veg is drained. It is very filling, suits vegetarians and must count towards some of your five a day requirements.

[Deleted User]

If anyone want a copy just pm me your email address and I can send it to you no probs
Just stuff I have collected over the past year and stuck together online in my Microsoft Office Word
Cheers JackieO