Help! His parents are coming!

horsechestnut

If you have a Lidl near you, they sell wonderful part-baked rolls, which you can keep in the cupboard and bake just before the meal. These make a home-made soup seem wonderful; if your budget will stretch, then you can also serve some cheese oe cold meat with them.

Paulie'sGirl

Hi Barneysmom,

I don't have too much else to add really.

I would make soup now if you have the freezer space. Its done and out of the way, and you'll know then that's ever so many meals taken care of.

ALDI's super 6, the local market or whoopsed items make a good start. My mum makes a lush soup from onions, carrots, red lentils, a tin of tomatoes and ham stock cubes. Cheap as chips but very tasty.

I also agree on the part-bake baguettes, I couldn't live without them! If you want to bulk up the soup, serve with a sandwich in half of a baguette. Ham and tom, cheese and pickle etc, wont be too dear.

Buy reduced cheese now, it freezes well and can come out as a cheese board with value crackers for supper if necessary.

Consider making a stew now too, slow cooked cheaper cuts of beef padded out with mushrooms. Serve it either with a creamy mash or with a pasty lid as a pie.

Roast chicken for one of the meals, use leftovers in a pie, over pasta or a risotto. Bulk it out with mushrooms and frozen peas.

A lasagne always goes down well, and if you bulk out the sauce with lentils and veg (there's a few threads on this) needn't be expensive. Serve with garlic bread. For a lower hassle version, toss cooked pasta shapes with the ragu sauce, sling in an oven dish and top with cheese sauce / white sauce. Sprinkle with cheese and pop in the oven til brown and bubbly!

Toast and cereal are fine for breakfast, but if you want to jazz it up for not much, Aldi's range of jams rival Bonne Maman for me. Consider buying whoopsed in store bakery bread now and freezing, it looks nicer toasted than factory bread IMHO.

I'd make a batch of Twinks hobnobs to serve with tea and coffee. Again, not dear but will keep them full and look like you've made an effort.

Try to do as much of this in advance as you can. Then you can disappear to the kitchen and chill as you reheat it. You can take as long as you like over the reheating to get a break and a cuppa!

Best of luck chucks, let us know how you get on. Don't listen to the MIL, she must be a sad person indeed if she needs to snipe at the woman who makes her son happy.

PGxx