How to survive on what’s in the store cupboard (plus a little money)

the_cat

First things first.... go and buy your nappies now! Buy the cheap ones (tesco have them at £1.99) and as suggested above use the decent ones you have left at night, make do during the day

So you now have £11. Are you needing 3 meals per day or does anyone eat out thru work etc. How many chicken breasts do you have and likewise how much flour, veggies, fruit etc? Do you have some yeast to make bread with? With a bit more info on the quantities you have in I'm sure you will get suggestions for a meal plan.

Finally have you got any clubcard/nectar/boots points? If you have, then this is the ideal time to cash them in. Not the most cost effective way to use them, but in a tough spot it's better to do that than go hungry!

mrsJef

Hi there,

I'm fairly new to all this meal planning but started in a similar way to you-trying to get through till payday and then it amazed me how we did so i carried on!

The way i do it is to write down on paper 1-31 (or however many days you have to last) then start allocating certain dinners to each day say 1, 5, 8 & 15- Omellette & beans, 2, 6 & 10 Pasta bake, 9 & 16 Quiche etc etc, The cheapest meals all tend to be based on similar ingrediants so from your meal list you can create a shopping list and even bulk cook some of it so it only has to be re-heated.

Obviously there are things like nappies that have to be bought so do a list of complete essentials, then neccessary to cook with, then a would like to buy list. Only buy any of the last lot if there is any money leftover! Try and keep at least a couple of pounds spare as you probably will run out of something and need to top-up-milk/butter etc.

I hope this helps, I'm sure someone with more experience will come on and give more advice too!

Keep posting and let us know how you get on!
XXXXXX

nearlyrich

We get the 1 litre sugar free concentrated squash from Asda Smart Price it's 22p for orange and 29p for blackcurrant and apple.

parsonswife8

Buy a dozen eggs and some baking potatoes. Are you breast feeding the babe?

You can make pasta bake with the mince and the chicken, veg curry with the vegetables, if you get some eggs, scrambled egg on toast, boiled eggs with soldiers, omelettes with various fillings, you've got oats for brekkie etc. Chilli con carne with some of the mince and the beans , serve on baked potatoes or buy a small bag of rice. Get some yoghurts or fromage fraiche for the older babe.

Make a big pot of soup with the carrots, courgettes, half an onion, leeks and lentils.

Make bread.

Nappies seem to be your priority and I second what the previous posters have said.

bluebag

With the courgette and mince and aubergine you could make a moussaka, bulk the meat out with some of the lentils and add a little extra stock.
Leek and potato soup with fresh bread or croutons if you have any ends/stale bread.
Stuffed mushrooms with the couscous,and onion, topped with breadcrumbs and a spoonful of cream.
Be back in a bit. Just burning pizza.

betterlife

the mince can be stretched alot with lentils and oats so you could make : pasta bol, chilli & rice/couscous, cottage pie and stew stretch it out with tinned toms, kidney beans and lentils and oats, depending on your appetites this could be stretched more or if mince left could make plate pasty/pie, any little left overs could be froze for toddler meals.
cream of potato and leek soup, this could be a filling main meal with leftovers for lunch or just kept a couple days for lunch.
bananas for banana cake or bread, also make some hm bread for lunch, soups toast etc.
depending how many chic breast you have you could do a quick roast, pies, soup, chic ,leek and veg in cream sauce to have with mash or rice.
veg soups for lunch, porridge, and american pancakes (if you have an egg) for brekkie, hm biscuits and cakes.
veg pasta bake. will get back later with some more ideas and much do this myself

emiliah

My first thought is chilli - bulking out the mince with the kidney beans and baked beans.

Soups can be really filling - if you could get some cheap rice, chicken leek and rice soup is really nice, also minestrone with the tinned toms, beans, pasta, onion, courgettes etc.

So sorry you're having such a difficult time and hope you managed to get a menu for the next couple of weeks sorted out

Bronnie

Can you use some of the fish to make HM fishcakes?

OH might not even notice the fish if you serve with a dollop of sauce. or could freeze them, would be a handy quick lunch for you and your tot, with some peas or sweetcorn .

Those big mushrooms are amazing sauteed in a little butter with garlic, seasoned and finished with a splash of cream and served with steamed rice and a green veg. hardly notice there's no meat!

MummyOfTwo

excellent suggestions here, just wanted to wish you well. i know how tough times can get with little ones to feed:)

tiredwithtwins

this is going to sound very old fashioned as well as very old-style, but when my twins were babies i used terry nappies - but some were terry nappies that i made out of surplus towels ... they did the job during the day and meant i didnt have to use my dwindling cash on something i was going to throw away. I spent about 75p on some decent nappy liners, cut the towels to nappy size and put some fabric around the elastic bits of the plastic nappy. if you are very good with a needle and thread you can even cut the plastic nappy pants at the sides and sew on velcro to make them a bit more adjustable ... best bit of sewing i ever did!! the towels themselves i fashioned into what looked like a fat sanitary pad with wings that rolled up and contained any poo into the liner so no accidents.
may sound a bit heath robinson, but it meant i didnt have to spend any extra money.
good luck, ive been there and its a nightmare but you will get through it, especially with the lovely people on here giving you help
sue x