November store cupboard challenge!!

jjef

I'll try but being a first timer not too sure how it will work, I will still need milk, fruit and fridge stuff but other wise should be okay. Away to check whats in the cupboards which is a scary thought as they haven't been cleaned out yet this year - oh well here goes.

sammy_kaye18

I am so in on this challenge - my store cupboard is a nightmare and full of random things. I only have a small freezer too so fitting a whole chicken in it will be a challenge in itself - plus i just renewed my shopping list ready for the first shop which if i can live off store cupboard for about 2 weeks should make November and easy month.

ok so heres my inventory!!!

store cupboard

3 x bags of shops own rice (3kg)
self raising flour (4.5kg!) - what the ????
plain flour (2.5kg)
bag of raisins
dried apricots (750g)
2 x sachets fo raspberry jelly powder
Icing sugar
Sprinkles
Baking Powder
Rich Tea biscuits
dried apple slices (250g)
Soreen Loaf
Pasta (4kg!) - ?????????????
Tea Bags
Gravy Granules x 2
Harry Potter Fairy Cakes Mix
Ketchup
2 boxes of Nesquik - one strawberry one banana
Coffee
Chicken Oxo Cubes
Trifle Mix
2 x Tescos own pot noodles
Custard Powder
Rice Pudding
Lemon Curd
2 x tins of ready to eat custard
Sponge Pudding
Plum Tomatos x 1
2 tins of 8 hotdogs
2 tins spaghetti
4 tins of baked beans
Weetabix
Oat Cereal
Cornflakes
Rice Krispies (900g)
6 BIG bramley apples
7 x Eggs

Fridge

1 ham and pineapple pizza
12 fromage frais
3 muller lites - one anilla, 2 toffee
half a tin of spaghetti
cheese
swede
onions
carrots
jar of seedless raspberry jam
mushrooms
semi skimmed milk

Freezer
2 x packs of smilies
bag of mini fish fingers
500g frozen peas
20 sausages
800g mince
2 garlic baguettes
8 turkey breast steaks
25 regular fish fingers

First thing that comes to mind - WHAT THE HELL DO I NEED 4.5KGS OF PLAIN FLOUR FOR???????????????????????

should make for some interestign meals i guess.

Looks like im pretty much living off pasta though.

any ideas people!!!!!! im thinking lots of baking!!

meerkatgirl

I'm in too - I went shopping last night and discovered I bought duplicates of lots of stuff. slightly disturbed by what the inventory might reveal - and a sneaking suspicion that I might be making falafel tonight...

wanting2save

I definately want to do it, i was going to empty my freezer anyway as long overdue!!!

sammy_kaye18

ok so im thinking - sort of meal plannerd myself

tuesday - shepherds pie to use up mince, mushrooms, carrots, onions, gravy and cheese (have potatoes lurking in cupboard somewhere too and serve with some peas.( Also am gonna turn this into a baking day and make - victoria sponge cake, the harry potter cakes, the jelly, the trifle, apple crumble, lemon curd and jam tarts, apple pie and some raisin biscuits).

wednesday - sausage and egg sandwiches

thursday - pasta in a tomato sauce with some onion, garlic (have to buy garlic) and mushrooms, served with garlic baguette

friday -fish fingers, spaghetti and mashed potato

saturday - savoury pancakes

sunday - AM AWAY FOR DAY SO WONT NEED TO COOK:j

monday - turkey breast steaks , peas and potato wedges

tuesday - beans on toast

wednesday - pasta, with ketchup, cut up hotdogs and topped with grated cheese

thursday - pizza adn potato wedges

friday - fish finger minis, smilie faces and baked beans (hey who says you cnat be a big kid!) ok will prob end up being mash!

saturday - pot Noodles!!

sunday - sausage , mashed swede and carrot, mashed potato and gravy

Breakfast - looks like its gonna be cereals or yoghurt with dried fruit/jam added to it. Might even get pancakes on a few occassions with some fruit puree.

Puddings - what ever i bake plus any left over yoghurts etc

Plus if i have any Veg left over i might bung it all in a pan and make some soup.

so hopefully ill just be left with Tea bags (if i havent drunk it all as im a total tea a holic) probably some pasta (cant eat 4Kg in 2 weeks im sorry thats ridiculous!!:rotfl: ) and Rice (ill turn into rice bags for Xmas presents!:T )

so theres me done and empty!

goonlord

I'm going to try this in my own little way too but not sure how well it will work because I eat loads of fresh stuff....(will still be getting my organic veggie box once a fortnight).

My cupboard fell off the wall a week ago which forced me to do a check of out of date stuff - it's frightening what goes off before you can use it.

Presumably you would also include in this store cupboard toiletries? I've been trying so hard not to stockpile toothpaste, body lotion etc. etc. but I find it very difficult to resist!

LearningToSave.

ahhhhhh lovely to see so many of you in!! maybe i'll stick to it if i have lots of people to gee me along!! really need to empty a bit for christmas!! i wont post my inventories as we have a large american style fridge freezer and a stand alone freezer.....plus a lot of cupboards!!! it would be really embarrassing!! soooooooooooooooooooooooooo much!!
im out tonight and tomorrow daytime but tomorrow evening i am going to look through my inventories and come up with a meal plan......i'll post then!! good luck everyone!!

yes toilettries can be included.....i have a considerable amount of them too!! i think im destined to be a hoarder...lol

csi

squeaky wrote:

The money saving aspect comes from regualarly using things up before they get past their use-by date and so have to be binned.

It's amazing how many things you can find hiding in dark corners

but i still dont get it surely its more cost efficient to properly rotate your cupboards/freezer than to have a mass apnic clear out or am i missing something?
dont get me wrong i really want to learn about moneysaving and o/s as hubby starts new job just before xmas so threads like this and xmas thread are proving invaluable. i already cook from scratch but never shop with a list my shop for a week for 6 people,2 dogs,2 aviaries,2 rats, all cleaning stuff, and gas/electric [prepaymentmeter] is £100
could i cut it evenmore

flourgirl

Hi csi perhaps you would feel more comfortable using your stocks up gradually and doing the November Grocery Challenge instead. Make a meal plan for the week and use a shopping list, if you stick to this I'm sure you would save some money. People on this board are always available to help in a crisis, so feel free to ask

squeaky

Yes of course it's "proper procedure" to rotate products and so on. But not everybody does it

So a regular challenge reminds people that they haven't checked recently and to make sure that they don't get caught out. Regualr challenge rather than a mass panic, honest

I, for example, have a jar of erm... goes off to look... Dillsill (which is herrings in a dill marinade) and I keep putting off using it because a) I haven't got a clue what to do with it and b) I think I'm going to have to be "in the mood for it". It was a house gift from a visiting friend, so I'm REALLY going to have to use it.

As for your own budget - it looks pretty reasonable to me The place for that question though would be our regular Monthly Grocery Challenge. It's currently a sticky at the top of Old Style and you might be able to get some pointers from it, as well as give some tips of your own for those people who are struggling a bit.

HTH