February 2007 Grocery Challenge

southern_chick

Just got on from doing my second weekly shop and it came to £10.04, really pleased. i went to a local greengrocer for fruit and veg and saved money until i got back to the car and realised one of the bags had a hole in and i'd lost half my spuds :mad: might have to re-think menu now and next week will take my own bags!!! hope everyone else is doing ok SC XX

AMMONITE_2

hi am am new to this and spead a fortune each month on cleaning stuff. want to give it a try and know i can do the foody side with a bit of planning.
but any advise on how to cut cleaning stuff prices would be gratefully recieved.
also any differanyt slow cooker recipes
thanks
jane

lil_me

Ammonite welcome try this thread http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=10084&highlight=cleaning I know what you mean as I used to have 2 cupboards full of cleaning products. I now have

Stardrops
White Vinegar
Zoflora
Borax
Bicarbonate of Soda
Soap nuts
Soda Crystals
Washing powder (I use 1/4 of recommended amount most of the time with spoon of soda crystals)
Essential oils - Tea Tree, Eucalyptus, Lemon and Orange

I think thats it

Slow cooker recipes http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=56978, in the collections thread which you can access via the top of the page aswell

Right just added £15.50 as fruit and veg lady just been. Going to do a meal plan for next week in a mo, need to check what I have in first.

Casperthefriendlyghost

Hi everyone
Thanx for all the encouragement, had a NSD today and am so pleased because tomorrow I do not need to buy anything and I am going away for the weekend so will not be buying any groceries over the weekend.
That means that my total spend for this week on groceries is £1.15 actual cash but not sure if it's cheating that I used a £10.00 voucher for the rest. Does it? What do you guys think? If not that means a spend of £1.15 for the week. Am planning to use the money that I do not spend towards buying Sainsbury's £1.00 stamps and then using those stamps at a later stage when I am struggling to stick to my grocery budget, of for xmas time. What do you think? Or should I put it in a pot for paying of debts? or treats? Not sure really. Thanx for all your friendly and helpful input.
CTFG
x x x

Emmzi

Was £9.47, £9.75 in Tesco.. needed a new scart lead, then got lured by pizza on BOGOF and cake.. was yummy though !

Total spent = £19.22

AMMONITE_2

hi has anyone got any tips for cleaning grout in tiles above the cooker?
i have today bought viniger sratdrops zolflora ect not sure what i'm doing with it all but am currently de scaling the kettle smells like a chip shop in the kitchen

EagerLearner

Hi all,

Am doing well on spending so far - hoping it will stay that way

Here are my ideas for next week's food in no particular order:

- Salmon, brown rice, vine leaves (have at home)
- Chorizo, tomato and bean stew with cous cous (have at home)
- Poached eggs, spinach and potatoes with hollandaise sauce
- Tuna pasta bake (have at home)
- Mushroom and parmesan risotto
- Beans on toast with cheese (Wednesday because we go to cinema & it's quick food) (have at home)
- Pork, brown rice and green beans in balsamic & garlic vinaigrette (have at home except for green beans)

I got 8 salmon fillets from Tesco at beginning of the month for £10.99 and froze them, so much cheaper than buying 2 at a time and they are very good as they come with no skin. I have at least one salmon meal for week after next, so it's one less meal to buy...

Apparently, poached eggs, spinach and potatoes is an all-in-one protein and minerals etc meal and you could survive on that if you had to as it has all the main things the body needs! Heard that week from a friend who knows a nutritionist, so am willing to give it a go as I tried it at her house and it was loverrrly.

Last Tesco shop we got 1kg of brown basmati rice and I then split this into 125g bags, so that it's quick to put in a pan etc. This is cheaper than the boil in the bag we used to get and the rice is lovely compared to the white we were eating.

I am hoping that if I take out £10 cash I can get all the bits I need like green beans, spinach, bread, mushrooms and arborio rice for the risotto. Any leftover cash I now have a separate purse for.

Any ideas for cheap but healthy sandwich fillings that don't involve cheese? :T

mikeD

I'm a happy as far as January bills have turned, but I think we are going to overshoot February's budget somewhat unless there are fairies at the bottom of my garden. Unlikely as it is all frozen at the moment.

mikeD

lil_me wrote:

Ammonite welcome try this thread http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=10084&highlight=cleaning I know what you mean as I used to have 2 cupboards full of cleaning products. I now have

Stardrops
White Vinegar
Zoflora
Borax
Bicarbonate of Soda
Soap nuts
Soda Crystals
Washing powder (I use 1/4 of recommended amount most of the time with spoon of soda crystals)
Essential oils - Tea Tree, Eucalyptus, Lemon and Orange

I think thats it

Slow cooker recipes http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=56978, in the collections thread which you can access via the top of the page aswell

Right just added £15.50 as fruit and veg lady just been. Going to do a meal plan for next week in a mo, need to check what I have in first.

I use Bicarb of Soda, but what are the Soda Crystals for please Lil?

LJM

i use soda crystals half washing powder half soda crystals in my washing machine helps brighten colours/whites and lenghthens the use of my wash powder.plus i also use it for soaking/cleaning out sinks and drains.
went to morrisons last night and spent £51.80 it was mainly top ups for freezer,catfood bits to make my dads birthday cake with and some fillings for sandwiches for next week amoungst other bits,will update sig