Grocery Challenge - February 2012

lynn2302

Hi I would love to join your grocery challenge, I have started the second purse and am well on my way with that so now want to get my head round this one, There is DH, myself and DD who is 17 at home now (2 oldest left home now :-( cheaper but quieter ) I am going to set my budget for February at £200 I am hoping thats about right for 3 of us

I wish I had looked more into these challenges years ago I could have saved a fortune :-)

Coxy11

Hi folks,

Firstly Winchelsea - so sorry to hear your news. Sending you hugs at this difficult time xx

Secondly - thanks to all the lovelies who keep us in check by setting up and maintaining this (highly addictive) thread - :T

My Feb started on 23rd January. Have been meal-planning on a weekly basis and that seems to be going well. Am also using a 2nd purse for offers. Went to MrT with DH this morning so have updated my totals to reflect this. Looking a bit scarey, but am confident I will come in under budget - bring it on!!!!

mummybearx

Im back again!!!

Can you put me down for £220 for Feb please?

And can you please change my name to zepsgal, not zepsgirl :rotfl:

This month me and one of my best friends were going to do a cookery course. We both want to learn new things, but after discussing it last night, we have agreed that we shall use YouTube as our cookery teacher and half in for the ingredients :-) Will be taking this out my grocery budget as well x

Gracie_1827

Please add me in for Feb £70 there may be just me after 19th, son is going for a flat, so see if I can cut my food budget.

raphanius

already £59.15 into February's budget for £19 for a m*rks shop (meat) an £26 for an icel*nd shop, a few bits from Mr T's on offer such as coffee and cheese from l*dl. everything is from my shopping list/meal plan so I'm not worried.

I am also factoring in on an £11.91 overspend from January (OH thinks this is a good idea as February is a shorter month) hence the figure in brackets in my sig.

kerri_dfw

Hello everybody *waves*
Well I've managed to spend £34.11/£80 already and it's only been 3 days, oops!
That leaves me with about £11.50 a week until I'm next paid.

Spends so far:
£1.58 - bread rolls
£10 - dine in for two (wasn't worth it as I was hungry 20 minutes later)
£10 pizza hut - left me feeling dreadful as kicked off my IBS
£11.25 dishwasher tablets - for my parents, I don't even have a dishwasher.

Must try harder

Ninno820

Just popping in to report first NSD of the week and to thank Squeak for starting up the thread.

Not GC I know, but sold something on ebay yesterday for £50 and new tyre today cost £76!

Nte to self - must try harder!

moneysaver13

NSD today though did pop into waitrose. Have a coupon for a free bottle of milk as given away in their weekly newspaper but none left and they have removed the sign stating the offer details so possibly all gone now. Can't complain as got one last Friday but the milk only had a couple days left before expiring. Meals all planned for this week and upto the 8th but I have a coupon for £3 wys £30 at Mr S so need to plan up to payday on 22nd! Never been so organised with my shopping and today when I forgot my packed lunch I survived on tea, few biscuits and a cereal bar hiding in the back of my drawer.

Kitchenbunny

Evening, everyone! Here we are on a shiny new thread. Let's get this started! I'm popping on to post my first shop of the Feb Challenge of £12.91. My list is in stages for throughout the week so I'll be shopping kind of daily-ish but will still be sticking to my shopping list and only buying what I need. The biggest outlay for me this week will be washing liquid (DH prefers the results of the branded stuff as he has sensitive skin). I know the one I want to get is on offer at Mr T but every time I've gone in they've been sold out! Will keep trying. I've also stocked up on chicken thighs which should last me for a good few meals. Tomorrow will see me buying bread, orange juice and some veggies.

Tea tonight is going to be an oven job and it's already in waiting to be switched on. I got 2 packs of chicken thighs for £5 (bone in, but I don't mind deboning them) each with 5 or 6 thighs in. I've split them down so there's 3 tonight (2 for DH, 1 for me), 3 deboned for tomorrow night and 1 pack of 3 and 1 pack of 2 for the freezer for separate meals. Tonight's tea is:

Chicken thighs with a tomato and gammon risotto (all oven baked). I've finely chopped an onion, a clove of garlic and half a red pepper and put them in a little oil in a baking dish. I'll let these cook a bit before adding some leftover gammon (roasted yesterday), the juices from the gammon and some water, half a small carton of passata, about a tsp mixed dried herbs and about 4 - 5 dessertspoons of rice. This'll go back in the oven while the chicken thighs cook (stirring from time to time) and it'll make a nice, tasty change for us from the usual chicken & chips. If I remember, I'll take a photo of how it turns out as I'm hoping this is going to be a throw-together speedy supper success!

Tomorrow night's tea will be chicken tikka open sandwiches with salad. Using the three remaining deboned chicken thighs, I'll snip them into strips and marinade them in some natural yoghurt, curry paste, garlic, ginger and a little oil and then cook until done. Put onto a sliced ciabatta roll (or cheapo part bake roll - all good!), putting one side filled with chicken (you can add other veg if you like) and the other topped with shredded lettuce and slices of red pepper. Oh, and there'll likely be enough chicken tikka leftover to mix with the last bits of gammon and some mayo for sandwich fillings for both of us the following day! Bliss.

I'll go and update my signature now. Take care, everyone!

KB xx

rising_from_the_ashes

nimbo wrote: »

there was another who couldn't either but don't know how to quote two posts...

Next to the "quote" button, there's another that looks like 2 ballons - click this instead and it'll do the multi-quotes when you choose the "post reply" option - you can do up to 3 at a time.....


Thanks as ever for the new thread and all the hard work that goes into running it - an especially big extra thanks to HelenJelly - I was blown away when I saw how big the list of GCers has got:) and also Rosieben as I'm aware of a lot of post in the past few weeks saying new recipes have been added. So, from me :T:T:T:T


Hoping for a reasonable month - the freezers are (literally) jam packed so no more needed to go in there until I've eaten something (does leave a bit of a problem for trying to batch cook and freeze portions tho':eek:).

However, I am looking to start stockpiling a bit in case the dreaded redundancy does happen. I did pop to the Mr T where I work today but no tinned toms on the fantastic offer there:mad: - knew I should've bought them on Saturday so only myself to blame (and lesson learned;)).

I really must make a list of the bulk purchases I have and when they will last to (heads for the elec toothbrush until June 2013 and a years' worth of Persil spring to mind;)) so I don't buy more of these things even if I see them on offer.

Welcome to all the newbies & wishing everyone luck ....:)