Only £10-15 a month for shopping :(

Treevo

floss2 wrote: »

Apologies for the derailment, but who are you to comment in this way? Are you medically qualified, to see that the poster may need some intervention?

Martin's mantra has always been and always will be:

"Be nice to posters"

and I don't think that was particularly nice.

RAS, HappyMJ and others who have contributed - thank you for sharing your skills and knowledge.

If you're going to quote, at least get it right.

I see another one in need of an intervention.

honeythewitch

I think it is too little money to manage on, but i suggest that he budgets for four evening meals a week,(eating out twice, i imagine at weekend with lunch provided too?) with the OP bringing a meal around once a week. Maybe chicken curry using Iceland's bag of chicken thighs for two pounds? (enough for four meals each, and store in the freezer)
Then the boyfriend could buy weekly ....
Asda cabbage (76p)
Asda smartprice potatoes x2 (£2.40 for both)
One (SP) loaf (47p)
One (SP) jam (29p
And to last the month, two bags of smartprice porridge (75p each) and a bag of sugar (88p) and a bag of Iceland's forty sausages (£2) (forty-six sausages at the moment:cool:)

This means he would have sausages for each of the four nights with a quarter of the cabbage and either mash, potatoes or chips using half the bag. (use the fat that comes out of the previous night's sausages to coat the chips to bake in the oven if there is no oil to fry)
jam sandwiches every day for work, and porridge made with water and sugar every day.
This comes to £20.06 per month. (prices are probably similar in tesco but i haven't looked)

If the OP would like to get extra, i suggest peanut butter to use with the jam to increase the protein, and powdered milk (to use in porridge) some eggs, and perhaps tea or coffee and some bars of the cheap chocolate for thirty pence or so.

quintwins

IT's a pity the OP hasn't been back but still this thread will help others. i recommend making these

http://www.cheap-family-recipes.org.uk/recipe-breakfastfruitypancakes.html?opt=rbreakfast

i don't add any fruit or spice and these make 4 large pancakes, you can adapt them for example i made plain ones for breakfast this morning but then made a big patch of blueberry ones for over the weekend with some reduced blueberries i got. these could be taken to work for lunch. sugar is expensive but for the small amount used he could borrow some from your or his mum, or maybe you could buy him a bag when you give him money for your food.

i'd def get a big bag of flour (i only buy selfraising and use it even if a recipe calls for plain) as you can make pancakes, cakes and yorkshire puddings which are all nice and filling.

Boodle

As much as it is probably sensible to let this thread drop down the boards, I put these ideas together so I'm not going to let that go to waste.

The plan does not cover every health base (indeed like mot people's daily diet, let's be honest) and is around 1200cals per day. As it has been said, this is better at least than fishfingers and beans and is the best we can do until the situation for this person is sorted. It could come in handy for someone in a similar situation who only needs this many calories (someone like myself) or to add to as possible. Offering practical advice on how to increase income is of course helpful but a person needs something to help sustain them in the meantime beyond the daily 317 of fishfingers + beans at present.

I did a Tesco list in case your boyfriend does not have an Asda nearby. Again, no meat but you could add diced 80-odd bacon if really wanted to.

Dried soya mince (wholefoods aisle) 375g 1.89
Value spaghetti 500g 24p x2
Garlic salt 90g 95p
Value vegetable oil 1 ltre 1.45
value tomato puree 200g 35p
Barley 500g 59p
Value frozen mix veg 75p
value oats 1 kilo 75p x 2
value tin potatoes x 5
vallue peanut butter 62p
value cabbage 59p
value tea bags 35p
value uht milk 53p x 4
value bread rolls 40p x 3
value baked beans 28p x 2
value carrots 1.5kg 89p
value mamalade 27p or jam 29p
Total: £15.06/08 if prefer jam to marmalade

enough for 2-3 cups tea per day and about 130ml milk per day for this

Breakfast
Porridge made with 50g oats, tap water (contains calcium, so aso drink plenty throughout day) 2 tsp oil and add a tsp jam/marmalade if liked.
Lunch
Club sandwichx 20 - toast a cut bread bun and spread while hot with 1 tbsp peanut butter - this method stops it being as dry, from experience!
Sausage Bap x 9 see sausages on dinner list
Carrot sticks
Orange Oat Biscuit - mix about 5 tbsp oil and half jar of marmalade (or jam) into 250g oats along with enough boiling water to give a rollble dough. Roll out between sheets of paper to make thin. Cut into 31 rounds with a glass. Bake at 180c on baking tray until crisp (around 10 minutes.)
Dinner
Sort-of Spag Bol x 5
Rehydrate 85g soya mince with tomato puree dissolved in the water and add some frozen veg. Flavour with garlic salt and drizzle of oil. Mix with 100g cooked pasta per serving.
Spaghetti aglio x 5
Mix 2 tbsp oil and garlic to taste inti 100g cooked pasta per serving.
Barley Casserole x 5
Cook half the barley, frozen vegetables and 100g oats in water flavoured with tomato puree and garlic. Serve with cooked cabbage.
Sausage, potatoes and cabbage x 4
make sausage by mixing 200g soya mince, 100g oats, 1 tbsp garlic salt, around 4 tbsp oil, 1 tbsp tomato puree and enough water to just cover. Mix well and leave to soak until shapeable. This needs to make 9 thin patties and 8 sausages (it is a filling mixture though.) Fry in oil. Serve the 2 sausages with half a tin of potatoes and cooked cabbage per meal.
Garlic Barley Risotto
Cook barley with vegetables in planty of water, checking it keeps enough liquid during cooking to give a thick broth-soupy consistency. Flavour with garlic.
Cheat Pizza and Baked beans x 4
split a bun, spread with tomato puree, sprinkle garlic and drizzle with oil. Top with a few cubes of mixed veg. Grill. Serve with half tin of beans.
Mince and Potatoes x 3
Rehydrate 85g soya mince as you did for the spag bol. Fry a tin of potatoes per serving in oil. Add the mince. Have some cabbage/carrot/mixed veg too.

honeythewitch

I am assuming that the OP is desperately hard up, and has very limited access to the internet.
There are many people in a similar situation so i am sure it will help others too.:)

quintwins

honeythewitch wrote: »

I think it is too little money to manage on, but i suggest that he budgets for four evening meals a week,(eating out twice, i imagine at weekend with lunch provided too?) with the OP bringing a meal around once a week. Maybe chicken curry using Iceland's bag of chicken thighs for two pounds? (enough for four meals each, and store in the freezer)
Then the boyfriend could buy weekly ....
Asda cabbage (76p)
Asda smartprice potatoes x2 (£2.40 for both)
One (SP) loaf (47p)
One (SP) jam (29p
And to last the month, two bags of smartprice porridge (75p each) and a bag of sugar (88p) and a bag of Iceland's forty sausages (£2) (forty-six sausages at the moment:cool:)

This means he would have sausages for each of the four nights with a quarter of the cabbage and either mash, potatoes or chips using half the bag. (use the fat that comes out of the previous night's sausages to coat the chips to bake in the oven if there is no oil to fry)
jam sandwiches every day for work, and porridge made with water and sugar every day.
This comes to £20.06 per month. (prices are probably similar in tesco but i haven't looked)

If the OP would like to get extra, i suggest peanut butter to use with the jam to increase the protein, and powdered milk (to use in porridge) some eggs, and perhaps tea or coffee and some bars of the cheap chocolate for thirty pence or so.

Thats really good, not very healthy but still very filling, i'd be surprised if a single person needed 2 bags of porridge in a month but i suppose it's good to have it and not need it and can be eaten as supper.

Tesco value frozen sausages are £1.50 for 20 (or value sausage rolls are 88p for 50 and are very nice and could be taken cold for lunch)

And you could do away with the sugar for the porridge and use the jam instead if need be.

I have another suggestion a stuffing roast, 2 packets of 15p stuffing, made up and cooked in a loaf tin then sliced like meatloaf, served with mash cabbage and gravy.

also if this above budget was too tight instant mash is 20p and would do 2 meals easy, possibly even 3/4 (altho you really need milk to make it taste 'ok' enough to eat) and tinned potatoes are 15p, we don't like these however i've seen people on here do and make mini roasties from them, so might be cheaper than 2 bags of spuds.

Boodle

quintwins wrote: »

Thats really good, not very healthy but still very filling, i'd be surprised if a single person needed 2 bags of porridge in a month but i suppose it's good to have it and not need it and can be eaten as supper.

When I worked it out, you have 2kilos oats over 31days, you get an allowance of around 64g oats per day. So if you allow a good hearty portion of 50g oats (more than I would need lol but good for a working male), then you have a little leftover to add to other meals for bulk.

Nice tip regarding the cheap stuffing. I use it occasionally mixed with soya mince, oats or both to make a loaf like you suggested

honeythewitch

quintwins wrote: »

Thats really good, not very healthy but still very filling, i'd be surprised if a single person needed 2 bags of porridge in a month but i suppose it's good to have it and not need it and can be eaten as supper.

Tesco value frozen sausages are £1.50 for 20 (or value sausage rolls are 88p for 50 and are very nice and could be taken cold for lunch)

And you could do away with the sugar for the porridge and use the jam instead if need be.

I have another suggestion a stuffing roast, 2 packets of 15p stuffing, made up and cooked in a loaf tin then sliced like meatloaf, served with mash cabbage and gravy.

also if this above budget was too tight instant mash is 20p and would do 2 meals easy, possibly even 3/4 (altho you really need milk to make it taste 'ok' enough to eat) and tinned potatoes are 15p, we don't like these however i've seen people on here do and make mini roasties from them, so might be cheaper than 2 bags of spuds.

It is a lot of porridge and potatoes, but i think someone doing building work would need a lot, and there might be two lunches that i didn't account for, so i thought it would cover those two.
I like the idea of the stuffing as a roast. :cool:
I sometimes add chillies and kidney beans to stuffing to make burgers.

Boodle

honeythewitch wrote: »

I sometimes add chillies and kidney beans to stuffing to make burgers.

It also works using rolled oats and flavourings in the form of herbs and spices in place of the stuffing - just pour boiling water on to soak in the same way :cool:

quintwins

We're all real meat eaters but i add stuffing to mince for meatloaf and i have seen a stuffing meatloaf on a blog, your could even just make stuffing balls i guess.

I guess your right about a physicial male needing more porridge but i'm always really stuffed when i eat porridge and struggle to finish a tiny bowl, we have porridge 2-3 times a week for me and the 3 kids and a bag lasts us about 4 months lol.