September 2013 Grocery Challenge

Shortie

Hi everyone, I'm back on the boards after a couple of months away, hope no-one minds an extra!

I've been sticking to the grocery budget quite fine but I need to get back into the swing of things again properly

I'm actually going to increase our monthly budget from £200 to £250, not because we can't stick to the £200 but because I want to change a few things in what we eat. We're all trying to eat more fresh stuff (we had fine diets before..) which is naturally more expensive plus we're starting to introduce more meat into the pet's diets instead of just biscuit.

My grocery month runs from 20th to 19th

meg72

russetred wrote: »

Sorry should have been a bit clearer. Tesco are doing a big night in offer with 2 mains and 2 sides for £6. If you choose a chicken korma, a chicken jalfrezi and 2 veg spring rolls along with 7 different cheap items and nothing else in that shop after paying you will get a price promise back for £4 as the shop compares against Morrisons. Meaning your Big Night In only cost £2. But if you fancy pizza It doesn't compare in your favour unfortunately. Hope that makes better sense.;)

Wow thats pretty impressive, might try it for fun tommorow.

iammumtoone

russetred wrote: »

Sorry should have been a bit clearer. Tesco are doing a big night in offer with 2 mains and 2 sides for £6. If you choose a chicken korma, a chicken jalfrezi and 2 veg spring rolls along with 7 different cheap items and nothing else in that shop after paying you will get a price promise back for £4 as the shop compares against Morrisons. Meaning your Big Night In only cost £2. But if you fancy pizza It doesn't compare in your favour unfortunately. Hope that makes better sense.;)

Sorry I still don't get it, I assume you have to buy 7 cheap items to meet the minimum amount to qualify for price promise? But I don't understand how all that lot could work out £4 cheaper in Morrisons. Have Morrisons got a deal on for all those Indian meals for £2?

XSpender

It will be a NSD for me today as tea is defrosting on the side and I am going straight home after work:) I am going to declare my month at £333.05. I had originally set my budget at £250 which was a bit pie in the sky really.

I have completed my meal plan for next month on a funky new spreadsheet and have checked and double checked and roughly costed my big ald1, Mr T value/GF and butchers shopping trip this weekend and it is a lot but will still leave me £50/week for top ups which seems too much but as I will need to do another meat shop later in the month it probably is about right.

My meal plan includes 6 new meat recipes and 3 new pudding recipes to try. I am really enjoying cooking at the moment.

My October budget is going to be £375 or £75/week as this is a 5 week month. I will post it on the new thread when it comes up. I am hoping to get this down to £70/week by Christmas then chip it down as far as I am comfortable with.

Made a jam version of the AGCJ little lemon puddings and they were lovely with custard. DH favourite pudding is old fashioned steamed puddings and he doesnt like the one you can make in a bowl in the microwave, he says they are too eggy, but absoloutely loved these. Best thing is the recipe makes 4 and as only the 2 of us have them there are 2 left for tonight:T I am going to try make a ginger and treacle flavour one soon.

angelatgraceland

russetred wrote: »

Sorry should have been a bit clearer. Tesco are doing a big night in offer with 2 mains and 2 sides for £6. If you choose a chicken korma, a chicken jalfrezi and 2 veg spring rolls along with 7 different cheap items and nothing else in that shop after paying you will get a price promise back for £4 as the shop compares against Morrisons. Meaning your Big Night In only cost £2. But if you fancy pizza It doesn't compare in your favour unfortunately. Hope that makes better sense.;)

I am thinking to use the price promise that you have to buy at least ten items? I am then guessing that the price promise is on the 3 indian meal items on the dining offer? I don't know as I never shop at Mr M.

angelatgraceland

I've not had any Mr T vouchers but I did get a coop one-£5 off of £50. No I found it difficult to spend that amount but luckily they had just reduced lots of meat. I now have 3 beef joints for Xmas at about £4 each plush some cod in a spicy sauce some quality burgers with some sort of topping(can't remember) and a few other bits. I went around with my calculator so when I paid and extra £2 to what I had added it up to I knew something was wrong! I slipped up by picking up the wrong packet of cheese so got that changed/refunded the difference. Spent £50 something or other-now all meat in the freezer which is rather full-as is the other one with fruit from the trees! I had better invite the family for Xmas I think!!!:beer::j:j:j

Peggybabcot

Signature updated with a £46.39 spend in Sainsburys for baking supplies, cat food, Pepsi a few fresh veg and fruit and a HUGE tube of deep heat as my back's giving me grief due to the paralysis I've suffered over the past 9 years from Hemiplegic migraine Worth every penny lol! We're having sweet & sour chicken this evening (my freebie Sharwoods sauce from Shopitize - they gave me £1 and it was on offer at Sainsburys at the time so I paid 85p after staff discount as it was 15% that week too - bonus!) and we're having it with stir fry veg and spring rolls from Iceland. Mmm I'm champing at the bit x

mumofthetwins

Just put my October order in for MrT for delivery next week ... I had a £15 off £50 spend and a £3 off £30 spend and a price promise to cash
This meant I have paid around £35 for 4weeks worth of shopping, I will need to get a couple of bits elsewhere though as EV frozen sausages have rocketed to £1.40 a bag gonna get my dad to pick me some up from herons !!

Still got a week before delivery and should have enough in to do that.
Think I should manage a mega cheap month as we were on holiday this month so only had 3 weeks of shopping to get :T

My parents have just given me an bread maker so I've got that on the go now
I will need to find a cheap source for flour and yeast though :rotfl:

meg72

Quite a productive day for me, made my stew, dumplings and bread.

A neighbour knocked my door to ask if she could put some things in my bin, said yes as its quite empty and bin day tommorow.

When I went out to put my rubbish in I discovered a bright and shiny Tower pressure cooker that she had burnt.I have the same model. I looked at it and decided it would clean up and I have a pack of fusible discs which came with mine. I cleaned it up and replaced the disc and took it round to her. Bless she didnt want it as had been and bought another and didnt want two. Its now stashed away as a spare for me. Chuffed, these cookers are 30.00 to buy and apparently she had only had this one a month.

K9sandFelines

Managed a NSD as my cleaning supply lady couldn't make it due to being poorly; and C**p were out of 1% milk (only one other shop sells it here and it's much dearer). So as i can drink hot drinks minus milk, i will let the kids eek it out in the morning or we will have toast if it runs out.