Baking Cakes on a Budget

peewhyeff

Farmfoods are currently selling 3 x 1kg bags sugar for £2.00. ...used to be 2 for £1.50 ( or £1.60?) so this is an even better offer.

skogar

Yum, this thread is making me hungry.

Tried the mixed spice in the tealoaf, delicious, but also delicious without.

I slice cakes, wrap them in cling film and put them in the freezer, otherwise I will eat the lot. :rotfl:I get one out each morning and by lunch time it has defrosted.

When I was a student I used to make rock cakes as didn't need cake or bun tins just a baking tray.

Makes 12
cost 83p

8oz SR flour 7p
1/2tsp mixed spice 2p
4oz spread for baking 17p
2oz sugar 6p
4oz dried fruit 23p
1 egg 17p
1 tbsp milk less than 1p
1oz demerara sugar 10p

Oven 200 C, gas 6, fan 180 C

Rub flour and mixed spice into fat.
Add sugar and fruit and mix.
Add egg and milk and mix to a stiff mixture, if too dry add a little more milk.

Shape into 12 rough mounds on well greased baking tray. Leave room to spread out. Sprinkle with demerara. Bake for 15 mins or until pale brown at edge.

Best eaten on day of making. Freeze well.

Should really make some more of these......

Yategirl

I bake every week for lunchboxes/afterschool eats.. I buy the biggest box of eggs I can get at the cheapest price and the cheapest flour - atm, lidl is working out cheapest for me. I buy value dried fruit or use apples/bananas past their best. I use margarine - the 2kg tub from Tesco is usually (but not always the cheapest). Sugar is usually the 5kg bag, again from tesco and by buying in bulk, again it's usually the cheapest. Tesco and Asda sell value golden syrup, jams and marmalade, value tubs of ginger and cinnamon and value blocks of chocolate (smash with rolling pin for chunks). See a theme going on?!

As already said, baking might not be quite as cheap as value products but it don't half taste better!

Recipes I use include Mary Berrys apple & cinnamon cake, Mary Berrys frugal fruit cake, Weetabix cake, ginger biscuits, hobnobs, tea loaf, plain sponge cake then add chocolate chunks or icing, apple and cinnamon, turn it into a Victoria sponge with jam, chocolate sponge cake, ginger cake etc..

I also bulk bake so I fill my oven with cakes or do triple batches of biscuits. I only ever do a single batch if I have the oven on for tea! I freeze extra batches if I can but usually between my 3 boys (DH included!) what I make is gone by the end of the week as snacks, lunchbox treats etc..

kerri_gt

I bet if you did work out how many cakes you got per bag of flour etc, the cakes / biccies would still work out cheaper than value products.

Only thing I won't buy value in is eggs, Iceland do six large free range for £1 and I think Asda at the moment have 18 free range for £2.

I realise this isn't within everyone's budget but the pennies I save with other ingredients allow me to make this choice.

tulip12

LV_Sue wrote: »

This is my standby fruit loaf cake. A big hit with my family & friends.

Soak 8oz mixed dried fruit (or whatever is cheapest) in a mugful of hot tea (no milk or sugar!;)) overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Mix 8oz SR flour with half teaspoon mixed spice and 4oz sugar (soft brown is best, but granulated will do if you haven't got any). Pour in fruit & tea and 1 beaten egg and mix well. Mixture should easily gloop off spoon but if it seems too dry add a little milk. Put in loaf tin at Gas 4, 180*C/170*C fan for about an hour. Leave to cool in tin then store in airtight container/tin. A slice is lovely on it's own, but even better spread with butter .

I made this yesterday and it turned out great. Thank you for a great recipe

Floozie

Gingerbread loaf.

LV_Sue

tulip12 wrote: »

I made this yesterday and it turned out great. Thank you for a great recipe

Glad you enjoyed it tulip. I made one yesterday too

kerri_gt

Trying out some muffins tonight using agave nectar instead of sugar. At 2.50 it's not exactly cheap, although from what I read it's about three times as sweet as sugar. Wasn't quite sure what ratio to sub so tried two / tablespoons instead of 75 g caster sugar. It's got a low GI so reduces that sugar crash.

3forholidays

LV_Sue wrote: »

This is my standby fruit loaf cake. A big hit with my family & friends.

Soak 8oz mixed dried fruit (or whatever is cheapest) in a mugful of hot tea (no milk or sugar!;)) overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Mix 8oz SR flour with half teaspoon mixed spice and 4oz sugar (soft brown is best, but granulated will do if you haven't got any). Pour in fruit & tea and 1 beaten egg and mix well. Mixture should easily gloop off spoon but if it seems too dry add a little milk. Put in loaf tin at Gas 4, 180*C/170*C fan for about an hour. Leave to cool in tin then store in airtight container/tin. A slice is lovely on it's own, but even better spread with butter .

I'm assuming that you would use a 2lb loaf tin:

Where would the cheapest place be to buy one of these?

&

Do you use loaf tin liners or do you just grease the tin?

Thanks in advance for any responses - I'm a baking novice but fancy having a go at LV Sue's recipe!

tiger_eyes

3forholidays wrote: »

I'm assuming that you would use a 2lb loaf tin:

Where would the cheapest place be to buy one of these?

You can grab a 2lb loaf tin from Tesco for £2 right now.