The Simple Bare Necessities feat. Gratitude & Recipes

beanielou

It is very scary

greenbee

Now that you've got into the breakfast habit you could be brave and experiment. For example, this morning's breakfast was porridge. I soaked the oats with sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, ground linseed, dessicated coconut and banana in rice milk overnight and then heated it up this morning. The banana disintegrates. As an alternative I use dried apricots, stewed apple or frozen berries. And if necessary can have the oats without all the other stuff - but it's a good way of getting food in first thing (still takes me ages to eat it, but like weetabix is low effort to shovel in while distracted doing something else like reading or work).

I'm lucky that my food budget isn't particularly tight, and I'm always amazed at the variety of interesting food you manage to produce - far more interesting than 99% of mine! Don't just think about what your food costs you, but how much value it provides. Would less interesting food really cost you any less?

EssexHebridean

Morning!

So that's UNDER 90p a day, each (not counting BG in there, although technically, they ought to count too) for the things that make up the basis of your diet? To me that seems pretty reasonable overall. As you say you make efforts to buy at the best prices, and tend to do a fair amount of your buying through independents and smaller traders. You don't waste what you buy, you get good value for your money, and you're eating food that you enjoy, that you know is nutritionally good.

Over the last few years I've done a lot of looking about and establishing "target prices" for things. Like you we buy relatively little branded stuff as standard - MrEH's coffee - he's tried all sorts of other brands and the one with the red mug remains his choice. It's only ever purchased when it's on special though. The washing up liquid distilled from mild green liquid fairies - it just lasts longer and gives better results, in our water. Again though - always bought on offer. Beyond that there are things that we buy branded "ideally" - but again, only on offer. There are things we will happily buy the bargain-basement "cheapest of the cheap" "Value" types labels, and other things that we KNOW those aren't good (I refuse point blank to buy value tea bags, or baked beans. Chopped toms too - they tend to be very watery - I get more value from paying slightly more). The end result though is that I have in my head a rough idea of what is "reasonable" for things. I know eggs are around 14p each, as a rule. Crisps we aim for 10p a packet (and interestingly, have done for YEARS - one product which doesn't seem to have increased in price over much). Dishwasher tablets - anything under 10p a wash is a bargain. My food budget hasn't increased at all in over 10 years - I know prices have risen, but I've got better at shopping around, and getting good value from what we buy, which offsets this. Literally this month we've started setting aside an additional sum each month ready for bulk purchases of meat etc. We've bought this way before but not had a set budget for it.

Sorry - ramble. What I'm getting at though, is that we have to make a judgement call over whether we are happy eating and cooking the way we are. There are production costs behind all the things we buy as well - a good proportion of that 89p a day of yours is helping other people - often small traders - make their way in the world too, as well as supporting the growers etc. (And a relatively small amount is going in keeping MrT's current CEO's Mercedes in petrol, I imagine - as you have the opportunity and the time to shop around to get best value.)

Your rice thingy looks really good. Is it kind of like a set risotto type thing, only baked rather than stirred?

Not raining here, either! :cool:

EssexHebridean

greenbee wrote: »

Now that you've got into the breakfast habit you could be brave and experiment. For example, this morning's breakfast was porridge. I soaked the oats with sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, ground linseed, dessicated coconut and banana in rice milk overnight and then heated it up this morning. The banana disintegrates. As an alternative I use dried apricots, stewed apple or frozen berries. And if necessary can have the oats without all the other stuff - but it's a good way of getting food in first thing (still takes me ages to eat it, but like weetabix is low effort to shovel in while distracted doing something else like reading or work).

I'm lucky that my food budget isn't particularly tight, and I'm always amazed at the variety of interesting food you manage to produce - far more interesting than 99% of mine! Don't just think about what your food costs you, but how much value it provides. Would less interesting food really cost you any less?

I too do porridge sometimes in the winter - I throw my oats and (usually skimmed) milk in the pan with a handful of dried fruit - either mixed, or chopped up apricots, as a rule. It attains a perfect level of sweetness for me, just from the fruit. :T

I'm trying to ignore all mention of the aformentioned weet biccies - I just KNOW you're all talking about eating them drowned in milk....boak....soggy food! :eek:

Greying_Pilgrim

greenbee - I know that I am shooting myself in the MSE foot, but I don't like porridge, never have done. Would rather go without than eat it. And I'm very much afraid I don't see the point of buying extra stuff to make it 'taste good' Sorry DH will eat it, and has some sultanas and honey on it. I think that the honey spoon has got bigger though...... time for a word, methinks.

EH - I agree, there is plenty that I am not paying anymore now for than I was a good few years ago. Interestingly, tomatoes can be got for 25p a tin again. I remember having a conversation with someone (now deceased, lost to the bigC) about walking to a distant supermercado because the tomatoes were 4 for £1 (it was n3tto I think) and they were taking the mickey out of me for being so tight That has got to be 7, 8 maybe even 9 years ago.....

I don't like my weet bics really soggy either I don't have lashings of milk on as I'm not overly keen on that either :rotfl:

I get the production costs argument - and it does irk me that beans can be flown half way around the world and be cheaper (in season or out) than our own home grown produce. I guess that it *feels* as though the food budget has spiralled virtually out of control. I was blaming it on my mind being *distracted* But in some ways, I now not so sure.

Erm, no - the rice casserole was more of a bake - you pre-cook the rice (whatever type you use) and then combine it with the wet ingredients and anything else that you are using. So good for 'leftovers', but a bit of a faff if making from scratch I suppose. I just cooked the rice earlier in the day and made sure I cooled it quickly etc.

Greying X

greenbee

Honey is expensive (especially nice honey rather than stuff from bees feeding on oilseed rape). Maybe you should move DH onto sugar or golden syrup? I'd focus on his honey intake rather than the weetabix

Cheery_Daff

Aw Greying, you sound a bit down (((()))) I think £50 a month for staples is Excellent and Frugal Shopping :j Food is, after all, pretty much the most important thing we buy and I too am constantly impressed by your ability to make nutritious and cheerful meals from basic, inexpensive ingredients :kisses3:

I too have fallen into the habit of popping in for milk and 'just picking up...' xy and z. Not helped by the fact that we're not really doing a proper big shop, or any kind of meal planning right now (but, as you know, we've let ourselves off the hook with that for a while).

As for your choice of breakfast, no need to justify that to us you"re not exactly eating luxury choco-fruity-granola-pops laced with gold top milk every morning :rotfl: I am a porridge fiend too (cooked with water and salt in the microwave for 2 mins, then with sugar and fruit if we've got it) but life is just too short to not enjoy your breakfast. Your other meals are so frugal and made from scratch and if there's a hole in your budget, I can't imagine much of it willbe plugged by removing your choice of breakfast...

Look after yourself lass xxx

Greying_Pilgrim

Thanks cheery - there are lots of *noises off* (in theatre parlance) at the moment. Too many precious hours sleep lost werriting

That said. I do need to look very closely at the budget, as it is the only one over which there is much sway. And I suppose *sway* on an ongoing basis - ie we eat every month (get us :rotfl:), whereas doing something about your car insurance or breakdown cover etc is more an annual event. DH has actually done very well this year and got something knocked off every item that he has had to ring up for. But it's a game. They just stick the money up and those that haggle get a bit knocked off, those that don't, don't (yes, you can move companies, but it's not always as easy to switch as it's made out to be.........)

I suppose if I'm notionally dealing with a £100 budget for food a month, or £140 as it has been for some months now, that seems a whole portion *gone* on nothing very 'edible' IYSWIM. I know they are building blocks, or specific meal components but you don't open the pantry door and say, 'Yum, flour' either.........

Just as a matter of interest, I looked up the price of carrots. If i don't wait until Thursday for mrL's 29p ones, the cheapest are mrM's *wonky* ones I saw his *wonky* King Edwards t'other day - oh yes I did :rotfl: - and they were £1.12 a bag (1kg? or 2kg?) But I didn't notice if our store had the carrots. I thought this *wonky* veg was a new thing, or is it all ranges in all stores?

So, £90 to buy nice things....... no wonder I don't drink gin anymore - can't afford to! :rotfl:

Baby Greying and I have been out and about to see how far it was. It was just far enough for them to drop off to sleep :j We didn't bother going up the high street, we'll save that for another day.

I have completed 2 telephone based tasks that I needed to, so that has lessened some of the whizzing brain syndrome - I've taken some action - I'm now waiting on other people........*rollseyessmillie*

I'm going to go and read some pages of my book. I was looking into 'Bullet - ish Journals' (prefer EH's version, more me ), and there was an interesting blog piece aimed at new mothers. It mentioned making time to read (if that is your thing) I have been sadly neglecting my reading. So, having found an 'ok' tome, I'd best get on with it.

Thanks for the chat, debate and hugs. All good. All greatly appreciated.

Greying X

EssexHebridean

Ooh I've had the wonky tatties - and very nice they were too! It must have been a 2kg bag I think - and in fact the final one of them was used last night! :T Perfectly good - and the store I got those in definitely had the carrots - although I didn't buy them, they looked fine!

On the food budget question - first up, £140 a month for THREE people (even allowing for one being a mini-person, but still, you ARE feeding them too, one way or another!) seems pretty impressive to me. Second, your point about not saying "yum, flour" is a fair one, BUT think through your meals for the past few days without those building block ingredients, and see where you're left. Pizza with no flour as a starting point....urgh! A cuppa without tea....well hot water on its own isn't really my thing! On their own, dull and not that interesting, but combined with a smattering of the more interesting things - a whole different story. That soup tonight would be a whole heap less tasty without the split peas, wouldn't it?

My point is - on paper those things are "just staples" - but in fact, for those of us who cook from scratch, they are often a main component of our meals, aren't they!

BOBS

Just stumbled across this thread and having a wee read through. Really admire how well you all manage to budget.
We are a family of 5 - 2 adults and 3 hungry teens. I fight to keep weekly spend under £100 for all of us - though this includes all meals - breakfast, packed lunch, tea supper and ever thing in between. My budget also includes toiletries, loo roll, cleaning products etc.
Going to keep following