September 2019 Grocery Challenge

Matron_Midge

Declaring September at £340.96/£400.
Very, very happy as I’ve been under budget for 3 months now. It certainly helps that university students have gone back and although I’ve virtually no stock in freezer or cupboards, I feel like I’m getting somewhere.
I’ll see you on the October thread.

zafiro1984

Food shopping today, list done - then I looked at the weather forecast and saw thunder and lightning on the cards for tomorrow. It's the day when I have to cater for several people at lunchtime following a morning of outdoor activities.
Just cancelled 'said activities', looked at my list of food items and decided to try and have a couple more NSDs before I need to go shopping - could save a bit of money

tessie_bear

hope everyone is well and easing into autumn...im debating not going shopping this week i really need to get to grips with my stash and if i go to the shops i buy a few cheeky bits that i didnt go in for

i think i will have a root through the fridge later and decide take care x

thriftwizard

Oooh, Tessie bear, I'd be absolutely on board with not shopping for the rest of this week! Unfortunately it won't be do-able as I'm working away next weekend so will need to buy in something the girls & OH can cook between them for Saturday supper/Sunday dinner. It's possible a brisket joint, to feed 6 & leave leftovers, might just squeak in inside the budget (a mere £14.46 left to see us through til next Monday) but there'll need to be vegetables bought too...

So, pretty sure I'm going to run over-budget now; the question is, by how much - or little?

tessie_bear

i have never had any success with brisket i do it in the sc and it comes out with similar texture to a leather boot...id love some tips on how to cook it ta xx

Merlin's_Beard

£97/100, and hopefully that's it.

Awful day at work so swapped out some sensible store buys for some nice treats, but that will be next month's problem and I'm just pleased that I stayed in budget for this month.

Chloris

Suffolk_lass wrote: »

Well done Chloris - I always say, these things cannot be avoided, but having a bit of money aside that you can pay towards them makes things less traumatic. It's three years now since my DH wrote off our commuting car on the way home while too tired (and someone else's too) entirely his "fault" so it is the gift that keeps on giving in both our motor insurance policies but I used some emergency fund, the write-off value and an interest free card to buy the replacement. I hope you like your new oven!

It must have been traumatic enough crashing the commuting car without the added trauma of finding all the money to replace it.

Yes, I love my new oven. The old one had been repaired multiple times in the last couple of years, so it obviously wasn't right. I am a dab hand at replacing an element now :rotfl:

thriftwizard

tessie_bear wrote: »

i have never had any success with brisket i do it in the sc and it comes out with similar texture to a leather boot...id love some tips on how to cook it ta xx

Erm, I do it in the slow cooker too! Usually on a bed of veg - onions, carrots, parsips, maybe some celery and/or leeks - and with a splash of red wine or stock or something to keep it nicely hydrated. I used to pop new potatoes around it too for a one-pot meal, but that doesn't work so well with two non-meat-eaters in the house.

quintwins

I also do brisket on a bed of veg and half fill my slow cooker with stock/gravy/water. Then I cook it overnight and serve at lunchtime so it's getting about 14-16 hours.

I would like to not shop for the rest of the week but I'm not sure if my milk and bread will last. We'll see, I'm already over budget but I only have to make it till Friday then I'm into my October budget.

Cherry_Burton

I went off the rails a bit last week. I've spent £126.19 or 72.1% at 76.67% of the way through the month. I was doing really well but my downfall has been takeaways (2 this month) and lunch at work. I either forget to take my prepared lunch or some days just don't fancy what I've made.

Tomorrow we have family coming round so I will have to get something to feed them. Other than that, I will not need very much except milk until payday and the end of my month on the 30th. So I am still hoping to come in under budget by a few pounds