October 2020 Grocery Challenge

patentgirl

Spent exactly £60 so far since 1st so roughly on target for month mainly in Aldi trying to hold out till Saturday to go shopping but cat food may not last as he is a Gannet lol 

BrassicWoman

"one big spend" is going ok. Last of the fresh spuds have been chipped, and I am going to miss them until November,. If I get freezer space I may get some waffles or something next month. Potatoes are amazing, really.
 On the other hand, I've been making my own treats which are less calorific than getting a treat down the shops, and another treat to go with it. Choc chia pudding and choc mylk pudding is easy and tasty for an evening. And I've rediscoverd how lovely homemade seitan can be.
Feeling ok so far, only 23 days to go!

Suffolk_lass

JingsMyBucket said:

Starting a bit late this month. @elsiepac would you be able to put me down for $400 please? I have to restock on a bunch of basics this month like toilet paper, toothpaste, bread, cheese, nuts, meat, etc. Plus my husband is coming to visit at the end of the month for about 5 weeks and I’ll have to get some stuff for him. He’s also vegetarian so will want more things like avocados, and we’ll have to double up on nuts. We haven’t seen each other since last December due to coronavirus causing visa issues, so it’ll be good to be reunited. Also just remembered that he’ll have to quarantine for 2 weeks when he lands here in NYC, so an end of the month stock up is definitely in order.  Good luck everyone and I’ll catch up on the thread later today!

I feel for you @JingsMyBucket - your circumstances certainly put mine into perspective. I need to just potter along in my little bubble and it's easy to forget how difficult or complicated things are for others.

JingsMyBucket

Suffolk_lass said:

I feel for you @JingsMyBucket - your circumstances certainly put mine into perspective. I need to just potter along in my little bubble and it's easy to forget how difficult or complicated things are for others.

Thank you so much @Suffolk_lass, that is so kind of you. Your empathy is much appreciated, right about now. I think I've become so used to the situation that your own post made me turn it around in my head and understand how extreme others may view it. Thanks for that perspective as well.  

Doom_and_Gloom

Spent £21.44 today. 
This included deodorant (enough for at least a couple of months) and a shampoo bar which together came to £12 of the total, epp. 
It is only the 9th and these are the stats - 
£120.25/£180.
£59.75 left 😑. 

Not sure we'll come in budget this month but we'll still try to. 

goldfinches

I've also been shopping today and have spent £1.53 on y/s lambs lettuce and sweet romaine and £11.40 on items that were on my list such as milk, cranberry juice, radishes, garlic, rye crackers, red cabbage, carrots, wine for vinaigrette and a huge squash which I will be roasting later on this evening. That brings me to £144.70/£190 so far. I plan to make a cabbage and carrot salad dressed with vinaigrette rather than mayonnaise and eat it alongside the roast squash and a spicy brown lentil dish that the slow cooker made while I was out shopping this afternoon. I also have the home made  labneh that I have just had my first taste of and it is delicious on crackers so I think I'm covered until the middle of next week. 

I followed this recipe for the labneh https://thehappyfoodie.co.uk/recipes/labneh and used muslins from Bo*ts the Chemist own brand baby range which worked well. I decided to do it because I came across some of my favourite fat free greek style yoghurt hugely marked down due to dates and you can't freeze it. The only possible problems I think others might have are needing a cloth and somewhere to hang it from, other than those issues you just need to leave it hanging for a minimum of 12 hours and then turn it out of the cloth into a container to go in the fridge.
I started with 1 kg of yoghurt and ended up with 412g of labneh which has a tangy creamy flavour and a thick, dry texture and I calculate that 100g of my labneh has 136 kcal.
It cost me £1.02 for the yoghurt compared to around about £1.50 for 300g of own brand cream cheese in a supermarket so I'm wondering about buying the lowest priced blandest yoghurt I can find next time to compare the flavours which would potentially bring the cost down to below 40 pence for 400g.
I'm planning to stay out of the shops this weekend by visiting the library and walking in local parks to find walnuts as avoiding temptation has so far been really helpful.
Good eating and sweet dreams to all, goldfinches.

joedenise

@goldfinches If you have a Mr Ts near you they are selling their 500g Greek style 0% fat natural yoghurt at 39p at the moment if that's any good for you.  It's the one I always buy.  I've used it to make cheese before but not for a while.

goldfinches

joedenise said:

@goldfinches If you have a Mr Ts near you they are selling their 500g Greek style 0% fat natural yoghurt at 39p at the moment if that's any good for you.  It's the one I always buy.  I've used it to make cheese before but not for a while.

Thanks very much, I'll give it a go when I've eaten up the first batch.
How did you find the flavour when you made it and do you have any suggestions for herbs/spices/nuts etc. I can add to it? I'm wondering about orange thyme which I have growing on my window ledge and perhaps pairing that with honey, toasted flaked almonds,  chopped dried apricots and orange flower water for instance. 

joedenise

It was very bland when it was made.  I just added some garlic and mixed herbs.  I'm sure you could flavour it with whatever herbs/spices/nuts etc that you fancy.  I just went with garlic and herb as that was the soft cheese I used to buy!  

As you say it's much cheaper to make your own.  Think I might make some next time I need soft cheese for something on my menu plan!

snowbird20

i've overshot my budget.  Sigh.  $560 US.  Very disappointing.  I am still stocking the pantry in this house, though so it's costy.
I have most of my menu plan for the rest of the month.  I hope to only spend about another $100 but i have to feed my sister the last week of the month and she's really picky.  
menu plan:
10/10=sausage tortellini soup, savory monkey bread, salad. chocolate cake for dessert (we're having company over)
10/11-feta spinach burgers
10/12-mississippi pot roast
10/13-tomato cheddar pie, green salad
10/14-panfried fish, green beans, salad
1-/15-leftvers
10/16-banh mi burgers, pickled veg, rice noodle salad
10/17-oxtail/butterbean stew for dh/i dunno for me
10/18-zucchini lasagna
10/19-larb
10/20-pho
10/21-25 out of town
10/26
10/27
10/28-kalbi, rice, banchan
10/29-meatloaf, truck stop potatoes, green beans
10/30
10/31