Chomping our way to financial freedom one meal at a time

Sun_Addict

Hello, have subscribed to your diary as I’m obsessed with meal planning and recipes. Every Sunday finds me meal planning, making a batch of soup for my work lunches and I’m always trying different recipes. I subscribed to a newsletter from Feed Your Family for 20 Quid and she sends meal plans with recipes and costings which are great although they’re slightly over £20 these days. I don’t eat meat but my OH does (although he’s not very adventurous). 

Makingabobor2

Just found your diary and have subscribed I think...is that where you Bookmark it? ...I'm new to all this so  not sure if I've done it right....lol.  Will follow your progress and recipes with interest. Like you,  we started trying to get  debt free journey in 2015, but with  a lot more than you had, and now got it down to about £35000, plus the mortgage, which is now less than the DMP. My weekly shopping budget is similar to yours, for just the 2 of us as well, so will follow with interest. Good luck.

star24.7

@Makingabobor2 congratulations on getting the debt down, I don’t know how to bookmark, whilst I signed up back in 2015 when I was looking for ideas I never actually posted anything just read everyone’s tips!
I have to admit it felt a bit flat when we finally cleared the debt but was nice not having to budget so tightly for a while! 

I do need to fess up - I ended up spending £52 in the supermarket! Mr Star invited a friend round for lunch so I didn’t have time to go to the cheaper supermarket before he turned up and I didn’t want to go twice. I also bought big bottle of washing liquid for £10 that does 60 washes and was on offer - I’m allergic to a lot of washing power and can only use one brand so I stocked up. 

If anyone has any great ideas for next weeks food I’d be interested. I’m thinking of a chicken and sausage stew and dumpling because I bought a big pack of sausages this week and stuck half in the freezer.

Sun_Addict

Could you do it in the slow cooker with some butter beans or other beans and a tin of tomatoes then bung the dumplings on top. I make my dumplings from equal parts natural yoghurt and SR flour then mix in some grated cheese and herbs. 

Both, it’s the top right hand corner bookmark that subscribes you to diaries. 

star24.7

@Sun_Addict thanks, I’ll have a look at some threads in a bit.

I like your stew idea, a cassoulet type. I’ve never made dumplings with yogurt, I just go for a traditional suet and flour recipe. When I’ve run out of suet I’ll give your recipe a go.

@leftatthetrafficlights how is your food budget going? I have really noticed a increase in food recently. I didn’t really notice it earlier in the year (apart from a small reduction in pack size of the stewing beef I often buy) but now things are more, particularly butter and milk. We have a local convenience store that I get milk from on Thursday and it is now £1.70 for 4 pints. I’m wondering how long it will be before it crosses the £2 threshold - it wasn’t that long ago that there were price wars in the supermarket and it was £1 a pint. 

leftatthetrafficlights

star24.7 said:

@leftatthetrafficlights how is your food budget going? I have really noticed a increase in food recently. I didn’t really notice it earlier in the year (apart from a small reduction in pack size of the stewing beef I often buy) but now things are more, particularly butter and milk. We have a local convenience store that I get milk from on Thursday and it is now £1.70 for 4 pints. I’m wondering how long it will be before it crosses the £2 threshold - it wasn’t that long ago that there were price wars in the supermarket and it was £1 a pint. 

@star24.7 - its all good at the moment thanks! 😁 haven't spent anything since 29th when I posted - we've only eaten from the cupboards/fridge/freezer and garden! 🙌 All the things I've cooked have lasted for 2 meals each - I  made stuffed courgettes (filling of brown rice, courgette, dates, apricots, apples, onions and half a cabbage); did a curry by adding curry paste and tinned tomatoes to the mix I'd made for my stuffed courgettes and served with hm flatbreads; did cabbage, red beans and rice; and made a 'chorizo' and tomato sauce with pasta, sweetcorn from the garden and salad. Dh is away for the rest of week so I'm currently eating roasted peppers with buckwheat, hommous and a watermelon, black grape and strawberry salad. I've got enough of that to feed me tomorrow too so just have to sort something for Thursday- I'm probably going to do sweetcorn, courgette and tarragon salad, rainbow carrots, spicy chickpeas and a rainbow beetroot and apple salad with balsamic for then 😁 I've got family over for the weekend and all of the food for that is in the freezer already so I'm hoping that I'll only need to buy milk for them while they are here 🤞 

Butter and milk have definitely increased in price - obviously I don't use it for me but we buy it occasionally for dh - saying that though, my soya milk is now £1 a litre which is a 25% increase from earlier in the year! Dh was stunned by the cost of olive oil last week- I told him what I'd paid and he thought it was excessive (I buy organic, cold pressed extra virgin stuff) then he saw the supermarket prices for the non-organic stuff and realised I'd got a bargain!! 😂