December 2023 Grocery Challenge

thriftwizard

I'm galloping into December with a butcher/supermarket spend of £70.19 this morning. I'm working this weekend, but it's my only booking before the New Year so I'm hoping to keep within my budget; it all has a tendency to go to pot when I'm away or distracted! The week's meals have been planned and we shouldn't need anything much bar some supermarket "bread" before I get down to the city to do the non-perishables sometime next week. 

diminua

Hi Elsiepac,

Could I join for £200 again this month please.

Some food will come from the Christmas budget, so this should still be doable,

thank you,

Diminua

JingsMyBucket

Hi @elsiepac thanks for setting this up. I can’t believe another year has flown by already. Can you please put me down for 

£300 for December 1st — 31st  

We’ll be away 19/12 — 28/12 which will come out of a separate budget. I’m more so accounting in that figure for buying big boxes of laundry detergent and dishwasher tablets which will run out this month after lasting us nearly a year. Otherwise I think we’ll be fine. Good luck everyone! 🙂☃️

ancientmum

Hello, thank you elsipac for running the thread and keeping us going through the year.  I've got more left of my £1200 budget than I expected to have so will probably be able to get some stocks in for the New Year.  I don't cook Christmas Dinner any more but will contribute to the meal at DS1.  He does a great roast with traditional trimmings.

leftatthetrafficlights

Got some stuff yesterday including some holiday bits so up to £100 this month

Frugalistamama

I can I join in please. £80 per week for family of 4. 5 weeks so £400 this is my usual budget. Should be doable, in fact I'd like to be well under this as I've stocked up a bit this month and have already purchased the Christmas meat and rather too many treats so I don't need to be spending too much more!! 

joedenise

First spend of December of just over £5 for bread and sandwich fillers.

LadyWithAPlan

Spending - coffee   £24.29/£100 bulk     -
Just opened my last lot of Lavaz** ground coffee - I buy in bulk so costs me last time £27.99 for 10 x 250g so £2.80 per pack as opposed to £4 in the shops..
I can see I last bought in Aug 23rd so  14 and a bit weeks ago .. so not bad - as just opened a pack today so maybe 10 x 250g  packs over 16 weeks maybe so 0.625 of a pack a week so £1.74 a week in great coffee in the house..
Buying in bulk also saves me as I dont then rush out to the shops to buy more coffee (an essential) and spend more on other bits..

Current price on Amaz is £24.29 - for 10 -  as on BF sale tempted to buy 20 packs BUT ynab telling me I dont have the cash as waiting to be paid and in my new ynab set up I moved my remaining bulk money into main bank acct..
So ordered 10 packs - £2.43 per pack  (Lav*zza Creme e gusto - very smooth) and may order more when I get paid - I have amazon prime for free for 6 months so..

Grocery 0/£200
I have a full-ish  fridge/pantry and my freezer is slowly filling up again after the long term defrost,  I am planning to use my vouchers this month to keep my actual cash used down.  I have just started using ynab and all 3 of my contracts are late in paying me for November so I can really see the squeeze on my budget.
Normally I just move money around from my savings but I am determined to limit cash out my pocket especially as I am not yet finished on Xmas gifts..

My GF puff pastry pie  is yet to be attempted I will be reporting back - it is from jusrol £2.50! So I am expecting big things...

I have remains of my FR chicken so will make a stock and then beetroot soup with that this weekend in - scrubbed Beetroot does brilliantly in the pressure cooker I discovered this year - 25 mins and its great and you lose less vitamins as you can then easily peel the skin off.

I used the chermoula paste and harissa to make a left over chicken version of the HF lamb /rice dish I liked so much  - it was good but I am looking forward to trying it with the frozen turkey mince I have in 
I may make some GF bread - as I bought bulk GF flour from the Sains double points vouchers.
Planning to top up after the weekend with greens and YS proteins as I find them ...

I have ordered one HF £24 for Dec 10th as I need to use the £10 code before I can access my £30 credit - not updated that as yet..


Vouchers gone wild £74.60 +£10 lifestyle - all to use and yet to be counted
I want to use up my vouchers first so using less cash... I normally shop at Mr Lid as cheaper - live in London so..
I have £11.50 left on iceland card - get frozen veg esp their good cauli rice...
£20 + £40 Sains from the double points - must use by Dec 24   -  stock up on GF foods I cant get in Mr L 
Plus £2.1 from the Waitr** giftcard I bought 
Plus i have a £10 lifestyle voucher  I won - can use to purchase a waitrose or a shopping voucher so food/fashion etc as xmas gift otherwise

I also have a Barb tv panel rewards acct but I cant access it and the username etc wont remind me .. so spent 30 mins on phone today on it and now sent email - argh - its probably worth £100 or so so worth the effort before Xmas.

Hope everyone has a warm and fun weekend 

thriftwizard

Another £29.50 spent on fresh fruit & veg at the market this morning, leaving me 50p under £100. I won't need much non-festive stuff when I do the non-perishables shop; it's amazing how much loo roll we haven't used without DD1 & BF here, for example! And washing powder (we use an eco-egg) and shampoo etc. etc. Also suddenly the kitchen cupboards are looking nice & tidy. But we will need lots of chickpeas, cannelini beans, kidney beans & halloumi - DD2 actually eats vegetables, rather than ready-made stuff.

CoffeeSonata

@elsiepac thanks for the new thread. 
I'm joining again sticking at:

£410 monthly 

for mostly food  2 adults, 2 cats and Christmas and two birthdays. 
Cleaning/toilet paper  etc is out of a separate bulk budget, but if we run out it will also include anything I buy in the supermarket or refill shop. 
I need to reduce, but Christmas and possibly through to new year I am responsible for the main bulk of veg (veg box/farm box) and some treats and baking for 4 adults. 
It may be offset by staying at in laws with no food required for a few days, but overall given this month was close and I had a stress-out about staying in budget, I'm still not well and it's December and busy I think £410 is a realistic goal, whilst trying to be as sensible as possible to come under if I can. 

Spent so far: £22.47/£410. 

Making a stew tonight, we have some food for meals next week already . Some treat things for the weekend, as it's partner's birthday early next week. Slight curveball as partner has dental work done, and can't eat bolognese, tomato sauce based things or curry for next two weeks- so there goes the from-freezer-batched-meal plans. 

Aim for month:

• get back to meal planning  a little better and sticking  to it, including easy low energy cooking days and lunches for me so it's workable with current energy levels
• work out for new year if a bulk fund might be a better way of thinking about grocery budgeting and what that might be. 
• Work out what to do with 5 x square frozen fish steak things the cat now refuses to eat after he was violently sick for 4 days after eating it ( it wasn't the fish definitely but it was the last thing he ate before being super sick so now regards it as poison and won't touch it.) I don't like kedgeree though partner does. Any ideas? Can it make fish pie? Literally no idea, as don't usually cook with it or make anything other than grilled fish. Flashbacks to being a kid force-fed cod-in milk or milk and parsley sauce whenever I was sick or unwell.  
• Eat as much out of the freezer as possible whilst still having some festive treats, so I can defrost in Jan.