May 2024 Grocery Challenge

navelorange1

I have to admit there’s four things on nectar price which I really want to buy totalling £6. They’re only on offer until 28th and all junk food (cookies, biscuits, summer scones which can be frozen and a summer edition cake). I did recently get £9.45 refunded from last month's organicriverfarm delivery so I could take it out of that. Although I do have the ingredients at home to make an experimental chocolate banana cake, shortbread and scones using coconut oil, and I made a loaf of bread today and have plenty of preserves… and I guess these things will come on offer again in a couple of months. Not sure what to do. I do find it hard to buy just one dessert item at a time. In my childhood we always bought them in 2s and 3s so I tend to feel like I need all of them

Suffolk_lass

navelorange1 said:

I have to admit there’s four things on nectar price which I really want to buy totalling £6. They’re only on offer until 28th and all junk food (cookies, biscuits, summer scones which can be frozen and a summer edition cake). I did recently get £9.45 refunded from last month's organicriverfarm delivery so I could take it out of that. Although I do have the ingredients at home to make an experimental chocolate banana cake, shortbread and scones using coconut oil, and I made a loaf of bread today and have plenty of preserves… and I guess these things will come on offer again in a couple of months. Not sure what to do. I do find it hard to buy just one dessert item at a time. In my childhood we always bought them in 2s and 3s so I tend to feel like I need all of them

Don't do it @navelorange1 - think the Marie Kondo version of housekeeping instead of tidying, combined with Martin's moneysaving mantra - Do you need it? Do you love it?... - well even if you do, you can make it, and they are probably ultra processed. 

Maybe look at the cookie recipes on the first page - personally I shall be making an experimental half batch of twinks' hobnobs today, along with other adapted recipes ahead of the County Show as I have said I will enter, so now I have to!

Pennypincin

I like the advice @Suffolk_lass.
It could be made healthier and still possibly frozen.
I also second googling and researching recipes.
I need to take some of my own advice though and have a go at it myself though.

joedenise

Thinks hobnobs are great!  Must make some more as haven't had them for a very long time!

Nellbell21

Hi, I’m in awe of all your budget hacks!  I have done this thread before and it helped me be more accountable for food shopping.  I’m to embarrassed to admit what we spend and the fact is there is little in the freezers and cupboards at the minute.  I have what is hopefully the last food shop of May coming tomorrow.  I would like to join up for the June challenge if that’s okay?  Please don’t be too harsh when I post my budget because I will be making a significant cut even though it will sound ridiculous to most of you.  I can’t believe how much we are spending a month.  It’s mortifying and just horrendous.  We have fallen into the trap of healthy convenience food from upmarket supermarkets and it’s got to be cut down.  We don’t eat out and I provide all meals for two adults and two kids.  Anyway, I’m going to keep reading the thread and try learn a few tricks!

navelorange1

I did make the banana chocolate sugar free “cake" today. I really recommend it. It makes a batch of 4 decent sized brownies which are surprisingly sweet and chocolately on their own. When the bake comes out of the oven it is more like a mousse/pudding but it did firm up more a few hours after cooling. I’m going to experiment with adding more flour to see if I can make it more cakey. The ingredients are just: 2 bananas (the larger the better), 2 eggs, 30g cocoa, 1/2 tsp baking powder, plus (optional) 2 tbsp oats/flour. Blend until smooth and then bake for 20 minutes at 200C.

I did however cave and end up buying some junk food at the supermarket. I think this is largely due to overspending massively on Week 1 this month then trying to build muscle and lose fat with limited protein sources and putting a lot of pressure on myself to cook everything from scratch including bread, sauces, dips and all meals. It just got a bit much as I’ve been feeling quite hungry. The good news is: I’m only over by about £2 so far and estimate the total amount will be around £85/£80; I sold a large item on G.Tree today which more than covers the additional money spent; and I think this will help to curb me from excitedly buying so much on Week 1 of June. I may even come under budget for June as I don’t really need an extra £30 for that month it’s more of a bday treat.

Thanks @Suffolk_lass for trying to motivate me! As Oscar Wilde would say, I can resist everything apart from temptation!

@Nellbell21 don’t worry no one is judging you! Last year I was spending so much money on food even up until March this year. People’s circumstances change all the time and I wish you luck

PipneyJane

Nellbell21 said:

Hi, I’m in awe of all your budget hacks!  I have done this thread before and it helped me be more accountable for food shopping.  I’m to embarrassed to admit what we spend and the fact is there is little in the freezers and cupboards at the minute.  I have what is hopefully the last food shop of May coming tomorrow.  I would like to join up for the June challenge if that’s okay?  Please don’t be too harsh when I post my budget because I will be making a significant cut even though it will sound ridiculous to most of you.  I can’t believe how much we are spending a month.  It’s mortifying and just horrendous.  We have fallen into the trap of healthy convenience food from upmarket supermarkets and it’s got to be cut down.  We don’t eat out and I provide all meals for two adults and two kids.  Anyway, I’m going to keep reading the thread and try learn a few tricks!

@Nellbell21, don’t beat yourself up.  I’ve been doing this a very long time, since February 1992, when I was left with £20 to feed two adults for the month.  (My ex was totally unreliable with money and never paid any of the bills.  I had to cover everything.). Fortunately, back then, I was provided with a free lunch every day at work.

How much freezer space do you have?  When you’re very busy, it’s much easier to eat frugally and healthily on a budget if you don’t have to prep veg in advance.  If I had the freezer space, I’d spend £10-£15 in Iceland on frozen chopped onions, frozen sliced carrots, frozen peas, frozen sliced mushrooms, frozen sweetcorn, frozen spinach, and build my dinners from those.  (Mind you, most of my recipes start: fry onion with garlic, add mushrooms then a protein, fry your spices, then stir in a tin of chopped tomatoes.).

If you do go down the frozen veg route, a half-cup measure of chopped onion equates to a medium sized fresh onion. 

- Pip

Nellbell21

@PipneyJane I have 3 half freezers so plenty of space.  We have just been in a busy season of life with kids and work and keeping an eye on the budget has just slid.🤷‍♀️. My budget for june (food, alcohol and cleaning) is getting capped at £1000.  I realise this is a lot but it’s a significant cut when we checked this months spending.  I am going back to using Costco and musclefood for chicken.  I’m going to go to bm for cleaning instead of getting everything from tesco with M&S top ups when we can’t be bothered.  I’m also going to prep freezer meals for oven/slow cooker in case of can’t be bothered days.  My aim is to work on getting this down over the next 6months to be nearer £800.  I am going to try my best and I like your idea of frozen veg.  That would come in handy. Xx

diminua

I'm on £219.01, with a bank holiday weekend to go, so already know I'll be going over this month. It's a combination of being tempted by fancy stuff - multi coloured pasta, heritage tomatoes - and buying fancy ice cream on the way home or nice drinks in pub gardens at the weekend. All very civilised, but not very cheap. 

PipneyJane

Good afternoon All

I’ve got two shops to declare from this morning £1.14 in L!dl and £8.21 in Sainsbugs.  The Sainsbugs shop was on fresh veg: mushrooms, sweet potatoes, potatoes, carrots, and peppers.  In the L!dl shop, we picked up our free easy peel oranges and free chillies, as well as buying plain bagels (79p) and a large tub of fat-free fresh yoghurt (35p).  

Once you deduct 23p of shrapnel, this brings our total GC spend to £152.20/£160 leaving £7.80 for the rest of the month.

This should be doable. We’ll probably only need to buy milk.  My biggest challenge now is to work out meal plans for the next few days.  Fortunately, DH will be visiting his best mate tomorrow/Sunday, so I don’t have to worry about feeding him.  (I can live on baked potatoes.)

Meal Plans

All breakfasts are cereal and all lunches are leftovers, unless otherwise stated.  I may change the order but I reckon this will do:

Today:  Toad In The Hole, accompanied by baked sweet potato and peas.
Saturday:  since it’s just me, I’ll have the leftovers from today.
Sunday:  broccoli pasta, made with chorizo and crème fraiche.
Monday:  faggots in onion marmalade, cooked in the slow cooker.
Tuesday:  L!dl’s One Pot Chicken Curry with Noodles made with the stem of Sunday’s broccoli pasta.
Wednesday:  Chicken pie from the freezer, accompanied by potato croquettes and roasted carrots.
Thursday:  Bagels filled with HM chicken liver pate or cream cheese and smoked salmon.  (We’re at the cricket that evening.)

- Pip