April 2008 Grocery Challenge

savingfortravel

Chimp Choker
The coffee thing?????????
Sounds interesting???
SFT

TheBees

What a day! Rain, rain and more rain!:mad:

BigMummaF - We don't actually live near Bude, we live on the South Coast near Lyme Regis. But DS was doing a canoe award with Explorer Scouts over in Bude. We had to drive in the torrential rain about 1 and a half hours each way to collect him so were glad to get home into the dry with our fish and chips this evening!:D

I got my Good Housekeeping magazine through the post today (birthday present subscription) and in it there was a coupon for £5 off a £50 tesco internet shop. .I'm off to make a start on my tesco shop now.

Have a good weekend.
TheBees

JayneC

Hi everyone,

Just spent £15 at butchers, bakery and grocers today. Shouldn't need much more for the week. I've got loads of stuff in cupboards and have done a rough shopping list for rest of month and feeling quite optimistic, maybe I'll actually come in on budget!!

Savingfortravel re HM pies,
chicken pie;
cook some veg, (i use carrots & peas) in stock
add cooked chicken (i use leftover from roast)
thicken with gravy powder/granules/cornflour until quite thick

either make shortcrust pastry or use ready made.
roll out pastry and line pie dish
add chicken and veg mixture
cover top of pie with more pastry (wet edges to make them stick)
brush top with milk and stab a couple of times with sharp knife so steam can escape
cook in oven for 30 mins on 200/gas 6

You can use same sort of method for steak pie, cook stewing steak with veg together and continue with same method.

KITTY_2-2

mumzyof2 wrote: »

Aww kittens!! Id love to have a cat and let it give birth to kittens ..so so cute.. But my problem would be i wouldnt want to let them go to another home as im too soft and id end up with loads of kittens and cats :rotfl:

I got 2 kittens last year from the RSPCA and was happy with that. A friend is an inspector so I didn't go to the shelter she just brought them here. If I go down there I would want them all Then 2 weeks later my niece came home and said a friend had found 3 kittens abandoned near her grandmothers house. Her friend kept one bet you can't guess where the other 2 went

Anyway, my older 2 have now had kittens (not planned, but have homes for most of them, so not too worried) so currently have 13 cats in the house :eek:
I would love to keep them all but my family already tell me I'll be the mad village cat woman, so have to be strong and let them go.

Sorry for going off thread like that but I luurrve talking about my "babies" :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

savingfortravel

Thanks Jayne C!!
Was away last weekend. OB's mum came over and cooked family meal, leaving 2 small chicken thighs in the freezer. OB loves having a 'pie night' so I wanted to use the chicken up and make a couple. But needed help. Thanks again, will prob use bought pastry.. don't tell mother.
Just learning to cook really... tonight we managed Vegetarian Sausage Casserole.. was delicious
:T
SFT

chimp_choker

TheBees wrote: »

Would everyone mind posting their weeks menus to give us all different meal ideas? Once I've worked ours out I will post it here.

Good luck everyone
From TheBees

Here is my menu for this week. Formatting hasn't worked out properly so the first line in Red is saturday Breakfast, second is sunday breakfast, third is monday breakfast etc. Same applies to the purple for lunches and then the blue for evening meal.

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Bacon and cheese toastie, Grapefruit, tea low sugar yogurt

Scrambled eggs, fruit, cereal and tea

Toast, yogurt, pine nuts, tea,

Porridge / ready brek with fruit juice and tea.

Toast and cereal with fruit tea

Toast, yogurt, pine nuts, tea,

Kippers for me with yogurt, prunes and toast.

Toast for wife

Salad, bread and butter, cake and

tea

Chicken and stuffing in sandwiches,

Fruit, tea.

Ham and tomato Sandwiches with a home made Sticky bun. Tea

Home made corned beef slice, fruit and tea

Salad box and fruit.

Tea

HM Mushroom soup with homemade tomato and basil bread buns, fruit and tea

Mincemeat and onions with rich gravy. Lentils to fill out, a pastry cobbler and veg including carrots, leeks, mash pots broccoli

Roast Chicken and all trimmings inc stuffing, roast veg, steamed veg, yorkies, home made mint sauce

Sausage and mushroom casserole, mashed potatoes and vegetables

Home made corned beef slice, veg, boiled potatoes gravy

Home made pizza beans and chips. Home made garlic bread

Fresh fruit salad and cream.

Vegetable and lentil casserole fresh bread

Fish and mash pie, Seasonal vegetables inc Cauliflower Cheese sauce,

sponge pudding and custard.

weemissy

Hi everyone
It's taken me ages to read thru' all the posts - had to do it in 2 sittings!

Thanks MrsM for putting me down for £200 April

I did my meal plan for whole of April, wrote a list of all the items I needed to buy, next to this I have written how much each item should come to and then left a blank column for the actual costs sad I know. What with all my lists and the computer mouse having to be surgically removed from my hand, I expect social services will be chapping at my door soon. Then remembered I was going on holiday for a week to a caravan and hadn't put down my groceries for this - But I think we will still manage even although my mum is coming (well paying actually) and she thinks I am taking all of this too far:huh:

MrsM could I have your recipe for meat loaf :T, and going to try the HM tortillas this week.

Someone had sweet and sour in their neal plan Thebees I think it might have been you, could I please have the recipe for this.:T

Today I cooked 2 chickens, twinks hobnobs and cheese and ham muffins. I managed to stretch my chicken into 8 bags - each weighing 5 1/2 ozs and 2 stock pots. The chicken will be used for dishes with veg, rice, pasta etc - so I don't think I'm being overly mean, I always get my chicken at M&S and 2 usually costs about £10 which I'm happy to pay but feel happier to get more meals from it this month:j
The other thing I've done for this month is split my mince up more as I'm going to do the padding out thingy.

Out of April's budget I have £123.59 left . Spent £20ish milk, butter and tuna in MrT, Spent £30ish M&S chicken, mince, fish, salmon and chicken paste, £20ish in Lidl. OMG not much left for the rest of the month:eek:

Meal plan for next week
tonight - HM pork meatballs and spag
SUN - HM fish pie with a cheesy crumble topping, pots, broc & cauli
MON - HM ham risotto
TUES- HM sausage casserole in SC with mash (in freezer)
WED- pasta with sauce made from left over casserole
THUR- HM chicken fried rice
FRI - HM lasagne

Away for a week:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j

Good luck everyone and thanks for more meal ideas
X

ice-maiden2

Went to morrissons for bread and milk and ended up spending £23+, but did get some cubboard basics like pasta etc won't need to go again till mon which is not so bad as we got a nephew staying so that make 7 of us:eek:

ice-maiden2

Just read mrsbees post, not got round to doing a planner yet being new to this don't where to start so if it ok with you all think I will prob pinch some of you meals for myself:D

bertiebots

Hi fellow GCers...just wondering being new to all this ...do I add my own name to the list or does the thread starter do it . I posted my amount yesterday but it hasnt been added, dont want to make a mess of the list:o !!!! Just to save searching threw its £220.Forgot to mention that budget also includes toiletries:rolleyes: as well as the food for 5 people 2 dogs and 2 cats and household/cleaning stuff !