Meal budget for feb...arghhhh...

[Badvoc]

...could you feed a family of 4 (dh and ds1 take pack up to work and school respectively) for £50 per week?
I have - if I have done my sums right - £200 left in feb for food, petrol and misc like haircuts etc.
I can go into my overdraft, but really don't want too.
Have had to buy dc some new clothes (well, e bay!) this month and of course with it being after Xmas and a loooonnng month and my car breakdown cover coming out (£70) I find myself a bit short.
I can obv cut down on car use weather permitting so can try to cut petrol costs but my hair has not been looked since nov and - frankly - it shows :)
We eat a fair bit of fresh veg and fruit and I don't want to stop that. We also eat a lot of eggs, and potatoes. Ds1 is addicted to chicken goujons :) and ds2 has a sweet tooth like me.
I can bake so can make cakes etc
I live in a village and we only have a co op which I like but is expensive. There is an aldi in the next town but obv that will neccessitate a car journey so petrol costs.
I tend to buy own brand products anyway, not a brand person really, except Heinz beans :) and twinings fruit teas.
Don't have a large freezer so can't batch cook.
Need to cut down in the amount of snacks etc I am buying for the dc...even in offer they add up.
Any tips gratefully recieved! :)

[specialsubject]

forget the hairdo.

No snacks, no chicken goujons, fewer sweets and choc, lots more of your fresh veg and fruit.

get an online delivery, Tesco do £3 if you can meet that slot. Much of their own brand stuff is the same price as Aldi.

next time - less on Christmas. If your budget is tight enough so that Christmas causes problems, you need to cut right down on the unnecessary clutter presents.

[ScalesAndMirrorsLie]

Pasta, jacket potatoes

Filling puds like rice pudding, bananas and custard, sponge and custard, jelly is a cheap pudding

Avoid buying soft fruits. Hard fruits like pears as apples are always cheaper. Own brand Tinned fruit?

Go to supermarkets when it's nearly closing time to get the reduced price things off the deli/fish/meat counters etc

I'm not a lover if mince, but if you buy a big pack you could do a cottage pie and a bolognese.

Own brand garlic bread is a cheap filler too.

[jojane]

Ok, obviously nothing you can do about your spending up to now, sainsburys used to do meal plans for feed you family fr £50 a week, very basic and a bit samey but needs must, there is also a brilliant website for mums menu planning which I can't remember the name of for the life of me which has lots of different menus ranging from £25 and up, different types like winter warmers or spicy or family faves etc

[WantAnOrange]

Agree with specialsubject do one big shop online for the month ahead using the £3 slot. It's cheaper to buy in bulk so I'd get a big bag of pasta and get quite a few meals for example. Value brand oats for porridge for breakfast. Whst do you already have in your cupboards?

Plan everything, including snacks, one mid-morning, one mid-afternoon the when its gone, its gone.

I dont see how you can afford a haircut unless you have a local college or something that could use models for their students?

Value beans really arent that different. Use strong flavours, eg a little but of strong cheese, rather than lots of mild cheddar.

How much are school dinners for DS1? I've found that, taking into account that DS gets a cooked dinner and pudding, its cheaper if he has school dinners than packed lunches. He eats less at home and just has a light tea.

[wannabedomesticgoddess]

I havent had a hair cut in two years. Not through choice either. I cant afford it.

Our weekly shop comes to £60 per week but that includes baby formula at £8 a tin and toilet roll one week, washing liquid the next, toiletries the next etc. So really our food bill is around £40 a week for 3. We eat well for that though. Last week it was £35 and we ate well.

Make soups, add lentils, they are so filling. Buy a large pack of pasta instead of the 500g. A 3kg pack in asda is £3.50 but the 500g packs are 95p each so double the price.

Cut out snacks and goujons. Eggs and potatoes are cheap anyway. It might not be the most exciting month food wise but it can be done.

[Badvoc]

Hi,
It's not the cost of school dinners that's the issue really...his class is last in and there is hardly ever anything nice left :( My dsis has just stopped my dnephews from having school dinners for this reason too...fed up of the moaning from the dc! The dinners are cooked at another school and brought in and I don't think they get enough of the more popular dishes tbh...
Ds1 isn't ine for snacks really, and likes cheap things anyway like popcorn and rice cakes.
I tend to get bananas, apples and oranges each week.
Also potatoes, carrots and broccoli. I use frozen peas and sweet corn.
I get bread, rolls, muffins, cheese, butter, eggs, flapjacks, small amount of choc for ds2...he is not fussy! :)
Puddings tend to be yoghurt, ice cream or cake.
Ds2 is a grazer so can get though quite a bit in one day...fruit, yogs, sandwiches, cake, etc
I won't shop at tesco - loathe them, sorry! :)
Is the fruit and veg at aldi any good?
I buy co op own brand washing gel and softener, loo rolls etc. I tend to buy whatever is on offer when it comes to shampoo, toiletries etc.
I have heard them places like BM bargains are good for loo rolls etc...is that right?

[MorningHasBroken]

One of our meals, pretty much every week, is jacket spuds with beans. Also have an 'on toast' night (beans, cheese, egg). Meat is expensive so replace it with pulses, chickpea curry rather than chicken etc. homemade soup is good and filling, plus fill them up with lots of pasta and potato. Pasta bake with lots of veg is a fav here, as is home made gnocchi. Add a pastry lid to leftovers from a casserole and you have a cheap pie.

Rice pudding, fruit crumbles, pies etc also good fillers.

Find old recipe books (Marguerite Patten etc) for tips on cheap but filling and healthy meals.

Sorry for stilted writing style, have a crying baby in one arm!

[Badvoc]

Thanks for posting morning...especially when you are obv busy! :)
My mum had a marguerite patten book - will ask her.

[wannabedomesticgoddess]

Cake, yoghurts, chocolate all not necessary.

Fact is, to bring it within that budget something has to go. And you sound like you dont want to change anything at all.

[poshfrock]

BMI Bargains is great for cleaning stuff and toiletries. They sell food too. Try the Resourceful Cook website for budget meal plans. On phone so can't post link but you can Google it. Agree with giant pasta bag. Also tins of tomatoes and kidney beans (18p in Tesco). We made pork and celery stew this week. (pork fillet, 3 tins toms, 4 sticks celery, salt and pepper). Serve with bulger wheat. Did 2 meals for 5 people including 2 teenage boys and DH who had BIG appetite for about £5.

[MorningHasBroken]

" I get bread, rolls, muffins, cheese, butter, eggs, flapjacks, small amount of choc for ds2...he is not fussy! 
Puddings tend to be yoghurt, ice cream or cake."
From this list I would drop the rolls, muffins,flapjacks, choc, yoghurt, and ice cream! Make a cake for lunches, make puddings from scratch, buy a value pack of digestive biscuits, get the kids to ice them themselves and they're a great treat!

[AdoraBell]

If Tesco is out how about one of the others, have a look on t'internet and see who delivers.

If you're buying English muffins for breakfast/tea then ditch them for a couple of weeks and use bread. If it's American style choc chip/fruit muffins, ditch those too and home bake them instead. Ditto flapjacks. Tell DS not to help himself, I've had to do this with my two. If he complains that he's starving, no he really isn't, he's just peckish and can easily wait for the next meal without needing medical intervention

Who is it that needs a haircut, you? Can you pin it back, use a ponytail? DCs? Can't they just wait for a few weeks? DH? Is it really that urgent? I tip my shampoo/shower gel bottles up when when they are nearly empty. Aggravates my OH but I know I can get at lest two more showers and hair washes out of the "empty" bottle.

Have a look on //lovefoodhatewaste.com for ideas on using things up and they have a handy portion guide too.

[Badvoc]

Will make flapjacks and cakes this weekend.
Will also cut down on muffins (the English variety)
Ice cream is in freezer already.
I will have a bash at making a sponge cake too.
Will not buy any choc for ds2.
He loves digestives luckily.
It's me that needs a haircut...it's cropped but my fringe has gone a bit mad :)
I colour it myself anyway.
Will sit down to it and try and do a meal plan for each week (or one I can use 4 times!)

[Badvoc]

I agree TSC...I find baking costs me an absolute fortune! :(
Don't have farm foods or anything like that near me, but there is an aldi.
There is also an asda, but I don't like them either.
Fussy? Moi?
:)
I would ask my sis to cut my fringe but last time she cut it in a V so I went around looking like a bit player from buffy the vampire slayer for a month :)
I hate January. It's official.
My car breakdown cover had gone up because I have had to call them out twice since November :(
Just found something I can send back to amazon for a refund though :)
Hurrah.

[IfNotNowThenWhen]

If you get a massive bag of oats and you already have a tin of lyles golden syrup in the cupboard you can make flapjack. Even better if you have some dried fruit/sultanana to go in it.
Then you also have the oats for porridge .
Forget cereal. Porridge is better for you and MUCH cheaper, and you can add fruit, honey etc.
I usually get several cartons of own brand passata, massive bag of rice, potatos, bag of onions, some veggies that are in season (morrisons have got cavalo nero at £1 a bag right now-really tasty and good for you) and lots of pinto beans, chick peas, baked beans etc for protein.
I get block butter, not spreadable as it's half the price.
Then I get some braising steak from butcher and some sausages and do stew for 2 days on the trot, then sausage casserole 2 days. Rest of the time it's veggie food.
I do buy spices and herbs and chillies because I can't stand bland food.
Aldi is great for snacks and junky treats-really cheap, and also bog roll, moisturiser, everything like that.
I get eggs from a nearby small farm £2 for dozen, but obvs not everyone can do this!

[IfNotNowThenWhen]

x popst about the flapjack. Agree, baking and having to buy all ingredients in one go v. expensive.

[IfNotNowThenWhen]

Although, thinking about it the Aldi I used to go to was amaaazing for baking ingredients.
Miss Aldi

[Badvoc]

Yes I get block butter too.
Putting oats on the list!
We don't eat cereal.
Tend to have hot breakfasts...omelettes, pancakes, porridge, cheese on toast, beans on toast etc.
Hang on, porridge is a cereal isn't it!?
So we do eat cereal!
I have a slow cooker that I - ahem - have never used.
Ds1 likes soup so that's easy. Also jacket potatoes.

[Badvoc]

Hmmmm...can see a trip to aldi coming on! :)
They had lovely stollen and pannetone at Xmas...yum yum.

[EnglishGirlApproximately]

I would say its worth the petrol money to Aldi to save money(assuming it isn't miles away), things like Washing Powder and Toilet Rolls are much cheaper. If you do want to bake their flour, sugar etc is fairly cheap too, otherwise I agree baking is more expensive than buying a cheap sponge. They tend to have weekly offers on fruit and veg (which are fine), the cereal is really cheap and so are the basics. You can get a free range chicken for £5.99 to make a couple of meals - same price as a battery chicken everywhere else.

Have a look on the website, you can't shop online but you can see what the offers are and see if you think its worth the drive. I find it same price as supermarket basics ranges but much better quality.

[EnglishGirlApproximately]

x -post!

[Ragwort]

Car break down sounds very reasonable at £70 - Where do you get it from? Have just have paid nearly three times that for AA , and that's after negotiating them down (two cars).

Why not be a 'model' for your hair cut, I never pay for hair cuts and have never had a disaster.

I think school meals are incredibly expensive for what they are, you can do packed lunches much, much cheaper.

Never used fabric softener in my life , read somewhere that it is bad for your clothes anyway !

[Ragwort]

Sorry, misread your second post, realise your DS has a packed lunch anyway .

[Fluffycloudland77]

You could make laundry gloop. I keep mine in a bucket that had held fat balls for the birds.

It would last you ages too.

I use aldi every week, dh tells me the digestives are better than mcvities and we like the beans so we don't miss Heinz at all.

I use smart price cleaning products from the co-op, they are BUAV approved which big brand names usually aren't apart from astonish.