Skint, cant cook to well & need ideas please

[Margaritte]

Basically what the title says. I do have some food in already -freezer bits, few tins

We are in a tight spot at the minute and for the foreseeable future, whilst paying off debt. Have dc to feed too, and 3 packed lunches to make each day. Myself & dd are at home in the day, so we eat here.

I am not very good at cooking unless I follow a recipe (no imagination) and I'm so exhausted by the evening, I make minimum effort. I have just recovered from PND, so am trying be easy on myself, in order not to lapse.

Any ideas will be appreciated.

Sometimes if I've defrosted something but don't fancy it, or think its going to go off i will cook the meal and put it in the fridge for the next day. Once id done a meal plan went to Aldi and the entire meat i needed for the week was reduced, so i cooked and prepared it all, froze some and fridged some. It worked out really well. Other than my kitchen looking like a bomb! Once you've cooked (assuming its well wrapped) it you've another 2 maybe 3 days.

I know some of these may seem obvious but i'll mention them anyway! As my budget doesn't stretch to fruit.

I try and cram as many vegetables into food as possible, so if I'm making a chilli or theres courgette, peppers, celery, carrots (sometimes grated) in it as well as the tomato.
I also do a lot of homemade coleslaw type things, literally finely chop (theres a hundred and one gadgets that will help if you get on with this) a red cabbage and red onion, lemon juice and olive oil, load of salt and pepper. Its lovely. To that you can add celeriac, celery, carrot, white cabbage, mustard seeds. Whatever you like. Or the traditional with mayo. The vegetables un prepared last longer then a tub of coleslaw.

If i do a stew i quite often serve it with mash one day and in a yorkshire pudding the next. Just stretches it out a bit more, again i cram it with vegetables (brussel sprout, curly kale, carrots, celery, swede) all cooked in so its tasty. I also do Delias braised red cabbage with it (and freeze half).

My budget doesn't really stretch to fruit, but you might be ok.

I know your asking for recipe ideas but the Lidl korma sauce (think its only 80p) is really nice and by the time you've bought yogurt at 40p and a tin of coconut milk its cost more than the jar. Chuck in some cauliflower, chicken and spinach and its more of a meal, plus its really quick and not much mess to clear up on a lazy day. Their premium pasta sauce is really nice (theres a few flavours), i think that ones 99p, again quick easy and not much clearing up.

Toad in the hole can be stretched with mash (frozen mash is nice and easy, although obviously doing your own will work out cheaper).

Cut open the sausage skins, take out the meat and make easy meatballs. I make a sausage casserole this way too by adding loads of veg. Wishing you well, now that you have begun to feel better, I find lists and organisation is my friend when it comes to meal planning.

I would also think about cooking in quantity, so for e.g. spag bol (use lentils for bulking it out) double cook and freeze, you can just defrost naturally or use a microwave. Defrosting in the fridge rather than out in room might help with food going off but also check your fridge is at the right temperature. If you need to defrost quickly and no microwave (i don't have one) use a bowl of water or a piece of stoneware to put the frozen item on and it distributes the cold faster bringing it to an average temperature faster, and as soon as defrosted refrigerate, our houses are too hot these days for leaving food around. Also try Money saving expert web site as well as a girl called Jack and even www.fool.co.uk as good for dealing with debt and living below your means

I have looked at the links, thank you. The aldi link has a great section on lunchboxes and has a weeks plan. I have printed that out & now will be using that for my dc at school, and making one up for my toddler too. It will help to do them all in one go, and not have to spend the day making sandwiches.

I wonder if anyone minds helping me use up what I have already? So for example, I have taken a HM goulash out of the freezer for dinner today (copied from a friends recipe) and I have no idea what to serve with it. I got the idea to use the frozen puff pastry out too that has been in there for a couple of months (bought with good intention as it was reduced to 27p, and then promptly forgotten about ) Anyway, I thought maybe I could use any leftovers to make a pasty for dh work. Am now feeling that is too ambitious for me.

Anyway, back to the goulash. What can I serve it with? Have no rice in. I have new potatoes, 'normal' potatoes, egg noodles. Any of that any good?

Id do new potatoes with the goulash just boiled up. You could always sling them in the oven with some butter for a 10/15 mins to add some naughtiness to it.

Pastry, you could make palmiers as a snack? www.bbcgoodfood.com/technique/how-make-and-shape-palmier-biscuits

Or a pie? Fruit for pudding or meat for tomorrow?

Roll the pastry into an oblong about 8 x 12.(if its not ready rolled). Cook a couple extra potatoes diced up, add to the goulash. Spread the cool mix over half the pastry and fold over. Making a giant pasty. Brush with milk & bake.
Slice up for another lunch. / dinner. Nice with chips.

Pasties are a pain to make but my oh does complain of a slice of pie like this.