OK.............. who likes or is good at doing a weekly shopping list??? Can someone come help!!!

[YouNeverKnow]

ok i need help with basic budgeting pls! we are by no means rich but we can afford some small luxurys. we have me dh (who is a -pig- lovely man) my 2yr old dd and 8 month dd who i try to make up food for when time allows.

so what i need help with is a list of basics! how do you all have the patience to do this?

whats a realistic budget?

im going in a few hours so all help appreciated!

anyone?

you need to do a meal planner first then from that decide what you need.

i spend around £70-80 a week on shopping.

I write it all down before I go in section order
eg veg and fruit
dairy
meat and fish
grocery

this keeps your trip to the shop organised andyou don't have to keep going abck to aisles.

I work out what to eat on each day of the week and put the ingredients in the relevant section of the list

Hi, I have 2 DCs and am a fanatical menu planner! On Sat nights I choose recipes for Mon- Fri. My aims are to keep the cost down as far as possible and to avoid food waste.

To keep cost down I usually pick one meat and one fish based meal, both with veggies. I only buy the free-range stuff, would rather eat quality chicken one night than value chicken every night. Then for the other nights I plan pasta or egg dishes or home-made soups, using what's left of the veggies and bulking out with lentils, beans etc.

Casseroles seem to be the all time cheapest and the leftovers are perfect for your baby (I also have an 8 month old). If making something like a thai curry that uses more expensive ingredients I make sure they get used in 2 or more recipes (e.g . this week I used half a tin of coconut milk in a curry and the other half to make some coconut rice the next day.)

My bill for Mon-Fri probably works out around £40-£50 including all the other stuff (breakfast cereals, milk, bread etc). At trhe weekend I tend to be a bit more extravagant and choose stuff on a whim. And I never throw anything away!

Buy the large packs of rice/pasta.

DO you have a bread maker? I know it sounds funny but you can then make your own speciality breads - also you know that it doesn't contain any preservatives.

no bread maker i love fresh bread!

pendulum that sounds great. could you give be a bit of help with my first week ?

yes sure

know we are both pressed for time so off the top of my head, how about something like:

• pork chops or chicken breast with creamy mustard sauce, new pots and green beans

• eggs baked in ramekins with green beans and creamy parmesan (uses up cream from chops)

• cod wrapped in bacon with rest of new pots and 2 veg of your choice (leftovers- minus bacon- mashed up for baby)

• pasta, either with carbonara sauce using rest of cream, bacon and eggs or with bacon, breadcrumbs and parsley (rest of parsley goes on egg dish)

• soup or curry using any leftover veg plus lentils or beans (cannelini or borlotti). Add any remaining bacon to flavour and swirl in any remaining cream.

That's the basic idea- hope it helps but if not ask away, this is a pet topic of mine (deos it show?)

First check cupboards, fridge, freezer for
a) long-term basics that are low eg ketchup, oil
b) non-food items that are low eg washing-up liquid, shampoo
b) stuff that needs eating up to work into meal plan

then make meal plan, don't forget lunches

make shopping list including

1. ingredients for meal plan
2. long term basics that are low (ketchup etc)
3. permanent fixtures not neccesarily on meal plan eg bread, milk, yoghurts, fruit
4. non-food items that are low (washing-up liquid etc)

You can save yourself a lot of trouble by having a shopping list pad hung up permanently in the kitchen so when something runs out or gets low, write it on the list. This is also a good place to scribble meal ideas for the next week as and when you think of them.

thats great many thanks!!!!