Summer food shopping bill

[womaninatightspot]

Now that the warmer weather is here has anyone else noticed their food bill shooting up? Berries, salads buying stuff in individual packs to make it easier for picnics in the park , a last minute bbq. I'm really going to have to rein it in.

Anyone got any good tips for summer food planning?

There's a budget food thread on credit crunch if you want to jump on....cutbacks tips and friendly chat x

I buy bananas, mangoes, strawberries that are being sold off and freeze them.
You can also make your own popsicles by mixing bananas with mangoes, banana with strawberries etc.
Home made and cheap - the kids will love them.
Make banana bread or muffins - save me lot of money - and great for breakfast.

I'll only get one or two boxes of berries a week, only when in season. Melon goes further price wise.
BBQs and salads do bump up the price of food shops... but, we tend to eat out/have takeaways less often so that offsets that.
I buy multipacks of ice creams for the freezer, but try to limit them to the weekends (ice pops in the week).

weaning pots/snack tubs are your friend for decanting stuff from bigger(cheaper) packs.

You can make interesting salads from normal veg like broccoli, cauliflower and kale. It’s very easy when the sun is out to put all those little extras in your trolley/basket. Also make up some quinoa type salad at the weekend and divide it into portions for lunches. Cook a piece of ham rather than buying pre packs. You really pay for convenience.