We were eating from the cupboards, fridge and freezer, again, last week and stretching what we had. Luckily I still had quite a lot left from going to a community fridge the week before, and we had been given a block of cheese and spent £10 at the Company shop last week. I am hoping that we can stretch another few weeks without spending, or spending very little.
I did stock up on some basics for the cupboard as prices are rising so quickly that there is no point in having a no spend week. These will not be used during the summer. Most things that I buy are what I see on offer, or know that I will need. I have already bought things like dried fruit for a Christmas cake, and sugar and vinegar to preserve later in the year. The items I buy are to keep us going during the winter months when the garden is not producing very much.
I have a yearly food budget rather than a weekly one and it starts on the 1st of January. I try to save money at this time of year so that I have enough money to entertain my family at Christmas and can afford some bargains when food is reduced or discounted around Christmas time. What I buy now will keep me going during October, November and December, and hopefully there will be some left to boost the pantry and help us to keep to the same budget if possible next year. I will try to spend very little during that time and stretch whatever we have, with out leaving any food to waste. It is getting harder and harder to keep to my budget and I am having to be very creative. The community fridge did help a lot during early summer but I am trying not to use it unless I really have to. It cost money to get there and a lot of the food is UPF.
Every week I try to put things back into the fridge or the pantry. Some times this might mean making fish cakes with a tin of tuna and home grown potatoes, making jam or chutney, or just freezing produce harvested from the garden or from the wild. That way I never have an empty freezer or pantry and we always have some thing to eat no matter how tight the food budget is.
Our meals were very mixed last week as it was very cold last weekend and then very hot at the end of the week. This is not a typical summer menu We also ate more meat than we usually do as we had some in the freezer that has been in there for a while and needs using up. Only small amounts of meat were used as they were spread over a number of days, but we did eat less vegetarian food this last week.
Taken from the freezer
Home made sausage meat (made from discounted pork bought at Christmas)
A batch of cooked chick peas
Some bacon off cuts
6oz minced beef (we minced from a half price Christmas joint)
Chillies
Ice cream
6oz stewing beef
2 salmon fillets
4 fish fingers
A bag of home grown tomatoes from last year
Taken from the garden
Salad leaves
Cucumbers
Courgettes.
A few peas and beans
Beetroot
Potatoes
Peppers
Onions
Spring onions
A couple of carrots
Raspberries
Rhubarb
A corn on the cob
Taken from the cupboards and fridge
Everything else
Bought at the shops for this week
A large carton of milk
A melon for 99p
Meal prep and baking this week
12 wraps
Slow cooker rice pudding
Compote
Sweet potato and courgette cheesy bites
Sausage rolls
Apple flap jack
Bread
A quiche
Apple pie
Items preserved for the pantry
2 jars of lemon curd
3 bottles of sweet chilli sauce
Cucumber fridge pickle
4 jars of pasta sauce
Courgettes, raspberries, rhubarb, sweet corn and black currants frozen in the freezer
Herbs dried to make mixed herbs
Main meals
Tacos (the meat was bulked out with lentils and vegetables and half of it was used to fill the tacos with salad and cheese).
Chilli bolognaise with pasta (half of the meat from the tacos was stretched with tomato puree and more herbs and served with spaghetti with spiralised courgette mixed into it.
Quiche, with new potatoes and salad (half the quiche used)
Beef stew x2 (once served with crusty bread, and once with tomato puree and herbs added and served with new potatoes and vegetables.
Salmon served with salad and new potatoes
Home made pizza with salad
Stuffed peppers and salad
Light meals
Egg salad
Picky lunch with bits found in the fridge and hummus and crackers
1 picnic (including sausage rolls and cheesy courgette bites) for a day away
Cheese and tomato sandwich
Vegetable risotto
Quiche and salad
Fish finger and salad wraps
Breakfasts
Beans on toast
Overnight oats with fruit compote x3
Bacon and Cheese wrap
Egg wrap
Cereal with raspberries
Desserts and snacks
Frozen raspberry yoghurt fish
Popcorn
Apple pie
Apple flapjack
Fruit salad and ice cream
Fruit salad on it’s own
Lemon curd on toast
Home made pot rice
Bananas and oranges
The garden is producing a lot more food now but it is all 5 or 6 weeks behind for the time of year which has impacted on our meal plans. It is a great feeling when you see that a lot of food on your plate has come from the garden or is something that you have preserved. I don’t think that we will be as lucky with our harvests as last year and so it might be a lean year ahead. Fingers crossed for more sunshine here in the North of the UK.
Hello I just came across your blog. Thanks for the ideas you share. I am having a very slow year with growing this year. North East UK has been cold and wet for quite a long time. Things are picking up now the sun is here. We make a courgette pasta sauce just letting courgettes cook down slowly with a little oil seasoning and garlic. Add to pasta and top with some/ any cheese but nice without. Thanks again I am reading backwards to catch up.
That sounds nice. Yes we are about 5 or 6 weeks behind in Yorkshire, too. Salad crops have done well, though. Thanks for commenting
I’ve been trying to stay out of the grocery store as much as possible over the past couple of weeks and use up bits & pieces form the freezer and the pantry. I did have to buy milk, cream, salad greens and bread.
.ate mushroom & pea risotto 2 x – once on its own and once with some cooked chicken from the freezer
.had mushroom, chicken, & pea pasta bake x 2 – and added two servings to the freezer
.ate sliced cooked pork tenderloin from the freezer 1 x with hot veg and 1 topping a salad
.had a large salad with cheese & hard boiled egg as my proteins
.had sausage, egg, beans and potatoes for one meal
.chicken thighs with a large salad
.toast with avocado, hard boiled egg and tomato
.a sandwich of ham and cheese with some raw veg and hummus
I am going to make a meatloaf tonight and at least half of that will go in the freezer and I still have two chicken thighs in the air fryer that can go in the freezer for later in the week. I am finally starting to see a bit of a dent in the freezer as far as meat is concerned so I am happy about that. I do plan on buying a small chest freezer at the end of August and will start to restock more then. My pantry is in good shape so I tend to buy items that are on sale or that I can earn loyalty points on as I am not desperate for anything. Today I stopped off on the way home from church to stock up on liquid laundry detergent. Due to allergies I am very limited in what I can use and the last time I checked my regular jug had gone up to $11!!!! It was on sale for $5 today with a limit of four. I bought four and added to the two I have in stock, plus the one that I just opened, this will keep me going for the next year.
I find it so interesting – the amount you spend on food for the year – it is amazing – and your meals always sound wonderful. With our very high prices, the absolute lowest I could go would be $200 per month for food and $50 for non-food items for a total of $3000 Canadian. This must sound like a lot for one person but it is considered to be a frugal budget here. Living in a small apt. I cannot garden but I do cook a lot from scratch and plan on doing more so this Winter. Cooking is very limited in the Summer with temps hovering around 30C many days, with high humidity. I enjoy my Summer break and then I am raring to go once Sept. comes around. I do eat meat but have been learning more vegetarian options and I have been trying to add more fish & seafood (although both are VERY expensive). I have been looking back at many of your recipes for inspiration.
I think I remember reading that you spend 700 pound yearly – is that correct? That would be about $1240 Cdn. so about half my budget.
Hi. Thanks for your detailed meal plan and the ways that you are saving money. That looks great. I have given myself a £750 budget this year for the two of us. I wanted to build an emergency pantry that had enough items in that I use for preserving, as well as basic and filling food. I think that food is cheaper over here and I also grow most of my vegetables and salad for about 6 months of the year, forage all year, and preserve a lot. I have also recently found a community pantry that any one can use as it is food that would be wasted, but I try not to use it too much as it tempts me to have food that I would not normally eat or buy. I also want to remain independent in case it disappears as food gets more scarce. I was so grateful for it during the 5 week hunger gap, though, before my crops were ready. I love fish and we are lucky that sometimes salmon is sold whole at discount and so we can portion it up and freeze it for lots of meals. Take care and enjoy your summer break x
Your an inspiration Toni. I’m always amazed how you stretch out your food. I’ve always got a very good emergency store cupboard and more so this year. My 2 freezers are packed. Taking on board some of your ideas has saved me quite a bit of money. And I find it not only interesting but exciting what can be made with comparatively very little.
Thanks.