I'm sure you've met Frugal Queen, and then there's MeanQueen, but are you aware of the Budget Menu Queen? I've been following her over on Facebook for a little while, where she pops up occasionally. This week she has shared a week's worth of recipes, provided a shopping list and costed it for four supermarkets [Aldi was the cheapest] which I think could be really useful for a lot of us - me included.....
Can I confess? Our food is lacking inspiration lately! Lack of time and that inspiration has meant that the YFG and I have been eating from the freezer and fridge, in a rut - I grab sausages, chicken, fish occasionally, and I serve it with a heap of veg, and that has been that. We have had risotto, baked potatoes, beans on toast [for her], scampi and chips [again, for her] and even, in dire emergencies of no time at all - rice and jam! And no, that isn't rice pudding and jam but just plain boiled rice and a good dollop of jam........not often though, and probably better than ordering in a take away, so I am not feeling TOO bad about it.
The EFG cooks for herself now that she is a vegetarian, as even when we have a veggie risotto, she doesn't like rice! She has become more adventurous than I ever thought she would, and has embraced lentils, chickpeas, black beans [not too keen - too much wind produced!] and all sorts of other stuff like halloumi which was beyond the realms of our experience a few years ago.
So, I have to give myself a bit of a kick up the behind and get some of the recipe books earning their keep - especially with two students to feed from the end of next month. Between the Budget Menu Queen and Feed your family for less than £20, I am intending things to improve around here......
Trying to live my life for God and my family, with an eye on the pennies!
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9 comments:
Oh Morgan! You have made my afternoon! I just love the thought of plain boiled rice and a dollop of jam! I've never had that one but have had quite a few "unusual" combinations when time has been short. Most of those would never appear on anyone's carefully prepared menu plan.
Come on, then, FC - what unusual combinations have you had? Glad I've given you "food for thought" this afternoon xxxx
Aldi's golden savoury vegetable rice is cheap and a quick meal. We sometimes serve it with sausages. Cheesey beans on toast and pasta tuna with grated cheese are also favourite quick cheap meals. Growing teens cost a fortune to feed, especially boys. I'm trying to pick up as much yellow sticker food as possible at the moment.
Thanks for those ideas, SusanM - pasta tuna does happen occasionally here too, and macaroni cheese. I have some of that savoury rice in the house, but one of the girls has turned up her nose at it for some reason so I shall have to find out [remind myself] why and see what I can do to it to make it more acceptable! Perhaps a spoon of curry powder might do the trick....I'm not getting to the shops at the right time at the moment to find the yellow stickers and I do miss it xx
A small teaspoon of curry powder in a can of baked beans makes a nice change. Basic Value beans 15p a tin. Or a slice of bread dipped in a beaten egg and shallow fried is quick.
I usually add white rice to my savoury rice to bulk it out - just put the uncooked rice in with the packet rice before cooking. If the girls enjoy onions and mushrooms, you could add those sauteed to the savoury rice. Or some chilli sauce (my husband, having grown up in Malaysia, adds chilli sauce to everything possible!).
I'm fairly sure I saw new halls of residence being built in Aberdeen, presumably due to the accommodation shortages faced by so many last year. We're looking at St Andrews too and I've heard there are shortages of accommodation there as well. Is EFG sorted out for next year. Higher results due out here on Tuesday!
We bought the "glow" cookbook by Madeleine Shaw since we are battling with major health issues around here. The recipes are really good and quite easy to make and easy to switch around for cheaper foods! Yesterday we had folded eggs, asparagus and lemon salsa for breakfast, lunch was warm quinoa and chilli salad, served on a bed of lettuce and topped with roasted chick peas and tea was a massive one pot meal of lamb steaks and assorted veg. We also shop at Aldi.
San
San - thanks for that - I will see if I can lay my hands on a copy of that to have a look at. Thank you for the recommendation. Had quite a read over at your place today too - great blog!
SusanM - she has a place for this year in accommodation owned by a private company but used by Aberdeen students, and much closer to campus. There are 5 of them in a flat together, and they are not all too keen on one another now, so I think that they may only stick it out for the one year together, but they are allowed to renew their contracts with this company if they want to, and the contract is as individuals per room, so if one of them decides to ship out mid way through the year, the others aren't liable for the rest of the rent! I went to St Andrews, and loved it - but I spent my first year in an all female hall called University Hall, and then had a room in a complex of flats down by the sea, which was good. My second year in non-university accommodation was a shared house up by Morrisons [Safeway back then!] and a long walk in and out every day, but passed by Shoprite each time, so handy for picking up cheap nosh! I imagine that the popularity of St A has gone through the roof since I was there, with the Kate/William effect, but they should be considering accommodation for people before they let them in there as St A is about 10 miles from anywhere else so your average student has GOT to get accommodation in the town by hook or by crook! Good luck with the results xxx
I had to go and do abit of work this evening checking some of our company's tree planting schemes so as it was a lovely evening, I took the girls and we stopped at the co-op on the way and picked up a yellow sticker picnic. We had a cheap and let's say diverse picnic of teenage food (they got away with all manner of naughty food) and salmon for me. We had it in the grounds of a ruined Abbey. Lovely.
I have spent some money on a nutriblaster and am blasting my way thru the polytunnel veg. Never felt so healthy.
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