Being keen as anything to get going on my challenge of
cutting food costs, I made a menu plan and a shopping list, hah, that all went
out the window when I got to the supermarket.
Normally, I would have used a brochure they stick through the letterbox
in the weekend. Somehow it didn’t arrive
and I assumed that the usual specials would apply how wrong I was!
First of all I intended to buy lamb as that has been
on special for ages, no it was up to $34 a leg!
No way! I cast my eye along the chiller, oh pork! Yippee! A good price too. Such a good price that I am seriously thinking
of going to town after my physio on Friday, and get some more joints, as also (I
discover that I can see the specials online) the legs joints are even a better
bargain!
There were quite a few bargains that weren’t on my shopping
list such as avocados at 89 cents each; Jarrah coffee reduced down to $4.00,
normally it is about $7, and potatoes they have been about $2.99 a kilo, I got
a 2.5 kg (5 lb) bag for $4.00. Maggi cup
of sups for $1.99, (quite often I will just have a cup of soup and a piece of
toast for supper. Quite a quick and
cheap meal, (there are 4 in a pack.) Tasty Cheese $10.00 instead of $12.00'
I quickly realised as I was going around the shop that
my menu plan was not valid anymore and also that my actual needs for the next
fortnight were only about ¼ my budget.
So I am able to replenish my stock as well. Well mostly!
I did plan to make a quiche on Friday as I have a friend coming for
lunch and she is vegetarian. I would
have used up the butter I have for the pastry, However I could not believe my
eyes it was over $5.00 a 500gm block. (Normally you can get it $3.50, what
happened? So, I will make impossible quiche
instead and save my butter! I went on
line and the other supermarket in town has it for $4.50, STILL!?!!
Here is my budget and menu plan, I promise, promise
you I will not bore you with it every fortnight, I just wanted to list it to
show that even when food is dear in your area, if you have a well-stocked store
you can be thrifty. As a matter of interest Winz (state benefit people)
calculate that when giving out a food grant to its clients, $100 for a single
person a week is sufficient! PLEASE I AM NOT SAYING IT IS TOO MUCH, THESE PEOPLE ARE VERY NEEDY and NEED HELP WHEN UNEXPECTED BILLS COME IN, THEIR BENEFITS DON'T MAKE ALLOWANCE FOR THE UNEXPECTED. (I have been there!) I am only giving this as a benchmark. Also I
wanted to show that you can eat really well on my budget. Yes there is an initial outlay to build up your
store, but that can be done gradually during the weeks you have a surplus.
Fortnightly needs:
Pork 2 kg (4 lb) - $14.22
Chicken 1.3 kg (2
¾ lb.)- $9
½ Cauliflower - $2.70
Eggplant - $2.49
Sour cream 250 gm (8 oz.) - $3.00
500 gm carrots - $2.22
500 gm Onions - $1.47
Total $35.10
Store cupboard
Potatoes $2.50 kg $4.00
Tin diced tomatoes - 80 cents
UHT milk 1 litre - $2.00
4 packets Maggi soup of soups - $8.00
1 Watties Tortellini Sachets 350 gm - 3.00 (stand by
treat)
Jarrah Vienna latte coffee - $4.00 (treat)
Bread (el cheapo) -- $1.00 (I like to have a loaf in
the freezer in case I don’t get round to making a loaf!)
Tasty cheddar 700 gm - $10.00, will cut it up into 4
pieces and freeze.
Total $32.80
This leaves $32.10 of my fortnightly budget of $100 (US $70) for
perishables and replenishment of stores.
Menu plan
Tuesday
–
Roast chicken, potatoes, kumara, carrots and peas, strawberries
Wednesday –Cold Chicken, potato salad, lettuce salad, fresh
peach
Thursday – Broccoli and feta fritters, garden salad and fresh
peach
Friday – Impossible Quiche, garden salad and fruit salad with
yogurt
Saturday – Chicken Pilaf, lettuce salad, yogurt and berries
Sunday - Roast Pork and the trimmings, Bread and Butter
Pudding
Monday - Black Bean`Quesadillas, Fruit salad
Tuesday – Cold pork, broccoli, carrots and Jacket Potato, rest
of Bread and Butter Pudding
Wednesday – Chicken curry and rice, yogurt.
Thursday – Stuffed zucchini (mince beef), rice, carrot salad, preserved
apricots
Friday – Sweet and Sour pork, noodles and stir fry
vegetables, apple
Saturday – Broccoli/cauliflower soufflé and garden salad,
apricot crumble
Sunday – Chicken risotto, using last of chicken and stock
made from the carcass, chocolate mousse
Monday – remains of risotto made into a patty with a pocket
of feta cheese, chocolate mousse
Breakfast is usually toast and vegemite or jam, or a cereal,
such as cornflakes or weetbix, milk and preserved fruit.
Supper will be the cereal if toast is had in the morning or a
cup of soup and salad sandwich. I will make ratatouille to have some days as a
change.
Today’s main meal I had this evening as it was too hot
to eat at midday! I still haven’t eaten
the peach, but will have it later perhaps.
I have planned for desserts but quite often I will miss them. They are
there if I want them.
With this plan I have not used all my pork, I will have at
least 6 meals lfor the freezer. And I probably will have some vegetables
left. There were only 3 meals that made
heavy use of what was in store.
The key to this is being flexible, go for the bargains
and then plan your meals. Take enough
time when you are going around the shop to think what if I have that what else
would I need. This shop was done in only
one supermarket; no doubt I could have pared it down even more if I shopped
around more. But we are in the middle of
a heat wave and no way was I going to traipse down the other end of town! I will check it out on Friday.
One bit of good news, the company that is fitting my
heat pump in is doing it next Tuesday so if the heat wave is still here I will
have air conditioning. Yay!
Crochet news – I have been working on a shawl from some wool I unraveled
from an op shop jersey. I am using two strands and it is coming on well. However I would love someone to tell me how
to stop unraveled wool looking like spaghetti junction!
I fell in love with shawls last winter and I do have
another one on the hooks, but have put it aside as it is too hot to handle wool
comfortably, so, I have been making some doilies.
They are quick and fun to make. This is made with no 10 cotton and
a 1.75 mm hook. I got the pattern from Ravelry,
I must put a link to my project pages on the side bar. I am not sure if you can see it if you don’t have
an account with them, but for those of you that do, you can access the pattern
links.
In the Garden
It is too hot to be in the garden much, but I have had
to clear the bed against back of the house, so they can put in the unit for the
heat pump. I will start again as the
plants are overgrown and rather shaggy. The
Geraniums had got taller than me! So, a
good excuse putting in a new plan for that area.
Tonight I will take some time out to read with a
herbal tea, I am reading David Baldacci’s Zero
Day, I love his books. After I have
posted this I will strip the chicken carcass and freeze the meat and boil the carcass
to make stock.
Life cannot get
any better than this!
Thanks for
visiting and have a lovely day/night.
Sharon
PS I want to
thank Jane over at Hope and Thrift for inspiring me to take the plunge.
