Meal Plan Monday #2

I missed doing this post last week, but I’m continuing with my new series of posts about our weekly meals, as meal planning really helps us stick to our budget month after month. Am I the only one who loves looking at and reading about what other people buy at the grocery store and what they eat each week? The amount of food that some people buy when at the supermarket astounds me, though I guess I don’t know how many people they are feeding. But still, there must be some waste going on, as some of the trolleys are piled so high with food!

 

I do our grocery shopping on Sunday morning whilst Mr FC has some quality daddy-baby time with our little one, so I can take my time in the supermarket. I actually enjoy food shopping and browsing round the store, though I make sure that I stick to the list that I make before I go. Making a list means that I don’t buy things we don’t need, plus ensures that nothing gets thrown away. The only slightly frustrating thing this week was that the supermarket has decided to change the layout around so it took longer than usual as I couldn’t find anything! There was also two full isles of Christmas related items, already.

 

So, our meal plan for this week is as follows:

Monday – bacon quiche, potato croquettes and beans

Tuesday – SC oxtail stew with mashed potatoes

Wednesday – pizza night!

Thursday – spaghetti Bolognese (freezer)

Friday – spanish style chicken with sourdough bread

 

I mentioned last time that I was trying to incorporate one vegetarian meal into our plan each week, but typing this out has made me realise that this week that isn’t the case. I think that I need to research some tasty vegetarian meals as I always worry that they won’t be as tasty, though I don’t know why. Breakfast and lunches are included in the £40 as well; breakfast is normally a banana for Mr FC and cereal or toast for me. Lunches can be a variety of things; sandwiches, soup, salads, vegetables and dip, just depends on the week and the mood we’re in. Now that I’m at home during the day, I can take longer over my lunch so try to have something hot and filling; as the weather is getting cooler I am loving soups at the moment. I need to try and make some more homemade soups, rather than relying on tinned soup. I’m sure that’ll reduce spends even more!

 

Related posts: 

• Healthy Eating On A Budget
• 3 Healthy Breakfast Recipes On A Budget
• 3 Healthy Lunch Recipes On A Budget

 

Part of our planning and budget for food means that some items are used from our stockpile every week. This is so the food we already have in the cupboards is used regularly and rotated so nothing goes to waste, but it’s also a good habit to get in to so that if we cannot get to the shops for whatever reason, I can make meals from what we already have in the cupboards. Out of the meal plan for this week the bolognese sauce, quiche and potato croquettes are all from the freezer, so that has reduced spends as well. The bolognese sauce is homemade; I made extra portions at the time and froze them so we’re working our way through the stocks.

 

Related posts:

• How To Start A Stockpile
• How To Organise Your Stockpile

 

As the weather gets colder, I intend to use our slow cooker more and more, as it’s perfect for cheaper cuts of meat and cooking all day on a low heat (I can’t find ours to link to, but this is the one my parents have and it’s great!). I’m always searching for new recipes to try in the slow cooker, so if you have any favourites, please share them in the comments below! The oxtail stew is a new one; I got some oxtail reduced at the supermarket and I’ve never actually eaten it before. But, I thought it might be good if I cooked it slowly in the slow cooker with some onions, carrots, parsnip and stock and served it with some mash and hopefully it’ll be tasty!

 

What are you eating this week? Trying anything new? I’d love to hear from you in the comments!