Split pea soup 1 tbsp oil, 2 large onions, 1.5 cups split green peas, 5 cups of water, & 2 tsp veg stock powder, pinch of paprika.Saute the onion in the oil until soft, but not coloured, add the stock, peas and paprika bring to the boil & simmer until peas are soft, puree, adjust seasoning. (I sometimes add alittle more stock powder to taste instead of salt)Very tasty and inexpensive.I freeze it in portions for lunches.Dhal is another inexpensive tasty meal.
darlingmole,
Jun 29, 7:52am
evening ruby- yes I love dhal we have it with veges on rice for dinner (curry style) and it's both healthy and filling.Thanks heaps for your recipe
tumbleweeds2011,
Jun 29, 9:11am
It really p's me off that people are struggling like this all over the country and supermarkets are still chucking out skips full of food each day. Good food that is just nearing or past its 'best by' date. It doesn't make sense to me, our supermarkets may have a small area in the chiller dept, sometimes bakery bread but its not nearly enough, whats wrong with all food, dirt cheap! Surely it even makes good business sense. Good luck darlingmole. I was in pretty much the same situation in the last recession and it leaves lasting memories! We struggle enough now that I can't work but at least there is only two of us left at home - easy enough in summer with a full vege garden but difficult at this time of the year. I'll have to get my thinking cap on for you.
winnie231,
Jun 29, 9:18am
Ask around or even put an ad in your local buy,sell & swap . personal ads are usually free . for a hoggot or 1/2 a beast or . You can 'buy' a beast for a nominal amount if legalities are an issue - then have it butchered - although this includes a larger outlay in one hit - you will save big bucks long term on your grocery bill!
tumbleweeds2011,
Jun 29, 9:21am
I don't buy cleaning stuff nowadays just one bottle of sugar soap, I decant into a spray bottle and dilute to about 5 or 6 parts water. Its brilliant and cheap. I always have milk powder, just smallish packets at a time and use this for rice or semolina pudding, pancakes, pikelets etc. Good filling food, and milk puddings are great if you don't have alot of meat. I always bake potatoes in their skins, or cut into wedges rather than peel and waste. Have vegetarian meals often. My mother always diluted tomato sauce and I have seen someone on here dilutes their milk. Vinegar can be diluted by half. I've posted ideas for meals on $25 a week one.
tumbleweeds2011,
Jun 29, 9:37am
Bulk White sauce mix for leftover 2 cups milk powder, 1 cup plain flour,2 tsp salt, 1 cup butter or marg. Blend until resembles bradcrumbs. Keep in an airtight container up to two months in fridge. When want to use mix 1/2 cup mix to one cup water and stir over med heat till thickened. Add cheese, curry powder etc as desired.
bams1,
Jun 29, 9:40am
i make a yummy sausage and potato bake that makes a few sausages feed alot !We have a heap of kids too , not all at home now ( 3 left to go) but this is one of their favs still !Partly cook sausages in a frying pan ( i can make 6 saus feed 8 people) , oil a roasting dish well , chop up some garlic and sprinkle over the bottom , scrub some spuds and thinly slice ( you can peel if you wish) make a layer of spuds on top of garlic ,then slice sausages diagonally and thin , make a layer of that.
bams1,
Jun 29, 9:44am
cont. then another layer of sliced spud , a sprinkle of cheese on top , and fill dish 1/2 with milk ( can use milk powder )and a couple of knobs of butter on top bake till spuds are cooked when you poke it with a knife. Can add lots of different things , kumara,pumpkin, i like mushrooms and onions added too , it makes a good meal along with a salad or a pot of carrots and greens.
pickles7,
Jun 29, 10:38am
dishwashing liquid to make grate a bar of soap, pour 2 cups of boiling water over, stir and dissolve.Leave over night, mix in 1/4 cup of white vinegar.I made this up last night, it dosn't froth up much but it is very good.My dish cloth feels so much better.I used the same amount as I would have with ord.detergent.
pickles7,
Jun 29, 11:48am
shampoo to make grate a bar of soap pour 2 cups of boiling water over, stir and mix in 1\4 cup of conditioner.
brem,
Jun 29, 11:06pm
The hard thing is keeping it cheap but making it healthy. Not sure if you have a local outdoor market, but I find the Avondale market so much cheaper for fruit & Vege. Can save about $40 per week by not buying them at supermarket. Mad butcher is cheaper for meat than supermarket. Buy cheap cuts of beef and make caseroles. Tinned fruit salad in a container for lunchboxes is good when no fresh fruit left. Tinned tomatoes are chaep and make a good healthy pasta sauce - better than cheese. I am growing spinach, brocc and carrots in the garden over winter.Vege soup is cheap and easy to make - serve it with homemade damper instead of bread. Good luck
crails,
Jun 29, 11:12pm
Have pudding That's often cheaper than a large dinner, your still eating/serving the same amount of food just differently
darlingmole,
Jun 29, 11:41pm
Wicked ~ thanks everyone for all the helpful suggestions . I'm taking all of this on board.Tumbleweeds - the white sauce sounds brilliant as we often have cheese sauces (to disguise healthy veges! ha!) so will be doing that.The home-made soaps etc are an easy idea too which I'll be trying tomorrow after grocery shopping.Will be buying my veges at the markets as I agree, supermarkets are too expensive
pickles7,
Jun 30, 2:05am
mayo, using a stick blender 1 whole large egg, 1\2 tsp salt,1\4 tsp pepper,3\4 tsp hot English mustard 1\8 cup of white vinegar. put into a tallish narrow jug your blender will fit into.start the blender and drizzle in vegetable oil untill the moya thickens and tastes nice. aprox. 1 cup.
pickles7,
Jun 30, 2:11am
you can extend egg for sandiches, and cheese and onion by adding white sauce. helps it stick as well.
bisloy,
Jun 30, 2:15am
Bulk poatoes like potato bake and homemade wedges go a long way to cutting back on the meat. I like the idea of 'leave room for pudding'. Mostly flour, milk a little butter, sugar and flavours, so not too much of a stretch. I dessert I like to make that is super quick and easy is a can of apricots arranged over a sheet of puff pastry. You can brush some jam over if you want. Bake until crispy and serve with cream. Looks lovely and is so easy. Remember cream that is a little doubtful can be used to make the lovely idiot-proof scones. These scones are fab for going on top of cassaroles as dumplings. Can post if you don't already have it.
indy95,
Jun 30, 2:42am
To make something taste a lot meatier than it really is try adding a few finely sliced or chopped up mushrooms. This even works with mushroom-hating children and teenagers and is especially good for stretchingmeatless tomato based pasta dishes.
pamellie,
Jun 30, 2:53am
Grow some sprouts! I have been growing sprouts lately and they are great. I use alfalfa, mung, blue pea and brown lentils. I just put a spoonful of each in an agee jar, then soak them overnight in water and then wash and drain morning and evening. Within in a few days they are starting to sprout and you can start to eat them. Hubby likes them leafy and green and a jar can last a couple of weeks as they don't stop growing! The seeds are cheap and easy to buy from the Binn Inn or your local Indian shop. Good cos you can buy an amount you want. A cheap source of very fresh and nutricious greens.
bisloy,
Jun 30, 3:00am
Best part of grocery shopping Is cruising the marked down bargins, esp in the fish bar - this is the only way we can afford salmon. Actually it's not too bad as you don't too much, it being so rich.
darlingmole,
Jun 30, 3:51am
yes please bisloy ~ I'd love the idiot proof scones recipe.Do you cook them in the stew! or seperately!Anyway, yes post it for me thanks .
gaspodetwd,
Jun 30, 4:37am
and don't forget that crumbles are quick and cheap fruit in season or that is very ripe - and add oats to bulk out the topping. very yummy and cheap.
toadfish,
Jun 30, 4:44am
I just remembered something that my family love and costs next to nothing to make. Good old fashioned Mousetraps.Get a cheap loaf. I like multigrain. I usually use frozen bread as it makes it easier to cut and doesn't squash down.Spread with vegemite or marmite while frozen & cut into 4, I do this on the diagonal and get 4 triangles per slice. I then put these on a baking tray (6 bread slices per baking tray and I usually do 2 trays at a time) Then I am the "queen of Mean" with the grated cheese and put about 3 shreds on each triangle. But that really is all it needs.Then i bake them till dry, You kind of get used to how long it takes but roughly 15 mins at 180 deg.Then I turn the oven off to finish the drying process.Really tasty and really filling. the kids and hubby grab a handful and 6 triangles is only 1 and a half slices of budget bread.
chantellenz,
Jun 30, 4:52am
Can someone please post a link to the $25 budget!
toadfish,
Jun 30, 5:01am
It was just on page 2 I bumped it for you.
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