Budget Pantry Challange

Just had another thought- I have a great book called Dinner Doctor, which gives recipes to makes cans and boxes of stuff taste more homemade, and certainly has great ideas for being on a budget. 
Here is the book:


And here is a website forum, never been on that, so I don't know how good it is or not:
http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=5

Sounds like Sandra Lee's semi-homemade style of cooking. I might borrow it from the library to see ideas and whether or not I'd like it.

Yeah, its a lot like Sandra Lee- I don't use it very often, but when I'm trying to use up random stuff from my pantry, it can sure come in handy!

I'm still trying to figure out different cooking times for vegetables. I don't know how long they should cook so I end up having some that are cooked too long and some that are just right or only slightly overdone.

If you can afford a steamer  (one sits on top of an ordinary saucepan shouldn't be too expensive), it's much easier not  cook veg.  Something like shredded cabbage will only take a minute or so once the water is boiiling, veg like carrots or cauliflower may take 5 or 10 minutes, depending on whether you like them crunchy or soft. Just stick a skewer in them to test and cook to your liking, then turn the gas off. The great thing about a steamer is that the veg will keep hot without going soggy , so it doesn't matter if they're cooked a bit before the rest of the meal. Also you can cook potatoes in the bottom pan, and veg over the top, saving gas as well as money.

I second HME's suggestion on getting a steamer.  They really do cook veggies up quickly!  Being vegetarian I couldn't imagine a meal without veggies!  If you're having something and don't know what veggie to serve with it, you can't go wrong with just plain steamed broccolli.  Or green beans. 

If plain is too boring for you can always put a little butter or oil and salt and pepper.  Or even a little salad dressing.  I make my own.

I use equal parts olive oil, balsamic vinegar and soy sauce.  I'll sometimes add a little hot sauce or honey or lemon juice or pepper.  Or I'll use lemon (or lime) juice instead of the vinegar.  Sometimes a little tomato paste watered down a bit and stirred in as well.

I actually did just buy a steamer at a thrift shop the other day. That's a good idea about using the bottom half for boiling and the top for steaming. I never would have thought of that!

I was finally able to get on The Hillbilly Housewife. It seems like a good site I have been browsing it a lot today, thanks!

Thanks again for the ideas and recipes. This week I didn't spend much in groceries at all, I just bought some rolls and a box of cereal!

I also love the idea of making extra and freezing it for a "homemade convenience meal." I like to cook, but definitely have those nights when I don't feel like cooking, I can just defrost them and make a side dish which is so much easier! I did that when I had a conference earlier this week, my friend that I went with was jealous that we'd had a long day and I didn't really have to cook and she did. The meat that I thought would only last us one more week has now lasted two weeks and I can definitely get at least two more weeks out of it. 

I'm finding that it's kind of fun trying to figure out how long I can make it stretch. Maybe that's what I need is to keep it like a game for me.

I also love the idea of making extra and freezing it for a "homemade convenience meal." 

I do that all the time because I always seem to cook enough to feed a small army when it's just the two of us.  Steve tends to cook just enough & not much more.  But he does appreciate that I do on those nights when we're both too tired too cook & there's a nice batch of chili, soup/stew, spaghetti sauce, etc to take out of the freezer, heat & eat.

Glad you're having a good time with it!

But he does appreciate that I do on those nights when we're both too tired too cook & there's a nice batch of chili, soup/stew, spaghetti sauce, etc to take out of the freezer, heat & eat.

It's such a treat on those nights, isn't it?  And it really *is* fun seeing how much you can make stuff stretch!

I do that all the time because I always seem to cook enough to feed a small army when it's just the two of us.  Steve tends to cook just enough & not much more.  But he does appreciate that I do on those nights when we're both too tired too cook & there's a nice batch of chili, soup/stew, spaghetti sauce, etc to take out of the freezer, heat & eat.

Glad you're having a good time with it!

I thought I responded before, oops!

It is nice to be able to do that. Plus, since most recipes are meant for four people, it's easiest just to cook it in that batch than to do the conversions to make half.

I think I'll have another go at turkey stock soon. Maybe it'll turn out better this time.

I thought I'd update and say that it's looking like I'm going to make our goal of $300/month on food for the second month in a row! December wasn't as much of a great achievement since we were in England for a week and I really only had to shop for three weeks instead of the usual four. I have about $50 still left and all I should need to do for food next week is buy some vegetables at the farmer's market, which I just got more than a week's worth for just $10, and some milk. 

To add to my motivation, DB and I decided that if I come in under budget, we can save up the money for fun extra things that we want, but don't need (like dinners out). I could have done better if I wanted, but I did buy some "fun" foods. I'm really proud of this month since January has about five weeks. 

My biggest thing was to take out the cash at the beginning of the month and force myself to only use cash for food purchases. Since I did that, I constantly had to count the cash and monitor where I was and what I could afford to buy.

This is great Belita!

We are down to our last pounds this month and there are virtually no groceries in the pantry/fridge so I'm making things stretch.  Big Time. 

We had sloppy joes last night, with creamed corn and raw cauliflower (last veg).  It was good and much better than going to the chippy - also faster than going out and getting takeaway.

Now, I think we'll be onto soup.  I just need some basic fixings and I'll have it.  Also I will be making spaghetti sauce to freeze. 

I like the idea of only having a certain amount of cash to spend each month.  I might try that.   

My biggest thing was to take out the cash at the beginning of the month and force myself to only use cash for food purchases. Since I did that, I constantly had to count the cash and monitor where I was and what I could afford to buy.

I do this too.  I never use my debit card at the checkout.  I always take a limited amount of cash and a list.  It forces me to keep a running arithmetic tab as I shop which is a bit of a pain, but which does make me reconsider expensive or impulsive purchases.  I'd say the number of times I made a mistake in adding and had to pull out my debit card at the last minute was maybe once in the last year.

I give my son the arithmetic job whenever he's along because he's better than me at maths.  He's learned how hard it is to get everything and stay under budget, so he doesn't beg for stuff.  My daughter is not so good at arithmetic yet, but I'll be happy when she can help too because I think it's good to learn about budgeting.

Thanks! I'm glad I'm learning just how well we can do with much less money on food.