cheap family recipes 

feed a family of 4 for less than £200 a month

The planners are designed for a family of four – two adults and two teenage children – but can be easily adapted to suit any situation. Whether you are a single or have a larger brood, please don’t feel daunted or think it can’t be done unless you’re cooking for exactly four. It most certainly can and our testers have proved it!

Read on for our tips on how to make life easier, however many you’re catering for…

When starting the planner as a single, simply dividing the shopping list by four will give odd amounts so round up to nearest size. This will leave things over but they can be used next month. The first month’s shop will be slightly more than £25 but will average out over time, if you continue the planner for longer.

If following planner one, a single person will need approx 1-2 pints of milk per week – this will vary somewhat, as it’s used in some recipes and also depends on how much you like in your tea. This is not a concern for those following planner 2, as it is vegan so contains no milk or dairy.

You’ll need two loaves of homemade bread per week as a single person following the plan to the letter, including all breakfasts and lunches – which is half a batch of your bread recipe. Simply halve all the ingredients stated except the yeast, which you must always use at least 10g of, however small a batch you’re making of any of the recipes it is used in.

Why Not Try....?

Christmas Pudding

Christmas Pudding

cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for less than £200 a monthChristmas Pudding  What do I need to make Christmas Pudding 120 g sugar 60 ml vegetable oil 2 tsp mixed spice 300 ml apple juice 250 g mixed dried fruit 200 g breadcrumbs 1 egg, whisked 100 g...

Chocolate Nut Cheesecake

Chocolate Nut Cheesecake

cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for less than £200 a monthChocolate Nut CheesecakeAn easy to make chocolate and nut cheesecake perfect for celebrations of all kinds, or just a Sunday pudding. Lots of possible variations too What do I need to make a chocolate...

Chocolate Brownies

Chocolate Brownies

cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for (just over) £100 a monthChocolate BrownieI've tweaked this recipe rather from the 2010 original, reducing the sugar, increasing the flour, and changing to a solid fat. I usually use butter now, but any solid fat would work...

Take care of your family and your budget

Before putting together our meal planners we surveyed over 600 people to ask when faced with a tighter budget, which things they would struggle to give up.

Want to know more about how to feed yourself fantastically frugal food?