cheap family recipes 

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

Celebration Week Meal Plan

This nutrition article should also answer some of your questions about your family’s diet.

I’ve just re-priced this weeks meal plan on 20th November 2022, during very volatile grocery pricing, and I’m very glad to report that it still costs up at just over £1 a day. In fact it is coming in at £1.12 per person, per day! Lots of yummy things to eat, with more treats than usual, and still within a teeny tiny budget

There are a couple of bits and pieces not used up completely in this weeks meal plan. Either save them for next week, or use them wherever you want during the week. There is 300g of Buttery for example, so would be nice on toast as a filler if you need it

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All the shopping you will need for this gorgeous week, except salt and pepper, and any drinks

 

Shopping List for Celebration WeekPriced in Nov 2022 Needed at the tillLeftover at the end of the week
Fruit & Vegetables
330g carrots49p for a kg670g, 33p
3 loose garlic bulbs65p
5kg onions£3.25
160g, 10p
2.5kg potatoes£1.25
400g mushrooms. Cheapest is 600g bag frozen£1.20200g, 40p
1 lemon 30p
500g mixed dried fruit£1.10
Dairy & Eggs
410g tin of evaporated milk55p100ml, 13p
142ml fresh single cream, pot contains 300ml£1.20158ml, 63p
300ml fresh whipping cream£1.35
500g Brilliantly Buttery£1.10300g, 66p
30 cooks value medium eggs£3.002, 20p
Meat, Fish & Poultry
1.3Kg ASDA Boneless Pork Leg or Shoulder (depending on which joint is closest to the stated weight or price) £3.90
120g smoked salmon trimmings£1.90
Frozen
1kg frozen smartprice sausages£1.50
1kg frozen brussels sprouts£1.25
Tin, Jars & Cooking
1 litre vegetable oil, 240ml leftover£2.40240ml, 58p
tin chick peas41p
smartprice malt vinegar29p553ml, 28p
Asda chicken stock cubes60p for 12 cubes7, 35p
142g tomato puree, 90g leftover60p for 200g58g, 17p
33g mixed spice70p35p
2 sachets Easybake yeast40p
Packets & Cereals
2 x 1.5kg self raising flour£1.16p
1.5 kg strong white bread flour£1.05p
1kg sugar£1.0060g, 6p
1kg value spaghetti, 100g leftover56p100g, 6p
Snacks & Sweets
5 x 100g plain chocolate£1.65
Drinks
1 litre value apple juice75p
Total£35.56£4.30
Total of food eaten £31.26

Your Christmas Day timing guide

This guide is created assuming you have a standard 55-60cm freestanding oven with 2 shelves and the bottom of the oven usable for baking. If you have a smaller/integrated oven, or one with fewer shelves, you may wish to consider using a slow-cooker, microwave or Remoska, or cooking in advance to help you prepare this larger celebratory meal. 

TimeTaskOvenNotes
Christmas Eveprepare Christmas puddingnot in useleave steaming until tomorrow
7.45am Christmas Daypork joint prep and into ovenpork joint
8.20ammake eggy bread and sausagepork joint
8.40amserve eggy bread and sausagepork joint
9:00ammake mushroom souppork jointstop just before final simmer
10:00ammake stuffing, Yorkshire pudding batter and cochonspork joint
12 noonbegin to steam Christmas puddingpork joint
12:20pmlay the tablepork joint
12:40pmprepare vegetables and baste meatbottom: pork without foil, middle: carrot/potato/cochon, top: potatoes 
12:50pmwhip cream for Christmas puddingbottom: pork without foil, middle: carrot/potato/cochon, top: potatoes chill this until required
13:15pmcheck Christmas pudding, topping up water levels if requiredbottom: pork without foil, middle: carrot/potato/cochon, top: potatoes 
13:30pmsimmer mushroom soupbottom: pork without foil, middle: carrot/potato/cochon, top: potatoes 
13:35pmremove pork and vegetables, turn oven up for stuffing and Yorkshires, heat Yorkshire tin in oven top: potatoes, middle: yorkshire tin 
13:45pmput Yorkshire pudding into oventop: potatoes, middle: Yorkshires
13:50pmserve mushroom souptop: potatoes, middle: yorkshires
13:55pmput stuffing into oventop: potatoes, middle: yorkshires, bottom: stuffing 

Why Not Try....?

Vegan Tomato and Basil Soup

Vegan Tomato and Basil Soup

cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for (just over) £100 a monthVegan Tomato & Basil SoupThis fresh and delicious tomato and basil soup is offered as an alternative option in the Celebration Week Planner, but can be enjoyed at any time, and as it uses tinned...

Creamy Parsnip Soup

Creamy Parsnip Soup

cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for (just over) £100 a monthCreamy Parsnip SoupCreamy parsnip soup, such a classic Christmas flavour. Easy to make, warming and comforting How Do I Make Creamy Parsnip Soup? This recipe uses frozen parsnips. If you prefer to use...

Tomato Relish

Tomato Relish

cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for (just over) £100 a monthTomato RelishIf you are following the vegan monthly meal plan, this tangy homemade tomato relish is used as a condiment whenever you would like to use it. There is no particular use specified in the...

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?