cheap family recipes
feed a family of 4 for less than £200 a month
Welcome…
Eat well for less If you ever feel that you spend all of your time trying to juggle the demands of a tasty diet against the constraints of your budget, if you are torn between the need to save money and belief that reducing your grocery budget will result in repetitive and uninspiring meals – if you love food, yet hate debt – then this is the website for you.
Good food does not need to cost an arm and a leg, and frugality is not the same thing as deprivation. What we offer is a monthly menu planner for an average family – two adults, two teens – which covers everything a person will eat and drink in a month for an incredible 86p per day, whilst still offering an average family’s usual fare.
I’m no Delia!
And now you may be thinking – oh, it’s okay for those who have the time to stay at home and cook all day, but I’m a busy person with a busy family, there is no way I would ever be able to do all this. Well, we beg to differ. The planner has been created by a working mum of two, and tested by a variety of real life families, all with their own busy and demanding lives, and there is advice on getting ahead with the cooking so you can fit all the work in when it suits you.
DEFRA figures show that an average UK family of four spend £5300 per year on food. Our planner will feed a family of four for £1282 per year. That’s a saving of over £4000 a year on average – and the planner provides more than the recommended “five a day”, as well as meeting your recommended daily amounts (RDAs) of vitamins and minerals.
So really – what are you waiting for?
Our History
Cheap Family Recipes was originally written in 2010 by Weezl and a band of helpers of which I, Thrifty Lesley, was one. I was sad to see the site only available on an archive site and decided to bring it back, it’s such a valued resource. It had been brought back previously, but disappeared into archive once more. So in the summer of 2019, I decided to re-launch it. Everything has been re-priced to 2019 levels and I’ll keep that up to date, as I do on Thrifty Lesley meal plans and it’s also been given a fresh new look. I do hope you like it!
When you read about something in the first person throughout the site, that person might be Weezl, or it might be me! Would be great if you also check out Thrifty Lesley, I write about feeding yourself for £1 a day there and there are 500+ recipes and many meal plans there too
Why Not Try....?
Bean Curry
cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for less than £200 a monthBean CurryCurry in a hurry - on the table in 25 minutes! This curry is part of monthly meal plan 1 and serves 4. What do I need to make curry in a hurry ▢ 1 can tomatoes▢ 1 tin baked beans▢ 1 can...
Apple Curd
cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for less than £200 a monthApple CurdWhat do I need to make this easy apple curd These amounts are those used in meal plan 1. If you are not following the meal plan in full, you can make changes 1 kg bramley apples cut up into...
Walnut and Pumpkin Seed Butter
cheap family recipes feed a family of 4 for less than £200 a monthWalnut ButterWalnuts and pumpkin seeds made into a delicious nut butter - won't find this in the shops! Use different nuts or seeds to ring the changes. What do I need to make this walnut and pumpkin...
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.