Our Family Meal Plan for This Week 28/05 - £58

I’ve still got more upper respiratory illnesses than a doctors waiting room and am therefore feeling rather wretched. Our Meal Plan this week will be an easy and low faff one as a result of me being crook and having a busy week.

My 3 girls will be having school dinners as I won’t have the time or energy to cope with making lunches for everyone this week. I’ve got my sugarpaste modelling course on Monday, I’ll be baking and decorating cakes on Tuesday for delivery on Wednesday and on Thursday I shall be at a cookery Masterclass in London all day (major cookery swoonage!!). Also on Wednesday and Thursday I’ll have Church meetings to attend in the evening so won’t be home for dinner. By Friday I will be completely knackered!

I’m sure everyone has a week like this when they are poorly, tired, really busy, and just can’t find the energy to be bothered cooking too much.

I’ve included the cost of all the ingredients of the salads in the Meal Plan as well as fish, sausages, kebabs, burgers and haloumi cheese which will accompany the salads. We grow our own fresh herbs and salad greens but I have included the cost in the shopping list as not all people grow their own. I will probably make our tortillas and bread rolls to accompany the salads.

Breakfasts will be really simple, either cereal with milk or toast and spread, with fruit for afters.  As my 3 daughters will be having school dinners, lunches for my husband and I will be leftovers from dinner the previous night.  Dinners will be salad based as they are easy to whip up quickly and perfect for this hot weather.

The cost of the ingredients in our Meal Plan for this week was £58.82 at Asda on 27/05/2012.  I used My Supermarket to check what my shopping would've cost had I shopped elsewhere.  My shopping would have cost £66.30 at Sainsbury's, £73.99 at Ocado and £74.51 at Tesco. 

Dinners

With the exception of Monday night, all the salads will be served with either grilled fish, sausages, burgers or grilled haloumi cheese.

Salmon Bake

1/2 cup plain flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
4 free range eggs, beaten
500ml milk
100g butter, melted
415g can pink salmon, drained
1 onion, finely chopped
70g grated cheddar cheese
1 tsp fresh chives, finely chopped

Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre, pour in the eggs, milk and butter. Then add the drained salmon, finely diced onion, grated cheese and chives. Mix everything together until just combined. Don’t over-mix it.

Grease a large ovenproof dish then pour the mixture in. Cook at 180ºC for about 45 minutes until the egg has set. I’ll be serving this with a green salad and chopped tomatoes.


Couscous Tabouleh

300g couscous
Boiling water/vegetable stock
2 Tblsp olive oil
1 small clove garlic, crushed
4 tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 yellow or orange pepper, deseeded and diced
1 handful fresh mint, chopped
1 handful fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
3 spring onions, thinly sliced
2 Tblsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Put the couscous into a heatproof bowl and pour in enough boiling water or stock to cover the couscous. Cover the bowl with clingfilm wrap and set it aside for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes uncover the couscous, add the oil and garlic, then fluff it up with a fork. Leave the couscous to cool for 10 minutes then add the tomato, mint, parsley, spring onion, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Serve immediately or put in the fridge until you’re ready to serve it.


Carrot Salad

5 large carrots, peeled and grated
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 Tblsp sultanas or raisins
Small handful chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Dressing:
6 Tblsp lemon juice
1 Tblsp tablespoon olive oil
1 tsp honey or sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander

Put all the salad ingredients in a bowl and mix them together. Put all the dressing ingredients into a screw top jar. Shake to combine and then pour over the salad just before you serve it.


Roast Vegetable Salad

400g butternut squash, peeled and cut in 1 inch dice
500g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in to 1 inch dice
1 pepper, deseeded and cut into 1 inch strips
2 red onions, cut into 8ths
1 Tblsp olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
350g spinach
420g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
200ml natural yoghurt
2 tsp paprika

Preheat your oven to 200°C. Put the squash, sweet potato, pepper and onion onto a large baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Drizzle them with the oil and make sure they are all covered then season with salt and pepper. Roast the vegetables for 15 minutes then take the tray out of the oven, turn the vegetables over, and roast for a further 15 minutes.

Put the spinach, roasted vegetables and chickpeas into a large salad bowl and gently toss them together. Mix the yoghurt and paprika together.  Put the salad on to the serving plates then drizzle some dressing over the top.


Asparagus and Quinoa Salad

500ml vegetable stock
200g quinoa, rinsed and drained
500g asparagus, woody ends snapped off then cut into 1 inch lengths
1 large pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
150g crumbled feta
2 red onions, peeled and thinly sliced
1 handful chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Dressing:
2 Tblsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp honey or sugar
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp paprika
2 large handfuls of spinach

Put the stock and quinoa into a saucepan over a medium heat. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed. Transfer to a large bowl and leave to cool.

Lightly cook the asparagus in boiling water or in the microwave until tender-crisp. Add the asparagus, pepper, feta, onion, parsley and rocket to the quinoa.

Put the dressing ingredients into a screw top jar. Shake to combine then pour over the salad. Toss everything together then serve.


Fruity Rice Salad

1 cup long-grain rice (white or brown)
4 Tblsp olive oil
2 Tblsp cider vinegar
1 large lettuce
3 large eating apples, cored and roughly chopped
3 celery stalks, trimmed and thinly sliced
large handful or two of raisins or sultanas

Cook the rice in a saucepan of boiling water, following packet instructions. Drain and then leave to cool.

Put the oil and vinegar into a screw-top jar. Season with salt and pepper, put on the lid, then shake to combine.

Roughly chop the lettuce and put in a large bowl Add the apple, celery and sultanas. Pour over the dressing, toss to combine, then serve.


Potato Salad

700g small new potatoes, unpeeled
2 hard-boiled eggs, quartered
125ml mayonnaise
1 Tblsp cider vinegar
3 spring onions, thinly sliced

Cook the potatoes in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water for until tender. Drain then put in a large salad bowl and leave too cool.

Mix the mayonnaise and vinegar together in a bowl. Add to the potatoes and toss to cover the potatoes in the dressing. Sprinkle over the spring onion and hard-boiled eggs. Serve.

Shopping List

Cost of 39 items for our Meal Plan this week was £58.82 from Asda on 27/05/2012.

Packets and Cereals
2x Weetabix Cereal (24x18g) £3.00
1x ASDA Wholemeal Bread Flour (1.5Kg) £1.28
1x ASDA Smartprice Plain White Flour (1.5Kg) 52p
1x ASDA Smartprice Long Grain Rice (1Kg) 40p
1x ASDA Wholefoods Cous Cous (500g) 68p
1x Asda Home Baking Easy Bake Yeast (6 per pack - 42g) 64p
1x Great Scot Quinoa (300g) £2.18

Tins, Jars and Cooking
1x ASDA Wild Pacific Pink Salmon (418g) £2.17
1x ASDA Olive Oil (250ml) £1.00
1x ASDA Smartprice Mayonnaise (500ml) 48p
1x ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g) 70p
1x ASDA Cider Vinegar (350ml) 84p

Dairy and Eggs
4x ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L) £4.00 any 2 FOR £2.00
1x ASDA Greek Feta Cheese (200g) £1.50
1x ASDA Smartprice Low Fat Natural Yogurt (500g) 55p
1x Suffolk Farm Medium Free Range Eggs (6) £1.42
1x ASDA Chosen by You Cypriot Halloumi (250g) £2.28
1x Cathedral City Mature Cheddar (350g) £2.00

Fruit and Vegetables
1x ASDA Smartprice Sultanas (500g) 84p
2x ASDA Asparagus (250g) £3.30
2x ASDA Salad Tomatoes (750g) £3.14
20 ASDA Smartprice Apples by Weight (100g) £2.00
20 ASDA Bananas by Weight (100g) £1.36
10 ASDA Carrots by Weight (100g) 78p
10 ASDA Red Onions by Weight (100g) 85p
7 ASDA Butternut Squash by Weight (100g) 67.9p
5 ASDA Sweet Potatoes by Weight (100g) 64p
1x ASDA Little Gem Lettuce (2) 88p
1x ASDA Round Lettuce 50p
1x ASDA Celery 89p
1x ASDA Garlic Loose 30p
1x ASDA Smartprice Peppers (700g) £1.68
2x ASDA Spring Onions £1.34
1x ASDA Extra Special Jersey Royal Potatoes (1Kg) £1.00
2x ASDA Spinach (350g) £3.00
1x ASDA Unwaxed Lemons (5) £1.00

Frozen
1x ASDA Chosen by You Salmon Fillets (400g) £3.00

Meat, Fish and Poultry
1x ASDA Chosen by You Sausages (20 per pack - 1.14Kg) £3.00 any 2 FOR £6.00
1x ASDA Butcher's Selection Burgers Red Onion (681g) £3.00 any 2 FOR £6.00

7 comments Dinners, Fish, Gluten-free, Meal Plan, Meatfree Monday, Party, Rice, Salad, Vegetarian