Our Family Meal Plan for week beginning 06/02/2017 - £55

Our Meal Plan for this week is another one full of quick dinners.  Toddler boy and I are still poorly and the lurgy has gone through the entire house.  Last week, on Friday, my 10yo and 16yo had school dinners as I had run out of energy and was properly poorly.  These things happen, and an occasional school dinner is not the end of the world.

We've only a couple of evening events this week, a very welcome quieter social life so we can rest and recover.  Our garden is still going well producing greens and herbs to help with our meals.  I also have some spices left in the store cupboard so have not had to purchase those this week.  

Meal Plan 

Breakfasts will either be overnight oats or porridge with pear and plum compote.  We'll have pancakes and crumpets on the weekend.

Packed Lunches will be bagels filled with either cheese and chutney or egg and chive spread with vegetable crudites and yoghurt dip and a baked treat and piece of fruit for afters.  

Weekend Lunches will be a double batch of Spiced Vegetable Patties  in homemade wraps with coleslaw and Twice Baked Potatoes. 

Baked Treats will be Parsnip Loaf and Scones, snacks will be fruit and popcorn.

Dinners

Bean and Veg Burgers with Coleslaw and Wedges

2 tins kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 onions, finely diced
2 peppers, finely diced
1 tsp chilli powder
200g fresh breadcrumbs
about 1kg potatoes, for the wedges

Sauté the onion and pepper in a little oil for a couple of minutes until it softens then leave to cool for a bit. Mash the kidney beans with a potato masher, leave it a little lumpy – not too smooth. Add the cooled sautéed pepper and onion along with the breadcrumbs to the kidney beans and mix everything together thoroughly. Shape into 10 burgers and fry in a little oil for a couple of minutes on each side, until they’re golden brown. Then put them in the oven at 180C for about 10 minutes until completely cooked through.

Wash the potatoes and cut them into wedges, not too thick. Put a little oil on your hands and rub the wedges so that they get lightly coated in the oil. To cook the wedges, bake them in the oven for about 25 minutes at 180C.

Serve the burgers in buns with coleslaw. I sometimes sprinkle a little paprika and/or chilli powder over the wedges to give them a little more flavour.

Photo courtesy of Morrisons, used with permission.

Baked Fish with White Beans

2 tsp olive oil
2 large leeks, trimmed and thinly sliced
30ml water
2 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
2 x 400g tin cannellini beans, drained, rinsed
300g frozen mixed vegetables, defrosted
5 sprigs fresh thyme
500g thick white fish fillets

Preheat oven to 200°C. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add the leeks and water. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until the leeks are soft. Transfer to a shallow ovenproof baking dish.

Add the tin of tomatoes, drained tin of cannellini beans and defrosted mixed vegetables to the baking dish. Stir to combine everything. Arrange the sprigs of thyme and fish fillets on top of the vegetables.  Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. Remove the thyme sprigs before you serve the dish.

Creamy Bacon and Vegetable Pasta

500g spaghetti
250g unsmoked back bacon

2 cloves garlic, minced
450g frozen mixed vegetables
300ml pot crème fraîche

Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil, add the spaghetti and cook following pack instructions. When the spaghetti has about 5 minutes left to cook toss in the frozen mixed vegetables

Meanwhile, in a deep frying pan, fry the bacon until the fat starts to run and then add the garlic, fry until the bacon is lightly golden.

Once the pasta is al dente, drain the spaghetti and vegetables and add to the bacon.  Stir through the crème fraîche and serve immediately.  You could serve some garlic bread on the side for very hungry teens, if necessary.

Quick Fish Chowder

1 Tblsp olive oil
2 onions, diced
2 peppers, diced
250g bacon, rind removed and finely diced
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
2 potatoes, washed and cut in 1cm cubes
2 carrots, scrubbed then finely diced
625ml cups milk
1 tsp garlic salt
325g tin sweetcorn, drained
500g fish fillets, cubed
1 Tblsp chopped fresh dill or 1 tsp dried dill
1 Tblsp cornflour
salt and pepper, to taste

Heat the oil in a large pot over a medium heat. Add the onion and pepper and cook until they soften. Add the bacon, celery, potatoes and carrot to the pan and cook, stirring frequently to stop them browning, for about 5 minutes.

Add 500ml of milk and the garlic salt to the pan. Bring to a simmer and then simmer for 10 minutes, or until the potato is just tender. Add the fish,corn and dill.

Mix the remaining milk with the cornflour and add to the pot. Bring the chowder to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 7 - 10 minutes, or until the fish is cooked.

Season to taste with salt and pepper then ladle into large bowls. Serve with crusty bread rolls.

Mixed Vegetable and Macaroni Cheese

I make my own cheese sauce using a roux base and add frozen mixed vegetables to the pasta during the last few minutes of cooking time. Our Macaroni Cheese usually has plenty of vegetables with the pasta in a rich cheddar cheese sauce.


Crustless Quiche

3 cups mixed vegetables
1 cup cheese, grated
6 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup self-raising flour
good grinding of black pepper

Put the vegetables and ¾ of the cheese into a greased ovenproof dish. Lightly beat the eggs and milk together in a jug. Sprinkle over the self-raising flour and mix well, ensuring there are no lumps. Pour egg mixture over the vegetables and grind over some black pepper then sprinkle over the remaining cheese. Bake at 200°C for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown and set. Serve either hot or cold.

Vegetable Stew with Dumplings

2 Tblsp oil
25g butter
1 large onion, peeled and diced
2 potatoes, peeled and diced
1 parsnip, peeled and diced
2 large carrots carrots, peeled and diced
1 swede, peeled and diced
2 leeks, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 sprigs of fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried
1 tsp mustard
2 Tblsp plain flour
1 heaped tsp vegemite
500ml vegetable stock
400g tin haricot or butter beans, drained and rinsed
salt and pepper

Dumplings:
250g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
125g butter, diced
2 tsp diced mixed herbs
salt and pepper

Preheat your oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4.

Put the oil and butter in a large flameproof casserole dish over a moderate heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, for couple of minutes. Add the potatoes, parsnip, carrot, sweede and leeks. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring, over a moderate heat until the vegetables start to turn golden and soften slightly. Reduce the heat slightly and ad the garlic, thyme and mustard. Add the flour and cook for a couple of minutes, ensure the vegetables are well coated in the flour. Add the vegetmite, stock and tinned pulses.

Bring the mixture to the boil, cover with a lid then put in the preheated oven. Bake for 40 - 50 minutes. Whilst the stew is cooking prepare the dumplings. Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs. stir in the herbs and a little salt and pepper. Add a 1 or 2 tablespoons of water, just enough to form a stiff dough.

Divide the dough into walnut sized balls, cover with clingfilm and chill in the fridge until ready to use. When the stew has baked for 40 - 50 minutes in the oven, remove from the oven and add the dumplings. Ensure the dumplings are partially submerged in the stew. Cover the pot with a lid and cook on the stove top/hob, over a moderate heat, for around 20 minutes until the dumplings have risen and are golden on top. I usually serve this stew with steamed greens.

Shopping List

42 items: £55.18

Packets and Cereals

1x   Mornflake Superfast Oats (2Kg)                                              £2.18

1x   ASDA Good and Balanced Wholewheat Spaghetti (500g)         50p

1x   ASDA Strong White Bread Flour (1.5Kg)                                 95p

1x   ASDA Smartprice Self Raising Flour (1.5Kg)                           45p

1x   ASDA Home Baking Easy Bake Yeast (6 per pack - 42g)         65p

1x   ASDA Good and Balanced Wholewheat Penne (500g)              50p

1x   Island Sun Popcorn (500g)                                                      89p

Frozen

3x   ASDA Smartprice Mixed Vegetables (1Kg)                              £2.31

1x   ASDA Cook from Frozen Pollock Fillets (1Kg)                         £4.00

Tins, Jars and Cooking

1x   ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn in Water (326g)                          35p

1x   ASDA Smartprice Dried Mixed Herbs (18g)                             25p

1x   ASDA Smartprice Mayonnaise (500ml)                                    40p

3x   KTC White Kidney Beans in Salted Water (400g)                     £1.00

2x   KTC Chick Peas in Salted Water (400g)                                  66p

2x   KTC Red Kidney Beans in Salted Water (400g)                       66p

2x   KTC Chopped Tomatoes in Tomato Juice (400g)                     66.p

1x   ASDA Stock Cubes - Vegetable (12x10g)                                59p

Dairy and Eggs

1x   ASDA Crème Fraîche (300ml)                                                 95p

3x   ASDA British Semi Skimmed Milk 4 Pints (2.27L)                    £2.97

2x   ASDA British Whole Milk 4 Pints (2.27L)                                 £1.98

2x   ASDA Smartprice Low Fat Natural Yogurt (500g)                     90p

1x   ASDA Free Range Mixed Weight Eggs (15)                            £2.00

1x   ASDA Butter - Unsalted (250g)                                               £1.09

1x   ASDA English Medium Cheddar (350g)                                   £1.50

1x   ASDA 30% Less Fat Extra Mature British Cheese (350g)         £1.50

Meat, Fish and Poultry

1x   ASDA Smartprice Cooking Bacon (500g)                                 60p

Fruit and Vegetables

25   ASDA Grower's Selection Bananas by Weight (200g)              £2.10

1     ASDA Grower's Selection White Cabbage by Weight (1.3Kg)   98p

2x   ASDA Grower's Selection Carrots (1Kg)                                  90p

4     ASDA Grower's Selection Leeks by Weight (300g)                  £1.80

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection White Potatoes (2.5Kg)                   £1.25

2x   ASDA Grower's Selection Celery                                             £1.20p

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection Garlic Loose                                   20p

2x   ASDA Grower's Selection Sweetclems (1.4Kg)                        £4.50

5x   ASDA Grower's Selection Plums Ripen at Home (400g)           £2.50

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection Brown Onions (1Kg)                        74p

6x   ASDA Smartprice Apples (500g)                                             £3.00

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection British Parsnips (500g)                    60p

2x   ASDA Grower's Selection Mixed Peppers (700g)                     £2.40

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection Swede                                            50p

Drinks

1x   ASDA Italian Roast and Ground Coffee (227g)                         £2.00

Prices and special offers reflect those on My Supermarket, and are correct as of 4th February 2017.  Prices may vary in different in-store locations.

We purchased our shopping from Asda online on 4th February 2017, had we shopped elsewhere our items would've cost:

£64.36 from Morrisons

£65.57 from Tesco 

£67.28 from Sainsbury's

£85.36 from Ocado

£89.19 from Waitrose

3 comments Fish, Lunches, Meal Plan, Meatfree Monday, Pasta, Snacks, Vegetarian