Our Family Meal Plan week beginning 17/04/2017 - £67

It's been a busy couple of week with School Holidays, and our older 3 children don't go back to school until Wednesday.  They've almost eaten us out of house and home the last couple of weeks, I think they are all having a growth spurt, even toddler boy has been eating more than usual.

We've had trips to the park, done some crafting and gardening at home, and completed the dreaded school shoes shopping trip.  It's back to school midweek this week, so there will of course be packed lunches, and after school snacks to sort out.  As well as making sure that we have a few quick dinners as after school activities are starting up this week too.

Meal Plan 

Breakfasts will be overnight oats or cooked porridge with fruit, or wholemeal toast and spread. We'll have poached eggs on wholemeal toast and pancakes on the weekend.  

Packed lunches will be Spicy Root Vegetable Patties with crudites and yoghurt dip, or Root Vegetable and Red Lentil Dhal in flasks accompanied by homemade Vegetable Naan Bread.  There will of course be a piece of fruit and a small baked treat in lunchboxes as well.

Weekend Lunches will be Wholemeal Savoury Swirls and  Root Vegetable Soup with Hidden Goodness Rolls.

Dinners

Meatfree Monday Really Easy Vegan Chilli

1 tsp olive oil
2 onions, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 peppers, diced
2 carrots, grated
2 courgettes, grated
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons paprika
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
2 x 400g tins chilli beans
200g frozen peas
300g frozen corn

Heat oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, for 3-5 minutes or until browned. Add garlic, peppers, carrot, courgette and spices. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes until the spices are fragrant. Add the tinned tomatoes and chilli beans, turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the peas and corn then cook for a further 5 minutes until heated through. We'll be eating ours with Roast Vegetable Cornbread.

Roast Chicken with roast vegetables and Yorkshire puddings served with steamed greens

Gnocchi with Bacon in Tomato Sauce served with steamed peas and corn

Chicken and Bacon Stew with Dumplings served with steamed greens

Homemade Wholemeal and Lentil Pizzas

Versatile Vegetable Pasties with steamed greens and lightly spiced potato wedges

One Pot Orzo Bolognese

500g minced beef, or vegetarian mince

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 peppers, diced

330g dried orzo pasta

500ml pasta sauce, homemade or store bought

600ml vegetable stock

300g frozen peas

300g frozen corn

100g cheddar cheese, grated

Put a large frying pan on to a medium-high heat and cook until it is no longer pink, breaking up clumps as you do so. 

Add the diced onion, minced garlic, and diced peppers to the pan then cook for a few minutes until the onion and peppers soften.

Add the orzo, pasta sauce and stock to the pan then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is cooked and all of the stock has been absorbed. Stir through the frozen peas and corn, cook until these have heated through. Stir through the grated cheese then serve.

Shopping List

42 items: £67.01

Packets and Cereals

1x   Mornflake Superfast Oats (2Kg)                                            £1.75

1x   Silver Spoon Granulated Sugar (1Kg)                                   64p

2x   ASDA Wholemeal Bread Flour (1.5Kg)                                  £1.58

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

1x   Jus Rol Shortcrust Pastry Block (500g)                                 £1.00

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

1x   Il Pastaio Potato Gnocchi (500g)                                           50p

1x   ASDA Orzo (500g)                                                                 50p

1x   ASDA Good and Balanced Red Lentils (500g)                      75p

Tins, Jars and Cooking

1x   ASDA Smartprice Bolognese Sauce (440g)                          39p

4x   ASDA Smartprice Chopped Tomatoes (400g)                       £1.16

2x   ASDA Chilli Beans in Chilli Sauce (290g)                              80p

2x   ASDA Chick Peas in Water (400g)                                        70p

1x   ASDA Green Lentils in Water (400g)                                     55p

Dairy and Eggs

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

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

3x   ASDA Smartprice Low Fat Natural Yogurt (500g)                 £1.35

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

1x   ASDA Butter - Unsalted (250g)                                              £1.18

1x   ASDA Mature Cheddar Cheese (750g)                                 £3.50

Fruit and Vegetables

3x   ASDA Grower's Selection British Spring Greens (500g)        60p

30   ASDA Grower's Selection Bananas by Weight (200g)           £2.52

3x   ASDA Grower's Selection Carrots (1Kg)                                60p

4     ASDA Grower's Selection Courgettes by Weight (300g)       £2.28

6x   ASDA Grower's Selection Whole Cucumber                         £3.00

2x   ASDA Grower's Selection Celery                                           £1.10

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection Garlic Loose                                 27p

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection Sweet Potatoes (1Kg)                  95p

2x   ASDA Grower's Selection Pears (1.2Kg)                               £4.00

6x   ASDA Farm Stores Apples (500g)                                         £4.80

4x   ASDA Grower's Selection British Parsnips (500g)                 80p

2x   ASDA Grower's Selection Mixed Peppers (700g)                  £2.18

4x   ASDA Grower's Selection Plums (750g)                                £4.00

1x   ASDA Grower's Selection Extra Trimmed Leeks (550g)        20p

1x   ASDA Farm Stores Brown Onions (1Kg)                               59p

1x   ASDA Farm Stores White Potatoes (2.5Kg)                          £1.29

Meat, Fish and Poultry

2x   ASDA Smartprice Cooking Bacon (500g)                              £1.14

1x   ASDA Butcher's Selection Beef Mince (500g)                       £2.59

1     ASDA Free Range Corn Fed Whole Chicken (1.9Kg)           £6.17

Frozen

1x   ASDA Smartprice Sweetcorn (1Kg)                                       £1.08

1x   ASDA Smartprice Peas (1Kg)                                                76p

Drinks

1x   ASDA Italian Roast and Ground Coffee (227g)                     £1.69

Prices and special offers reflect those of the online grocery website My Supermarket, and are correct as of 15th April 2017.  Prices may vary in different in-store locations.

We purchased our shopping from Asda which cost £67.01, had we shopped elsewhere our items would've cost:

Tesco £80.41

Sainsbury's £82.12

Morrisons £85.65

Sweet Potato Picnic Slice

I needed a filling but light snack to take to London with us the other day. I like to take some snacks with us to keep costs down, and it also means we don't have to hunt around for somewhere to eat when the children (and grown ups) are 'hangry'.

I'd purchased some sweet potatoes on offer at the supermarket and they needed using up, and there was half a packet of couscous in our storecupboard. Instead of making a roast vegetable and couscous salad, which of course is delicious, I decided to see if I could make a slice instead. The slice is easier to eat, no utensils required, and is held up better to transporting around than the salad.

I've teamed up with Helen from Family, Friends, Food and we've launched a new linky that will celebrate all things potato. Every month we’ll be inviting you to link up your delicious vegetarian potato and sweet potato recipes to One Potato, Two Potato so we can share the potato deliciousness.

Side dishes, snacks, main meals, we'd love to see them all!  Link up your vegetarian recipe ideas for using potatoes and sweet potatoes. Cheap, filling, and endlessly versatile, we can't wait to see you delicious potato creations! 

Sweet Potato Picnic Slice

500g sweet potato (peeled weight)
light spray of oil
1 cup wholewheat couscous (uncooked)
4 spring onions, very thinly sliced

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
1/2 cup mature Cheddar cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 200C/180C Fan/400F/Gas Mark 6 and chop the sweet potatoes into 2-3cm/1 inch cubes. Put onto a lined baking tray and spray with a little oil.  Cook in the preheated oven for around half an hour until very tender. Don't turn the oven off, leave it on as you will be cooking the slice in it shortly.

Tip the hot roasted sweet potato into a large bowl and mash until smooth.  Stir through 3/4 cup/180ml of hot vegetable stock.  Add the couscous, cover, and leave for 5 minutes.  

Stir 3/4 of the cheeses and all of the spring onion through the sweet potato and couscous mixture.   Press into a lined 20cm/8 inch square baking tin and level the top.  Sprinkle any remaining cheese over the top and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the slice golden brown around the edges and cooked through.

Join in with our fabulous One Potato, Two Potato linky! 

The rules…

Blog any vegetarian recipe that features potatoes or sweet potatoes.

Include links in your post to this post and Family-Friends-Food, and include the badge (above).

Respect copyright and include the source of any recipe (if applicable).

Add your link to the linky below.

You can link up old posts but please update them with the links and the badge so they fit the rules of the challenge.

You can link up to other blogging events as well, as long as it is within their rules.

Please visit and comment on some of the other entries. Sharing is nice too!

Tweet @fuelledbytea or @utterlyscrummy using the hashtag #onepotato and we will try to retweet.

All entries will be pinned onto the One Potato Two Potato Pinterest board.

The closing date is the 26th of the month and a roundup together with the next month’s linky should be posted on the 1st of the following month.