Eating Well On a Budget

1 December 2022

A lot of people have a misconception that having healthy meals for your family costs more than eating quick junk food.

Have a little change of perspective ….. if we feed our kids on all the take always and unnourishing junk foods that are easy to buy, their health with suffer.

You may not see it today but in years to come they may have show symptoms from conditions such as Type 2 diabetes, mood disorders, obesity, liver disease or even cancer.

What will be the cost of this to your child and your family?

This may be taken as a harsh statement, however it is playing out in our societies reality right now.

My 5 top tips for eating well on a budget:

  1. Stock buy only foods you know will be used : tinned tomatoes, beans, pasta. Stocking up on cheap crisps and sweets are an additional cost that provide no nourishment, and this money can be best used on fresh sweet fruit instead.
  2. Know what’s in your cupboards and fridge : having a dedicated notes board on your fridge or kitchen worktop that you re- use every week will allow you to list the foods with use by dates and best before dates so this can be seen easily and clearly without staring in the fridge for ages not sure what you’re actually looking for! I’ve done this way too much!
  3. Meal planning : knowing what you have will make it easier to plan what meals you can make. Use foods with the nearest date first. Plan your quickest meals for your busiest days and freeze any extras for another day.
  4. Make a shopping list : Before you go shopping write a list of the items you need. This will help you stop randomly picking things up and spending more money than you intended to spend only to realise you had forgotten the one thing you needed most. Tick off your list before considering the extras that will be nice to have. 
  5. Consider your stomach : Don't go shopping hungry! I bet you know this one, you're in the shop; not eaten for hours and you buy a basket full of items. Items you did not go into the shop to get! Plan to shop after a meal, or be prepared with a snack in your bag in case you get to the shop and you are feeling that hunger gremlin shopping for you.
Get more lifestyle help in my Free Busy Mums Survival Guide

Reduce waste - My 3 top ways to use the fresh foods you have to hand.

Waste less have more – if you introduce small changes into your families’ habits around saving food and recycling food you will find you save not only in cash flow to your pocket but you are also contributing to saving our environment. 

frozen foods

Save sad-looking fruit and veg don’t bin them. 

Chop up your onions, wilt your greens and freeze them.

 These can then be used straight from the freezer to your pot.

Saving you time in the long run because you won’t need to run to the shops for that one item. 
portion sizes foods for adults and children

Check your portion sizes and make a spare meal out of it. 

If you’ve cooked up a lovely meal, consider the actual portion per person.

It maybe more than they can handle or more than they need? 

Put less on the dinner plate and serve an extra portion for a future dinner or lunch.

Alternatively freeze it ready for a 'ready meal' to go! 

 Bread - I don’t know anyone who hasn’t wasted a partial loaf of bread. 

My top tip is to freeze several slices of your loaf of bread as soon as you’ve bought it.

That way it’s at its freshest when needed. 

Use up the loaf as usual and then defrost the frozen bread for use in sandwiches or toast straight from the freezer. 

Feeding a family can be a minefield at times, I know I am living though this with my family too. I hope this article was useful for you and please let me know if you find success in  tying something new that works for you family.

Want more tips on balancing your lifestyle ?? then download my FREE Busy Mums Survival Guide that will give you ideas on how to manage other areas of your life as well as sleep better.

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