In a quest to squeeze as much value out of the grocery budget as possible, I'm shopping as soon as I drop the youngest off at school. I'm lucky enough to have a good local Co-op at the end of my road, and a local Co-op which reduces its nearly out of date produce at 9:00 in the morning. Yesterday I went in with the vague idea that I might make a quiche for supper, but with a certain flexibilty in mind as to what type of quiche. I knew that quiche was a cheap and filling option for a summer's day, but I also knew that if I was wedded to one type of quiche recipe I would end up paying more than I wanted. I looked around for reduced ingredients and found:
cherry tomatoes for 45p
cos lettuce for 45p
Cornish new potatoes for 65p
Italian tallegio (sp?) cheese for 59p
English mushrooms for 45p
extra mature chedder for £3 (the recipe uses a third of the block an therefore the cost is £1).
(I also bought pork mince for £1.35 and beef mince for £2.60 - this is enough to make a large ragu sauce for a lasagne I plan to make on Sunday.)
With these ingredients, and with the eggs, lard, plain flour and onions I had in the cupboard, I made two large, deep, quiches. I made a shortcrust pastry with 12 oz flour and 6 oz lard. Lined two 20 cm square brownie tins with the pastry, fried off the onions and mushrooms until caramelised (I also added a yellow pepper I had lingering in the fridge). I seasoned the caramelised mixture and added eight beaten eggs, 2 1/2 ounces of chedder and the whole chopped block of tallegio, I then divided this mixture betweent the two pastry cases. I baked the quiches in a medium oven for 30 minutes, until the egg was set. I served this with new potatoes and chives and salad.
Now, taking into conseridation that not all of the tomatoes and lettuce was used, but I used eggs, onions and lard from the cupboard, the whole of this meal cost £4.82. There were also plenty of left overs for lunch.
Well, that's the first family dinner for a fiver - to be honest with you, I could have fed six to eight with the quiches, but would have needed more potatoes to help it go round - I'll be back tomorrow with more!
Anon, goode huswives!
5 comments:
That economical dinner looks very healthy and delicious! It pays to shop around which I have not been doing. Inspiring!
Sorry previous comment was me, my daughter was still logged in.
Just wondered if you'd had issues with floods near you, saw something on news. Was going to email but not sure what I've done with your email address. x
Quiches and frittatas are two of the most economical dishes I know of. You can throw almost any veg in, and it all tastes grand.
Love the idea of that yellow pepper lingering in your fridge, as though at a party it hated to leave ...
xofrances
Loving the frugal menus. I love using old recipes, they are so sparing with ingredients - as you say, it's Nigella out the window in times like these. I was looking for a chocolate sauce recipe without any chocolate in it, and finally found one in the old Country Women's Association cookbook. They knew how to whip cocoa, sugar and hot water into a delectable dessert in the good old days.
In our house I am finding home popped popcorn is a good cheap substitute for the ubiquitous potato chip. I douse it with butter and chilli salt for extra interest..
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