April Austerity - Preparation Problems

Whose daft idea was this anyway?  £45 is a miserly amount of money for a month's worth of food, even though I am a scratch under 5ft and weigh 7st 4.   

After spending forever on price comparison sites, it has become abundantly clear that being broke means being canny, organised and it's a full time job sourcing food at a reasonable price.   I've become obsessed with the changing prices between Asbo and Tosca.  I am annoyed that Aldee doesn't put all it's prices online.  Why don't Moccasins run a nationwide delivery service?  But, be careful; their cheap range bread is a lot more expensive than Aldee and Tosca!  Well, it was when I checked last night...

I haven't even started the month and I am very much aware that to eat this cheap, you really should be growing your own vegetables.  I have neither the strength, nor the health to do this.  So, what can I do to make sure I am not starving by day 19?  I'm organising my cupboard, fridge and freezer.  I've decided that I'll allow myself salt and pepper as 'freebies'; I have enough to last a lifetime and if I lost all my money/income overnight, I'd still have that in the cupboard.  

I'm lucky, I have three other freebies at my disposal - ½ a pack of Manchego cheese and ¾ of a pack of pasta (I belong to Tosca's 'Orchard' Scheme and get sent vouchers to try and review products); I also won a pizza in a competition.  If you are having to be more than thrifty, you can still enter competitions and go to the library to take part in reviews online.  You can also take advantage of reward schemes and use their appropriate vouchers that come in the post - thank you Tosca Clubcard.  Is this cheating?  No, this is being a savvy shopper - collecting coupons and then using them against a deal.  Two packs of Mission Wraps (£2.00 each = £4.00, but they were on offer - 2 for £2.00) may have been out of my price range for April, but Tosca obliged and sent me two 50p coupons - 16 wraps for £1.00, is acceptable (better than the original start price of £4.00!!)

I've priced up some of the odds and ends in my cupboard and fridge freezer that can contribute.  If it's less than a packet, I have worked out the price based on the percentage.    Living with very careful account balancing, you don't throw everything away at the end of the month and start again with £45 - you use up everything.   If I run out of something and need to replace it, then the cost has to come out of the money that remains.  I hope this seems fair; it's more in line with normal living.  After all, we all have some daily, weekly, fortnightly, monthly costs in a rolling fashion.

These are the items hanging about at home at the moment that can go towards April - the cost of the goods will be deducted from the monthly sum of £45.  TEV stands for Tosca Everyday Value.

£0.89 - Tosca Coffee (I weighed my morning coffee: 2g.  200g jar - £2.98: 2.98/200x60=89.4p

£0.99 - TEV Honey

£0.75 - TEV Oats 1kg

£0.18 - TEV Self Raising Flour (600g out of 1.5kg, 45p bag)

£0.60 - TEV Sultanas (355g from 500g, 84p)

£0.24 - TEV Baked Beans 

£0.30 - TEV Kidney Beans

£0.68 - 2x TEV Tinned Tomatoes    

£0.35 - TEV Peaches in juice 

£0.63 - 5 flatbreads out of pack 6 (reduced - 75p)

£1.00 - 2x8 pack Mission Herb Wraps (buy 2 for £2 + £1 coupon!) 

£0.49 - 620g Tate & Lyle Sugar from 5kg £3.99 bag

£0.31 - TEV 1kg Long Grain Rice 770g out of 1kg, 40p bag

£1.37 - New Potatoes

£0.88 - 125g Seriously Strong Cheddar Ctr (50p coupon - in freezer)

£0.75 - TE Salad Cheese (in Freezer)

£1.49 - Mince Turkey (in freezer)

£0.20 - TEV ½ jar Mayonnaise

£0.34 - 26g of Boullion Vegetable Stock, from 150g at £2.00

£0.33 - 56g Chicken Bisto from 500g tub at £2.99

£0.00 - Pizza won in comp (Free)

£0.00 - 80g Manchego Cheese (Free Coupon)

£0.00 - Tosca Finest Pasta (Free Coupon)

£12.97 - Total Spend

£32.03 - Remaining (eep)