Well late last week I had a big organic fruit and vegetable box delivered (well it came in 3 boxes) so we’ve been well and truly stocked up on fruit and vegetables. I did an Aldi shop (with all 6 children which was not a pleasant experience but we survived…just) and here is this week’s meal plan! And just a tip in case you haven’t worked out but if you click on the recipe name it will bring up the recipe link if I haven’t included it.
My grocery bill was $132 from Aldi and that includes breakfasts (eggs & bacon [there are 2 dozen eggs in my fridge], raisin toast, vegemite toast), lunches (wraps, gozleme one day, sandwiches, leftovers) and dinners. I usually keep 2-3 loaves of bread in the freezer so we are never without bread. There are a few treats in there (2 bags of lollies, bbq shapes) as one girl goes to camp, a few frozen treats because I’m pregnant (the vanilla slice lasted 2 minutes in our house), 2 desk caddies ($7.50 each for homeschool and our study desk) and some ice blocks because it’s getting to 42 degrees here tomorrow (hot, hot, hot). You’ll notice there is only 1 bottle of milk, we only have milk in our coffee and if someone is having cereal. And we don’t eat a lot of meat. I picked up a few things on special and put them in the freezer last week for when school goes back but usually 2 or 3 packs of meat will do us for the week. Oh and for snacks we have fruit, rice crackers or carrots with hummus or some homemade treats.
I’d love to see a pic of your grocery haul!
The organic fruit and veg box was $99 and came as 3 boxes. Huge. This was large family size but for this week I’ve switched to regular size as I’m having to push through to eat the veggies up. We go through more fruit than veg so I’ll report back on the regular size box. My goal is to have my own veggie garden giving us our fresh veggies but in the meantime am having them delivered as I find it fresher and much cheaper than the supermarket organics.
Day 1
BBQ Sausages, steak, mashed potatoes and salad
Someone in the house got a Weber Q for Christmas so we had it up and running on Sunday night for a delicious bbq. Hot dog rolls and sausages and sauce for the kids and steak, salad and mashed potatoes for the adults. The steak was SO delicious I can’t wait to have it again. We had 3 sausages left over for lunches the next day so I split them in half and put them in bread and 6 children were happy for lunch!
Day 2
I have to confess I only eat silverbeet when it arrives in a fruit and veg box but since I have it in the fridge right now….silverbeet pie it is. Season it really well and then I serve with garlic bread for the kids. If silverbeet or spinach isn’t your thing then have these zucchini and feta pancakes which are so delicious and go down well with the little ones.
Day 3
Homemade sausage rolls (double the recipe)
We are going to freeze a big tupperware container/foil tray with sausage rolls for when school goes back. These are delicious cold too and I think will be great in lunchboxes. You can decide whether you will cook them all up now or freeze them uncooked and then cook them later and put in lunchboxes. I have a really fussy eater but he loves the rolls so I figure having them for morning tea or lunch is a bit of variety and at preschool his lunchbox sits in the fridge all day so I’m confident it will stay fresh all day.
Day 4
Best Thermomix recipe ever! Have you made it before? It uses 500g chicken thighs and 500g yoghurt and some herbs, spices, onions etc and you serve it with rice. Very mild and very popular in our house and my children aren’t the best fans of curry.
Day 5
Frittata
Using the last of our vegie order I did kale, tomato, red onion, zucchini and a carrot which are all finely grated in the thermomix. Then I mix in some fresh (or frozen corn), 12 eggs, small can of tuna and whisk it all together. I season well with salt and pepper and bake in a square lined baking tin. You can top with grated cheese and bake about 25 minutes in a 200 degrees oven. Absolutely delicious and I just didn’t tell anyone that kale was in there.
Day 6
Vegetarian Pasta Bake
500g bag of pasta cooked until al dente. While that is cooking I saute an onion, carrot and zucchini in butter. I finely grate the onion and veggies, season well, add a dash of thermomix vegetable stock, a can of diced tomatoes. I mix the sauce and pasta and pour into a casserole dish then top with a batch of white sauce then grated cheese and I bake until golden and cooked through. You can do this with your bolagnese sauce instead of the vegetable sauce (say 500g mince and bolagnese the way you make it) and then mix in with a large bag of pasta and top with the white sauce and cheese. It also freezes really well uncooked. I’m using up the last of the veggies before the next delivery arrives.
Day 7
We love the thermomix dough recipe but you could use hot dog rolls and do pizza subs or pita bread. The kids love hawaiian and I love chilli tuna (when my pregnancy heartburn isn’t playing up) with some veggies and cheese on top. The kids think it’s the best fun and it’s cheap and cheerful.
Baking
Double them up and freeze for when school goes back
Easy and delicious and yes I’m making double and freezing, put them in individual serving bags to be popped into lunchboxes when school goes back (in 2 weeks for us!!!!!!)
Six Sisters Lunchlady Peanut butter bars
Because my girls love this recipe so much and bought a big jar of peanut butter just for the recipe! So I guess we’re making it again this week.
We’ve got quite a few apples sitting in the fridge so decided this was a great (and tasty) way to eat them.
Add spinach to scrambled egg after sautéing gently. Or add bits of bacon are good mixed with spinach. You can put spinach in muffins too an make ahead and freeze.
Loving your meal planning posts, as well as your grocery pics and details! We have 5 kids and for the last few months I’ve been really trying to cut back what we spend/waste on groceries. Thanks for the inspiration!