A mum has explained how she has slashed her weekly Aldi shop from £50 to £10. She said her simple advice can help people on the lowest of budgets to eat well as the cost of living crisis sees bills creep up further.
Grace Mortimer, 29, says she creates recipes that can feed up to four people for as little as 22p per person. The mum-of-one cooks them up at home then posts a picture, the recipe and the cost of ingredients on her Instagram page @_MyFirstMeals.
Grace came up with the idea when she was worrying about the cost of living crisis ahead of this winter. This led her to thinking about how people struggling on a shoestring would manage to feed their children, and she first posted her £10 tips on September 27.
READ MORE: Aldi shopper slashes entire weekly food shop from £50 to £10 with simple tip
Grace, a cook and author from Gloucester, said: "I’m very worried about the cost of living crisis for my own family, it's terrifying. Thankfully we can heat our home and eat but I know many people are having to make a choice between the two. That's just awful.
"It's very depressing, and isn't getting any better as it gets colder. I just want to help people who are on a really tight budget. I love cooking so it felt like a good way to help. People just can't believe how much food you can make for just £10.
Grace and sales manager partner Tom, 40, used to budget £50 a week to feed themselves and their six-year-old son. But the mum has since realised she can make her household breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week for much less.
She was deeply moved by the 30,000 Instagram replies she got back last month when she asked people if her idea to post her £10 meal plan would be useful. Grace said teachers talked of children who were surviving on just one school meal a day, and a policewoman told her she fainted at work.
And another woman described how she and her husband sleep with their eight-month-old baby because they can't afford to put the heating on, and he still wakes with blue hands. The stories are heartbreaking", she said. "People are really struggling already.
"It was the most responded to question I’ve ever put out on Insta, and made me realise how big this crisis is. It's absolutely devastating." Grace started her insta page @_MyFirstMeals to share meal ideas for babies and toddlers in April 2020 when she realised parents would be missing out on groups to meet and share information because of Covid lockdown.
She published her cook book 'My First Meals' in August. Grace's meals contain a small number of ingredients and are simple to cook - needing no fancy or expensive kitchen equipment.
She posts five meals a week which feed a family of four, with leftovers for lunch to get them through the working/school week. For example, from September 27 to October 1, she posted five meals - which come to a total of just £8.89.
They were Bolognese Bake (£2.57), Cajun Rice (£1.69), Veggie Pie (£1.75), Chilli Con Carne (£1.66) and Veggie Pizzas (£1.22). Grace consulted with specialists and food banks to make her meals easy, nutritional, and to ensure she was using ingredients readily available in peoples' homes.
Her prices are all based on Aldi, she explained, because other supermarket basic ranges are all price-matched with the store. Grace said: "£10 is the lowest limit I think, or you start having to cut out important food groups like protein, or eating less, neither of which is a good idea.
"I just wanted to encourage people on the lowest budgets. And it's simple, not too wordy and few steps, so people can do it and don't worry about making mistakes and wasting ingredients.
"Visual appeal is important, especially for kids, but cost has to be the priority now. I haven't extended it to the weekends yet: this just felt like the best I can do right now.
"I would love to get these recipes on school newsletters, and I wish the government would promote things like this through public messaging."
A typical recipe - Bolognese Bake (8 portions)
INGREDIENTS - from Aldi
Half a packet of celery 14p
Tin of chopped tomatoes 28p
1 500g packet of Pasta 65p
Half a packet of Mince (250g) 90p
100g of grated cheese 60p
Total cost = £2.57 (makes 8 portions
at 32p per head)
METHOD
Turn to the oven to 180C
Fry the mince off in a frying pan with a little oil.
Roughly chop the celery and once the mince is browned off, add the celery and fry for a few minutes.
Then add the chopped tomatoes and fill the empty tin with water, adding that too.
Simmer until the sauce has gone thick and then switch off the heat to thicken further.
Add a little of the cheese to the sauce and stir until melted. Season if you wish.
Meanwhile boil the pasta according to packet instructions, drain and set aside.
Combine the pasta and sauce and tip it into a large dish.
Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and bake for 30 minutes at 180C.
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