I find myself writing about food more lately. Possibly because feeding my family takes up such a considerable chunk of my everyday headspace and time. But mainly because, in a season of limited time to myself and fewer creative outlets than I had before babies, I find much creative release in the process of making food from scratch, and finding new ways to fuel my tribe with the best possible food.
In case you were wondering, my meal planning and grocery shopping is driven by three goals:
- Maximum health benefits, minimum junk – I loosely stick to a low GI diet, avoiding refined sugars and opting for organic and home-made whenever possible. I also take on board some of the nutrition principles we picked up from our recent 90 Day SSS challenge (carbs post work-outs, lots of healthy fats everywhere else, and plenty of greens and veg all the time).
- Staying on budget – My husband and I have taken Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace principles to heart, so we are big on budgeting each month and stewarding our money as best we can. We allocate a monthly pot of money to go towards food to feed our family of five (two adults and a four, three and one year old). It’s my job to ensure we stick to it.
- Minimising our plastic footprint – It is SUPER hard to avoid plastic when shopping in London. But I’m doing my best to cut down my footprint one step at a time. Currently that looks like buying loose fruit and veg that isn’t plastic bagged in a local store and ordering in everything else online (online retailers seem to wrap all their fresh produce in non-recycable packaging!). I also try to pick produce jars or cans over plastic containers when there’s a choice, and try to make one greener swap every month. For example, this month I found an oats brand that is packaged entirely in paper, as my previous go-to oats came in non recyclable plastic packaging.
Over the years these goals have led to me slowly making my own home-made versions of the following family staples. Nothing beats the sweet satisfaction that comes from feeding my crew things that taste good and tick all the right health, green and money boxes. Geeky? Possibly. But satisfying nonetheless.
The recipes are not my own, just various ones that I have settled on after trying and testing a fair few online finds. I thought I’d pull them altogether in one place and share with links to my current go-to favourites in case they prove useful to anyone else looking to save money, and make greener, healthier choices for their family.
7 grocery staples I make instead of buy
- Vanilla essence. My very first shop to home-made swaps. I use this simple gluten-free recipe from Riddlelove. All you need is a bottle of (potato distilled) vodka (I use Smirnoff) and vanilla pods. It is WAY more cost effective than the shop bought stuff, and lasts for ages. My first bottle saw me through a good couple of years, even with my baking regularly. Pop it in a small bottle to make a cute gift for the baker buddies in your life too. Try it, you won’t look back.
- Jam. I can take or leave the stuff and have avoided it since cutting out sugar. Hubby however has a thing for strawberry Bon Mamman, so I’d cave and buy it occasionally to keep him happy. I decided it was time to find a home-made alternative when the kids started developing a taste for it – what’s the point in filling them up in clean, nutritionally dense stuff only to ruin it all with a dollop of jam on their toast? After a bit of research and trial and error I’ve made MyFussyEater’s raspberry and vanilla chia seed recipe my go-to one. I tend to buy and use frozen berries to keep costs down and so I’ve always got berries on hand if I need to make another batch. We eat it with yoghurt, on porridge, and on toast with nut butter. Which brings me nicely to number 3…
- Nut butter. We are big peanut butter fans. By big, I mean we eat it every day in some shape or form. We love our go-to organic and palm-oil free brand, but it does take it’s toll on the food budget each month. In a bid to streamline our expenses, I decided to give making sun butter a go. My first attempt got the thumbs down because I over-cooked the seeds. But this Sunbutter, Cinnamon and Honey recipe from Snacking with Kids got top marks from all my crew (except my almost three year old, who is impossible to please food-wise at the moment). It is genuinely delicious, super easy to make, and twice as satisfying to eat because it’s home-made. Well I think so anyhow. I cook the seeds at 180 degrees C for four minutes, shake them around a bit, and then cook for another four minutes before taking them out and blitzing them. (You need to be patient, it takes a good while for the nuts to go from powder to oily spread). I’ve started making a big batch each week, and will be trying out other nut varieties to mix up taste and nutritional values.
- Granola. Shop bought granola = sugar fest. Unless you buy the sort that costs an arm and a leg, which isn’t an option for us. Every couple of weeks I adapt this lovely recipe by Back to the Book nutrition for those mornings when we’re in a hurry and need something quick to get on the table. I double all quantities except maple syrup, which I cut down to 4 tbsp. I sometimes substitute raisins for cocoa nibs to keep sugar content low, and tend to throw in some chia seeds and flaxseed. Davina McCall’s version also goes down well here.
- Humous. Hubby is a humous snob. I’ve tried SO many home made versions over the years. He hated and veto-ed each and every one of them. Until Lizzie Loves Healthy’s recipe came along – it passed the taste and texture test with delicious flying colours, so I’ve got the green light to stop buying hummus and make my own. This means more hummus for less money, without the plastic fantastic containers they usually come in. Tick tick tick. I took my mother’s advice and substituted one can of chickpeas for one can of cannellini beans instead (cheers Ma!). I don’t like coriander so I steer clear of that and use 1/3 cup of sun-dried tomatoes (as per another one of Lizzie’s recipes).
- Bread. Kezia’s spelt bread recipe from TheWholeFoodDiary is fool-proof, super easy to make, and tastes delicious. It’s also really fun to make with the kids, and way more satisfying to make than using a bread maker. If I do need to resort to shop bought back-up loaves I will only buy sourdough now. Partly because it reminds me of my the yummy Maltese bread of my youth, but mainly for healthy gut reasons.
- Household surface cleaner. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen. It’s one of my happy places. I decided a few years ago that I didn’t want to ruin my happy place, or my health, with chemical based cleaners. I mix up one part vinegar with two parts water and ten drops of lavender essential oils. I use it in the kitchen and bathrooms and it works a treat. Plus I don’t have to worry about the kids coming into contact with yucky stuff when they help out with cleaning up after dinner. It works out so much cheaper than shop bought products and also means I chuck out a whole lot less plastic packaging. Win win.
So there you have it. Seven simple shop bought for home-made swaps in the name of better health, frugal and green credentials.
Do you have any home-made faves you can recommend? Do share them in the comments box below. I’d love to hear from you.
Fancy a free Master Shopping List and Go-To Family Meals Printable?
If you would like a free copy of my Master Shopping List and Go-To Family Meals Printable, sign up for my newsletter and I’ll send them across as a thank you. Hopefully my docs will help simplify your own planning and shopping process, or inspire you to compile similar lists of your own that better serve you and your family.
If you enjoyed this post, you might also enjoy:
- How I Simplified Meal Planning (with FREE Printables)
- Our go-to family meals, sides and breakfasts
- Our go to snacks, treats and puddings (for kids and grown ups)
- Why I followed a low GI diet when pregnant
Kristin Wright says
LOVE this!!! After tasting just how amazing the bread was I’m keen to have a go at trying the other ideas!!!! Really appreciating the cooking/meal planning advice as eating well (and within a reasonable budget) is so incredibly challenging for me!!! Thanks:)