Lorna Cooper - Feed Your Family for £20...In a Hurry!

This book is dedicated to my beautiful
children Ayla, Jamie and Kyle. Nothing makes
me prouder than being your mum. I love you more
than life itself. CONTENTS Hi folks, My name is Lorna Cooper and I run the Facebook community Feed Your Family for 20 a Week. I set it up six years ago, and it has since become an invaluable resource for anyone looking to eat well on a budget and wanting fuss-free food thats quick to make. I now have over half a million people visiting the page and following my tips and tricks, which is more than I could ever have hoped for when I started up from my living room in Paisley, Scotland.

My first cookbook, Feed Your Family for 20 a Week, came out in 2020 and the feedback was amazing. I have loved hearing how much you enjoy my delicious recipes, and how amazed you are that I manage to make such fab food from simple ingredients and on a tight budget. As well as offering simple and tasty dishes, my mission is to provide tips and hacks that help household budgets go further. In times when we are all watching the pennies, you would be amazed at what you can buy for 20 a week and how far you can make those ingredients stretch. And its not just about the meal you are planning for a particular day; buying the right ingredients in the correct quantities allows for my favourite money hack of all repurposing leftovers! Rather than throwing away the remains of a family dinner, I will show you how to bulk out those leftovers with store cupboard essentials and turn them into lunch for the following day. What I hope this book helps you to do is shop smartly and know exactly where your money is going.

Its amazing how having a detailed list and meal plan as you browse the supermarket aisles can make all the difference. Alongside savvy shopping, I will also give you tips on how best to store some foods to make them last the maximum amount of time and stop waste. From freezing fresh vegetables as soon as you get home from the supermarket, to never storing your potatoes and onions together without an apple to separate them this book will help ensure every penny you spend counts for more. So many of you have told me how one of the biggest challenges about cooking from scratch is the time constraint. I get it; as a mother of three and stepmother of two, I know exactly what its like to have a hectic household with lots of mouths to feed, and often, after a long day, its hard to find the motivation to start following a long and complicated recipe. Thats why, in Feed Your Family for 20 A Week In A Hurry!, I have focused on wholesome, deliciously simple meals that can either be on the table in 20 minutes or require less than 20 minutes prep with some hands-off cooking time.

As with my previous book, I promise everything you need for seven days of family meals can be bought for 20 a week without exception, and I will show you how to shop cleverly, how to save money by cooking from scratch and how to make the most out of your leftovers by bulking out meals later in the week. Never has saving time AND money been so easy! After all, less cooking time means more family time (and a much-needed cuppa and relax!). xx Lorna xx In order to feed your family for 20 a week, you will need to shop smartly and shop around. Not everyone has the time to do this, but I do my shopping at a handful of supermarkets and budget stores depending on what they have on offer. I know that might sound like a lot of effort, but you get out what you put in! That said, if you dont have the time to shop around, you can still save a lot of money by bulk cooking, batch freezing, reusing leftovers and storing fresh ingredients smartly. All of this will make sure that you dont waste a single thing you pay for at the till.

Here are some of my favourite storage tips, to help you make the most of your 20 a week. SMART STORAGE POTATOES These should be stored in a cool, dry, dark place preferably in a paper sack or cloth bag. They should NEVER be stored near onions as this can cause them to sprout. Also, putting an apple in with the potatoes helps to keep them fresh. GARLIC This can be stored in the same way as potatoes, but the easiest way to keep garlic fresh is to throw the peeled cloves in a food processor with a little water and then freeze the puree in an ice cube tray. Once frozen, you can pop the cubes out and save them in a freezer bag.

ONIONS These can be chopped and frozen, but will also keep for months if you put them into the leg of an old pair of sheer tights. Simply pop one in and then twist the tights before adding another. Challenge yourself and see how many you can fit in one leg! Tie with string and hang up somewhere cool, dry and dark. SPRING ONIONS These are best stored with the roots in a small amount of water in a glass. Stick the glass on the windowsill next to your homegrown herbs! GINGER Can be frozen as is, then just cut off what you need when you need it, popping the rest straight back into the freezer. SHOPPING LIST: LORNAS LIFESAVERS

• Stock cubes add instant flavour adding a stock cube and some frozen veg to rice or noodles makes it a meal in its own right.
• Instead of buying packs of egg noodles from the world food aisle, which typically cost 1, buy own-brand instant noodles, which can be as cheap as 14p.

  Throw away the seasoning sachets and just cook in water.

• Cornflour is a saviour for thickening all types of sauces.
• Keep an eye out for garlic/ginger/chilli pastes or purees on offer. I always snap them up when theyre at a great price because they last forever and save so much time and effort when it comes to chopping or creating pastes.
• Buy frozen veg not only is it generally cheaper, but also you waste less because it doesnt go off, meaning you can have more variety on a weekly/monthly basis. Its also pre-prepped, so the only effort involved is opening the freezer drawer and grabbing a good handful! Alternatively, if you have fresh veg, it can be prepped and frozen in advance. Have a look through the meal plan, spot which ingredients you need and get organised!
• Steer clear of convenience items as you probably will have noticed, buying diced chicken is often more expensive than buying chicken breasts and dicing them yourself. ALWAYS check the price per kg of things youare buying. By being a little bit organised, you can prep ingredients yourself quickly and easily relieving pressure on your shopping budget.
• I always pick up a sack of potatoes when theyre on offer.

  Then, while Im unpacking my shopping, I stick four on a tray and put them in the oven to save time and energy later in the week. Once theyre cooked, wrap well and freeze. Note: if youre following the meal plan, there are four hash recipes over the course of the week, so this is the perfect way to save time and money.

• The same applies to meat: if theres a great bargain to be had, buy in bulk, and when you get home, separate out what you need and cook it there and then before freezing. Some of my recipes call for cooked chicken or cooked ham, for example. Both can be cooked in the slow cooker, oven or on the stove, and then divided up and frozen until needed.
• Freeze milk or cream in ice cube trays or bags to add to soups and sauces, or to use for tea/coffee.