Extreme $21 challenge

"Welcome to the extreme $21 challenge. Watch Kez try to feed her family with $26 for the fortnight!"

Due to a bit of runaway spending on the credit card (I'm only guilty of too many fruit trees!), as well as a client who thinks its ok to pay their invoices whenever they like rather than when we want them paid, we really have to tighten the belt for the next month or so. If you haven't heard of a $21 challenge, the idea is to feed your family for $21 for a week by being creative, and digging into the pantry. I'm extending that - I've raided the coin tin, the console in the car and anywhere else I can think of, and I'm going to try to feed us for the next 2 weeks on $26.

I have to cater for 12 dinners, plus lunches. (we're not home for the other 2 dinners).

In the freezer I have:

* cocktail frankfurts (probably 500g worth)
* 1 lot casserole chuck steak
* 4 lots of mince
* 1 lot of sausages
* 2 lots of sandwich steak

So 9 meals there, more if I can stretch it out. Very "meaty" though so I want to buy some chicken to alternate.

I have 15 eggs so that can do a couple of meals. Pete is very much a "need meat" man so I can't feed him too many non-meat meals, I just have to sneak lower meat in!

Fruit & vege wise - I have a bag of oranges, a couple of apples & tins of fruit so that should be adequate. I have about 10kg of potatoes, frozen peas & cauliflower, a couple of ears of corn, a few carrots & tomatoes, heaps of tins of tomatoes and a tin of corn if I get desperate. So we should be right there.

Here's my shopping list:
* 3L milk
* cheese
* butter
* chicken - will try to get 2 whole chooks, 1 to roast & then use for lunches, and the other to cut up into pieces.
* cream (to make ice-cream)
* yeast (for bread, rolls etc)

Prices have gone up so much lately esp for cheese etc that my price book is way out of date, but hopefully I'll be able to do it.

Stay tuned :)