Caitriona Redmond: Try this bolognese recipe and save money by buying less meat

Plus a recipe for a vanilla cake that you can pile high with icing, sprinkles or whatever decoration you desire

Meat is quite the chunk of the household grocery budget.

When I first moved in with my husband we came to an informal deal. If I cooked the meals, he would do the ironing. As we all know, a deal made in the flush of young love is one that is to be stuck to. The consequences were, that if either of us reneged on the deal we would have to do both chores.

Not long after the deal was struck (a matter of weeks), the pile of ironing accumulated and he had to pay the price of cooking dinner. His culinary skills were in their infancy and shopping hadn’t been done. We were living on a tight budget so he took off to the local supermarket with a fiver determined to cook up a feast.

Dinner pre-ironing pile was of the meat, spuds, and two veg type because he believed dinner wasn’t dinner without meat. With a tight budget, that €5 for two didn’t go far, and he arrived home with a large pack of frozen waffles and a family-sized tin of baked beans. I’d not seen double-height tins of beans for years but he managed to find them.

We sat down to a vegan feast of half a tin of beans and potato waffles each. It was far too much food and I can’t quite look at baked beans in the same way again. It was the first time he realised meat is actually a big chunk of the shopping budget. His mother was and is a very canny cook and it can often be like the miracle of the loaves and fishes if you arrive at her house at dinnertime. He assumed he could do the same.

If you’re a meat eater then you already know meat is still quite the chunk of the household grocery budget. In my late teens and early 20s, I was vegetarian for a spell but spent a fortune on ready meals and vegan sausages and breaded ‘I can’t believe it’s not chicken’ fillets. If you intended to make a straight swap from meat to a lookalike substitute you can expect to pay as much, if not slightly more, than for meat.

Introducing less meat into your diet on a budget can be as simple as bulking out meat-based dishes with beans or pulses. Meat is still on the menu, just not as much. Or, you can make the most of a wide range of wallet-friendly alternatives to make an entirely plant-based meal once a week such as this lentil bolognese recipe. Not only will your grocery budget thank you but you can give yourself a pat on the back for being more kind to the environment too.

Lentil Bolognese

recipe by:Caitriona Redmond 

Every single ingredient comes from the press or the freezer in this comforting bolognese recipe.

Servings

2

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 60 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 15 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

• 50g frozen chopped onions

• 2 tbsp chopped garlic

• 50g frozen chopped peppers

• 2 tbsp tomato puree

• 100g frozen chopped carrots

• 200g dried split lentils

• 1 tin chopped tomatoes

• 1 vegetable stock cube and hot water

• 1 tsp each of dried oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper

• 2 tbsp chopped basil

• dried pasta for serving

Method

1. Cook the onions in the vegetable oil in a large saucepan on medium heat for 5 minutes before adding the garlic, tomato puree, and peppers, and cook for a further 5 minutes.

2. Add the carrots and lentils and stir well. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and 300ml of vegetable stock made with a stock cube.

3. Add the dried herbs and seasoning. Stir so that everything is combined.

4. Cover the saucepan and bring to a low simmer for an hour. Stir every so often so that the lentils don’t stick to the bottom of the pan.

5. Recipe Suggestion: This recipe is perfect for the slow cooker. Pop in all the ingredients (excluding the basil), stir well and place the cooker on high for 3-4 hours.

6. To serve, cook the pasta according to the instructions, strain then combine with the sauce, sprinkle chopped basil on top.

Vanilla Cake Traybake

recipe by:Caitriona Redmond 

I love making this vanilla cake as a tray-bake because I can slice it into bars.

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 35 mins

Course

 Baking

Ingredients

• 150g butter

• 150g caster sugar

• 3 medium free-range eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 150g plain flour

• 1 tsp baking powder

Method

1. Preheat your (fan) oven to 170°C. Line your baking tray with greaseproof baking paper.

2. In a large bowl beat the butter and sugar until they are light and fluffy. Add the eggs one by one, beating after each addition to make sure they are well combined. If the mixture starts to curdle, add a tablespoon of flour.

3. Pour in the vanilla extract, beat for a minute until it’s mixed into the batter. Finally, add the flour and baking powder, beat lightly until it becomes a pale, smooth mixture.

4. Pour the cake mixture into the pre-lined baking tray, no need to smooth out the edges this will happen naturally during the baking process. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown on top.

5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before icing and enjoy.

Money Saving Tip 

The fridge is an essential piece of kit in our kitchens and helps preserve our food for longer. It’s not our friend when it comes to cooking though. The colder food is before cooking the longer it’ll take to cook, particularly when it comes to heavier items like a whole chicken or dense butternut squash. 

Remove your food from the fridge at least 30 minutes before putting it into the oven and this will reduce your cooking time and consequently energy consumption. It won’t save loads of energy but it will save a little and all those little changes in the kitchen add up.

Reduce cooking time by removing your food from the fridge at least 30 minutes before putting it into the oven.

Food News 

A 2kg bag of Irish rooster potatoes is reduced to €1.24 this week in Lidl, making them the cheapest bag of potatoes in our shopping basket survey in quite some time.

Last week I mentioned that there had been a marked increase in the cost of eggs in Tesco and this has also been implemented in Dunnes Stores where half a dozen medium free-range eggs now cost €1.90. The price of producing eggs has increased and will increase over the winter due to the higher cost of fuel and feed.

Tesco Finest Round Roast is reduced to €7 per kg for clubcard customers only. Most, if not all, Tesco special offers are limited to clubcard holders so remember to bring your card with you or have the app on your phone when you head to the shops.

With Halloween on the horizon I’ll have a round-up of the best trick-or-treat friendly special offers next week so keep your eye out for that.