With the cost of living biting, the idea of feeding your family for $10 feels increasingly out of reach.
Melbourne mum of four Brooke Schrempf-Dixon agrees it’s harder, but it’s still a challenge she’s willing – and able! – to meet.
In fact, with just some pantry staples and a few other ingredients, Brooke can feed her family for $1.60 a serve!
“I grew up in housing commission and my mum lived day by day,” Brooke, 32, tells New Idea. “She was thrifty and taught me how to cook something out of nothing.”
Back when Brooke and husband Jack, 30, were just parents of two, budget cooking wasn’t something they thought about. Both worked full-time and loved splurging on food.
“We’d easily spend $600 a week on groceries for the four of us,” Brooke shares. “But when I got pregnant with the twins, I looked at our outgoings and knew it needed to stop.”
Since then, Brooke has changed the way she shops, and is always armed with a meal plan and strict list to adhere to.
“I’d go to the supermarket at night when you’re more likely to get deals. Instead of buying expensive meat we’d go to an independent butcher once a month and bulk buy,” Brooke explains.
“I stopped buying snacks and made tray bakes and muffins to fill the freezer. I tried not to spend more than $100 a week.”
She also started revisiting the recipes her mum Elizabeth taught her.
“Curries, creamy bacon and spinach fettuccine, apricot chicken … they have heaps of flavour and you can swap out one seasoning for another and make a different dish.
“I started sharing the recipes online and it blew up,” Brooke adds. “Now I’m shopping and cooking this way, I’ll never go back.”
