Drinks - The Added Cost

Have you ever wondered why your grocery bill doesn't decrease to the amount you want ?  I have countless people tell me that it's impossible to feed a family for under $300 a month. YES, people really do tell me that yet my monthly food budget has been $300 since October 2010. In February 2014 due to financial circumstances our food budget was reduced to $270 a month. By November 2015 I'd lost most of my cleaning work so the food budget was slashed again to $200 a month.  Since February this year I've been feeding Darren,  myself,  Jessica part time and Megan when she pops in for just over $100 a month.


Soft drinks, cordials, juices and bottled water can add unnecessary costs to the food budget. When you think about it, none of these are necessary to keep our bodies functioning. Soft drinks are high in sugar or artificial sugars, flavourings and colorings. Even lite cordials contain too much sugar. Juice is loaded with sugar and some contain preservatives. Bottled water is so unnecessary in most parts of Australia. We have some of the best drinking water in the world and yet so much bottled water is sold at a high price.

Have a think about it. Do you really need these drinks in your fridge ? There is nothing wrong with having them as treats for special occasions. To keep your body hydrated and your skin and kidneys healthy, water needs to be consumed by the glassful and no, tea and coffee doesn't count towards your water intake.

Milk is a great source of calcium no matter what your age is. But all in moderation. I've seen families go through 6 - 8 litres a day and wonder why their children won't eat their meals or drink a glass of water ( which is free ). A glass or two a day of milk combined with cheese, yoghurt and fruit and vegetables will give you a great dose of much needed calcium.

Next time you write your shopping list have a think about the drinks you need. Will water and milk be enough ?

50 / 50 Fruit Cordial

I remember being at my Grandma's when she served 50  50 fruit cordial.  I thought it was just amazing that she could make cordial instead of buying it.  My Grandma had lots of fruit trees in her backyard so I'm certain the lemons used in this recipe came of her tree.

Years later when I had my own family I remembered this drink and wondered if anyone had the recipe.  Unfortunately no one knew of the recipe so I did a little bit of internet research.  As usual I found lots of recipes but combined them together to form my own.  Here's my recipe for 50 / 50 fruit cordial -

3 cups of sugar
1 tablespoon of citric acid
1 tablespoon of tartaric acid
3 large lemons
3 large oranges
5 cups of boiling water

Zest the lemons and oranges and add to a medium saucepan.
Juice the lemons and oranges and add to the saucepan.
Add all remaining ingredients and boil for 10 minutes.
Cool the mixture, strain and pour into sterilised bottles.
To serve mix 1 part cordial to 4 parts water or to taste.

I'm not sure how long it lasts in the fridge but using sterilised bottles will keep it for at least 3 - 4 weeks.

NOTES -

*  When oranges are cheap in Winter,  I buy up big,  zest and juice the oranges together with lemons from our tree.  Then I place the mixture into  snap lock bags ( in batch size as per recipe ) and store in the freezer for Summer.

*  This recipe could be made as lemon cordial.

*  A bottle of homemade cordial makes great presents.  Just add a homemade gift tag and ribbon to jaz up the bottle.