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5 easy family dinners for £25 - Fish pie pasta bake, sausage stroganoff spaghetti, smoky roasted veg and bean stew...

From super-tasty chicken and pesto burgers, to a warming smoky bean stew, enjoy five delicious midweek meals, all for less than £25*. We've done the hard work for you and prepared a shopping list, shown at the bottom of the page – you can either shop online, choose Click+Collect or screenshot the list before you head in-store.

  1. Monday: Fish pie pasta bake

    Monday: Fish pie pasta bake

    2 tbsp vegetable oil
    40g plain flour​
    568ml carton skimmed milk 150ml
    50% less fat crème fraîche
    212g tin salmon, drained and flaked, bones removed
    145g tin tuna chunks in brine, drained and flaked
    6 spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced
    10g fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
    350g penne 1 broccoli head, cut into florets
    80g grated mature Cheddar

    1. Preheat the oven to gas 7, 220°C, fan 200°C. Mix the oil and flour in a saucepan to make a thick paste, then cook over a medium heat for 2-3 mins until thickened and lightly sizzling. Remove from the heat and very gradually whisk in the milk to make a smooth sauce. Bring to a simmer, then cook for 2-3 mins until thickened. Remove from the heat, then stir through the crème fraîche, salmon, tuna, spring onions and parsley. Season and set aside.

    2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta to pack instructions, adding the broccoli for the last 3-4 mins – both should still have some bite. Drain, reserving 50ml cooking water, then stir the pasta, broccoli and cooking water into the sauce.

    3. Transfer the mixture to a 20 x 30cm baking dish, scatter over the cheese, then bake for 25-30 mins until golden brown and bubbling. Leave to stand for 5 mins before serving.

  2. Tuesday: Puff pastry pizza

    Tuesday: Puff pastry pizza

    320g pack reduced-fat ready-rolled puff pastry
    ½ tbsp vegetable oil
    1 red onion, finely chopped​
    250g frozen mixed sliced peppers
    80g reduced-fat green pesto
    100g tomato & herb pasta sauce
    210g pack mozzarella, drained, patted dry and torn
    100g cherry tomatoes, halved
    1 Little Gem, trimmed and leaves separated

    1. Preheat the oven to gas 7, 220°C, fan 200°C. Unroll the pastry on its paper and put on a baking sheet. Score a 1cm border around the edge, then bake for 10 mins until puffed up.

    2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat; fry the onion and peppers for 6-8 mins until softened and golden. Season and set aside. Add 1 tbsp pesto to a bowl with 1 tbsp water; season with black pepper, stir, then set aside.

    3. Press down the pastry inside the puffed up border. Spread the tomato sauce within the pastry border, then scatter over the peppers and onion. Top with the mozzarella, tomatoes and dot with the remaining pesto. Bake for 15-18 mins until browned.

    4. Toss the lettuce through the pesto dressing to coat and serve alongside the puff pastry pizza.

  3. Wednesday: Sausage stroganoff spaghetti

    Wednesday: Sausage stroganoff spaghetti

    454g pack reduced-fat pork sausages
    ½ tbsp vegetable oil
    1 onion, finely chopped
    3 garlic cloves, crushed
    1½ tbsp smoked paprika
    1 chicken stock pot, made up to 500ml
    350g spaghetti
    150ml 50% less fat crème fraîche
    10g fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

    1. Squeeze the meat out of the sausages into a bowl.

    2. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat and fry the meat for 5-6 mins, breaking up with a spoon, until browned. Add the onion and cook for 4-5 mins more until golden.

    3. Add the garlic and paprika and cook, stirring, for 2 mins. Add the stock and stir, scraping up any bits in the base of the pan. Simmer over a low-medium heat for 10-12 mins until reduced.

    4. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti to pack instructions. Drain, reserving 100ml cooking water.

    5. When the spaghetti is nearly cooked, stir the crème fraîche into the sauce; season to taste with pepper. Stir in the spaghetti, reserved cooking water and most of the parsley; toss well. Scatter with the remaining parsley and a little ground black pepper to serve.

  4. Thursday: Chicken and pesto burgers

    Thursday: Chicken and pesto burgers

    500g sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into wedges
    1 tbsp vegetable oil
    1 tsp smoked paprika
    500g pack 5% fat chicken mince
    85g reduced-fat green pesto
    1 red onion, finely diced
    2 garlic cloves, crushed
    60g grated mature Cheddar
    4-pack seeded burger buns, halved
    1 Little Gem, trimmed and leaves separated

    1. Preheat the oven to gas 7, 220°C, fan 200°C. Add the sweet potatoes, oil and paprika to a baking tray; season and toss well. Roast for 35 mins, turning halfway, or until golden and crisp.

    2. Meanwhile, line a baking tray with baking paper. Use clean hands to mix together the mince, all but 4 tsp pesto, the red onion, garlic and some seasoning. Shape into 4 patties, each about 8-9cm wide x 1.5cm thick, and arrange on the tray. Bake above the wedges for 20 mins or until turning golden, then divide the cheese between the burgers; return to the oven for 4-5 mins until the cheese has melted and the burgers are cooked through.

    3. Add the halved burger buns to a baking sheet and put in the oven for the last 2 mins of the cooking time. Spread the bun bases with the remaining pesto, top with the burgers and some lettuce leaves, then add the bun lids. Serve with the sweet potato wedges and any remaining lettuce alongside.

  5. Friday: Smoky roasted veg and bean stew

    Friday: Smoky roasted veg and bean stew

    1 caulifower, cut into florets, nicer leaves reserved
    500g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3cm chunks
    2 tbsp vegetable oil
    2½ tbsp smoked paprika
    1 onion, thinly sliced
    250g frozen sliced mixed peppers
    150g cherry tomatoes
    3 garlic cloves, crushed
    340g tomato & herb pasta sauce
    400g tin cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
    ½ vegetable stock pot, made up to 300ml
    pinch caster sugar
    10g fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
    2 spring onions, sliced
    6 wholemeal pittas, halved and toasted

    1. Preheat the oven to gas 8, 240°C, fan 220°C. Add the caulifower and leaves and the sweet potatoes to a baking tray with 1 tbsp each oil and paprika. Season with black pepper, toss, then roast for 25-30 mins, turning and removing the leaves halfway, until browned.

    2. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a saucepan over a medium-high heat. Fry the onion and peppers for 6-8 mins until softened. Halve the tomatoes, then add to the pan with the remaining paprika and the garlic; cook for 2 mins more.

    3. Add the pasta sauce, beans, stock and sugar. Simmer for 10-15 mins, then stir in the veg. Simmer for 8-10 mins until the sauce has thickened. Scatter with parsley and spring onions; serve with pittas.

  6. Shopping list

    30g pack flat-leaf parsley
    1 large garlic bulb
    2-pack Little Gem lettuce
    250g pack Nightingale Farms cherry tomatoes
    100g bunch spring onions
    2 onions
    2 red onions
    1kg pack sweet potatoes
    1 cauliflower
    1 broccoli head
    320g pack ready-rolled reduced-fat puff pastry
    300ml tub 50% less fat crème fraîche
    568ml carton British skimmed milk
    250g pack Creamfields grated mature Cheddar
    210g pack Creamfields mozzarella
    500g pack 5% fat chicken mince
    454g pack 8 reduced-fat pork sausages
    4-pack large seeded burger buns
    6-pack wholemeal pitta breads
    48g jar smoked paprika
    400g tin cannellini beans
    190g jar reduced-fat green pesto
    440g jar Hearty Food Co. tomato & herb pasta sauce
    212g tin wild Pacific pink salmon
    145g tin Stockwell & Co tuna chunks in brine
    500g pack Hearty Food Co. spaghetti
    500g pack Hearty Food Co. penne
    500g pack frozen sliced mixed peppers

    + From your storecupboard:

    Vegetable oil, plain flour, chicken stock pot, vegetable stock pot, caster sugar


    *Based on a family of four. Total cost is based on online prices at the time of publishing and is subject to change. Dependent on product availability, total basket price online may change due to substitutions.