This is breakfast on Meal Plan 10 on days 1 and 4

Serves 2
120g value self raising flour, 45p/1,5kg, 4p
2 eggs, mixed weight £70p/6, 23p
Pinch or so of dried mixed herbs, 1-2p
15ml veg oil to cook, 2p
Total cost 28p, 14p a serving
380 calories, 16g protein, 16g fat, 42g carbs

Make the pancakes by mixing in the dried herbs to the flour. Smell the mix. If you can smell the herbs, there is probably enough in there. If you can’t add another pinch. Season with salt and pepper, mix well. Now stir in enough water to make a thick batter.

Heat a frying pan and add half the oil. Drop in spoonfuls of batter and cook gently until the underside is golden. Flip over and cook the other side in the same way. You will probably need to cook the pancakes in two goes.

While that is happening, heat a pan of water to simmer. Add salt. Crack an egg into a cup and carefully tip the egg into the simmering water. Repeat with the other egg. Simmer gently for 4 minutes, fish out with a slotted spoon.

Serve the pancakes with the poached egg. You can fry or scramble the eggs if you prefer.

The herb can be anything you have, any herb that you like the taste of. So fine chopped rosemary, sage, basil, marjoram etc, or a mix.

A dollop of mustard would be nice, or a squeeze of tomato purée.

If you have a rasher of bacon spare, that would be lovely here, and maybe a cherry tomato or two. Or a spoonful of baked beans, or a couple of roundels of salami or pepperoni.

You could chop up some slivers of ham, tiny chicken scraps or crispy bits from a roast and add them to the pancake mix.

You could use gluten free flour, gram flour or a gf mix. I have tried pancakes with granary or wholemeal flour and didn’t like them much, but you might.

Thrifty Lesley has an associated Facebook Group. Do come over and say hello if you haven’t already joined. I’d love to see you   I’m a perpetual dieter, and to help with that endeavour, there is now also a Thrifty Lesley dieting group, a lovely, growing community