April 2008 Grocery Challenge

candygirl · 22 April 2008 at 2:39PM

moo2moo wrote: »

Sorry peeps the chicken didn't make it. The Chicken Fairy (tooth fairy derivative) came during the night so the kids woke up to a letter thanking them for taking very good care of their chicken. I know thats a very bizarre thing to do but it makes things easier for the 5 year old.

Thats the same 5 year old that happily goes outside to select which cockerel shes going to eat for dinner. Theres a fine line between food and pets. The girl chickens are egg laying pets and the boys are food. The kids like to bury each deceased pet but theres only so much space in the pet cemetery so the chickens are collected during the night from an appropriately cosy place by the chicken fairy.

Aww that's sooo sad hun xx
Havin a NSD today and doing a bit of batch cooking.Weather's gorg here today, and even the dogs are sunbathing

SmellyOldSock · 22 April 2008 at 2:51PM

Hello all

Have Asda delivering this evening, got a free delivery code so am well chuffed.

Spent £64 roughly and £1.15 today on milk.

Yes I've found my £! Thanks to all who gave me instruction!

Looking to be on track for the month!

best wishes
Charlotte

nessquic80 · 22 April 2008 at 3:41PM

A big big thanks to twink for the hobnob recipe i went to mr ts today and got some porridge oaks and have cooked one lot already,they are lovely so much so ive had to freeze lemon cake cus its not getting a look in!!

bails · 22 April 2008 at 4:02PM

Thanks for all the recipes Mrs M, especially the courgette muffins, will definitely be trying them! If there hasn't been one posted before (I'm sure there probably has) my mum makes a mean beetroot cake I could get the recipe for.

So sorry to hear about the chicken moo2moo.

Happy Birthday Scotsaver, hope you have a lovely day.

I know some people bulk buy rice etc in hauge bags, can I ask where you get them from and if they need any special storage please?

HM bread and houmous for lunch today, nomnom, can't wait til the salad we have with it is homegrown too :j

Desperate_Housewife_2-2 · 22 April 2008 at 4:29PM

hi fellow grocery challengees!

I have gone overbudget again this month and wonder if I am slicing my budget too thin. I have kept nearer to the amount I allowed myself than I would have done without this challenge so its an improvement.

I have done more baking and as I work nights have stuck to the plan of 'cook when off, freeze when not' and this means I'm batch cooking a lot more and hence using my slow cooker.

I'm still going to try for £250 again for May and hopefully will be able to do it this time!

Good luck everyone

sashanut · 22 April 2008 at 4:56PM

Hi all

Been lurking & trying not to spend, but am still over this month....I think I might need to try for £250 for May to see if I can keep below this as I've gone over just about every moth. Still, I have learnt so much from this thread - I'm very grateful to everybody for their support - & the recipes & tips as well of course!! To that end I'm posting the recipe for IMPOSSIBLE COCONUT PIE as requested!

- 4 eggs
- 6oz caster sugar (I used ordinary)
- 2oz butter softened
- 3oz plain flour sifted
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 pt milk - any kind
- 4oz desiccated coconut
- 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Pre-heat oven to 180/350 gas 3. Place all ingredients in large mixing bowl, then beat or whisk together till everything is combined.

Pour into a deep, greased 10in pie dish. Bake in oven for 30 mins or until puffed up & golden brown. Allow to cool for 5-10 mins at least (pie will deflate slightly), cut into wedges & serve hot or cold.

This is not overly sweet & will suit those who like egg custard as the middle layer is made of it. When you get it out of the oven it may seem a bit wobbly - although brown - but that is OK. On cooking it separates into a thin pastry-like crust, custard middle & crunchy coconut sponge topping - YUM.

On tasting it DH said - 'you can make this one again - how about tomorrow?' We ate it with a bit of HM jam on the side (tut tut) too.

BTW WEEZL we will be visiting Cardiff at the first May BH weekend - are there any OS shops I shoudl be visiting please? We will be staying in the centre for a couple of days & I know about the bargains on Lakeland's top floor as I found those last year...

TIA

Frugaldom · 22 April 2008 at 5:06PM

clair2305 wrote: »

thanks for this nyk, I do use the store brands, was just thinking of converting to the basics versions....I'll give it a go....is there any difference in taste? or it's cooking needs (does it hold a lot of water, anything else, etc)?

Thanks

I'd be telling lies if I said I could tell the difference. I've been using the basic versions for so long that I don't know what differences there are meant to be. To me, rice is rice and pasta is pasta, it's all down to how it's cooked and what's being eaten along with it. The only thing I can say I HAVE noticed is that some of the spaghetti is quite thin, so it cooks quicker, but that's even better as it's saving on electricity as well as purchase costs. :rotfl: The rice takes a few cold rinses to get the water running clear but that could be because mine is piled up and crammed into the cupboard, so gets a bnit more crushed than it should.
I'm not the best of cooks, but I worked out the cost of last night's chicken curry with boiled rice and garlic/coriander naan; it came in at £1.50 for 3 adult sized meals and certainly no complaints.

Beating the system - my idea is to target the loss leaders in whichever store I visit, as and when available. This week it had to be tinned curry sauce at 5p/tin, shower gel at 10p/bottle and bubble bath at 20p/litre. The shower gel and bubble bath can be rebottled along with some homegrown rosemary or lavender. I leave it sealed for several months and then have my own supply of aromatherapy-type products in bulk ready for redistributing into small jars that can be decorated and personalised as gifts.

I'm now wondering how easy it would be to melt and then reshape basic soap.

Moo2Moo - sorry to hear about the chicken

arkonite_babe · 22 April 2008 at 5:07PM

mandy_moo_1 wrote: »

erm....eat everything?:rotfl: don't think you meant like that did you?! have you tried putting a hairdryer on the ice to try and melt it a bit? just wrap all the frozen food in newspaper whilst you're doing it, so it doesnt start to defrost

It's a frost free one, the food was what I meant. I just seem to have bits and more bits lurking in there. Example, one full tub of breadcumbs. A largish tub at that. I use them as toppings and stuffing but can't get any more use for them. I did try a crumb cookie recipe. It was horrible *spit spit*

mama67 · 22 April 2008 at 5:13PM

I usually use Mr T value basmati rice which used to be 79p/kg bag now gone up to 99p/kg bag:eek: but saw this week that their own brand 4kg bag was on special at £3.60 so got one of those and put the remains after filling my tub up into the freezer(stops weevils hatching).

I also use value lasagne, spagetti, and pasta shapes from any of the supermarkets depending on which shop I'm in.

Just need to rinse the rice a couple of times in cold water to get the excess starch out.
I have been using Jamies method though and once cooked tip rice through colander and then put back over pan it was cooked in with some of the cooking water underneath put lid over and let it steam for approx 5 mins, lovely and fluffy.

bails · 22 April 2008 at 5:19PM

Arkonite, how about bulking out HM burgers with them? I only say this as I saw the burgers I want to make need breadcrumbs, I'm sure one of the proper cooks will have a great idea for them

Nyk, I know what you mean by a loss leader, but how do you find them IYSWIM?

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April 2008 Grocery Challenge

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