My store cupboard needs clearing out - Help!

nicki_2 · 22 April 2005 at 5:58PM

At Chistmas I went through this phase of buying things I wouldn't usually get (original idea was to bake biscuits for the family but that idea went out the window) and now I don't know what to do with the stuff I have in my cupboard. Below is a list of items I have in my cupboard that I just can't seem to incorporate into my menu plans. I'm looking for any ideas, I want to see if next week I can cope with not buying ANYTHING for meals (except maybe a tin of chopped tomatoes or something). BTW we don't do spicy things as OH complains at even the smell of curry or anything like chilli etc

(where as I love them)

Prunes in fruit juice (290g or 175g drained weight) - These were given to us by grandfather-in-law. What he expected me to do with it I don't know :rolleyes:
Cinnomon sticks
cream of tartar
baking powder
cloves
bay leaves (I add these to shepherds pie, bolognese etc but they just don't seem to be going down)
Ground nutmeg
Ground mixed spice
ground ginger
ground cinnamon
nutmegs - whole, about 12
500g dried chickpeas
500g broth mix
500g pearly barley
500g popcorn (Can this be used in something as opposed to just popping it? Just curious)
200g split red lentils
fine leaf gelatine
500g light brown soft sugar
golden syrup
500g rice flour
filo pastry

I also always have the bog standard:
Plain flour
Self-raising flour (BB May 05)
Icing sugar
caster sugar
10 eggs - BB 16th April (are these okay if they've been kept in the fridge?)
lard
garlic
veg oil
tiny amount of olive oil
ketchup
table salt
lemon juice
vinegar
black pepper (BB May 05)
Veg stock
Chicken Stock
Beef stock
Bicarb
dried basil
dried parsley
pizza base x 2
bisto white sauce
brown rice
granulated sugar
gravy granules

I also have in (but not planning to use up completely)
2kg+ pasta
potatoes
carrots
red pepper - starting to go off so need to use it
green pepper - as above
lettuce
cucumber
5 tomatoes
mayo
approx 200g cooked chicken
frozen sweetcorn
frozen mixed veg
frozen peas (only a serving or two though)

I know there is alot, but when I look in the cupboards/fridge/freezer my mind goes blank.

This week I have planned :
Pizza
Jacket potatoes with tuna mayo
Tuna tomato pasta
Chicken bake
friday night special
hot dogs.

mink35 · 22 April 2005 at 6:08PM

hmmmm

Prunes - eat them! Good for the bowels!
Cinnamon sticks - put some in a jar with some sugar and leave. Use the sugar as cinnamon sugar.
Cream of tartar mixed with bicarb of soda makes baking powder but as you already have that I don't know!
Baking powder - use in cakes with plain flour instead of s/r flour
Cloves - if you do baked ham/gammon then stick them in the skin

tru · 22 April 2005 at 6:33PM

Cooking by numbers

katiepops_2 · 22 April 2005 at 6:40PM

Chicken stew! Use your frozen mixed veg, chop up some other veggies to go in if you want (though I usually use a frozen stew pack of veggies along with the mixed veg), chicken, and stock (or you could use tinned tomatoes or pasta sauce). Add a handful of pearl barley and broth mix and cook slowly - I do mine in the slow cooker.

Delish!

Kate

Magentasue · 22 April 2005 at 6:42PM

Do you like fruit cake? I use an 8" round tin: Line tin and preheat oven 150C

Cream 6oz butter with 6oz sugar (gran or caster, or use up your brown sugar)
Add 8oz sifted self raising flour or use plain flour and baking powder
Add a heaped teaspoon of your spices (freshly ground nutmeg/cinnamon/mixed spice)
Add 3 beaten eggs and whisk everything thoroughly. Add the prunes (drained) and any other dried fruit you have. You can add a little of the prune syrup so you have a mixture that drops off a spoon easily. Stir in gently, pour into tin and bake until cooked.
Takes about an hour, cover the top if it's cooking too quickly.
A tablespoon of black treacle added with the eggs makes it dark if you use white sugar.

Scotch broth type soup for your soup mix and barley. Saute a chopped onion in a little oil stir in a couple of tablespoons of barley or soup mix and then add some boiling water. Add some chopped veg (potato/carrot/celery/swede etc), season well and cook in slow cooker or simmer for half hour or so. My nan used to add the cooked lamb left on a bone, I used to add cooked ham in my meat eating days. Now I add a tin of cannelonni beans (drained and rinsed) and a dollop of pesto.

If you soak and precook the chick peas you could add those to any soup or stew.

Smiley_Mum · 22 April 2005 at 6:56PM

You can check if the eggs are fresh by placing them in sufficient water to cover the egg twice. If the egg stays horizontal on the bottom then it is fine for eating. If it points upwards feed it to the dog, if it floats, bin it.

Delia goes into things in a bit more detail here and she states that three weeks would be the maximum keeping time for eggs.

Check out -

http://www.deliaonline.com/cookeryschool/howto/how_0000000011.asp

apprentice_tycoon · 22 April 2005 at 7:28PM

You are going to get lots of suggestions for fruity cakes (all your spices) and stews and soups (pulses, lentils etc) but in our house the cinnamon sticks get added to my 'edible' - (it has dried orange and lemon slices, satsumas and chillies) Christmas door wreath and the bay leaves get cut into holly leaf shapes and put (with dried cranberries) on to the butter on top of home made chicken liver pate

Curry_Queen · 22 April 2005 at 7:38PM

Where did you get the leaf gelatine from? I've been looking for some of that but not come across any yet. So much easier to use than gelatine powder!

Prunes and custard! ... mmmmmmm

(great for constipation!)

Brown sugar, syrup, spices ... just add some oats and you got flapjacks!

Lentils, barley, broth mix ... soups, stews - just add veggies and meat.

White sauce can go with the pasta to make a carbonnara.

Plenty of stuff to make pizzas and pasta based meals there.

nicki_2 · 22 April 2005 at 7:58PM

Curry_Queen wrote:

Where did you get the leaf gelatine from? I've been looking for some of that but not come across any yet. So much easier to use than gelatine powder

I got it in the baking section of Tescos about 12 months ago. Originally I was going to make the air fresheners I saw on here before we moved house. I've now decided to make some sort of jelly using some cordial which we always have in.

Thanks for the ideas. I'm not confident enough to do the "throw things into a pan and see how it turns out" cooking yet. I can sort of manage it when it comes to stews and a basic soup. Anything else and I start getting scared and go running for a cookery book, look at the recipes and then decide that we'll just have cheese pie (like you used to get in school) or something simple that I already know how to cook so these things sit there for months at a time.

Now, that cake sounds nice so I think I'll try and have a go at making it later or over the weekend. I'm going to go and have my "Friday night of gardening/decorating" and then go for an early-ish bed

calleyw · 23 April 2005 at 11:22AM

With prunes stick them in the blender whizz up and then use the pureed prunes to replace some of the fat when you make a cake.

I use to replace the fat in cakes with apple sauce.

You can buy jars of stuff like that in the baking section of the supermarket and it costs a bomb.

Yours

Calley

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My store cupboard needs clearing out - Help!

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