Economy Gastronomy - new budget cookery programme; BBC

gunsandbanjos

redmel1621 wrote: »

What would you serve macaroni cheese with. I don't think I would add artichokes or lardons to the recipe...sounds a bit expensive to me but Dh would probably look at me like I had two heads if I just served up a plate of cheesy pasta:rolleyes:

I serve mine with a green salad, i think it tones down the richness.

Amarillo wrote: »

The all in one white sauce is Delia's, the recipe is here http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/allinonewhitesauce_66114.shtml .

I've found it makes a lovely lump free sauce where as when I do it the traditional way I end up with lumps, but that could just be my rubbish cooking !

I use the delia all in one recipe too, it is really easy and i have never had lumps in it.

r.a.i.n.b.o.w

Butterfly_Brain wrote: »

It might be good but it depends what they feel are affordable budget meals not the silly feed your family for a fiver how about feed your family for £3.50 or less would be more interesting

I've only just started reading this thread, so forgive me if this has already been said...

The lamb dish they made was looking pretty tasty until he said "just £2.76 per person"...WTH??? I want to spend £2.76 ON THE WHOLE MEAL!!


Also: that hot dog meal looked YUCK. "Just 15p a can!" and "most people have a can of these"...erm... NOPE. I stopped buying hot dog sausages after I learned what "meat" and cr*p went into them, many years ago.

nodwah

I agree I thought the hot dog thing looked disgusting!

Nargleblast

In a nutshell, it is all about buying the best quality ingredients you can afford and making the most of them. If it introduces the Great British Public to the principles of real food and real cooking on a budget, then roll on the rest of the series! We should have more programmes like it, and less of the soap opera/reality TV stuff that makes children want to be celebrities and acquire possessions just for the sake of it.

blueberrypie

beckstrous wrote: »

Must admit, that programme made me crave macaroni cheese even though I am not a huge fan of it. Used to love it, but find it a bit rich, and a bit...erm...cheesy. Which is an odd thing to say as I love cheese and really like cauliflower cheese. I quite like it with bacon and mushrooms, but I don't think I'd add artichokes to it.

I usually add peas to mine - they cut the richness very nicely.

I also usually do a one-pot-deal for my mac'n'cheese, and don't often bake it in the oven. The one-pot-you're-done system makes it a very easy meal indeed.

PasturesNew

I don't mind if people spend £220/week or £2200/week on food .... until they come out with that old chestnut "we can't afford ....". Then it's annoying.

mooomin

Jolinar wrote: »

I don't post here often but I've been having a little look around the board as I've a little one on the way in December and we'll have to manage on much less than we do now. I have to say as an outsider I find some of the attitudes expressed here as quite off putting. It's certainly made me think twice about engaging in any meaningful dialogue. If that family posted on here wanting help would they be greeted with such derision and scorn? I certainly hope not.

Is it so hard to accept that some people are not as informed as some people on here? Or that not everyone wants to get into hardcore frugality but just save a bit of money? Takes all sorts to make the world go around, I for one applaud the family for wanting to get help.

This thread may not have been the best one to give you an idea about how OS people work (And I say this as an outsider looking in, as I know I'm not yet good enough to wear the OS hat. Maybe an OS pin badge....!)

The people on this board are very kind and helpful and will always help a muppet (like me) who doesn't know their way around the kitchen. I started off on the Grocery Challenge and just concentrated on saving money, now I've been doing it for a few months and have increased my budget to allow me to [strike]learn to cook[/strike] practice the recipes on the challenge. Nowhere has a question been too basic for one of the many awesome OSers to answer, and I salute them.

It can get quite competative on here (Or can appear that way) - people saying "£2+ per person, I could do it for less" etc, but don't let it put you off.

f_f

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

TBH, I wouldn't have touched the chilli either, and I love spicy food. I think the lad had been told, 'right, this is the bit where you make out that you hate the food, then we take you out climbing (without the mandatory safety helmet and harness) and then we give you a muffin (which to my dodgy eyesight, looked awfully like a starbuck's one, rather than the tiny things they were mixing) and then you pretend that everything is lovely'.

My niece and her husband were going to film a show with the same production company until they turned up at the house with a list of things they had to wear and a load of things they had to say. Once her OH realised that they had decided he was being scripted as a jobless incompetent imbecile that sat on the sofa in trackies all day playing a PS2, rather than a young guy who normally worked full time as an engineer and recently had surgery for a spinal injury sustained on the rugby pitch, the production team were sent on their way, having been found canvassing neighbours for soundbites about how his wife was a hardworking teacher and how he was so useless, she may as well have been on her own.

And mac cheese is less rich with 1tsp oil, a rasher of bacon, 2tsp of peas, a tbls of creme fraiche and 2oz of grated parmesan. And a heck of a lot cheaper than the cost of a tub of artichokes between 2, 2pts milk, a quarter of margarine, a packet of lardons, and just under a lb of cheese. And you wouldn't have to make 2 batches because the children won't eat it.

But hey - why would you want to cook things the children might actually enjoy when you can have a £5 bottle of wine or a bunch of artichokes?

PasturesNew

redmel1621 wrote: »

What would you serve macaroni cheese with. I don't think I would add artichokes or lardons to the recipe...

I've never had artichokes. I saw one once, didn't look nice.
Never heard of lardons until last night ... I am presuming that means "bacon batons" and I don't like bacon.

I usually serve macaroni cheese with tinned tomatoes, usually just the tomatoes, not the liquid. And/or a splash of brown sauce.

I've seen macaroni cheese mixed with ham pieces in canteens.

I've also seen recipes where there's a sort of crumble top - probably made out of breadcrumbs, which probably makes it look "more of a meal" to a lot of people.

PasturesNew

flying_fresian wrote: »

It can get quite competative on here (Or can appear that way) - people saying "£2+ per person, I could do it for less" etc

I just printed off your posting and ate that for my tea