Store cupboard challenge

sarahsarah

I was about to say yes I would love to join in, but as it is being moved/merged I will forget where to look for it, that's what happens if the thread isn't right there staring me in the face heehee.

dollydaydream07

could you not subscribe to the thread and then - in theory - once it has been moved/merged, it should be easy to find!!!

MKS

Thanks, Hippeechiq. Will certainly give this a try, it sounds lovely.

quintwins

i shud save £40, i will still have to pay £4 for the kids nursery snacks which is technically food but theres nothing i can do about that

debtmess

can i join in please x untill next friday
have milk/bread in the freezer and enough of anything else till at least the weekend, will save myself around £50

Pitlanepiglet

T'is a good idea and I shall partially join in. We've always lived out of our cupboards, fridge and freezer for January - the only exceptions being milk from the milkman (for my Dad, OH & I use soya) and fruit (apples/bananas for lunches.

At the moment neither OH or I are working so we can eat stewed apple and berries out of the freezer plus we have jars full of dehydrated apple. We mainly only shop once every 4-6 weeks anyway and top up with fruit and veg from the farm shop.

I'm not going to join properly though as I'm worried about the weather, we got snowed in for four or five days before Christmas as our lane becomes pretty inaccessible so I think I'm going to shift my "no shopping" month to later in the spring as I can't bear the idea of not having full cupboards!

Good luck!

wendywitch

Count me in

I desperately need to save some money and live out of the freezer(s) and cupboards as our dog is in the vets again (been in for a week so far) and I know it'll be a HUGE :eek: bill in the end

I may need to buy milk and bread though

Pitlanepiglet

Hippeechiq wrote: »

I just feel a bit panicky when there's not a lot in the freezer though - don't you?

Yes, I do, I suspect there is something built into our brains about storing food for lean times! The quacks could probably give us a diagnosis!

I've said else where that we used to eat through our stocks in January when we lived in a town with a co-op around the corner and roads that were gritted. Now we don't it's clear to me that this is the wrong time of year to eat through the stock so we'll do this in the spring!

I do a similar hot pot, usually a mix of whatever we've got in the way of veg - it's lovely with leek instead of onion this time of year. I tend to use stock though and then just grate cheese over the top. I did one with some leftover chicken in it as well the other day and it meant that I could stretch the chicken for miles!

rozmister

Count me in! I have loads in the freezer to use up it's just finding the will!

I spent £20 - £25 on a big shop on the weekend and then another £10 or so during the week on little bits!

Hippeechiq

I completely agree and can totally relate to you when you say that now is not the time to work your way through your supplies.

For the first 40 years of my life I lived in deep countryside in Norfolk & Suffolk (23 years in Norfolk 17 in Suffolk) where in both instances we were a 20 minute drive to the nearest town, and it makes good management of your food supplies a whole different ball game.

I remember as a child being cut off for over a week. Goodness knows how Mum managed. I just remember it being a great adventure with the added bonus of no school But even if you're not cut off, it's no fun driving along untreated country roads to get to town.

I'm liking the sound of using Leeks in the hotpot instead of onion, and adding chicken - fab idea! - thanks for that

Another cheap meal is:-

SAUSAGE, ONION & POTATO LAYER - SERVES 3

4-5 Medium/Large Potatoes, thinly sliced
6 Sausages (or however many you normally eat pp)
1 Large Onion, thinly sliced
2 Oxo cubes
Pepper
Water

Cover bottom of a large roasting tin with all of the sliced onion
Add a layer the sliced potato on the top, season with pepper and sprinkle with an Oxo cube
Repeat with another layer of potato, season with pepper and sprinkle with an Oxo cube
Slowly add enough water to bring the water level to half the depth of your tin.
Cover tin with foil.

Place in pre-heated oven @ 190C

After 1 & 1/4hrs carefully remove foil, lay sausages on top of the potatoes, re-cover with foil and return to oven
After 45 mins remove from oven, remove foil and return uncovered to oven for a further 30mins until sausages have browned.

Simple but unbelievably scrummy & all done in one tin. I do love one pot/tin dishes

I usually cook it in my small top oven, but it could be cooked in the main oven while doing some batch baking

Cooking time could possibly be reduced by par-boiling the potatoes first, but this is how my Mum always used to make it, so that's how I've always made it.