Weezl's phase 1- recipe testing and frugalisation- come one, come all!

ceridwen

Lesley_Gaye wrote: »

hope you like it, and Nopot too. I remember that when I tested the frugalised version I thought it was a tiny bit dry, so next time I would add a little of the chickpea cooking liqour to the base mix to loosen it a bit and create more sauce

I realised that that was what I should have done too actually - when I tried it.

Oh well - I'll know next time:)

Murrell

maryb wrote: »

Murrell

There is a thread on Hummous recipes which I found yesterday but can't find now. Anyway I jotted down and combined various recommendations for a hummous that tastes like shopbought because mine never has and Weezl has inspired me to give it one last go. Success!! It tastes really nice and has made a huge quantity. I made it with dried chickpeas which I did in the pressure cooker so I just guesstimated the amount to use when they are cooked so that it looked like a small tin full and I'll use the rest in falafel.

1 tin Chickpeas
juice of a small lemon
1 dessertspoon tahini
1 garlic clove

whizz together in a food processor for longer than you would think. It's a bit like cake mix - it goes lighter when you've whizzed it enough. I needed to add some of the cooking water to get it soft enough.

Then stir in
1 dessertspoon yogurt
1 dessertspoon olive oil
salt
cumin, ground coriander and a little bit of paprika

I found I had to add a fair bit of cumin and some extra garlic but it made all the difference.
This uses less tahini than most recipes (and that's the expensive bit) and you could frugalise it further by leaving it out I reckon. Maybe add some sesame oil if you've got some. I can get sesame seeds quite cheaply and I could whizz them in the coffee grinder of my KenwoodChef so I think that would be better for me than buying tahini again Just as well it didn't use much because I could not have got more than that out of the jar - it had gone rock hard!!

You probably don't need the yogurt either and could get the consistency right with a bit more water. I also roasted the garlic first which I did when I was doing some peppers in the oven. It makes a less raw taste but that is probably why I needed to add more.

Hope this helps

EDIT sorry missed out the most important bit - I'm sure it would be nice if you seasoned it with Garam masala because that has cumin in it - and Shirley already has that in stock. Will try that next time

Hi Maryb

Thanks for this. I have made it before and its turned out yuk on some occasions and lovely on others. I think I should follow a recipe to make it more successful as its usually when I guess that its not quite right. We always have tahini in, as hubby eats it, can't stand it myself. Its a lot cheaper from asian/middle eastern type stores.

Some good ideas for flavours on this thread:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=2257923

Thanks again.
Sandra

ceridwen

weezl74 wrote: »

I guess on reflection I also feel a bit sad about that sainsburies book. A publishing house and a major supermarket have backed that writer financially to take that book to market.

And we are just a little bunch of willing volunteers who could do so much if we had more resources

:rotfl:Perhaps we ought to do a joint "wanted" job advert then and someone might pay us to do this full-time:D ....well ...we could say we are open to a good offer....but "No thanks dear food manufacturers/Government if you think you can pay us to be biased the way you would like. Just expect us to tell us like it is...and we might think about it:D"

....goes off wondering what "terms and conditions" we might negotiate for ourselves.....:rotfl:(only joking....)..

ceridwen

aless02 wrote: »

weezl - you informed that 40g was your DH's usual allowance for the nut butter .

also carrot cake question: I've made the new eggless one with orange-y drizzle. Do I drizzle the whole lot on the cake now and it'll just soak in and we can eat it for the coming days/weeks? Or do I have to add the topping to pieces right before eating? (b/c the 2nd method is a PITA and makes me wonder how I will store the separate components plus send pieces with DH to work)...???? Storage is a problem with these cake things...how do other people do it?? seems very uneconomical to individually cling film each piece for the freezer

I confess to having lotsa little plastic tupperware type boxes for the freezer - bought so that I could forget about plastic freezer bags totally forever.....tho' been sitting there since wondering whether I should have held out for/saved more money for the "glass" freezer containers that are starting to come onto the market for those of us who reject plastic if/when we possibly can...

So - I've just stuck a slice per small box in the freezer of my ceridwen versions Mark 1 and 2 of the carrot cake.

ceridwen

Allegra wrote: »

Very good points, as always, Lesley. Thing is, how do you make a person motivated ? How do you make them grab the rope ?

As in anything in life IMHO all one can do is demonstrate the advantages - and then leave it up to them.

Even if something is quite obviously vital/necessary/etc to themselves and/or other people generally - there just ISNT a way to MAKE people do anything they choose not to do.

....goes wandering off thinking "If there were such a thing - I'd stop worrying half as much as I do about matters environmental....."



EDIT: Admit to feeling a bit puzzled as to why we would be concerned with whether people are managing their finances well...or, as in this case, extraordinarily well....unless it impacts on other people .......(in which case....then I understand.....)

As long as Bob and Shirley's actions only impact on themselves - then we are offering them a "helping hand" - which they may or may not choose to take. We would prefer not to see them in such debt....but if they choose to continue that way....c'est la vie...unless they are neglecting their responsibilities to pay other people what they are owed because of that debt...

shanks77

aless02 wrote: »

Cumin, lemon juice & salt. Sometimes I throw a dash of cayenne b/c I like spicy things .

shanks - how about rosemary? sundried tomato? chili & cheddar cheesey? hmmm...

Thanks sounds yummy do you need to add more liquid or anything to compensate for the extra ingreds? Sorry to sound stupid but never done bread before

FrankieM

I've finished the googlebooks preview of A Nation of Farmers. So many things to think about!
Of course I'm not sure buying locally is cheaper than the supermarkets but starting to grow your own would certainly help...imagine if we could change people's views on those things too.

I now could do with finding the most economical way of reading the rest of the book. The preview only went up to pg112...unfortunately my library doesn't do it

shanks77

Hi did the chilli mince tonight with the other half of the mince from last nights burgers

250g pork mince 0.97
1/2 onion 0.06
tin chopped toms 0.35
1/2 tin beans 0.15
s&p 0.02
chilli 0.06

Total £1.91

This was served with rice and garlic bread and if a whole tin of beans were used and extra rice this would easily have served Shirley and family.
Ex gave it a 8/10 and me 10/10 would both have it again easy to make i did it when i made last nights burgers so time saving for Shirley

weezl74

shanks77 wrote: »

Bread has turned out well rose a bit unevenly but that doesnt affect the taste. Will def make again maybe make some rolls next time or turn the bread into something flavoured maybe with sundried toms or if anyone has some tried and tested flavours would love to hear your suggestions

I'm really glad it went well shanks

I'm thinking of one with walnuts in or walnut rolls for the veggie planner, as a good source of omega3. So if you fancied that it would be a great tester for Bob and shirl as well as hopefully nice for you

I'm impressed you cook for your ex. Nice to be generous and amicable. Well done you :A

queen_of_string wrote: »

Back more on topic, Bacon tunrovers. Weezl you asked about them and main meals. OH, who is a meat at most meals kind of guy, when asked, if we were in Bob and Shirleys position and I served them with gravy veg and wedges ( as you suggested) says: he doesnt think they need wedges, just lots of veg and some gravy as they are quite carby and filling, and yes he'd be happy to eat them like that. he also says that he thinks they would make a nice lunch with beans.

HTH

thanks that's very useful feedback I think it's probably best if Bob only gets that meat flavour once a day that it could be in his dinner where possible, so that opens up another option:)

HowlinWolf

Weezl, let me know if this fits in with your idea of what's needed?

Okay Shirley, here are some basic cooking processes which can help you to make many different frugal meals.
Specific quantities and measurements will be given in each recipe but with these processes you can go on to make lots of delicious frugal food.

White sauce

A white sauce can be used for lots of things from a sauce for pasta, in a lasagne or moussaka, or in a meat, fish or veggie pie. You can also use it as a sauce for meat/fish/veggies if you add appropriate flavourings or for a fricasse (a white stew).

You can make a white sauce of any quantity. All you need are equal amounts of flour and a fat (e.g butter, hard margarine or a spread that is suitable for cooking) and a hot liquid (stock or milk for preference).

Put the fat in a pan and melt over a gentle heat, a higher heat will cause it to brown and will affect the taste.

When the fat is melted add in the flour. Stir. The flour will become incorporated into the fat, cook gently for a minute or two until you have a slightly sandy looking mixture with little craters in it (or honeycomb if you don't like the idea of craters in your food).

Add a good slosh of your hot liquid into the pan, stir. When all the liquid is incorporated into the fat and flour add another slosh. Repeat until you have a sauce of the desired consistency.

(If you want to be a little bit cheffy take the pan of the heat after each slosh of liquid is incorporated and give it a good beating with your spoon for a few seconds. This works the gluten in the flour and will add a lovely glossy finish to your sauce.)

When your sauce is the consistency that you want you can add flavourings if you wish such as mustard, grated cheese, herbs or onion, the possibilities are (almost) endless.