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

artybear

lol and I thought you were a classy lady who just talked nutrition and frugalness all day!!

Im going home to see my mummy :j( we can only cope with each other for a limited amount of time lol) and Im back on the 6th if the trains dont strike. If they do then im scuppered as I dont think my little train track in deepest darkest wales will be a priority!!!:eek:

XXX

weezl74

hornetgirl wrote: »

I can't do the full month's test (cheese issues), but would like to cook along with other testers at least on some days. My April menu planner starts getting put together at the beginning of next week, so will try to plan in some B&S meals where I can.
We had the risi e bisi the other night and both quite enjoyed it. Next time I wouldn't cook the peas first and then again in the actual dish as they disintegrated a bit too much, but the taste was good. I got round the cheese issue on this one by just putting grated on DH's portion once it was on his plate.

thank you HG that's brilliant. All the breakfasts and lunches are cheese free, and I think it's just the onion tart, alfredo, risi and spanish omelette that contain cheese, so hopefully there's quite a lot of fun you can have

weezl74

artybear wrote: »

lol and I thought you were a classy lady who just talked nutrition and frugalness all day!!

Im going home to see my mummy :j( we can only cope with each other for a limited amount of time lol) and Im back on the 6th if the trains dont strike. If they do then im scuppered as I dont think my little train track in deepest darkest wales will be a priority!!!:eek:

XXX

Frankie and poohbear (and I'm not sure about the other testers) are up for waiting til you're back to start, but I guess you wouldn't want to come straight back to a big bakeathon?

I wonder if people are wondering why DH and I aren't stepping up to the plate...

I'm pretty sure I can do some of the things on some of the days, but I think the best role I can play with my limited resources is to keep the project moving forward nd addressing and tweaking things as you all raise them. I hope no-one feels disappointed by that. I'm sure in a few months if Kester begins to sleep through and we are more in a routine I will be part of a diary thread for planner 2 or 3

weezl74

Frankie, to return to a chat we had a while back, drinks for your children other than tea...

I've developed a recipe for cloudy lemonade which they can have 2 hi-ball tumbler glasses of per day within the 80p per day budget. How does that sound?

if you and DH bought less teabags, it's easy to make more within budget too...

lesley: yet another task, sorry! Are you able to easily do an organisational chart/flow diagram, picturing that top-down approach to how to present the project?

I would find that very helpful
xxx

Lesley_Gaye

weezl74 wrote: »

PS Lesley did you get anywhere with a formula which discounts pulses from the 5 a day above 1 portion per person per day (ie above 124)?

Weezl, do marrowfats and leo dried peas count as a pulse as they are dried?

HowlinWolf

Weezl & Lorietta - I have saved your questions and answers in my Shirley document so that I don't forget to include them.

With regard to batch cooking I don't do so much of it really. What I do do is that if I buy whole chickens at the start of the month to butcher for one month then I'll probably shop on a Saturday morning then poach one bird while butchering the other. I'll portion the butchered raw bird into breasts, the legs with thighs still attached and then strip the meat for a chopped chicken meal. I'll then make stock from that carcass. When the poached chuck is cooked I'll strip it and freeze in meal sized batches, I'll use that in curry, fajitas, pie etc. I'll then have the stock from the poached bird and the stock from the butchered carcass to use. I might then schedule a shepherds pie for the saturday night and make two and put one in the freezer. If I'm making pesto chicken "nuggets" or batches of tomato sauce for ds I'll do this about once every three months.

The reason I don't really batch cook is that I cook to relax and would feel a bit useless if I couldn't come home and cook something if I'd had a crap day. We also don't own a microwave so all reheating has to be done in oven or on hob and it'll be on for just as long to reheat as it would for me to make it from scratch.
I tend to only bake at weekends unless its for a special occasion or unless it's scones or twinks or something else easy. I make bread pretty much every other day. Sometimes I use the breadmaker but at the moment I am doing most without.
I leave work at 5, pick ds up at 6 and we're usually home by 6.30. I sometimes try to start what we are eating whilst making tea for ds. He is in bed by 8 and we usually eat somewhere between 8 and 9 so I'm not pushed for time so much as that I'm sometimes pushed for brain and don't have the energy to make things like the thick onion tart. Something like that would definitely be Friday or Saturday food.

weezl74

Lesley_Gaye wrote: »

Weezl, do marrowfats and leo dried peas count as a pulse as they are dried?

yep.

message too short

artybear

What I may do is come home, sort my life out and then join in-Mr artybear has run away so it would only be me and therefore not a true representative of the planner.

But I will try my bestest to join in when I get back and let you know how it goes!

xxxxxxx

Lesley_Gaye

weezl74 wrote: »

lesley: yet another task, sorry! Are you able to easily do an organisational chart/flow diagram, picturing that top-down approach to how to present the project?

I would find that very helpful
xxx

blimey, proper analysis. Yes, I can do that, used to do it a lot

do you have powerpoint, I'm pretty sure there's a good one in there I could use. If not, I think I could prob print it as a pdf which you could read

HowlinWolf

I have pics of a boule and bloomer style paul merritt loaf and pasta alfredo if anyone wants them. I haven't been here long enough to be allowed to post attachments.:(