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

weezl74

Good morning all recipe testers!

Sian thanks for your honest feedback, great stuff!

I had some other questions for you if that's ok...

Sian_the_Green wrote: »

'I made the onion tart earlier; pastry was very frustrating, wasn't sure what the texture was meant to be like as I have only made it once before, it took so long to get it to roll out as I had to add water after chilling it as it kept sticking then cracking... '

Remind me which version of the pastry you did sian, how did it differ from the delia original, was it just a swap of WM to plain white flour?

Sian_the_Green wrote: »

'We each had 1/4 of the pie with a healthy dollop of the red cabbage chutney/relish I made yesterday, the sweet and sharp really cut through the more bland tart and 1/2 a slice of bread and butter and some salad on the side. Would make it again, though would take longer on the pastry!'

Would a side order of fine green beans (or any other of the veg on the list, carrot, peas, sweetcorn...) have been an acceptable alternative for the salad, or would there have been mutiny?:rotfl:

weezl74

I am working on a cereal bar for Bob and shirley,- honey and raisin flavoured.

I'd like to add nuts to it, but I need some help first please from anyone whose family regularly eats peanut butter on bread / toast as a breakfast/lunch option.

If you would give me an idea by weighing the bread before and after the PB has been spread, then I can get an idea of how much PB the family need.

Thanks in advance! :A:D

weezl74

sistercas:A, your family had salad with the tart too I noticed, same question to you: would any of the vegetables been acceptable instead or would there be mutiny?

xxx

weezl74

:)I was talking with DH last night about all that we talked through yesterday together on here.

He gave me some helpful thoughts:

Weezl a lot of people reading maybe haven't read much about subsistence so you may have confused folk about what you're trying to achieve! Make it clearer, it will help.

Also, no-one knows how much time you've spent thinking through what contribution you want to try to make to society at this time, and so no-one knows their suggestions to do something different might feel hard for you at the moment. You should say.

The list of volunteer testers in post 3 has become unmanageable for you and you need to axe it or find someone else to do it for you.

Please also say how maintaining friendliness and welcome feels to you, others will be able to share that too.

I thought I'd give each one a seperate answer post in case people only want to one relevant part...

weezl74

volunteer testers list. I've been struggling with this, and found it a bit off putting. I'd advertised for testers in a few places and got lots of responses of 'yes please!' in a lot of places. But I wasn't very able to hold it all in my head, navigate back onto here, and stick them all up, everytime I did it I would be chanting the names out loud, Fergus would then need something:), it would go right out of my head and I'd have to wait for the next quiet moment and start again.

The really sad thing is that a few folk felt missed out because they weren't /aren't on the list. I'm very sorry about that. I shouldn't have offered it in so many places and I perhaps didn't need to include it at all. My PM box became very full very fast with me not having done enough of that list maintenance.:o

Could I suggest that we lose the list, and that folk just come on and join in as and when they like?

Or if that doesn't help perhaps someone else might manage the list?

weezl74

Mr.weezl wrote:

Weezl a lot of people reading maybe haven't read much about subsistence so you may have confused folk about what you're trying to achieve! Make it clearer, it will help.

I'll start with subsistence. The lovely Lesley threw down the gauntlet of challenge and also defined subsistence very well here:

Lesley_Gaye wrote: »

When I was doing an OU course on Health & Disease, one of the assignments was to construct the cheapest possible diet that still included sufficient nutrition to be healthy.

In my version, porridge oats and beans on toast featured highly (there was no requirement for the diet to be pleasant, not saying those things are unpleasant - but every day?). The mixture of grain and legume in the beans on toast covers the bases for all the proteins. I can't remember much else about it now, I sometimes wonder how it would compare to Weezl's 50p challenge - I suspect Weezl would win by a mile

That's what I'm trying to do.

Historically, subsistence diets have been offered to society that are WAY below the variety, interest and flavour of this suggested meal planner.

Jeffery Steingarten cites one where in 1970's America it was calculated that 8 slices of bread with peanut butter, 4x 150ml glasses of reconstituted no-fat milk and a vitamin pill daily was the cheapest way to maintain health.

Poor people concerned not to suffer ill health did try this. I suspect they managed no more than a fortnight. Jeffery managed 2 days, but he is a food critic and was missing his foie gras.

So the thing is, perhaps as you read my bonkers sounding meal ideas and menu plans, maybe don't think 'how does this compare to what I like to eat?' but / and couple it with 'blimey this is a whole lot better than 4 peanut butter sarnies and powdered milk to drink daily for life!'.

That doesn't mean I don't want to hear in what ways Bob and Shirley will struggle with the plan, I want to know, please keep telling me. But for the sake of my hormonal pregnant feelings I'd also love it if we also looked at how much better and nicer it is than most other proffered subsistence diets . If that's ok?

See I'm a bossy dictator, but I'm a softy too, thus:

weezl74

Mr.weezl wrote:

Also, no-one knows how much time you've spent thinking through what contribution you want to try to make to society at this time, and so no-one knows their suggestions to do something different might feel hard for you at the moment. You should say.

Ceridwen and I had an interesting mini online debate (on someone elses thread oops:o). Ceridwen shared from the heart her important feelings that some people with potential and talent become mothers and society loses their contribution at a profound level. Obviously their child benefits, but perhaps fewer others do.

I took this on board. I would like to be a mum who also makes a contribution that is valuable if I can.

I also (sorry I know this is an unusual view) look now at the prospect of imminent childbirth as a potential end of something. I'm sure it will be ok, but there's a possibility of me ending, of kester not being ok, of me not being ok. Even if he is well, he may be such a different disposition to Fergus, and I will also have 2 small babies, my capacity may be very different.

I have been thinking about subsistence and what it would mean in the UK today for about 2 years now. The first post in the USDA thread came from this self-same desire.

The idea I have now is not throw away, and although it may fail or not be very useful, it has been years in the developing, for me personally.

I hope this goes some way to explaining why I may accidentally sound a little dismissive of other really good ideas of what to do.

My heart is: 'that's great! You do that, I wish you well and will help if I can '

And also: 'But I won't now at this stage, with 6 weeks to go before having a baby, rewind so very far back to the drawing board that I become someone well meaning who starts a few good ideas and then doesn't follow through.'

I hope that makes sense and that no-none is offended. You are all lovely, interesting resourceful people and I'm enjoying exploring this with you

ceridwen

FrankieM wrote: »

weezl My DH sees JP as a main meal as 'poor people's food' and most other veggie meals except lasagne. Also soup and pudding evening meals. If I can think of any more I'll let you know.
The question about whether 'poor people's food' being from their point of view or how others would see it is any interesting one. My DH had a year of JP and porridge cakes for his evening meal. Every evening. So, I think, for him, it's about meals that remind of that time of his life. I also think that it's about thinking he should be able to eat a certain way because he earns a certain amount.
Whether our mythical family would think the same way...I'm not sure.

Well....actually...I'd be interested in having a method/recipe for those "porridge cakes" if possible:)

I think we could be in for an interesting few differences as to what constitutes "poor peoples food". My own perception of this is if I spot a shopping trolley laden with junk food - ready pizzas/coca cola/cheap bought cakes/sliced white "rubber" bread (MOthers Pride type stuff)/reconstituted meat type products/errr...those battery eggs <cough>/etc. So - to me - its unhealthy/junk food diets that constitute "poor peoples food" and NOT anything one might cook oneself.

Depends what way you like at it I guess. Homecooked food = someone with time to spare (ie not a poor person) in my mind (as I see poverty as equating to "having to work all hours God gives" - so leisure to cook properly certainly doesnt mean poverty to me). (yep..yep....I know...theres also unemployed people with plenty of time to cook as well...so that argument falls down there:cool:).

ceridwen

weezl74 wrote: »

volunteer testers list. I've been struggling with this, and found it a bit off putting. I'd advertised for testers in a few places and got lots of responses of 'yes please!' in a lot of places. But I wasn't very able to hold it all in my head, navigate back onto here, and stick them all up, everytime I did it I would be chanting the names out loud, Fergus would then need something:), it would go right out of my head and I'd have to wait for the next quiet moment and start again.

The really sad thing is that a few folk felt missed out because they weren't /aren't on the list. I'm very sorry about that. I shouldn't have offered it in so many places and I perhaps didn't need to include it at all. My PM box became very full very fast with me not having done enough of that list maintenance.:o

Could I suggest that we lose the list, and that folk just come on and join in as and when they like?

Or if that doesn't help perhaps someone else might manage the list?

Well - personally - it didnt make sense to me to have a list of volunteer testers as such. Reason - because so many of us want/will want to be in that role on the one hand. Also - we will all be choosing from amongst the recipes according to our personal tastes anyway. I, for instance, am willing to try veggie foods - but NOT beetroot soup - ugh! ...

....goes off muttering "would hate beetroot soup - from any recipe"....:p

So - I think a list of testers is an unnecessary task too far myself.

ceridwen

weezl74 wrote: »

Ceridwen and I had an interesting mini online debate (on someone elses thread oops:o). Ceridwen shared from the heart her important feelings that some people with potential and talent become mothers and society loses their contribution at a profound level. Obviously their child benefits, but perhaps fewer others do.

I took this on board. I would like to be a mum who also makes a contribution that is valuable if I can.

I also (sorry I know this is an unusual view) look now at the prospect of imminent childbirth as a potential end of something. I'm sure it will be ok, but there's a possibility of me ending, of kester not being ok, of me not being ok. Even if he is well, he may be such a different disposition to Fergus, and I will also have 2 small babies, my capacity may be very different.

I have been thinking about subsistence and what it would mean in the UK today for about 2 years now. The first post in the USDA thread came from this self-same desire.

The idea I have now is not throw away, and although it may fail or not be very useful, it has been years in the developing, for me personally.

I hope this goes some way to explaining why I may accidentally sound a little dismissive of other really good ideas of what to do.

My heart is: 'that's great! You do that, I wish you well and will help if I can '

And also: 'But I won't now at this stage, with 6 weeks to go before having a baby, rewind so very far back to the drawing board that I become someone well meaning who starts a few good ideas and then doesn't follow through.'

I hope that makes sense and that no-none is offended. You are all lovely, interesting resourceful people and I'm enjoying exploring this with you

Weezl...our weezl...I DO feel for you in the position you are in - ie juggling a lot of balls in the air. I certainly noted BigMummaF's obvious concern/"note of warning" to you that though we can all see that Fergus is obviously an extremely good/adorable little baby (cue ISOM coming on and promptly reminding us that "he's edible" and "how is her best boy?":)) that it might be the case that Kester has a totally different temperament. In my own family - I'm very aware that my parents had two totally different children. I am given to understand that its a miracle that my mother went onto to have another child after the first one she had had - screaming/crying/etc:);):o (errr....who.....me?) and she was obviously thanking heaven in reverse that the second child was a lot easier to look after.:rotfl:

Weezl....weezl...weezl....dont ever ever think that I dont care about you/women like you......


<<HUGS HUGS HUGS>>

..goes off thinking to self "stop blubbing ceridwen.....now stop it....work to go to...dry those blinkin' eyes and get on with it...." (kicks self up backside).