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

Frugalista

weezl74 wrote: »

:DI have no wish to earn anything from it. I would happily do this for nowt. MSE attracts millions of people, and if I want to offer a resource to Bob and shirley, I feel they may most likely find it here.

I'll stay unless it seems to hamper what we're doing or the MSE team feel it is inappropriate forum material.

How does that sound?

Brilliant!! :j:j

weezl74

Hi all,

I just tried the penne con pesto I Fagiolini
but I'm disappointed with the amount of pesto required. I think I'd need double what I've allowed. I wonder if people might look at the googledocs planner again for me and see what you think, if I swapped it for allegras Risi e Bisi?

Love weezl xxx

phizzimum

lesley - I like the sound of the beetroot tart - I'll try and make it one day next week.

I found the greengrocers in Heathfield by the way, thanks for telling me about it! didn't get another from the box but still got some bargains.

Savvy_sewing

The only problem with basing on the supermarkets, is that they change the prices practically daily. I did a student book, for my kids and thier friends once, and I also did a menu plan etc for some friends with kids who were hopeless at budgeting, and as soon as we budgeted it, the prices changed. So I hope that you can manage to do this without too many headaches.
I think its a great idea. As I still use Bearnadine Lawrences book, even though the stated prices went out with the arc. Its still cheap meals on the whole. and healthy ones too. Salads etc.

I am having her version of Spaghetti Bolognese tonight. using 8oz of mince that came out of a packet of mince that was £3.50 for 900g, or 2 packs for £6.

good luck with this. Mooloo

p.s. I made a meatloaf, a mince and pasta dish, and now this bolognese with the single packet. - approx 10 portions in all.

HOWMUCH

I am still using up the minced steak that I got on whoopsie at Mr S taste the difference half price 1.59p for 500g then down to 99p. I use 250g in each recipe and have been doing Lasagna, chilli, cottage pie, spaghetti bolognese. ( I bought 10 packets for the freezer)
Love the chest freezer for getting bargains

Lesley_Gaye

feedback on the Onion Tart

OH said it was a very nice tart! He said it tasted good and mock complained that the £100 challenge meant he wouldn't be able to have second helpings. Have cooked him an Apple Crumble in case he didn't like the tart, so he's looking forward to that coming out of the oven.

I didn't have an 8" tart tin, so used my 10" ceramic quiche dish. The pastry and filling spread across the extra space without any problem. I thought it tasted delicious and will def cook it again

sistercas

feedback for corned beef hash

340g corned beef £1.34
1 large onion 7p
550g potatoes 18.5p
190g carrots 13p
2 beef stock cubes 4.5p
peas 22.2p
dash worcestershire sauce ?1p
dash oil for frying 2p

---

£2.02
50.5p per serving

dice onions , carrots and potatoes
fry onions and carrots for 5 mins
par boil potatoes then add to pan
add stock cubes and pint of boiling water
add dash worcestershire sauce (maybe a scant teaspoon mustard instead from asda list)
cook for 15 mins
add in cubed corned beef and heat through breaking up slightly
we had this with garden peas

results

plenty for 4 large appetites,
was delish everybody enjoyed it and would def have it again
easy to cook
( maybe for frugality a cheaper veg could be used as an accompaniment)

10/10 :T

shaz_mum_of__2

Right then recipe first

100g/3½oz SR flour
salt and freshly ground black pepper (i used half teasp salt and a teaspoon black pepper)
1 tbsp sugar
2 eggs(I ommitted these)
75ml/2½fl oz milk(omitted)
350g/12oz frozen sweetcorn kernels
125-150ml/4½-5fl oz vegetable oil, for frying
scant half teaspoon garam masala(would use a tablespoon next time)

Method

mix all dry ingredients in a bowl

add the defrosted sweetcorn

mix together and then add enough cold water so that the mixture is sticky not runny so it still sticks together (about 50ml)

using 2 dessertspoons drop balls of mixture into the hot oil cook until golden


This made 12 fritters /balls but they need some more spice so i would up the garam masala as indicated

we had them with wedges and a chutney everyone liked them but all felt they needed a little something more , if i were making them for us i would add a little chilli flakes but for shirley et al the increased GM will probaly be enough

Hubby has requested we have them again and said they were filling and would be nice with other veggies too ds wolfed them down and said yummy:rotfl: a lot

ps the plate pictured is a teaplate

shaz_mum_of__2

http://www.parsleysoup.co.uk/getrecipe.php?section=biscuits&recipe=peanut_butter_cookies

Peanut butter cookie recipe weezl i just use granulted sugar and i often use wholemeal flour too .......but warning one is never enough......lol

ceridwen

In_Search_Of_Me wrote: »

morning...trying to keep up with you all! Avocet thank you on my behalf for helping with the geeky bits...while knowing that weezl wont forget cos she has a bump am concious that our weezl is about to have baby no 2 in amongst all the excitement of trying to be a revolutionary!

Re the peanut butter can pepys have an alternative for those of us who are allergic? As someone else said you wont please all the people all the time no matter how hard you try but would be nice to have peanut alternative as a fair few are allergic...

Would almond butter do - as a substitute for peanuts in peanut butter? Have to confess I havent worked my way through the range of nut butters to see what I think of them yet - as I'm just fine with peanuts myself.

**************************************

Reet - on another topic:

Just teeny thoughts on method type stuff:

- I'm just cooking away a leftovers savoury dish for dinner tonight as we speak.

- From that: yep its perfectly possible to make acceptable breadcrumbs with a grater. I usually just lob the bread I wish to make breadcrumbs from into my liquidizer and blitz it. However - I bethought myself about some people not having a liquidizer and got out my grater to try that method (ie a typical square box type stand-alone type grater) and started grating away with the bread - and, yep, perfectly acceptable standard breadcrumbs. They're a teensy bit "rustic" compared to my liquidizer - but perfectly acceptable and didnt take much longer and no electric used:D

- One thing that strikes me about the cheapie ready meals on the market (or any ready meals pretty much come to think of it...:cool:) is that they are sheer "pap" as regards texture. They all come over pretty much the same - very bland/very "smooth" - total PAP. Personally - I think texture is an important component of a meal as well - and I like summat a bit "crunchy" in there somewheres.
(hence tonights "make up a recipe as you go" leftovers bake has got added texture - by virtue of my "rustic" breadcrumbs. I just sauted them in a bit of oil and have scattered them over the top of the bake I am currently trying).

....reet....wanders off thinking to self "if this make-up as you go leftovers recipe" works out okay (still an unknown quantity at present.....:rotfl:) then I wonder if our Weezl would like a frugalised version of it for the vegetarian "family"?