Single Money Saver living on my own

Buffythedebtslayer

I am deeply single, can't cook, live with my Mum (who is a fab cook).

She is going on holiday soon and leaving me alone for 5 weeks or so.

I don't actually like much food, I eat toast, cereal, sadly I normally come in from work, eat fruit cake and fall asleep, If wake up i drink cocoa and then go to bed.

So this time when Mum goes away I would like to cook!! Can anyone recommand a cook book for beginners? Mum's all seem complicated.

I would really like to get in to the money saving cooking side of things, we waste so much food it is ridiculous.

thanks

buffyxx

ceridwen

recommended cookbook....no problem.....and one of my theme tunes ...student cookbooks...designed for us singles. I like ones by Cas Clarke myself.

ali1972

Stephen_Leak wrote: »

I am lucky to still be at the stage where single holidays are still an opportunity to go to places and do things, that only I would be interested in and therefore never got a chance to do, when on holiday together: air shows, preserved railways, industrial archeology. If I get my Sun holiday this year, some of my locations are close to Bovington tank museum. One plan for the future is to go to North Wales and "do" all of the little narrow guage railways.

Yes, that's a very good point. About half my hols are with a friend (a different friend at different times) and half are solo. Whilst the accompanied holidays are fun and I enjoy the company of a friend on them, I really appreciate the solo ones for different reasons. I can go at my own pace, whether that be quicker or slower, eat when I want, get out of bed when I want, have an early night if I want, sit by the fire in the evening and work my way through all those books I haven't read... the solo holidays are such a great way to recharge my batteries. The knack is in finding a destination where you don't feel out of place as a solo traveller. I know people who do the organized singles holidays and they're great for people who actually want to meet and socialize with other singles, but I prefer my own space when holidaying alone. It is a hassle but it's worth searching out the "no single supplement" deals.

ali1972

ceridwen wrote: »

<groans - "TELL me about it"> I do get SO fed-up (well - that was the polite word for it!) hearing the "smug marrieds" so totally oblivious to the extra cost of being single - and it IS large. Extra Council Tax, extra bills generally, extra food costs, extra holiday costs etc etc. I think the trouble is many married/living together people have never been single (ie living on their own) for very long - if at all - and I try to be charitable and remind myself of this when they ignore all the extra costs involved in being single (because these costs are very large - as I know from experience). I DO feel SO tempted often to turn round and say "Well - I cant magic Mr Right out of thin air". I wish I could - but if you dont meet Mr/Miss Right then you dont and theres nothing you can do about it. If it dont happen - it dont happen - end of story. I just have to grit my teeth and walk off reminding myself that many people marry/live with someone they know very well (in their heart of hearts) isnt "the one" for them and at least I havent done that and I'm not one of the 50% odd apparently that would leave their marriage tomorrow if they werent too worried about being worse off to do so - and, yes, I DO appreciate how difficult it must be to do so in those circumstances. I'm just so glad I held out for Mr Right (even though I never did meet him) - at least I'm not in the wrong 50% now.

Ahh, the "Smug Marrieds".... it's wearisome, isn't it? I'm delighted that not all of my married friends are smug (some of them can't wait to get away from each other at the weekends, it seems) but there have definitely been one or two of them... The reality of the financial side of singledom does tend to hit them when they're no longer married and those of us who have been single for years have to grit our teeth and say "We know! We've been paying these bills for years!" Weren't they listening when we complained about it? We didn't turn down hundreds of proposals of marriage to stay single!

Nessa56

For you singletons, you can buy small pressure cookers for a meal for 1. Quote

Hi all, just joining if okay with you.

I have tried finding a small pressure cooker which I have had some success on, just need to know, would you have any idea what size is ideal for a singleton, 1 litre, 2 or 3 litre?

thanks

sparrer

Hi, can I join in too? I'm single although I have a lodger but he eats at work 5 days out of 7 and cooks for me on his days off (he's a chef so I get very spoiled at those times).

I try never to use my oven as it's so expensive although egg and home made chips once a fortnight is my downfall. Instead I cook in the m/w, it took some practice but it makes meals just as tasty at a fraction of the fuel price. I also never spend more than £1 on a main meal, trying to keep it to 60/70p where I can.

Not being a very sociable type I also have the singles holiday problem but love the idea of going to annoy my rel's /friends for a few days in turn. Fortunately for me they're spread all over the country so I'd get to see a lot more of England than I have to date, and I can have them back as I have a z bed. How inviting is that?!

Love this thread, thanks to OP something just for us :j

dollydumpling

Hi - great thread, and judging by the number of people who have only ever posted once or twice (like me!) joining in, the OP seems to have found a gap in the market (as it were!).

So, can I join please? I'm single and live on my own. I've just paid my mortgage off by being super strict over the last year or so, so money isn't a huge issue but I don't want to fall back into my old habits of wasting money, so I intend to set myself a food budget. I'm vegetarian and really really overweight so keeping myself on track ££ wise should also help weight wise.

Thanks again for the thread, I'm looking forward to reading more, and getting some tips on how to find those cheap(er) holidays for lone travellers, the single supplement really puts me off!

Tindella_2

Hi there - welcome if you're new - glad to have you aboard!

Buffy - before your mum goes and leaves you for five weeks, get her to show you a few basic recipes - like a bolognese sauce which is really simple. You can have it with the traditional pasta, or over a jacket potato. Go online and get some simple recipes - if there aren't enough on here. Get Delia's "One is fun" from the library, or have a look in the charity shops.

Here's a link to be going on with

http://www.ivillage.co.uk/food

and this has a veggie section too, dollydumpling (cool name!):cool:

Re singles holidays - I think coach trips are good - you quite often get the double seat to yourself, much to the obvious annoyance of some couples - I was even asked once if I'd paid for both seats!! I replied 'No' so she said 'what do you have to do to get the seat to yourself' so I said "Divorce him"!
Seriously, you do have a sort of shell for protection, you get to see the sights by yourself without having to think if your partner/friend is enjoying it - you don't have to consider anyone else - but when you're in your hotel in the evening you can go in the bar and have a drink - someone from your trip will be in there - and from experience, a lot of the couples on these trips are only too pleased to have someone else to talk to rather than each other! Enjoy it - being single has a lot going for it! yes, the supplements are annoying but if you do some research via the internet or trawling through the brochures you can sometimes get holidays without supplements. Perhaps we should start another thread about singles holidays!

Jake'sGran

Buffythedebtslayer wrote: »

I don't actually like much food, I eat toast, cereal, sadly I normally come in from work, eat fruit cake and fall asleep, If wake up i drink cocoa and then go to bed.

buffyxx

First of all you need to be eating better. You don't need to eat big meals but your do need a variety of foods e.g. fruit,carbs,protein. Those will do for starters. Therefore if you ate cheese and biscuits plus a tomato or apple say, you will be making a start to get healthier. If you were my daughter I would be worried about you. If you smoke or drink you are on your way to health problems. Sorry to be a nag but people just don't realise what trouble bad diets can cause.

Cook books. If you have time just drop in to the local library and try to find one that is basic and has pictures. I always think that cookbooks that show each step in pictures are the most helpful. What kind of things would you like to cook? Just realised, you can probably find simple recipes on the Internet - just depends what you want. I can help with simple but good cake recipes where everything just goes in one bowl, gets stirred and put in a cake tin. What is easier than that? BUT first, you must improve your diet. The only good bit is your cereal which is fortified with vitamins by law.

ceridwen

ali1972 wrote: »

Ahh, the "Smug Marrieds".... it's wearisome, isn't it? I'm delighted that not all of my married friends are smug (some of them can't wait to get away from each other at the weekends, it seems) but there have definitely been one or two of them... The reality of the financial side of singledom does tend to hit them when they're no longer married and those of us who have been single for years have to grit our teeth and say "We know! We've been paying these bills for years!" Weren't they listening when we complained about it? We didn't turn down hundreds of proposals of marriage to stay single!

Thanks for that - I know what you mean about hearing the newly-divorced complain about having to meet bills on their own - when I've been having to do so for years already. But - having said that - I do feel genuinely sorry for those who are sticking in a dead marriage because of worrying about the costs involved in starting up on their own - I dont believe in saying "well - I told you so" when they complain about single person level bills - as I do know its down to just pure "luck" whether one meets the right person or no and not everyone is "strong" enough to hold on and wait for them - and it must be very difficult for people who want children. I know it was easier for me to "hold out" because I dont - and in case anyone is wondering - I HAVE had several proposals in my time:D I just wish household bills were on a fairer basis (ie per person, rather than per household).