28 and only just worked out how to run a house!

loumac

Ha, genius.
I've never left a post before but having just read yours it's just too scarily like me not too!
Only this evening I went for dinner at a friends who had cooked a meal and pudding from scratch. If she'd have come to mine it would probably have been beans on toast!
I'm 25 and although I didn't do Home Ec GCSE, I did it till year 9 and remember being asked to bring in a potato and we were shown how to microwave it! At Xmas we had to take in a chocolate log and decorate. My parents refused to buy the "ingredients" but equally only ever taught me to cook from the freezer to the oven, or the jar to the pan.
I still have so much to learn!
(But I have just ordered Martin's new book with all you guys tips so fingers crossed I'll get there!).

loumac

Just read some other posts - vinegar is a good one to clean the washing machine as well. About a pint in where your washing goes and put it on the hottest wash. Gets rid of all the gunk that's being washed off your clothes! Also good if you live in a hard water area.

Ha Ha! I do know something. But that's just from too much tv. Good old Kim and Aggie!

lil_me

My motto - to learn something new every day. Have done it all my life and still doing it now. Today my learning was how to make a sheperds pie, and also learning which potatoes not to buy, and that if you spread the potato too thick in one place it sinks

loumac

Hate to sound so new and daft but what's £2 saver club?

lil_me

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=144085&highlight=%A32+coin

Info on there, not daft at all

petite_anglaise_2

i really relate to loumac's post about microwaving a potato and decorating ready made cakes in GCSe home ec. We made flapjacks for the whole of year 11! .....
First with full fat ingredients, then low fat, then 'nut allergy' flapjacks (!!) then diabetic suitable, etc. etc. Then spent 3 months doing coursework and making a pretty project on our findings.(and don't get me started on how pointless coursework is now I'm a teacher)

Absolutely useless, so got A* gcse but couldn't cook a bloody thing. And though my mum can cook, she spent my early years running herself ragged to prove she could have full time teaching career and raise two daughters, so when she could finally afford it, she worshipped at the altar of St Michael and bought all of our food from M&S, in convenience form.

I think it would be nce to find a balance between 'full on-old school' boiling chicken bones and 'total cop out' M&S ready made mashed potato!

LJM

i dont ever remember doing any cooking in my class when i was at school it was all more chat and no practical,im a good cook now,but would have been nice to have done some at school

nodwah

I've never bought stardrops, coz my mother in law recommended it! So maybe I should - all you moneysavers can't be deranged maniacs like her!

As to frugal cooking I'm proud of myself that we had haggis tonite with leftover frozen tatties and neeps as I always make too much.

I also keep a plastic box in the freezer into which goes uneaten peas, carrots etc which get chucked into soup ( even the ones from the kid's plates which are covered in ketchup - extra tasty!)

Jenny6_2

Thanks , Petite Anglaise! I wonder if you realise that your actions are doing their bit for the environment. Apparently the government is seriously worried about the VAST tonnage of good food that goes into landfill every year. Some of this is because we chuck out anything that's even a few hours beyond it's sell-by date. Common sense should tell us by a tiny taste or smell if something's fresh or not. Great to know I'm not alone in having a freezer full of 'stale' bread, grated cheese, veg and fruit to be used creatively at a later date!

dannahaz

tifnstav wrote:

I've got four different shampoos on the go at the minute!
And I got a tip (from a bald uncle though) that washing up liquid would keep my hair in excellent condition - i don't think i'll be taking it that far!

Hmm. Washing up liquids are designed to cut through grease so I would imagine they would be very drying on hair. However, they also leave glassware very shiny, so I can imagine they would buff your uncle's pate up a treat.