Frugal Living Challenge 2011 - part 2

LauraM65

tumptyteapot wrote: »

The bread recipe (works out at less than 50p a loaf)

1kg strong bread flour
600ml water
2 teaspoons dried yeast
2 teaspoons of salt (recipe says 4tsp but I like it less salty)
2oz butter or a tablespoon of olive oil (optional)

In the evening put half the flour, all the water and the yeast in a big bowl and whisk up.

The next morning put in the rest of the ingredients and knead until it springs back when prodded and is nicely stretchy.
Put on a floured board or in an oiled bowl and cover with a cloth or a plastic bag. Leave until doubled in size somewhere not too hot (anything up to 3 hours depending on the weather)
Deflate it by prodding it and knead again lightly. Split into 3. I keep one third in a plastic bag in the fridge for later.
Shape the other 2 into rounds or whatever you like, place onto baking sheets (I sprinkle with polenta if I have any) then cover and leave to rise again.
Put the oven on as hot as it will go and put a deep baking tray in the bottom with some water.
Boil the kettle
Just before the loaves go into the middle of the oven slash the tops and sprinkle or spray with water
Put them in the oven then quickly pour the boiling water into the tray.
Close the oven and leave it for 7-10 minutes.
If the top is looking brown by then lower the oven to 170, lower to 180 if it is medium, 190 if it is pale. (these are all fan assisted oven temps)
Cook until the bottom sounds hollow when tapped and cool on a baking tray - resist the temptation to eat them warm because they are still cooking when they come out of the oven.

With strong white bread flour my bread came out fluffy, not far off tiger bread but slightly denser and a whole lot nicer. (I will get some rice flour so I can make the crust).

The book (River Cottage Bread) has more details, including how to shape the loaves to make them tight and rise better - also he uses the same recipe on here
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/river-cottage/episode-guide/series-14/episode-7

Hey this sounds yummy, think I will get the stuff and have a go over the weekend, never really made bread before.

redglass_2

Sent off my £10 and not very pleased with what arrived this morning from the 'lucky dip'.....6 packets of identical flower seed. I thought the idea was that you get a mixture?

I've ended up buying 5 packets @ £1.99 (the price marked on the packet) to get one of the same sort free. Not much of a deal. OK, I didn't have to pay postage, but I could've gone to Mr L and got more variety for less.

Has anyone else been disappointed by this offer?

LauraM65

Day 6 of my frugal living challenge. Been out, back to doctors today and found out from my x-ray last week that I have pneumonia. Doctor signed me off till next Monday and has given me more antibiotic. As I was in town purchased a lot of fruit and veg off the vegetable man in the street I got:

2 savoy cabbages
2 cauliflowers
3lb carrots
2lb onions
Bunch of beetroot
2 punnets of strawberries
2 punnets of grapes

Will be doing a cauliflower cheese, mushrooms, wedges and onions to go with my free steak I was given yesterday for our tea tonight. Since doing a food inventory, I think we have eaten like kings, better than we probablly would have. I think a casserole is on the agenda for tomorrow nights tea.:)

Winnie_in_Pooh

Think I'm going to have to re-evaluate my fuel budget - have just put £10 worth of diesel in the car and according to the computer that earns me just 20 miles of driving! I'm actually glad the doctor has said essential driving only because I couldn't afford to go for a drive if I wanted to at £1.42 a litre!

On a more positive note, I've decided that this year is going to be our best ever. No reason why it can't be with all the positives - bubs on the way, DH getting a payrise, DS being a brain box at school - and a little help from this thread!

Win xx

cw18

Winnie_in_Pooh wrote: »

Think I'm going to have to re-evaluate my fuel budget - have just put £10 worth of diesel in the car and according to the computer that earns me just 20 miles of driving! I'm actually glad the doctor has said essential driving only because I couldn't afford to go for a drive if I wanted to at £1.42 a litre!

What sort of tank do you drive????

£10 @ £1.42/litre = (a fraction over) 7 litres
I get about 8-9 miles to a litre, so even at the lower mileage rate I'd get 56 miles from it, and it could be up to 63.......

Winnie_in_Pooh

cw18 wrote: »

What sort of tank do you drive????

£10 @ £1.42/litre = (a fraction over) 7 litres
I get about 8-9 miles to a litre, so even at the lower mileage rate I'd get 56 miles from it, and it could be up to 63.......

Its DH's tank may as well be a tank too, huge great thing. Wouldn't even like to imagine what sort of mpg it does, especially just running to school and back which is all I use it for. My car is an ancient 1.5 diesel 106 that does about a million miles to a gallon but it has no power steering and the clutch is a bit dodgy (probably dodgy enough to have caused the hernia in the first place) and is physically painful to drive at the mo so we've swopped.

Needless to say he purchased it before I discovered MSE :cool:....

rubytuesday

They aren't coming to fix the gas until Monday now so I am running out of ides of what to cook. I did organic lamb chops in the GF last night and they were delicious. A friend should be lending me a two ring stove tomorrow so that will help.

It's my birthday tomorrow so I have had a spend. I treated myself to this enamel storage bucket in the sale and had a five pound off voucher so I am pleased.http://www.museumselection.co.uk/product-Enamel-Storage-Bucket-10273/ I also stocked up on a couple of future gifts that were in the sale but spent less than twenty pounds.

Hope I'm not being naughty and encouraging anyone to spend but this is a nice site for gifts.

redglass_2

rubytuesday wrote: »

They aren't coming to fix the gas until Monday now so I am running out of ides of what to cook. I did organic lamb chops in the GF last night and they were delicious. A friend should be lending me a two ring stove tomorrow so that will help.

It's my birthday tomorrow so I have had a spend. I treated myself to this enamel storage bucket in the sale and had a five pound off voucher so I am pleased.http://www.museumselection.co.uk/product-Enamel-Storage-Bucket-10273/ I also stocked up on a couple of future gifts that were in the sale but spent less than twenty pounds.

Hope I'm not being naughty and encouraging anyone to spend but this is a nice site for gifts.

Have a great birthday, Rubytuesday, and thanks for the link.
What is a GF....? Have been puzzling over this!

rubytuesday

redglass wrote: »

Have a great birthday, Rubytuesday, and thanks for the link.
What is a GF....? Have been puzzling over this!

Thank you Redglass.

Oh sorry it's the George Forman grill I have been lent. I don't have a microwave and I recently gave away my slow cooker so I've been a bit stuck with the cooking as my gas is disconnected due to a leak!

23rdspiral

i'm just popping to say how dead chuffed i am with myself right now:D. was on way to asda, stopped at the 'tip shop' to see if they had light fittings, but none suitable. but they did have a little garden table. very little, kinda only for drinks but with wrought iron ends and slats. (dad re-made a bench for me like it from the tip last year). but it was £5.00 - too expensive for a whim, even if a useful whim for our new garden, (that i'm very excited about having, if you can't tell!)

soo, in asda i didnt get the potatoes i'd planned, i got woopsied courgettes; i got woopsied fish instead of a full price pizza for friday dinner; i bought the 9p pasta not the 79p pasta, i bought an 18p jar of pasta sauce not 89p... ect ect... and i didn't get any cake(!) ... and i managed to only spend £9.00, so saved enough of my predicted spend to feel able to go back and get the little garden table! :j

(talk about instant gratification for 'downshifting' and cutting back... i must remember this feeling:D)

** oh, and the pasta that was 9p/500g is usually 18p i think, and Jam was 50p (blackcurrent & apricot) not 89p - not 'offer' tickets. i stocked up just in case it changes though.

redglass wrote: »

It's not just coins, I'll pick up anything of interest that's lying abandoned. Think I missed my true calling and should have been a totter.

i've never herd the word 'totter' before, but i say i should have been born a Womble!