Fiscal Fast – 7 days no spending (at all)

catznine

It worked! I have yogurt! :j



Day 7 today so officially the last day! We have leftovers for all todays meals! and I have yogurt! lol that's breakfast sorted.

Going to make some banana bread for the MS centre as that only takes one egg whereas my fav orange loaf takes 3 eggs! :eek: That makes orange loaf a luxury item! Before this challenge I would never have seen that! Am I turning into scrooge? or just getting wise at last?

I have one question for the great man and may well go find him on fb to ask "How does this affect charitable donations?" I can't hide and avoid them and anyway I actually budget most of these as dd's, it is really when someone holds out a collecting tin I feel morally bound to put some change into the tin!

I did hide from the fish man this week though!:o

ragz_2

catznine wrote: »

Hi Mogwai! I think this challenge is one that we can all pop into and do for 7 days and pop out of again until the next time it is needed! Bit like that skipping game :rotfl:It can be to free up some money short term or to save away some extra or to focus on de-cluttering the fridge,freezer and larder. Please join in whenever it suits you! I am going to see how long we can go for now but will definately do this again!

Great idea! I would have to plan well for the milk and fruit but I am sure I have enough food in the house to eat for a month!

lally666young

FairyLight wrote: »

Yep, I'm in medical profession and prescribe gluten free pasta / bread / pizza bases quite often, although I have to say some PCTs are cutting back and only prescribing bread (the others are seen as a 'luxury') :cool:

Yupp we did, but ours has just cut back. I can just to say buy my sons milk. I did have another chat with DH. HE said give it a whirl. I aint stock piling the stuff, But some of that stuff is just plain nasty, no matter what you mix it with!!! My PCT wont even give me the bread. I am due another test soon, so I am hoping that all my gut needed was a rest.

katieowl_2

Slightly off topic...But I've been avoiding gluten for over a year now. Because it made me feel bleagh rather than diagnosed with anything. Bread was hard, but as you say all the GF stuff is pretty bad, so I've given up eating that 'type' of thing now almost entirely. I've not had much luck with the pasta either although I marginally prefer the corn one. So instead I'm eating potatoes, I have a jacket spud with my spag. bol. sauce, while the rest of the family eat pasta. Sometimes I eat polenta, Tesco sell a readymade block, which is nice fried for breakfast with eggs.

I eat rice noodles, rice pudding sometimes for breakfast, make drop scone/pancakes for brekkie with GF and Buckwheat flour - which taste practically the same as the ones I used to make. I've developed a taste for sushi, as it's often the only thing in a chiller cabinet full of sarnies I can eat (although there is a little gluten in soy sauce) I also make an italian lemon almond polenta cake at work which is GF and flies off the shelves.

It's cheaper to find alternatives to GF stuff IMHO...but you do have to be quite inventive!

Kate

lally666young

Yupp I agree with you. I am quite fond of miso soup which you can buy almost any supermarket now. I sometimes wonder who on earth tastes this stuff?? Dont the have any taste buds. I love rice flower. And with 3 different food interolences in the house meal times can be well erm a fight. the only Thing I totally love is Almondy cake, they call it daim cake in Ikea. thats gluten free, but it is so expensive. I can only really buy it when it is on offer. I hate standing in the shopping isles reading packaging and getting funny looks. Its a nightmare if one of us falls sick!

katieowl_2

If you can eat almonds you have to try this:

Lemon Almond Polenta Cake

Cream together 225g of softened butter, with 225g of caster sugar, and then add 3 eggs. Beat in and add 225g of ground almonds (ald! is the cheapest I've found) and 112g of polenta*, and a heaped teaspoon baking powder. Add the juice of one lemon and the finely grated zest from two lemons. Tip into an 82/20cm square baking tin, which you have lightly greased and lined with a strip of baking paper - I just do a strip down one side, over the bottom and up the other, don't bother with the other two sides. Level it off a bit in the tin, before placing in pre heated oven. Bake at about 160 for about 30 mins, until it's dark golden and firm when you push it. It's a very dense, but moist cake that keeps wrapped (if you let it) for about a fortnight. Original recipe is from the River Cafe books, I've halved it, as otherwise it makes two this size or one massive cake, and it cooks quicker like this.

* Polenta flour or Fine Corn meal is what you want for this. Get the finest ground one you can - the Ethnic Aisle of Mr T sell Natco brand for less than £1 for a huge packet

Kate

I've never tried making it with a dairy free spread instead of butter, but I can't see why it wouldn't work? You can also make it with oranges, but I guess any combination of cirtus would be nice.

modern_millie_2

Morning all, and well done Catznine and Jackie! I still feel a bit of a lightweight compared to you both, but I am easing in to more extreme frugality. Catznine, your scones look yummy - would go down well here - cheese scones are DD and Mr MMs favourites. What are your thoughts having completed the 7 days?

Day 3 for me, this will definitely be a NSD, OH has gone off to his meeting with a flask, I am at home doing a couple of jobs for his business and plotting how little I can spend next week!
Getting short of sandwich fillings, so I made a butterbean spread this morning - tin of butter beans, drained, blended with clove of garlic, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp water, 1 tsp lemon juice (I used bottled) half tsp paprika and salt and pepper. Bit like hummus, which I've been buying at £1 a week for DD's lunches, if she likes this will be a small saving.

Surprisingly, the fridge looks full as it is stocked with HM stuff - chilli, leftover lasagne, bb spread, and crumble I put in using defrosted stewed apple, when used the oven last night - too full to eat it yesterday!

Depending on whether we need to buy petrol before the week is up, I should have £40 - £60 left in the budget, if all goes to plan. That is impressive but scary - what have I been spending on? One item I have to budget for, unfortunately, is tobacco for Mr MM - no signs of giving up - so this is about £10 a week.

I'm hoping to do a sort of week 2 of this challenge after buying just a few basics - milk, bread,eggs, fruit and veg - for about £10 - £15, kind of a rolling programme, like Jackie, until stocks are run down.

Right, off to get the washing out and do a few other jobs before lunch. Will have a walk while DD has Piano lesson later so not tempted to return home and use extra petrol!

Have a good day everyone.

catznine

Lovely recipe Katieowl! Going to try that once eggs become more plentiful here! The ME nutritionalist has suggested I avoid wheat where I can, allowing myself some on 3 days out of 7. This is to sort out digestive problems and fatigue. I have some of the genius bread which is really good and freeze it into 2 slice portions. The only thing I have baked so far with the gluten free flour (doves) is banana bread and it's not bad but not as nice as the normal one I do for others! I have a good supply of soba noodles (buckwheat) which I use as spaghetti as well!

Went for a little swim today as the gym membership is paid up in advance, yes I know gym membership is a luxury but a gentle swim 3 times a week if I can do it helps my energy levels. If I go 3 times a week it is the same or cheaper than the local baths and a heck of a lot warmer when you have ME! I was good and took a box of orange juice with me, can't afford their prices for drinks!:eek: I had 2 oatcakes and some cream cheese as a healthyish snack when I got back.

katieowl_2

catznine wrote: »

I have a good supply of soba noodles (buckwheat) which I use as spaghetti as well!

.

Do you buy those or make them? I keep meaning to try making them, in fact that's what I bought the buckwheat flour for that I've been adding to my pancakes. All the commercial ones I've looked at have wheat flour in too, so I'd be interested to know the brand!

Kate

catznine

modern_millie wrote: »

Morning all, and well done Catznine and Jackie! I still feel a bit of a lightweight compared to you both, but I am easing in to more extreme frugality. Catznine, your scones look yummy - would go down well here - cheese scones are DD and Mr MMs favourites. What are your thoughts having completed the 7 days?

Day 3 for me, this will definitely be a NSD, OH has gone off to his meeting with a flask, I am at home doing a couple of jobs for his business and plotting how little I can spend next week!
Getting short of sandwich fillings, so I made a butterbean spread this morning - tin of butter beans, drained, blended with clove of garlic, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp water, 1 tsp lemon juice (I used bottled) half tsp paprika and salt and pepper. Bit like hummus, which I've been buying at £1 a week for DD's lunches, if she likes this will be a small saving.

Surprisingly, the fridge looks full as it is stocked with HM stuff - chilli, leftover lasagne, bb spread, and crumble I put in using defrosted stewed apple, when used the oven last night - too full to eat it yesterday!

Depending on whether we need to buy petrol before the week is up, I should have £40 - £60 left in the budget, if all goes to plan. That is impressive but scary - what have I been spending on? One item I have to budget for, unfortunately, is tobacco for Mr MM - no signs of giving up - so this is about £10 a week.

I'm hoping to do a sort of week 2 of this challenge after buying just a few basics - milk, bread,eggs, fruit and veg - for about £10 - £15, kind of a rolling programme, like Jackie, until stocks are run down.

Right, off to get the washing out and do a few other jobs before lunch. Will have a walk while DD has Piano lesson later so not tempted to return home and use extra petrol!

Have a good day everyone.

Well I haven't yet completed the week but yes I am glad I have taken the challenge! The first 2 days were hard and today, now I am running out of some things, is challenging!

One surprising thing is I am much happier, my mood has lifted, before I was feeling down, a victim etc., but I feel happier now and it must be the feeling of being in control! Yes it can be difficult but mostly things can be worked around as our grandparents had to do.


You don't need lots of ingredients to make a meal, you don't have to religiously follow a recipe either, you can substitute ingredients with what you have - this is going to save a fortune!:jFrom now on my shopping list is going to be much simpler, fewer items, concentrating on fresher while getting a good deal.


Being honest and telling others what you are doing is interesting! Some just don't get it, can't grasp what you are doing or why but others are like wow can I do that? It is easier to be honest though, so people know you cannot just go out shopping, for a coffee, glass of wine for a while, tell them it is just for a week and plan for another time or invite them to yours maybe they bring the wine and you supply some home made snacks! Instead of going to a coffee morning with my elderly neighbour, I invited her here for a coffee and scones. Let them know how much you have managed to save, tell them what you've gained (pocket money for a holiday like Jackie, money for fuel for the car, an overpayment on the mortgage, shoes if you're like my dd:)) Whatever it takes so you are not made to feel (wrongly) ashamed about not splashing the cash!

I will definately start this again on monday, I have to buy a couple of birthday presents (getting for good prices as I have had time to research) and some basic fresh food.

Katieowl - The soba noodles came from approved foods and were de- identified! So I'm afraid that is no help! They are good though!