make do and mend for tougher times

Mrs_Chip

We do get them - I make a point of saying (if anyone has asked what veggie stuff we do) about the fish fryer, and some are not worried!

Have tried frying halloumi, is really nice, but again it's the fryer issue- unless I have a third fryer it would have to go into the fish fryer

Pooky

Mrs Chip - my DH has a severe seafood and fish allergy so he can't take any chances with meat products that might have been in the fish cooking oil. We have a local chip shop that will do him a battered sausage in a small household fryer that they keep for allergy/veggie options. Is that something you could maybe do?

Possession

What MIL does is offer the option of stuff to be hot, but say it needs to be done in the microwave - that way people have the choice, and anyone should understand that food heated in the microwave goes a bit soft. After 15 years she has actually stopped offering so much veggie choice because it doesn't sell - it's fine (veggies who might be indignant at this!) if what you're offering can be just taken out of the freezer and quickly cooked, but if something is cooked, not sold, and has to be wasted, sooner or later it will get taken off the menu.
She offers quiches and sometimes pizza (with a really delicious scone-y base) and people can have them heated if they want in the microwave. Soup she always has a veggie choice but again she has been wanting to take soup off the menu for ages because people moan about the cost as they can buy a carton in Tescos for £1.....but a decent triple layer cup and lid costs about 20p - 25p minimum before you've even started, and soup gets messy fast on a van going over bumps.
Re fish cooked in the main fryer, as a business owner I wouldn't worry about this, since it's only the same as ordering in a fish and chip shop. There's only so much you can do before cost becomes prohibitive.
When we offered paninis they were popular, but to do them quickly to order you need the panini grill on all the time. The most popular ones we did were sausage & caramelised onion with mozzarella, roasted veg & brie, tomato, pesto and mozzarella, brie and bacon. Depending on how busy you are though you'd need to make them up in advance and then you have the waste issue. Boy did I get fed up with eating paninis.

Mrs_Chip

We have got a smaller 8ltr electric fryer for emergencies - we do sometimes have problems getting one or other of the fryers to light :eek:, but it would be a problem only using it now and then - the oil would not keep so would cost a lot more than the food we would fry in it. If we were trading every day in a busy place I would have a separate fryer, but its really not viable for us at the moment.

It's good to know these things though!

Mrs_Chip

Oh Possession yes, I know it's very frustrating.

If we were in a site where there were a lot of veggies (festivals and such) we could do far more, but ours is a site mainly for families and older people,and walkers. - pretty much it's fish and chips mostly. Even the home cooked specials did not go that well,and yes then we live on them all week, or end up giving away to neighbours.

The wraps are a pain when we are busy but at least there is minimal waste, and I can use up the open packs for lunches.

Thanks for the panini advice. where we trade our leccy is free (get it as part of the pitch fee we pay) so not an issue per se, but not very eco-friendly!

Lost of food for thought (no pun intended!)

Possession

I wish you all the good luck in the world Mrs C, and I hope I don't come across too negatively due to frustration that our business didn't work. I went into it with all these lovely ideas, including veggie ones as I was veggie for 15 yrs or so, but it's so disheartening to come back every day with them unsold. I do think if we had started at another time it would be a different story, and I hope it will be a very different story for you.

Popperwell

Bank of England say(according to the news)Inflation will not come down as quick as they originally thought and that food prices will increase as will utility bills...now there's a surprise...more OS required.

Mrs_Chip

Oh no,not at all! I am a realist with dreams:rotfl: - we tend to have grand ideas but soon realise they need bring down to earth!

I wanted to do lots of nice home made stuff like chilli or shepherds pie, but they just don't selling enough quantity to make it worthwhile putting in the effort. So we are just making sure the few things we do are good (and it seems to be working!) and be happy with that!

We have access to lost of fresh fish and crab but I know our market is not right for it.

A lady came back to the van (in a howling gale I might add) to tell us that she and her daughter (who had run a fish and chip shop) though out food was delicious,and that we were doing everything right, tha made us very happy .

Hobsons_Choice

So...inflation down this month? Well, that's a surprise! Our pension increase is based on September inflation figures and I bet the figures soar in October!!

valk_scot

Big (((hugs))) to TheCake and Catto. I've had two cats PTS in my time, both for terminal health problems and old age. It's never easy. It sounds like Catto has had a great life though, warm and loved. Better than a short hard one out on the streets.

I've just recieved my first ever order from Approved Foods and am more than happy with the tottering pile that I got for £30 plus free postage. Enough tomato paste and mango chutney to last us months, a box of 48 Cream Eggs for DD's surprise birthday present (she's not a pig, they'll last her till Christmas), rice, Sainsbury's soup mix etc etc. Easily worth x5 what I paid if not far more. I'm impressed.

The Surprise Box for £1 was pretty good too. Possession, you might be interested in the contents.

Tin of Vanilla Coca-cola
Pack of Weightwatchers wraps.
Box of Ginko herbal tea bags.
Pack of custard creams
Two packs of KP Meanies Pickled Onion snacks.
Pot of Lucky Charms Puffed Oatmeal with Marshmallows
Christmas gift bag with large chocolate Santa plus other novelties,
Two strawberry fruit leather bars
Two mini muffins
Two Fabulous Bakin Boys lemon cupcakes.
Box of Wonka candies
Nine more Cream Eggs. (!)
And...(drumroll) a months supply of Herbal Slimming Patches. :rotfl:

Wasn't at all bad for £1, dontcha think? I like vanilla Coke and most of the rest will go into the kids' packed lunches over the next week or two. I do realise the contents might not be everyone's cup of tea though, Ginko or not.

And my three cats have definately appreciated all the boxes!


ETA: And my smear results came through today. Completely fine. I've always been pretty good about going for smears and they've never been painful, just vaguely weird feeling and over quickly. I've had the complete overhaul within the last couple of months with smear, mammogram, dental check, dental hygienist, eye test, blood pressure and all the other bits and bobs that my GP surgery and the good old NHS provide for free. (Except the dental stuff of course but that's not too expensive on my plan.) My spine may be quietly falling to bits but the peripherals are all good!

And with that, I'm off to look at greenhouses. My birthday is next month and I'm not much of a jewelry or perfume type. A nice wee greenhouse though....