Preparedness for when

BessieBooBoo

Hello all, including the 'prepees'

Is it safe to come out now we are past 666?

Just dropped in and love the elderberry syrup recipes, thanks for those, I will be out foraging along our local canal at the week-end (weather permitting). And will have a go at making this.

I have been kitchenating and turned our glut of red tomatoes into a basic sauce, which I've portioned out in plastic containers for freezing. I can then pull one out the day I need it and use it as a base sauce for the following:

Bolognese - just add mince.
Curry - just add curry powder or paste, and protein (chicken, fish, beef, whatever your preference). I sometime add coconut milk or cream if there's any in.
Chilli - just add chilli, red kidney beans and mince.
Cottage or shepherd's pie - add mince, with buttery mash to go on top.

Could use it for more things, or, even, blend up the sauce so it's smoother for a tomato soup with a bit more spice...

It helps when you come home from work and think 'I can't be bothered to stand there chopping stuff for ages...' Just get out your sauce, mince or other protein, and chuck in the extra's when you get home. If you are really, really organised, get them out the freezer the night before and whack it in the slow cooker in the morning.

BBB

P.S. on the 'eat the weeds' theme, I did read somewhere that you shouldn't over-do the dandelions, as it's a duirectic (sp?). It's alternative name is 'p*ss-the-bed'!

BessieBooBoo

jk0 wrote: »

As a lot of you guys seem to be pet owners, I thought this site might tickle you:

http://shameyourpet.com/

Thanks jk0

That gave me a chuckle! For Bessie it would be:

I eat poo, then I roll in it too, so my mum has to walk me back at arm's length; I have a great time:), but then mum goes and spoils it all and puts me in that horrible bath thing, with that awful smelly stuff that mum says is better.

BBB

P.S. I get my own back and have a roll again the next day!:)

Karmacat

Lurve the choice of colanders :rotfl:

I tell you what I'm doing at the moment - little bits, that I can take up or put down at any time, because of the lurgy:
- finishing off shredding (did the ones with coloured inks over the weekend, this is the black and white, so it can go in the compost bin).
- moving books and whatnot off my humongous bookcase in the living room, to retrieve the hardboard underneath - most of it will have holes drilled in it in lines, to become support for my sprung mattress, which is currently on a slatted base (apparently that stresses the springs, as the slats are slightly too wide)
- got a bare bones wooden sofa in the living room, I'm working on adapting the slats of an old single bed to use them as a firmer support than what was there originally, but the wood also has to be stripped, its peeling and v unattractive.
- finishing off the top to a rocket stove, how I rocket stoves.
- got another much, much simpler pattern for a rocket stove to be made. Drawn it onto a tin, but not done it yet - need to be well to do that, it'll hurt my shoulder to use the drill.
- get rid of the old sofa when I'm on the way to finishing the new sofa. That will mean I can collect the sofa cushions from around the house and, ta-da, I'll have room for more preps

[Deleted User]

I've got a little lurgy too KARMACAT, I've had the snizzles and the sneezes and a tickly cough for the last few days but the vinegar in all the chutneys I've been making has sorted out my sinuses, that's for sure!!! I think it's the sniffly season beginning don't you? Hope you feel better soon, Cheers Lyn xxx.

elaine241

Hello all, my you are a lot of gas bags! go for a couple of days and the thread has moved on miles!

Still prepping (stealthily) although my OH watched black out with me and seemed to finally "get it!". I have been adding to preps using the buy an extra bit method, trawling CS and got some bargain candles and adding to the oil lamp collection.

My main aim atm is experimenting with alternative preserving techniques. Currently got some french beans salted, drying veg and herbs and bottled toms. My freezers are completely full to bursting with YS bargains, home produced lamb and veg. I am having to calm down a bit and eat some of it!
I had a massive bargain in Sainsbobs the other evening, they had reduced loads of veg to 15p/20p and I scooped just over £150 worth for just over £15, then used a reward and got it doen to £13.50 LOL!, felt like I was robbing the place :rotfl:
Then followed a marathon prep, freeze , drying and soup making session! Since then I have bought £20 herbs for 8p a pack and dried them. It is amazing how little space dried veg take up, 4 large spanish onions now easily fit into a jam jar.

Boozy preps still going strong and foraging/scrumping.
Seem to have gone OTT with logs this year if I can work out how to post pics I will.
Keep prepping!!! Elaine x

S

Karmacat

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

I've got a little lurgy too KARMACAT, I've had the snizzles and the sneezes and a tickly cough for the last few days but the vinegar in all the chutneys I've been making has sorted out my sinuses, that's for sure!!! I think it's the sniffly season beginning don't you? Hope you feel better soon, Cheers Lyn xxx.

I *do* think its the sniffly season beginning, absolutely I'm hoping that getting it out of the way now will mean its done, not that I'll spend the whole of the next 5 months reclining looking like a consumptive Victorian [STRIKE]heiress [/STRIKE]grandmother

Sorry you've got them too, MrsL - thats a thought about vinegar, isn't it! I like that I've got a counselling client coming here at 5, but before then, I'll have a salt gargle, and I'll do a steam thingie with vinegar in after that. Thanks for the reminder.



ETA - just come across a post about steamed bread, and the linkie referring to the website still works. omg, as they say, what a good idea.

ArthriticOldThing

WHEW!! You lot can certainly chat. I go away for 5 days and its taken me 3 to catch up.:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Hadn't been able to do much prepping before went away as Arthur-itis interfered but hoping to get going again soon. My main aim at the moment is to clear some of the mountains of useless rubbish overflowing my 'spare' room so can rearrange the available space for stores.

My emergency medical chest is overflowing with basic painkillers such as paracetamol, codeine, asprin and tramadol - I get them prescribed for various ailments.:o Must stock up on other things though.

While I was away - in Nottingham - I had a chance to visit a 99p store. It has made very jealous that our nearest is 30 miles away approx. I could have bought all manner of things to add to my meagre preps but would have needed another case to bring it home.:eek:

Now off to have cuppa and work on my stores list.

[Deleted User]

I think you can make Boston Brown Bread in a covered large (double size) bean tin in the slow cooker, I'll look and see if I've a recipe, I seem to remember seeing one, post it later if I can find it, Cheers Lyn xxx.

GreyQueen

Butterfly_Brain wrote: »

On the subject of spam I personally do not like it, so I buy large tins of ham in the land of pound instead, much more useful can be used in pancakes, omelettes, stews, pies in a risotto or a pasta meal

Could you tell me what brand it is, please? I'm not sure if I like SPAM but it's been decades since I tried it so I thought I'd buy one tin as an experimundo.

Hello and welcome, karmakat. You'll like it in here, we're a bit nutty in the nicest possible way.

I'm making soup very slowly, as one of my Spies and Informants told me this afternoon. As I was peckish, this meant that I had to eat my dessert first.

elaine, OMG, awesome bargaineering. Totally awesome. Hope your OH appreciates your skill, thrift and drive. It's nice to get one over on one of the big supermarche, isn't it?

Going to wander off into Zero Hedge and Infowars to see what the alt. media are saying. The joy of being a hedgie is that you tend to know about stuff anything from 24 hours to 7 days before other people, in my experience, anyway. It's good to have a hint of the sharks moving under the surface........

I have tea, and dessert was a thrifty chunk of golden syrup cake (FF at 39p) and a bit of a 6p sachet of Tosspots custard powder. I bought a few (:o quite a few) just before the price doubled.

Onwards and outwards, fellow batties.

the_cake

Just a couple of thoughts on "things which might help" various ailments:
Sniffles, sneezes etc: manuka honey - the only thing which finally, finally got rid of my bronchitis at the end of last winter. Must be at least +15 though, and is not cheap.
Arthritis: dried rosehips. A friend with terrible arthritis tried this and is raving about it - pain free within a week. Just thought it was worth mentioning ....
On the prepping front I have ordered the versatile and apparently nice and bright solar / wind-up / rechargeable camping lantern recommended on here a while back, so we should be OK when the power cuts start! Food stores are at a pretty good level; in fact, they urgently need listing and tidying, which I will do when I have finished lifting the potatoes (Pink Fir Apple - quite small but such a great flavour) and preserving the Plum Glut. I will be making Plum Jum .... as well as freezing them, and have already made Plum Vodka. I dealt with the Courgette Copiousness by dehydrating them - they are now tiny wee and rustlingly dry in a LocknLock.