2013 Frugal Living Challenge

[Deleted User]

rachelja wrote: »

Great post allie I was just saying to a friend that I should cook more from scratch too. But I've been disappointed recently with recipes I've tried. Do you use a recipe book allie or find inspiration on the net? I like to cook but have got in a rut.

I know what you mean, some recipe books can be disappointing. By far my best and most frequently used recipe book is a old weight watchers book called Suppers and Snacks. I have made almost everything in this and love them all. The curried mince pilaff is fantastic. I do have quite a few recipe books but also sometimes just make stuff to see if I can do it. I do a HM quiche which is really easy - I use the puff pastry from Lidl (could use shortcrust if preferred) at 59p and then add a mix of egg, cheese and milk. I have played around with this recipe and added bacon and brie for special occasions.


There are lost of good threads on here with tried and tested recipes - the OS grocery challenge each month also starts with a long list of recipes. When I am looking for inspiration the OS weekly meal plan thread is often a good place to start.

Another good recipe is to chop a selection of chosen veg for roasting, toss them in spice of your choice - we use cumin or chilli power or curry powder or paprika or a mixture of any of these, depending on what we fancy. Add the raw veg to a baking dish and add 2 pork chops (straight out of the packet) placing them on top of the veg. Put in the oven and roast for as long as needed - usually around 30 - 40 mins. Tastes fab - I got this recipe listening to two guys chatting about what they were having for dinner in the pool one night and have used it ever since.

natnat13

I will commit to doing something with my garden too this weekend, keep looking out at it but haven't actually done anything! Crazy really as its a lovely space.

When being frugal what springs to mind is saying (in my head) "do I really need this?" before buying anything. If I don't, I don't buy it. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a saint all the time but I buy far less magazines, clothes, food and general stuff than I used to.

lbnblbnb

I will find my seed tin this weekend and list the contents. I will also measure up my plot and start putting some plans down on paper.

It is snowing here so armchair gardening looks most attractive option at the moment!

lbnblbnb

Being frugal: I agree with all of you. Cooking from scratch helps enormously, being willing to have a go at making blinds etc, mending things. Most important is thinking do I need this? I used to be a great one for thinking up a frugal-ish project then justifying buying tools and materials for it. Make do and mend as far as possible! Then enjoy the treats.

skintwellie

Hi Everyone,

Haven't posted for awhile, but great to catch up with everyone's posts.
Thank you dandelionclock30 and redbooties for the tip about giving dog food to the cats! - They did seem to enjoy it.

I have been amazed at how many freebies you can glean from 'clicking' on the internet (sometimes you do have to be very quick) - these are just a few of the things I have received over the last few weeks -
Full size Hair Masque
Full size L'Oreal Age Perfect (trial for magazine)
Bracelet worth £45.99 for which I just paid £2.99 postage
Mini spa set for which I just paid paid £3.50 postage
Free sample wild and Basmati rice (used to stuff a pack of peppers reduced to 35p!)
Voucher for free pack of 4 toilet rolls
Voucher for free fruit and fibre loaf
Free YSL serum (sent to my mobile)
Free 'Moneywise' magazine
Free multivitamins
Free Glucosamine Sulphate tablets
Free voucher for 1 litre Cravendale milk
Be food smart menu planner plus coupons including free 2 litre bottle Cravendale Milk
40% off meals at Cafe Rouge which meant we could afford a lovely Birthday Meal for my daughter.:j

Off to see what I can blag for today - Happy Frugalling everyone.

[Deleted User]

Todays frugal plans:
1. Packed lunch
2. Another book sold on Amazon. Need to post this morning.

Also need to:
1. Get cases down from loft and pack for long weekend.
2. Fill car up with petrol ready for journey tomorrow. We have a Asda near us which has the cheapest price on petrol around - will head there on my way home from work.

We are heading off the Isle of Skye for a long weekend. I am using a voucher to pay for the accommodation and, as we are going off season and they have a special offer on, we will still have some money left on the voucher for a meal in the hotel, possibly 2 meals if we watch what we are doing.

miss_empty_piggy

In our first proper month of budgetting I managed to spend nearly £600 on food shopping. I am absolutely stunned at this amount. I used to manage to get it for £400 for the 5 of us and the dog but the world has gone crazy - and so it seems have I.

When I realised I had just been shopping and everyone was out so I snaffled half of it and hid it in the garage. I have an old lockable cabinet in there which has the camping gear in there (been once) so chucked half of the stuff in there. Kids didn't even notice. Both freezers are absolutely bursting so it's "make do" month. I'm going to see how far into the month I get without buying anything else! I REFUSE to spend that amount of money it is obscene, but I've only myself to blame. I'm sure that there will be complaints - mainly from DOH who is worse than the kids. He is an amazing cook and makes gorgeous meals but then doesn't like to have leftovers, he likes fresh meals every night. I made him have leftover chilli last night (that he had made) and he had to admit that he enjoyed it.

DOH and I also have a drawer in 'our' living room which we keep snacks in that we know the tazmanian three will devour within the blink of an eye otherwise. Do my/our tactics mean I am a bad person? To be honest I don't really care - It's keeping me sane(ish) I think!

sorry for ranting.

natnat13

You go girl (Miss Empty Piggy) sounds like good tactics to me!

My frugal plans for this weekend are:

Get out in the garden and start planning
Review how I've done with budgeting last month
Sell stuff, not a big bag and box of stuff to ebay / fb sell but haven't got round to it yet.
Also, go to the pub Sat and not drink to much!!

Savvy_sewing

Noticed that I have been struggling as I have been dealing with the drepression, everything else goes to pot.
I have tried to get frugalling this week. I didnt fill the car up with petrol this time. I only put in £20 as they had run out of the cheaper priced fuel at the pump I drew up too, and the place was full, and I was on empty!!
I realised that I hadnt put fuel in the car since the 16th January, so that was good. The snow had reduced the amount of driving that I had been doing. The drepession has slowed my galavanting as well.
I had to pop to Aldi to get a few bits and pieces, and usually I end up stocking up while I am there. But I actually managed to only buy the few things that I had wanted, and not much else extra. I had only £8.50 in cash, so I was careful, and the shopping came to £7.93 so I even had change. Unheard of for me.
I also earnt some small change £6 by selling a couple of dress up tunics that I had made. So I dont need to get any further cash out yet.
Not alot compared to some of you great frugalers but every penny counts.

[Deleted User]

Mooloo, sorry to hear that your depression is bothering you right now. I know exactly how that feels and yes, everything else does go to pot when we feel like that. I hope it passes soon.