Living on next to nought - is that the key?

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Evening :hello:

Phew, it's good to sit down

Visitor came and went (they were in a hurry too, but stopped long enough to have a natter and countersign a doc in triplicate blood types, provide an inside leg measurement and do a handstand.....:p)

Dinner was therefore cheap 'n cheerful. Tinned and jarred and dried - all out of the storecupboard/fridge. Fusilli pasta, with black olives, onion, celery, garlic, red peppers and feta cheese and loads of herbs/seasoning. Too boring to photograph, but well delish

Today has been brilliant. We have now been able to send off the new requirements to the bank, due to someone serendipitously being in the neighbourhood today, and being able to help us out (again). We have had confirmation that our holiday is still 'on' and that we can pay the balance (no deposit) on arrival :j So, fingers crossed wages get paid and we can make this all happen....... I only spent what I intended (well, no real choice in that one, but I'll graciously take the credit :rotfl:), and there are different actors on the front of the TV listings mag this week Upsidedown Bear Oh, and I almost forgot, I found 2p 'roadkill' :j

Does anyone else get a complex about how they come across to complete strangers. I got stopped today by a couple of 'mature' ladies and got asked to explain a piece of 'sculpture' in our locale :eek: I'm taking from it that I must of looked 'cultured' enough to have a clue...... plus I must of remembered to comb my hair/wash behind my ears to of looked presentable enough for them to approach me:rotfl: There were quite a lot of other people about Still, they seemed satisfied with my explanation (I think I even remembered the name of the piece )..... although I'm not too sure they were that impressed with the sculpture .... along with umpteen thousand local Council Tax Payers......:rotfl:

I tried to upload a photo of the eggless apple cake I made at the weekend this morning. But I couldn't get the image to reduce, and it will put the thread 'out' - which I know is annoying for folk. But I like to have a range of eggless recipes on hand, as FR eggs are getting pricier by the day (and yes, actually, I do agree with 'proper prices for produce', but sometimes it makes stuff unaffordable.......) So this recipe was another from 'Eat well, spend less' by Sarah Flowers. I have an eggless chocolate brownie recipe of hers to try too. I got the green bean and tomato bredie recipe from that book as well. It's still not a book I would recommend to buy (Sorry Sarah ), but if you see it in your local library........

Right, enough wittering from me.

I am grateful for these 3 things today;

friends - true friends help you out, time and again and go out of their way for you - and you do the same for them.

tourists - we've likely all been a tourist somewhere, sometime in our lives. Our local area has seen an influx of visitors this weekend, bringing a much needed cash boost to shops and bars (especially the bars :rotfl:), plus its nice to see your home place through the eyes of others, when they ask you to be an impromptu tour guide.......:rotfl:

sharing - it's been great to share your birthday on this thread Beanie - HAPPY BIRTHDAY :T and I'm grateful to Upsidedown Bear for letting us in on the news

Thank you for dropping by, reading and commenting. I appreciate it.

See y'all later.

Greying

miss_empty_piggy

x X x X hApPy BiRtHdAy BeAnIeLoU X x X x

and congratulations Greying....x

beanielou

What a lovely lovely bunch you are

Piquant_2

....and coming in last as usual.....

Happy birthday beanie :T:T:T

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning :hello:

Just a quick note from me this morning.

Today should be a NSD

I've put some yoghurt on to drain for cream cheese and tonight's dinner will be a sort of leek bake thing, using up the last of the YS'd leeks I got from waitflower a couple of weeks ago. I also need to make some 'snap' buns - whilst the oven is on - as the last of the eggless apple cake went into a snap box today :D Anyway, all that is for later this pm.

At the minute, the first soup of the season (asparagus made in May & frozen) is being heated up for a snap flask. Don't know whether to be sad or happy. Sad it's getting towards soup season, or happy it's getting toward soup season because it's easy to make and a snap staple :rotfl:

Have a good day one and all.

Thank you for dropping by, reading and commenting, it is appreciated.

See y'all later.

Greying.

EssexHebridean

Piquant wrote: »

....and coming in last as usual.....

Happy birthday beanie :T:T:T

In true panto style "Oh no you're not!" :rotfl: belated happy birthday Beanie!

Lots of fantastic "using up" going on in here - I'm quite inspired, and might make September a "use it up" month. We have some of our own (home grown dontcha know!) tatties still to dig up, although I will be wanting to buy a 5kg bag of the lovely Norfolk Pinks when we go up there at the end of the month, but shouldn't need to buy any before then. Plenty of pasta, rice etc. Still some of the Approved Food CousCous mountain left too. I'll need fresh stuff of course, but might do a batch of mini-crumbles of pies in due course, particularly if we can forage some apples and blackberries from somewhere. (Apples from Mum in law at the weekend, perhaps!) It's my freezers that really need attacking - I need to do another audit, I think...

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Evening :hello:

What was it 7 Week Wonder said the other week about trying out new recipes all together and dinner being a late affair......:rotfl:

Still, we cooked, we ate and now DP is doing the washing up :smileyhea
The leek bake 'thing' worked out well, I think I probably used a little too much vegetable matter to egg/cream cheese ratio, but that was ok for us. It was quite soft, whereas a bake is usually more frittata like and slices easily. Still, it tasted good - the leeks (and I grated in some carrot) added a lovely sweet note, and I added in some grain mustard, which added a savoury note too. I used up the last remaining tomato (YS from waitflower ) to top it off. I served it with some white cabbage (again, YS'd from waitflower - a couple of weeks ago? and I still have 1/2 a cabbage and it needs using - coleslaw anyone?), some HG salad leaves and I roasted a tin of smArtprice new potatoes as a trial.

We didn't try the potato experiment at the weekend - as it won't phase you to learn that £1 of the 'treat' money that DP provided got spent 'snapping up' a 2.5kg bag of YS'd potatoes* from MandS foodhall, when we wandered through at precisely the right time....and weren't supposed to be shopping, but taking a shortcut :rotfl:Some of these got made into oven chips to accompany our pizza on Sunday night. Therefore, the tinned potato experiment has had to wait.

* at that price, cheaper than even ald* and in perfect condition

Hopefully, I can provide you with a photo that won't distort the thread;



In my opinion, roasting the tinned potatoes added to their texture, but not to their taste. I still prefer them boiled/warmed up. However, it was worthwhile trying them out, as it all adds to the recipe/meal repertoire - and would I do it again, YES, I would if I had no 'fresh' potatoes to hand (?? - a contradiction if ever there was one, bet the tinned are straight out of the field, whereas the ones in bags at your local soopermarket.....) . They are a useful substitute/alternative. Thank you Upsidedown Bear for your encouragement to give the experiment a go.

I also tried out an 'adaptation' of a cake recipe that I have made before. But I made that many 'substitutions' to it, on the basis that I lacked [STRIKE]most[/STRIKE] some of the essential ingredients, that I won't mention the recipe or the source, on account of they will consider sueing for misrepresentation of their recipe :rotfl::rotfl: I shall make the recipe properly and credit the source another time. In the meantime, the buns smell delish and DP has been lured into tackling the massive washing up pile on the basis of a taste test later :rotfl:

I'm glad to have my cooking mojo back - and it feels good to be using up foodstuffs in new or different recipes. I feel smug and virtuous and ...full :rotfl::rotfl:(And yes, I am taking the persistently out of myself ).

Thanks for popping by Essex Hebridean - ooh, September as a 'use it up' month - good idea. We're hoping to go blackberry picking at the weekend when we go and collect the food co-op order. We pick up a bunch of people's orders too, so making the most use of our diesel. It is the anticipation of 'crumble' that is keeping DP going and will hasten the picking! :rotfl:

Well, I'd better finish up. Today I am grateful for these 3 things;

experimentation - the irony of being able to 'afford' experimenting with food has not passed me by. But it does help to expand my culinary repertoire and we do eat everything, whatever the outcome, so no waste. As food prices continue to rise, ingenuity seems to be one of an increasingly diminishing set of avenues to pursue.....

healthy debate - JaymeeO seems to of started quite a debate with regards to poverty and food and poverty of food education. As long as folk engage in debate about the true issues (and by golly they are multi-faceted), and avoid getting exercised by 'soundbites' it could move the issue forward positively, and some good could come out of it.

that I have a 'kitchen', utensils, a fridge, an oven and ingredients. Take away any of these items and .........

Thank you so much for popping by, reading and commenting. I truly appreciate it.

See y'all later.

Greying

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning :hello:

Greying whooshes innnnnnnn......

Just a quick update from me this morning.

The remainder of the leek bake has been put into snap boxes, along with some grated carrot and I made some potato salad from the other smArtprice tin of potatoes I had bought. So potatoes, valu3 mayo, salt and pepper and a small bunch of chopped mint from the garden. IMHO it actually tastes nice
A bun and banana lobbed in to (in the snap bags, not in with the salads and bake ), and we're done - only coffees to make.

Today will be a NSD

Dinner this evening is soup and a sandwich.

Can you tell we're nearing the end of the month? :D

Munchin - I forgot to say, I have tried those cheese and onion 'Tayt0' crisps you mentioned. H0me B*rgains have them here quite regularly. DP and I like them, better than W*lkers and def. better than G0lden W*nder. Never seen the choco crisp bar though...... not too sure it'd appeal. A waste of chocolate and a waste of crisps I think - keep 'em separate

Thanks for popping in, reading and if you have - commenting I greatly appreciate it. Thank you.

See y'all later.

Greying whooooshes ouuttt......

Munchin

Hi Greying - I agree choc & crisps are not a marriage made in heaven but you know what I'm tempted to try it again:o.

Love your diary

Karmacat

Greying! I found you! I found Beanie too (happy birthday Beanie!) Only had time to read your first couple of posts, and whizzed down this page, but I'll catch up properly, this sounds brilliant.

Looking forward to reading more ...