NOT BUYING IT! 2015 - A consumer holiday

purpleshoes_2

Mustard mash is really nice.

Well I got my cheque today, banked it then went spending

Went to my local fruit and veg shop had my eye on some blueberries and rasps but holy macaroni, the price of them, so I bought some broccoli, 3 peppers and a bag of apples.

Gave my trolley full of rag and saleable stuff and some books/mags to the hospice shop and then went to the local barnardos to see what I could find. Got my mum a dressing gown for 99p and me a pair of black sparkly pumps for 2.99.

Only one item didnt make it into the charity bag donation, a skirt Ive never worn but will wear now Ive rescued it. I must have given them about 70 items today so am pleased with the amount I offloaded.

Then I went shopping for a gift for the local big issue seller. He gave me a christmas card last week so I bought him a hat, a pair of gloves and a small bag of chocs. I bought the hat and gloves in a local shop, sadly its closing down but I might go back before it does and get some more items.

Went into superdrug and had a look at the own brand hair dyes, they are indeed BUAV approved so cruelty free and are £4.49 a box, they also have wash in and wash out ones and I bought myself one of those to make my current hair colour last a bit longer before I decide what to do about my hair.

What I might do is dye my hair a couple of shades darker than my natural colour and then add some blonde to the fringe/ sides. The problem is, its as often as expensive to get a cut and blow dry than it is to get a colour and no way could I cut it myself (maybe I could, who knows).

Going to offload another big bag of magazines and any more rag/saleable stuff thats in the house by the 22nd as thats when they close for christmas and now Ive done that, time to get on with the cleaning type decluttering, stuff that needs to be either recycled or just flung out.

The shops werent too busy today but they'll be pandemonium before christmas eve and Im hoping not to have to go back out food shopping until well after christmas day now.

Butterfly_Brain

icontinuetodream................. coconut milk is lovely in rice pudding

purpleshoes_2

icontinuetodream wrote: »

I have had exactly the same experience I just can't get on with a slow cooker at all....

I cook several casseroles at a time now to get the most out of the oven and also to have pre-cooked meals from the freezer when I want them....I also use the gaps to cook jacket potatoes which I then stuff and freeze for later use too...

I did consider getting a sc just to cook beans in but I don't see that there would be too much benefit over my pressure cooker so I won't invest in one....if I happen to come across a freebie, I will try it for beans though!!

I am completely ready for this challenge now - I have a full freezer and fridge, I am throwing no food away and planning meals from my stocks only for the whole of January - any ingredients that I don't have will be substituted with something I do have!! I will spend a maximum of £10 per week on things that I really need (dog food, extra veg, milk etc). I am going to look at making my own dog treats as this is one area that I spend a lot of cash on!

I have frozen and tinned veg in stock so I won't be buying any other veg until all of the current stocks are used up. I have a load of dried milk powder which I will use in sauces etc and I think I will probably make a load up and find out what my morning latte tastes like with it - I know that the rest of the family won't touch it but if I can eliminate my use of fresh milk until the powder has gone, it will save a lot of cash I also have job lots of coconut milk powder which I am not really sure what I can use it for other than thai style dishes and coconut, corn and lime soup....however, I intend to find something constructive even if it just means using it in pina colada cocktails!! :rotfl:

So, this is it for me now - I AM NOT BUYING IT 2015 starts today for me!! :j I'm enjoying it already!!

I am the same, I have a lot of coconut milk powder to use up and I think I'll make a good few thai curries and soup with it. I actually don't know what else to do with it to be honest, only ever used it in curries to date.

Thankfully I also have lots of thai paste, 2015 is going to be thai curry year for me, I can feel it in my bones:rotfl:

lessonlearned

Had an interesting chat with my joiner today who also happens to work nights in a bakery. Yes even master craftsmen have to work More than one job these days.

Anyway, I thought he was just a general dogsbody at the bakery but no it turns out he's a skilled baker too. Who knew:rotfl:

I was telling him I no longer do much baking because I struggle with my wrists and kneadng bread is unfortunately a no no for me, even mixing cakes by hand is a bit much these days.

Now I used to have a bread maker but it died and tbh the results were a bit hit and miss. He told me his daughter was a keen baker and he has bought her an all signing all dancing Kenwood for Christmas. Lucky girl.

I have been thinkng about one for myself but the big Kenwoods are so expensive. I do have a small hand mixer but I really would like a "big lad" mixer to help me.

Yes I know it's a bit of a luxury but I did say that I wouldn't stop spending completely, but that I would spend with thought and consideration.

I find power tools that will help me to be independent an investment, so just as I use an electric hedge trimmer rather than pay a gardener I thought a few heavy duty gizmos for the kitchen would prove likewise helpful for my poor clapped out wrists and fingers.

What brands, makes, models would anyone recommend that might be a bit cheaper than the big kenwood.

AnimalTribe

tru wrote: »

I'm trying to get mr tru to cut down on spending a bit - he doesn't just spend spend spend but I think it's a bit much. He had a good pay rise a while ago, he puts up with a lot at work though (small business, a large chain wouldn't dream of treating their staff the way his boss does, they'd be in too much trouble) so I do think he deserves his treats I don't want to push too hard on this tbh. So for now, I'm in on my own.

I'm on my own in this too. MrAnimalTribe is having a grand old time buying stuff that he wants for Christmas, and I too think he deserves his treats, but I am not buying stuff. I've decided it will be much too stressful to get my OH on board so every time he comes in with a package I just smile and nod and feel even more inwardly smug that I'm resisting. Maybe he'll follow my example, but I doubt it.

lessonlearned

Some great savoury recipes on here ladies, as for cocoanut rice pudding, I shall definitely give that one a try....

Another secret ingredient I sometimes use to add a bit of "oomph" to mince based dishes or stews is a couple of squares of dark chocolate. Makes for a lovely rich taste.

AnimalTribe

thefrugalflirter wrote: »

Food shopping is the main area I'd like to cut back on (we spend way too much for just 2 people!), so bring on the meal planning and store cupboard emptying! If anyone has any yummy vegetarian recipes I'd love to hear them, always looking for inspiration!

2 very simple things my family like are cauliflower cheese but with a savoury crumble on top - normal crumble recipe just omit the sugar and replace with herbs or salt and pepper or chilli powder. Also butternut squash stew - 1/4 squash, tin tomatoes, other veg if you like (or ok without), and any condiment or spice that you have on hand - cooked with herb dumplings (use veg suet). Both very warming, cheap, very quick to make and freeze well (although I've never frozen dumplings).

purpleshoes_2

I have a cookworks breadmaker, was a present but they retail for around £40.

joedenise

thefrugalflirter wrote: »

Thanks for all the great ideas – it’s definitely soup weather at the moment!
Joedenise – I’d love the curry recipe, if you don’t mind? A week at the German Christmas Markets sounds AMAZING, I’d love to go!

It was a long weekend (4 nights) not a week unfortunately. We spent a couple days at Aachan market and a day at Brugge market on the way back.

I've posted the recipe on the "Feed a family of 4 for £20 a week" thread but will copy and paste here for ease:

1/2 butternut squash - 25p (often at 49p on Ald! SS (I buy several at a time and store in cool place until used, will then peel, chop & freeze other 1/2)
150g red lentils - 23p (£1.80 Kg Tesc*)
200g onions - 12p (60p Kg Ald!)
tin chickpeas - 34p (3 for £1 local £1 shop) - or use dried - even cheaper
curry spices - 5-10p (depending on what used)
stock cube 2p (20p for 10 most SMs)

Total: £1.06 = 25.5p per portion

To serve:

200g long grain rice = 8p (40p per Kg) = 2p per portion
or
200g basmati rice = 36p (£1.80 per Kg) = 9p

Chop onion and fry gently to soften a bit, sprinkle on spices and cook out for a couple of minutes. Add cubed squash, lentils & about 700ml of stock (made with a cube). Bring to boil and simmer until the lentils are a thick & mushy. Add the chickpeas and heat through.

You can also stir in some spinach at this point if you have any (frozen is good) until it wilts.

Serve with rice.

You can of course just chuck everything into the slow cooker and leave to cook all day and just cook rice before serving.

Denise

greenbee

lessonlearned wrote: »

What brands, makes, models would anyone recommend that might be a bit cheaper than the big kenwood.

Give careful consideration to the kenwood (or similar). I've found the advantage is that instead of buying a whole 'gadget', I now just buy attachments to the kenwood (I got it on offer, I get the bits on offer). So I've added a juicer, liquidiser, spice grinders and a fruit press. All of which are considerably better value (and more eco-friendly) than buying individual items with motors. Because I then use it so much, it stays out on the surface, which then means I bother to use it... it's a virtuous circle, and the bits take up less storage space than lots of different gadgets.