Use up challenge

jazzyjustlaw

I need to use up all items in my freezer, cupboards and bath stuff etc.

I am getting married in four weeks and am just short of the amount I had hoped would be available for spending money. I have therefore decided that it might be a good idea to use all the items in my home instead of the money i need. Anyone care to join me? I last did a small shop on Fri where I spent just over £11.00 on soup, fruit, milk and herbal teas day before yesterday. (excluding two bottles of coke - our only vice - dont drink often dont smoke at all, which OH has just come home with).

i will need to buy milk - bread and fruit and other fresh items but want to clear my freezer which is a 3rd larger than standard british sizes before buying anything else to go in. May mean having funny meals lol.

So although this is NOT a buy nothing month I will try not to buy if I can use something else. I often lunch with friends whilst at work but will take my own lunch.

Am off to a barbecue shortly and am taking a bottle of wine that has been in my fridge for months with me. Plus I will take some veggie burgers with me as I am a veggie. So am off to a good start.

debtfreehopeful_2

one thing i do is the day i go shopping i chop up any and all veg in the fridge and simmer it slowly all day to make soup and then we use it all wek so never need to buy soup, works well and means i have a filling soup for nothing extra and im not throwing out food just because its getting close to the end of its life!

soappie

What do you have in your freezer? A list would be helpful.

phots-moll

A list would be great - for you - keep it and don't buy the stuff that's on it again!

Each time I defrost my freezer I find a few items that have been there a while - I bought them 'just in case' or because they were on offer. I often end up throwing them out.

torianut

I am hoping to have a 'use up' week this week too so will keep an eye on this thread! Got a huge bag of porridge oats - any uses apart from flapjacks and the obvious porridge??

soappie

You can always add porridge oats to a crumble topping - makes an interesting difference.

jazzyjustlaw

soappie wrote: »

What do you have in your freezer? A list would be helpful.

I will let you know what I have a little later when I get up the energy to have a look. I know I have veggie mince, veggie chicken kiev, a veggie med veg pie. veggie been pieces, veggie burgers three types and will check what else, the usual veg and icecream, value choc ices, frozzen mousse.

In cupboard, lots of soups, tins of beans, baked beans, pasta sauces, pasta, tomatoes, kidney beans, soup mixtures, crackers, rice etc.

In the fridge I have mushrooms, cheese, marg, yogurts.

Will update when I have had a further look later.

Thanks

soappie

Re the mushrooms in the fridge. They will go off quite quickly so you could freeze them to spread them out across the month. What I do to freeze them is this:

Wipe clean, slice, saute gently for a couple of minutes in a bit of olive oil/butter/marg/oil then bag in suitable portion sizes and freeze.

Then, just pop them, still frozen, into whatever sauce you're making (pasta, spag bol etc) about 10 minutes before the end of cooking. They come out fine that way.

daisyroots_2

Alternatively, include the mushrooms in a pasta dish tonight or tomorrow.

rach

i'm on a use up too, though a longer term one. i get married and move in january and my cupboards are full to busting. i have tons of frozen veg, rice, pasta, and tinned goods of all descriptions. my aim is to do things month by month, but for this month i will buy only fresh fruit, salad, milk and UHT milk (i use for porridge and yoghurt making). i'll hopefully save a lot of cash too!