Cooking for one

Anne_Marie_2

Caronc....so sorry for your poor Dad. He must have got an awful fright. Hopefully you can save most of the contents of his freezer, but better a few wasted few items than what could have turned out a lot worse.

Haggis on a roll sounds just perfect, albeit I'd be going for the veggie version. Love when I'm back in Scotland as Dad always gets huge soft, floury rolls at the weekend from a local bakery....a proper treat.

Getting quite hot here now, so it's a pain to stand at the cooker, so just had egg and cucumber sandwich earlier. Made far too much pasta last night, so will be having that later. Will decide on what to have with it nearer the time.....too warm to think of food at the moment.

Think my fridge freezer is going on the blink - the fridge temp is going up and down like a yo-yo, the freezer part is fine. Luckily, my friend doesn't keep much food in her freezer, so will cadge space for my food, and get the repair man in to have a look.
Just keeping all crossed that it can be repaired, rather than having to buy a new one. If I do, I'm going to get separate fridge and freezer, never had an all in one before I came here, and hadn't really thought out the problems if one part failed. Am wondering if it's possible to stack fridge on top of freezer? Will have to look into that should the need arise.

PasturesNew

Ah, freezer talk ... I had some bizarre sudden idea of a "brilliant plan" where I'd chuck what I could into the slow cooker and make everything into a chilli.... but then I realised there are 2-3 things that won't fit into that. But I've done it anyway.

In the pot went: some cheapo mixed/chopped veg, some cheapo mixed veggies, 2 pots of tomato sauce, some frozen roasties/chopped, 4 discs of pepperoni, 3 whole chillies/chopped, some chilli powder, some hot tabasco .... and later on I'll lob the quorn in.

Now ... I know I'll end up with a huge pot of chilli to eat ... but it's certainly cleared the decks in the freezer!

All that's in there now are: lollies I made, 3 hash browns, half a pack of fish fingers, 3 veggie burgers, ½ Kg of peas, some Yorkshires and a thumb of ginger. I think I'll have to give up with the ginger and accept that it'll have to be binned just to get the freezer emptied/defrosted.

But, it doesn't look like I can defrost it tomorrow, as the slow cooker plan thought ... because of what's still left in there. There's about 4-5 days of fish fingers and burgers to go yet!

I could eat more food ... to get through it faster .... but then I'd just get big.

But ... big steps forward! Lots of empty bags in the bin too (wish I'd done this yesterday as it was bin day this morning).

meg72

caronc wrote: »

Good afternoon everyone,
I'm up to my eyes in haggis, black pudding and sausages......:eek:
My poor Dad had a fright during the night when his fridge/freezer faulted and he woke to the smell of burning electrics....:( One quick visit from the Fire Brigade later and culprit identified and made safe. Fast forward a few hours and my Dad's here with the contents of his freezer (still frozen) so I've stashed what I can in the freezerand will cook the rest. He had recently got a meat order so there's loads. Two trays of sliced haggis have been baked and there are two trays of black pudding currently in the oven. The rest I'll sous vide when defrosted. Needless to say a new fridge/freezer arrives tomorrow:D.

Breakfast didn't happen so lunch currently being scoffed is a roll and haggis . I've taken chicken thighs out the freezer for tonight.

Oh your poor Dad, what a scare.

moneyistooshorttomention

Pastures - LOL at the thought of you "getting big" - as I think we might recall how often the word "choccies" comes up in your posts ahem...:rotfl::)

SunnyGirl

Meg72 I agree on the ready meal front that they're aimed at one person but I do not like them at all. Not a big enough portion and expensive imo. I do make my own ready meals in that I cook and freeze all the time so have approximately 16 meals in the freezer ready to go and 12 soups. All I'll have to do is cook pasta, rice or potatoes etc to go with them. This stemmed from when I was working full time with a family to feed so always worked on the basis of cook once eat twice and I still do it now that I'm at uni and working at the weekends.

Caronc Is your Dad ok?

Hope the weather is a bit improved for everyone? On the subject of doing everything ourselves I filled the car with stuff for the tip this morning and then took it. 3 gas bottles that had been in the shed for years and that I'd never got round to taking back, an old tv, a dismantled broken wardrobe from DS1's room when he moved out, an old mop and bucket... various things that have now gone! I feel so much better for getting rid of it all. Mind you I do like a good clear out generally even though I have in the past got rid of things too quickly and regretted it.

Lunch was a peanut butter and banana sandwich, a yoghurt and a kiwi and tea tonight is going to be pasta, pesto and olives which is my favourite quick and easy meal.

PasturesNew

SunnyGirl wrote: »

3 gas bottles ....

They charge for that round here, depending on size/type it's £6, £11 or £35 each - and some they won't take.

You can see how some people, having got round to it, struggled to load it into the car, driven something all the way there, then being asked for money .... might be tempted to just fly tip it on the way home!

SunnyGirl

PasturesNew wrote: »

They charge for that round here, depending on size/type it's £6, £11 or £35 each - and some they won't take.

You can see how some people, having got round to it, struggled to load it into the car, driven something all the way there, then being asked for money .... might be tempted to just fly tip it on the way home!

Good grief that's daylight robbery!! I can quite see how people would flytip too. I'm very glad that we don't have to pay here as are many others looking at all the gas bottles in that section of the tip or recycling plant as it's called now

Hollyharvey

Hi everyone,


So far today I have had a banana and some scrambled egg for breakfast. The bananas either need eating within the next couple of days or turning into muffins and I CBA to make muffins so decided to take the eating them even though I don't fancy them option.


Lunch has been a tuna mayo sandwich with a bit of salad. I have still got my massive tuna mountain. I estimate that I may have eaten them all by 2020


Dinner is some sort of white fish. Either cod or haddock liberated from the freezer. I seem to have forgotten to label it when I froze it, but it doesn't matter, it's food, and food that will go with some new potatoes and veg. Some of the veg needs using up and I bought green beans yesterday because I am all caulifower and broccolied out and needed something different. And guess what...pudding will be banana, but I am going to open a small post of custard to go over it.


PN the freezer defrosing is in sight now. It won't be too long. Then you can have some different food for a change.

Farway

meg72 wrote: »

Personally I think ready meals are aimed at single people

I know they are very useful for me, especially when YS because it saves me having to think about what to eat, and the variety / contents of the ones I buy are mostly stuff I would never make or buy loose and cook from scratch. Liver & bacon or a veg lasagne, jam sponge pudding as examples.

I do buy the more expensive ones though not the cheaper ones because I see the value, chunks of meat & not brown slurry and a thick pastry for instance. Plus luckily, although this is MSE. I am not on a budget so can pay whatever I think is giving me value. I realise not everyone is able to make this choice

Using stuff up, yesterday's chicken / mushroom stroganoff thingy was delicious, not only used the obvious plus rice but also finished off some frozen sliced mixed peppers that had been skulking in the freezer forever. That was 4 ancient odds & ends gone out my life, gone for good, never to be replaced :j

Weather windy, dull spots of rain. No gardening except I planted out 6 more climbing French beans, the first lot are OKish but look a bit sorry for themselves, never grown that variety before so maybe they are just like that?

Didn't fancy breakfast, maybe because yet again I had a bowl of bran flakes late yesterday evening, oh and a squidgy banana, oh and spoonful of honey on them . I will have to try & stop before it gets a habit. I was fine when I never knew I had them, now all too easy to eat them

Absolute blank on shopping patrol this morning, loads of things but nothing I fancied, especially with my 2 meals for tenner in the fridge

Lunch was cheese & HM chutney sarnie

Tonight not 100% sure, either half of the M & S smokey bacon / mushroom hand pulled pizza, don't know why they stress the hand bit, I am so old I remember when Tate & Lyle emphasised their sugar was "untouched by human hands" as sign of purity. Everyone then joked was it was made by monkeys of course

Or it could be the loaded skins, which will be a knew one on me.

Either way a salad will part of the meal

poppystar

Someone mentioned fish finger butties a few days ago … and I haven't been able to get the idea out of my head so had to head out to Mr T today to get some

That's tea sorted today with loads of salad stuff that I bought yesterday and then didn't eat.

Holly My fave use for older bananas is as a pancake mix. Mushed up, add egg, add a spoon of flour, mix well and pour into pan. Add a few berries. Cook, turn (do not try flipping - these are substantial beasts and won't ), cook. Easy peasy and protein and one or two of five a day too:)