Cooking for one

moneyistooshorttomention

Hollyharvey wrote: »

These things always seem to cost such a lot of money.


I like to use local people as well if I can. I find that when they are close by they tend to be less likely to let you down or do a bad job because they know that you will 'talk' to other local people and they want to preserve their reputation.

I've never found that "preserve their reputation" thing seems to work personally. There is a very strong thing here that people (workmen and otherwise) make it very plain one is expected to use local firms for the work here. When they say "local" they tend to mean pretty much within walking distance almost. I get the impression it's a little bit "frowned on" even to choose a firm that's 10 miles away for something - if there is a firm 1-2 miles away that does that sort of thing.

So personally I've evolved a modus operandi of I will ask local firms (their definition of local) to quote. But, if I don't like their standard or they simply won't do what I want - then I'll pick one that's my definition of "local" (ie car drive away) and I often have to get a "national" firm to supply goods. I have heard some very critical comments made about people that have had in national firms doing jobs here. The customer gets asked who did each thing there and it's obviously expected that it's a mate of theirs that did this job and another mate of theirs that did that job etc. So - pretty often it will be their mate that had the last job, but if I don't like their mate = they don't get a job/repeat job.

I've come to the conclusion that the peer pressure to choose a (very) local firm here does sometimes mean that a firm doesn't feel the need to do a job properly - as they think they will be chosen anyway. I've had one tell me "I'm the only firm that does this here" and wait expectantly for me to book them (carefully forgetting two a short car drive away from here). I didnt book them ...

Anne_Marie_2

karcher wrote: »

If we ask nicely enough, maybe we could have a CF 'Oneskis' holiday at Anne_Marie's gaff in Cyprus :cool:

Only joshin' A_M

:rotfl:
OMG, what a thought! _pale_ Can you imagine all of us lot together, with huge differences in eating habits, and all wanting to do our own thing. No eating toast off my worktop for sure!:p :rotfl: I'll be counting the plates used HH! Thank goodness I don't have a hotel. Phew!

PN Suppose that I am lucky in that I've always had someone to pass stuff on to. In Scotland, family and friends, most within a short distance. Here, we help each other out, as we don't have family to rely on. Also, think that the Cypriot way rubs off on you. I am always being given free produce. I find bags of random fruit and veg left on the table outside if I am not at home. Was given a couple of cucumbers yesterday. I rarely can use it all, so pass it on. Complete strangers give you produce. Mum and Dad still talk about being given some oranges whilst out walking, from someone driving by, a few years ago. I get free yoghurt at times from my friend who has sheep, and at times I get amazing thin bread, rather like a wrap, but thinner and massive from his wife. I also get sheep droppings for the garden! Apparently the latter is a great privilege, as it sells for a good bit. Get olive oil from my gardener, once a year when his olives have been pressed. Seriously good stuff. Village people are maybe not rich in the material sense, but by goodness, they are very generous with what they have.
One of the things that touched me most was when hubby died. Men from the village travelled to be at the graveside, which was some distance away, and complete strangers came from the area around the cemetery to show their respect. I will never forget that as long as I live.

Sorry to digress! Fruit salad and yoghurt for breakfast. No idea for the rest of the day yet.

Definitely cooler today with a lovely breeze.

PasturesNew

Breakfast/lunch was late/early as I couldn't decide/be bothered.

I ended up having 2 hash browns, a tin of tomatoes and a poached egg.

I did my usual thing of straining off the tomato juice (and one tomato), which I chucked in the freezer - that's the base of a tomato sauce to go with spaghetti usually, or tossed into a slow cooker meal if I've collected too many. How it's used depends how many have accumulated and what I'm cooking It's "easy" to lose a pot of that randomly into a slow cooker concoction if I want to get rid of one or two. Maximum I tend to have/keep in the freezer is 3 pots of tomato juice.

In fact, that's my "tip of the day" for oneskies .... strain/keep that liquid and it's just enough to whip up a tomato sauce for anything for one.

I'll be checking whose tomatoes I used as I was disappointed that the tin only had three quite "mean" tomatoes in it .... I think L1dl seem to offer the best value, with it being full of tomatoes and a thick juice. I might've tried 4ldi ones this time for comparison.... will need to double check and make a note to stick with L1dl.

EDIT: They were the 4ldi ones. 29p/tin/400g

Doom_and_Gloom

Farway wrote: »

:D:D

"onigirazu" I had to Google that, not sure I would like it but never having had it perhaps it is tastier than my same old cheese salady sarnie?

If you like nori, a kind of seaweed, you'll probably like it. I find it a nice change to wraps etc and although it is rice it doesn't make me feel heavy after eating as I made three onigirazu ball like things that I cut in half (triangle) so had six. In the end I only ate those, over the time I was out, and not even a bit of the potato salad I took with me. Thankfully my ice block still had ice by the time I got home so I put the lunch box in the fridge. No guess to what lunch is today!

Anne_Marie wrote: »

I had to google Onigirazu too! Think that I would like it, as I like the veggie sushi at a restaurant here which is made with avocado.

MITSTM - well done on losing weight, great to get compliments.

I made it with tofu, carrot, cucumber and avocado. You can make it with basically anything, that is just what I needed using up. The avocado with the rice makes an interesting combination though. Very moorish if you aren't aware of your bodys full/satisfied signals.

MITSTM - I'm also going to congratulate you on the weight loss. Keep up the good work and maintain momentum.

Breakfast - coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. I feel like I could sleep for a week after yesterday. Absolutely brilliant! However I over did it. Oh well I rarely do go to concerts so I don't even regret how it makes me feel now :rotfl:.
Lunch - potato salad.
Dinner : vegan sushi/maki/sushi burritos.

Hollyharvey

I've settled on scrambled eggs on toast for breakfast, and a cheese and pickle sandwich for lunch with a yoghurt to follow.
Dinner will be haddock, new potatoes and steamed veg. Then an apple and blackberry crumble and ice cream.


I really need to go up to the supermarket. I've run out of bread. That's two days running I've been to Waitrose for the bread that I like and they haven't had any. They haven't had any extra thick single cream either. The store local to me doesn't seem to have much food out at all at the moment.


Trouble is, I'm not really in the mood for going out.

moneyistooshorttomention

Havent had lunch yet today - whoops! Been one of those days where there is a variety of irritating little things happening - so vented a few frustrations on the garden.

Got one of the "irritating little things" successfully resolved thankfully (glad I got my act together to complain about it:)). The plus side is one of my neighbours thinks I'm great (if not my most immediate ones:cool:) and looked very pleased whilst thanking me for all the surplus food that is starting to head their way. Waste not want not and all that. It's nice to think that someone I'm guessing hasnt got much money is getting a little bit of help at intervals and appreciates it...

Anyways - coming up when I get round to it = another singles bit of repetitive eating. Same as I had at main meal yesterday - which is based around a salad with a kale base - with Caesar dressing on it. I wasnt sure what I would make of it. I've never done this thing about literally massage salad dressing into raw kale and thought that might count as a negative in my book. However - it was okay actually. The Caesar salad dressing used stuff like nutritional yeast (which is a basic component of my stocks) and some soaked cashew nuts and so on. I'll do it again - but with more apple in than the recipe said and bearing in mind that the recipe that said it was for 2 was actually for 4 imo.:cool:

More Singles Repetitive Eating coming up after that - the last of that silken tofu in another smoothie.

moneyistooshorttomention

Just googled maki to see what it is. Right - seaweed based.

Must admit that that is something that comes into the "Wish I liked it " category personally. I'm okay with odd bits of shredded onto something or other - but I did summon up my nerve to try sushi and the like a couple of times and came to a "Not for me" conclusion unfortunately.

Farway

Doom_and_Gloom wrote: »

If you like nori, a kind of seaweed, you'll probably like it.

Ah, there's the catch. I do not like seaweed. First time I tried it was [name dropping coming up] at the British Ambassor's party in Tokyo, no Ferro choccies, just seaweed thingys, raw fish AKA sushi & Scotch whisky. One I liked the others were awful

Nil breakfast, lunch was yet another cheese salady sarnie, I was eating it before I remembered I was going to use HM chutney today. Oh well that's life

No real idea about dinner, I think it is more salad, I have some new spuds had for yonks, now starting to sprout even in the fridge, so perhaps spud salad and no idea what the protein part will be, would be eggs but still not bought any, maybe open a fishy tin?

Watered the garden, it must be runners tomorrow, they are getting bountiful now, plus spotted a courgette romping away to baby marrow size. I must clear them because I am down to Plymouth next week and if not picked by then I will be knee deep in them on return

Anne_Marie_2

D&G - I will try onigirazu out, as it sounds really lovely. Happy to hear that you had a good time out, even although suffering now.

Lunch was salad and smoked cheese sandwich. Just one portion of salad left, which will be scoffed later with whatever, no idea just now.

Doom_and_Gloom

Ah I see Faraway.
Note the following though
Sashimi/nagiri (depending on how it is prepared) = raw fish.
Sushi = vinegared rice plus other ingredients that may or may not include raw fish.

Unfortunately that is a common mistake. It could have been the raw fish making it a no for you though.