Family of 5 'shop from home'food storage challenge...

lil_me

Most bigger Tesco does Rye flour, little one near me doesn't, but to be honest that shop is useless.

Well I did it, I said I wouldn't buy anything I didn't need straight away until the 17th and I haven't however I have realised we can still save even more money this month by continuing to use up if I can brave it. Apart from the Christmas turkey, beef, ham, bacon and sausages order I am not going to buy any fresh meat until January (unless it's on a stupidly good offer too good to miss which happens once in a blue moon here). I am going to keep a fairly steady store cupboard as we only have a small coop locally which is quite expensive, don't want to have to use it loads because of bad weather, our first winter here and don't know how bad it'll get but the roads have been 'iffy' just with ice due to lack of gritting, keeping flours, sugar, pasta, rice, tinned stuff, yeast etc stocked up on. I'm just thrilled that I have 2 weeks left and spent less than 1/3 of my budget. Mermaid pans

Hope the regulars on the thread are all ok and the lack of posting is just due to Christmas chaos!

cheerfulness4

Well done lil-me! Just looking at your signature and you've done incredibly well with your GC's. Am just about scrapping by with my Dec one, but will cling on a do it.

I've been noticing that there is so much in the media about the prices sky rocketing in the new year on grocery items. Thinking that I need to make a list of the basics that will get me by and bulk buy them. I just can't afford huge increases on my tiny budget. Not on the 'must haves', anyway, we're used to doing without the 'would loves'.

Have a list of chores and baking to compile in a mo. Hope you are all doing ok.

Kaz2904

I don't know if our Tesco sells rye flour- I've never looked!
I think I'm going to go and put a raisin loaf in in a mo but I'm going to try it with normal flour instead of bread flour as I'm really low.
The weather is freezing today- thick frost everywhere and it's not shifting yet! I'm sure that the bad cold weather we've had so far has held the stomach bugs at bay. We've not had one ward shut yet this winter with Norovirus. Part of it I think is down to people not going out in this awful weather to visit family/friends in hospital when they have stomach bugs. It's amazing how many people come in to visit sick vulnerable patients and bring their nasty bugs with them. They think we're just being nice when we tell them they shouldn't be in......

Just had MiL on phone asking if I manged to get DS's birthday present from her. I was going to get a rc dragonfly for £17.50 but the sale finished in Argos. We managed to get him a Ben10 watch that he fell in love with so she can give that to him and I'll give her the money back. So she then starts on about what to get him for Christmas (She was going to get him a membership for a local animal farm). When I said this she started on about stuff to open and I said she could get him some spider man socks or something. Then she starts on about what he wants and I said he didn't want anything so she's saying- Well I'm sure he does if I take him out. It's not all about money...
No- MiL, it's about space. He doesn't have enough space.
So she said she'll do it this year but she doesn't know about next year...and that she can see what I mean because it's a pain them having their birthdays so close to Christmas- I did point out that it's not their fault- and she used THAT tone of voice on me. So now I feel like the wicked witch of the West.
Bah humbug...... grump grump grump.

dND

Kaz2904 wrote: »

..
No- MiL, it's about space. He doesn't have enough space.
So she said she'll do it this year but she doesn't know about next year...and that she can see what I mean because it's a pain them having their birthdays so close to Christmas- I did point out that it's not their fault- and she used THAT tone of voice on me. So now I feel like the wicked witch of the West.
Bah humbug...... grump grump grump.

Kaz

Apologies for a bit off topic;

As a Boxing day baby I can commiserate about the close to Christmas birthdays being a bit of a pain. I never had a birthday party as friends were always either involved in visiting relations or other Christmas things. There was the dreaded joint birthday/ Christmas present and waiting 364 days to next present. I now celebrate my half birthday. It's great because it can be outdoors too as it's June. I thought I'd add that bit 'cause my boys parties always were much more raucous than my daughters;)

Yategirl

lol and !!{hugs}} Kaz... I think some people can't *see* that children need time and attention more than gifts sometimes.... yes the membership is a gift but it also guarentees time and attention from who ever takes him (not that I am saying you don't give him either!)... Children "always" want the toys they can see.. doesn't mean they need them!!!

Well... not much cooking done here... dh and I had food poisoning sat eve... and I still feel very very rough SO.... I have a small tub of plain yoghurt in the fridge which I intended to use as a yoghurt starter.... can I freeze it and use it after christmas?

will be back to chat proper soon.... when my head clears(!)

bellaquidsin

Yategirl, Be better very soon, no time to be ill in December.

Kaz - hope your mil is not online!!!! Nice to have somewhere to 'bang saucepan lids together' at times isn't it?

Bella

morwenna

Yategirl wrote: »

lol and !!{hugs}} Kaz... I think some people can't *see* that children need time and attention more than gifts sometimes.... yes the membership is a gift but it also guarentees time and attention from who ever takes him (not that I am saying you don't give him either!)... Children "always" want the toys they can see.. doesn't mean they need them!!!

Well... not much cooking done here... dh and I had food poisoning sat eve... and I still feel very very rough SO.... I have a small tub of plain yoghurt in the fridge which I intended to use as a yoghurt starter.... can I freeze it and use it after christmas?

will be back to chat proper soon.... when my head clears(!)

Had to look this one up! I freeze fromage frais in the summer for "ice creams" for the kids but hadn't thought to freeze yoghurt before

According to the Daiy Book of Home Cookery, plain yoghurt will freeze for 2 months (but not Greek, as it splits apparently.) Fruit yoghurts can be frozen for 3 months. I will be trying this with the next batch of reduced to clear I see!!

Feel better soon x

Yategirl

that is great thanks (didn't occur to me to look in my dairy cookery book :rolleyes:).. I shall give it ago... not that I will lose anything if it doesn't work!

morwenna

Yategirl wrote: »

that is great thanks (didn't occur to me to look in my dairy cookery book :rolleyes:).. I shall give it ago... not that I will lose anything if it doesn't work!

When you are poorly the old brain cells don't fire so fast! No worries, if you defrost before me let me know how you go on, the book doesn't say whether it will still "yogg" or not...?

Kaz2904

Made a lovely lamb and minted pea pie tonight. Bit of a joke really as I had a glass of lambrini left in fridge and found the peas in the microwave earlier from dh making tea last night and forgetting them. He also forgot to put his mint sauce on and he'd been out spescially to buy it! So I chucked it all in together with some carot and parsnip (chunked not virtually grated!!!) 1 oxo cube and some flour. Topped it with mash and stuck it in the oven. It was like sweet and sour (ish). Yummy.
Also made iced buns, an apple plait and a loaf of raisin bread.
Now I need more bread flour- is it Lidl or aldi? I'll look in the morning. Night night all- must go to bed.