Cooking for one (Mark Three)

PasturesNew

Massive unexpected overspend alert

Sooooo.... I only really popped out for sausage rolls, stock up on chips and a few other items.... milk, eggs... etc ... 6x2 litres of fizzy pop ... digestives ... sultanas ... brown sauce, margarine, mini boxes of orange juice.

Spotted advocaat and, having thought about buying a bottle for 8-10 years I just grabbed one £5.49. Then it was nut roast... I've got one on my list as being a good one you can just walk into a shop and buy, usually H&Barrett... £2.39. L1dl had them there at £1.99, so I grabbed one.

Came away with an £18 bill!! Picked up some other things I'd genuinely got on my wishlist, like eggs, some dessert mix ... etc. The actual unexpected purchases cost was just about £7.50.

Some of that stuff's with Xmas in mind and strange ideas about being able to make things if only I had XYZ ... hence the orange juice and sultanas really.

2 hot sausage rolls for lunch though

While in L1dl I was very specifically looking for their tinned butter beans and cannellini beans - I'd half looked before and not spotted them. Today I went out of my way and triple checked - nothing, none, not even an empty shelf and sticker. How bizarre.

candygirl

ALDI's got butter beans in at the mo PN;)

PasturesNew

candygirl wrote: »

ALDI's got butter beans in at the mo PN;)

Yeah, I've shifted it to my "A" list. The L1dl ones are super fattuns... loved those.

I just like to have these sorts of things in the cupboard, just in case I want to bulk out something in the slow cooker mostly.

It's a joy and a nuisance to be mid point between the two stores as there are items that I prefer at one, over the other one... moaning now, but will be moaning more once I've moved and I'm near one but not the other and even that one's 2 miles away, eh

I started this morning having an empty freezer drawer. I took it out and gave it a wipe down and put it back .... little smile there as it's an empty drawer (I have 2½ drawers) .... two bags of chips from L1dl and that drawer's 2/3rds full already! Had to get two, in case they stop selling them or something daft over Xmas...

EDIT:

I was going to peel single tortilla from the frozen pack in a bit ... but then I remembered... although I have the milk/eggs/cheese required for a quiche ... I'd actually want a cheese/onion one or something... another 1-2 ingredients.... so back to square 1 for a bit on that idea.

So now, too, I also don't know what I want to put in it ... as I'll have to buy another ingredient or two to make it ... I'm all at sea now nailing which ingredients I fancy Bummer.

Farway

I'm another who went mad in L's this morning, XCFO bits but glutton sized, box of mince pies, fancy biscuit selection, and the inevitable stollen, cherry filling this year

Plus normal stuff, like eggs, and one YS clear out, 20p large Melton Mowbray pork pie. I had some of that for lunch, about 10ps' worth:D

I'd put the SC beef stew thingy back on low this morning before I went out, smelling nice now, for dinner, on it's own I think, maybe dunk some bread in the gravy?

Shame your not near me Money, a farm nearby has un-anything whole milk, right out of the cow. Not tried it but some of their stuff is on my must try it list

PN, L's will have daft low price veg next week, next Thursday I think, from memory everyone had similar

caronc

Good evening everyone,

A day of party/nibbly food sounds good Novice that's probably the route I'd go down if I was XCFO. It would be pigs in blankets, nice cheeses, pate and smoked salmon for me I think.

Full blown storm raging here, so after I've given it another wipe over, the stove will be getting lit and fingers crossed the plaster is dry enough. If not I might need to repair some cracks which is easy enough thankfully.
I spent almost all of today damp dusting, hoovering and mopping and I'm shattered now. Beginning to feel I'm getting on top of it rather than just moving it about but it will need a few more gos:).

Lunch was LOs from dinner last night. I decided to use these and will freeze the remaining soup. Dinner will definitely be a "bung it in", it's one of those nights when I wish I wasn't CFO and had someone to make it while I snuggle up in front of the fire with a glass of red!

PasturesNew

Farway wrote: »

PN, L's will have daft low price veg next week, next Thursday I think, from memory everyone had similar

Yes, I'm kind of holding off until the last minute for veg, to see what they come up with this year. Two years ago, my first ever XCFO I bought early and bought frozen. Big mistake as I discovered the cheap veg they were flogging in the run up .... so last year I left it until late and bought fresh/cheap. That worked out better too.

I'd never had to do the food shopping for Xmas before 2016 so the best way to do it -v- missing out when shops run out ... was completely new to me. Xmas Dinner has always been, for me, turn up and you're fed. No need to worry about the nuts/bolts of it all.

Next week though you say .... seems a bit early. It's a 2 week cycle they have, next Thu will be 13th, so will run 13-27 ... blimey - how did it get to be SO NEAR???

With chip overload clogging up the freezer, I decided to go with chips, baked beans and grated cheese for my main meal of the day

candygirl

I'll be stocking up on the cheap veg, to make loads of lovely soups. Also on carrots for the Furnutters , who have one each every day :rotfl:

moneyistooshorttomention

Dinner just done and eaten - so quorn burger (not too bad actually), Slimming World chips and peas. Followed by the rest of that silk tofu blitzed up with various types of fruit.

Have decided I'll keep at it diet-wise through Christmas in the event and only "break off proceedings" for social occasions out - first Christmas meal out being Monday with a friend and we're treating ourselves to it. Will probably just get a small bottle of champagne on the day and leave it at that.

I've got 3 months down on the diet front and estimate I'm about halfway (ie about 1 stone down and 1 stone to go) - so that should be about 3 months more. It's given me the strength to keep going that I came across stuff I'd forgotten that I'd got to 54 at least without any menopause weight gain (ie 2 years "after the event") and that means I can see none of the weight gain is menopause and it's all just down to me opening my gob too often and shoving some food or booze down it. That is very reassuring to me to realise it's all my own fault - because that means I can get it all back off again then:D I know what I mean:rotfl: It looks as if none of it is Anno Domini/Mother Nature and can't be fought - it's all down to me and therefore can be fought.

caronc

:eek::eek:Just remembered that I was warned that stove will be smelly first time it's lit and recommended that back door is open until it settles. I have no intention of opening the back door during this time. I've waited this long, I can wait until tomorrow until I light it.:cool: Still going to have the promised glass of red though;)
I have decided dinner will be chicken wings and roast veg. Bar some chopping not much prep and then it can do it's own thing in the oven.:)

Brambling

PasturesNew wrote: »

Vol au vents.

This Xmas I will be having vol au vents.

Fillings .... got a few ideas in mind. Nothing exciting, all very retro. Probably some leftover turkey in a sauce.... egg/salad cream ... er, then I'm a bit stuck.... I've always loved scoffing a vol au vent.... flavours to be decided on a whim close to the day.

I remember when no buffet was complete without vol au vents You use to be able to buy the raw puff pastry discs I was allowed to 'help' as a child, my job to lay them out on a baking tray and egg wash them and then wait for the magic as the discs became vol au vent cases :rotfl: I think Campbell mushroom soup may have been used but that could be imagined :think:

Heavy rain this morning, I was [STRIKE]almost[/STRIKE] glad to get to work, journey not helped by idiot Audi driver trying to climb into my boot :eek: whatever happened to leaving extra distance in bad weather :mad:

Really quiet day at work today with only four of us in again, it meant I could meet deadlines without staying late, always a bonus on a Friday and a plus was nice biscuits in the tin :T. What you would call a DOD Money

Lunch was rice and vegetables, I cooked rice for my curry having forgotten I had frozen it with the rice so last night I cooked off some mushrooms, pepper, sugar snap peas and chilli and added to the rice for today. Dinner was duck stir fry with noodles

I'll join you if I may for a glass of red Caronc just the one as I'm working tomorrow and have to be functioning by 7am :eek: