Cooking for one (Mark Three)

PasturesNew

... things just changed.... there's a slim possibility I might exchange in a few hours, which turns everything upside down.....

I've not eaten today yet. I'll go and make up my four bread rolls now before it gets too late or something, or nothing, happens.

Still got to go out later for a bit, which is annoying as it clashes with waiting in to receive an important phone call of "you did it", or "you didn't".

Brambling

They have kept you hanging about PN if you need to go out they will have to call you back, I'm assuming they don't have your mobile number or are you worried you will be driving when I moved I got fed up being the one always being flexible that I stood firm on the moving date and saying no to one which didn't suit me (I was moving to a emptied house so it was the end of the chain) and advised that it was 'either going to be in 10 days if the removal firm could do it, they had already been out and quoted and I was on their radar or it would have to wait another 2 weeks after that. It's amazing how the threat of waiting almost another month made obstacles disappear for the FTB at the front of the chain

Andy the pasty will take longer than tinned meatballs to cook as they will only need to be reheated and it's best not to put hot fillings into pastry. I'm not sure how long pastry will take to cook in a microwave as it isn't the best way to cook it therefore it's not something i've ever done.

Early lunch today as I've a 1.30pm telephone conference so I'll probably be complaining later that I'm hungry especially as lunch was a seafood stick and cottage cheese salad. I'm not sure about dinner I could cook the chicken but that will mean eating late and i would prefer not to pick before dinner :think:

[Deleted User]

Thank you all, there are so many ginger recipes but mostley powder of r fresh, not crystalised (I also like ginger jam). Tha main problem is that I a\m diabetic and fat so have to be picky about what I cook - why did I buy it? - because I like it. I agree Brambling that the NZ show is a little different but I have started putting the subtitles on for these programs as they have ingredients I have never heard of and I like to know, Moreton Bay Bugs !!!!! sound awful but I know they are sort of prawny lobstery things so I bet I would like them. Just been to Lid and bought pkt of the Mini Pork Hocks and was going to try to find freezer space but note that id they are kept cold (fridge) then the date is Feb 2020, not that I am particular about dates but they can wait until I have room in freezer. Yay.

Farway

Back to normal after the break, up a couple of pounds at morning weigh in is the wages of cream teas & fried breakfasts:o

Into L's, needed milk and a mooch. Which was about all I bought plus a TV listing mag & a cucumber, last of the high rollers:D

Nice and sunny today, weekend is forecast nice as well, could it be an Indian summer on the way?

Lunch was cheese & cuc sarnie
Mushroom omelette tonight, I missed it last night, CBA so had toasted cheese & chutney instead

AndyCF wrote: »

Regarding food bits, I have a strange notion today to buy one of those small (and there are two sizes of 'small' ones) famous brand pies. You know the ones that are in the 'not always easy to open' tins. The thing is I mean the microwave mini ones. They are plastic but with a removable metal lid. I do know that it says to put upside down on a plate before zapping (they are meant to be zapped) however I also am aware they ooze off the plate so a bowl is best, especially if like me you want to give it a few moments longer than recommended. Its the 400g one for 1.75 which seems quite reasonable. Shame its not the smaller 200g one actually as they would be a bit cheaper.
.

I assume you are referring to FB pies? I've had the nuke ones, even worse than the can't get lid off oven cook ones. I bought a nuke one on 50p offer once, something I'll not repeat

DundeeDoll

Hello all. After having a friend staying for a couple of weeks while he tended a broken heart and ended up 3 years during which time he did all the food buying and cooking, from mid August i've been back to cooking for one. I have been working my way through some items he'd bought and not used (e.g. anchovies, and have now developed a love for Puttanesca sauces)! However, there are some items I'm not keen on on their own, and I don't know whether to discard or whether they would be good as ingredients. We're only looking at 1/2 jars (I have given away some of the full jars), but thought i'd throw out the challenge
1) small chunk branston
2) lime pickle
3) mango chutney (am thinking coronation chicken?)
4) pickled onions
5) gherkins
6) aubergine pickle
And unopened
7) jar red peppers
8) small jar courgettes in oil
9) 2 jars jalapenos
10) jar cherries in syrup
There may be more lurking, but that's a start

Wednesday2000

Thanks for the Tofoo reviews, I will try it. I always buy Cauldron tofu out of habit.

I've had a veggie sausage roll and some crackers with marg. Not particularly healthy!

I am going to have Quorn fillets in a wrap with a big side salad and pickles and jalapenos for dinner. I'm going to have some fresh fruit too.

pattypan4 wrote: »

I made a good soup yesterday, basically sweet potato with red pepper, red onion and celery.

Mmm, sounded tasty.:A

candygirl wrote: »

Am batch cooking today:Chana masala, spicy 3 bean chilli , n potato n leek soup:p
Trying to shift some more blubber, before my hols in 8 weeks :j

Wow, your holiday is coming up soon. I think this year has gone really quickly. Also sounds like nice food.:)

AndyCF

PasturesNew wrote: »

... things just changed.... there's

No need for me to quote the rest, I'll simply say I hope that it all works out the way you want it to. ( don't forget to eat though! )

Brambling wrote: »

Andy the pasty will take longer than tinned meatballs to cook as they will only need to be reheated and it's best not to put hot fillings into pastry. I'm not sure how long pastry will take to cook in a microwave as it isn't the best way to cook it therefore it's not something i've ever done.

Thanks. It was a vague idea but I thought with a roll of that pastry/sheet it would not take long to 'cook' but the meatballs are the well known 'in gravy in a tin' affair, figured I'd get them done and then try the pastry but it seems tat is not needed. They on their own want about 4 minutes in a micro usually from memory, I've not done any for ages. I was just a bit worried if I placed it all together I'd either have unwarmed through meatballs or burned ones (that is not a big problem, overdone rather than underdone for me!) and crispy pastry.

Farway wrote: »

I assume you are referring to FB pies? I've had the nuke ones, even worse than the can't get lid off oven cook ones. I bought a nuke one on 50p offer once, something I'll not repeat

Really ? Hmm I did not get one anyway. Perhaps a lucky escape this time... :rotfl:

I don't think I've had the 'difficult lid' one for a long long time, I think they changed their recipe about 5 maybe a bit more years ago too. The other maker of these in an almost similar 'difficult' tin, I heard their meat content is a bit nicer but their pastry is not as good. That makes half sense in that the 'alt one' tell a huge amount of tinned meats whereas the 'original' are known for their pastry. I think.

Brambling

Did you get your phone call PN

Hi DundeeDoll :wave: Caronc is great for ideas when looking to use ad hoc ingredients although some of yours are a challenge unless you want a sandwich . I always put mango chutney in coronation chicken so that one is easy, I'm sure you can put your Branston pickle into something like a beef casserole or mince dish I've done that before with caramelised onion chutney. You could probably add pickle onions to something similar although probably not at the same time I've seen Jamie O on TV add vinegar when cooking and it's no different maybe not too many at once. Peppers, courgettes and jalapeños would work on a pizza or with pasta. I like to eat gherkins as is or chopped in a salad with beetroot but you could make your own tartare sauce with them. And finally the cherries would work on ice cream, just not too big portions of any of it

I checked the dates on the chicken and gammon and decided both can wait until tomorrow to roast cba to cook a roast tonight after work so dinner was rump steak and air fry chips with onions, mushrooms and tender stem broccoli

AndyCF

Brambling wrote: »

I checked the dates on the chicken and gammon and decided both can wait until tomorrow to roast cba to cook a roast tonight after work so dinner was rump steak and air fry chips with onions, mushrooms and tender stem broccoli

That sounds -really- nice :T (aside from the broc as I don't like that!) the rest = lovely. I'm starting to get a bit peckish and was intending on a later tea/dinner anyway so I may have to go and finally decide what to have.

PasturesNew

Brambling wrote: »

Did you get your phone call PN

No. But I'm assured it'll be happening.

Somebody in the chain knew my clear criteria over dates.... and once the date to achieve that had passed they let it drift. They wanted to exchange today, to complete in 10 days' time, which is impossible as most of that time is weekends, when people/services are unavailable and there's no lead time to get things sorted/organised.

It might happen Monday ... just awaiting new suggested dates. I don't mind which dates, so long as I have enough time to do what I need to do, which cannot be achieved in five weekday working days by any stretch of the imagination!