Cooking for one (Mark Three)

PasturesNew

Today I've scoffed:

Two egg/cucumber filled rolls.
A packet of doritos.

Another packet of doritos.

Two bounty bars.
Two egg custard tarts

The way the day ended up panning out I wasn't in the right place at the right time to stop for a Chinese. Having reached home etc, I then CBA to go and do a 3 mile round trip for one.

PasturesNew

DundeeDoll wrote: »

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

Most of those are things you could lob into any casserole, or into many slow cooker meals... just to get rid of them. The trouble is remembering that's what you intend to do.

Cherries in syrup can mean only one thing: One HUGE pineapple upside down cake. Make custard and stay in all weekend scoffing it in your PJs.

AndyCF

AndyCF wrote: »

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.

For the randomly curious (of which I doubt there was many)

I was going to open one of the 'French branded' mixed tins of either peti petit pois peas + baby carrots or their regular peas/corn , as although I was slightly put off for some reason (not because of the location, I've met quite a few French over the years and they have all been exceptionally pleasant people ) , just was not quite in the mood. I got them as they were 50p for a largish tin of each + good reviews on various sites = that's good enough for me!

To cut "to the chase" , I ended up having some lovely meatballs in gravy, with a couple of small 'cut into sugar cube size pieces' of potato added in. Twas lovely and so simple to sort

AndyCF

PasturesNew wrote: »

Two egg custard tarts

Ah I adore those. I've tried a few supermarket's brands, and the local 'cake shop' ones too but usually setting for the big 'S' ones when I get there, just always found those ones very pleasant and at a sane price too, whether its the two or four pack that is required.

PasturesNew wrote: »

The way the day ended up panning out I wasn't in the right place at the right time to stop for a Chinese. Having reached home etc, I then CBA to go and do a 3 mile round trip for one.

It happens. Hope your day went OK etc etc. Must admit here when I was going to so similar to what you mentioned the other day (it did not work out for me so I stayed) one thing I did not look at was local shops.

Speaking in general: Although it was a large village area as the destination with a combi grocer-newsagents place, I was fully aware this was "old skool" in its opening times/days though in that come 5pm on a weekday if you did not have what you needed = try tomorrow. They did open on a Sunday morning mind you till about 12. There were no other shops in said village. It was about 5 mins drive to a 'local' shop outside or 15 to 'S's , would need transport as otherwise it would be 45 minutes to the local and a good hour or more to 'S's

Opening hours for local small shops: That's something I do remember years back (just) when growing up the local corner shop would not open on Sunday at all, and it was something like 9-5 Mon-Fri and Sat mornings only. I realise the larger shops had that law change (diy places) quite a few years back though.

Farway

Bright & sunny day ahead, but I had a lie in anyway, I think my holiday walking and [STRIKE]running [/STRIKE]wandering about is catching up on me today

After porridge breakfast checked the garden, nothing untoward, picked a few more apples, eyed up next door's Concorde pear tree, I foresee a bit of scrumping next week;) [they just leave them to rot BTW]

Back indoors. made a huge pot of stewed apples which I intend to portion up & freeze. I've loads of apples left, plus next door's which are not yet ready
One plus in a two freezer house:j

Lunch probably cheese & cuc sarnie again
I've taken a salmon fillet out to defrost, intention is that fried + salad & frozen chips for dinner

Andy, just a quick query, why do you not use the shop / brand name and insert ** , !! or a number in suitable spots if you do not want tu use full name? 4sda for instance. Only asking as I rack my brain sometimes trying to figure out the clues, still no idea what French branded one is:o

AndyCF

Farway wrote: »

Andy, just a quick query, why do you not use the shop / brand name and insert ** , !! or a number in suitable spots if you do not want tu use full name? 4sda for instance. Only asking as I rack my brain sometimes trying to figure out the clues, still no idea what French branded one is:o

Did not quote the lunch plan but it sounds excellent. :T

To answer the question I'm not quite sure I think it is just me seeing what others are doing, sorry. , not trying to cause unintentional puzzles or mayhem! :T

The 'French Branded' tins, well I'll put it here but type it as (I would) pronounce it, but it is obviously just one word normally hehe: "Door" + "Sea"

It is just that the local BM appears to be stocking them now at a sane price and reviews (generally) are good at a few sites. Just my "cupboard stock" filler in keeping a couple in that's all rather than a regular purchase of them.

PasturesNew

AndyCF wrote: »

Ah I adore those. I've tried a few supermarket's brands, and the local 'cake shop' ones too but usually setting for the big 'S' ones when I get there, just always found those ones very pleasant and at a sane price too, whether its the two or four pack that is required.

4ldi ones aren't good, but I buy them to save me having to go elsewhere. I do intend to try others (e.g. L1dl) at some point... and other shops.

AndyCF wrote: »

... one thing I did not look at was local shops.

I have a vast "vetting" routine. It starts with places in budget. Over time I've narrowed it down to one particular postcode, but watch everything else instead as the criteria is "something passable here -or- something quite lovely elsewhere". To date nothing "quite lovely elsewhere" has presented itself.

I keep a spreadsheet. I have a bookmark taking me to the town +/- 3 miles up to £325k (just in case one's up at £305k).

I load up RM and scan down for anything that looks doable/possible, or even simply in budget/location. It gets entered on the spreadsheet. I check the room layout and note the overall size on the spreadsheet. I then go to streetview and find it, I then copy a link to it into the spreadsheet. Then I go into aerial view to look around: what's behind it, what's beside it, what's around. I see the nearest bus stops and note the bus route numbers on the spreadsheet (I have 2 preferred bus routes in mind). I then note on the spreadsheet the start date, agent and price... next it's when did it last sell/how much for, get a link to any old listings for it. Only then do I actually look at the pictures

If I spot it's been removed from the market, I make a note on the spreadsheet. If it changes agents I group the entries together and make a note. When prices drop, I make a note. When a house has been sold I mark it grey. When it's completed I update the spreadsheet with the sold price and see how that varied from the starting price. I also mark those that were relisted quickly after last purchase and those that sold super fast.

If I've a house that makes it to the "Might View This" list, I then research that specific house. I jot down bus routes, nearest shops, how far to Asda and any other information relevant to that house, or that road, or that area.

I'm also monitoring facebook and newspapers and the police to get a feel for the sort of oddities and happenings in an area. I google the address and see what it yields. e.g. before a viewing I'll probably have seen a photo of the current owner and know what they do for a living

I also check height above sea level, for flooding - and check that on three resources. I check how much the house might be worth, using zoopla... which is meaningless but I do it anyway. I also see on zoopla if it's likely to have been rented out at any point and how much for.

And only then ..... does it make the "might do" list. I then do a drive by of the "might do" list when I am out viewing something else. If it passes the drive by test it'll get viewed.



OCD? Never.

PasturesNew

Farway wrote: »

.... just a quick query, why do you not use the shop / brand name and insert ** , !! or a number in suitable spots if you do not want tu use full name? 4sda for instance. Only asking as I rack my brain sometimes trying to figure out the clues, still no idea what French branded one is:o

AndyCF wrote: »

To answer the question I'm not quite sure I think it is just me seeing what others are doing, sorry. , not trying to cause unintentional puzzles or mayhem!

I do it so things I say appear less frequently in Google results

The paranoid part of me says I feel less "trackable".... less omnipresent.

[Deleted User]

Making beef stew in SC today so thats a couple of days worth. If I needed to use up any of my pickles I would add (not all in the same dish) to my stews, gived an extra little zing.
Not seen the micro FB pies but I like the idea of mini pies with meatballs, could squash them down and then put pastry top and bottom for a pie, I would say either oven bake or if you have all singing dancing micro but on to bake in that, I know it takes longer but the pastry would be much nicer. I would be tempted to make a few smaller ones and then freezer either before cooking (defrost to cook later) or cook and then you could just zap them already cooked when you want. Could add a few peas or tinned peas/carrots - they are soft - inside the pies. I like this because as a singlton I do not buy pies but like them.

AndyCF

@PN, I'd assumed the renaming was to avoid any advertising type rules here but it makes sense in a way too.

A cynic (not me) might say that attempt a few years back at compulsory ID cards, they actually did get it as nearly everyone has a phone now and chances are it is registered to said person... I'm not fussed either way personally.

I still have my paper driving licence, I wanted to change it to a photo one but they told me I would (as well as paying for a photo obviously) give them about £20 for the privilege so I left it, its still valid. My thoughts on this are "you want me to have it so I should not have to pay for something you want me to have" , paying for a photo was as far as I was willing to expend.

The rest of the post yes I fully understand. I am a bit like that too sometimes. The 'village' shop shop did not put me off as I knew someone who lived there and it was quiet (low crime) and the prices were half sensible. I think I may have to move further north however if/when I do move, simply to get a more sane price. The 'new' area was about 15-20 minutes away from here so not that far, so I would still of been within range of the major places.

Must confess I'd never actually thought about bus routes though. There is an online 'guide thing' but it does not appear to work as you would expect for here at least. It want's place names rather than road names for some reason.

OCD ? Nah. No more than me anyway.


@WHM Beefy stew sounds excellent. , yes that was the general thought with the meatball 'pie' , thinking of say 6 or 8 'Cherry Bakewell or other similar cake' type size. That way one meatball in each 'cup' (unsure of proper term for pie base, sorry) would likely suffice.