I'm back! Trying to spend less on food!

Katiehound

Aldi certainly used to have large packs of offcuts (haven't looked for them lately.) They varied between ham, chicken & beef- whatever was delivered. wasn't as cheap as £1 but still good value.

mumtoomany

Thank you for the good wishes. Stopped sneezing and my nose is no longer running but still got a cough. I seem to have had a cough for the last fifty years. 

Tea was enjoyed by all the adults and DGS, who never normally eats stir fry. DGDs did not eat it. 

@euronorris, the offcuts were from our local cash and carry and yellow stickered, so that's probably of not much use to you, sorry.

Hugs to all, mumtoomany.xxx

thriftwizard

Never thought of looking for offcuts in the cash & carry, but I certainly will next time I'm down there! We're still using up the odd tin of kidney beans from when we found trays, i.e. boxes of 12 tins, of them reduced to 99p each down there, though the chickpeas that we snapped up alongside them didn't make it through all the lockdowns.

My OH is coughing & snuffling again - it's a rough winter for it. But he works from home & only really goes out to (watch) football, so heaven knows where he picked it up this time. DD1 may have brought something home, perhaps?

mumtoomany

hi, @thriftwizard, ours also often sell giant tins, usually 1.2kgs of kidney beans, chickpeas, corn, etc. Need freezer space though for when they are opened, unless you really like kidney beans. 

Hugs, mumtoomany.xxx

mumtoomany

Happy Sunday everyone.

Quiet here, as DD and her family are all out. Been planting seeds for this year. Peas and mange tout, early ones I'll plant on in the tunnel. Trying some tomatoes and peppers on the windowsill, hoping to get a head start on them. The broad beans in the tunnel have flowers coming on them. The rhubarb is starting to poke it head out. Spring is on the way.

For tea last night I made a huge pan of bolognese with a pack of turkey mince I found lurking in the freezer. Bought Christmas eve 2021. Used some for tea, OH had some on toast for lunch, I had left over stir fry. The remainder has been boxed and fridged. I will add kidney beans and make chilli with it.

Today I'm making a sausage casserole and mash.

Hugs, mumtomany.xxx

mumtoomany

I'm back. 

The sausage casserole was good. Two packs of YS sausages, loads of carrots and onions, a parsnip and two sweet potatoes, because they had been in one of the veg boxes, left over peas, caulk and green beans, all found lurking in the fridge and some gravy granules. Served all seven of us for tea, OH had some for lunch yesterday and he and I will finish it for lunch today, (there are no sausages left, of course). 

Yesterday I made three huge pizzas, three bases from the cash and carry, 5p for eight. Some of the pizza sauce, the large reduced tin, some mozzarella, that I paid £1 per kilo for, lots of veg and some pepperoni. Served with salad and chips, (HM). There is one small piece left.

Today will be chicken and leek pie. The last of the farm foods chicken, with five leeks I dug up yesterday. Don't know what will by with it yet. I will make some cakes to cook while the pie is in the oven.

No money spent in February yet. 

Hugs to all, mumtoomany.xxx

Saver-upper

Awwwwww, mumtoomany, I think I'm just going to move in with you!
I have been reading your thread for a few weeks. The other night you said you were going to do sausage casserole. Immediately I started googling sausage casserole recipes, to make for my family's tea that night! Alas, needing to go shopping on the Monday, I didn't have too many any of the ingredients ( not even the basics, such as carrots, onions), so sausage sandwiches for tea it was!! But your meals are sooooooooo inspiring 

mumtoomany

Hello, @Saver-upper. I'm glad I'm inspiring people. I buy carrots and onions in bulk. I'm just finishing using the 19p ones from Aldi on Christmas eve. Next week, or later this week, I'll buy a bag of pony carrots. 10kgs for £2.50. They keep a long time in the bottom of the fridge, take them out of plastic first. Onions, I bought a sack a week or so ago. They live in the barn and I bring in a couple of kgs at a time.

Last night's chicken and leek pie was served with carrots and HG cabbage. Having fished the remaining vegetables out of the casserole, I used the remaining liquid/sauce as gravy on the pie. I also cooked two ginger cakes at the same time as the pie. Thank you @Fayolle, over on the flylady thread, for the idea.

Today the remaining bolognese will reappear as chilli. I've got some frozen kidney beans to add to it and some finely diced chillies, from the veg box the other week. Will be served with rice.

Hugs to all, mumtoomany.xxx

MissRikkiC

Enjoying reading along as I did your previous thread. Thanks for the inspiration to use up the fresh stuff from my fridge today and also the idea to stain the gravy from my cottage pie and serve it over. To soak up the lentils I disguised in it tonight’s cottage pie meant I needed more water so it was nice for the cottage pie to not be wet! 

mumtoomany

Hello, @MissRikkiC. Glad to be of service. 

Today, I've got a piece of pork shoulder out of the freezer. I'm going to put it in the slow cooker in a moment. Not sure how to serve out yet. Might do roast potatoes and veg, or I might make pulled pork in barbeque sauce. Watch this space.

Hugs, mumtoomany.xxx