Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend

Suffolk_lass

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82163197#Comment_82163197

I've popped the 2027 link in my signature now - it doesn't just have to be what we grow to eat seeds, plantlets and over-wintering are all interesting - it would be great if you have a bit of time to share what you do there

foxgloves

Thanks, @Suffolk_lass. I've had a look & that thread looks like my kind of thing. It might not help my attempts to spend less time online though!

foxgloves

Heating came on again for a very short time this morning but has stayed off ever since, which I encouraged by overriding the thermostat again as I was busy with kitchen witchery & plenty hot enough. We had a deluge earlier but the sun is now streaming through the front windows - free solar heating! Anyway, today's efforts on the budget-friendly front:

*Froze remaining portions of the curried mince & peas I slow cooked yesterday.

Then needed to deal with some of our produce so...

*Made blackberry & pear compote & froze for our Boxing Day trifle (I don't know whether you'll be impressed with that or I'll be fighting off brickbats, lol)

*Baked pear & cinnamon cake - old recipe calls it a 'tea loaf' but I think it's more cakey than that. Anyway, the main point is that it used up 2 more pears.

*Tomato ripening tray now disbanded. Ripe ones to fridge & the really intransigent die-hard green ones are now in a paper bag in the pantry until they finally ripen (kind of the naughty step for tomatoes).

*Cut a bunch of sorrel as Mr F requested sorrel soup, which he very much likes. I use the cream of watercress recipe from the Cranks book, but sub in sorrel instead of watercress. That made use of both a free resource (the sorrel) & surplus milk.

*Garden day planned for tomorrow. Mr F asked me if I will be doing any jobs which require his help & I've suggested he prioritise his long term project so as to get it done before Winter if at all possible. He seemed pleased with that, so I will get on with my plans to harvest all the last of this year's edibles which need to come out, then chop up the plants for the compost bins.

*Started discussing what food to grow next year - Mr F keen to get a diagram sketched out as he will be planting our garlic & shallots at the end of this month & is also hoping the bean frame will serve us a 2nd year in situe (it will).

It's my cooking night (mushroom stroganoff) but the afternoon is still young so time for a couple of chapters of my book.

F x

P.S Was pleased to see a Highways tanker wend its way up our street this morning - they were rodding drains, then putting a big vacuum cleaner-type pipe down them to de-gunk. As we a very flood-prone village, I was pleased to see this happening.

PennysIntoPounds

That's a relief to see, we only see any work on drains around here when Thames do emergency work with flashing lights and vehicle sounds in the middle of the night 🙄

2Scratters

Popping in to say am quite chuffed with myself this week as I have finally got round to "working" in the new kitchen (it's still not quite finished) This has also highlighted where all my baking and cooking stuff is. I think it is in not the best place but the change over for now will have to wait.

I had made the loaf of bread earlier in the that I made into 2 as I panicked a bit about it not going to fit in one tin. Yesterday I made some rhubarb jam. 2 jars already gone to neighbours. I was also activated by you @foxgloves of the mince and pea curry which I made and turned out was tasty but I actually made 2 naan breads. Never have I done that before. Neighbour had popped round with a new tool (pizza/dough cutter) for me which we had ordered the day before and it went straight into action☺️. She had never tasted curry and was wanting to test it, a small portion was divvied up once she'd mixed the curry with the rice established it was easier and calmer to eat and complimented the naan too. We will be on the same for tonight tea so no worrying about that and giving me time to do another bake/cook session. Onwards and upwards 😋

2 Scratters xx

Makingabobor2

@2Scratters I need to move all my baking stuff around as well. I feel I'm not doing as much because its such a faff to get to stuff & its all in different cupboards. I just cant get down to the back of the bottom cupboards very easily

kayannie

My kitchen is a very long work in progress at the moment ( being updated by OH as & when he's in the mood, which isn't very often!). My larder cupboard has been taken out & I am constantly re-organising my baking tins, saucepans etc. At the moment they're in a dark bottom cupboard that goes round a corner. I bought a small lamp last week from Bee&Em for £8. It's self adhesive & works by sensor, so when I open the cupboard door, the light comes on & I can easily see what I want.

PennysIntoPounds

@Makingabobor2 I don't know how expensive it would be to get them individually fitted but we have a swing-out shelf at the top and bottom of our corner cupboard so you don't have to go delving into The Depths, might be worth looking into

Makingabobor2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164625#Comment_82164625

Ooh that's worth a look

Suffolk_lass

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164308#Comment_82164308

I did a little upgrade to my bottom cupboards and swapped the ones with a drawer on top and cupboard under to a unit with three drawers - if your cupboards are 500mm or the more usual 600mm wide (or 900mm) you can do this as the Bulk and quality (orange) shed sells the internal drawer runner parts and drawer front drawers too. I was never going to get an exact colour match but the pattern on the doors is the same so I painted all the lower doors and changed the handles on mine. Everything is easy to get at and get out now, and my 20+ year old cabinets are still going strong and look new.