From Frugal Foundations to Fortified Family Future

LotsOfTea

I'm very much a lurker on this thread but I love reading it and just wanted to say thank you for sharing the recipes you use. I will definitely be trying the lentil soup and the steamed pudding. I've never made a steamed pudding before because it's seemed like too much faff but doing one in the slow cooker is a genius idea. 

rtandon27

GP, I to am in awe that you got LG to do homework in the morning!  Having never been a morning person myself, I would have kicked and screamed & tbh probably still would at having to do anything other than shower first thing!

Greying_Pilgrim

rtandon27 said:

GP, I to am in awe that you got LG to do homework in the morning!  Having never been a morning person myself, I would have kicked and screamed & tbh probably still would at having to do anything other than shower first thing!

Ah sweetie, that's probably because although I do the 'groundwork', it is time for LG to spend with their beloved papa, showing DH how 'clever' (?) they are.  The incentive is moderate.  I'm not saying that LG jumps out of bed and strides straight into Latin past-participle possessive adjunct verbs......... (can you tell I made that up?🤣), but they have been doing their best for a while now.  It's harder to get things done after school.  We're either met with "whatever calamity happened at school today" - which we have to unpack and sort through and sooth furrowed brows, or hurt feelings or whatever, or I get the "I'm too tired'....... so we're lucky to achieve anything at anytime of the day 🤣

Right, I am back from shopping.  Getting so little took soooooo long.  I ain't gonna be shopping for entertainment in February - no sireee. 

So I went to our MrT.  The shop is quite a large one - not humungous, but big.  It was nice and quiet - which I thought was because I was a bit early, but I think I have now discovered that it's because it's so expensive......  I cheered myself up looking through the YS'd produce - and there was nothing that was any cheaper than I would pay 'proper' price for, elsewhere.  So that was a non-starter.  I did have a rootle through their 'practically imperfect' carrots which are 79p for 1.5kg - same as MrAl, and sometimes MrL have those bags, so I was pleased with that.  Then things got difficult in the fridge section - MrT is far more expensive than MrL on olive spread and baking spread - I couldn't bring myself to spend the extra money, so I bought their own brand 'buttery' spread, and left the baking fat where it was.  I then found that MrT (well, our store at least) don't appear to stock an 'own brand' tomato puree (they used to).  It was all the expensive brands, so I left those on the shelf. I did manage to get wholemeal  bread, which looked OK, and was priced to match MrAl and it also matches MrL. My shop total in MrT came to £12.57 - I used four vouchers and 7p cash.  

I then went to the little MrL, which is around the corner.  I was only going to buy baking spread, a swede and tomato puree, but ended up getting a net of easy peelers (1kg) in the PoTW, the baking spread, tomato puree, a bag of parsnips and a big jar of Bran$t0n pickle.  I was pleased I had held off the baking fat in MrT - as MrL was 31p cheaper - quite a saving. The pickle wasn't entirely needed n.o.w.  However, as it was quiet, and I hadn't been in that store for a while, I took a wander down the 'jumble sale' foodstuffs aisle.  I noticed that these big jars of B. pickle - which had advertising for a n3tfl1x christmas film/programme were reduced from £1.89 to £1.19 - original or small chunk.  Now DH has pickle on his cheese sangers (everyday 🙄), and I pay £1.19 for the 390g bAtTs brand in MrL.  These B. Pickle jars were 520g, BB Sep 2026, and as luck would have it, there was ONE jar of the small chunk variety left!  How lucky me, eh?  They were however, all out of swedes, so I didn't get everything on my list, but spent £5.90 cash.  

I then went over to the industrial estate where foodsfarm is located, and had a wander around there, as I was after some portioned frozen Ginger - no dice, had to make do with ginger/garlic.  But i did spot a 7.5kg sack of Wilja tatties for £3.99 (unwashed).  I ummed and ahhed, and decided to buy a sack.  I don't know if it was the right choice, it represents a saving of about 14p per kilo versus the washed 2kg bags I have been buying in the supermarket - and I had already bought 2kg in MrT.  I have to say, if they had been an 'unknown' variety, I wouldn't have bothered, but as they were labelled 'Wilja', I took a punt.  They are a product of Lancashire - so they've got to be reet, right?  I spent £4.98 cash in foodsfarm.

So, as it stands, I have spent £12.50 of my £28.50 MrT vouchers, and £10.95 in cash........    Ho hum.  It's gonna be a looooooonnnng month.  Shopping in MrT today for "ordinary" things - fruit & veg, tinned tommies, etc etc, I was struck by how much their range has shrunk.  The 'Valoo' end of the market is limited to a few items (in comparison), and you have to know to look for 'sT0ckwell', or "gr0wers harVest! or whatever.  It was far easier in the blue & white stripey days - eh bluegreen?  And even their 'own brand' range didn't cover some things like they used to.  They did have swedes, but they were nowt but radishes with attitude - and priced like everywhere else.  

I shall have to see if I can somehow work it that I only need to shop once more in MrT for Feb.  And I might take a punt and go to the humungous store in the cosmopolitan town along the way, although I'm not convinced it would be worth the fuel cost.  Will give it some thought.  The 'World Foods' bit (it's not even an aisle) in our store is woeful, and there were no bargains to be had in terms of pulses.  There were some offers on rice, but they were matching (pricewise) the same brand 10kg bag I bought from MrS several weeks ago.  

It's LG's club night tonight, so tea will be summat quick and easy as we all eat at different times.  

I'm away to adjust my siggie - I'm moving over to February spending/figures, as I didn't buy anything today that will be consumed today, or tomorrow, so let's get this show on the road......... 😬

Ta for popping in and for the convos - appreciated.

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

LotsOfTea - I'd say go for it with the recipes.  In my (very) humble opinion, it is well worth adding in the vinegar with the lentil soup.  I think the recipe says red wine vinegar, but I used white wine vinegar, and really any palatable vinegar would do - OR lemon juice.  It's the acidity that just makes the soup 'sing' somehow.  But obvs don't buy a bottle of vinegar that you don't need/wouldn't use again.  I've certainly used the little conkers recipe a few times now (only once with a plastic pudding bowl), and each pudding has been a success and far less steam created.  I know steam puddings are 'ordinary' food, but I'm far more likely to make one for a 'soup and pud' night than I was before I found the SC recipe. 

Greying X

badmemory

I know exactly what tou mean about MrT.  When I worked I used to do all my shop there & it wasn't too bad, now I am pretty much down to milk & decaff coke.  As for the tomato puree they used to sell 3, cheap, middle & ridiculous.  The cheap disappeared a few months ago, followed soon after by middle & now they just have ridiculous.  They did say they were going to cut down on the number of items they sold.  I suspect mine is due for a refurb as their fridges & freezers are breaking down on a weekly basis.

far_to_go

Hello

Long time lurker here. I love reading about your daily "doings". The problems with tomato puree go back a couple of months when it was found they were using Chinese tomato products but labelling it as Italian. Not just at Tesco, and it rapidly disappeared from all offending stores. I don’t think Sainsburys was affected at all  and I recently got some for a good price from Ocado, so it is starting to reappear now, hopefully back in all stores soon. Hope you can find some soon at a price not too eye watering.

kayannie

rtandon27 said:

Wow GP - that steamed pudding looks a treat!  I am well impressed as I'd not have the patience to wait 4 hours for chocolate!

ETA - now OH is pining over steamed pudding - food of his youth!

My mum used to make a steamed apple pudding - she steamed it for hours & when she turned it out the apples were pink & luscious!  I have never been able to make one as good as mum's!
KA

Suffolksue

Now I want a steamed pudding !

Greying_Pilgrim

Suffolksue said:

Now I want a steamed pudding !

Soz for projecting that 'yumminess thought' onto everyone's tummy rumbles radar...... 😟🤣🤣

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

far_to_go said:

....... The problems with tomato puree go back a couple of months when it was found they were using Chinese tomato products but labelling it as Italian. Not just at Tesco, and it rapidly disappeared from all offending stores. I don’t think Sainsburys was affected at all  and I recently got some for a good price from Ocado, so it is starting to reappear now, hopefully back in all stores soon. Hope you can find some soon at a price not too eye watering.

Thank you far_to_go - I hadn't heard that about the puree, although it's entirely plausible, and there wasn't even a 'space' for any other (cheaper) puree on the shelf in our MrT.  Food descriptors and sourcing is all smoke and mirrors.  You did prompt me to look at the puree i had bought in MrL.  I don't know if I'm anymore comforted by the fact i now know that (apparently), it is produced in Italy, using EU and non-EU tomatoes..........Probably just a new type of word salad to provide similarly vague info so that the consumer is none the wiser.

LG is at club.  I made omlette for tea.  DH and I had a baked tattie and beans with.  The baked tattie was from the bag I bought in MrT today - as there were 4 largish potatoes in the bag.  I think the variety were 'Melody' iirc.  They baked beautifully in the microwave anyway, and tasted of tattie.

I got the washing in after the school run.  Not bone dry, but certainly 'dry' by winter days standards.  There was a reasonable breeze - especially this afternoon, and we had sun (which does at least hit 'bits' of the garden, at certain times of the day again, now).  I've put it all on the airer and it's in front of the radiator.  

I don't know if today has inspired me, or scared me witless in terms of my February grocery challenge.  I mean, I know prices have risen, but when did MrT get so expensive?  Just one thing I had noticed - mushrooms - unless MrT packet sizes are different??? were 20p, 30p dearer than MrL and MrAl - I couldn't justify paying the difference, same with the olive bread spread and baking fat.  No wonder I haven't shopped in MrT (for the 'weekly shop') for in excess of 10 years.  But that won't stretch my vouchers any.  I did have a look at the YS'd bread products too, but nothing seemed to have had much more than tuppence taken off it.  

Never mind.  Tomorrow is another day, and today has been good - washing dried, some shopping got and LG seems to have had an 'okay' day at school.  Pretty spiffy I think.  

Ta for popping in and continuing the conversation.  Appreciated. 

Greying X