Live on £4000 for a year - Part 2

Marru

Hi,

I don't know if there is a weekly nominations but there is monthly one. Here is the link to nominate post of May: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=894785

Poobums I contacted my local council for the financial support for my studies and they said that as I am studying NVQ3 level course I won't be part of the scheme as they only support Hnds, degrees etc. And If I wished to study for degree I wouldn't be qualified as I already have a Masters (the fact that it was aquired in a different country doesn't seem to matter). So off to call the tax credits now. Wish me luck.

Marru

Nyk - thank you for the giggle re jaffacake and thank you for making all the possible mistakes so that the rest of us can then avoid them

Nessa56

Originally Posted by nykmedia
Morning all! I'm desperate to get into the garden today as it's another scorcher, but I have so much to be done - work and in the kitchen as it's DS birthday and he'll be home at 4.

The giant jaffa cake - WHAT A FIASCO!
I took the flan out freezer last night and had the orange jelly setting overnight - a second jelly, as the first one I had made up to a pint and had added the fresh lime juice, forgetting it had to be lifted once set! Well, even the 3/4 pint mix was a near disaster! Has anyone tried to lift a set jelly out of a plate to turn it over and place it gently on top of a flan??? :eek: I ended up sitting the flan on top of the jelly and turning the whole lot upside down! Of course, the jelly was stuck to the plate, so wouldn't budge. I then righted it, sat the plate on an inch of very hot water to melt it from the plate and repeated above exercise. The jelly did come off the plate, but BEFORE I had fully turned the flan and top plate, so it landed with a squelch half on and half off the sponge! Yes! You got it! The giggles arrived! If anyone has tried to lift a jelly onto a sponge then you'll know what I mean when I say wrestling a jellyfish! I did, EVENTUALLY, get the thing to sit in place and it DID look OK, like the inside of a giant jaffa cake. That was until the chocolate arrived. I took great time and effort melting this slowly in a bowl sat on top rack of the steamer. The chocolate melted beautifully, it was like silk... UNTIL I tried to spread HOT CHOCOLATE over COLD JELLY! :eek: :eek: :rotfl: I never read that far - how does one spread hot chocolate on a cold jelly? It melted through the jelly and resulted in everything running off the side of the sponge! The more I tried to spread it out evenly, the more the hot chocolate melted the jelly and the cold jelly fast set the chocolate. I'm thinking my jelly wasn't thick enough and my chocolate wasn't setting quick enough. I now have a partially / patchy lumpy chocolate covered jelly mass atop a flan base and will need to let the whole thing set again before applying attempting a second layer of chocolate, which means I'll use the whole bar! It would have been so much easier to stick the whole thing in the freezer for a bit to get it really cold, but who bought 8 loaves of reduced bread yesterday???!!!

OK, I'm off to melt another lot of chocolate. NOBODY is getting to see this mess unless I can disguise it a bit more. :rotfl:

Crying, no howling with laughter :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Good luck

v

x

Prudent

NYK - feeling a bit fed up this afternoon, so much appreciated the jaffa cake story thanks

Frugaldom

Good afternoon my cheery frugalers, I am glad you could see the funny side to my catastrophic attempts at the giant jaffa cake. But don't go just yet, there's EVEN MORE fun to be had when you attempt one of these monstrosities!

After lovingly applying the second coat of chocolate using what was, prior to this event, known as my pastry brush, I did manage to cover over many of the cracks and holes. HOWEVER, hot melted chocolate being painted over cold lumpy chocolate that's perched precariously on top of multi-reconstituted jelly apparently makes for a very inviting place for bristles! YOU GOT IT! The melted chocolate was dragging the bristles right out of my (former) pastry brush! I kid you not, my mother would be so proud of my culinary skills if only she would stop laughing long enough to see that we all make mistakes. I was well trained in how to make kitchen mistages - thanks mum. Like instruction manuals, recipes are what accompany various ingredients, they aren't really meant to be read. So there you have it - the making of the amazing giant jaffa cake that looks more like it should be lying in a green field, on a hot sunny day, surrounded by a herd of cattle.

Throughout all of this stage, don't forget that DS loves jaffa cakes, so when he got home from work, his main concern was how the 'thing' tasted and not how it looked. (Kids learn these things as they grow up when given enough practice. ) Oh yes! Now the fun REALLY begins... must find the website again to see if it explains HOW YOU CUT THE THING!!! :eek: The use of a knife does NOT constitute 'serving it up' because when you apply any pressure, the cold chocolate practically explodes! You try to cut at one side and the entire other side lifts up into the air before shattering. This, in turn, sets the jelly free! That's when you start to spot the bristles you missed earlier and can't pull them out because they are set solid in chocolate!

My best advice for this particular 'cake', and I use the term very loosely, is go to the shop and buy a box of jaffa cakes. :rotfl:

It still tastes nice, though.

mumzyof2

NYK wouldnt it be easier and cheaper to buy a shops brand own jaffa cake? Even tho there small and your making a giant one. Im sure it would be cheaper

Marru

Oh Nyk - thank you so much. I have never laughed so much. My piggies are getting worried about me. Need to go and get DD but I will print your latest post and get it laminated and hang it in my office wall and when ever I am in a need of a proper laugh I shall re-read it. uh, my stomach hurts...

Edited: Mumzy - yes of course but not half as much fun!!!

culpepper

Excuse a sneaky lurker but I have to say....
love the jaffa cake-cake.
I suppose it could have been done by just topping the cake with lots of little jaffa cakes but it wouldnt have been half so impressive.
I bet your son remembers it for years.

mumzyof2

Evening all, Hope everyone is okay.
God i am glad that it is nearly the childrens (and my) bedtime
Had a busy day.. Went to take DS to nursery then into town..had a brew at my Ex's..then walked uphill to nursery and then home again. I then made toad in the hole but the batter (i made it) i forgot to add salt and pepper so it was a bit "plain" but kids ate it all. I have spent £2.49 so far since the 1st May on food and im away friday-sun babysitting for my sister (FREE unlimited internet there). I have also hoovered,put WM and dryer on, Washed tea plates up and showered both children, as i have another busy day tomorrow.. I have to drop DS at nursery at 9.15 then head to bank to pay my rent and then back to nursery and then head back in to towns way to go to my playgroup (they have a creche there 1-3pm and us mums just stick kids in creche while we drinks brews all FREE) by 11.30. Home again and cook Spag bol for me, DD, DS, and EX

guiri

I've just found this site and it's helped me already by getting my credit card rates reduced. I'd like to belatedly pick up the challenge, but when I looked at the first posting at the beginning it said that 'EVERYTHING except rent/mortgage, council tax/water rates' However, the two lifestyle examples that nykmedia gives seems to take off everything, including loan repayments, car running expenses etc. before the balance to live off. Which is correct?

whitewing

Hi guiri,

If you're anything like me (ie confused), just try not to spend anything, and ignore all your totals

Nyk or someone will link you into another post on our previous thread that explains it all. Great news about your credit card rates. Well done.