May 2008 Grocery Challenge

BigMummaF

Oh I thought I was being soooo clever yesterday, but y'know what they say about falling pride....I had the whole of Longleat last night:(

No1 had requested spag bol earlier in the week; had some lush butcher's mince so :think: be ideal to 'hide' the secret extras in; added grated carrot & bunged it in the SC so I wouldn't have to worry about it till later then added oats & lentils.........bleurgh_pale_ It was the first attempt at SC bol, so when I added the basil & bay leaves, I thought the taste would develope:o Plus I used a tube of tom puree where I normally have a tin, & somehow it didn't seem to make the 'gravy' as 'red'....still, Pup enjoyed his onion-less version.

I have to buy Fairy WUL or stuff that looks like it usually MrA 2-4-£1 & Laundry Liquid, & have to be careful with things like liqid soap, bath/shower stuff & shampoo because anything else makes three of us sneeze, itch or both. But I've successfuly doubled everything without affecting the quality. HTH JennyBee.

Are "our" recipes on those threads BOB--do hope so:cheesy:

Any luck with the malt extract MrsM? I've been in a couple of chemists too, but not thought to ask....would you like me to get some & forward it out? Also, about your fizzy water...they still make Soda Stream & my only regret with mine is the diddly size of the bottle! It's 250ml & I could easily guzzle a gallon, but no matter:laugh:

Tried the dodgy receipt at MrT & it's the way they print the totals that makes it look like the coupons didn't come off--ce la vie!

boredofbeingathome

Afternoon all. so far I have managed to spend £36 on shopping as freezer was quite full and there have been a few birthdays,so food at someone elses expense ..well barbecues really, which has been nice.
I am going to put some bread in the breadmaker, and have a look at some of the recipes which may fit in with sw plan, although most do.
I have had a re jig of my garden, inspired by the lovely Mrs McM, and will start to grow some veg.Off to update my sig.

mumzyof2

Afternoon all i have spent some money today on food for over the weekend while im at my sisters i will update later on

gingernutbizkit

Hi,

Just made a large batch of bolognese and bulked it out with carrots as someone had suggested on here. I wanted to see how far I could make it go. I used the following:

1kg lean beef £2.50 (put the other one that I bought on offer in the freezer)
1/2 bag carrots 25p
1/2 bag onions 50p
frozen bag mushrooms 70p
2 tins chop. toms 44p
passata with garlic/herbs 75p
some tom. paste 10p

Total cost was £5.24. Out of that I have 5 portions of bolognese and 6 portions of shepherds pie (just need the mash topping). That's 47p per portion!!! :T

Any tips on making it go even further?

Ginger x

MRSMCAWBER

Afternoon all

BigmummaF...nope... no malt extract :rolleyes: ..still i guess i can survive without it ....thanks for offering to send me some but i will hold on and get my brother to bring me some in his luggage at xmas

Dink 1..

chelsea buns
makes 16

1. 1/2 cup warm water
2. 1/2 cup warm milk
3. 1 med egg -beaten
4. 75g melted butter
5. 3tbs caster sugar
6. 1/2tsp salt
7. 3 1/2 cups bread flour
8. 2tsp yeast..or approx 14g fresh if hand making

filling

1. 50g melted butter
2. 100g raisins
3. 50g mixed peel
4. 4tbs caster sugar
5. milk for glazing

• place all the dough ingredients in the machine according to instructions and set to "dough"
• roll out on a lightly floured surface to approx 14" x 9"
• brush over with melted butter -not quite to the edges
• sprinkle over raisins, peel and 3tbs sugar
• taking the long edge..roll so filling is enclose
• pinch along edge to seal
• using a sharp knife cut into 16 slices
• place in a well buttered 9" square tin -cut side up
• cover with oiled cling film -or a carrier bag
• leave ti prove until doubled in size
• brush over with milk and sprinkle the remaining sugar over
• bake for 15-20 mins at 220c/425f/gas 7

If doing the dough by hand..

• tip the flour and salt (and yeast if dried)into a bowl and make a well in the centre
• add all other ingredients and mix to form a smooth dough..knead for a couple of minutes and then continue by rolling out

if using fresh yeast.... throw flour and salt in a bowl... mix milk, water, yeast and sugar -pour into well then add egg and butter and mix to a dough

hope that waffle makes sense

BigMummaF

Forgot to say that when we have days out, I try to remember to put bottles of ready-to-drink squash in the freezer the night before, to use as cooler packs for the sarnies. If you don't need/want the bottles to reuse you don't have to bring them home either, along with the bread bags that are used to put the goodies into:p Neither of the packaging has cost extra, cuz you've had the squash & bread from the insides & would've only thrown them out anyway.

I usually take plain b&b, then have little plastic boxes with sliced cue, toms, onions, lettuce so peeps can make any combo they wish, along with cooked chicken wings, sausages & sliced cheese if we are being transported. Otherwise, we choose a filling each then have a back-pack with afore-mentioned bottle & share the load equally but share the goodies IYSWIM.

Re: woofers! Ours has just stuck his nose into an empty doritos pack that one of the offspring left on the side---couldn't see his eyes; just a pair of ears sticking out the top:rotfl: He too loves to lick the lids & pots of yogs, but not keen on the rhubarb or blueberry I got last week..fussy beg-gar:p




Just wanted to say that the folk with other things on their minds shouldn't feel they have to explain the hiccoughs they are having:o Wishing all poorly peeps well, & their families too.

Pink.

Bargain_Rzl wrote: »

Just been doing an inventory (from memory!) of what's in the freezer, and coming up with things to make with them.

Among my whoopsie bargains last weekend at Asda were a couple of bits of smoked cod, totalling about 580g if my memory serves.

Am thinking about kedgeree now.

Anybody got a failsafe, uncomplicated recipe?

I cook the rice as normal in salted water then rinse it under a cold tap until it's cold.

Hardboil two eggs and when cool, peel and quarter them.

Poach the fish in water with a couple of bay leaves until it's cooked and when it's cool enough flake into chunks.

Then melt some butter in a pan, and gently cook a medium onion and a clove of garlic until they are soft. Add a couple of teaspoons of curry powder and a glug of lemon juice and cook for another minute or two.

Finally add the rice and flaked fish and heat gently until it's piping hot. Stir in a good handful of parsley or corriander and some peas if you want.

Top with the hardboiled eggs.

If I'm feeling flush I add some prawns too.

Pink

MRSMCAWBER

Gingernut..... shove porridge oats in it

B O B.... wish i could send you some plants im running out of pots and space:eek: planted 11 cumber plants out today still have another 3 to do :rotfl: well i didn't expect them all to germinate..but they did and im now up to 62 parsnips peeping through..oh and 8 butternut squash plants made it too :rolleyes: .... could do with invading the empty garden next door right back off out doors ...loads to do ...

angelnikki

gingernutbizkit wrote: »

Hi,

Just made a large batch of bolognese and bulked it out with carrots as someone had suggested on here. I wanted to see how far I could make it go. I used the following:

1kg lean beef £2.50 (put the other one that I bought on offer in the freezer)
1/2 bag carrots 25p
1/2 bag onions 50p
frozen bag mushrooms 70p
2 tins chop. toms 44p
passata with garlic/herbs 75p
some tom. paste 10p

Total cost was £5.24. Out of that I have 5 portions of bolognese and 6 portions of shepherds pie (just need the mash topping). That's 47p per portion!!! :T

Any tips on making it go even further?

Ginger x

Add a couple of handfuls of oats and a couple of handfuls of red split lentils to bulk out further. Use the plain passata (29p) and add some dried herbs yourself instead HTH

Nikki
x

Bargain_Rzl

MRSMCAWBER wrote: »

Gingernut..... shove porridge oats in it

MrsM, that's not a very nice thing to say to gingernut :rotfl:

Pink-winged - thanks :A Any idea of the proportions of ingredients? (the rice and fish, mainly - you've been quite specific about the rest)