Make do, Mend and Minimise in 2017

YorksLass · 5 February 2017 at 4:41PM

RainbowHippie / Lynplatinum: Yep, my oven’s due for a much-needed clean too. I think it will have to go on this week’s “to do” list.

Lynplatinum: Make do: DS1 + GF are not sure when they will be back .... meal plan is up the swannee .... so much fresh food in to eat that I am not sure what to eat up first!!!

Oh dear, I hope you managed to salvage the meal plan and use up/freeze the fresh food!

Siebrie: Well done to DD for making her own veg soup (useful life skills). On the subject of using up the celery, I freeze it. I don’t like it raw so when I buy any, I take off some stalks for DH and stand them in a glass of water in the fridge. The rest gets chopped up and frozen (no need to blanch first) for soups, casseroles, risottos etc. I also chop up the leaves and freeze in little pots of water, good for flavouring.

Perryface: Does anyone know the cheapest place to get soft chunky wool from?

Suggestions - try Freecycle for your area / a trip to the CS or a market, if you have one near you? Lots of online outlets (google “cheap knitting yarn and UK online suppliers) but beware, you may need to pay p&p. If you already have some yarn, how about using more than one strand together of a thinner wool to make up the required thickness?

Did a small shop on Friday at Sainsbobs; a whole chicken, some fresh veg, a few store cupboard things and 2 YS items for a total of under £24 and got some extra loyalty points too (wow, I have nearly £120 on my card:j) The store is still being refurbished and even more items have moved home:mad:. And I noticed yet more price increases; we did the Grocery Downsize Challenge quite some time ago and now buy value/basic items regularly, but even these are beginning to creep up (eg cornflakes up 15p for a 500g bag).:( We did have a Netto until last year but that’s now an Arg*s – useful, but no good for food!

We got our latest energy statement last week and surprise, surprise – we’re £44.50 in credit. I say surprise because since last Oct our supplier (nP) has been exhorting us to put up our monthly DD (which I’ve refused). And despite being in credit, they are still saying we could owe them £150+ at our next annual review in May!!! I know they’re increasing prices next month for standard variable rates but we’re on a fixed price tariff until the end of Aug so that doesn’t cut any ice.

Bye for now, off now to finish sewing DGS3’s knitted jacket while the chook’s cooking. Hope you all enjoy what’s left of the weekend and will catch up with you all next week.

Treasurequeen · 5 February 2017 at 4:43PM

Have had two NSD this week. Does anyone have any ideas of what to do with a whole pot of sour cream. I got given the pot from my mum but I haven't got any chilli Con carne to use it on the use by date us 8th Feb. I'm slowly going through all of my chocolate I got given as gifts for Christmas my salad drawer resembles a chocolate factory.

Making do with food from the freezer today as I don't feel like going out. Tomorrow i have my craft class,I have signed up to knitting/sewing classes so that I can learn how to mend and make my own clothes etc. The classes aren't free but in the long run will be worth it.

Minimised some of my jewellery making stash as I am teaching how to make jewellery with the people living in my council housing village.

YorksLass · 5 February 2017 at 5:07PM

Treasurequeen: what to do with a whole pot of sour cream

Stir into a casserole, make a sauce, use as a dessert topping (add some brown sugar), use to bake muffins, scones or in a quick bread recipe, make a dip (add your own seasonings), add to cooked pasta, whisk into scrambled eggs, use in a sandwich in place of mayo, as a topping for baked potato ......:)

CAZBEAR · 5 February 2017 at 7:18PM

Hi all

Minimized the christmas baking leftovers and last nights leftover(!!) cider with a cider cake..i haven't tried it before but it looks nice...the fruit plumps up soaking in the cider overnight..
Also used up some ys jelly sachets and ys grapes making jelly pots for taster night at Slimming world tomorrow..i'd frozen the grapes so they made the jelly set quicker:) and leftover custard on some for little trifles for pud today, with some squirty cream and sprinkles yum !:D

Had a nice walk in the cold but sunny afternoon so hopefully minimized me a bit before weigh-in ...if i can leave the cake alone !!
Sadly,minimising my finances with the gas bill for the winter quarter now though:eek:
Hope you all have a good week

[Deleted User] · 5 February 2017 at 10:49PM

Realised just now that I have a really inexpensive week ahead foodwise
Sunday (today) dinner at DDs, came home with enough left over beef and veg for Monday nights dinner

Tuesday out to birthday dinner at DDs:)
Wednesday Freebie main meal at Beefeater pub
Thursday Out to dinner at sis-in-laws
Friday freezer diving for dinner
Saturday " " " " " " "

So virtually a week of NSDs and hardly any cooking

:):) a nice boost to my February food budget

I also have a voucher for Dobbies for a pot of tea for two with two fresh cream scones , Going to be a very relaxing week this week

:):)

JackieO xx

misstara · 6 February 2017 at 8:47AM

Morning MMMers

Had a day off yesterday so prepped this weeks meals.
Tonight - chicken curry which used up various bottom of the fridge veg, will just need to make some rice
Tomorrow - baked tatties, also boiled eggs ready for the filling
Wednesday - YS gammon steak, wedges and parsnips. I cooked extra wedges and all of the parsnips so they have been frozen for future meals.
Then away on Thursday for a family wedding.

Our new kitchen is pretty small with little storage and I was planning to buy a tall thin unit to fit in a gap beside the fridge. I realised yesterday that by moving the fridge 3cm to the left, I could fit in two units that we already have (one sitting on top of the other). I also moved all the herbs and spices to on top of it which has freed up more worktop space.

cafelady · 6 February 2017 at 6:28PM

Hello all. Not posted for a while but been busy mmm-ing...

Made do - had no carrot for coleslaw last week so improvised with raw, grated beetroot and it was actually very nice.

Minimised the remainder of the beetroots (from veg box 2 weeks ago) by boiling and pickling them in vinegar. Also minimised yesterday's leftover chicken, and the dregs of some double cream from the weekend, into the chicken pie filling for tonight's dinner, and added half a green pepper that needs using up. Also minimised some of last year's miniature onions (walking onions, they grow mini onions from the top of the plant, not underground) out of the freezer into the chicken pie.

Mend - nothing much but planning to mend a sock this evening.

Hope everyone is well. I'm enjoying following all your mmm-ing adventures!

[Deleted User] · 6 February 2017 at 7:52PM

Hi Ya chums had a brilliant day today .My best friend June phoned me this morning and said how about meeting up for coffee at Bluewater ,so after I let DDs dogs out for 10 minutes at lunchtime I toddled off there .She has made a great job bless her of machining my two throws together that I had for my sofa, and they look brilliant tonight We had a great natter and coffee and large chocolate eclairs each ,very naughty but so nice .

When I eventually got home I decided I really didn't feel hungry enough to have the left overs from yesterdays dinner that DD gave me to take home so I did this
there were
5-6 small roast spuds
half a dozen cooked carrots
three and a bit slices of roast beef.
So I stuck the roasties in my mini grater and grated them up. put to one side
.Then minced up the beef and put to one side
Cut the cooked carrots up .
The broccoli has been covered and put back into the fridge : for tomorrow
Got a handful of diced onion from the freezer and chucked into a small saucepan,once they had caramelised to a nice golden colour, diced up three weary looking mushrooms that were hiding at the back of the fridge and chucked them in to slowly cook through.

Then put the minced beef in with an oxo cube and some bisto gravy made up to about a quarter of a pint.set that to simmer .

Then into another saucepan I put the minced up roast spuds with a dollop of butter and the left over yarg cheese that was in the fridge (its garlic flavoured so lots of flavour),put that on a low heat and as the butter and cheese melted through it I mashed the spuds up to a sort of crumbly mash with a bit of dried stuffing for crunch

Once the meat and mushrooms and onion were on a slow bubble I added the diced up left over carrots in with the meat mix and cooked for about ten minutes.
Then found two small oval glass pyrex pie dishes and split the mix between the two like a cottage pie mix ,topped one of them with the spud mix and the other I have left.

Once cool I will have a mini cottage pie to go into the freezer and the other one is enough to top a jacket spud .So streetched one meal into two

As I am out until Friday before I am cooking in the evening, one of those will be dug out of the freezer for then leaving me with another meal for one night next week

:):)

I am still full up from my mid afternoon chocolate eclairs so I shan't want much tonight ,maybe have some HM soup later as I have plenty in the fridge that I made on Saturday from the wonky carrots with coriander added.
The left over broccoli I will possibly have for lunch tomorrow with a poached egg on top

Every scrap has been used up, and I have two spare meals and if I add a poached egg to the broccoli I will have another meal all made from a plate of left overs

Now that's what I call making do

By the way my friend gave me half a pot of peanut butter that she didn't need ,any ideas of what I can make with it as I don't eat bread so I can't have a peanut butter sandwich its rather nice looking organic stuff that she had bought at Christmas and said if I can use it all the better, as she had only got it in for visitors over the holiday. So any thought on what I can do with it

I just hate wasting anything

JackieO xx

Floss · 6 February 2017 at 8:24PM

Jackie Peanut butter cookies for your DGSs?

silvasava · 6 February 2017 at 9:19PM

Satay sauce with leftover chicken?

Did roast pork yesterday. DH did a big pot of spuds so roasted them all and had plenty left to do another roast for today. Just reheated some s!ices of pork in the leftover gravy and added some frozen veg to make us both another meal. There's still a good amount of pork left so will turn it into a curry for another time. Have one large leek left too so will make some leek and potato soup tomorrow with some of my hoard of chicken stock from the freezer.
That's all I've done on the make do and minimise front - no mending today!

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Make do, Mend and Minimise in 2017

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