to be p***ed off with myself (and sainsbury's) for wasting money on unnecessary poncetastic food?

[GetOrfMoiCockroachCluster]

I blame the luxe foods aisle in Sainsbury's.

Last night I went there and wasted money on the following.

Rose Harissa paste - why? It sounds nice. But the last time I cooked anything 'rose' scented it tasted like those dodgy perfumes I used to make when I was 9.
Grissini. I spent £4 on breadsticks. I have never bought breadsticks in my life. Why did I buy these? Because the box looks pretty.
De Cecco pasta. Why I pay £1.50 for pasta as opposed to the Sainsbp's own for £75, god only knows. It is solely because the pasta is a prettier shape and the box will look nice in my cupboard.
A £8 bottle of balsamic vinegar. What has happened to my life when I spend the best part of a tenner on bloody vinegar but resent spending over a fiver on a bottle of wine.

I am an idiot.

oh lordy, this thread is making me want to buy de cecco pasta.

It is good. Especially the organic one. It is one of the few pastas that you can pop some leftovers in the fridge, then reheat and it still tastes really noce.

Agree re. De cecco - it's wonderful.

Gerorfmoi I make a lovely lamb tagine using that Ras el hanout stuff. I make a pomegranate relish to go with it too. It's delish.

ooh pomegranate relish sounds lovely. Must try the harissa, it is looking at me balefully from the cupboard.

I wonder what nonsense food I will be buying the next time I go to the shop. I am suporised that I haven't yet bought all the sushi stuff which they sell.

Getorf, it's fab and soooo easy to make. Stick a tin of chopped toms in a frying pan with however much harissa you fancy to make it as spicy as you like, reduce down for 10 mins or so, till all the watery stuff is gone and add in prawns. Serve on couscous with feta crumbled on top.

It takes 20 mins max and is really yummy.

I quite often spend £4 on breadsticks - but I buy 10 boxes at a time DH and DS snack on them and fight over the round ends Posh food here, as you can tell

Weird. I've just come back from the Italian deli and am eating a takeaway pizza as I type.

The woman next to me asked how much the breadsticks were (hanging from the ceiling in a charming Italian deli kind of way).

They were four English pounds and ninety-nine of our pennies .

She bought one. I don't know whether she was rich or just too embarrassed to tell him to put them back.

I'm with everyone else on the De Cecco pasta though.

one breadstick?!

You can make it from proper pomegranates if you want but I can't be bothered with all the chopping so I use the preprepared stuff.

Slice a red onion very finely and soak in 200ml lime juice and 200ml pomegranate juice for 20 mins. Pour away juice, add onion to pack pomegranate seeds and chopped coriander.

That's it. It's yummy with a tagine.

Stealth, was that a question for me?

No, it was a packet, but still.

(Pictures single bread sticks suspended in the breeze like wind chimes)

Yes, it was! £4.99 for a box is still ridiculous but I feel slightly less faint

Cosmosis and Sunshinemummy - you lovely pair. Both of those recipes sound utterly lovely (and simple) - I will try them this weekend.

Can imagine the look on DP and DD's faces as they look at this newly cooked delight and look a bit blank (thinking 'what the hell is this, it's Saturday, where's our pizza?).

Thank you very much for the recipe.

Lol also at the idea of single breadtsicks fluttering lightly in the breeze...

I'm very impressed at how much you spent on breadsticks. Even in Waitrose they are only 49p!

But you are definitely NBU to buy De Cecco pasta. I bought lots last time it was on the offer and we've just reached the end of one shape. Going back to boring old own brand really feels like we're slumming it.