Juggling July - Frugaleering into Summer

[roguepixie]

New thread for everyone here.

[SpangleMaker]

Kinky If your work is preferable to giving a presentation to a room full of techy types I'll go

Had a bit of a splurge yesterday on new nail varnish and a couple of Kindle books I want to read for work. £16 in total. I wouldn't have thought of that as a splurge not so long ago, so am slowly improving!

Homemade quiche is a filling but cheap meal, especially if you can get your head around making your own pastry. I'm not very good at it but I have a bash every now and again.

Welcome to all the new faces

[OodPi]

I'm hungry reading all these food ideas. Not got any bread in that I can eat bloody dh buying bargain bread instead of my bread
We often make our own , I use mixes but dh does it from scratch. Mix is still 50p cheaper than a loaf from the Co op though.
Making our own pizzas tonight. Value mozzarella is good am really missing cheese and we just use whatever veg/meat we have in the fridge. GB is a clove of garlic mixed in oil and drizzled on the bread so much cheaper than the shop.
Hoping for a NSD today as we don't even have toddlers but am not optimistic.

[wheredidiputit]

If we are having something with rice for dinner then I cook a bit extra (say one enough for one person. I normally do 80g dry weight per person). Then the next day I do egg fried rice.

1 portion of rice
1 chopped onion fried in a little veg oil
then any dying veg in the fridge - peppers, courgette.
a handful of frozen peas/sweetcorn.
1 egg person.
If I have any leftover pork or chicken or prawns I add about 150g.
Then a teaspoon of 5 spice and some soy sauce.

Once all veg are cooked and meat/fish heated through then I add the rice and egg (I cook before hand). Serve once everything is heated through.

This is very cheap as it only using bits and pieces which I used to bin as they were going over.

[takeaway2]

Hi checking in from half way across the world. I should be asleep.

NSD no 2! Friend's relative paid for lunch at airport and friend paid for taxi to our hotel. Even if I did spend it would have been claimed back but it was nice not having to open the purse.

Sorry about your pet interesting.

[MinimalistMommi]

I'm making pizza this afternoon in the Breadmaker and I'm going to serve it with carrots and peas. It's the second time we're eating it this week but I don't want to waste the sauce I made earlier in the week and I know the DC like it. We sticking to our £70 budget this week I'm excited to say for family of four eating 98% organic food
We're vegetarian which helps.

[jaabaar]

Minimalist

I read that some on here are making their own bread.
Didnt know you can mke pizza dough in breadmaker?
Is it worth buying one?

Never did as my kitchen is so small and they are huge!!

[daisychicken]

I make my own bread and pizza dough - I either do it by hand or in the Kenwood which does save time and energy! When I did have a bread maker, I just used it to make the dough (I hated the hole from the paddle and it was a faff to take it out at the right time, dough and no heat is much more forgiving!)

I have a recipe for pizza dough without yeast which we do use but we've decided we prefer the yeasted dough and it is cheaper than buying pizzas or cheap bread - I only buy bread when reduced to a good price and stock up the freezer (it's handy for those days I don't have time to make) & I've bought pizza this week for visiting children (one child would be fine as her mum uses my recipe but other child a bit iffy so I decided it was easier to just buy)

[daisychicken]

Minimalist - why serve with carrots and peas? Why not add peas to the topping and even grate the carrot on/ chop carrot finely ?

[daisychicken]

Sorry for another message - keep thinking of things to say!

Make extra dough and then cut into small circles/ separate dough into small pieces and flattern - put topping and cheese on half then bake - makes fab calzone-style pizzas, perfect for lunch boxes!

[Cheeseatmidnight]

NSD fail, just bought gingerbread men as too harassed by ankle biters to make them. Silly me

[MinimalistMommi]

daisy I have two picky eaters that like stuff separated

[MinimalistMommi]

jaa I love my breadmaker and use it most days, it's a Panasonic which makes wonderful bread. Such a money saver for us. We can make three organic loaves out of a £1.99 bag of strong flour which I think is great value. If it wasn't organic flour it would be even cheaper. It makes beautiful pizza dough too. We haven't bought bread from a shop in about three years now. The children refuse to eat 'shop pizza' now

[ExasperatedSigh]

NSD here so far, lots of rushing about though Need to post a parcel of nappies later so that will be another £30 earned. Also inspired by reading the 'best money saving tips' thread and decided I'm going to do the £2 coin jar thing. I have my first deposit ready to make, just need a jar

[wheredidiputit]

NSD here.

I had a breadmaker but got rid of it as I can not make bread to save my life. My DH describes them as deceptively heavy for their size . I can make any cakes/pastries, but bread no.

I keep thinking about buying packet mix and try in my Kenwood.

[Helenagrace]

spangle I could never make pastry until someone to me to chill it between stages. Now I make it in the food processor, chill it, roll / shape it, chill it then cook it. Now I get comments about how lovely my pastry is!

It's so easy to do in the food processor so I make double and freeze half of it.

Sometimes I turn leftover bits of casserole or hot pot into little pasties for lunch. Planning to try the calzone idea too.

[roguepixie]

jaabaar - I have had a bread maker for over 12 years and it is, by far, the most heavily used thing in my kitchen. I love it and, if it were to break today, I would be out to buy another one. It makes a loaf in just under 2 hours and pizza dough, amongst other things. They can be expensive but do eventually pay for themselves and are just so convenient.

Spendy day for me - food shopping and bought some yarn to knit a Christmas present...I'm not the fastest knitter so need time .

[MinimalistMommi]

Helen could you tell me how to make pastry in a food processor please?

[ExasperatedSigh]

Poor organisation meant I had to spend a fiver on packaging to send my parcel. Never mind though as it was a multipack of bags, so I can use them to send other stuff that gets sold.

I love my food processor. This morning I whizzed up the last of some tired and squishy berries with some yoghurt and a bit of ice cream and turned them into lollies that the kids have just had for pudding.

[Fluffycloudland77]

I've started posting small items in C5 size envelopes, I wrap the item in a bit of bubble wrap first. It counts as a large letter then rather than a parcel.

NSD.

[loopyloou]

Not a NSD here. We booked a day at a spa for today ages ago when we found out DD would be away with school camping, so had to get £15 of petrol and spent £25 (!!) on lunch - and that was only a small lasagne, one fish cake and 2 coffees, one piece of cake! Captive audience ...

I have a bread machine but rarely use it at the moment - we haven't been eating bread much, only DD and she likes shop bought sliced white I do still have flour so will have to check it's not past its use by date and maybe make pizza one day.

[ExasperatedSigh]

Fluffy This was a bundle of four nappies going to Portugal, so I wanted to be extra careful and make sure it arrived safely. I usually bundle stuff up in naice carrier bags with lots of sellotape/parcel tape.

[AdoraBell]

NSD here today

[OodPi]

Shopping day today. Pram full & laden with fruit & veg from the market £25 including bread & meat.

[AdoraBell]

Hope you got some sleep takeaway, I know it's for work, but either way that trans world flight is a killer. So lovely to be treated too, what nice friends

Today I need to Get a few bits, DDs are playing hockey Saturday and school reqiures them to take juice cartons instead of the diluted actual juice from actual fruit that I want them the have, plus chopped fruit. Will report amount Spent later.

Next week I'm going back to Pilates so will be spending a bit of money then. And there's a school Bill that OH can't Get his head around so I don't bother telling him anymore, that'll be £30

[Fluffycloudland77]

£7 today on bits I mostly didn't need. Least I didn't buy wine. Could've got away with £4 really.



There's a site called resourceful cook which I'm going to check out tomorrow.