various recipes needed! or name of a good cook book!

[Munz]

i'm after one for

pastry - both types
spag bolg sauce
chilli
Sweet and sour (if poss)
chicken stock using the carcas.

can they be frozen as well?

or is there one good cookbook (pref cheap) which will do all the standard cheap meals in ti - not intrested in fancy foods as DH is rather 'boring' when it comes to foods! lol.

Top tip: try before you buy. Go to your local library, if you like one of the books you borrow you should find you can renew it for several weeks, then once you find one you like buy a copy. Delia or Annabel Karmel might be a good place to start.

I wouldnt bother making puff pastry, but thats up to you.
short crust is easy. for 1lb pastry you need 1lb plain flour (or half of each) and half p of fat..half lard half butter
rub together to make crumbs then add enough very cold water to make dough.

simple spag bog,fry onions and brown mince the longer you brown it the better.
add garlic basil oregano and chopped toms.
You can add mushrooms if you like and sometimes I add grated carrot

I cheat with my chilli for the children I brown mince and onions as before then I use Asda chopped toms with chilli and papper and chilli beans, this has about the right heat for the children! If you want hotter add chopped chilli or chilli powder!

I am sure lots of you wonderful netters will be jumping at my lazy simpictic cooking methods!!!

sweet and sour.....use a jar!!!!! I have made my own but I find it a bit of a faff and with little time to spare and lots of hungry mouths to feed!!!

Jamie's Dinners covers a lot of the basics and is a bit more with it than Delia. Is bound to be in the halfprice bit of bookshops now christmas is over. But I still find myself refering to my 1975 version of her Complete Cookery Course for lots of things

chicken stock, litterally boil carcass covered in water. You can add some onion and veg if you like and herbs bit I leave mine plain and add what I want depending on what I am using it for.

All can be frozen
Hope thats helpful

I find these 2 sites as useful as cookery books as they cover a wide range and lots of styles. And they will cover the basics as well

bbc site here

uktv site

Also the best cookery book I found for teaching all the things like stock, pastry and other type things is the penguin cookery book
this is the updated version but according to the reviews is still basically the same

Lots of people recommend Delia's complete cookery course. Similar basis - good book to have around even if you can cook as it tells you how to do the basics of everything.
Delia

chicken stock

ooh thanks girls! the 1970's book sounds fab - the excat thing my DH would love! i'm sure he think's we're like the good's from goodlife sometimes. anyhow. AM - no complaints from me I need good quick meals esp as I have J in the highchair eating a snack and about 30 mins to prepare anything before he wants to get out and grab my ankles again! lol.

will be having a good look this avo as i'km on a cooking fetish whilst DH is watching J for me.

Munz, if you have a Morrisons near you they sell the Be-Ro cookbook in the baking aisle - it is small (leaflet-sized) so fits in the cutlery drawer, and has loads of brilliant, basic recipes in it (basically, anything that needs flour!). Only costs a couple of quid too.

this is what it looks like

The Be-Ro website here is very good too.

Is it the same as the book?

I make their 'rich biscuits' all the time, very easy and good for the dd's to help with.

Ooh yes, be-ro book is ace for baking.

At a very quick glance I would say yes, it is the same, Lucycat

thanks miaow have just got a copy from ebay - they have 40's ones as well, is it really the old traditioanl cooking recipes then? was only £3.00 with free P&P so pleased with that. thanks.

i have the Dinner Lady by Jeanette Orrey

basic recipes aimed at families

easy recipes, not a lot of ingredients, good wholesome food etc

Yes, it's really easy, basic, traditional stuff, including things like quiche and pork pies as well as cakes and pastry! I use it more than any other cookbook.