Spicy rice-much nicer this way

Dear reader,

I forgot to tell you. Yesterday I was in a lovely Indian families home. There was some cooking taking place and me being me sniffed it out enquiring, "Ooh, that smells nice, what are you cooking?"
This usually gets you a sample of the dish, oh I know all the tricks!

I enjoyed a plate full of the nicest rice with a bowl of yoghurt on the side.
I obviously asked the recipe and did it last night when I got home.

For years I have been boiling plain rice, rinsing it afterwards,maybe adding a bit of something after, egg fried rice, some vegetables but it always tastes, well, like plain, boiled rice. Now don't get me wrong, that's just what a recipes calls for sometimes but this is the new way for me.

Use one part rice to two parts water. So just use one small cup for two people and use the same cup for two cup fulls of water.

Rinse the rice first. I did this three times before the water ran clear. This removes all the starch and stops it being sticky and gloopy after cooking.

Heat a tablespoon or so of oil in a saucepan and fry the following, you can use whatever you like out of these but an onion is a must!
Chopped onion, chopped garlic clove, (do not get cloves muddled with bulbs as my friend did once when a recipe called for 3 cloves!) chopped fresh ginger, a little chilli-fresh or powder, some cumin seeds.
For me, the onion and cumin are the must haves. I buy a big bag, dried, they last for ages.

Fry gently until the onion is golden brown. This is the key. It must go brown and slightly crispy.

Add the rice and stir around to coat it in all the onion and spices.

Add the water-turn down the hob to the lowest setting and put the lid on the pan. You can do this or get to a boil and then turn it off. Takes slightly longer but less fuel.

Return a couple of times to check and stir. Add more water (only a little) if not sticking.

When cooked as you like your rice, fluff up with a fork and serve. No rinsing as you did this at the start.

I am doing all our rice like this now. You can change the recipe to how you wish, perhaps adding some sultanas or chopped egg at the end or some cooked meat or prawns and making it a complete meal.

Enjoy. X

What's in my fridge and freezer will have to last us.

Dear reader,

Decided to have a lazy weekend. I will be working 12 hours a day next week-60 hours in total so am giving myself a lie in this morning. (It's 8am.) I have made tea and put a load of washing on.
The sun is shining and I have gone back to bed to relax and catch up with some reading.
There's a gentle breeze coming through the window and big man is gently snoring beside me.

I will have to plan ahead with some easy dinners for next week. I have got the following in the fridge and freezer.

One whole chicken (free range from Lidl)
Chicken thighs and drumsticks
3 packs of bacon
4 pork steaks (frozen)
Cooked steak and kidney (frozen)
2 portions of cottage pie (frozen)
2 portions of chilli made with Quorn (frozen)
4 portions of faggotts (frozen)
2 veggie sausages (frozen)
Bag of Quorn mince (frozen)
4 frozen spinach and feta pasties.

8 pints of milk
12 eggs
Block of feta cheese
Pack of cheese triangles


Fresh spinach
Pack of carrots
Potatoes
Pears
Peaches
Apples
Frozen mixed veg (nice stuff not the diced stuff) ( am still a bit worried what people think about frozen veg-snob!)
Frozen summer fruits(1/4 pack left)
Frozen oven chips (I know but good for emergency)

2 loaves w/m bread
Pasta
Rice (lots) the cheapest way to buy this is not, as you would think in a large sack but at 40p a bag at Lidl. Nothing fancy, just plain, white rice.

Lots of sauces, pesto, curry pastes, BBQ Maggi bags, Maggi breadcrumbs for chicken,
Stir fry sauces, loads of curry powders and spices and various tins. Mostly tomatoes and baked beans, sweetcorn, new potatoes and carrots for emergencies, tins of sardines (big mans) 2 part baked baguettes.
10 bags of fruit and nuts (big mans)

Will be thinking, planning and plotting how to make the best use of all this. This has to feed us both for 7 breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Big man has a lot and I am no stranger to the larger portion.
Big man does bodybuilding so on a normal day he will have
Porridge ( a huge bowl with golden syrup or some fruit-made with milk)
Cooked chicken with rice and vegetables, sardine salad, sandwiches, fruit. ( this is lunch)
Dinner-cottage pie and veg, fruit and nuts, fruit.

I have something like
Cereal or toast
Sandwich and a salad (probably crisps, sometimes a choc bar or biscuits at work-I know, I know)
Same dinner as big man

It helps me when I write it down like this as I can see what I have.
I will complete a meal plan later today.

I watched Nigel Slater last night. I do like him. Some very nice cooking does Nigel and I like the kitchen he uses too.
Have you seen the film about him, Toast? Very good, a little sad in places but all about his childhood and how he started cooking and why. If you don't like Nigel, I think you will after watching this.

Much love. X

Quick baked cheescake

Dear reader,

Long day at work, up at 5am. I am not a morning person.
I was pleased I had done all that cooking yesterday. We took cooked chicken to work today with salad for me and rice and veggies for big man.
When we got home I heated the cottage pie while I cooked some frozen chips. I did baked beans and we had cheesey chips and beans with the pie. Very good.

I had some cream cheese and sour cream in the fridge after cooking a cheesecake last week. I fancied making another one but only had 250g pack of the cheese. I went ahead anyway and added 150g spur cream, two eggs, 175g caster sugar and two tiablespoons of flour. Supposed to be plain but I wanted to see what SR did. I whisked it all in the food processor which I also used for the digestive biscuits. (I used 8 as I like a deep base)
It was fine without the extra cheese, the recipes calls for 600g. It rose beautifully then sank a bit but it gave me a nice edge so could top it with a tin of caramel and some sliced bananas.
I only topped the bit we were eating tonight as I didn't want the banana to go brown.

Er, the diet? Hmmm, next week.

Thanks for all your lovely comments from yesterday.

Love from Bucks.

X

Batch cooking part 2.

Blasted thing stops me continuing on a long post.

As I was saying, I made a spicy tomato sauce. I cut some of the cheese scones open and did cheese and tomato relish. They look a bit like cream and jam don't they?

I also had a large jar of the sauce, I just used this plastic pot for the surplus.

I also cooked a load of drumsticks and stripped the meat from them. We both prefer chicken on the bone as we find the breasts a bit bland and much cheaper too. We will use this cold for salads, sandwiches or just with some rice and veg for big man. (Weight training stuff)

We had steak for dinner. I know, I know, not very frugal but it was cheap from Lidl.

(Bloody tough too) (sirloin)

I was pleased with my efforts today and hopefully this will keep us with lots to take for packed lunches. 

I have been e baying a lot of stuff lately that's why I have been away. All was going quite well until I had the misfortune to have a buyer from hell. 

Not doing it anymore, rude people who all want something for nothing. I would rather give it to charity. 

And Yvonne - you are a rude and nasty person. I wouldn't sell you my toenail clippings let alone a lovely dress.

Ah that feels sweet. Ommmmmm.

Much love

FIB. X

Batch cooking to save time and money

Dear reader,
You may have read of a September challenge that both Karen at Chelmarsh Chunterings and SFT are doing. You do 3 weeks worth of shopping and save the fourth weeks money. Stretch it September I believe.
I had the last 2 days off as I worked the weekend and got up with big man this morning at 4am as he was in work very early.
I had been googling for new ideas for packed lunches. The trouble with us is we take a sandwich then eat it about 11am then by 2 or 3 we are hungry again which then costs us money.
We work very long hours, sometimes 13 and 18 is not unheard of. We have to eat on the go and a sandwich, crisps and a drink for the 2 of us from a petrol station is a lot of pennies. Er, about 1200 pennies actually.
I am determined to provide more for,our lunches and got cracking in the kitchen first thing.
First I did my usual of peeling a load of onions and freezing them in my muffin tray for easy cooking another time. This is a huge time saver for me and the little cakes are just right for throwing into a stir fry, a curry a stew.

Then I made pastry. I only started making my own last week and follow the food processor method, so quick. Flour, butter, water. I leave the salt out.
I made spinach and feta pasties to take to work. I fried some onion then wilted a big bag of spinach and crumbled feta (Lidl own). My lovely mum bought me some pastie making cutters and crimper a. Brilliant!

  

Then I did a chilli using Quorn mince, onion, chilli sauce, tinned tomatoes and a tin of beans. Hot hot

We will take this to work so I froze two portions and then one larger for a home dinner.

Shepherds pie or is it cottage pie I think with beef?

Peeled and boiled potatoes, fried the mince with onion, stock cube and added some frozen veg to bulk it out a bit. Topped with the mash and cooked. Again, half for work lunch half for home dinner which we will have tomorrow.

I grated a huge block of cheese as I had the food processor out. I always do this as its handy and we use less.

I was really going for it and made cheese scones. Never done this before and very easy. Didn't make them thick enough so a bit flat but boy did they taste good with a scraping of butter while still warm.

I pottered into the garden for a break and noticed a load of ripe tomatoes. I fancied making some sort of chutney/relish after reading Frugal Queen last week. 

I found this recipe which is for a spicy one.

It 

The Queen has been

Dear reader,

Just in from work....am so excited. She's been!

I sound like a child waiting for the tooth fairy, no, Frugal Queen.

Wow, when you read about someone every day it feels like they're a bit famous! I am honoured.

Thanks to Froogs, we have saved a fortune on heating as we copied her, got a log burner and just heat the lounge and shut the door in the winter.

I bulk cook and save time and money. We have both had a really long day and I have just microwaved some homemade faggotts and onion gravy-thanks to Froogs again.

We have a lot of debt to pay off and we are doing it-after reading about Froogs.

It's so lovely to receive comments on my blog, I still get a buzz when you write something.
So to you all, famous, frugal or just passing by-thank you.

Ps. I have joined SFT on her September challenge. Buy for 3 weeks but eat for 4. See how we are going to do that Here

Need sleep, speak tomorrow. X

Eat less do more

Dear reader,

Thank you for all your lovely comments on my previous post.
I think I should make it clear that said "old bag" is most certainly not Froogs. It may have been a bit misleading. I'm sure she would laugh if she read it. (I don't think she reads me and I would feel a bit star struck if she did!)

The quiche was cut into portions and frozen and two pieces were taken to work today and eaten. I was really surprised at how sweet our little homegrown and sundried (in the oven) tomatoes tasted.

You may have noticed that my credit card bill counter has gone up. I had put some debts onto it as its interest free. Big man and I are striving to clear another debt we have that charges interest first. Therefore, my counter for my credit card will sit there a while. It will be good for me to see it regularly especially when I fancy a holiday!

The £5 that I nearly spent at the canteen has gone into the sealed pot challenge which we do with SFT and we have decided that for a bit of a laugh we will pay whatever is in there off our mortgage. We had said we would spend it on a short break but we are trying to be good. I say a bit of a laugh as the mortgage is big and the pot contents won't touch it but we will feel good and every little helps.

As I tied my trainer laces this morning I was stopped from bending down by a big scarey monster!

With much regret I have to admit it was my stomach. I have been coming up with every excuse to not lose weight but cannot continue. I am trying to tell myself that I only have one body and must look after it, especially as I may have to work for many more years.

Any tips for pep talking myself into losing weight. I would like to lose 3 stones. Do you reckon I can do it by Christmas or is that too quick?

FIB. X

Old bag inspires me to bake

Dear reader,

Long day just got home as a lorry had turned over on the M40 and dropped a load of household rubbish. 7 hours it was closed for.

Anyway, just got in at 9pm and while having a cup of tea had a quick read of blogs. Clicked onto Frugal Queen as I do every day. She had a couple of lovely looking quiches and some homemade bread.

I had felt hungry at work and at lunchtime had gone to the canteen and asked for the vegetable curry. The woman serving looked at me with such disdain that I to.d her not to bother. They are always like that in my works canteen but I decided there and then that I would never use the canteen again.

Back to Froogs quiches, I have never made my own pastry but had all the ingredients and fuelled by my having the severe hump with the canteen woman I set to using my food processor.
It made a good lump of pastry which I left in the fridge for about 15 minutes. It said half an hour but couldn't wait that long.

I made two while cooking kofta kebabs and boiling some potatoes. I blind baked them for 5 mins first. I don't have baking beans or marbles and to be honest after being out for 12 hours I couldn't be bothered. I pricked the bases and they were fine. I beat some eggs, topped up with a splash of milk and topped them with some dried tomatoes I had done in the oven, sliced mushrooms I bought reduced and grated cheese.
I kind of draped the pastry over the edges and you can see I have hacked it off with a knife afterwards.

So thanks rude canteen lady, you inspired me to make my own pastry, you have saved me money, the crumpled fiver that I didn't really want to spend can go in my sealed pot and I won't be returning to your bland old slop again. (We only eat it when we are desparate) and one last thing, you need to seriously think about facial waxing!

 With that lovely thought, here are my quiches.

Goodnight. X

The study photo

Dear reader,

I should have shown the actual picture of the study to give you an idea of how it looks without the arch.

In case you thought we had kept the arch and the border!

Have a great day.


X

Shabby chic in the study

Dear reader,

Our first attempt at shabby chic. Big man is of the rub it down, rub it down some more, primer, rub it down, undercoat, rub it down, two coats and ready. Many, many hours of slog later.

Me? Slap it on and go girl I am.

I wanted a shabby chic, Cath Kidston sort of girlie study/reading room.

Here's what we did.......

Take one old fashioned hallway.

Move in and rip out the fake archway plus a whole load of other stuff. (See new credit card limit)

Buy and old wooden chair and a cushion from the bootsale. £11

Buy and old desk from the homeless charity furniture warehouse £15

Slap all over in no particular way with Annie Sloan chalk paint then wax.

Looks a lot more patchy in the pics and perhaps more shabby than chic bit I love it.

Next is a wooden set of drawers.

Do you change old stuff? I think the trendy word is now, up cycling.

Much love

X

DIY furniture part 1.

Dear reader,

We needed some new furniture for our house. When we moved in we created a small study from a very long double hallway. Now we needed to kit it out.

Some time ago I found a really pretty little chair at our local boot sale. It was dark, old wood but really cute. Big man rubbed it all down and painted it white for me.
You may recall I really wanted a Cath Kidston cushion for the seat of it. One of the nice, pretty floral patterns. I went into the shop and found the perfect one. Sadly, my good mood changed when I was told the price was just for the cover and the pad inside was extra. Humpffff

That was ages ago and I was so pleased to get the exact same one at the boot sale last weekend WITH    
THE CUSHION inside for £4.

We have also managed to obtain a nice pine desk, you know the slightly orange ones that everyone had in the 90's. £15 bargain.
Also found a very pretty set of drawers that will go in the spare room. Very old, dark wood £35.

Tomorrow is paint day so I will update you with before and after pictures.

Bit late now for blogging but just wanted to say a quick hello as I have been absent for some time.

Much love
X

Missed you all x

My lovely blogging friends, oh how I have missed you all.

Nothing wrong here in Bucks just major busy at work and being a frugal chick I can't turn down the overtime! It won't last long so have to go for it now.

Thank you to Karen at Chelmarsh Chunderings and Saving for travel (SFT) for your sweet welfare checks on me. Much love to you both. Xxxx

SFT I am keen to show you my sealed pot but the e mail didn't seem to go, can you send me another message which I won't publish, with it again?

Much love to you all

Tired and that's making me hungry!

FIB. X